Patent ID: 7723087

Claim:
An isolated nucleic acid molecule selected from the group consisting of (a) a nucleic acid molecule which hybridizes under stringent conditions at 65° C. in hybridization buffer, washing at room temperature with 0.15 M sodium chloride, 0.015 M sodium citrate, pH 7 (SSC) and at 68° C. with 0.1-0.5×SSC, 0.1 sodium dodecyl sulphate to a nucleic acid molecule having the sequence of SEQ ID NO:2 and thereby spans nucleotides 23 and 29 of SEQ ID NO.:2, has an addition, deletion or substitution of at least two nucleotides in a TATTT sequence when compared to SEQ ID NO:2, is at least 48 nucleotides in length, and enhances production of poly-N-acetyl glucosamine when operably linked to an ica nucleic acid comprising nucleotides 2330-5745 of SEQ ID NO:3 that encode IcaA, IcaD, IcaB and IcaC, relative to the level of poly-N-acetyl glucosamine produced when SEQ ID NO:2 is operably linked to the ica nucleic acid, and (b) the complement thereof.