This group studies how organisms sense environmental signals and transduce the signal into changes in gene expression and cell morphology. The group has continued their characterization of the bacterial response to hydrogen peroxide. Two regulators are central to the response to hydrogen peroxide: OxyR, a protein activator that is switched on by oxidation, and OxyS, a novel 107 nucleotide RNA that acts as an activator and repressor of gene expression. The group has defined functional domains within the OxyR protein and elucidated the nature of OxyR-DNA recognition. Active domains within the OxyS RNA and a response element in an OxyS-regulated gene have also been identified. OxyS was found to act at the level of mRNA translation. Using Arabidopsis thaliana as a model system, the group has also initiated a large scale screen for mutants defective in their response to blue light.

Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
Budget End
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
1993
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
City
State
Country
United States
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Hemm, Matthew R; Paul, Brian J; Schneider, Thomas D et al. (2008) Small membrane proteins found by comparative genomics and ribosome binding site models. Mol Microbiol 70:1487-501
Kawano, Mitsuoki; Aravind, L; Storz, Gisela (2007) An antisense RNA controls synthesis of an SOS-induced toxin evolved from an antitoxin. Mol Microbiol 64:738-54
Tjaden, Brian; Goodwin, Sarah S; Opdyke, Jason A et al. (2006) Target prediction for small, noncoding RNAs in bacteria. Nucleic Acids Res 34:2791-802
Hu, Zonglin; Zhang, Aixia; Storz, Gisela et al. (2006) An antibody-based microarray assay for small RNA detection. Nucleic Acids Res 34:e52
Storz, G; Opdyke, J A; Wassarman, K M (2006) Regulating bacterial transcription with small RNAs. Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol 71:269-73
Wang, Xunde; Mukhopadhyay, Partha; Wood, Matthew J et al. (2006) Mutational analysis to define an activating region on the redox-sensitive transcriptional regulator OxyR. J Bacteriol 188:8335-42
Storz, Gisela; Altuvia, Shoshy; Wassarman, Karen M (2005) An abundance of RNA regulators. Annu Rev Biochem 74:199-217
Kawano, Mitsuoki; Reynolds, April A; Miranda-Rios, Juan et al. (2005) Detection of 5'- and 3'-UTR-derived small RNAs and cis-encoded antisense RNAs in Escherichia coli. Nucleic Acids Res 33:1040-50
Kawano, Mitsuoki; Storz, Gisela; Rao, B Sridhar et al. (2005) Detection of low-level promoter activity within open reading frame sequences of Escherichia coli. Nucleic Acids Res 33:6268-76
Wood, Matthew J; Storz, Gisela (2005) Oxygen, metabolism, and gene expression: the T-Rex connection. Structure 13:2-4

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