Disease relevance of umuD

• Remarkably, the umuC122::Tn5 allele of umuC, dinB, and certain forms of umuD gene products endow E. coli with the ability to withstand HU treatment (HUR) [1].
• The umuD and umuC genes were placed under the control of a regulated phage lambda PL promoter and a synthetic ribosome-binding site, and the distance to the UmuD start was adjusted to maximize gene expression [2].
• The left arm contains a long cluster of structural genes that are closely related to those of the lambda-like phages, but also includes homologs of umuD', which encodes a DNA polymerase accessory protein, and the plasmid partition genes, sopA and sopB [3].
• The DNA from none of the vibrio species examined including marine vibrios hybridized to E. coli umuC and umuD gene sequences [4].

High impact information on umuD

• Posttranslational modification of the umuD-encoded subunit of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase V regulates its interactions with the beta processivity clamp [5].
• To initiate a biochemical characterization of the role of these proteins, we have developed a plasmid system that gives efficient expression of the umuD and umuC genes [2].
• Furthermore, the search identified an SOS gene within the genome of P1 which encodes a protein that is homologous to UmuD', the RecA-promoted cleavage product of the umuD gene [6].
• The umuD open reading frame is intact, but it is 1.5 times the size of other umuD genes and has an extra 5' region that lacks homology to known umuD genes [7].
• The umuD mutation did not affect the growth rate or survival after UV-induced DNA damage [7].

Biological context of umuD

• Mutations in the umuC and umuD genes eliminated most of the mutagenic effect of SspC but not the killing, while the lexA mutation increased mutagenesis but did not appreciably affect the killing [8].
• The two genes comprise an operon, and the transcriptional direction is from umuD to umuC [9].
• An SOS box identical to that found in E. coli is present in the promoter region upstream of umuD [10].
• Escherichia coli strains carrying the trpA23 missense mutation and having a full deletion of the chromosomal umuD/C operon were transformed with plasmids encoding the MucB protein together with either wild-type MucA or the nonprocessable MucA202 protein [11].
• Induction by the 4-quinolone group of antibacterial drugs of the umuC gene, the SOS function most involved in error-prone DNA repair (together with umuD), was assessed in a strain of Escherichia coli harbouring a umuC::lacZ gene fusion [12].

Associations of umuD with chemical compounds

• In addition to the hydroxylamine-generated mutants, we have subcloned the mutations found in three chromosomal umuD1, umuD44, and umuD77 alleles into umuD'. All 17 umuD' mutants resulted in lower levels of SOS-dependent spontaneous mutagenesis but varied in the extent to which they promoted methyl methanesulfonate-induced mutagenesis [13].

Other interactions of umuD

• From these and the previous results of genetic and biochemical studies on the cloned genes, we conclude that the former is the umuD and the latter is the umuC gene [14].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of umuD

• Further subcloning, Tn1000 insertion inactivation, and complementation tests revealed that there are two genes, umuD and umuC in the former umuC region [9].
• With DNA probes to the E. coli umuD and umuC genes, we detected, by Southern blot hybridization, sequences similar to both of these genes in S. typhimurium LT2 [15].

References