In Leuconostoc oenos, different stresses such as heat, ethanol, and acid shocks dramatically induce the expression of an 18-kDa small heat shock protein called Lo 18. The corresponding gene (hsp18) was cloned from a genomic library of L. oenos constructed in Escherichia coli. A 2.3-kb DNA fragment carrying the hsp18 gene was sequenced. The hsp18 gene encodes a polypeptide of 148 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 16,938 Da. The Lo18 protein has a significant identity with small heat shock proteins of the alpha-crystallin family. The transcriptional start site was determined by primer extension. This experiment allowed us to identify the promoter region exhibiting high similarity to consensus promoter sequences of gram-positive bacteria, as well as E. coli. Northern blot analysis showed that hsp18 consists of a unique transcription unit of 0.6 kb. Moreover, hsp18 expression seemed to be controlled at the transcriptional level. This small heat shock protein was found to be peripherally associated with the membrane of L. oenos.