Genetic analysis of UV mutagenesis of the Escherichia coli gly U gene

Abstract

By genetic analysis we examined UV mutagenesis of the Escherichia coli glyU gene. When carried by M13 phage mp9, glyU is subject to induced UV mutagenesis which is dependent on the umuC+ and recF+ genes. When carried by M13 phage mp8, glyU is not subject to induced UV mutagenesis. This difference is correlated with the nature of the target nucleotides: CTC in the mp9 derivative and GAG in the mp8 derivative. Thus, we conclude that the induced (umuC and recF dependent) mutagenesis is locally targeted on pyrimidine cyclobutane or 6-4 dimers. glyU carried by M13 is equally subject to uninduced UV mutagenesis whether carried by mp8 or mp9. This uninduced mutagenesis is independent of the umuC+, recF+ and recA+ genes and we hypothesize that it is regionally targeted on pyrimidine cyclobutane or 6-4 dimers in the vicinity of the target CTC and GAG nucleotides. The role of recF in UV mutagenesis was tested in two ways. First, mutagenesis of glyU carried by M13 mp9 in a recA730 genetic background was found to be recF dependent. Because recA730 renders induced UV mutagenesis partially constitutive, we conclude that the RecF product plays a direct role in UV mutagenesis rather than, or in addition to, any indirect regulatory role it may play. Second, UV mutagenesis of E. coli chromosomal glyU was found to be recF independent while UV mutagenesis of M13-bourne glyU was recF dependent. We conclude that the mechanism of induced UV mutagenesis of the E. coli chromosome is at least partly different from that of M13 phage and we discuss the biochemical basis for such a difference.