{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,2,21]],"date-time":"2025-02-21T20:41:10Z","timestamp":1740170470800,"version":"3.37.3"},"reference-count":47,"publisher":"PeerJ","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,4,12]],"date-time":"2019-04-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1555027200000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:p>The anthrax toxin is a virulence factor produced by the bacterium<jats:italic>Bacillus anthracis<\/jats:italic>. Transcription of anthrax toxin genes is controlled by the transcription factor AtxA. Thus, AtxA is thought to be a key factor for the pathogenicity of<jats:italic>B. anthracis<\/jats:italic>. Despite its important role in<jats:italic>B. anthracis<\/jats:italic>infection, the molecular mechanism by which AtxA controls expression of anthrax toxin remains unclear. This study aimed to characterize the molecular mechanism of AtxA-mediated regulation of protective antigen (PA), a component of anthrax toxin encoded by the<jats:italic>pagA<\/jats:italic>gene. First, the interaction between the upstream region of<jats:italic>pagA<\/jats:italic>and AtxA was evaluated in vivo by constructing a transcriptional fusion of the upstream region with an auxotrophic marker. The results showed that (i) the upstream region of<jats:italic>pagA<\/jats:italic>suppressed transcription of the downstream gene and (ii) AtxA recovered suppressed transcription. Second, in vitro analysis using a gel mobility shift assay was performed to evaluate binding specificity of the AtxA\u2013DNA interaction. The result showed sequence-independent binding of AtxA to DNA. Taken together, our findings suggest that the expression of PA was suppressed by the upstream region of<jats:italic>pagA<\/jats:italic>and that an interaction of AtxA and the upstream region releases the suppression.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.7717\/peerj.6718","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,4,12]],"date-time":"2019-04-12T08:03:56Z","timestamp":1555056236000},"page":"e6718","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Upstream sequence-dependent suppression and AtxA-dependent activation of protective antigens in<i>Bacillus anthracis<\/i>"],"prefix":"10.7717","volume":"7","author":[{"given":"Kochi","family":"Toyomane","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Infection and Immunity, Research Center for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, 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