The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases
Haemophilus influenzae is an obligate commensal of the upper respiratory tract of humans that uses simple repeats (microsatellites) to alter gene expression. The mod gene of H. influenzae strain Rd has homology to DNA methyltransferases of type III restriction/modification systems and has 40 tetranu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2000
|
| _version_ | 1797096354805186560 |
|---|---|
| author | De Bolle, X Bayliss, C Field, D Van De Ven, T Saunders, N Hood, D Moxon, E |
| author_facet | De Bolle, X Bayliss, C Field, D Van De Ven, T Saunders, N Hood, D Moxon, E |
| author_sort | De Bolle, X |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | Haemophilus influenzae is an obligate commensal of the upper respiratory tract of humans that uses simple repeats (microsatellites) to alter gene expression. The mod gene of H. influenzae strain Rd has homology to DNA methyltransferases of type III restriction/modification systems and has 40 tetranucleotide (5'-AGTC) repeats within its open reading frame. This gene was found in 21 out of 23 genetically distinct H. influenzae strains, and in 13 of these strains the locus contained repeats. H. influenzae strains were constructed in which a lacZ reporter was fused to a chromosomal copy of mod downstream of the repeats. Phase variation occurred at a high frequency in strains with the wild-type number of repeats. Mutation rates were derived for similarly engineered strains, containing different numbers of repeats. Rates increased linearly with tract length over the range 17-38 repeat units. The majority of tract alterations were insertions or deletions of one repeat unit with a 2:1 bias towards contractions of the tract. These results demonstrate the number of repeats to be an important determinant of phase variation rate in H. influenzae for a gene containing a microsatellite. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T04:40:38Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:d1837691-a26f-40e2-9d8d-157054b4dffb |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T04:40:38Z |
| publishDate | 2000 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:d1837691-a26f-40e2-9d8d-157054b4dffb2022-03-27T07:57:33ZThe length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferasesJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:d1837691-a26f-40e2-9d8d-157054b4dffbEnglishSymplectic Elements at Oxford2000De Bolle, XBayliss, CField, DVan De Ven, TSaunders, NHood, DMoxon, EHaemophilus influenzae is an obligate commensal of the upper respiratory tract of humans that uses simple repeats (microsatellites) to alter gene expression. The mod gene of H. influenzae strain Rd has homology to DNA methyltransferases of type III restriction/modification systems and has 40 tetranucleotide (5'-AGTC) repeats within its open reading frame. This gene was found in 21 out of 23 genetically distinct H. influenzae strains, and in 13 of these strains the locus contained repeats. H. influenzae strains were constructed in which a lacZ reporter was fused to a chromosomal copy of mod downstream of the repeats. Phase variation occurred at a high frequency in strains with the wild-type number of repeats. Mutation rates were derived for similarly engineered strains, containing different numbers of repeats. Rates increased linearly with tract length over the range 17-38 repeat units. The majority of tract alterations were insertions or deletions of one repeat unit with a 2:1 bias towards contractions of the tract. These results demonstrate the number of repeats to be an important determinant of phase variation rate in H. influenzae for a gene containing a microsatellite. |
| spellingShingle | De Bolle, X Bayliss, C Field, D Van De Ven, T Saunders, N Hood, D Moxon, E The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title | The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title_full | The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title_fullStr | The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title_full_unstemmed | The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title_short | The length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in Haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type III DNA methyltransferases |
| title_sort | length of a tetranucleotide repeat tract in haemophilus influenzae determines the phase variation rate of a gene with homology to type iii dna methyltransferases |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT debollex thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT baylissc thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT fieldd thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT vandevent thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT saundersn thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT hoodd thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT moxone thelengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT debollex lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT baylissc lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT fieldd lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT vandevent lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT saundersn lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT hoodd lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases AT moxone lengthofatetranucleotiderepeattractinhaemophilusinfluenzaedeterminesthephasevariationrateofagenewithhomologytotypeiiidnamethyltransferases |