FurA from Anabaena PCC 7120: New insights on its regulation and the interaction with DNA

Fur (ferric uptake regulator) proteins are global regulatory proteins involved in the maintenance of iron homeostasis. They recognize specific DNA sequences denoted iron boxes. It is assumed that Fur proteins act as classical repressors. Under iron‐rich conditions, Fur dimers complexed with ferrous ions bind to iron boxes, preventing transcription. In addition to iron homeostasis, Fur proteins control the concerted response to oxidative and acidic stresses in heterotrophic prokaryotes. Our group studies the interaction between Fur proteins and target DNA sequences. Moreover, the regulation of FurA in the nitrogen‐fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, whose genome codes for three fur homologues has been investigated. We present an overview about the different factors involved in the regulation of FurA and analyze the parameters that influence FurA‐DNA interaction in the cyanobacterium Anabaena PCC 7120.