The role of TrmB and TrmB-like transcriptional regulators for sugar transport and metabolism in the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus

TrmB of Pyrococcus furiosus was discovered as the trehalose/maltose-specific repressor for the genes encoding the trehalose/maltose high-affinity ABC transporter (the TM system). TrmB also represses the genes encoding the high affinity maltodextrin-specific ABC transporter (the MD system) with maltodextrin and sucrose as inducers. In addition, TrmB binds glucose leading to an increased repression of both, the TM and the MD system. Thus, TrmB recognizes different promoters and depending on the promoter it will be activated or inactivated for promoter binding by different sugar effectors. The TrmB-like protein TrmBL1 of P. furiosus is a global regulator and recognizes preferentially, but not exclusively, the TGM (for Thermococcales-glycolytic motif) sequence that is found upstream of the MD system as well as of genes encoding enzymes involved in the glycolytic and the gluconeogenic pathway. It responds to maltose and maltotriose as inducers and functions as repressor for the genes encoding the MD system and glycolytic enzymes, but as activator for genes encoding gluconeogenic enzymes. The TrmB-like protein TrmBL2 of P. furiosus lacks the sugar-binding domain that has been determined in TrmB. It recognizes the MD promoter, but not all TGM harboring promoters. It is evolutionary the most conserved among the Thermococcales. The regulatory range of TrmBL2 remains unclear.