Regulation by Two CatR Proteins that Differ in Binding Affinity to catB Promoters Expressing Two cat Gene Clusters

We isolated the two LysR-type regulatory proteins CatR1 and CatR2, which regulate the expression of cat1 and cat2 gene clusters, respectively, required for catechol degradation in the bacterium Frateuria sp. ANA-18. In a gel mobility shift assay using CatR1 and the DNA fragment containing the catB1 promoter region, the formation of two complexes, complex 1-1 (C1-1) and complex 1-2 (C1-2), was observed in the presence of cis,cis-muconate. On the other hand, CatR2 and the DNA fragment containing the catB2 promoter region formed only complex 2-2 (C2-2) at a lower concentration of cis,cis-muconate than that at which C1-1 and C1-2 were formed. As the concentration of cis,cis-muconate decreased, the production of the muconate cycloisomerase isozyme MC II encoded by catB2 decreased as well as that of MC I encoded by catB1. However, the amount of MC II synthesized was larger than that of MC I at low concentrations. On the basis of these results, we concluded that the catB2 promoter was activated at low concentrations of cis,cis-muconate.