The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus
Neisseria meningitidis is the primary causative agent of bacterial meningitis. The genome is rich in repetitive DNA and almost 2% is occupied by a diminutive transposon called the Correia element. Here we report a bioinformatic analysis defining eight subtypes of the element with four distinct types...
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Public Library of Science
2011
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2471/ |
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| author | Siddique, Azeem Buisine, Nicolas Chalmers, Ronald |
| author_facet | Siddique, Azeem Buisine, Nicolas Chalmers, Ronald |
| author_sort | Siddique, Azeem |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Neisseria meningitidis is the primary causative agent of bacterial meningitis. The genome is rich in repetitive DNA and almost 2% is occupied by a diminutive transposon called the Correia element. Here we report a bioinformatic analysis defining eight subtypes of the element with four distinct types of ends. Transcriptional analysis, using PCR and a lacZ reporter system, revealed that two ends in particular encode strong promoters. The activity of the strongest promoter is dictated by a recurrent polymorphism (Y128) at the right end of the element. We highlight examples of elements that appear to drive transcription of adjacent genes and others that may express small non-coding RNAs. Pair-wise comparisons between three meningococcal genomes revealed that no more than two-thirds of Correia elements maintain their subtype at any particular locus. This is due to recombinational class switching between elements in a single strain. Upon switching subtype, a new allele is available to spread through the population by natural transformation. This process may represent a hitherto unrecognized mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus. We conclude that the strain-to-strain variability of the Correia elements, and the large number of strong promoters encoded by them, allows for potentially widespread effects within the population as a whole. By defining the strength of the promoters encoded by the eight subtypes of Correia ends, we provide a resource that allows the transcriptional effects of a particular subtype at a given locus to be predicted. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:18:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-2471 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T18:18:16Z |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science |
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| spelling | nottingham-24712020-05-04T16:30:15Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2471/ The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus Siddique, Azeem Buisine, Nicolas Chalmers, Ronald Neisseria meningitidis is the primary causative agent of bacterial meningitis. The genome is rich in repetitive DNA and almost 2% is occupied by a diminutive transposon called the Correia element. Here we report a bioinformatic analysis defining eight subtypes of the element with four distinct types of ends. Transcriptional analysis, using PCR and a lacZ reporter system, revealed that two ends in particular encode strong promoters. The activity of the strongest promoter is dictated by a recurrent polymorphism (Y128) at the right end of the element. We highlight examples of elements that appear to drive transcription of adjacent genes and others that may express small non-coding RNAs. Pair-wise comparisons between three meningococcal genomes revealed that no more than two-thirds of Correia elements maintain their subtype at any particular locus. This is due to recombinational class switching between elements in a single strain. Upon switching subtype, a new allele is available to spread through the population by natural transformation. This process may represent a hitherto unrecognized mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus. We conclude that the strain-to-strain variability of the Correia elements, and the large number of strong promoters encoded by them, allows for potentially widespread effects within the population as a whole. By defining the strength of the promoters encoded by the eight subtypes of Correia ends, we provide a resource that allows the transcriptional effects of a particular subtype at a given locus to be predicted. Public Library of Science 2011-01-20 Article PeerReviewed Siddique, Azeem, Buisine, Nicolas and Chalmers, Ronald (2011) The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus. PLoS Genetics, 7 (1). 13/1-13/13. ISSN 1553-7390 http://www.plosgenetics.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pgen.1001277 doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1001277 doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1001277 |
| spellingShingle | Siddique, Azeem Buisine, Nicolas Chalmers, Ronald The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title | The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title_full | The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title_fullStr | The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title_full_unstemmed | The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title_short | The transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| title_sort | transposon-like correia elements encode numerous strong promoters and provide a potential new mechanism for phase variation in the meningococcus |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2471/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2471/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/2471/ |