Infectious transfer of a fertility factor in Streptomyces coelicolor

SUMMARYInitial Fertility (IF) strains ofStreptomyces coelicolorare able to convert recipient strains (UF) to the IF condition by contact, without concomitant transfer of chromosomal markers. The conversion is prevented by the presence of acridine orange in the medium of the mixed culture. Acridine orange is also moderately effective in inducing the formation of UF variants from IF-treated strains. No effect of the drug is observed on UF variant formation from Normal Fertility (NF) strains nor on the behaviour of the fertility factor in NF × UF mixed cultures. The hypothesis is put forward that the fertility factor works as an episome inS. coelicolor, fixed to the chromosome in the NF strains, free in the IF strains and missing in the UF strains

The time course of recombinant production in Streptomyces coelicolor.

SUMMARYThe process leading to gene recombination can be interrupted in the filamentous bacteriaStreptomyces coelicolorby growing mixed cultures on cellophane disks lying on complete medium. The mycelium is harvested, broken, diluted and the broken hyphae plated at different time intervals. By this means some markers can be excluded from heteroclones or from recombinant progeny in early samples. The recombinant pattern clearly changes with time, with an increase of markers contributed to the recombinant progeny. In crosses between male (NF) and female (UF) strains, the maleness is the first donor trait to appear in the cells of the recipient parent. The fertility factor does not produce a transfer origin on the donor chromosomes; the donor contribution may extend on either side or on both sides of the factor which appears to be compulsory for zygote formation. The longer the time of contact between parental cells, the longer the segment of the donor chromosome contributing to the recombinant progeny. When spores are formed they contain almost exclusively recombinant nuclei derived from segregation processes

Identification of a mitotic recombination hotspot on chromosome III of the asexual fungus Aspergillus niger and its possible correlation elevated basal transcription

Genetic recombination is an important tool in strain breeding in many organisms. We studied the possibilities of mitotic recombination in strain breeding of the asexual fungus Aspergillus niger. By identifying genes that complemented mapped auxotrophic mutations, the physical map was compared to the genetic map of chromosome III using the genome sequence. In a program to construct a chromosome III-specific marker strain by selecting mitotic crossing-over in diploids, a mitotic recombination hotspot was identified. Analysis of the mitotic recombination hotspot revealed some physical features, elevated basal transcription and a possible correlation with purine stretches