The Bof protein of bacteriophage P1 exerts its modulating function by formation of a ternary complex with operator DNA and C1 repressor.

Bacteriophage P1 encodes several regulatory elements for the lytic or lysogenic response, which are located in the immC, immI, and immT regions. Their products are the C1 repressor of lytic functions with the C1 inactivator protein Coi, the C4 repressor of antirepressor synthesis and the modulator protein Bof, respectively. We have studied in vitro the interaction of the components of the immC and immT regions with C1-controlled operators using highly purified Bof, C1, and Coi proteins. Bof protein (M(r) = 9,800) does not interact with C1 repressor alone, but as shown by DNA mobility shift experiments, in the presence of C1 repressor Bof binds to all operators tested by forming a C1.Bof-operator DNA ternary complex. The effect of this complex formation was studied in more detail with the operator of the c1 gene. Here, Bof only marginally alters the C1 repressor footprint at Op99a,b, but nevertheless considerably influences the repressibility of the operator.promoter element: (i) the autoregulated c1 mRNA synthesis is further down-regulated and (ii) the ability of Coi protein to dissociate the C1.operator DNA complex is strongly inhibited. We suggest that Bof protein functions by modulating C1 repression of many widely dispersed operators on the prophage genome.