Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Bacteriology logoLink to Journal of Bacteriology
. 1973 Jul;115(1):291–298. doi: 10.1128/jb.115.1.291-298.1973

Plasmid in Bacillus pumilus and the Enhanced Sporulation of Plasmid-Negative Variants

Paul S Lovett 1
PMCID: PMC246242  PMID: 4717517

Abstract

Approximately 3% of the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) of Bacillus pumilus NRS576 can be isolated as covalently closed, circular duplex molecules of homogeneous size. The mol wt of the 576 plasmid is approximately 30 million. NRS576 (plasmid+) is oligosporogenic; less than 1% of the cells form spores during incubation in liquid AK sporulation medium. Variants that form spores at a high frequency (greater than 50% spores in 24 h) occur spontaneously at a frequency of approximately 10−5. More than 25 such variants have been examined and all lack detectable plasmid DNA. A relationship appears to exist between the oligosporogenic properties of NRS576 and the presence of the 576 plasmid.

Full text

PDF
291

Images in this article

296Image
on p.296

Selected References

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

  1. BURTON K. A study of the conditions and mechanism of the diphenylamine reaction for the colorimetric estimation of deoxyribonucleic acid. Biochem J. 1956 Feb;62(2):315–323. doi: 10.1042/bj0620315. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bazaral M., Helinski D. R. Characterization of multiple circular DNA forms of colicinogenic factor E-1 from Proteus mirabilis. Biochemistry. 1968 Oct;7(10):3513–3520. doi: 10.1021/bi00850a028. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Carlton B. C., Helinski D. R. Heterogeneous circular DNA elements in vegetative cultures of Bacillus megaterium. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1969 Oct;64(2):592–599. doi: 10.1073/pnas.64.2.592. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Clowes R. C. Molecular structure of bacterial plasmids. Bacteriol Rev. 1972 Sep;36(3):361–405. doi: 10.1128/br.36.3.361-405.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Cozzarelli N. R., Kelly R. B., Kornberg A. A minute circular DNA from Escherichia coli 15. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1968 Jul;60(3):992–999. doi: 10.1073/pnas.60.3.992. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Espejo R. T., Canelo E. S., Sinsheimer R. L. DNA of bacteriophage PM2: a closed circular double-stranded molecule. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1969 Aug;63(4):1164–1168. doi: 10.1073/pnas.63.4.1164. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Freifelder D. Electron microscopic study of the ethidium bromide-DNA complex. J Mol Biol. 1971 Sep 14;60(2):401–403. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(71)90303-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Helinski D. R., Clewell D. B. Circular DNA. Annu Rev Biochem. 1971;40:899–942. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.40.070171.004343. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Holloway B. W., Krishnapillai V., Stanisich V. Pseudomonas genetics. Annu Rev Genet. 1971;5:425–446. doi: 10.1146/annurev.ge.05.120171.002233. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Jones O. W., Dieckmann M., Berg P. Ribosome-induced dissociation of RNA from an RNA polymerase-DNA-RNA complex. J Mol Biol. 1968 Jan 28;31(2):177–189. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(68)90438-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kline B. C., Helinski D. R. F 1 sex factor of Escherichia coli. Size and purification in the form of a strand-specific relaxation complex of supercoiled deoxyribonucleic acid and protein. Biochemistry. 1971 Dec 21;10(26):4975–4980. doi: 10.1021/bi00802a022. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Lee C. S., Davidson N. Covalently closed minicircular DNA in Micrococcus lysodeikticus. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 1968 Sep 6;32(5):757–762. doi: 10.1016/0006-291x(68)90304-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Lovett P. S. PBPI: a flagella specific bacteriophage mediating transduction in Bacillus pumilus. Virology. 1972 Mar;47(3):743–752. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(72)90564-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Lovett P. S. Spontaneous auxotrophic and pigmented mutants occurring at high frequency in Bacillus pumilus NRRL B-3275. J Bacteriol. 1972 Nov;112(2):977–985. doi: 10.1128/jb.112.2.977-985.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Lovett P. S., Young F. E. Genetic analysis in Bacillus pumilus by PBSI-mediated transduction. J Bacteriol. 1970 Feb;101(2):603–608. doi: 10.1128/jb.101.2.603-608.1970. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Lovett P. S., Young F. E. Identification of Bacillus subtilis NRRL B-3275 as a strain of Bacillus pumilus. J Bacteriol. 1969 Nov;100(2):658–661. doi: 10.1128/jb.100.2.658-661.1969. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Lovett P. S., Young F. E. Linkage groups in Bacillus pumilus determined by bacteriophage PBS1-mediated transduction. J Bacteriol. 1971 May;106(2):697–699. doi: 10.1128/jb.106.2.697-699.1971. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Novick R. P. Extrachromosomal inheritance in bacteria. Bacteriol Rev. 1969 Jun;33(2):210–263. doi: 10.1128/br.33.2.210-263.1969. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Olsen W. L., Schoenhard D. E. Demonstration of two cryptic plasmids in Salmonella pullorum MS53. J Bacteriol. 1972 May;110(2):786–788. doi: 10.1128/jb.110.2.786-788.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Palchaudhuri S. R., Mazaitis A. J., Maas W. K., Kleinschmidt A. K. Characterization by electron microscopy of fused F-prime factors in Escherichia coli. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1972 Jul;69(7):1873–1876. doi: 10.1073/pnas.69.7.1873. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Radloff R., Bauer W., Vinograd J. A dye-buoyant-density method for the detection and isolation of closed circular duplex DNA: the closed circular DNA in HeLa cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1967 May;57(5):1514–1521. doi: 10.1073/pnas.57.5.1514. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Roth T. F., Helinski D. R. Evidence for circular DNA forms of a bacterial plasmid. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1967 Aug;58(2):650–657. doi: 10.1073/pnas.58.2.650. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Rush M. G., Gordon C. N., Warner R. C. Circular deoxyribonucleic acid from Shigella dysenteriae Y6R. J Bacteriol. 1969 Nov;100(2):803–808. doi: 10.1128/jb.100.2.803-808.1969. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. STUDIER F. W. SEDIMENTATION STUDIES OF THE SIZE AND SHAPE OF DNA. J Mol Biol. 1965 Feb;11:373–390. doi: 10.1016/s0022-2836(65)80064-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Spizizen J. TRANSFORMATION OF BIOCHEMICALLY DEFICIENT STRAINS OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS BY DEOXYRIBONUCLEATE. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1958 Oct 15;44(10):1072–1078. doi: 10.1073/pnas.44.10.1072. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. VINOGRAD J., HEARST J. E. Equilibrium sedimentation of macromolecules and viruses in a density gradient. Fortschr Chem Org Naturst. 1962;20:373–422. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Vapnek D., Lipman M. B., Rupp W. D. Physical properties and mechanism of transfer of R factors in Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol. 1971 Oct;108(1):508–514. doi: 10.1128/jb.108.1.508-514.1971. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Vinograd J., Lebowitz J., Radloff R., Watson R., Laipis P. The twisted circular form of polyoma viral DNA. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1965 May;53(5):1104–1111. doi: 10.1073/pnas.53.5.1104. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Wolfson J., Dressler D., Magazin M. Bacteriophage T7 DNA replication: a linear replicating intermediate (gradient centrifugation-electron microscopy-E. coli-DNA partial denaturation). Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1972 Feb;69(2):499–504. doi: 10.1073/pnas.69.2.499. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

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

RESOURCES