The Widely Conserved ebo Cluster Is Involved in Precursor Transport to the Periplasm during Scytonemin Synthesis in Nostoc punctiforme.

ABSTRACT: Scytonemin is a dimeric indole-phenol sunscreen synthesized by some cyanobacteria under conditions of exposure to UVA radiation. While its biosynthetic pathway has been elucidated only partially, comparative genomics reveals that the scytonemin operon often contains a cluster of five highly conserved genes (ebo cluster) of unknown function that is widespread and conserved among several bacterial and algal phyla. We sought to elucidate the function of the ebo cluster in the cyanobacterium Nostoc punctiforme by constructing and analyzing in-frame deletion mutants (one for each ebo gene and one for the entire cluster). Under conditions of UVA induction, all ebo mutants were scytoneminless, and all accumulated a single compound, the scytonemin monomer, clearl

SUBMITTER: Klicki K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6282210 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature