  The H-NS chromosome-organizing protein in E. coli can stabilize genomic DNA
loops, and form oligomeric structures connected to repression of gene
expression. Motivated by the link between chromosome organization, protein
binding and gene expression, we analyzed publicly available genomic data sets
of various origins, from genome-wide protein binding profiles to evolutionary
information, exploring the connections between chromosomal organization,
genesilencing, pseudo-gene localization and horizontal gene transfer. We report
the existence of transcriptionally silent contiguous areas corresponding to
large regions of H-NS protein binding along the genome, their position
indicates a possible relationship with the known large-scale features of
chromosome organization.
