FIG. 1.

(A) Predicted amino acid sequence of the product of the nlpI gene. The nlpI gene encodes a 34-kDa polypeptide containing 294 amino acids including a putative signal sequence consisting of 18 amino acids (italic type). The amino acids comprising the lipobox sequence, Leu-Ala-Gly-Cys, are underlined. The sequence delineated by amino acid residues 62 to 163 contains three TPRs. The eight consensus amino acids of the TPR motif are indicated in italics above the first TPR. The amino acid residues in NlpI that conform to the consensus TPR motif are indicated in bold type. (B) Genetic map of the region containing the nlpI gene between 71.0 and 71.1 min on the E. coli chromosome. An nlpI::cm insertion mutant was constructed by insertion of an 886-bp chloramphenicol resistance cassette into the BstBI site of nlpI as indicated. Southern blot analyses revealed 2.6- and 3.5-kb fragments in EcoRV digests of chromosomal DNAs obtained from the wild type and the nlpI::cm insertion mutant, respectively.