Summary
The antibiotic rifampicin inhibits transcription initiation, but not the elongation and completion of nascent RNA transcripts. Addition of low concentrations of rifampicin only partially blocks initiation but at the same time specifically alters the general pattern of transcription in the culture. The transcription of the genes specifying the β and β′ subunits of RNA polymerase, and to a lesser extent of the genes specifying the RNA and protein components of the ribosome, was specifically stimulated relative to total transcription. In contrast, the transcription of the lactose operon was selectively reduced. These results are consistent with the ideas that the level of expression of the genes specifying the β and β′ subunits is sensitive to the general rate of RNA synthesis in the culture, and that the expression of the β and β′ RNA polymerase genes is related to the expression of ribosome component genes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bachmann, B., Low, K.B., Taylor A.L.: Recalibrated linkage map of Escherichia coli K12. Bact. Rev. 40, 116–167 (1976)
Bass, I.A., Gorlenko, Zh.M., Danilevskaya, O.N., Dmitriev, A.D., Kalyaeva, E.S., Mindlin, S.Z., Timopheev, A.V., Khesin, R.S.: Variations in the rate of synthesis of β and β′ RNA polymerase polypeptides under the influence of certain factors. Molec. gen. Genet. 154, 101–110 (1977)
Blumenthal, R.M., Lemaux, P.G., Neidhardt, F.C., Dennis, P.P.: The effects of the relA gene on the synthesis of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases and other transcription and translation proteins in Escherichia coli B. Molec. gen. Genet. 149, 291–296 (1976a)
Blumenthal, R.M., Reeh, S., Pedersen, S.: Regulation of transcription factor ϱ and the α subunit of RNA polymerase in Escherichia coli B/r. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 73, 2285–2288 (1976b)
Bremer, H., Berry, L., Dennis, P.P.: Regulation of ribonucleic acid synthesis in Escherichia coli B/r: an analysis of a shift-up. J. molec. Biol. 75, 161–179 (1973)
Burgess, R.R.: Separation and characterization of the subunits of ribonucleic acid polymerase. J. biol. Chem. 244, 6168–6176 (1969)
Chamberlin, M.J., McGrath, J., Waskell, L.: New RNA polymerase from Escherichia coli infected with bacteriophage T7. Nature (Lond.) 228, 227–231 (1970)
Collins, J., Fiil, N., Jørgensen, P., Friesen, J.: Gene cloning of Escherichia coli chromosomal genes important in the regulation of ribosomal RNA synthesis. In: Alfred Benzon Symposium IX, Control of Macromolecular Synthesis (N.O. Kjeldgaard, O. Maaløe, eds.), pp. 357–369 Copenhagen: Munksgaard Press, 1975
Dalbow, D.G., Bremer, H.: Metabolic regulation of β-galactosidase synthesis in Escherichia coli. Biochem. J. 150, 1–8 (1975)
Dennis, P.P.: Regulation of synthesis and activity of a mutant RNA polymerase in Escherichia coli Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 74, 5416–5420 (1977a)
Dennis, P.P.: Transcription patterns of adjacent segments on the chromosome of Escherichia coli containing genes coding for four 50S ribosomal proteins and the β and β′ subunits of RNA polymerase. J. molec. Biol. 155, 603–625 (1977b)
Dennis, P.P., Nomura, M.: Regulation of the expression of ribosomal protein genes in Escherichia coli. J. molec. Biol. 97, 61–76 (1975)
Errington, L., Glass, R.E., Hayward, R.S., Scaife, J.G.: Structure and orientation of an RNA polymerase operon in Escherichia coli. Nature (Lond.) 249, 519–522 (1974)
Engbaek, F., Gross, C., Burgess, R.R.: Quantitation of RNA polymerase subunits in Escherichia coli during exponential growth and after bacteriophage T4 infection. Molec. gen. Genet. 143, 291–295 (1976)
Hayward, R.S., Fyfe, S.K. Non-coordinate expression of the neighboring genes rplL and rpoB,C of Escherichia coli Molec. gen. Genet. 160, 77–80 (1978)
Hayward, R.S., Tittawella, I.P.B., Scaife, J.G.: Evidence for specific control of RNA polymerase synthesis in Escherichia coli. Nature (Lond.) New Biol 243 6–9 (1973)
Heil, A., Zillig, W.: Reconstitution of bacterial DNA-dependent RNA-polymerase from isolated subunits as a tool for the elucidation of the role of the subunits in transcription FEBS Letters 11, 165–168 (1970)
Iwakura, Y., Ito, K., Ishihama, A.: Biosynthesis of RNA polymerase in Escherichia coli. I. Control of RNA polymerase content at various growth rates. Molec. gen. Genet. 133, 1–23 (1974)
Jaskunas, S.R., Burgess, R.R., Nomura, M.: Identification of a gene for the α-subunit of RNA polymerase at the str-spc region of the Escherichia coli chromosome. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 72, 5036–5040 (1975)
Kirschbaum, J.B.: A mutation in the gene for the β′ subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase which specifically affects transcription of the rpoBC operon. J. molec. Biol. 119, 37–47 (1978)
Kuntzel, H., Schafer, K.P.: Mitochondrial RNA polymerase from Neurospora crassa Nature (Lond.) New Biol. 231, 265–269 (1975)
Laemmli, U.K.: Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of the head of bacteriophage T4. Nature (Lond.) 227, 680–685 (1970)
Lindahl, L., Yamamoto, M., Nomura, M., Kirschbaum, J.B., Allet, B., Rochaix, J.-D.: Mapping of a cluster of genes for components of the transcriptional and translational machineries of Escherichia coli J. molec. Biol. 109, 23–47 (1977)
Losick, R., Pero, J.: Regulatory subunits of RNA polymerase. In. RNA polymerase (R. Losick, M.J. Chamberlin, eds.) pp. 227–246 New York: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 1976
Maher, D.L., Dennis, P.P.: In vivo transcription of Escherichia coli genes coding for rRNA, ribosomal proteins and subunits of RNA polymerase: influence of the stringent control system. Molec. gen. Genet. 155, 203–211 (1977)
Miller, J.H.: Experiments in molecular genetics, pp. 352–355. New York: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory 1972
Nakamura, Y., Yura, T.: Effects of rifampicin on synthesis and functional activity of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase in Escherichia coli. Molec. gen. Genet. 145, 227–237 (1976)
Neidhardt, F.C., Bloch, P.L., Smith, D.F.: Culture medium for enterobacteria. J. Bact. 119, 736–747 (1974)
Oeschger, M.P., Berlyn, M.K.B.: Regulation of RNA polymerase synthesis in Escherichia coli: a mutant unable to synthesize the enzyme at 43°. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 72, 911–915 (1975)
Pedersen, S., Bloch, P.L., Reeh, S., Neidhardt, F.C.: Patterns of protein synthesis in E. coli: a catalog of the amount of 140 individual proteins at different growth rates. Cell 14, 179–190 (1978)
Shapiro, J., MacHattie, L., Eron, L., Ihler, G., Ippen, K., Beckwith, J., Arditti, R., Reznikoff, W., MacGillivray, R.: The isolation of pure lac operon DNA. Nature (Lond.) 244, 768–772 (1969)
Sippel, A., Hartmann, G.: Rifampicin resistance of RNA polymerase in the binary complex with DNA. Europ. J. Biochem. 16, 152–157 (1970)
Stender, W., Stutz, A.A., Scheit, K.H.: The modification of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase from Escherichia coli by an alkylating derivative of rifampicin SV. Europ. J. Biochem. 56, 129–136 (1975)
Studier, F.W., Maizel, J.V., Jr.: T7-directed protein synthesis. Virology 39 575–586 (1969)
Travers, A.: RNA polymerase specificity and the control of growth. Nature (Lond.) 263, 641–646 (1976)
Wanner, B.L., Kodaira, R., Neidhardt, F.C.: Physiological regulation of a decontrolled lac operon. J. Bact. 130, 212–222 (1977)
Wickner, W., Kornberg, A.: A novel form of RNA polymerase from Escherichia coli Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 71, 4425–4428 (1974)
Yarbrough, L.R., Wu, F.Y.-H., Wu, C.-W. Molecular mechanism of the rifampicin-RNA polymerase interaction. Biochemistry 15, 2669–2676 (1976)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by G.A. O'Donovan
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Blumenthal, R.M., Dennis, P. Gene expression in Escherichia coli B/r during partial rifampicin-mediated restrictions of transcription initiation. Molec. Gen. Genet. 165, 79–86 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00270379
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00270379