Summary
Replication of the plasmid pBR322, and the accumulation and life time of its primer transcript, RNAII, and replication inhibitor, RNAI, were measured in an isogenic relA + /relA pair of E. coli strains during exponential growth, or following amino acid starvation, or during treatment with chloramphenicol. (1) The synthesis rates of RNAI and RNAII decreased during inhibition of protein synthesis in either strain, i.e. their promoters are not under stringent control; (2) during amino acid starvation, RNAI and RNAII lifetimes increased in complex, rel-dependent patterns; (3) the changes in RNAI and RNAII synthesis and accumulation had no immediate effect on the rate of plasmid replication; (4) continued plasmid replication requires a protein which is synthesized during amino acid deprivation or treatment with low concentrations of chloramphenicol in relA +, but not in relA bacteria.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bolivar F, Rodriguez RL, Greene PJ, Betlach MC, Heyneker HL, Boyer HW, Crosa JH, Falkow S (1977) Construction and characterization of new cloning vehicles, II. A multipurpose cloning system. Gene 2:95–113
Cashel M (1970) Inhibition of RNA polymerase by ppGpp, a nucleotide accumulated during the stringent response to amino acid starvation in E. coli. Cold Spring Harbor Symp Quant Biol 35:415–418
Hecker M, Schroeter A, Mach F (1983) Replication of pBR322 DNA in stringent and relaxed strains of Escherichia coli. Mol Gen Genet 190:355–357
Helmstetter C (1967) Rate of DNA synthesis during the division cycle of Escherichia coli B/r. J Mol Biol 24:417–427
Hughes J, Mellows G (1978) Inhibition of isoleucyl-transfer ribonucleic acid synthetase in Escherichia coli by pseudomonic acid. Biochem J 176:305–318
Imamoto F, Kano Y (1971) Inhibition of transcription of the tryptophan operon in Escherichia colo by a block in initiation of translation. Nature (London) New Biol 232:169–173
Kurland CC, Maaloe O (1962) Regulation of ribosomal and transfer RNA synthesis. J Mol Biol 4:193–210
Lagosky P, Chang F (1981) Correlation between RNA synthesis and basal level guanosine 5′-diphosphate, 3′-diphosphate in relaxed mutants of Escherichia coli. J Biol Chem 256:11651–11656
Lin-Chao S, Bremer H (1986) Effect of the bacterial growth rate on replication control of plasmid pBR322 in Escherichia coli. Mol Gen Genet 203:143–149
Lavallé R, DeHauwer G (1968) Messenger RNA synthesis during amino acid starvation in Escherichia coli. J Mol Biol 37:269–288
Ryals J, Little R, Bremer H (1982) Control of rRNA and tRNA syntheses in Escherichia coli by guanosine tetraphosphate. J Bacteriol 151:1261–1268
Shen V, Bremer H (1977a) Chloramphenicol-induced changes the synthesis of ribosomal transfer, and messenger ribonucleic acid in Escherichia coli B/r. J Bacteriol 130:1098–1108
Shen V, Bremer H (1977b) Rate of ribosomal ribonucleic acid chain elongation in Escherichia coli B/r during chloramphenicol treatment. J Bacteriol 130:1109–1116
Tomizawa J, Som T (1984) Control of ColE1 plasmid replication: Enhancement of binding of RNA I to the primer transcript by the rom protein. Cell 38:871–878
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by R. Devoret