# CHEMOTACTIC SENSORY TRANSDUCTION IN BACILLUS SUBTILIS

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN · 1992 · $201,098

## Abstract

Our  long term  objective  is to understand the mechanism of   sensory
transduction  during chemotaxis in Bacillus subtilis.  The chemotaxis
systems of Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli share some features.
However, there are several basic differences.  Methyl transfer reactions
occur between proteins upon excitation by both attractants and repellents
and methanol is released to bring about adaptation to both these stimuli.
In Halobacterium halobium, one of the archebacteria, methanol release
also occurs for all types of stimuli.  E. coli does not use methyl
transfer between proteins.  The methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins
(MCPs), the receptors, in E. coli are around 60 kD, but the major MCPs of
B. subtilis are 79, 87, and 97 kD.  These are more similar in size to
those of Halobacterium halobium.  Thus, there is reason to believe that
the underlying methylation mechanism of chemotaxis differs between B.
subtilis and E. coli but there may be more similarity between B. subtilis
and H. halobium.  This similarity to H. halobium may have far-reaching
significance.  The archebacteria are more closely related to eucaryotic
cells than to true bacteria; so that there is the possibility that methyl
transfer reactions might play unsuspected roles in sensory transduction
in eucaryotic cells.  We soon will be finishing the cloning and
sequencing of che/fla genes.  We will then inactivate them to define from
in vivo experiments the roles of the corresponding proteins in
chemotaxis.  We will express them in an E. coli expression system and
purify them.  We have purified the three major MCPs of B. subtilis,
reconstituted them into lipid vesicles, and methylated them.  We will
reconstitute phosphoryl and methyl transfer pathways and observe effect
of attractant and repellent on enzymatic activities and stoichiometry of
complexes of chemotaxis proteins.  We will use site-directed mutagenesis
and casette mutagenesis to delineate structure/function relationships
among chemotaxis proteins.  Finally, we will study regulation of the
major che/fla operon.  This operon is over 26 kb and contains at least 27
genes. We will also examine the mechanism by which both hag and mot
transcription and methanol formation on chemotactic stimulation depend on
the morphology of the basal body.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 3129945
- **Project number:** 5R01AI020336-10
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN
- **SAM.gov UEI:** Y8CWNJRCNN91
- **Principal Investigator:** George W. Ordal
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1992
- **Award amount:** $201,098
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1983-08-01 → 1996-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/3129945

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 3129945, CHEMOTACTIC SENSORY TRANSDUCTION IN BACILLUS SUBTILIS (5R01AI020336-10). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-25 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/3129945. Licensed CC0.

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