Isolation and Analysis
of hupR Gene Required for the
Expression of Hydrogenase in Rhodobacter sphaeroides
XU Dong-Qing, WU Yong-Qiang*
( Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Shanghai Institute for
Biological Science, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032,
China )
Abstract Cosmid 1
containing the hup genes isolated from the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter
sphaeroides was studied. The hupR gene from cosmid 1 was cloned
and sequenced (EMBL accession number AJ243734). It encoded a 54.031 kD protein
homologous to transcriptional regulators belonging to the superfamily of
two-component regulatory systems. The HupR protein was overexpressed in Escherichiacoli
in the form of His6-tagged HupR. The cloned hupR gene could restore
hydrogenase activity in R.sphaeroides hupR mutants and activate hupSL
gene transcription.
Key words Rhodobacter sphaeroides； hup cluster；
hupR gene； transcription；hydrogenase
*Corresponding author： Tel, 86-21-64042090-2217； Fax, 86-21-64042385； e-mail, [email protected]