Analysis of DNA flanking the treA gene of Bacillus subtilis reveals genes encoding a putative specific enzyme IITre and a potential regulator of the trehalose operon.

Nucleotide sequencing revealed the genes treP encoding a putative specific enzyme IITre upstream from treA and treR encoding a potential regulator downstream from treA of Bacillus subtilis 168. The treP gene encodes a 470-amino acid (aa) protein (50 kDa) showing high similarities to several different specific enzymes II of phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransferase systems. treR encodes a 238-aa protein (28 kDa) with high homologies in its N-terminal part to DNA-binding proteins including a helixturn-helix motif. Homologies in its C-terminal part place it in the family of FadR-GntR transcriptional regulators. The three genes, treP-treA-treR, are probably organized in one operon expressed by a sigma A-dependent promoter 53 bp upstream from treP and a rho-independent terminator 28 bp downstream from treR.