scholarly journals Isolation and Characterization of a Mutant of the Marine Bacterium Alcanivorax borkumensis SK2 Defective in Lipid Biosynthesis

2010 ◽  
Vol 76 (9) ◽  
pp. 2884-2894 ◽  
Author(s):  
Efraín Manilla-Pérez ◽  
Alvin Brian Lange ◽  
Stephan Hetzler ◽  
Marc Wältermann ◽  
Rainer Kalscheuer ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT In many microorganisms, the key enzyme responsible for catalyzing the last step in triacylglycerol (TAG) and wax ester (WE) biosynthesis is an unspecific acyltransferase which is also referred to as wax ester synthase/acyl coenzyme A (acyl-CoA):diacylglycerol acyltransferase (WS/DGAT; AtfA). The importance and function of two AtfA homologues (AtfA1 and AtfA2) in the biosynthesis of TAGs and WEs in the hydrocarbon-degrading marine bacterium Alcanivorax borkumensis SK2 have been described recently. However, after the disruption of both the AtfA1 and AtfA2 genes, reduced but substantial accumulation of TAGs was still observed, indicating the existence of an alternative TAG biosynthesis pathway. In this study, transposon-induced mutagenesis was applied to an atfA1 atfA2 double mutant to screen for A. borkumensis mutants totally defective in biosynthesis of neutral lipids in order to identify additional enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of these lipids. At the same time, we have searched for a totally TAG-negative mutant in order to study the function of TAGs in A. borkumensis. Thirteen fluorescence-negative mutants were identified on Nile red ONR7a agar plates and analyzed for their abilities to synthesize lipids. Among these, mutant 2 M131 was no longer able to synthesize and accumulate TAGs if pyruvate was used as the sole carbon source. The transposon insertion was localized in a gene encoding a putative cytochrome c family protein (ABO_1185). Growth and TAG accumulation experiments showed that the disruption of this gene resulted in the absence of TAGs in 2 M131 but that growth was not affected. In cells of A. borkumensis SK2 grown on pyruvate as the sole carbon source, TAGs represented about 11% of the dry weight of the cells, while in the mutant 2 M131, TAGs were not detected by thin-layer and gas chromatography analyses. Starvation and lipid mobilization experiments revealed that the lipids play an important role in the survival of the cells. The function of neutral lipids in A. borkumensis SK2 is discussed.

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-41
Author(s):  
Yu.M. Kosikhina ◽  
E.B. Vinogradova ◽  
D.A. Dementev ◽  
V.S. Korobov ◽  
V.A. Zolottsev ◽  
...  

Recombinant Yarrowia lipolytica yeast has been used as a host strain for the expression of the Saccharomyces cerevisiae ScSUC2 gene and Y. lipolytica YlHXK1 gene encoding invertase and hexakinase, respectively. The expression was carried out on the background of the enhanced pathway of the synthesis of neutral lipids. This allowed the yeast to efficiently utilize glucose as a single carbon source. The engineered strain accumulated neutral lipids in amount of 50.7% of biomass dry weight, when cultured in tubes in minimal medium with nitrogen limitation and high sucrose content. The next metabolic engineering step was the use of the CRISPR-Cas9 editing system to introduce a heterologous β-carotene synthesis pathway by the expression of the Mucor circinelloides genes CarRP and CarB, encoding the bifunctional enzyme phytoene synthase/licopene-β-cyclase (carRP) and phytoene dehydrogenase (carB), as well as an increase in the expression level of the Y. lipolytica YlGGS1 gene, encoding geranyl diphosphate synthase enzyme. The β-carotene production on a sucrose-containing medium was shown for the first time; it amounted for 24.0 mg/g dry biomass, or 406.9 mg/L, on the 5th day of cultivation in tubes in a rich medium with a sucrose portioned supply (50 g/L). The corresponding values for a rich medium with a higher sucrose concentration (90 g/L) were 21.9 mg/g dry biomass and 625.8 mg/L. Yarrowia lipolytica, β-carotene, sucrose, CRISPR-Cas9 The plasmids pdKu70Yl-URA3, pLTet-SP-CAT, pARS-Cre-reverse, pMW-att-Cm and pGPD1Yl were kindly provided by Ph.D. I.A. Laptev ("Kurchatov Institute"-GOSNIIGENETIKA NRC). The work was carried out using the equipment of the Multipurpose Scientific Facility of the "Russian State Collection of Industrial Microorganisms" National Bio-Resource Center, NRC «Kurchatov Institute»-GOSNIIGENETIKA. The work was supported by state assignment no. 14 of 25.07.2012 AAAA-A20-120093090016-9. The quantitative analysis of lipids and β-carotene was carried out by V.A. Zolottsev within the framework of the "Long-Term Program of Fundamental Scientific Research in the Russian Federation (2021-2030)".


1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (3) ◽  
pp. 849-857 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Aneja ◽  
T. C. Charles

ABSTRACT We have cloned and sequenced the 3-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase-encoding gene (bdhA) from Rhizobium (Sinorhizobium) meliloti. The gene has an open reading frame of 777 bp that encodes a polypeptide of 258 amino acid residues (molecular weight 27,177, pI 6.07). The R. meliloti Bdh protein exhibits features common to members of the short-chain alcohol dehydrogenase superfamily. bdhA is the first gene transcribed in an operon that also includes xdhA, encoding xanthine oxidase/dehydrogenase. Transcriptional start site analysis by primer extension identified two transcription starts. S1, a minor start site, was located 46 to 47 nucleotides upstream of the predicted ATG start codon, while S2, the major start site, was mapped 148 nucleotides from the start codon. Analysis of the sequence immediately upstream of either S1 or S2 failed to reveal the presence of any known consensus promoter sequences. Although a ς54 consensus sequence was identified in the region between S1 and S2, a corresponding transcript was not detected, and a rpoN mutant of R. meliloti was able to utilize 3-hydroxybutyrate as a sole carbon source. The R. meliloti bdhA gene is able to confer uponEscherichia coli the ability to utilize 3-hydroxybutyrate as a sole carbon source. An R. meliloti bdhA mutant accumulates poly-3-hydroxybutyrate to the same extent as the wild type and shows no symbiotic defects. Studies with a strain carrying alacZ transcriptional fusion to bdhAdemonstrated that gene expression is growth phase associated.


Author(s):  
Y. Murtala ◽  
B. C. Nwanguma ◽  
L. U. S. Ezeanyika

Background: Despite the banned on the use of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and other Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) by the Stockholm Convention for their toxicity, emerging shreds of evidence have indicated that DDT is, however, still in use in developing countries. This might increase the global burden of DDT contamination and its hazardous effects. Aim: This study focused on the isolation and characterization of p,p’-DDT-degrading bacterium from a tropical agricultural soil. Methodology: Standard isolation procedure was used for the screening and isolation of the strain. The 16S rRNA and phylogenetic analyses were used to identify the isolate and established protocols were followed to characterize the strain. Results: A new strain belonging to the genus Aeromonas was isolated from agricultural soil using minimal salt-p,p’-DDT enrichment medium. The 16S rRNA sequencing was used to identify the strain and the partial sequence was deposited in the NCBI GenBank as Aeromonas sp. Strain MY1. This mesophilic isolate was capable of utilizing up to 50 mgL-1 of p,p’-DDT as the sole carbon source at an optimum pH of 7.5 and optimum temperature of 35 °C within 120 h under aerobic conditions. Fe2+ (0.2 mgL-1) demonstrated a stimulatory effect on the p,p’-DDT degradation capacity by the strain MY1. However, Zn, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ag and Cr ions have demonstrated various patterns of inhibitory effect on the p,p’-DDT degradation capacity of the isolate at 0.2 mgL-1. The strain MY1 could be a promising candidate for the bioremediation of p,p’-DDT contaminant. Conclusion: Aeromonas sp. strain MY1 was capable of utilizing p,p’-DDT as a sole carbon source under aerobic conditions. The utilization capacity of the strain was influenced by some heavy metals. Fe was found to enhance the p,p’-DDT utilization capacity of the isolate at a lower concentration. While Zn, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ag and Cr showed various patterns of inhibitory effect.


Author(s):  
Omar Santín ◽  
Serena Galié ◽  
Gabriel Moncalián

Abstract Some bacteria belonging to the actinobacteria and proteobacteria groups can accumulate neutral lipids expressing enzymes of the wax ester synthase/acyl coenzyme A: diacylglycerol acyltransferase (WS/DGAT) family. tDGAT is a WS/DGAT-like enzyme from Thermomonospora curvata able to produce TAGs and WEs when heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. In this study, a protocol for the directed evolution of bacterial lipid-producing enzymes based on fluorimetry is developed and tested. tDGAT has been successfully evolved towards the improvement of TAG production with an up to 2.5 times increase in TAG accumulation. Mutants with no ability to produce TAGs but able to accumulate waxes were also selected during the screening. The localization of the mutations that enhance TAG production in the outer surface of tDGAT points out possible new mechanisms that contribute to the activity of this family of enzymes. This Nile red-based high throughput screening provides an evolution platform for other WS/DGAT-like enzymes.


2008 ◽  
Vol 74 (21) ◽  
pp. 6584-6590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boguslaw Lupa ◽  
Erik L. Hendrickson ◽  
John A. Leigh ◽  
William B. Whitman

ABSTRACT Methanococcus maripaludis, an H2- and formate-utilizing methanogen, produced H2 at high rates from formate. The rates and kinetics of H2 production depended upon the growth conditions, and H2 availability during growth was a major factor. Specific activities of resting cells grown with formate or H2 were 0.4 to 1.4 U�mg−1 (dry weight). H2 production in formate-grown cells followed Michaelis-Menten kinetics, and the concentration of formate required for half-maximal activity (Kf ) was 3.6 mM. In contrast, in H2-grown cells this process followed sigmoidal kinetics, and the Kf was 9 mM. A key enzyme for formate-dependent H2 production was formate dehydrogenase, Fdh. H2 production and growth were severely reduced in a mutant containing a deletion of the gene encoding the Fdh1 isozyme, indicating that it was the primary Fdh. In contrast, a mutant containing a deletion of the gene encoding the Fdh2 isozyme possessed near-wild-type activities, indicating that this isozyme did not play a major role. H2 production by a mutant containing a deletion of the coenzyme F420-reducing hydrogenase Fru was also severely reduced, suggesting that the major pathway of H2 production comprised Fdh1 and Fru. Because a Δfru-Δfrc mutant retained 10% of the wild-type activity, an additional pathway is present. Mutants possessing deletions of the gene encoding the F420-dependent methylene-H4MTP dehydrogenase (Mtd) or the H2-forming methylene-H4MTP dehydrogenase (Hmd) also possessed reduced activity, which suggested that this second pathway was comprised of Fdh1-Mtd-Hmd. In contrast to H2 production, the cellular rates of methanogenesis were unaffected in these mutants, which suggested that the observed H2 production was not a direct intermediate of methanogenesis. In conclusion, high rates of formate-dependent H2 production demonstrated the potential of M. maripaludis for the microbial production of H2 from formate.


Microbiology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 81 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. Okon ◽  
I. Chet ◽  
Naomi Kislev ◽  
Y. Henis

SUMMARY A significant increase in mycelial dry weight and a decrease in production of extracellular glucan were observed when lactose was added to a submerged culture of Sclerotium rolfsii grown in a liquid glucose-synthetic medium. When added as a sole carbon source, lactose at 2·5% (w/v) induced the formation of dark, spherical, compact bodies. The ultrastructure of these bodies is compared with that of sclerotia formed on solid media.


2002 ◽  
Vol 184 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Hynes ◽  
Oliver W. Draht ◽  
Meryl A. Davis

ABSTRACT Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) is a key enzyme required for gluconeogenesis when microorganisms grow on carbon sources metabolized via the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. Aspergillus nidulans acuF mutants isolated by their inability to use acetate as a carbon source specifically lack PEPCK. The acuF gene has been cloned and shown to encode a protein with high similarity to PEPCK from bacteria, plants, and fungi. The regulation of acuF expression has been studied by Northern blotting and by the construction of lacZ fusion reporters. Induction by acetate is abolished in mutants unable to metabolize acetate via the TCA cycle, and induction by amino acids metabolized via 2-oxoglutarate is lost in mutants unable to form 2-oxoglutarate. Induction by acetate and proline is not additive, consistent with a single mechanism of induction. Malate and succinate result in induction, and it is proposed that PEPCK is controlled by a novel mechanism of induction by a TCA cycle intermediate or derivative, thereby allowing gluconeogenesis to occur during growth on any carbon source metabolized via the TCA cycle. It has been shown that the facB gene, which mediates acetate induction of enzymes specifically required for acetate utilization, is not directly involved in PEPCK induction. This is in contrast to Saccharomyces cerevisiae, where Cat8p and Sip4p, homologs of FacB, regulate PEPCK as well as the expression of other genes necessary for growth on nonfermentable carbon sources in response to the carbon source present. This difference in the control of gluconeogenesis reflects the ability of A. nidulans and other filamentous fungi to use a wide variety of carbon sources in comparison with S. cerevisiae. The acuF gene was also found to be subject to activation by the CCAAT binding protein AnCF, a protein homologous to the S. cerevisiae Hap complex and the mammalian NFY complex.


2001 ◽  
Vol 183 (21) ◽  
pp. 6169-6174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Socorro Gama-Castro ◽  
Cinthia Núñez ◽  
Daniel Segura ◽  
Soledad Moreno ◽  
Josefina Guzmán ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Encystment in Azotobacter vinelandii is induced byn-butanol or β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB). We identified a gene, encoding an aldehyde dehydrogenase, that was namedaldA. An aldA mutation impaired bacterial growth on n-butanol, ethanol, or hexanol as the sole carbon source. Expression of aldA increased in cells shifted from sucrose to n-butanol and was shown to be dependent on the alternative ς54 factor. A mutation in rpoNencoding the ς54 factor also impaired growth on alcohols. Encystment on n-butanol, but not on BHB, was impaired inaldA or rpoN mutants, indicating thatn-butanol is not an inducer of encystment by itself but must be catabolized in order to induce encystment.


2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (48) ◽  
pp. 24164-24173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juhan Kim ◽  
Jake J. Flood ◽  
Michael R. Kristofich ◽  
Cyrus Gidfar ◽  
Andrew B. Morgenthaler ◽  
...  

PdxB (erythronate 4-phosphate dehydrogenase) is expected to be required for synthesis of the essential cofactor pyridoxal 5′-phosphate (PLP) in Escherichia coli. Surprisingly, incubation of the ∆pdxB strain in medium containing glucose as a sole carbon source for 10 d resulted in visible turbidity, suggesting that PLP is being produced by some alternative pathway. Continued evolution of parallel lineages for 110 to 150 generations produced several strains that grow robustly in glucose. We identified a 4-step bypass pathway patched together from promiscuous enzymes that restores PLP synthesis in strain JK1. None of the mutations in JK1 occurs in a gene encoding an enzyme in the new pathway. Two mutations indirectly enhance the ability of SerA (3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase) to perform a new function in the bypass pathway. Another disrupts a gene encoding a PLP phosphatase, thus preserving PLP levels. These results demonstrate that a functional pathway can be patched together from promiscuous enzymes in the proteome, even without mutations in the genes encoding those enzymes.


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