scholarly journals Nickel Availability and hupSL Activation by Heterologous Regulators Limit Symbiotic Expression of theRhizobium leguminosarum bv. Viciae Hydrogenase System in Hup− Rhizobia

2000 ◽  
Vol 66 (3) ◽  
pp. 937-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belén Brito ◽  
Jorge Monza ◽  
Juan Imperial ◽  
Tomás Ruiz-Argüeso ◽  
Jose Manuel Palacios
Keyword(s):  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Transcriptional Regulator ◽  
Hydrogen Uptake ◽  
Hydrogenase Activity ◽  
Structural Genes ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Genes Expression ◽  
Relevant Factors

ABSTRACT A limited number of Rhizobium andBradyrhizobium strains possess a hydrogen uptake (Hup) system that recycles the hydrogen released from the nitrogen fixation process in legume nodules. To extend this ability to rhizobia that nodulate agronomically important crops, we investigated factors that affect the expression of a cosmid-borne Hup system from Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae UPM791 in R. leguminosarumbv. viciae, Rhizobium etli, Mesorhizobium loti, and Sinorhizobium meliloti Hup− strains. After cosmid pAL618 carrying the entire hup system of strain UPM791 was introduced, all recipient strains acquired the ability to oxidize H2 in symbioses with their hosts, although the levels of hydrogenase activity were found to be strain and species dependent. The levels of hydrogenase activity were correlated with the levels of nickel-dependent processing of the hydrogenase structural polypeptides and with transcription of structural genes. Expression of the NifA-dependent hupSL promoter varied depending on the genetic background, while the hyp operon, which is controlled by the FnrN transcriptional regulator, was expressed at similar levels in all recipient strains. With the exception of theR. etli-bean symbiosis, the availability of nickel to bacteroids strongly affected hydrogenase processing and activity in the systems tested. Our results indicate that efficient transcriptional activation by heterologous regulators and processing of the hydrogenase as a function of the availability of nickel to the bacteroid are relevant factors that affect hydrogenase expression in heterologous rhizobia.

scholarly journals Generation of New Hydrogen-RecyclingRhizobiaceae Strains by Introduction of a Novelhup Minitransposon

2000 ◽  
Vol 66 (10) ◽  
pp. 4292-4299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Báscones ◽  
Juan Imperial ◽  
Tomás Ruiz-Argüeso ◽  
Jose Manuel Palacios
Keyword(s):  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
General Procedure ◽  
Large Subunit ◽  
Antibiotic Resistance Gene ◽  
Insertion Site ◽  
Immunoblot Analysis ◽  
Hydrogenase Activity ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Legume Symbiosis

ABSTRACT Hydrogen evolution by nitrogenase is a source of inefficiency for the nitrogen fixation process by the Rhizobium-legume symbiosis. To develop a strategy to generate rhizobial strains with H2-recycling ability, we have constructed a Tn5derivative minitransposon (TnHB100) that contains the ca. 18-kb H2 uptake (hup) gene cluster fromRhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae UPM791. Bacteroids from TnHB100-containing strains of R. leguminosarum bv. viciae PRE, Bradyrhizobium japonicum, R. etli, and Mesorhizobium loti expressed high levels of hydrogenase activity that resulted in full recycling of the hydrogen evolved by nitrogenase in nodules. Efficient processing of the hydrogenase large subunit (HupL) in these strains was shown by immunoblot analysis of bacteroid extracts. In contrast, Sinorhizobium meliloti,M. ciceri, and R. leguminosarum bv. viciae UML2 strains showed poor expression of the hup system that resulted in H2-evolving nodules. For the latter group of strains, no immunoreactive material was detected in bacteroid extracts using anti-HupL antiserum, suggesting a low level of transcription ofhup genes or HupL instability. A general procedure for the characterization of the minitransposon insertion site and removal of antibiotic resistance gene included in TnHB100 has been developed and used to generate engineered strains suitable for field release.

scholarly journals Rhizobium leguminosarum hupE Encodes a Nickel Transporter Required for Hydrogenase Activity

2009 ◽  
Vol 192 (4) ◽  
pp. 925-935 ◽  
Author(s):  
Belén Brito ◽  
Rosa-Isabel Prieto ◽  
Ezequiel Cabrera ◽  
Marie-Andrée Mandrand-Berthelot ◽  
Juan Imperial ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Root Nodules ◽  
Hydrogen Uptake ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Hydrogenase Activity ◽  
Rhizobium Tropici ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Nickel Uptake

ABSTRACT Synthesis of the hydrogen uptake (Hup) system in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae requires the function of an 18-gene cluster (hupSLCDEFGHIJK-hypABFCDEX). Among them, the hupE gene encodes a protein showing six transmembrane domains for which a potential role as a nickel permease has been proposed. In this paper, we further characterize the nickel transport capacity of HupE and that of the translated product of hupE2, a hydrogenase-unlinked gene identified in the R. leguminosarum genome. HupE2 is a potential membrane protein that shows 48% amino acid sequence identity with HupE. Expression of both genes in the Escherichia coli nikABCDE mutant strain HYD723 restored hydrogenase activity and nickel transport. However, nickel transport assays revealed that HupE and HupE2 displayed different levels of nickel uptake. Site-directed mutagenesis of histidine residues in HupE revealed two motifs (HX5DH and FHGX[AV]HGXE) that are required for HupE functionality. An R. leguminosarum double mutant, SPF22A (hupE hupE2), exhibited reduced levels of hydrogenase activity in free-living cells, and this phenotype was complemented by nickel supplementation. Low levels of symbiotic hydrogenase activity were also observed in SPF22A bacteroid cells from lentil (Lens culinaris L.) root nodules but not in pea (Pisum sativum L.) bacteroids. Moreover, heterologous expression of the R. leguminosarum hup system in bacteroid cells of Rhizobium tropici and Mesorhizobium loti displayed reduced levels of hydrogen uptake in the absence of hupE. These data support the role of R. leguminosarum HupE as a nickel permease required for hydrogen uptake under both free-living and symbiotic conditions.

scholarly journals Binding Site Determinants for the LysR-Type Transcriptional Regulator PcaQ in the Legume Endosymbiont Sinorhizobium meliloti

2007 ◽  
Vol 190 (4) ◽  
pp. 1237-1246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allyson M. MacLean ◽  
Michelle I. Anstey ◽  
Turlough M. Finan
Keyword(s):  
Binding Site ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Transcriptional Start Site ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Equilibrium Dissociation ◽  
Dyad Symmetry

ABSTRACT LysR-type transcriptional regulators represent one of the largest groups of prokaryotic regulators described to date. In the gram-negative legume endosymbiont Sinorhizobium meliloti, enzymes involved in the protocatechuate branch of the β-ketoadipate pathway are encoded within the pcaDCHGB operon, which is subject to regulation by the LysR-type protein PcaQ. In this work, purified PcaQ was shown to bind strongly (equilibrium dissociation constant, 0.54 nM) to a region at positions −78 to −45 upstream of the pcaD transcriptional start site. Within this region, we defined a PcaQ binding site with dyad symmetry that is required for regulation of pcaD expression in vivo and for binding of PcaQ in vitro. We also demonstrated that PcaQ participates in negative autoregulation by monitoring expression of pcaQ via a transcriptional fusion to lacZ. Although pcaQ homologues are present in many α-proteobacteria, this work describes the first reported purification of this regulator, as well as characterization of its binding site, which is conserved in Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Rhizobium leguminosarum, Rhizobium etli, and Mesorhizobium loti.

Pathways for phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in bacteria

Microbiology ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 149 (12) ◽  
pp. 3461-3471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernando Martínez-Morales ◽  
Max Schobert ◽  
Isabel M. López-Lara ◽  
Otto Geiger
Keyword(s):  
Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽  
Legionella Pneumophila ◽  
Bradyrhizobium Japonicum ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Brucella Melitensis ◽  
Membrane Lipid ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Methylation Pathway ◽  
Phosphatidylcholine Biosynthesis

Phosphatidylcholine (PC) is the major membrane-forming phospholipid in eukaryotes with important structural and signalling functions. Although many prokaryotes lack PC, it can be found in significant amounts in membranes of rather diverse bacteria. Two pathways for PC biosynthesis are known in bacteria, the methylation pathway and the phosphatidylcholine synthase (PCS) pathway. In the methylation pathway, phosphatidylethanolamine is methylated three times to yield PC, in reactions catalysed by one or several phospholipid N-methyltransferases (PMTs). In the PCS pathway, choline is condensed directly with CDP-diacylglyceride to form PC in a reaction catalysed by PCS. Using cell-free extracts, it was demonstrated that Sinorhizobium meliloti, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Rhizobium leguminosarum, Bradyrhizobium japonicum, Mesorhizobium loti and Legionella pneumophila have both PMT and PCS activities. In addition, Rhodobacter sphaeroides has PMT activity and Brucella melitensis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Borrelia burgdorferi have PCS activities. Genes from M. loti and L. pneumophila encoding a Pmt or a Pcs activity and the genes from P. aeruginosa and Borrelia burgdorferi responsible for Pcs activity have been identified. Based on these functional assignments and on genomic data, one might predict that if bacteria contain PC as a membrane lipid, they usually possess both bacterial pathways for PC biosynthesis. However, important pathogens such as Brucella melitensis, P. aeruginosa and Borrelia burgdorferi seem to be exceptional as they possess only the PCS pathway for PC formation.

scholarly journals pyd Genes of Rhizobium sp. Strain TAL1145 Are Required for Degradation of 3-Hydroxy-4-Pyridone, an Aromatic Intermediate in Mimosine Metabolism

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (13) ◽  
pp. 4480-4487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan D. Awaya ◽  
Paul M. Fox ◽  
Dulal Borthakur
Keyword(s):  
Abc Transporter ◽  
Bradyrhizobium Japonicum ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Root Nodule ◽  
Structural Genes ◽  
Nodule Bacteria ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Root Nodule Bacteria ◽  
Low Levels ◽  
Rhizobium Sp

ABSTRACT Rhizobium sp. strain TAL1145 degrades the Leucaena toxin mimosine and its degradation product 3-hydroxy-4-pyridone (HP). The aim of this investigation is to characterize the Rhizobium genes for HP degradation and transport. These genes were localized by subcloning and mutagenesis on a previously isolated cosmid, pUHR263, containing mid genes of TAL1145 required for mimosine degradation. Two structural genes, pydA and pydB, encoding a metacleavage dioxygenase and a hydrolase, respectively, are required for degradation of HP, and three genes, pydC, pydD, and pydE, encoding proteins of an ABC transporter, are involved in the uptake of HP by TAL1145. These genes are induced by HP, although both pydA and pydB show low levels of expression without HP. pydA and pydB are cotranscribed, while pydC, pydD, and pydE are each transcribed from separate promoters. PydA and PydB show no homology with other dioxygenases and hydrolases in Sinorhizobium meliloti, Mesorhizobium loti, and Bradyrhizobium japonicum. Among various root nodule bacteria, the ability to degrade mimosine or HP is unique to some Leucaena-nodulating Rhizobium strains.

TheglcBlocus ofRhizobium leguminosarumVF39 encodes an arabinose-inducible malate synthase

2002 ◽  
Vol 48 (10) ◽  
pp. 922-932 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro García-de los Santos ◽  
Alejandro Morales ◽  
Laura Baldomá ◽  
Scott R.D Clark ◽  
Susana Brom ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Plant Cell Wall ◽  
Glyoxylate Cycle ◽  
Malate Synthase ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Malate Synthase G ◽  
Similar Genome Organization ◽  
The Glyoxylate Cycle

In the course of a study conducted to isolate genes upregulated by plant cell wall sugars, we identified an arabinose-inducible locus from a transcriptional fusion library of Rhizobium leguminosarum VF39, carrying random insertions of the lacZ transposon Tn5B22. Sequence analysis of the locus disrupted by the transposon revealed a high similarity to uncharacterized malate synthase G genes from Sinorhizobium meliloti, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, and Mesorhizobium loti. This enzyme catalyzes the condensation of glyoxylate and acetyl-CoA to yield malate and CoA and is thought to be a component of the glyoxylate cycle, which allows microorganisms to grow on two carbon compounds. Enzyme assays showed that a functional malate synthase is encoded in the glcB gene of R. leguminosarum and that its expression is induced by arabinose, glycolate, and glyoxylate. An Escherichia coli aceB glcB mutant, complemented with the R. leguminosarum PCR-amplified gene, recovered malate synthase activity. A very similar genome organization of the loci containing malate synthase and flanking genes was observed in R. leguminosarum, S. meliloti, and A. tumefaciens. Pea plants inoculated with the glcB mutant or the wild-type strain showed no significant differences in nitrogen fixation. This is the first report regarding the characterization of a mutant in one of the glyoxylate cycle enzymes in the rhizobia.Key words: Rhizobium, malate synthase, glyoxylate cycle, arabinose metabolism.

scholarly journals Thiamine Is Synthesized by a Salvage Pathway in Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae Strain 3841

2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (18) ◽  
pp. 6661-6668 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Karunakaran ◽  
K. Ebert ◽  
S. Harvey ◽  
M. E. Leonard ◽  
V. Ramachandran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nitrogen Fixation ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Fluorescent Microscopy ◽  
Good Growth ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Salvage Pathway ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
Reverse Transcription Pcr

ABSTRACT In the absence of added thiamine, Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae strain 3841 does not grow in liquid medium and forms only “pin” colonies on agar plates, which contrasts with the good growth of Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021, Mesorhizobium loti 303099, and Rhizobium etli CFN42. These last three organisms have thiCOGE genes, which are essential for de novo thiamine synthesis. While R. leguminosarum bv. viciae 3841 lacks thiCOGE, it does have thiMED. Mutation of thiM prevented formation of pin colonies on agar plates lacking added thiamine, suggesting thiamine intermediates are normally present. The putative functions of ThiM, ThiE, and ThiD are 4-methyl-5-(β-hydroxyethyl) thiazole (THZ) kinase, thiamine phosphate pyrophosphorylase, and 4-amino-5-hydroxymethyl-2-methyl pyrimidine (HMP) kinase, respectively. This suggests that a salvage pathway operates in R. leguminosarum, and addition of HMP and THZ enabled growth at the same rate as that enabled by thiamine in strain 3841 but elicited no growth in the thiM mutant (RU2459). There is a putative thi box sequence immediately upstream of the thiM, and a gfp-mut3.1 fusion to it revealed the presence of a promoter that is strongly repressed by thiamine. Using fluorescent microscopy and quantitative reverse transcription-PCR, it was shown that thiM is expressed in the rhizosphere of vetch and pea plants, indicating limitation for thiamine. Pea plants infected by RU2459 were not impaired in nodulation or nitrogen fixation. However, colonization of the pea rhizosphere by the thiM mutant was impaired relative to that of the wild type. Overall, the results show that a thiamine salvage pathway operates to enable growth of Rhizobium leguminosarum in the rhizosphere, allowing its survival when thiamine is limiting.

scholarly journals Engineering the Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae Hydrogenase System for Expression in Free-Living Microaerobic Cells and Increased Symbiotic Hydrogenase Activity

2002 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 2461-2467 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Brito ◽  
J. M. Palacios ◽  
J. Imperial ◽  
T. Ruiz-Argüeso
Keyword(s):  
Time Course ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Active Form ◽  
Hydrogen Uptake ◽  
Immunoblot Analysis ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Culture Conditions ◽  
Hydrogenase Activity ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Cell Fractions

ABSTRACT Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae UPM791 induces hydrogenase activity in pea (Pisum sativum L.) bacteroids but not in free-living cells. The symbiotic induction of hydrogenase structural genes (hupSL) is mediated by NifA, the general regulator of the nitrogen fixation process. So far, no culture conditions have been found to induce NifA-dependent promoters in vegetative cells of this bacterium. This hampers the study of the R. leguminosarum hydrogenase system. We have replaced the native NifA-dependent hupSL promoter with the FnrN-dependent fixN promoter, generating strain SPF25, which expresses the hup system in microaerobic free-living cells. SPF25 reaches levels of hydrogenase activity in microaerobiosis similar to those induced in UPM791 bacteroids. A sixfold increase in hydrogenase activity was detected in merodiploid strain SPF25(pALPF1). A time course induction of hydrogenase activity in microaerobic free-living cells of SPF25(pALPF1) shows that hydrogenase activity is detected after 3 h of microaerobic incubation. Maximal hydrogen uptake activity was observed after 10 h of microaerobiosis. Immunoblot analysis of microaerobically induced SPF25(pALPF1) cell fractions indicated that the HupL active form is located in the membrane, whereas the unprocessed protein remains in the soluble fraction. Symbiotic hydrogenase activity of strain SPF25 was not impaired by the promoter replacement. Moreover, bacteroids from pea plants grown in low-nickel concentrations induced higher levels of hydrogenase activity than the wild-type strain and were able to recycle all hydrogen evolved by nodules. This constitutes a new strategy to improve hydrogenase activity in symbiosis.

scholarly journals Gene Products of the hupGHIJ Operon Are Involved in Maturation of the Iron-Sulfur Subunit of the [NiFe] Hydrogenase from Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (20) ◽  
pp. 7018-7026 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamid Manyani ◽  
Luis Rey ◽  
José M. Palacios ◽  
Juan Imperial ◽  
Tomás Ruiz-Argüeso
Keyword(s):  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Hydrogenase Activity ◽  
Gene Products ◽  
Structural Genes ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Iron Sulfur ◽  
Specific Antisera ◽  
Mutant Strains ◽  
Isogenic Mutants

ABSTRACT In the present study, we investigate the functions of the hupGHIJ operon in the synthesis of an active [NiFe] hydrogenase in the legume endosymbiont Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae. These genes are clustered with 14 other genes including the hydrogenase structural genes hupSL. A set of isogenic mutants with in-frame deletions (ΔhupG, ΔhupH, ΔhupI, and ΔhupJ) was generated and tested for hydrogenase activity in cultures grown at different oxygen concentrations (0.2 to 2.0%) and in symbiosis with peas. In free-living cultures, deletions in these genes severely reduced hydrogenase activity. The ΔhupH mutant was totally devoid of hydrogenase activity at any of the O2 concentration tested, whereas the requirement of hupGIJ for hydrogenase activity varied with the O2 concentration, being more crucial at higher pO2. Pea bacteroids from the mutant strains affected in hupH, hupI, and hupJ exhibited reduced (20 to 50%) rates of hydrogenase activity compared to the wild type, whereas rates were not affected in the ΔhupG mutant. Immunoblot experiments with HupL- and HupS-specific antisera showed that free-living cultures from ΔhupH, ΔhupI, and ΔhupJ mutants synthesized a fully processed mature HupL protein and accumulated an unprocessed form of HupS (pre-HupS). Both the mature HupL and the pre-HupS forms were located in the cytoplasmic fraction of cultures from the ΔhupH mutant. Affinity chromatography experiments revealed that cytoplasmic pre-HupS binds to the HupH protein before the pre-HupS-HupL complex is formed. From these results we propose that hupGHIJ gene products are involved in the maturation of the HupS hydrogenase subunit.

scholarly journals Occurrence of Choline and Glycine Betaine Uptake and Metabolism in the Family Rhizobiaceae and Their Roles in Osmoprotection

1999 ◽  
Vol 65 (5) ◽  
pp. 2072-2077 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Boncompagni ◽  
Magne Østerås ◽  
Marie-Christine Poggi ◽  
Daniel le Rudulier
Keyword(s):  
Glycine Betaine ◽  
Sinorhizobium Meliloti ◽  
Rhizobium Leguminosarum ◽  
Physiological Role ◽  
Betaine Aldehyde Dehydrogenase ◽  
Choline Uptake ◽  
Rhizobium Tropici ◽  
Mesorhizobium Loti ◽  
The Family

ABSTRACT The role of glycine betaine and choline in osmoprotection of various Rhizobium, Sinorhizobium,Mesorhizobium, Agrobacterium, andBradyrhizobium reference strains which display a large variation in salt tolerance was investigated. When externally provided, both compounds enhanced the growth of Rhizobium tropici,Sinorhizobium meliloti, Sinorhizobium fredii,Rhizobium galegae, Agrobacterium tumefaciens,Mesorhizobium loti, and Mesorhizobium huakuii, demonstrating their utilization as osmoprotectants. However, both compounds were inefficient for the most salt-sensitive strains, such asRhizobium leguminosarum (all biovars), Agrobacterium rhizogenes, Rhizobium etli, and Bradyrhizobium japonicum. Except for B. japonicum, all strains exhibit transport activity for glycine betaine and choline. When the medium osmolarity was raised, choline uptake activity was inhibited, whereas glycine betaine uptake was either increased in R. leguminosarum and S. meliloti or, more surprisingly, reduced in R. tropici, S. fredii, and M. loti. The transport of glycine betaine was increased by growing the cells in the presence of the substrate. With the exception ofB. japonicum, all strains were able to use glycine betaine and choline as sole carbon and nitrogen sources. This catabolic function, reported for only a few soil bacteria, could increase competitiveness of rhizobial species in the rhizosphere. Choline dehydrogenase and betaine-aldehyde dehydrogenase activities were present in the cells of all strains with the exception of M. huakuii and B. japonicum. The main physiological role of glycine betaine in the family Rhizobiaceae seems to be as an energy source, while its contribution to osmoprotection is restricted to certain strains.

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