The proline utilization (put) operon of Vibrio vulnificus consists of the putAP genes encoding a proline dehydrogenase and proline permease. The result of put-lux transcriptional fusion analysis suggests that the V vulnificus putAP operon is not autoregulated by the PutA protein. A putR null mutation decreased proline dehydrogenase activity and the level of the put transcripts, indicating that transcription of putAP is under the positive control of PutR. The deduced amino acid sequence of the putR was similar to those reported from other bacteria with high levels of identity. Chromatin IP and GST pull-down assays revealed that PutR specifically binds to the putAP promoter region in vivo, and interacts with CRP in vitro. Taken together, the results suggested that PutR exerts its effect on putAP expression by directly interacting with CRP bound to the upstream region of P$_{put}$.