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The bvg ‐dependent promoters show similar behaviour in different Bordetella species and share sequence homologies
Author(s) -
Scarlato V.,
Prugnola A.,
Aricò B.,
Rappuoli R.
Publication year - 1991
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.1365-2958.1991.tb02094.x
Subject(s) - biology , promoter , sequence (biology) , genetics , gene , gene expression
Summary The expression of the virulence‐associated genes in Bordetella species is co‐ordinately regulated by the gene products encoded by the bvg locus. In Bordetella pertussis the expression of this locus is regulated by the P 1 , P 2 , P 3 and P 4 promoters which are located in a 350bp DNA fragment also containing the PFHA promoter. Here we report the transcriptional regulation of the bvg locus and the fha gene in Bordetella paraper‐tussis and a sequence analysis of the byg‐regulated promoters. The P p1 , P p2 , P p4 and P pFHA promoters are indistinguishable, both in transcription initiation sites and environmental regulation, from the corresponding promoters of B. pertussis , while the P p3 promoter is not active. Sequence homologies from nine bvg‐regulated promoters show a conserved dinucleotide, 5′‐TG‐3′, at approximately one turn of helix upstream of the ‐10 5′‐A.AaTat‐3’region, and a 5′‐TTTCC‐3’sequence in the ‐90 region. Since the nucleotide sequence of the inactive Pp3 promoter shows several base substitutions with respect to the found sequence homologies, it is likely that some of these bases play an essential role in promoter activity.