On the role of Cro in lambda prophage induction

TY - JOUR

T1 - On the role of Cro in lambda prophage induction

AU - Svenningsen, Sine Lo

AU - Constantino, Nina

AU - Court, Donald L

AU - Adhya, Sankar

PY - 2005

Y1 - 2005

N2 - The lysogenic state of bacteriophage ¿ is exceptionally stable yet the prophage is readily induced in response to DNA damage. This delicate epigenetic switch is believed to be regulated by two proteins; the lysogenic maintenance promoting protein CI and the early lytic protein Cro. First, we confirm, in the native configuration, the previous observation that the DNA loop mediated by oligomerization of CI bound to two distinct operator regions (O L and O R), increases repression of the early lytic promoters and is important for stable maintenance of lysogeny. Second, we show that the presence of the cro gene might be unimportant for the lysogenic to lytic switch during induction of the ¿ prophage. We revisit the idea that Cro's primary role in induction is instead to mediate weak repression of the early lytic promoters.

AB - The lysogenic state of bacteriophage ¿ is exceptionally stable yet the prophage is readily induced in response to DNA damage. This delicate epigenetic switch is believed to be regulated by two proteins; the lysogenic maintenance promoting protein CI and the early lytic protein Cro. First, we confirm, in the native configuration, the previous observation that the DNA loop mediated by oligomerization of CI bound to two distinct operator regions (O L and O R), increases repression of the early lytic promoters and is important for stable maintenance of lysogeny. Second, we show that the presence of the cro gene might be unimportant for the lysogenic to lytic switch during induction of the ¿ prophage. We revisit the idea that Cro's primary role in induction is instead to mediate weak repression of the early lytic promoters.

U2 - 10.1073/pnas.0409839102

DO - 10.1073/pnas.0409839102

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 15728734

SN - 0027-8424

VL - 102

SP - 4465

EP - 4469

JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

JF - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

IS - 12

ER -