Infectious Disease Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114, USA.
We have identified a gene in Vibrio cholerae (epd) which encodes an erythrose-4-phosphate dehydrogenase activity and is located immediately downstream of an iron-regulated virulence gene, irgA, and immediately upstream of a gene encoding phosphoglycerate kinase (pgk). Expression of epd in V. cholerae is not regulated by iron, nor is it required for virulence in an infant mouse model.