The mechanism of CAP-lac repressor binding cooperativity at the E. coli lactose promoter

The cyclic AMP receptor protein (CAP) and lactose repressor bind their regulatory sites in the lactose promoter with moderate cooperativity (ω(C101) = 11.8 (± 3.7)). This cooperativity is significantly reduced by the removal of DNA located upstream of the CAP binding site or by substitution of the dimeric lacI-18 mutant repressor for the wild-type tetrameric protein. These results are consistent with a mechanism of interaction in which CAP bends the DNA and the lac repressor binds simultaneously to its operator site and to promoter-distal sequences. Similar values of ω(C101) were obtained with a promoter truncation containing the O3 pseudooperator site and one in which the site is destroyed, suggesting that DNA contacts distal to the O3 site are necessary for cooperative binding.