Exonuclease III and the catalase hydroperoxidase II in Escherichia coli are both regulated by the katF gene product.

The levels of both exonuclease III (exo III, product of xthA) and hydroperoxidase II (HP-II, product of katE) activity in Escherichia coli were influenced by a functional katF gene. The katF gene product is also necessary for synthesis of HP-II. Mutations in either katF or xthA, but not katE, result in sensitivity to H2O2 and near-UV (300-400 nm) radiation. Exo III, encoded by the xthA locus, recognizes and removes nucleoside 5'-monophosphates near apurinic and apyrimidinic sites in damaged DNA. Extracts of katF mutant strains had little detectable exo III activity. When a katF+ plasmid was introduced into the katF mutant, exo III activity exceeded wild-type levels. We propose that the katF gene is a trans-acting positive regulator of exo III and HP-II enzymes, both of which are involved in cellular recovery from oxidative damage.