Ray Dixon

Recent publications

Little R., Salinas P., Slavny P., Clarke T. A., Dixon R. (2011) Substitutions in the redox-sensing PAS domain of the NifL regulatory protein define an inter-subunit pathway for redox signal transmission.. Molecular Microbiology. 82(1):222-235

López-Redondo, M.L., Moronta, F., Salinas, P., Espinosa, J., Cantos, R., Dixon, R., Marina, A. & Contreras A. (2010) Environmental control of phosphorylation pathways in a branched two-component system. Molecular Microbiology. 78(2):1278-1288

Sensory mechanisms in bacteria. Molecular aspects of signal recognition. (2010) Editors: Spiro, S., Dixon, R. Caister Academic Press.

Bush, M., Ghosh, T., Tucker, N., Zhang, X. & Dixon, R. (2010) Nitric oxide-responsive inter-domain regulation targets the sigma 54- interaction surface in the enhancer binding protein NorR. Molecular Microbiology. 77:1278-1288

Tucker, N.P., Le Brun, N.E., Dixon, R. & Hutchings, M.I. (2010) There's NO stopping NsrR, a global regulator of the bacterial NO stress response. Trends Microbiol. 18(4): 149-56

Tucker, N.P., Ghosh, T., Bush, M., Zhang, X. & Dixon, R. (2009) Essential roles of three enhancer sites in {sigma}54-dependent transcription by the nitric oxide sensing regulatory protein NorR. Nucleic Acids Res. 38(4): 1182-1194

Slavny, P., Little, R., Salinas, P., Clarke, T.A. & Dixon, R. (2009) Quaternary Structure Changes in a Second PAS Domain Mediate Intramolecular Redox Signal Relay in the NifL Regulatory Protein. Mol Microbiol. 75(1): 61-75

Tucker, N.P., Hicks, M.G., Clarke, T.A., Crack, J.C., Chandra, G., Le Brun, N.E., Dixon, R. & Hutchings, M.I. (2008) The transcriptional repressor protein NsrR senses nitric oxide directly via a [2Fe-2S] cluster. PLoS ONE. 3: e3623.

D'Autreaux, B., Tucker, N., Spiro, S. & Dixon, R. (2008). Characterization of the nitric oxide-reactive transcriptional activator NorR. Methods Enzymol. 437: 235-251.

Tucker, N. P., D'Autreaux, B., Yousafzai, F. K., Fairhurst, S. A., Spiro, S. & Dixon, R. (2008). Analysis of the Nitric Oxide-sensing Non-heme Iron Center in the NorR Regulatory Protein. J Biol Chem 283: 908-918.

Little, R., Martinez-Argudo, I., Perry, S. & Dixon, R. (2007). Role of the H domain of the histidine kinase-like protein NifL in signal transmission. J Biol Chem 282: 13429-13437.

Stevenson C. E. M., Burton N., Costa M. M. R., Nath U., Dixon R. A., Coen E. S. & Lawson D. M. (2006) Crystal structure of the MYB domain of the RAD transcription factor from Antirrhinum majus. Proteins: Structure, Function and Bioinformatics 65: 1041-1045.

Little R., Martinez-Argudo I. & Dixon R. (2006) Role of the central region of NifL in conformational switches that regulate nitrogen fixation. Biochemical Society Transactions 34: 162-164.

Tucker N. P., D'Autreaux B., Spiro S. & Dixon R. (2006) Mechanism of transcriptional regulation by the Escherichia coli nitric oxide sensor NorR. Biochemical Society Transactions 34: 191-194.

D'Autreaux, B., Tucker, N. P., Dixon, R*. & Spiro, S*. (2005). A non-haem iron centre in the transcription factor NorR senses nitric oxide. Nature 437: 769-772. [PDF]

Perry, S., Shearer, N., Little, R. and Dixon, R. (2005) Mutational analysis of the nucleotide-binding domain of the anti-activator NifL. J. Mol. Biol. 346: 935-949. [PDF]

Martinez-Argudo, I., Little, R. & Dixon, R. (2004). A crucial arginine residue is required for a conformational switch in NifL to regulate nitrogen fixation in Azotobacter vinelandii. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. (USA) 101: 16316-16321. [PDF]

Dixon, R. and Kahn, D. (2004) Genetic regulation of nitrogen fixation. Nature Rev. Micro. 2: 621-631. [PDF]

Martinez-Argudo, I., Little, R. and Dixon, R. (2004) Role of the amino-terminal GAF domain of the NifA activator in controlling the response to the anti-activator protein NifL. Mol. Microbiol. 52: 1731-1744. [PDF]

Martinez-Argudo, I., Little, R., Shearer, N., Johnson, P., and Dixon, R. (2004) The NifL-NifA system: a multidomain transcriptional regulatory complex that integrates environmental signals. J. Bacteriol. 186: 601-610. [PDF]

Tucker, N. P., D'Autreaux, B., Studholme, D. J., Spiro, S. & Dixon, R. (2004). DNA binding activity of the Escherichia coli nitric oxide sensor NorR suggests a conserved target sequence in diverse proteobacteria. J Bacteriol. 186: 6656-6660.

Studholme, D. J. and Dixon, R. (2003). Domain architectures of sigma54-dependent transcriptional activators. J. Bacteriol. 185: 1757-1767.

Little, R., Dixon, R. (2003) The Amino-terminal GAF Domain of Azotobacter vinelandii NifA Binds 2-Oxoglutarate to Resist Inhibition by NifL under Nitrogen-limiting Conditions. J.Biol.Chem. 278: 28711-28718

Ray, P., Smith, K.J., Parslow, R.A., Dixon, R., and Hyde, E.I. (2002) Secondary structure and DNA binding by the C-terminal domain of the transcriptional activator NifA from Klebsiella pneumoniae. Nucleic Acids Res30 18: 3972-3980

Reyes-Ramirez, F., Little, R., and Dixon, R. (2002) Mutant Forms of the Azotobacter vinelandii Transcriptional Activator NifA Resistant to Inhibition by the NifL Regulatory Protein. J.Bacteriol 184: 6777-6785.

Little,R., Colombo,V., Leech,A., and Dixon, R. (2002) Direct interaction of the NifL regulatory protein with the GlnK signal transducer enables the Azotobacter vinelandii NifL-NifA regulatory system to respond to conditions replete for nitrogen. J.Biol.Chem. 277: 15472-15481.

Reyes-Ramirez, F., Little, R. and Dixon, R. (2001) Role of Escherichia coli nitrogen fixation genes in the nitrogen response of the Azotobacter vinelandii NifL-NifA complex. J.Bacteriol 183: 3076-3082.

Money, T., Barrett, J., Dixon, R., and Austin, S. (2001) Protein-Protein Interactions in the Complex between the Enhancer Binding Protein NIFA and the Sensor NIFL from Azotobacter vinelandii. J Bacteriol 183: 1359-1368.

Barrett, J., Ray, P., Sobczyk, A., Little, R. and Dixon, R. (2001) Concerted inhibition of the transcriptional activation functions of the enhancer binding protein NIFA by the anti-activator NIFL. Molecular Microbiology 39: 480-494.

Little, R., Reyes-Ramirez, F., Zhang, Y., van Heeswijk, W.C. and Dixon, R. (2000) Signal transduction to the Azotobacter vinelandii NIFL-NIFA regulatory system is influenced directly by interaction with 2-oxoglutarate and the PII regulatory protein. EMBO J. 19: 6041-50.

Money, T., Jones, T., Dixon, R., Austin, S. (1999) Isolation and properties of the complex between the enhancer binding protein NIFA and the sensor NIFL. J Bacteriol 181: 4461-4468.

Dusha, I., Austin, S., Dixon, R. (1999) The upstream region of the nodD3 gene of Sinorhizobium meliloti carries enhancer sequences for the transcriptional activator NtrC. FEMS Microbiol Lett 179: 491-499.

Dixon, R. (1998) The oxygen-responsive NIFL-NIFA complex: a novel two-component regulatory system controlling nitrogenase synthesis in gamma- proteobacteria. Archives of Microbiology 169: 371-380.

Widdick, D., FarezVidal, E., Austin, S., and Dixon, R. (1998). Properties of a mutant form of the prokaryotic enhancer binding protein, NTRC, which hydrolyses ATP in the absence of effectors. FEBS Letters437: 70-74.

Macheroux, P., Hill, S., Austin, S., Eydmann, T., Jones, T., Kim, S.-O., Poole, R., and Dixon, R. (1998). Electron donation to the flavoprotein NifL, a redox-sensing transcriptional regulator. Biochem. J 332: 413-419.

Söderbäck, E., Reyes-Ramirez, F., Eydmann T, Austin, S., Hill, S., and Dixon, R. (1998). The redox-and fixed nitrogen-responsive regulatory protein NIFL from Azotobacter vinelandii comprises discrete flavin and nucleotide-binding domains. Mol. Microbiol. 28: 179-192.

Zhulin, I. B., Taylor, B. L., and Dixon, R. (1997). PAS domain S-boxes in Archea, Bacteria and sensors for oxygen and redox. Trends in Biochem Sci 22: 331-333.

Qureshi, M., Eydmann, T., Austin, S., and Dixon, R. (1997). Torsional constraints on the formation of open promoter complexes on DNA minicircles carrying sigma54-dependent promoters. Biochemistry 36: 12303-12316.

Dixon, R., Cheng,Q., Shen, G-F., Day, A. and Dowson-Day, M. (1997) Nif gene transfer and expression in chloroplasts: prospects and problems. Plant and Soil 194: 193-203.

Farez-Vidal, M., Wilson, T., Davidson, B., Howlett, G., Austin, S., and Dixon, R. (1996). Effector-induced self-association and conformational changes in the enhancer-binding protein NTRC. Mol Microbiol. 22: 779-788.

Hill, S., Austin, S., Eydmann, T., Jones, T., and Dixon, R. (1996). Azotobacter vinelandii NIFL is a flavoprotein that modulates transcriptional activation of nitrogen-fixation genes via a redox-sensitive switch. Proc.Natl.Acad.Sci.USA. 93: 2143-2148.