ISSN:
1574-6976
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Abstract: The genus Clostridium, represented by Gram-positive, anaerobic, spore-forming bacteria, is well known for its clinical importance and considerable biotechnological potential. Recently, evidence for a functional role of the transcription factors σA, σE, σG, and σK in this genus was provided by cloning and sequencing these genes from C. acetobutylicum. In C. kluyveri, a partially sequenced open reading frame was found to encode the N terminus of the putative σ factor L with significant similarity to members of the σ54 family. The identification of sequences with high similarity to the BacillusσF (C. acetobutylicum), σH (several clostridial species), and σD (C. thermocellum)-controlled consensus promoters renders the existence of these transcription factors in clostridia very likely. These data are in agreement with information obtained by RNA transcript mapping (σA, σH), heterologous DNA hybridization (σD, σH), and immuno characterization of purified proteins (σA) from various clostridial species. Thus, the picture emerges that a fundamental similarity exists at the genetic level between the regulation of various cellular responses, in particular sporulation, in the genera Bacillus and Clostridium. The different induction patterns of sporulation in Bacillus spp. (nutrient starvation) and many clostridial species (cessation of growth or exposure to oxygen in the presence of excess nutrients) are most interestingly not reflected in the general regulatory features of this developmental process.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-6976.1995.tb00216.x
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