The virA promoter is a host-range determinant in Agrobacterium tumefaciens

The limited host range (LHR) Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain Ag162 is an isolate with a narrow host range. Introduction of the wide host range (WHR) virA gene is essential for extending the host range to Kalanchoë daigremontiana. In this report we show that the region upstream of the ATG start codon is responsible for the LHR phenomenon and that this is probably due to the non-inducibility of the LHRvirA promoter. By comparing the characteristics of the LHR and WHR VirA receptor proteins, it was found that the LHR VirA protein is able to activate the WHR VirG protein in the presence of acetosyringone and that this acetosyringone-dependent vir-induction is enhanced by the presence of D-glucose, as in the case of WHR VirA proteins. These results indicate that the domains, acting as receptors for sugars and phenolic signals, must be conserved between the LHR and WHR VirA receptor proteins.