A new map location for the ilvB locus of Escherichia coli

We isolated, in E. coli K12, new alleles of the ilvB locus, the structural gene for acetolactate synthase isoenzyme I, and showed them to map at or near the ilvB619 site. The map position of the ilvB locus was redetermined because plasmids containing the ilvC-cya portion of the chromosome did not complement mutations at the ilvB locus. Furthermore, diploids for the ilvEDAC genes formed with these plasmids in an ilvHI background facilitated the isolation of the new ilvB alleles. The ilvB locus was remapped and found to be located at 81.5 minutes, between the uhp and dnaA loci. This location was determined by two- and three-point transductional crosses, deletion mapping and complementation with newly isolated plasmids. One of the new alleles of the ilvB gene is a mu-1 insertion. When present in the donor strain, this allele interferes with the linkage of genes flanking the mu-1 insertion, as well as the linkage of genes to either side of the mu-1 insertion.