Streptomyces hygroscopicus has two glutamine synthetase genes

Streptomyces hygroscopicus, which produces the glutamine synthetase inhibitor phosphinothricin, possesses at least two genes (glnA and glnB) encoding distinct glutamine synthetase isoforms (GSI and GSII). The glnB gene was cloned from S. hygroscopicus DNA by complementation in an Escherichia coli glutamine auxotrophic mutant (glnA). glnB was subcloned in Streptomyces plasmids by insertion into pIJ486 (pMSG3) and pIJ702 (pMSG5). Both constructions conferred resistance to the tripeptide form of phosphinothricin (bialaphos) and were able to complement a glutamine auxotrophic marker in S. coelicolor. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis of S. lividans(pMSG5) revealed a highly overexpressed 40-kilodalton protein. When GS was purified from this strain, it was indistinguishable in apparent molecular mass from the 40-kilodalton protein. The nucleic acid sequence of the cloned region contained an open reading frame which encoded a protein whose size, amino acid composition, and N-terminal sequence corresponded to those of the purified GS. glnB had a high G + C content and codon usage typical of streptomycete genes. A comparison of its predicted amino acid sequence with the protein data bases revealed that it encoded a GSII-type enzyme which had previously been found only in various eucaryotes (47 to 50% identity) and nodulating bacteria such as Bradyrhizobium spp. (42% identity). glnB had only 13 to 18% identity with eubacterial GSI enzymes. Southern blot hybridization experiments showed that sequences similar to glnB were present in all of the five other Streptomyces species tested, as well as Frankia species. These results do not support the previous suggestion that GSII-type enzymes found in members of the family Rhizobiaceae represent a unique example of interkingdom gene transfer associated with symbiosis in the nodule. Instead they imply that the presence of more than one gene encoding GS may be more common among soil microorganisms than previously appreciated.