Abstract
Organisms have evolved gene regulatory systems to cope with stress. To maintain the structural and functional integrity of their genomes after damage due to environmental or metabolic assaults, bacteria mount a program of gene expression known as the ‘SOS response’. Induction of this response requires a repressor, the LexA protein, and an inducer, the recombinase A (RecA) protein. In Escherichia coli, upon DNA damage, RecA stimulates cleavage of the LexA repressor, inducing expression of approximately 1% of the genes. The coordinated expression of these genes orchestrates a complex program of DNA repair, which can also result in mutations and genetic exchange that facilitate bacterial evolution. In some bacteria, the SOS response also modulates the expression of virulence factor genes and can induce the formation of dormant cells that are highly tolerant to antibiotics.
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