SkfA

• Description: spore killing factor
  
  

Gene name	skfA
Synonyms	ybcO
Essential	no
Product	spore killing factor
Function	killing of sister cells
MW, pI	5 kDa, 10.648
Gene length, protein length	165 bp, 55 aa
Immediate neighbours	ybcM, skfB
Get the DNA and protein sequences (Barbe et al., 2009)
Genetic context This image was kindly provided by SubtiList

The gene

Basic information

• Locus tag: BSU01910

Database entries

• DBTBS entry: [1]

• SubtiList entry: [2]

The protein

Basic information/ Evolution

• Catalyzed reaction/ biological activity:

• Protein family:

• Paralogous protein(s):

Extended information on the protein

• Kinetic information:

• Domains:

• Modification: the mature SKF is cyclic 26-amino acid peptide that is posttranslationally modified with one disulfide and one cysteine thioether bridged to the alpha-position of a methionine PubMed

• Cofactor(s):

• Effectors of protein activity:

• Interactions:

• Localization: secreted (according to Swiss-Prot)

Database entries

• Structure:

• UniProt: O31422

• KEGG entry: [3]

• E.C. number:

Expression and regulation

• Operon: skfA-skfB-skfC-skfD-skfE-skfF-skfG-skfH PubMed

• Sigma factor: SigA PubMed

• Regulation:
  • induced by phosphate starvation (PhoP) PubMed
  • repressed by glucose (33-fold) PubMed
  • expressed under conditions that trigger sporulation (Spo0A) PubMed
  • repressed during logrithmic growth (AbrB) PubMed
  • induced by rhamnogalacturonan PubMed

• Regulatory mechanism:
  • PhoP: transcription activation PubMed
  • Spo0A: transcription activation PubMed
  • AbrB: transcription repression PubMed

• Additional information:
  • Northern blotting during during phosphate limitation showed an intense 0.25 kb skfA-specific transcript, and a weaker 6.5 kb skfA-skfB-skfC-skfD-skfE-skfF-skfG-skfH transcript.
  • The skfA transcript is stabilized by a stem-loop structure in the skfA-skfB intergenic region. PubMed
  • The mRNA is very stable (half-life > 15 min) PubMed

Biological materials

• Mutant:

• Expression vector:

• lacZ fusion:

• GFP fusion:

• two-hybrid system:

• Antibody:

References

Reviews

José Eduardo González-Pastor
Cannibalism: a social behavior in sporulating Bacillus subtilis.
FEMS Microbiol Rev: 2011, 35(3);415-24
[PubMed:20955377] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (I p)

Original Publications

Wei-Ting Liu, Yu-Liang Yang, Yuquan Xu, Anne Lamsa, Nina M Haste, Jane Y Yang, Julio Ng, David Gonzalez, Craig D Ellermeier, Paul D Straight, Pavel A Pevzner, Joe Pogliano, Victor Nizet, Kit Pogliano, Pieter C Dorrestein
Imaging mass spectrometry of intraspecies metabolic exchange revealed the cannibalistic factors of Bacillus subtilis.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A: 2010, 107(37);16286-90
[PubMed:20805502] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (I p)

Allison V Banse, Arnaud Chastanet, Lilah Rahn-Lee, Errett C Hobbs, Richard Losick
Parallel pathways of repression and antirepression governing the transition to stationary phase in Bacillus subtilis.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A: 2008, 105(40);15547-52
[PubMed:18840696] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (I p)

Mark A Strauch, Benjamin G Bobay, John Cavanagh, Fude Yao, Angelo Wilson, Yoann Le Breton
Abh and AbrB control of Bacillus subtilis antimicrobial gene expression.
J Bacteriol: 2007, 189(21);7720-32
[PubMed:17720793] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Akihito Ochiai, Takafumi Itoh, Akiko Kawamata, Wataru Hashimoto, Kousaku Murata
Plant cell wall degradation by saprophytic Bacillus subtilis strains: gene clusters responsible for rhamnogalacturonan depolymerization.
Appl Environ Microbiol: 2007, 73(12);3803-13
[PubMed:17449691] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Nicholas E E Allenby, Carys A Watts, Georg Homuth, Zoltán Prágai, Anil Wipat, Alan C Ward, Colin R Harwood
Phosphate starvation induces the sporulation killing factor of Bacillus subtilis.
J Bacteriol: 2006, 188(14);5299-303
[PubMed:16816204] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Helga Westers, Peter G Braun, Lidia Westers, Haike Antelmann, Michael Hecker, Jan D H Jongbloed, Hirofumi Yoshikawa, Teruo Tanaka, Jan Maarten van Dijl, Wim J Quax
Genes involved in SkfA killing factor production protect a Bacillus subtilis lipase against proteolysis.
Appl Environ Microbiol: 2005, 71(4);1899-908
[PubMed:15812018] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Masaya Fujita, José Eduardo González-Pastor, Richard Losick
High- and low-threshold genes in the Spo0A regulon of Bacillus subtilis.
J Bacteriol: 2005, 187(4);1357-68
[PubMed:15687200] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Virginie Molle, Masaya Fujita, Shane T Jensen, Patrick Eichenberger, José E González-Pastor, Jun S Liu, Richard Losick
The Spo0A regulon of Bacillus subtilis.
Mol Microbiol: 2003, 50(5);1683-701
[PubMed:14651647] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

G Hambraeus, C von Wachenfeldt, L Hederstedt
Genome-wide survey of mRNA half-lives in Bacillus subtilis identifies extremely stable mRNAs.
Mol Genet Genomics: 2003, 269(5);706-14
[PubMed:12884008] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

Hans-Matti Blencke, Georg Homuth, Holger Ludwig, Ulrike Mäder, Michael Hecker, Jörg Stülke
Transcriptional profiling of gene expression in response to glucose in Bacillus subtilis: regulation of the central metabolic pathways.
Metab Eng: 2003, 5(2);133-49
[PubMed:12850135] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (P p)

José E González-Pastor, Errett C Hobbs, Richard Losick
Cannibalism by sporulating bacteria.
Science: 2003, 301(5632);510-3
[PubMed:12817086] [WorldCat.org] [DOI] (I p)