Regulation of exoprotein gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus by agr (original) (raw)

Summary

Insertion of the erythromycin-resistance transposon Tn_551_ into the Staphylococcus aureus chromosome at a site which maps between the purB and ilv loci has a pleiotrophic effect on the production of a number of extracellular proteins. Production of alpha, beta and delta hemolysin, toxic shock syndrome toxin (TSST-1) and staphylokinase was depressed about fifty-fold while protein A production was elevated twenty-fold. Hybridization analysis showed that the defect in expression of TSST-1 and alpha hemolysin was at the transcriptional level. Inability of the mutant strain to express either a cloned TSST-1 gene or the chromosomal gene indicates that the transposon has inactivated a trans-active positive control element. This element has been designated agr for accessory gene regulator.

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Authors and Affiliations

1. Department of Plasmid Biology, The Public Health Research Institute of the City of New York, Inc., 10016, New York, NY
   P. Recsei, B. Kreiswirth, M. O'Reilly, A. Gruss & R. P. Novick
2. Department of Microbiology, University of Minnesota Medical School, 55455, Minneapolis, MN, USA
   P. Schlievert

Authors

1. P. Recsei
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2. B. Kreiswirth
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3. M. O'Reilly
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4. P. Schlievert
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5. A. Gruss
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6. R. P. Novick
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Communicated by P. Starlinger

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Recsei, P., Kreiswirth, B., O'Reilly, M. et al. Regulation of exoprotein gene expression in Staphylococcus aureus by agr.Mol Gen Genet 202, 58–61 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330517

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• Received: 05 September 1985
• Issue Date: January 1986
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330517

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