Polyamine uptake systems in Escherichia coli
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Updated: Oct 6, 2026

Characterization of Membrane Transporters by Heterologous Expression in E. coli and Production of Membrane Vesicles
Published on: December 31, 2019
K Igarashi1, K Ito, K Kashiwagi
1Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chiba University, Japan. iga16077@p.chiba-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
The polyamine content of cells is regulated by biosynthesis, degradation, and transport. In Escherichia coli, the genes for three different polyamine transport systems have been cloned and characterized. Two uptake systems (putrescine-specific and spermidine-preferential) are ABC transporters, each consisting of a periplasmic substrate binding protein, two transmembrane proteins, and a membrane-associated ATPase. The third transport system, catalyzed by PotE, mediates both uptake and excretion of putrescine. In this article, the properties of the first two polyamine uptake systems are reviewed in detail.
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