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Characterization of recA genes and recA mutants of Rhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae

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Summary

DNA fragments carrying the recA genes of Rhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae were isolated by complementing a UV-sensitive recA − Escherichia coli strain. Sequence analysis revealed that the coding region of the R. meliloti recA gene consists of 1044 by coding for 348 amino acids whereas the coding region of the R. leguminosarum bv. viciae recA gene has 1053 bp specifying 351 amino acids. The R. meliloti and R. leguminosarum bv. viciae recA genes show 84.8% homology at the DNA sequence level and of 90.1% at the amino acid sequence level. recA − mutant strains of both Rhizobium species were constructed by inserting a gentamicin resistance cassette into the respective recA gene. The resulting recA mutants exhibited an increased sensitivity to UV irradiation, were impaired in their ability to perform homologous recombination and showed a slightly reduced growth rate when compared with the respective wild-type strains. The Rhizobium recA strains did not have altered symbiotic nitrogen fixation capacity. Therefore, they represent ideal candidates for release experiments with impaired strains.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Lehrstuhl für Genetik, Universität Bielefeld, Postfach 8640, W-4800, Bielefeld 1, Germany

    Werner Selbitschka, Walter Arnold, Ursula B. Priefer, Thomas Rottschäfer, Michael Schmidt, Reinhard Simon & Alfred Pühler

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  1. Werner Selbitschka
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  2. Walter Arnold
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  3. Ursula B. Priefer
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  4. Thomas Rottschäfer
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  5. Michael Schmidt
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  6. Reinhard Simon
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  7. Alfred Pühler
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Additional information

Communicated by J. Schell

The accession numbers: X59956 R. LEGUMINOSARUM REC A ALAS-DNA; X59957 R. MELITOTI REC A ALAS-DNA

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Selbitschka, W., Arnold, W., Priefer, U.B. et al. Characterization of recA genes and recA mutants of Rhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar viciae . Molec. Gen. Genet. 229, 86–95 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00264217

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00264217

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