Abstract
The rRNA genes of Borrelia (Borreliella) burgdorferi are unusually organized; the spirochete has a single 16S rRNA gene that is more than 3 kb from a tandem pair of 23S-5S rRNA operons. We generated an rnc null mutant in B. burgdorferi that exhibits a pleiotropic phenotype, including decreased growth rate and increased cell length. Here, we demonstrate that endoribonuclease III (RNase III) is, as expected, involved in processing the 23S rRNA in B. burgdorferi. The 5' and 3' ends of the three rRNAs were determined in the wild type and rncBb mutants; the results suggest that RNase III in B. burgdorferi is required for the full maturation of the 23S rRNA but not for the 5S rRNA nor, curiously, for the 16S rRNA.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e00035-18 |
| Journal | Journal of Bacteriology |
| Volume | 200 |
| Issue number | 13 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 1 2018 |
Funding
This work was supported by Public Health Service grants R01 AI051486 to D.S.S. and P20 GM103546 to Stephen R. Sprang (Center for Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics) from the National Institutes of Health. R.D.L. was supported by an Undergraduate Research Award from the Davidson Honors College, a scholarship through the Montana Space Grant Consortium under grant NNX10AJ83H from NASA, a Student Research Grant from the Montana Academy of Sciences, and an Interim Research Award through the Montana Integrative Learning Experience for Students (MILES) program under grant 52005905 from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute-Undergraduate Science Education Program.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| P20GM103546 | |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | NNX10AJ83H |
| P20 GM103546, R01 AI051486 | |
| 52005905 |
Keywords
- Borrelia burgdorferi
- Endoribonuclease III
- RNA processing
- Ribosomal RNA
- Spirochetes