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Transcriptional and functional characterization of the gene coding for acyl carrier protein from Bacillus subtilis

Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario (IBR-CONICET) and UNR

Acyl carrier protein (ACP) is a universal and highly conserved carrier of acyl intermediates during fatty acid biosynthesis. The molecular mechanism of regulation of the acpP structural gene as well as the function of its gene product is poorly characterized in Bacillus subtilis and other Gram-positive organisms. Here we report that transcription of acpP takes place from two different promoters, PfapR and PacpP. Expression of acpP from PfapR is coordinated with a cluster of genes involved in lipid synthesis (the fapR operon) constituted by fapR-plsX-fabD-fabG-acpP. PacpP is located immediately upstream of the acpP coding sequence and is necessary and sufficient for normal fatty acid synthesis. We also report that acpP is essential for growth and differentiation and that ACP localizes in the mother cell compartment of the sporangium during spore formation. These results provide the first detailed characterization of the expression of ACP in a Gram-positive bacterium and highlight the importance of this protein in B. subtilis physiology.

¹ E-mail: schujman{at}ibr.gov.ar