Abstract
Transposon-directed insertion site sequencing was used to identify genes required by Bacillus thuringiensis to survive in non-axenic plant/soil microcosms. A total of 516 genetic loci fulfilled the criteria as conferring survival characteristics. Of these, 127 (24.6 %) were associated with uptake and transport systems; 227 loci (44.0 %) coded for enzymatic properties; 49 (9.5 %) were gene regulation or sensory loci; 40 (7.8 %) were structural proteins found in the cell envelope or had enzymatic activities related to it and 24 (4.7 %) were involved in the production of antibiotics or resistance to them. Eighty-three (16.1 %) encoded hypothetical proteins or those of unknown function. The ability to form spores was a key survival characteristic in the microcosms: bacteria, inoculated in either spore or vegetative form, were able to multiply and colonise the soil, whereas a sporulation-deficient mutant was not. The presence of grass seedlings was critical to colonisation. Bacteria labelled with green fluorescent protein were observed to adhere to plant roots. The sporulation-specific promoter of spo0A, the key regulator of sporulation, was strongly activated in the rhizosphere. In contrast, the vegetative-specific promoters of spo0A and PlcR, a pleiotropic regulator of genes with diverse activities, were only very weakly activated.
DOI
10.1007/s00284-013-0502-7
Publication Date
2014-04-01
Publication Title
Current Microbiology
Volume
68
Issue
4
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
ISSN
1432-0991
Embargo Period
2024-11-22
First Page
477
Last Page
485
Recommended Citation
Bishop, A., Rachwal, P., & Vaid, A. (2014) 'Identification of Genes Required by Bacillus thuringiensis for Survival in Soil by Transposon-Directed Insertion Site Sequencing', Current Microbiology, 68(4), pp. 477-485. Springer Science and Business Media LLC: Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-013-0502-7
