A protein involved in termination of chromosome replication in Bacillus subtilis binds specifically to the terC site.

The small basic protein encoded by the open reading frame adjacent to the terC site in the Bacillus subtilis chromosome and previously implicated in termination of the replication process was purified. Band retardation assays established that this protein (now called the replication terminator protein, encoded by the rtp gene) binds specifically to a 209-base-pair fragment of DNA within which terC is located.