Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:2.7.7.6 (RNA polymerase)
34,946 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We have identified an RNA polymerase sigma factor, sigmaR, that is part of a system that senses and responds to thiol oxidation in the Gram-positive, antibiotic-producing bacterium Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). Deletion of the gene (sigR) encoding sigmaR caused sensitivity to the thiol-specific oxidant diamide and to the redox cycling compounds menadione and plumbagin. This correlated with reduced levels of disulfide reductase activity and an inability to induce this activity on exposure to diamide. The trxBA operon, encoding thioredoxin reductase and thioredoxin, was found to be under the direct control of sigmaR. trxBA is transcribed from two promoters, trxBp1 and trxBp2, separated by 5-6 bp. trxBp1 is transiently induced at least 50-fold in response to diamide treatment in a sigR-dependent manner. Purified sigmaR directed transcription from trxBp1 in vitro, indicating that trxBp1 is a target for sigmaR. Transcription of sigR itself initiates at two promoters, sigRp1 and sigRp2, which are separated by 173 bp. The sigRp2 transcript was undetectable in a sigR-null mutant, and purified sigmaR could direct transcription from sigRp2 in vitro, indicating that sigR is positively autoregulated. Transcription from sigRp2 was also transiently induced (70-fold) following treatment with diamide. We propose a model in which sigmaR induces expression of the thioredoxin system in response to cytoplasmic disulfide bond formation. Upon reestablishment of normal thiol levels, sigmaR activity is switched off, resulting in down-regulation of trxBA and sigR. We present evidence that the sigmaR system also functions in the actinomycete pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
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PMID:sigmaR, an RNA polymerase sigma factor that modulates expression of the thioredoxin system in response to oxidative stress in Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). 975 77

Multidrug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection is now world wide health problem. However, according to the recent advances of molecular biological technics, some of the genetic mechanisms of drug-resistance of M. tuberculosis has been uncovered. Generally, drug-resistance of M. tuberculosis was caused by point mutations in chromosomal gene. In isoniazid (INH) resistant M. tuberculosis, mutations and genetic deletions in catalase-peroxidase gene (katG), inhA gene, or alkyl hydroperoxide reductase gene were reported. We also found that about 15% of INH-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates lacked katG gene, and these isolates showed highly resistance to INH with MIC > or = 64 micrograms/ml. On the other hand, mutations and other genetic alterations in RNA polymerase beta subunit gene (rpoB) were the major mechanisms of resistance to rifampicin (RFP) with high frequencies of 90% or more. Our evaluation of the relationship between RFP susceptibility and genetic alteration in rpoB gene also showed that 95% of RFP-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates involved genetic alterations in 69 bp core region of rpoB gene. Moreover, these genetic alterations in rpoB gene were suspected as the resistant mechanism to other rifamycin antituberculosis drugs, such as rifabutin and KRM-1648. In addition, it was reported that point mutations in 16S rRNA gene (rrs) and ribosomal protein S12 gene (rpsL) induced M. tuberculosis as streptomycin (SM) resistant phenotype. We analyzed genetic alternations in rpsL gene of clinically isolates of M. tuberculosis, about 60% of SM resistant isolates were shown point mutation in this gene ant they were all high SM-resistant with MIC > or = 256 micrograms/ml. Furthermore, nicotinamidase (pncA) gene, DNA gyrase A subunit (gyrA) gene, and embB gene were reported as the responsible gene to pyrazinamide-, quinolone- and ethambutol-resistance, respectively. Although all mechanisms of drug-resistance were still unclear, these informations are very useful and helpful for development of rapid diagnosis system of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis.
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PMID:[Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. 2. Mechanisms of drug-resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis--genetic mechanisms of drug-resistance]. 986 28

The sigA and sigB genes of Mycobacterium tuberculosis encode two sigma 70-like sigma factors of RNA polymerase. While transcription of the sigA gene is growth rate independent, sigB transcription is increased during entry into stationary phase. The sigA gene transcription is unresponsive to environmental stress but that of sigB is very responsive, more so in stationary-phase growth than in log-phase cultures. These data suggest that SigA is a primary sigma factor which, like sigma70, controls the transcription of the housekeeping type of promoters. In contrast, SigB, although showing some overlap in function with SigA, is more like the alternative sigma factor, sigmaS, which controls the transcription of the gearbox type of promoters. Primer extension analysis identified the RNA start sites for both genes as 129 nucleotides upstream to the GTG start codon of sigA and 27 nucleotides from the ATG start codon of sigB. The -10 promoter of sigA but not that of sigB was similar to the sigma70 promoter. The half-life of the sigA transcript was very long, and this is likely to play an important part in its regulation. In contrast, the half-life of the sigB transcript was short, about 2 min. These results demonstrate that the sigB gene may control the regulons of stationary phase and general stress resistance, while sigA may be involved in the housekeeping regulons.
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PMID:Transcription of two sigma 70 homologue genes, sigA and sigB, in stationary-phase Mycobacterium tuberculosis. 988 60

According to the recent advances of molecular biological technics, some of the genetic mechanisms of drug-resistance of Mycobacteria has been uncovered. Generally, drug-resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis was caused by point mutations in chromosomal gene. In isoniazid (INH) resistant M. tuberculosis, mutations and genetic deletions in catalase-peroxidase gene (katG), inhA gene, or alkyl hydroperoxide reductase gene were reported. On the other hand, mutations and other genetic alterations in RNA polymerase beta subunit gene (rpoB) were the major mechanisms of resistance to rifampicin (RFP) with high frequencies of 90% or more. Moreover, these genetic alterations in rpoB gene were suspected as the resistant mechanism to other rifamycin antituberculosis drugs, such as rifabutin. In addition, it was reported that point mutations in 16S rRNA gene (rrs) and ribosomal protein S12 gene (rpsL) induced M. tuberculosis as streptomycin (SM) resistant phenotype. Furthermore, nicotinamidase (pncA) gene, DNA gyrase A subunit (gyrA) gene, and embB gene were reported as the responsible gene to pyrazinamide-, quinolone- and ethambutol-resistance, respectively. Although all mechanisms of drug-resistance were still unclear, these information are very useful and helpful for development of rapid diagnosis system of drug-resistant M. tuberculosis.
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PMID:[Mechanisms of drug-resistance in mycobacteria]. 988 3

Three medieval bone samples with osteological evidence of tuberculosis infection were analysed for the presence of DNA sequences from Mycobacterium tuberculosis using a series of PCRs. In each case amplification of IS6110 and part of the beta-subunit of RNA polymerase identified infection with a bacterium belonging to the M. tuberculosis complex. Amplification of the mtp40 genome fragment and the presence of a guanine residue at position 285 in the oxyR pseudogene, demonstrated the infecting strain to be similar to present day M. tuberculosis isolates rather than to Mycobacterium bovis. Spoligotyping, based on amplification of the direct repeat (DR) region of the mycobacterial genome, provided further evidence of similarity to M. tuberculosis and indicated a close relationship between isolates associated with two separate medieval burials. The study demonstrates the feasibility of amplifying multiple M. tuberculosis loci in ancient human remains and suggests important applications in the study of the palaeoepidemiology and virulence of tuberculosis in past populations.
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PMID:Genotypic analysis of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from medieval human remains. 1022 Jan 69

An mRNA differential display (DD) assay was developed to compare gene expression between Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv and its avirulent mutant H37Ra. The DD protocol made use of an oligo(dT) to prime reverse-transcriptase (RT)-dependent transcription of poly-A tailed mRNAs and a PCR amplification of the RT products by using ten 12-base arbitrary primers in all their pair combinations. This analysis yielded 745 and 708 bands, including 52 and 15 differentially generated bands, in the strains H37Rv and H37Ra, respectively. Six cDNAs that appeared to be expressed in H37Rv, but not in H37Ra, were reamplified and cloned and at least 10 inserts were sequenced for each cloned cDNA. After resolving discrepant results, 6 inserts were found highly homologous to M. tuberculosis H37Rv genes. Three of these, i.e., genes Rv2770c, Rv1345, and Rv0288, coding respectively for a member of the PPE protein family, a probable polyketide synthase, and a member of the protein family containing ESAT-6, have been predictively associated to immunological or pathogenetic aspects of M. tuberculosis infection; the other genes, i.e., Rv2336, Rv1320c, and Rv2819c, code for proteins with unknown functions. These results show that mRNA DD methodology can represent a potential tool for investigation of M. tuberculosis gene expression.
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PMID:Search for genes potentially involved in Mycobacterium tuberculosis virulence by mRNA differential display. 1022 41

For the differentiation and identification of mycobacterial species, the rpoB gene, encoding the beta subunit of RNA polymerase, was investigated. rpoB DNAs (342 bp) were amplified from 44 reference strains of mycobacteria and clinical isolates (107 strains) by PCR. The nucleotide sequences were directly determined (306 bp) and aligned by using the multiple alignment algorithm in the MegAlign package (DNASTAR) and the MEGA program. A phylogenetic tree was constructed by the neighbor-joining method. Comparative sequence analysis of rpoB DNAs provided the basis for species differentiation within the genus Mycobacterium. Slowly and rapidly growing groups of mycobacteria were clearly separated, and each mycobacterial species was differentiated as a distinct entity in the phylogenetic tree. Pathogenic Mycobacterium kansasii was easily differentiated from nonpathogenic M. gastri; this differentiation cannot be achieved by using 16S rRNA gene (rDNA) sequences. By being grouped into species-specific clusters with low-level sequence divergence among strains of the same species, all of the clinical isolates could be easily identified. These results suggest that comparative sequence analysis of amplified rpoB DNAs can be used efficiently to identify clinical isolates of mycobacteria in parallel with traditional culture methods and as a supplement to 16S rDNA gene analysis. Furthermore, in the case of M. tuberculosis, rifampin resistance can be simultaneously determined.
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PMID:Identification of mycobacterial species by comparative sequence analysis of the RNA polymerase gene (rpoB). 1032 13

Drug-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a major threat to public health. In clinical practice, a limited number of resistance mutations in a short sequence of the beta subunit of RNA polymerase (encoded by rpoB) have been described. Spontaneous resistance to rifampin was induced in vitro in M. tuberculosis H37Rv (ATCC 9360). Only three resistance patterns could be detected by PCR-single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. Sequence analysis revealed that Ser(531)-->Leu arose most frequently, followed by His(526)-->Arg and then either His(526)-->Tyr or His(526)-->Asp. The relative Darwinian fitness of all but one of the mutant genotypes was less than that of the susceptible parent and, for these mutations, there was a significant correlation between fitness and clinical isolation rate (regression analysis P = 0.026). The fitness deficit in some mutants was small, suggesting that there is little likelihood of a spontaneous reversion to susceptibility.
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PMID:Physiological cost of rifampin resistance induced in vitro in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. 1042 4

Inorganic polyphosphate (poly P) is a chain of tens or many hundreds of phosphate (Pi) residues linked by high-energy phosphoanhydride bonds. Despite inorganic polyphosphate's ubiquity--found in every cell in nature and likely conserved from prebiotic times--this polymer has been given scant attention. Among the reasons for this neglect of poly P have been the lack of sensitive, definitive, and facile analytical methods to assess its concentration in biological sources and the consequent lack of demonstrably important physiological functions. This review focuses on recent advances made possible by the introduction of novel, enzymatically based assays. The isolation and ready availability of Escherichia coli polyphosphate kinase (PPK) that can convert poly P and ADP to ATP and of a yeast exopolyphosphatase that can hydrolyze poly P to Pi, provide highly specific, sensitive, and facile assays adaptable to a high-throughput format. Beyond the reagents afforded by the use of these enzymes, their genes, when identified, mutated, and overexpressed, have offered insights into the physiological functions of poly P. Most notably, studies in E. coli reveal large accumulations of poly P in cellular responses to deficiencies in an amino acid, Pi, or nitrogen or to the stresses of a nutrient downshift or high salt. The ppk mutant, lacking PPK and thus severely deficient in poly P, also fails to express RpoS (a sigma factor for RNA polymerase), the regulatory protein that governs > or = 50 genes responsible for stationary-phase adaptations to resist starvation, heat and oxidant stresses, UV irradiation, etc. Most dramatically, ppk mutants die after only a few days in stationary phase. The high degree of homology of the PPK sequence in many bacteria, including some of the major pathogenic species (e.g. Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Neisseria meningitidis, Helicobacter pylori, Vibrio cholerae, Salmonella typhimurium, Shigella flexneri, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bordetella pertussis, and Yersinia pestis), has prompted the knockout of their ppk gene to determine the dependence of virulence on poly P and the potential of PPK as a target for antimicrobial drugs. In yeast and mammalian cells, exo- and endopolyphosphatases have been identified and isolated, but little is known about the synthesis of poly P or its physiologic functions. Whether microbe or human, all species depend on adaptations in the stationary phase, which is truly a dynamic phase of life. Most research is focused on the early and reproductive phases of organisms, which are rather brief intervals of rapid growth. More attention needs to be given to the extensive period of maturity. Survival of microbial species depends on being able to manage in the stationary phase. In view of the universality and complexity of basic biochemical mechanisms, it would be surprising if some of the variety of poly P functions observed in microorganisms did not apply to aspects of human growth and development, to aging, and to the aberrations of disease. Of theoretical interest regarding poly P is its antiquity in prebiotic evolution, which along with its high energy and phosphate content, make it a plausible precursor to RNA, DNA, and proteins. Practical interest in poly P includes many industrial applications, among which is the microbial removal of Pi in aquatic environments.
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PMID:Inorganic polyphosphate: a molecule of many functions. 1087 45

Mycobacteria are intracellular pathogens that survive and grow in host macrophages. Following phagocytosis, sustained intracellular bacterial growth depends on its ability to avoid destruction by macrophage-mediated host defences such as lysosomal enzymes, reactive oxygen and the reactive nitrogen intermediates. This suggests that the interaction between host cell and microbe is delicately balanced, and can be tipped in favour of either organism. The identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv (MTB) genes expressed within host cells would contribute greatly to the development of new strategies to fight tuberculosis. In the present study, we compared MTB gene expression in the course of intra- (human macrophages) and extracellular growth (Sauton's medium) to ascertain whether differences might occur between gene-expression patterns in the two habitats of replication. Using reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) on a group of 14 MTB-Complex-specific genes, we found that MT10Sa (a small stable RNA), 35 kDa (unknown), ahpC (alkyl hydroperoxide reductase, AhpC), sigF (alternative RNA Polymerase sigma factor), and katG (catalase-peroxidase, HPI) genes are expressed in both the environments, while Ag85B, Ag85C (members of the Antigen 85 Complex), rpoV (RNA Polymerase sigma factor) and ESAT6 (early secretory antigen, 6 kDa) are expressed only in the in vitro culture; on the other hand, Ag85A (Antigen 85 Complex), rpoB (RNA Polymerase beta sub-unit), pab (Protein antigen b), invA and invB genes (encoding proteins that show homologies with p60 of Listeria monocytogenes) are expressed only inside the macrophage. Positive RT-PCR products on cDNAs for these genomic regions were not obtained from approximately 1000-fold more bacteria grown in Laboratory Broth. Identification of M. tuberculosis genes expressed in response to phagocytosis by human macrophages increases our basic understanding of the host-pathogen interaction, and helps to identify bacterial factors necessary for in vivo survival and growth.
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PMID:Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv comparative gene-expression analysis in synthetic medium and human macrophage. 1094 May 66


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