Regulation of antibiotic production by ncRNA and signaling molecules in Streptomyces coelicolor
PhD ceremony: Mr. D. D'Alia, 14.45 uur, Academiegebouw, Broerstraat 5, Groningen
Title: Regulation of antibiotic production by ncRNA and signaling molecules in Streptomyces coelicolor
Promotor(s): prof. L. Dijkhuizen, prof. E. Takano
Faculty: Mathematics and Natural Sciences
Regulatory non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are a recently discovered class of DNA transcripts that lack any protein-coding potential and regulate protein translation by annealing to their target messenger RNA (mRNA) molecule. They are considered as key regulators of many cell processes such as virulence, cell communication and secondary metabolite production. Davide d’Alia has predicted, by computational analysis, a large number of ncRNAs especially overlapping with protein-coding genes, which are not commonly found in bacteria, in the antibiotic-producing soil bacterium Streptomyces coelicolor. The presence of some of them was confirmed by him experimentally. One of these ncRNAs, which regulates the mRNA encoding the enzyme glutamine synthetase I (GSI) was analysed in more detail. Additional copies of the GSI ncRNA led to a decrease in the amount of GSI protein and caused a drastic decrease in growth and antibiotic production. This is the first report of a functional ncRNA in Streptomyces and also prompts a functional role for the non-coding transcripts in bacterial cells.
To show that also artificial ncRNAs can be used as a tool to decrease protein synthesis, in a fashion similar to the eukaryotic RNA interference, several ncRNAs for the mRNA encoding the regulator ScbR were constructed by d’Alia. Additional copies of these ncRNAs caused a strong decrease in the amount of ScbR protein synthesized in the cell. His work shows that the ncRNA method can be used as a new technique in bacterial cells to control protein expression.
Last modified: | 13 March 2020 01.12 a.m. |
More news
-
20 January 2023
Carmem M. Gilardoni wins the Ehrenfest-Afanassjewa thesis prize 2022
Carmem M. Gilardoni wins the Ehrenfest-Afanassjewa thesis prize 2022
-
17 January 2023
The quest for the perfect paint
Hanneke Siebe is working on a fullly sustainable paint, based on gum arabic.
-
16 January 2023
In search of the coveted safer, better, longer-lasting battery: BatteryNL kicks off
On the 12th of January a large number of parties involved in the development of batteries in the Netherlands – small companies, multinationals and knowledge institutes – attended the kick off of the BatteryNL consortium. Their goal is to develop the...