Deletion of the gene rpoZ, encoding the omega subunit of RNA polymerase, in Mycobacterium smegmatis results in fragmentation of the beta' subunit in the enzyme assembly.

A deletion mutation in the gene rpoZ of Mycobacterium smegmatis causes reduced growth rate and a change in colony morphology. During purification of RNA polymerase from the mutant strain, the beta' subunit undergoes fragmentation but the fragments remain associated with the enzyme and maintain it in an active state until the whole destabilized assembly breaks down in the final step of purification. Complementation of the mutant strain with an integrated copy of the wild-type rpoZ brings back the wild-type colony morphology and improves the growth rate and activity of the enzyme, and the integrity of the beta' subunit remains unaffected.