The Cyc8 (Ssn6)-Tup1 corepressor complex is composed of one Cyc8 and four Tup1 subunits.

The Cyc8 (Ssn6)-Tup1 corepressor complex is required for repression in several important regulatory systems in yeast cells, including glucose repression and mating type. Cyc8-Tup1 is recruited to target genes by interaction with diverse repressor proteins that bind directly to DNA. Since the complex has a large apparent molecular mass of 1,200 kDa on nondenaturing gels (F. E. Williams, U. Varanasi, and R. J. Trumbly, Mol. Cell. Biol. 11:3307-3316, 1991), we used a variety of approaches to determine its actual subunit composition. Immunoprecipitation of epitope-tagged complex and reconstitution of the complex from in vitro-translated proteins demonstrated that only the Cyc8 and Tup1 proteins were present in the complex. Hydrodynamic properties showed that these proteins have unusually large Stokes radii, low sedimentation coefficients, and high frictional ratios, all characteristic of asymmetry which partly accounts for the apparent high molecular weight. Calculation of native molecular weights from these properties indicated that the Cyc8-Tup1 complex is composed of one Cyc8 subunit and four Tup1 subunits. This composition was confirmed by reconstitution of the complex from Cyc8 and Tup1 expressed in vitro and analysis by one- and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.

Postexposure prophylaxis against experimental inhalation anthrax.

Inhalation anthrax is a rare disease that is almost invariably fatal. This study determined whether a prolonged course of postexposure antibiotics with or without vaccination would protect monkeys exposed to a lethal aerosol dose of Bacillus anthracis when the antibiotic was discontinued. Beginning 1 day after exposure, groups of 10 animals were given penicillin, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, doxycycline plus vaccination, vaccination alone, or saline. Antibiotics were administered for 30 days and then discontinued. Vaccine was given on days 1 and 15. Two animals died of causes other than anthrax and were not included in the statistical analysis. Nine of 10 controls and 8 of 10 animals given only vaccine died. Each antibiotic regimen completely protected animals while on therapy and provided significant long-term protection upon discontinuance of the drug (penicillin, 7 of 10 survived, P < .02; ciprofloxacin, 8 of 9 survived, P < .002; doxycycline, 9 of 10 survived, P < .002; doxycycline plus vaccination, 9 of 9 survived, P < .0002). Protection against rechallenge was provided by combining postexposure antibiotic treatment with vaccination.

Serum concentrations of penicillin, doxycycline, and ciprofloxacin during prolonged therapy in rhesus monkeys.

Concentrations of penicillin, doxycycline, and ciprofloxacin were measured by bioassay in sera of rhesus monkeys treated with these drugs for inhalation anthrax. Antibiotic doses were determined on the basis of published serum concentration data from humans and comparative body surface area calculations for humans and rhesus monkeys. The antibiotics were well tolerated. Serum peak and trough concentrations of penicillin, doxycycline, and ciprofloxacin, respectively, averaged 2.7 and 0.8, 1.31 and 0.26, and 1.22 and 0.14 microgram/mL. These were within the range usually observed with standard oral doses in humans, and peak concentrations in all monkeys exceeded the MICs for 90% of Bacillus anthracis strains.

A regulatory gene, angR, of the iron uptake system of Vibrio anguillarum: similarity with phage P22 cro and regulation by iron.

The angR locus in Vibrio anguillarum encodes a trans-acting transcriptional activator which modulates several Fe2(+)-regulated loci in the anguibactin biosynthesis gene cluster. In this paper, the complete nucleotide (nt) sequence of the angR gene and deduced amino acid (aa) sequence of the AngR protein are presented. A region upstream from the angR gene is shown to have similarity with Fe2(+)-regulated operators in Escherichia coli which bind the Fur protein. The involvement of a Fur-like regulator is supported by transcription analysis which show that angR itself is Fe2(+)-regulated. The aa sequence of the AngR protein predicts a helix-turn-helix motif which shows striking homology with prokaryotic DNA-binding proteins, particularly the lambda and P22 Cro proteins. In addition, there are two 18-nt regions, upstream from the angR gene, which show similarity with the OR1 and OR2 operators of P22 cro. These regions overlap with, respectively, the -35, -10 region and the putative Fur-binding region upstream from angR. These results suggest that AngR may be a DNA-binding protein which modulates Fe2(+)-regulated transcription and is itself Fe2(+)-regulated at the transcriptional level.

Evidence for plasmid-mediated toxin production in Bacillus anthracis.

Large-molecular-weight plasmids were isolated from virulent and avirulent strains of Bacillus anthracis. Each strain contained a single plasmid species unique from the others with respect to molecular weight. Bacterial strains were cured of their resident extrachromosomal gene pools by sequential passage of cultures at 42.5 degrees C. Coincidental to the curing of plasmids was a loss of detectable lethal toxin and edema-producing activities and a dramatic decrease in lethal factor and protective antigen serological activities. The involvement of these plasmids in the production of toxin was firmly established by transformation of heat-passaged cells with plasmid DNA purified from the parent strain. The ability to produce parent strain levels of toxin was restored, and the plasmid DNA similar in molecular weight to that isolated from the parent was reisolated in all transformants examined. The exact role these plasmids play in the production of toxin remains to be elucidated. Two additional strains of B. anthracis, designated Pasteur vaccine strains, were examined for the ability to produce toxin and for the presence of plasmid DNA. Both strains were found to be nontoxigenic and contained no detectable plasmid elements. It is therefore likely that we, like Pasteur, cured B. anthracis strains of temperature-sensitive plasmids which code for toxin structural or regulatory proteins.

Isolation of plasmids in Legionella pneumophila and Legionella-like organisms.

Agarose gel electrophoresis was employed to screen nine strains of Legionella-like bacteria and one strain of Legionella pneumophila for the presence of extrachromosomal deoxyribonucleic acid. Cryptic plasmids with molecular weights ranging from 46.6 x 10(6) to 59.8 x 10(6) were found in three of the isolates examined.

A plasmid in Legionella pneumophila.

Sixteen strains from the six serogroups of Legionella pneumophila were examined for the presence of extrachromosomal genetic elements by a modified cleared lysate procedure, dye-buoyant centrifugation, and agarose gel electrophoresis. Two strains, Atlanta-1 and Atlanta-2 from serogroup II, each contained a plasmid of cryptic function with a molecular weight of ca. 30 megadaltons.