RNA polymerase-binding and transcription initiation sites upstream of the methyl reductase operon of Methanococcus vannielii

RNA polymerase, purified from Methanococcus vannielii, was shown by exonuclease III footprinting to bind to a 49-base-pair (bp) region of DNA in the intergenic region upstream of mcrB. S1 nuclease protection experiments demonstrated that transcription initiation in vivo occurs within this region at 32 or 33 bp 5' to the ATG translation initiation codon of mcrB and 19 or 20 bp 3' to a TATA box.