Characterization of the ileS-lsp operon in Escherichia coli. Identification of an open reading frame upstream of the ileS gene and potential promoter(s) for the ileS-lsp operon.

The preceding paper presents evidence for the co-transcriptional expression of the ileS and lsp genes in Escherichia coli. To identify the promoter for the ileS-lsp operon, we have determined the nucleotide sequence of an 1.8-kilobase DNA fragment between the rpsT and IleS genes. The sequence data have revealed an open reading frame, designated gene X, which encodes a polypeptide with 312 amino acid residues. Both in vivo and in vitro expressions of the x gene result in the synthesis of a soluble protein with an apparent Mr of 35,000. The x gene is transcribed in the same direction as that of the ileS-lsp operon and opposite to that of the upstream adjacent rpsT gene. No transcription termination sequence can be discerned in the intercistronic region between the x and ileS genes. DNase I footprinting experiment revealed a RNA polymerase binding site at 170-151 base pairs upstream of the x gene.