Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division
The cell division of the alfalfa symbiont, <i>Sinorhizobium meliloti</i>, is dictated by a cell cycle regulatory pathway containing the key transcription factors CtrA, GcrA, and DnaA. In this study, we found that NtrX, one of the regulators of nitrogen metabolism, can directly regulate t...
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MDPI AG
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Genes |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/13/6/1066 |
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| author | Shenghui Xing Wenjia Zheng Fang An Leqi Huang Xinwei Yang Shuang Zeng Ningning Li Khadidja Ouenzar Liangliang Yu Li Luo |
| author_facet | Shenghui Xing Wenjia Zheng Fang An Leqi Huang Xinwei Yang Shuang Zeng Ningning Li Khadidja Ouenzar Liangliang Yu Li Luo |
| author_sort | Shenghui Xing |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The cell division of the alfalfa symbiont, <i>Sinorhizobium meliloti</i>, is dictated by a cell cycle regulatory pathway containing the key transcription factors CtrA, GcrA, and DnaA. In this study, we found that NtrX, one of the regulators of nitrogen metabolism, can directly regulate the expression of <i>ctrA</i>, <i>gcrA</i>, and <i>dnaA</i> from the cell cycle pathway. Three sets of <i>S. meliloti</i> <i>ntrX</i> mutants showed similar cell division defects, such as slow growth, abnormal morphology of some cells, and delayed DNA synthesis. Transcription of <i>ctrA</i> and <i>gcrA</i> was upregulated, whereas the transcription of <i>dnaA</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i> was downregulated in the insertion mutant and the strain of Sm1021 expressing <i>ntrX</i><sup>D53E</sup>. Correspondingly, the inducible transcription of <i>ntrX</i> activates the expression of <i>dnaA</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i>, but represses <i>ctrA</i> and <i>gcrA</i> in the depletion strain. The expression levels of CtrA and GcrA were confirmed by Western blotting. The transcription regulation of these genes requires phosphorylation of the conserved 53rd aspartate in the NtrX protein that binds directly to the promoter regions of <i>ctrA</i>, <i>gcrA</i>, <i>dnaA,</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i> by recognizing the characteristic sequence CAAN<sub>2-5</sub>TTG. Our findings suggest that NtrX affects <i>S. meliloti</i> cell division by regulating the transcription of the key cell cycle regulatory genes. |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4425 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T23:42:57Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-7b3eddc3c3074e2aafec458dbf50aedd2023-11-23T16:48:42ZengMDPI AGGenes2073-44252022-06-01136106610.3390/genes13061066Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell DivisionShenghui Xing0Wenjia Zheng1Fang An2Leqi Huang3Xinwei Yang4Shuang Zeng5Ningning Li6Khadidja Ouenzar7Liangliang Yu8Li Luo9Shanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaShanghai Key Laboratory of Bio-Energy Crops, School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, ChinaThe cell division of the alfalfa symbiont, <i>Sinorhizobium meliloti</i>, is dictated by a cell cycle regulatory pathway containing the key transcription factors CtrA, GcrA, and DnaA. In this study, we found that NtrX, one of the regulators of nitrogen metabolism, can directly regulate the expression of <i>ctrA</i>, <i>gcrA</i>, and <i>dnaA</i> from the cell cycle pathway. Three sets of <i>S. meliloti</i> <i>ntrX</i> mutants showed similar cell division defects, such as slow growth, abnormal morphology of some cells, and delayed DNA synthesis. Transcription of <i>ctrA</i> and <i>gcrA</i> was upregulated, whereas the transcription of <i>dnaA</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i> was downregulated in the insertion mutant and the strain of Sm1021 expressing <i>ntrX</i><sup>D53E</sup>. Correspondingly, the inducible transcription of <i>ntrX</i> activates the expression of <i>dnaA</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i>, but represses <i>ctrA</i> and <i>gcrA</i> in the depletion strain. The expression levels of CtrA and GcrA were confirmed by Western blotting. The transcription regulation of these genes requires phosphorylation of the conserved 53rd aspartate in the NtrX protein that binds directly to the promoter regions of <i>ctrA</i>, <i>gcrA</i>, <i>dnaA,</i> and <i>ftsZ1</i> by recognizing the characteristic sequence CAAN<sub>2-5</sub>TTG. Our findings suggest that NtrX affects <i>S. meliloti</i> cell division by regulating the transcription of the key cell cycle regulatory genes.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/13/6/1066NtrX<i>Rhizobium</i>transcription regulationcell divisionCtrA |
| spellingShingle | Shenghui Xing Wenjia Zheng Fang An Leqi Huang Xinwei Yang Shuang Zeng Ningning Li Khadidja Ouenzar Liangliang Yu Li Luo Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division Genes NtrX <i>Rhizobium</i> transcription regulation cell division CtrA |
| title | Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division |
| title_full | Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division |
| title_fullStr | Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division |
| title_full_unstemmed | Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division |
| title_short | Transcription Regulation of Cell Cycle Regulatory Genes Mediated by NtrX to Affect <i>Sinorhizobium</i> <i>meliloti</i> Cell Division |
| title_sort | transcription regulation of cell cycle regulatory genes mediated by ntrx to affect i sinorhizobium i i meliloti i cell division |
| topic | NtrX <i>Rhizobium</i> transcription regulation cell division CtrA |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4425/13/6/1066 |
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