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Characterization by molecular cloning and sequencing of the gene encoding an aminopeptidase from Listeria monocytogenes

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Abstract

The pepC gene of Listeria monocytogenes encodes aminopeptidase C that is predicted to share 72% amino acid sequence similarity and 53% sequence identity with the cysteine aminopeptidase PepC from Lactococcus lactis. The gene product also shows strong similarity to aminopeptidase C from Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus helveticus, and to a cysteine proteinase/bleomycin hydrolase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The enzyme from L. monocytogenes displayed broad N-terminal hydrolytic activity, with a similar substrate specificity to its lactic acid bacterial counterpart. The inhibition spectrum shows a great deal of similarity with enzymes from the family of lactic acid bacteria. In addition, one of the clones studied contained DNA sequences that could encode a regulatory protein of the deoR helix-turn-helix DNA binding protein family. The organization of the locus, designated pep, is presented along with the characterization of the gene products of the pep locus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Food Science, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA

    Debra K. Winters, Thomas P. Maloney & Michael G. Johnson

  2. Departments of Biological Sciences, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, 72701, USA

    D. Mack Ivey

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  1. Debra K. Winters
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  2. D. Mack Ivey
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  3. Thomas P. Maloney
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  4. Michael G. Johnson
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Correspondence to D. Mack Ivey.

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Winters, D.K., Mack Ivey, D., Maloney, T.P. et al. Characterization by molecular cloning and sequencing of the gene encoding an aminopeptidase from Listeria monocytogenes. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek 78, 141–151 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1026549118087

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