Bacteria of the genera Bacillus survive harsh conditions by forming hearty spores. In spite its immunity to environmental conditions the spore is continually sensing the outside world, waiting for the appropriate time to germinate and resume vegetative growth. We will use Bacillus subtilis as a model for germination. Our goal is to identify the complete repertoire of proteins known to be involved in germination and to describe the interactions among these proteins thus delineating the germination signal transduction pathway. We propose the following three specific aims. First, we will define interactions among germination proteins using yeast-two hybrid. Secondly, we will use phage display to identify proteins that bind to known B. subtilis or B. anthracis germination proteins and so are likely involved in the germination process themselves. And lastly, we will elucidate the germination signal transduction pathway using epistasis and null mutants. Recent events have added urgency to the study of germination. Inhalation of deliberately released spores of B. anthracis a close relative of B. subtilis, resulted in the death of 5 individuals in 2001. A more complete understanding of the process of germination will better protect us from any future attacks of this nature.
