Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Bacteriology logoLink to Journal of Bacteriology
. 1986 Oct;168(1):237–243. doi: 10.1128/jb.168.1.237-243.1986

Location of the right boundary of the virulence region on Agrobacterium tumefaciens plasmid pTiC58 and a host-specifying gene next to the boundary.

T Hirooka, C I Kado
PMCID: PMC213443  PMID: 3019998

Abstract

The right boundary of the virulence (Vir) region of the nopaline plasmid pTiC58 of Agrobacterium tumefaciens was determined by transposon insertion, cartridge emplacement, and deletion mutagenesis. Genetic complementation with mutant and wild-type alleles led to the identification of the virE locus at the right boundary, which was located about 6 kilobases from the left border of the segment of DNA that is transferred into the plant genome. virE is 2.0 kilobases long and encodes at least one protein of 69 kilodaltons. Various mutations in virE resulted in different truncated lengths of the 69-kilodalton protein. As this protein was increasingly truncated from the carboxy terminus, the host range of A. tumefaciens and the frequency of tumor formation diminished concomitantly. Thus, as one of its functions, the 69-kilodalton protein of virE is probably involved in some aspect of the host range specificity of A. tumefaciens and in infection efficiency.

Full text

PDF
240

Images in this article

241Image
on p.241

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Bolivar F., Rodriguez R. L., Betlach M. C., Boyer H. W. Construction and characterization of new cloning vehicles. I. Ampicillin-resistant derivatives of the plasmid pMB9. Gene. 1977;2(2):75–93. doi: 10.1016/0378-1119(77)90074-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Boyer H. W., Roulland-Dussoix D. A complementation analysis of the restriction and modification of DNA in Escherichia coli. J Mol Biol. 1969 May 14;41(3):459–472. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(69)90288-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Chilton M. D., Drummond M. H., Merio D. J., Sciaky D., Montoya A. L., Gordon M. P., Nester E. W. Stable incorporation of plasmid DNA into higher plant cells: the molecular basis of crown gall tumorigenesis. Cell. 1977 Jun;11(2):263–271. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(77)90043-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Close T. J., Rodriguez R. L. Construction and characterization of the chloramphenicol-resistance gene cartridge: a new approach to the transcriptional mapping of extrachromosomal elements. Gene. 1982 Dec;20(2):305–316. doi: 10.1016/0378-1119(82)90048-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Close T. J., Zaitlin D., Kado C. I. Design and development of amplifiable broad-host-range cloning vectors: analysis of the vir region of Agrobacterium tumefaciens plasmid pTiC58. Plasmid. 1984 Sep;12(2):111–118. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(84)90057-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. De Greve H., Decraemer H., Seurinck J., Van Montagu M., Schell J. The functional organization of the octopine Agrobacterium tumefaciens plasmid pTiB6s3. Plasmid. 1981 Sep;6(2):235–248. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(81)90069-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Depicker A., De Wilde M., De Vos G., De Vos R., Van Montagu M., Schell J. Molecular cloning of overlapping segments of the nopaline Ti-plasmid pTiC58 as a means to restriction endonuclease mapping. Plasmid. 1980 Mar;3(2):193–211. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(80)90109-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Drummond M. H., Chilton M. D. Tumor-inducing (Ti) plasmids of Agrobacterium share extensive regions of DNA homology. J Bacteriol. 1978 Dec;136(3):1178–1183. doi: 10.1128/jb.136.3.1178-1183.1978. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Engler G., Depicker A., Maenhaut R., Villarroel R., Van Montagu M., Schell J. Physical mapping of DNA base sequence homologies between an octopine and a nopaline Ti plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. J Mol Biol. 1981 Oct 25;152(2):183–208. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(81)90239-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Gardner R. C., Knauf V. C. Transfer of Agrobacterium DNA to Plants Requires a T-DNA Border But Not the virE Locus. Science. 1986 Feb 14;231(4739):725–727. doi: 10.1126/science.231.4739.725. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Garfinkel D. J., Simpson R. B., Ream L. W., White F. F., Gordon M. P., Nester E. W. Genetic analysis of crown gall: fine structure map of the T-DNA by site-directed mutagenesis. Cell. 1981 Nov;27(1 Pt 2):143–153. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(81)90368-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Hagiya M., Close T. J., Tait R. C., Kado C. I. Identification of pTiC58 plasmid-encoded proteins for virulence in Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1985 May;82(9):2669–2673. doi: 10.1073/pnas.82.9.2669. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Hernalsteens J. P., De Greve H., Van Montagu M., Schell J. Mutagenesis by insertion of the drug resistance transposon Tn7 applied to the Ti plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Plasmid. 1978 Feb;1(2):218–225. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(78)90040-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Hille J., van Kan J., Schilperoort R. trans-Acting virulence functions of the octopine Ti plasmid from Agrobacterium tumefaciens. J Bacteriol. 1984 May;158(2):754–756. doi: 10.1128/jb.158.2.754-756.1984. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Hooykaas P. J., Hofker M., den Dulk-Ras H., Schilperoort R. A. A comparison of virulence determinants in an octopine Ti plasmid, a nopaline Ti plasmid, and an Ri plasmid by complementation analysis of Agrobacterium tumefaciens mutants. Plasmid. 1984 May;11(3):195–205. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(84)90026-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Iyer V. N., Klee H. J., Nester E. W. Units of genetic expression in the virulence region of a plant tumor-inducing plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Mol Gen Genet. 1982;188(3):418–424. doi: 10.1007/BF00330043. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Kado C. I., Liu S. T. Rapid procedure for detection and isolation of large and small plasmids. J Bacteriol. 1981 Mar;145(3):1365–1373. doi: 10.1128/jb.145.3.1365-1373.1981. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Kao J. C., Perry K. L., Kado C. I. Indoleacetic acid complementation and its relation to host range specifying genes on the Ti plasmid of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Mol Gen Genet. 1982;188(3):425–432. doi: 10.1007/BF00330044. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Klapwijk P. M., van Beelen P., Schilperoort R. A. Isolation of a recombination deficient Agrobacterium tumefaciens mutant. Mol Gen Genet. 1979 Jun 7;173(2):171–175. doi: 10.1007/BF00330307. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Klee H. J., White F. F., Iyer V. N., Gordon M. P., Nester E. W. Mutational analysis of the virulence region of an Agrobacterium tumefaciens Ti plasmid. J Bacteriol. 1983 Feb;153(2):878–883. doi: 10.1128/jb.153.2.878-883.1983. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Laemmli U. K. Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of the head of bacteriophage T4. Nature. 1970 Aug 15;227(5259):680–685. doi: 10.1038/227680a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Lundquist R. C., Close T. J., Kado C. I. Genetic complementation of Agrobacterium tumefaciens Ti plasmid mutants in the virulence region. Mol Gen Genet. 1984;193(1):1–7. doi: 10.1007/BF00327406. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Ooms G., Klapwijk P. M., Poulis J. A., Schilperoort R. A. Characterization of Tn904 insertions in octopine Ti plasmid mutants of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. J Bacteriol. 1980 Oct;144(1):82–91. doi: 10.1128/jb.144.1.82-91.1980. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Risuleo G., Battistoni P., Costantino P. Regions of homology between tumorigenic plasmids from Agrobacterium rhizogenes and Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Plasmid. 1982 Jan;7(1):45–51. doi: 10.1016/0147-619x(82)90025-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Roozen K. J., Fenwick R. G., Jr, Curtiss R., 3rd Synthesis of ribonucleic acid and protein in plasmid-containing minicells of Escherichia coli K-12. J Bacteriol. 1971 Jul;107(1):21–33. doi: 10.1128/jb.107.1.21-33.1971. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Rothstein S. J., Jorgensen R. A., Postle K., Reznikoff W. S. The inverted repeats of Tn5 are functionally different. Cell. 1980 Mar;19(3):795–805. doi: 10.1016/s0092-8674(80)80055-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Van Larebeke N., Genetello C., Schell J., Schilperoort R. A., Hermans A. K., Van Montagu M., Hernalsteens J. P. Acquisition of tumour-inducing ability by non-oncogenic agrobacteria as a result of plasmid transfer. Nature. 1975 Jun 26;255(5511):742–743. doi: 10.1038/255742a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Watson B., Currier T. C., Gordon M. P., Chilton M. D., Nester E. W. Plasmid required for virulence of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. J Bacteriol. 1975 Jul;123(1):255–264. doi: 10.1128/jb.123.1.255-264.1975. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. White F. F., Nester E. W. Relationship of plasmids responsible for hairy root and crown gall tumorigenicity. J Bacteriol. 1980 Nov;144(2):710–720. doi: 10.1128/jb.144.2.710-720.1980. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Zaenen I., Van Larebeke N., Van Montagu M., Schell J. Supercoiled circular DNA in crown-gall inducing Agrobacterium strains. J Mol Biol. 1974 Jun 15;86(1):109–127. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(74)80011-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Bacteriology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES