Characterization of chsA, a new gene controlling the chemotactic response in Azospirillum brasilense Sp7.

Ricardo Carreño-López, Araceli Sánchez, Nohemí Camargo, Claudine Elmerich, Beatriz Eugenia Baca

Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias Microbiológicas, Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla, Puebla, Mexico.

Archives of microbiology 2009 Jun

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We report, here, the characterization of a mutant strain of Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 impaired in surface motility and chemotactic response. Presence of flagella in the mutant strain was confirmed by western blot analysis, using antisera raised against the polar and lateral flagellins, and by electron microscopy. Genetic complementation and nucleotide sequencing led to the identification of a new gene, named chsA. The deduced translation product, ChsA protein, contained a PAS sensory domain and an EAL domain. As ChsA displayed characteristic signaling protein architecture, it is thought that this protein is a component of the signaling pathway controlling chemotaxis in Azospirillum.

Citation

Ricardo Carreño-López, Araceli Sánchez, Nohemí Camargo, Claudine Elmerich, Beatriz Eugenia Baca. Characterization of chsA, a new gene controlling the chemotactic response in Azospirillum brasilense Sp7. Archives of microbiology. 2009 Jun;191(6):501-7