Histidine utilization operon antiterminator protein HutP (HutP)

HutP is an RNA-binding protein found in Bacillus subtilis and related species that regulates the histidine utilization (hut) operon through a transcription antitermination mechanism (UniProt P10943). It functions as a hexameric complex that requires the simultaneous binding of L-histidine and divalent metal ions, such as magnesium, to achieve its active conformation (PubMed: 12486130). Once activated, HutP binds to the leader region of the hut mRNA, specifically at three UAG-rich repeats, which prevents the formation of a rho-independent terminator structure and allows transcription to proceed into the structural genes (PubMed: 15531891). This protein is a key model for studying ligand-mediated protein-RNA interactions and the regulation of bacterial catabolic pathways. While not currently a target for FDA-approved drugs, HutP represents a class of bacterial regulatory proteins that could be targeted for the development of narrow-spectrum antimicrobials (PubMed: 18436571).

Other names

Hut operon antiterminatorHistidine utilization protein PHutP

Ligand-dependent RNA binding to prevent transcription termination