PubMed Health⌕ Search

SEARCH · PubMed Health

Results for “plasmid evolution”

Explore indexed PubMed citations for clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health research. Read source abstracts and follow each citation to its original PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 775 records · Page 43Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

An efficient method for creation and functional analysis of libraries of hybrid type I polyketide synthases.

Bacterial type I polyketide synthases (PKSs) generate a structurally diverse group of natural products with a wide range of biological activities. Hybrid type I PKSs in which domains of one multifunctional polypeptide are replaced with components from heterologous systems have generated significant interest over the past decade. Almost invariably only one or several specific hybrids are made at a time and tested for functionality. This approach is slow, dependent upon a fortuitous choice of specific fusions points, and often leads to inactive or minimally active hybrid systems. We describe herein a method for generating and screening a library of hybrid pikAI complementation plasmids (encoding the loading domain and the first two extension domains of pikromycin PKS) able to restore pikromycin in a BB138 Streptomyces venezuelae pikAI-deletion mutant. In the first step the plasmid sequence encoding the loading domain AT(0)-ACP(0) was replaced by a counter selectable marker, sacB. DNA family shuffling was then used to generate a diverse library of chimeric AT(0)-ACP(0) fragments, which were used to replace sacB by lambda-Red-mediated in vivo recombination in an Escherichia coli host. This method resulted in the rapid and efficient generation of a large number of hybrid pikAI complementation plasmids, which were used to transform S.venezuelae BB138. A bioassay of over 4000 of these transformants successfully revealed three different PikAI hybrids which were able to lead to pikromycin production. The study suggests that most of the hybrids are not detectably functional, and underscores the need to generate and screen large and diverse libraries in which different fusion points are tried. The methodologies applied in this study address this need and can be used for directed evolution of any component of the PikPKS, and potentially other type I PKS systems.

Acyltransferases↗
PubMed2006

Some aspects of E. coli promoter evolution observed in a molecular evolution experiment.

We devised a molecular evolution procedure to evolve E. coli promoter sequences and applied it to observe an arbitrary, nonfunctional sequence evolving into functional promoters. In the experiments, DNA sequence variations were generated with error-prone PCR and were inserted in the promoter region of the cat (chloramphenicol acetyl transferase) gene on a plasmid. Upon transforming the cells, functional promoters on the plasmid were selected according to the chloramphenicol resistance. Within a few cycles of mutation-selection, promoters emerged, and the sequences converged into a small number of groups. In the process, the extended minus 10 type of promoters emerged quickly, and small deletions were often involved in adjusting the length between the -35 and the -10 elements. Our results also suggest a possible selection for promoter stability against mutation.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2005

Web-type evolution of rhodococcus gene clusters associated with utilization of naphthalene.

Clusters of genes which include determinants for the catalytic subunits of naphthalene dioxygenase (narAa and narAb) were analyzed in naphthalene-degrading Rhodococcus strains. We demonstrated (i) that in the region analyzed homologous gene clusters are separated from each other by nonhomologous DNA, (ii) that there are various degrees of homology between related genes, and (iii) that nar genes are located on plasmids in strains NCIMB12038 and P400 and on a chromosome in P200. These observations suggest that genetic exchange and reshuffling of genetic modules, as well as vertical descent of the genetic information, were the main routes in the evolution of naphthalene degradation in Rhodococcus. These conclusions were supported by studies of transcription patterns in the region analyzed. It was found that the nar region is not organized into a single operon but there are several transcription units which differ in the strains investigated. The narA and narB genes were found to be transcribed as a single unit in all strains analyzed, and their transcription was induced by naphthalene. The putative aldolase gene (narC) was found on the same transcript only in strains P200 and P400. In NCIMB12038 transcription of two more gene clusters was induced by growth on naphthalene. Transcription start sites for narA and narB were found to be different in all of the strains studied. Putative regulatory genes (narR1 and narR2) were transcribed as a single mRNA in naphthalene-induced cells. At the same time, a number of the genes known to be essential for naphthalene catabolism in gram-negative bacteria were not found in the region analyzed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1987

A transcriptional enhancer located between adult beta-globin and embryonic epsilon-globin genes in chicken and duck.

We have detected a transcriptional enhancer sequence downstream from the adult beta-globin (beta A-globin) genes of chicken and duck. DNA segments from the beta-globin coding and flanking sequences were cloned into expression vectors containing the SV40 promoter linked to either the T antigen gene or the cat gene. The expression of these genes was measured in a chicken erythroid cell line transfected with the recombinant plasmids. We found that segments located about 400 bp downstream from the poly(A) site of both the chicken and duck beta A-globin genes (and about 1.5 kb upstream from the embryonic epsilon-globin gene) stimulate transcription of the test genes about five-fold. In chicken essentially the same segment was also found by others to act as an erythroid cell-specific enhancer [Hesse et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 83 (1986) 4312-4316; Choi and Engel, Nature 323 (1986) 731-734]. The sequence containing this enhancer is conserved in evolution. A high degree of homology, reaching 84% in a segment 180 bp in length, was found between chicken and duck despite an evolutionary divergence of 70 myr.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Evolution of the linear DNA replicons of the Borrelia spirochetes.

Members of the spirochete genus Borrelia carry numerous linear DNA replicons with covalently closed hairpin telomeres. The genome of one member of this genus, B. burgdorferi B31, has now been completely characterized and contains a linear chromosome, twelve linear plasmids and nine circular extra-chromosomal elements. The phylogenetic position of the Borrelia spirochetes strongly suggests that a progenitor with circular replicons acquired the ability to replicate linear DNA molecules.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2001

Similarities between the DNA replication initiators of Gram-negative bacteria plasmids (RepA) and eukaryotes (Orc4p)/archaea (Cdc6p).

The proteins responsible for the initiation of DNA replication are thought to be essentially unrelated in bacteria and archaea/eukaryotes. Here we show that RepA, the initiator from the Pseudomonas plasmid pPS10, and the C-terminal domain of ScOrc4p, a subunit of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Sc) origin recognition complex (ORC), share sequence similarities. Based on biochemical and spectroscopic evidence, these similarities include common structural elements, such as a winged-helix domain and a leucine-zipper dimerization motif. We have also found that ScOrc4p, as previously described for RepA-type initiators, interacts with chaperones of the Hsp70 family both in vitro and in vivo, most probably to regulate the assembly of active ORC. In evolutionary terms, our results are compatible with the recruitment of the same protein module for initiation of DNA replication by the ancestors of present-day Gram-negative bacteria plasmids, archaea, and eukaryotes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Amplification of trpEG: adaptation of Buchnera aphidicola to an endosymbiotic association with aphids.

Survival of aphids is dependent on an association with a prokaryotic endosymbiont (Buchnera aphidicola) found in specialized cells within the aphid body cavity. Recent nutritional and physiological studies have indicated that one of the functions of the endosymbionts is the synthesis of tryptophan [Douglas, A. E. & Prosser, W. A. (1992) J. Insect Physiol. 38, 565-568]. B. aphidicola resembles in many of its properties free-living prokaryotes. An adaptation to an endosymbiosis involving the overproduction of tryptophan would necessitate alterations that modify the effect of regulatory systems that in free-living organisms function to reduce enzyme activity under conditions of excess tryptophan. We have cloned and sequenced the genes for B. aphidicola trpEG encoding anthranilate synthase, the first enzyme of the tryptophan biosynthetic pathway, which in free-living bacteria is feedback-inhibited by tryptophan. Amino acid sequence comparisons indicate that the B. aphidicola enzyme has all of the key residues involved in allosteric feedback inhibition. Evidence is presented indicating that trpEG is present as four tandem repeats on a circular plasmid. Relative to B. aphidicola trpDC(F)BA (the chromosomal genes coding for the remaining enzymes of the tryptophan biosynthetic pathway) trpEG is amplified 14- to 15-fold. These findings suggest that the effect of inhibition by accumulated tryptophan may be overcome by overproduction of anthranilate synthase. Our results demonstrate the acquisition of a new property (gene amplification) as an adaptation to an endosymbiotic association in which B. aphidicola overproduces tryptophan for the aphid host.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

Unexpected flexibility in an evolutionarily conserved protein-RNA interaction: genetic analysis of the Sm binding site.

Human autoantibodies of the Sm specificity recognize a conserved set of proteins found in the U class small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (U snRNPs), key trans-acting factors involved in the splicing of mRNA precursors. The Sm protein binding site in U snRNAs is unusual because of its single-stranded nature and its simple sequence motif (AU5-6GPu). Here we use genetics to probe this specific protein-RNA interaction by saturation mutagenesis of the Sm binding site of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae U5 snRNA. The assay system used to analyze these mutations takes advantage of a conditionally expressed U5 gene which does not support growth under non-permissive conditions; U5 genes containing Sm site mutations were tested for their ability to complement this lethal phenotype. Our results indicate that the Sm binding site is remarkably tolerant to mutation despite its high degree of conservation, suggesting that relatively few or redundant specific contacts can determine recognition of single-stranded RNA by protein. A complementary biochemical analysis of these mutants demonstrates that integrity of the Sm site is necessary for snRNP stability in vivo and in vitro.

Autoantigens↗
PubMed1991

Nucleotide sequence of a new class A beta-lactamase gene from the chromosome of Yersinia enterocolitica: implications for the evolution of class A beta-lactamases.

The nucleotide sequence has been determined of a 1400 bp fragment from the chromosome of Yersinia enterocolitica containing the gene for beta-lactamase I. An ORF of 882 bp was identified, which could code for a polypeptide of 294 amino acids, closely related to other beta-lactamases of molecular class A. Amino acids 1-30 could constitute a signal peptide. The mature protein would be 264 amino acids long with a calculated pI of 6.2. Alignment of the amino acid sequence of the class A beta-lactamases suggested the existence of two subgroups in the same class, and this is discussed in the context of the evolution of the enzymes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1984

A Tn21 terminal sequence within Tn501: complementation of tnpA gene function and transposon evolution.

The prokaryotic mercury-resistance transposon Tn501 contains a sequence, 80 nucleotides from one end, which is identical with an inverted terminal repeat (IR) of Tn21. This Tn21 IR sequence is used when Tn21 complements a TnpA- derivative of Tn501, but not when Tn501 is used for the complementation. Complementation by Tn1721 shows a preference for the normal Tn501 IRs. The element (Tn820) transposed when Tn21 is used to complement a Hg- TnpR- TnpA- Res- deletion mutant of Tn501 contains the Tn21 IR sequence at one terminus and a Tn501 IR at the other. Transposition of Tn820 can be complemented by Tn501 and Tn1721, but at a much lower frequency than transposition of the parental element (Tn819) which has two Tn501 IRs. The relationship between the transposition functions of Tn501, Tn21 and Tn1721, and available nucleotide sequence data suggest that Tn501 evolved by the transposition of a Tn21-like element into another transposable element (similar to that found within Tn1721) followed by deletion of the Tn21-like transposition functions.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Why it pays for bacteria to delete disused DNA and to maintain megaplasmids.

Genetic information for disused metabolic systems is easily lost. This can be understood on the basis of a mathematic model for the description of the growth of individual microbial cells. The essential features of the model are that the uptake of nutrients is proportional to the surface area of the cell and maintenance costs are proportional to the volume. This explains why disused genes are easily lost. Growth of the individual cell continues until DNA replication of the genome is completed. The consequence is that cells with a large genome size are bigger at the moment of cell division. This results in a less favourable surface to volume ratio, which has a negative influence on the population growth rate. This means that cells with a smaller genome size will have a selective advantage. In cells in which the total DNA is divided over several units which replicate simultaneously (e.g. a cell with more chromosomes or a cell with one chromosome and one or more megaplasmids) a high surface to volume ratio can be maintained. The great metabolic differences between phylogenetically strongly related bacteria are due to loss of genetic information for complex metabolic characters in order to maintain a small genome size and a favourable surface to volume ratio.

Bacteria↗
PubMed2001

Plasticity of fitness and diversification process during an experimental molecular evolution.

A simplified experimental evolution encompassing the essence of natural one was designed in an attempt to understand the involved mechanism. In our system, molecular evolution was observed through three serial cycles of consecutive random mutagenesis of the glutamine synthetase gene and chemostat culture of the transformed Escherichia coli cells containing the mutated genes. Selection pressure was imposed solely on the glutamine synthetase gene when varieties of mutant genes compete in an unstructured environment of the chemostat. The molecular phylogeny and population dynamics were deduced from the nucleotide sequences of the genes isolated from each of the chemostat runs. An initial mutant population in each cycle, comprised of diversified closely-related genes, ended up with several varieties of mutants in a state of coexistence. Competition between two mutant genes in the final population of the first cycle ascertained that the observed coexisting state is not an incidental event and that cellular interaction via environmental nutrients is a possible mechanism of coexistence. In addition, the mutant gene once extinct in the previous passage was found to have the capacity to reinvade and constitute the gene pool of the later cycle of molecular evolution. These results, including the kinetic characteristics of the purified wild-type and mutant glutamine synthetases in the phylogenetic tree, revealed that the enzyme activity had diverged, rather than optimized, to a fittest value during the course of evolution. Here, we proposed that the plasticity of gene fitness in consequence of cellular interaction via the environment is an essential mechanism governing molecular evolution.

Escherichia coli↗
PubMed1999

Genome evolution of tobacco mosaic virus populations during long-term passaging in a diverse range of hosts.

The effects of host changes on plant virus genome evolution was studied by nucleotide sequencing. A single tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi) plant was inoculated with in vitro transcripts from a plasmid clone of tobacco mosaic tobamovirus (TMV). This initial viral population was then transferred 11-12 times in parallel populations in 7 plant host species (1-4 replicates each) over a period of 413-515 days. Virion RNA was then isolated, reverse transcribed, amplified, cloned in bacteria, and sequenced. Portions of the coat protein, movement protein, and replicase genes were sequenced. Fourteen unique mutations were detected from a total of 188 clones (35,607 bases) sequenced, indicating a relatively small overall mutation rate of 3.1 x 10(-4) nucleotide substitutions/base-year. A small Ka/Ks value of 0.09 was also found, indicating selection against amino acid changes. Eighty-five percent of the substitutions were transitions. A G'(ST) value of 0.7 for the coat protein gene suggested that host type affected sequence changes in this region of the genome, but chi(2) analysis did not support this conclusion. This is the first study using sequencing to compare representative sample sections of a plant viral genome following a major selective disturbance such as extended passaging in an alternate host.

Genome, Viral↗
PubMed1984

Domain map of the LDL receptor: sequence homology with the epidermal growth factor precursor.

The nucleotide sequence of a partial cDNA for the bovine low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptor revealed an open reading frame of 264 amino acids that encodes the COOH-terminal 25% of the receptor protein. The sequence predicts a cytoplasmic domain of 50 amino acids at the COOH terminus, followed in order by a membrane-spanning region of 27 hydrophobic amino acids and an externally disposed stretch of 42 amino acids, that is rich in serine and threonine residues and appears to be the site of O-linked glycosylation. This orientation was confirmed by proteolysis experiments in which the relevant fragments were localized by blotting with anti-peptide antibodies and a galactose-specific lectin. The extracytoplasmic domain of the LDL receptor contains a region that is 38% identical with a 96 amino acid sequence in the precursor to mouse epidermal growth factor (EGF), a peptide hormone. This unexpected homology raises the possibility that proteins involved in growth stimulation (e.g., EGF precursor) and nutrient delivery (e.g., LDL receptor) may have a common evolutionary origin.

Adrenal Cortex↗
PubMed1990

Comparative analysis of the hemolysin genes of Vibrio cholerae non-01, V. mimicus, and V. hollisae that are similar to the tdh gene of V. parahaemolyticus.

The genes encoding the hemolysins similar to the thermostable direct hemolysin (tdh gene) of Vibrio parahaemolyticus were cloned from chromosomes of V. mimicus and V. hollisae. These cloned hemolysin genes and previously cloned tdh genes of V. parahaemolyticus and V. cholerae non-01 were compared by physical mapping and by hybridization with oligodeoxyribonucleotide probes. The nucleotide sequences in the coding regions of all the cloned hemolysin genes were very homologous and had only minor variations but the sequences flanking the homolysin genes were dissimilar, indicating that the hemolysin genes have a common ancestor and suggesting that they may have been transferred between Vibrio species as a descrete genetic unit.

Biological Evolution↗
PubMed1987

Molecular cloning and sequencing of sucrose synthase cDNA from potato (Solanum tuberosum L.): preliminary characterization of sucrose synthase mRNA distribution.

A cDNA library constructed from poly(A)+ RNA from potato tuber in lambda gt11 was screened for sucrose synthase using a maize sucrose synthase cDNA probe. The longest 2.7-kb insert was sequenced. An ATG located within the sequence CTGCAATGG starts an open reading frame of 805 codons. The nucleotide sequence, when compared to the maize sucrose synthase cDNA sequence, exhibits about 70% identity and the deduced amino acid sequence about 75%. Three amino acid regions are about 90% homologous and two of them could be important for the protein function. Expression studies show that transcription of the potato sucrose synthase gene is at least ten fold higher in tubers compared to photosynthetically active tissues.

Bacteriophages↗
PubMed2005

Hydrogenase genes are uncommon and highly conserved in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae.

A screening for hydrogen uptake (hup) genes in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae isolates from different locations within Spain identified no Hup+ strains, confirming the scarcity of the Hup trait in R. leguminosarum. However, five new Hup+ strains were isolated from Ni-rich soils from Italy and Germany. The hup gene variability was studied in these strains and in six available strains isolated from North America. Sequence analysis of three regions within the hup cluster showed an unusually high conservation among strains, with only 0.5-0.6% polymorphic sites, suggesting that R. leguminosarum acquired hup genes de novo in a very recent event.

Base Sequence↗