• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Life Science Conference
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.73.2-73.2
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• 2008

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.127-135
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• 2020

Small RNAs (sRNAs) are widespread and play major roles in regulation circuits in bacteria. Previously, we have demonstrated that transcription of esrE is under the control of its own promoter. However, the regulatory elements involved in EsrE sRNA expression are still unknown. In this study, we found that different cis-regulatory elements exist in the promoter region of esrE. We then screened and analyzed seven potential corresponding trans-regulatory elements by using pull-down assays based on DNA affinity chromatography. Among these candidate regulators, we investigated the relationship between the ferric uptake regulator (Fur) and the EsrE sRNA. Electrophoresis mobility shift assays (EMSAs) and β-galactosidase activity assays demonstrated that Fur can bind to the promoter region of esrE, and positively regulate EsrE sRNA expression in the presence of Fe²⁺.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.47 no.2
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• pp.124-129
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• 2011

The role of the ferric uptake regulator (Fur) of Helicobacter pylori in the oxidative stress was investigated in this study. A fur knockout mutant of H. pylori was constructed by replacing the fur gene with an aphA (kanamycin resistant marker) gene. Photodynamic therapy using methylene blue (MB) and 660 nm light was chosen to induce oxidative stress. The bactericidal effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) was compared between wild type H. pylori and fur knockout mutant H. pylori. The degree of oxidative damage of DNA was confirmed using alkaline gel electrophoresis and an assay of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG). In control groups, the number of viable cells was maintained constantly during experiment. After PDT, the mutant H. pylori showed 10,000 times decreased viable cell number compared with wild type H. pylori. Depending on the exposure time of 660 nm light, the 3-fold increase in the concentration of 8-OHdG was observed in mutant H. pylori. The results of this study showed that H. pylori's Fur protein may play a role in oxidative stress induced by PDT.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Life Science Conference
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• 2007.10a
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• pp.69.1-69.1
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• 2007

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• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.46-49
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• 2012

The Vibrio vulnificus vuuA gene, of which expression is repressed by a complex of iron and ferric uptake regulator (Fur), was characterized to localize the Fur-binding site in its upstream regulatory region. In silico analysis suggested the presence of two possible Fur-binding sites; one is a classical Fur-box and the other is a previously reported distinct Fur-binding site. Site-directed mutagenesis and DNase I protection assays revealed the binding site for the iron-Fur complex, which includes an extended inverted repeat containing a homologous sequence to the classical Fur-box.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.109-114
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• 2003

A promoter that is inducible by paraquat and menadione, the superoxide generators, independently of soxRS has been found in front of the sufABCDSE operon in Escherichia coli. Based on the observation that SufA is a holomog of IscA that functions in the assembly of iron sulfur cluster and the sufA promoter (sufAp) contains a putative Fur-binding consensus, we investigated whether this gene is regulated by Fur, a ferric uptake regulator, When examined in several sufAp-lacZ chromosomal fusion strains, sufAp was induced by EDTA, an iron chelator and a well-known Fur-inducer, The basal level of sufA expression increased dramatically in fur mutant, suggesting repression of sufAp by Fur. The derepression in fur mutant and EDTA-induction of sufA expression required nucleotides up to -61, where a putative Fur box is located. Purified Fur protein bound to the DNA fragment containing the putative Fur box between -35 and -10 promoter elements. The regulation by Fur and menadione induction of sufAp acted independently. The rpoS mutation increased sufA induction by menadione, suggesting that the stationary sigma factor RpoS acts negatively on sufA induction.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.8
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• pp.765-773
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• 2009

Edwardsiella tarda is a pathogen with a broad host range that includes human and animals. The E. tarda hemolysin (Eth) system, which comprises EthA and EthB, is a noted virulence element that is widely distributed in pathogenic isolates of E. tarda. Previous study has shown that the expression of ethB is regulated by iron, which suggests the possibility that the ferric uptake regulator (Fur) is involved in the regulation of ethB. The work presented in this report supports the previous findings and demonstrates that ethB expression was decreased under conditions when the E. tarda Fur ($Fur_{Et}$) was overproduced, and enhanced when $Fur_{Et}$ was inactivated. We also identified a second ethB regulator, EthR, which is a transcription regulator of the GntR family. EthR represses ethB expression by direct interaction with the ethB promoter region. In addition to ethB, EthR also modulates, but positively, luxS expression and AI-2 production by binding to the luxS promoter region. The expression of ethR itself is subject to negative autoregulation; interference with this regulation by overexpressing ethR during the process of infection caused (i) drastic changes in ethB and luxS expressions, (ii) vitiation in the tissue dissemination and survival ability of the bacterium, and (iii) significant attenuation of the overall bacterial virulence. These results not only provide new insights into the regulation mechanisms of the Eth hemolysin and LuxS/AI-2 quorum sensing systems but also highlight the importance of these systems in bacterial virulence.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1357-1363
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• 2008

The $P_{entC}$ promoter of the entCERA operon encoding enzymes for enterobactin biosynthesis in Escherichia coli is tightly regulated by the availability of iron in the culture medium. In iron-rich conditions, the $P_{entC}$ promoter activity is strongly repressed by the global transcription regulator Fur (ferric uptake regulator), which complexes with ferrous ions and binds to the Fur box 19-bp inverted repeat. In this study, we have constructed the expression vector pOS2 containing the $P_{entC}$ promoter and characterized its repression, induction, and modulation by quantifying the expression of the lacZ reporter gene encoding $\beta$-galactosidase. $\beta$-Galactosidase activities of E. coli transformants harboring pOS2-lacZ were highly induced in the presence of divalent metal ion chelators such as 2,2'-dipyridyl and EDTA, and were strongly repressed in the presence of excess iron. It was also shown that the basal level $\beta$-galactosidase expression by the $P_{entC}$ promoter was drastically decreased by incorporating the fur gene into the expression vector. Since the newly developed iron chelator-inducible expression system is efficient and cost-effective, it has wide applications in recombinant protein production.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.532-541
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• 2010

Peroxidase-like activity of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) has been recently disclosed. To maximize such activity, two catalytically conserved residues (histidine and arginine) found in the distal pocket of peroxidases have successfully been introduced into that of the VHb. A 15-fold increase in catalytic constant ($k_{cat}$) was obtained in P54R variant,which was presumably attributable to the lower rigidity and higher hydrophilicity of the distal cavity arising from substitution of proline to arginine. None of the modifications altered the affinity towards either $H_2O_2$ or ABTS substrate. Spectroscopic studies revealed that VHb variants harboring the T29H mutation apparently demonstrated a spectral shift in both ferric and ferrous forms (406-408 to 411 nm, and 432 to 424-425 nm, respectively). All VHb proteins in the ferrous state had a $\lambda_{soret}$ peak at ~419 nm following the carbon monoxide (CO) binding. Expression of the P54R mutant mediated the downregulation of iron superoxide dismutase (FeSOD) as identified by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF). According to the high peroxidase activity of P54R, it could effectively eliminate autoxidation-derived $H_2O_2$, which is a cause of heme degradation and iron release. This decreased the iron availability and consequently reduced the formation of the $Fe^{2+}$-ferric uptake regulator protein ($Fe^{2+}$-Fur), an inducer of FeSOD expression.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.35-42
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• 2008

Vibrio vulnificus produces siderophores, low-molecular-weight iron-chelating compounds, to obtain iron under conditions of iron deprivation. To identify genes associated with the biosynthesis of siderophore in V. vulnificus MO6-24/O, we screened clones with mini-Tn5 random insertions for those showing decreased production of siderophore. Among 6,000 clones screened, nine such clones were selected. These clones contain the transposon inserted in VV2_0830 (GenBank accession number) that is a homolog of a nonribosomal peptide synthase (NRPS). There is an another NRPS module, VV2_0831, 49-bp upstream to VV2_0830. We named these two genes vvs (Vibrio vulnificus siderophore synthase) A and B, respectively. Mutation of either vvsA or vvsB showed a decreased production of siderophore. The expression of an NRPS-lux fusion was negatively modulated by the presence of iron, and the regulation was dependent on Fur (ferric uptake regulator). However, the expression of the NRPS genes was still not fully derepressed in the iron-rich condition, even in furnull mutant cells, suggesting that some other unknown factors are involved in the regulation of the genes. We also demonstrated that the NRPS genes are important for virulence of the pathogen in a mice model.