Sequence homologies between proteins of bacterial phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent sugar phosphotransferase systems: identification of possible phosphate-carrying histidine residues.

The DNA sequences for some of the genes involved in the phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS) of Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium have been reported. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences of enzyme IIBgi, enzyme IIMtl, and enzyme IIGlc/enzyme IIIGlc, which catalyze the uptake and concomitant phosphorylation of beta-glucosides, mannitol, and glucose, respectively, reveals considerable sequence homology. In particular, the carboxyl-terminal region of enzyme IIBgl is so homologous to the whole of enzyme IIIGlc as to suggest a common function. We postulate that His-547 of enzyme IIBgl receives a phosphate group directly from the cytoplasmic protein HPr and transfers this phosphate to His-306 located in the amino-terminal half of enzyme IIBgl. This latter histidine is conserved in enzyme IIBgl and enzyme IIGlc and, in both proteins, occurs in a region that shows homology with the His-15 region of HPr, which is known to act as the phosphate carrier. An equivalent histidine residue, His-195, is also present in enzyme IIMtl, although here the flanking sequence is different. None of these specified histidine residues is likely to be buried within the membrane.

Nucleotide sequence of bglC, the gene specifying enzymeIIbgl of the PEP:sugar phosphotransferase system in Escherichia coli K12, and overexpression of the gene product.

The EnzymeIIbgl of the phosphoenolpyruvate- (PEP-) dependent phosphotransferase system catalyses the uptake and concomitant phosphorylation of beta-glucosides by Escherichia coli; it is specified by the gene bglC. The nucleotide sequence of a 3.6 kb HindIII restriction fragment spanning bglC, cloned on a plasmid, was determined. DNA analysis strongly suggests that the published order of this and other genes involved in beta-glucoside utilization, bgl C, S, B, is incorrect, and that the regulatory gene bglS may be located upstream of the structural genes bglC and bglB. From the deduced amino acid sequence it is predicted that the membrane protein specified by bglC consists of 625 amino acid residues (66.48 kDa). The protein has the hydropathic profile expected of an integral membrane protein (average hydropathy = 0.62). Comparisons between the amino acid sequences deduced for the EnzymeIIbgl and for the mannitol-specific EnzymeIImtl show that these proteins are related, and a little direct homology is apparent. A 2.3 kb AluI fragment spanning bglC was subcloned into an expression vector which carries the lambda PL promoter and then transformed into a host strain which produces thermolabile cI857 repressor and the anti-terminator N; thermoinduction resulted in the overproduction of a membrane protein and the appearance of Bgl activity.