Characterization of the Streptococcus mutans SMU.1703c-SMU.1702c Operon Reveals Its Role in Riboflavin Import and Response to Acid Stress.

ABSTRACT: Streptococcus mutans utilizes numerous metabolite transporters to obtain essential nutrients in the "feast or famine" environment of the human mouth. S. mutans and most other streptococci are considered auxotrophic for several essential vitamins including riboflavin (vitamin B₂), which is used to generate key cofactors and to perform numerous cellular redox reactions. Despite the well-known contributions of this vitamin to central metabolism, little is known about how S. mutans obtains and metabolizes B₂ The uncharacterized protein SMU.1703c displays high sequence homology to the riboflavin transporter RibU. Deletion of SMU.1703c hindered S. mutans growth in complex and defined medium in the absence of saturating levels of exogenous

SUBMITTER: Turner ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7950412 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature