Three yellow-pigmented, Gram-negative, rod-shaped, non-spore-forming bacterial strains, C36T, C37 and C39, were isolated in the Medical Clinic for Small Animals and Ungulates at the University for Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, strain C36T was shown to belong to the genus Pseudomonas; Pseudomonas oleovorans DSM 1045T was the nearest relative (99.5 % sequence similarity). Other Pseudomonas species shared <97 % sequence similarity with strain C36T. The presence of Q-9 as the major ubiquinone, the predominance of putrescine and spermidine in its polyamine patterns and its fatty acid profile [i.e. the predominance of C(16 : 0), summed feature 3 (C(16 : 1)omega7c and/or 2-OH C(15 : 0) iso), C(18 : 1)omega7c and the presence of 3-OH C(10 : 0), 3-OH C(12 : 0) and 2-OH C(12 : 0)] were in agreement with identification of this strain as a member of the genus Pseudomonas. Physiological and biochemical characteristics and the results of genomic fingerprinting clearly differentiated strain C36T from its phylogenetic relative P. oleovorans DSM 1045T. Results from DNA-DNA hybridization showed that strain C36T represents a species that is distinct from P. oleovorans DSM 1045T. These data demonstrate that strain C36T represents a novel species of the genus Pseudomonas, for which the name Pseudomonas psychrotolerans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is C36T (= LMG 21977T = DSM 15758T). Additionally, physiological, biochemical, chemotaxonomic and genomic fingerprints indicate that P. oleovorans ATCC 29347 may not be a member of the species P. oleovorans sensu stricto. (+info)
Engineering of chimeric class II polyhydroxyalkanoate synthases.
(2/5)
PHA synthase is a key enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs). Using a combinatorial genetic strategy to create unique chimeric class II PHA synthases, we have obtained a number of novel chimeras which display improved catalytic properties. To engineer the chimeric PHA synthases, we constructed a synthetic phaC gene from Pseudomonas oleovorans (phaC1Po) that was devoid of an internal 540-bp fragment. Randomly amplified PCR products (created with primers based on conserved phaC sequences flanking the deleted internal fragment) were generated using genomic DNA isolated from soil and were substituted for the 540-bp internal region. The chimeric genes were expressed in a PHA-negative strain of Ralstonia eutropha, PHB(-)4 (DSM 541). Out of 1,478 recombinant clones screened for PHA production, we obtained five different chimeric phaC1Po genes that produced more PHA than the native phaC1Po. Chimeras S1-71, S4-8, S5-58, S3-69, and S3-44 exhibited 1.3-, 1.4-, 2.0-, 2.1-, and 3.0-fold-increased levels of in vivo activity, respectively. All of the mutants mediated the synthesis of PHAs with a slightly increased molar fraction of 3-hydroxyoctanoate; however, the weight-average molecular weights (Mw) of the PHAs in all cases remained almost the same. Based upon DNA sequence analyses, the various phaC fragments appear to have originated from Pseudomonas fluorescens and Pseudomonas aureofaciens. The amino acid sequence analyses showed that the chimeric proteins had 17 to 20 amino acid differences from the wild-type phaC1Po, and these differences were clustered in the same positions in the five chimeric clones. A threading model of PhaC1Po, developed based on homology of the enzyme to the Burkholderia glumae lipase, suggested that the amino acid substitutions found in the active chimeras were located mostly on the protein model surface. Thus, our combinatorial genetic engineering strategy proved to be broadly useful for improving the catalytic activities of PHA synthase enzymes. (+info)
Enzymatic synthesis of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) with CoA recycling using polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase and acyl-CoA synthetase.
(3/5)
We succeeded in developing a novel method for in vitro poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3 HB-co-4 HB)] synthesis with CoA recycling using polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase and an acyl-CoA synthetase. Using this method, the monomer compositions in P(3 HB-co-4 HB)s could be controlled strictly by the ratios of the monomers in the reaction mixtures. (+info)
Engineering the monomer composition of polyhydroxyalkanoates synthesized in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
(4/5)
Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) have received considerable interest as renewable-resource-based, biodegradable, and biocompatible plastics with a wide range of potential applications. We have engineered the synthesis of PHA polymers composed of monomers ranging from 4 to 14 carbon atoms in either the cytosol or the peroxisome of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by harnessing intermediates of fatty acid metabolism. Cytosolic PHA production was supported by establishing in the cytosol critical beta-oxidation chemistries which are found natively in peroxisomes. This platform was utilized to supply medium-chain (C6 to C14) PHA precursors from both fatty acid degradation and synthesis to a cytosolically expressed medium-chain-length (mcl) polymerase from Pseudomonas oleovorans. Synthesis of short-chain-length PHAs (scl-PHAs) was established in the peroxisome of a wild-type yeast strain by targeting the Ralstonia eutropha scl polymerase to the peroxisome. This strain, harboring a peroxisomally targeted scl-PHA synthase, accumulated PHA up to approximately 7% of its cell dry weight. These results indicate (i) that S. cerevisiae expressing a cytosolic mcl-PHA polymerase or a peroxisomal scl-PHA synthase can use the 3-hydroxyacyl coenzyme A intermediates from fatty acid metabolism to synthesize PHAs and (ii) that fatty acid degradation is also possible in the cytosol as beta-oxidation might not be confined only to the peroxisomes. Polymers of even-numbered, odd-numbered, or a combination of even- and odd-numbered monomers can be controlled by feeding the appropriate substrates. This ability should permit the rational design and synthesis of polymers with desired material properties. (+info)
Rapid spectrofluorometric screening of poly-hydroxyalkanoate-producing bacteria from microbial mats.
(5/5)
Microbial mat ecosystems are characterized by both seasonal and diel fluctuations in several physicochemical variables, so that resident microorganisms must frequently adapt to the changing conditions of their environment. It has been pointed out that, under stress conditions, bacterial cells with higher contents of poly-hydroxyalkanoates (PHA) survive longer than those with lower PHA content. In the present study, PHA-producing strains from Ebro Delta microbial mats were selected using the Nile red dying technique and the relative accumulation of PHA was monitored during further laboratory cultivation. The number of heterotrophic isolates in trypticase soy agar (TSA) was ca. 107 colony-forming units/g microbial mat. Of these, 100 randomly chosen colonies were replicated on mineral salt agar limited in nitrogen, and Nile red was added to the medium to detect PHA. Orange fluorescence, produced upon binding of the dye to polymer granules in the cell, was detected in approximately 10% of the replicated heterotrophic isolates. The kinetics of PHA accumulation in Pseudomonas putida, and P. oleovorans were compared with those of several of the environmental isolates spectrofluorometry. PHA accumulation, measured as relative fluorescence intensity, resulted in a steady-state concentration after 48 h of incubation in all strains assayed. At 72 h, the maximum fluorescence intensity of each strain incubated with glucose and fructose was usually similar. MAT-28 strain accumulated more PHA than the other isolates. The results show that data obtained from environmental isolates can highly improve studies based on modeling-simulation programs, and that microbial mats constitute an excellent source for the isolation of PHA-producing strains with industrial applications. (+info)