RT Journal
A1 Bolshoy, Alexander
A1 Nevo, Eviatar
T1 Ecologic Genomics of DNA: Upstream Bending in Prokaryotic Promoters
JF Genome Research 
JO Genome Research 
YR 2000 
FD August 01 
VO 10 
IS 8 
SP 1185 
OP 1193 
DO 10.1101/gr.10.8.1185 
UL http://genome.cshlp.org/content/10/8/1185.abstract 
AB After our analysis of the distribution of predicted intrinsic curvature along all available complete prokaryotic genomes, the genomes were divided into two groups. Curvature distribution in all prokaryotes of the first group indicated a substantial fraction of promoters characterized by intrinsic DNA curvature located within or upstream of the promoter region. We did not find this peculiar DNA curvature distribution in prokaryotes in the second group. Remarkably, all bacteria of the first group were mesophilic, whereas many prokaryotes of the second group were hyperthermophilic. We hypothesize that DNA curvature plays a biologic role in gene regulation in mesophilic as opposed to hyperthermophilic prokaryotes, i.e., DNA curvature presumably has a functional adaptive significance determined by temperature selection.