Stibitz S, Yang M S
Center for Biological Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, MD.
Dev Biol Stand. 1991;73:87-91.
We report here the results of genetic and immunological studies of the vir locus of Bordetella pertussis. These studies have allowed the determination of the cellular compartment that each of the vir-encoded polypeptides occupies, and have allowed the detection of each of them in crude extracts of Bordetella pertussis cells. From these studies it can be seen that the vir locus encodes two polypeptides, one a transmembrane sensing and signalling protein and the second a cytoplasmic regulatory protein. These proteins belong to the family of bacterial regulatory proteins known as two-component systems. A simple model for signal transduction in this organism is put forward.
