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Conditionally lethal nusAts mutation of Escherichia coli reduces transcription termination but does not affect antitermination of bacteriophage lambda

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Summary

Termination of transcription at bacteriophage λ terminators as well as at the Escherichia coli trp a attenuator was examined in the conditionally lethal mutant (nusAts11) defective in the NusA protein of E. coli. Experiments using terminator-assay λ vectors revealed that the efficiency of termination at both ρ-dependent (λt L1) and ρ-independent (λt L2 and trp a) terminators decreases in the mutant. The mutation does not block λ phage growth at either permissive or nonpermissive temperatures, nor does it affect the λ Q protein antitermination activity at the t 6S terminator. These results indicate that NusA is required for transcription termination, and that λ N and Q-mediated antitermination may not require the NusA protein function in the nusAts11 mutant.

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Communicated by E. Bautz

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Nakamura, Y., Mizusawa, S., Tsugawa, A. et al. Conditionally lethal nusAts mutation of Escherichia coli reduces transcription termination but does not affect antitermination of bacteriophage lambda. Molec Gen Genet 204, 24–28 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330182

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00330182

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