Abstract
Bacteriophage SPO1 gene 33 and 34 products are required for SPO1
late gene transcription. Both proteins bind to the core RNA polymerase of the
Bacillus subtilis host to direct the recognition of SPO1
late gene promoters, whose sequences differ from those of SPO1
early and
middle gene promoters. We have located and cloned the genes for these two regulatory proteins, and have engineered their expression in
Escherichia coli by placing them under the control of the bacteriophage λP
L promoter. Nucleotide sequence analysis indicated that genes 33 and 34 overlap by 4 base-pairs and encode highly charged, slightly basic proteins of molecular weight 11,902 and 23,677, respectively.