Abstract
In cyanobacteria the protein on the outside of the gas vesicle, GvpC, is characterised by the presence of a 33 amino acid residue repeat (33RR), which in some genera is highly conserved. The number of 33RR s correlates with the diameter of the gas vesicle and inversely with its strength. Gas vesicles isolated from Microcystis aeruginosa strain PCC 7806 were found to be wider and have a lower critical collapse pressure than those from Microcystis sp. strain BC 8401. The entire gas-vesicle gene cluster of the latter strain was sequenced and compared with the published sequence of the former: the sequences of nine of the ten gvp genes differed by only 1–5% between the two strains; the only substantial difference was in gvpC which in strain BC 8401 lacked a 99-nucleotide section encoding a 33RR. This observation further narrows the correlation of gas vesicle width to the number of 33RR s and suggests how Microcystis strains might be used in experimental manipulation of gas vesicle width and strength.
Translated title of the contribution | The diameter and critical collapse pressure of gas vesicles in Microcystis are correlated with GvpCs of different length |
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Original language | English |
Pages (from-to) | 37 - 43 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | FEMS Microbiology Letters |
Volume | 247 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jun 2005 |