Cloning of the creA gene from Aspergillus nidulans: a gene involved in carbon catabolite repression

The creA gene from A. nidulans has been cloned by complementation of a non-revertable mutant allele using a genomic library and marker rescue techniques. The rescued sequence was subcloned and a 2.3 kb fragment identified which complements several creA mutant alleles. Northern analyses showed that creA encodes a transcript of approximately 1.8 kb in length and that the levels of this transcript varied by up to two fold depending on the carbon source. Transformants containing more than two extra copies of creA grew as wildtype on a range of carbon sources, but there was evidence for tighter carbon catabolite repression.