{"@type": "dcat:Dataset", "accessLevel": "public", "bureauCode": ["009:25"], "contactPoint": {"@type": "vcard:Contact", "fn": "NIH", "hasEmail": "mailto:info@nih.gov"}, "description": "Background\n          Nitrogen fixation gene expression in Sinorhizobium meliloti, the alfalfa symbiont, depends on a cascade of regulation that involves both positive and negative control. On top of the cascade, the two-component regulatory system FixLJ is activated under the microoxic conditions of the nodule. In addition, activity of the FixLJ system is inhibited by a specific anti-kinase protein, FixT. The physiological significance of this negative regulation by FixT was so far unknown.\n        \n        \n          Results\n          We have isolated by random Tn5 mutagenesis a S. meliloti mutant strain that escapes repression by FixT. Complementation test and DNA analysis revealed that inactivation of an asparagine synthetase-like gene was responsible for the phenotype of the mutant. This gene, that was named asnO, encodes a protein homologous to glutamine-dependent asparagine synthetases. The asnO gene did not appear to affect asparagine biosynthesis and may instead serve a regulatory function in S. meliloti. We provide evidence that asnO is active during symbiosis .\n        \n        \n          Conclusions\n          Isolation of the asnO mutant argues for the existence of a physiological regulation associated with fixT and makes it unlikely that fixT serves a mere homeostatic function in S. meliloti. Our data suggest that asnO might control activity of the FixT protein, in a way that remains to be elucidated. A proposed role for asnO might be to couple nitrogen fixation gene expression in S. meliloti to the nitrogen needs of the cells.", "distribution": [{"@type": "dcat:Distribution", "description": "Visit the original government dataset for complete information, documentation, and data access.", "downloadURL": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC32199/", "mediaType": "text/html", "title": "Official Government Data Source"}], "identifier": "https://healthdata.gov/api/views/tc78-u39m", "issued": "2025-07-13", "keyword": ["nih", "nitrogen-fixation", "sinorhizobium-meliloti", "gene-expression", "fixlj-system"], "landingPage": "https://healthdata.gov/d/tc78-u39m", "modified": "2025-09-06", "programCode": ["009:033"], "publisher": {"@type": "org:Organization", "name": "National Institutes of Health"}, "theme": ["NIH"], "title": "A glutamine-amidotransferase-like protein modulates FixT anti-kinase activity in"}