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Activation of a cryptic crystal protein gene of Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies kurstaki by gene fusion and determination of the crystal protein insecticidal specificity
Author(s) -
Dankocsik C.,
Donovan W. P.,
Jany C. S.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
molecular microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.857
H-Index - 247
eISSN - 1365-2958
pISSN - 0950-382X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2958.1990.tb00569.x
Subject(s) - bacillus thuringiensis , biology , lymantria dispar , gene , microbiology and biotechnology , recombinant dna , subspecies , trichoplusia , fusion gene , fusion protein , genetics , botany , lepidoptera genitalia , bacteria , noctuidae , paleontology
Summary DNA hybridization with the insecticidal crystal protein gene cryIIA (formerly cryBI ) of Bacillus thuringiensis supspecies kurstaki has shown that subspecies kurstaki contains a cryIIA ‐related sequence in addition to the cryIIA gene (Donovan et al. , 1988a). We have cloned the cryIIA ‐related sequence and have determined that the sequence, which has been designated cryIIB , is 89% identical to the cryIIA gene. Recombinant B. thuringiensis cells harbouring the cloned cryIIB gene produced very little CryIIB protein. A high level of production of the CryIIB protein was achieved by fusing the regulatory region of the cryIIIA crystal protein gene to the cryIIB gene. The CryIIB protein was found to be highly toxic to Lymantria dispar, Heliothis virescens and Trichoplusia ni , and was not toxic to Aedes aegypti.