Molecular cloning and analysis of DNA repair gene from the radioresistant bacterium deinococcus radiodurans

Deinococcus radiodurans (Dr) possesses a prominent ability to repair DNA injury induced by various DNA-damaging agents including mitomycin C (MC), ultraviolet light (UV) and ionizing radiation. A DNA repair mutant Dr KH3111 is a streptomycin resistant (SmR) derivative of KH311 which is generated by treatment with nitrosoguanidine and is sensitive to MC, 8-trimethyl-psoralen, UV and γ-ray irradiation. Gene affected by a mutation in the mutant is identified and its nucleotide sequence is determined. A complete open reading frame (ORF) which encompassed the KH3111 mutation region is found and tentatively designated as orf144b. The deduced amino acid (aa) sequence of orf144b consists of 284 aa and has no significant homology to other known proteins. The exact KH3111 mutation site is one nucleotide altered (G to A) in the sequence of orf144b in the mutant. The KH3111 mutation causes the substitution of Gly for Glu at aa position 149 of Orf144b. Survival measurements of a revertant KH3112 which was produced by transforming with DNA containing a part of the orf144b gene of KD8301 showed that the resistances to MC, UV and γ-ray in the revertant were fully restored at a level equal to the wild type. Thus, the orf144b gene required for the multiple-DNA-damaging agent resistance of Dr was designated with the name of pprA (Pleiotropic gene promoting DNA repair). This new gene can express in E. coli at very high level, and make the host E. coli resistant to MC, UV and γ-ray. The pprA gene does not express in normal Dr, but it can be induced to express by treatment with MC, UV and γ-ray. It was thought that the PprA polypeptide is a cytoplasmic protein because of the absence of characteristics found in the aa sequence of membrane proteins