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Updated: May 17, 2026

Total Protein Extraction and 2-D Gel Electrophoresis Methods for Burkholderia Species
Published on: October 15, 2013
Identification of type II toxin-antitoxin modules in Burkholderia pseudomallei
Aaron Butt1, Claudia Müller, Nicholas Harmer
1Department of Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK.
Abstract:
Type II toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems are believed to be widely distributed amongst bacteria although their biological functions are not clear. We have identified eight candidate TA systems in the genome of the human pathogen Burkholderia pseudomallei. Five of these were located in genome islands. Of the candidate toxins, BPSL0175 (RelE1) or BPSS1060 (RelE2) caused growth to cease when expressed in Escherichia coli, whereas expression of BPSS0390 (HicA) or BPSS1584 (HipA) (in an E. coli ΔhipBA background) caused a reduction in the number of culturable bacteria. The cognate antitoxins could restore growth and culturability of cells.
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