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The Cry48Aa N-terminal Domain is Responsible for Cry48Aa–Cry49Aa Interaction in Lysinibacillus sphaericus Toxin

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Abstract

The Cry48Aa/Cry49Aa binary toxin from Lysinibacillus sphaericus is composed of a three-domain Cry-like toxin (Cry48Aa) and a binary-like protein (Cry49Aa) that work together to kill Culex quinquefasciatus mosquito larvae through a novel interaction between its two components. The aim of this study was to identify the functional regions of Cry48Aa that were involved in the interaction with Cry49Aa. Eight Cry48Aa truncated fragments were constructed from both N- and C-termini and expressed in Escherichia coli. Only the individual or combined N69K truncated fragment, a Cry48Aa N-terminal derivative consisting of three domains, showed larvicidal activity against C. quinquefasciatus larvae, while the other fragments exhibited significant loss of biological activity. Far-Western dot blot analysis showed that Cry48Aa N-terminal regions had the ability to bind to Cry49Aa protein. These results demonstrate that the N-terminal domain of Cry48Aa plays a crucial role in responsible for the full virulence to mosquito larvae and the interaction with Cry49Aa as a binary toxin.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Life Sciences, Gannan Normal University, Shida South Road 1, Ganzhou, 341000, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China

    Qingyun Guo, Yuan Gao, Lu Ding, Xiaohua Dai, Qinghua Xie & Xiaomin Tan

  2. School of Information Engineering, Gannan Medical University, Ganzhou, 341000, Jiangxi, People’s Republic of China

    Chong Xing

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  1. Qingyun Guo
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  2. Yuan Gao
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  3. Chong Xing
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  4. Lu Ding
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  5. Xiaohua Dai
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  6. Qinghua Xie
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  7. Xiaomin Tan
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Correspondence to Qingyun Guo.

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Guo, Q., Gao, Y., Xing, C. et al. The Cry48Aa N-terminal Domain is Responsible for Cry48Aa–Cry49Aa Interaction in Lysinibacillus sphaericus Toxin. Curr Microbiol 77, 1217–1222 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-020-01907-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-020-01907-6

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