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J. Mol. Micro. Biotechnol. 3: 467-470
An Evolutionary Alternative System for Aryl ß-Glucosides Assimilation in Bacteria
Denis Faure, Milton H. Saier, Jr., and Jos Vanderleyden
Some bacteria of the soil microflora or of the digestive systems of mammals can grow on aryl ß-glucosides as sole carbon sources. The bgl operon of E. coli is the paradigm for such a catabolic pathway. In Azospirillum irakense, the two adjacent genes salAB encode ß-glucosidases which are required for salicin assimilation. In this report, we analyse the sequence of salC, the last gene to be identified in the salCAB operon and investigate the phylogenetic origins of the sal and bgl genes. The results suggest an alternative model for the assimilation of aryl bglucosides in bacteria.
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