Molecular Cloning and Sequencing of Cell Wall Hydrolase Gene of an Alkalophilic Bacillus subtilis BL-29

A DNA fragment containing the gene for cell wall hydrolase of alkalophilic Bacillus subtilis BL-29 was cloned into E. coli JM109 using pUC18 as a vector. A recombinant plasmid, designated pCWL45B, was contained in the fragment originating from the alkalophilic B. subtilis BL-29 chromosomal DNA by Southern hybridization analysis. The nucleotide sequence of a 1.6-kb HindIII fragment containing a cell wall hydrolase-encoding gene was determined. The nucleotide sequence revealed an open reading frame (ORF) of 900 bp with a concensus ribosome-binding site located 6 nucleotide upstream from the ATG start codon. The primary amino acid sequence deduced from the nucleotide sequence revealed a putative protein of 299 amino acid residues with an M.W. of 33, 206. Based on comparison of the amino acid sequence of the ORF with amino acid sequences in the GenBank data, it showed significant homology to the sequence of cell wall amidase of the PBSX bacteriophage of B. subtilis.