Protease processing pro-sigma-E; Probable aspartic protease that is responsible for the proteolytic cleavage of the RNA polymerase sigma E factor (SigE/spoIIGB) to yield the active peptide in the mother cell during sporulation. Responds to a signal from the forespore that is triggered by the extracellular signal protein SpoIIR. Belongs to the peptidase U4 family.

Putative serine/threonine-protein kinase; Evidence 3: Function proposed based on presence of conserved amino acid motif, structural feature or limited homology; Product type pe: putative enzyme.

Anti-anti-sigma factor (antagonist of SpoIIAB); In the phosphorylated form it could act as an anti-anti-sigma factor that counteracts SpoIIAB and thus releases sigma f from inhibition; Belongs to the anti-sigma-factor antagonist family.

Conserved hypothetical protein; Evidence 4: Homologs of previously reported genes of unknown function.

pro-sigma(E) endopeptidase (stage II sporulation); Evidence 1a: Function experimentally demonstrated in the studied strain; Product type e: enzyme.

Response regulator; May play the central regulatory role in sporulation. It may be an element of the effector pathway responsible for the activation of sporulation genes in response to nutritional stress. Spo0A may act in concert with Spo0H (a sigma factor) to control the expression of some genes that are critical to the sporulation process. Repressor of abrB, activator of the spoIIa operon. Binds the DNA sequence 5'-TGNCGAA-3' (0A box).

RNA polymerase sporulation-specific sigma factor (sigma-F); Sigma factors are initiation factors that promote the attachment of RNA polymerase to specific initiation sites and are then released. This sigma factor is responsible for the expression of sporulation specific genes. Interaction with SpoIIAB inhibits sigma-F activity throughout the cell before the formation of the asymmetric septum; after septation the interaction is confined to the mother cell, and sigma F activity is released in the prespore. Responsible for expression of csfB (the anti-sigma-G factor Gin).

Forespore protein required for alternative engulfment; Involved in forespore engulfment and required for anchoring membrane proteins on the forespore side of the septal membrane. Forms a channel with SpoIIIAH that is open on the forespore end and closed (or gated) on the mother cell end. This allows sigma-E-directed gene expression in the mother-cell compartment of the sporangium to trigger the activation of sigma-G forespore-specific gene expression by a pathway of intercellular signaling.

Cell-division initiation protein; Essential cell division protein that forms a contractile ring structure (Z ring) at the future cell division site. The regulation of the ring assembly controls the timing and the location of cell division. One of the functions of the FtsZ ring is to recruit other cell division proteins to the septum to produce a new cell wall between the dividing cells. Binds GTP and shows GTPase activity.