Two iron-regulated putative ferric siderophore receptor genes in Bordetella bronchiseptica and Bordetella pertussis.

Two iron-regulated genes with deduced homology to TonB-dependent ferric siderophore receptors were cloned from Bordetella bronchiseptica by screening a library of TnphoA insertion mutants. bfrB and bfrC were iron-repressed in B. bronchiseptica by a Fur-dependent mechanism, and were expressed from promoters overlapped by potential Fur-binding sites. Both genes were highly conserved among Bordetella species and were also iron-regulated in Bordetella pertussis. bfrB and bfrC mutants of both species and a bfrB-bfrC double mutant of B. bronchiseptica had no discernible defects in utilization of known iron sources for Bordetella.