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1. Kotrba  P, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2003 )

A single V317A or V317M substitution in Enzyme II of a newly identified beta-glucoside phosphotransferase and utilization system of Corynebacterium glutamicum R extends its specificity towards cellobiose.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 149 (Pt 6)
PMID : 12777497  :   DOI  :   10.1099/mic.0.26053-0    
Abstract >>
A catabolic system involved in the utilization of beta-glucosides in Corynebacterium glutamicum R and its spontaneous mutant variants allowing uptake of cellobiose were investigated. The system comprises a beta-glucoside-specific Enzyme IIBCA component (gene bglF) of the phosphotransferase system (PTS), a phospho-beta-glucosidase (bglA) and an antiterminator protein (bglG) from the BglG/SacY family of transcription regulators. The results suggest that transcription antitermination is involved in control of induction and carbon catabolite repression of bgl genes, which presumably form an operon. Functional analysis of the bglF and bglA products revealed that they are simultaneously required for uptake, phosphorylation and breakdown of methyl beta-glucoside, salicin and arbutin. Although cellobiose is not normally a substrate for BglF permease and is not utilized by C. glutamicum R, cellobiose-utilizing mutants can be obtained. The mutation responsible was mapped to the bgl locus and sequenced, and point mutations were found in codon 317 of bglF. These led to substitutions V317A and/or V317M near the putative PTS active-site H313 in the membrane-spanning IIC domain of BglF and allowed BglF to act on cellobiose. Such results strengthen the evidence that the IIC domains can be regarded as selectivity filters of the PTS.
KeywordMeSH Terms
2. Rey  DA, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2003 )

The putative transcriptional repressor McbR, member of the TetR-family, is involved in the regulation of the metabolic network directing the synthesis of sulfur containing amino acids in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of biotechnology 103 (1)
PMID : 12770504  :  
Abstract >>
In order to isolate transcriptional regulatory proteins involved in L-methionine-dependent repression in Corynebacterium glutamicum, proteins binding to the putative promoter region upstream of the metY gene were isolated by DNA affinity chromatography. One of the isolated proteins was identified as a putative transcriptional repressor of the TetR-family by a mass spectrometry fingerprint technique based on the complete C. glutamicum genome sequence. The respective gene, designated mcbR, was deleted in the mutant strain C. glutamicum DR1. Using 2D-PAGE, the protein contents of the C. glutamicum wild type and the mutant strain DR1 grown in media with or without L-methionine supplementation were compared and a set of six proteins was identified. Their abundance was drastically enhanced in the mutant strain and no longer influenced by L-methionine added to the growth medium. The corresponding genes were identified by mass spectrometry fingerprint analysis. They included metY encoding O-acetyl-L-homoserine sulfhydrylase, metK encoding S-adenosyl-methionine synthethase, hom encoding homoserine dehydrogenase, cysK encoding L-cysteine synthase, cysI encoding an NADPH dependant sulfite reductase, and ssuD encoding an alkanesulfonate monooxygenase. Evidently, the putative transcriptional repressor McbR is involved in the regulation of the metabolic network directing the synthesis of L-methionine in C. glutamicum. The C. glutamicum mcbR mutant can be considered to represent a first step in the construction of an L-methionine production strain.
KeywordMeSH Terms
3. McHardy  AC, Tauch  A, Rückert  C, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2003 )

Genome-based analysis of biosynthetic aminotransferase genes of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of biotechnology 104 (1��3��)
PMID : 12948641  :  
Abstract >>
Due to broad and overlapping substrate specificities, aminotransferases remain the last uncharacterized enzymes from most amino acid biosynthetic pathways in Corynebacterium glutamicum. We report here a complete description of all aminotransferases participating in the biosynthesis of the branched-chain amino acids and phenylalanine in C. glutamicum. We used methods of profile analysis on the newly available genome sequence to systematically search for and characterize members of the four known aminotransferase classes. This led to the discovery of sixteen new, potential aminotransferase encoding genes in the C. glutamicum genome, eleven of which were subsequently characterized experimentally with respect to their participation in different amino acid biosynthetic pathways. Disruption by insertion mutagenesis of ilvE, encoding a branched-chain amino acid aminotransferase, confirmed its function in leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis. Two double mutants lacking both ilvE and genes classified as class I aminotransferases exhibited additional auxotrophic requirements for valine and phenylalanine, respectively. In C. glutamicum the branched-chain amino acid aminotransferase thus participates in four amino acid biosynthetic pathways, for which in case of valine and phenylalanine biosynthesis two additional enzymes with overlapping substrate specificity exist. The novel protein with aminotransferase activity in valine biosynthesis belongs to the very recently described MocR subfamily of GntR-type helix-turn-helix transcriptional regulators, is located upstream of a potential operon of a newly described pyridoxine biosynthetic pathway and when disrupted, gives rise to a pyridoxine auxotrophy. The theoretical and experimental data we present should further provide a solid platform for ongoing research and understanding of the network of aminotransferases which participate in amino acid biosynthesis in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genome, Bacterial
4. Hartmann  M, Tauch  A, Eggeling  L, Bathe  B, Möckel  B, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2003 )

Identification and characterization of the last two unknown genes, dapC and dapF, in the succinylase branch of the L-lysine biosynthesis of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of biotechnology 104 (1��3��)
PMID : 12948639  :  
Abstract >>
The inspection of the complete genome sequence of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 led to the identification of dapC and dapF, the last two unknown genes of the succinylase branch of the L-lysine biosynthesis. The deduced DapF protein of C. glutamicum is characterized by a two-domain structure and a conserved diaminopimelate (DAP) epimerase signature. Overexpression of dapF resulted in an 8-fold increase of the specific epimerase activity. A defined deletion in the dapF gene led to a reduced growth of C. glutamicum in a medium with excess carbon but limited ammonium availability. The predicted DapC protein of C. glutamicum shared 29% identical amino acids with DapC from Bordetella pertussis, the only enzymatically characterized N-succinyl-aminoketopimelate aminotransferase. Overexpression of the dapC gene in C. glutamicum resulted in a 9-fold increase of the specific aminotransferase activity. A C. glutamicum mutant with deleted dapC showed normal growth characteristics with excess carbon and limited ammonium. Even a mutation of the two genes dapC and ddh, interrupting both branches of the split pathway, could be established in C. glutamicum. Overexpression of the dapF or the dapC gene in an industrial C. glutamicum strain resulted in an increased L-lysine production, indicating that both genes might be relevant targets for the development of improved production strains.
KeywordMeSH Terms
5. Tauch  A, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J, Thierbach  G,     ( 2003 )

Plasmids in Corynebacterium glutamicum and their molecular classification by comparative genomics.

Journal of biotechnology 104 (1��3��)
PMID : 12948627  :  
Abstract >>
Endogenous plasmids and selectable resistance markers are a fundamental prerequisite for the development of efficient recombinant DNA techniques in industrial microorganisms. In this article, we therefore summarize the current knowledge about endogenous plasmids in amino acid-producing Corynebacterium glutamicum isolates. Screening studies identified a total of 24 different plasmids ranging in size from 2.4 to 95 kb. Although most of the C. glutamicum plasmids were cryptic, four plasmids carried resistance determinants against the antibiotics chloramphenicol, tetracycline, streptomycin-spectinomycin, and sulfonamides. Considerable information is now available on the molecular genetic organization of 12 completely sequenced plasmid genomes from C. glutamicum. The deduced mechanism of plasmid DNA replication and the degree of amino acid sequence similarity among replication initiator proteins was the basis for performing a classification of the plasmids into four distinct C. glutamicum plasmid families.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Profiling
Genome, Bacterial
6. Venkova-Canova  T, Pátek  M, Nesvera  J,     ( 2003 )

Control of rep gene expression in plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of bacteriology 185 (8)
PMID : 12670963  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.185.8.2402-2409.2003     PMC  :   PMC152619    
Abstract >>
The cryptic multicopy plasmid pGA1 (4,826 bp) from Corynebacterium glutamicum LP-6 belongs to the fifth group of rolling-circle-replicating plasmids. A determinant, which negatively controls pGA1 replication, was localized in the leader region of the rep gene coding for the initiator of plasmid replication. This region, when cloned into the compatible vector pEC6, was found to cause decrease of segregational stability of the pGA1 derivative pKG48. A promoter and a single transcriptional start site were found in the rep leader region in orientation opposite to the rep gene. These results suggest that a small countertranscribed RNA (ctRNA) (ca. 89 nucleotides in length), which might inhibit translation of pGA1 rep gene, is formed. Analysis of predicted secondary structure of the pGA1-encoded ctRNA revealed features common with the known ctRNAs in bacteria. Inactivation of the promoter P-ctRNA caused a dramatic increase of copies of the respective plasmid, which proved a negative role of the ctRNA in control of pGA1 copy number. A region between the promoters Prep and P-ctRNA with a potential to form secondary structures on both ctRNA and rep mRNA was found to cause low activity of the rep promoter even when promoter P-ctRNA was deleted. Thus, the sequence within the rep leader region itself seems to act, in addition to the ctRNA, as a second regulatory element of a novel type, negatively influencing expression of the pGA1 rep gene.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
7. Ruan  H, Eikmanns  B,     ( 2002 )

[Analysis on integration sites of transposon-insertion mutant by transposon rescue].

Wei sheng wu xue bao = Acta microbiologica Sinica 42 (3)
PMID : 12557374  :  
Abstract >>
In order to define the chromosomal locus of the transposon integration in a mutant of Corynebacterium glutamicum, transposon rescue experiments were performed. By isolating parts of the transposon together with adjacent parts of the bacterial chromosome and subsequent sequencing of the adjacent parts, the mutant was found to have three transposon integrations, one just in front of the citrate synthase gene gltA, the other two in hitherto unknown open reading frames designated orfA and orfB. The transposon rescue experiments are proven to be a easy, practical and ideal way in analyzing the transposon integration sites.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
Mutagenesis, Insertional
8. Lei  C, Ren  Z, Yang  W, Chen  Y, Chen  D, Liu  M, Yan  W, Zheng  Z,     ( 2002 )

Characterization of a novel plasmid pXZ608 from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

FEMS microbiology letters 216 (1)
PMID : 12423755  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.2002.tb11417.x    
Abstract >>
The complete nucleotide sequence of a novel cryptic plasmid pXZ608 from Corynebacterium glutamicum 227 was determined. pXZ608 was 5949 bp with six open reading frames (ORF1-6). The predicted ORF1 gene product was homologous to replication proteins of rolling circle replication plasmids. The conserved single- and double-stranded origins of rolling circle replication were found, and interestingly, the two origins were both located on ORF1, which indicated that the Rep protein encoded by ORF1 could bind to its own gene region. Deletion analysis revealed that the minimal replicon was located on the 2.14-kb SacI-BstEII fragment.
KeywordMeSH Terms
9. Abrhámová  Z, Pátek  M, Nesvera  J,     ( 2002 )

Atypical location of double-strand origin of replication (nic site) on the plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Folia microbiologica 47 (4)
PMID : 12422507  :   DOI  :   10.1007/bf02818687    
Abstract >>
The double-strand origin of replication (dso) of the rolling-circle-replicating (RC) plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum was analyzed using the runoff DNA synthesis assay. The site- and strand-specific breakage of double-stranded plasmid DNA, representing the nic site of dso, was localized precisely within the sequence 5'-CTGG decreases AT-3' in the distal part of the pGA1 rep gene. This location of dso differs from the dso positions found on other RC plasmids and is in agreement with the classification of the plasmid pGA1 into a new group of RC plasmids.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Replication Origin
10. Tauch  A, Götker  S, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J, Thierbach  G,     ( 2002 )

The 27.8-kb R-plasmid pTET3 from Corynebacterium glutamicum encodes the aminoglycoside adenyltransferase gene cassette aadA9 and the regulated tetracycline efflux system Tet 33 flanked by active copies of the widespread insertion sequence IS6100.

Plasmid 48 (2)
PMID : 12383729  :  
Abstract >>
We determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the 27.8-kb R-plasmid pTET3 from Corynebacterium glutamicum LP-6 which encodes streptomycin, spectinomycin, and tetracycline resistance. The antibiotic resistance determinant of pTET3 comprises an intI1-like gene, which was truncated by the insertion sequence IS6100, and the novel aminoglycoside adenyltransferase gene cassette aadA9. The deduced AADA9 protein showed 61% identity and 71% similarity to AADA6 of integron In51 from Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In addition, pTET3 carries the novel repressor-regulated tetracycline resistance determinant Tet 33 which revealed amino acid sequence homology to group 1 tetracycline efflux systems. The highest level of similarity was observed to the tetracycline efflux protein TetA(Z) from the C. glutamicum plasmid pAG1 with 65% identical and 77% similar amino acids. Each antibiotic resistance region of pTET3 is flanked by identical copies of the widespread insertion sequence IS6100 initially identified in Mycobacterium fortuitum. Transposition assays with a cloned copy of IS6100 revealed that this element is transpositionally active in C. glutamicum. These data suggest a central role of IS6100 in the evolutionary history of pTET3 by mediating the cointegrative assembly of resistance gene-carrying DNA segments.
KeywordMeSH Terms
11. Tauch  A, Götker  S, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J, Thierbach  G,     ( 2002 )

The alanine racemase gene alr is an alternative to antibiotic resistance genes in cloning systems for industrial Corynebacterium glutamicum strains.

Journal of biotechnology 99 (1)
PMID : 12204559  :  
Abstract >>
The potential of the alanine racemase gene alr from Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 to substitute for antibiotic resistance determinants in cloning systems has been investigated. The alr gene was identified by a PCR technique and its nucleotide sequence was determined. The deduced protein revealed the highest amino acid sequence similarity to the Alr protein from Mycobacterium smegmatis with 45% identical and 58% similar amino acids. A defined alr deletion mutant of C. glutamicum displayed a strict dependence on the presence of D-alanine for growth on complex and minimal medium. The alr gene was placed on a novel C. glutamicum vector which is completely free of antibiotic resistance genes. In vivo complementation of the chromosomal alr deletion with alr-carrying vectors permitted growth of the mutant strain in the absence of external D-alanine and provided strong selective pressure to maintain the plasmid. The alr gene enabled the selection of C. glutamicum transformants with a similar efficiency as the tetracycline resistance gene tetA(33). These data provided experimental evidence that the alr gene can be applied as an alternative selection marker to antibiotic resistance genes in industrial C. glutamicum strains. In an application example, the novel deltaalr host-alr(+) vector-system for C. glutamicum was used to overproduce the vitamin D-pantothenic acid.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
Genes, Bacterial
12. Kennerknecht  N, Sahm  H, Yen  MR, Pátek  M, Saier Jr  MH, Eggeling  L,     ( 2002 )

Export of L-isoleucine from Corynebacterium glutamicum: a two-gene-encoded member of a new translocator family.

Journal of bacteriology 184 (14)
PMID : 12081967  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.184.14.3947-3956.2002     PMC  :   PMC135157    
Abstract >>
Bacteria possess amino acid export systems, and Corynebacterium glutamicum excretes L-isoleucine in a process dependent on the proton motive force. In order to identify the system responsible for L-isoleucine export, we have used transposon mutagenesis to isolate mutants of C. glutamicum sensitive to the peptide isoleucyl-isoleucine. In one such mutant, strong peptide sensitivity resulted from insertion into a gene designated brnF encoding a hydrophobic protein predicted to possess seven transmembrane spanning helices. brnE is located downstream of brnF and encodes a second hydrophobic protein with four putative membrane-spanning helices. A mutant deleted of both genes no longer exports L-isoleucine, whereas an overexpressing strain exports this amino acid at an increased rate. BrnF and BrnE together are also required for the export of L-leucine and L-valine. BrnFE is thus a two-component export permease specific for aliphatic hydrophobic amino acids. Upstream of brnFE and transcribed divergently is an Lrp-like regulatory gene required for active export. Searches for homologues of BrnFE show that this type of exporter is widespread in prokaryotes but lacking in eukaryotes and that both gene products which together comprise the members of a novel family, the LIV-E family, generally map together within a single operon. Comparisons of the BrnF and BrnE phylogenetic trees show that gene duplication events in the early bacterial lineage gave rise to multiple paralogues that have been retained in alpha-proteobacteria but not in other prokaryotes analyzed.
KeywordMeSH Terms
13. Claes  WA, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2002 )

Identification of two prpDBC gene clusters in Corynebacterium glutamicum and their involvement in propionate degradation via the 2-methylcitrate cycle.

Journal of bacteriology 184 (10)
PMID : 11976302  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.184.10.2728-2739.2002     PMC  :   PMC135033    
Abstract >>
Genome sequencing revealed that the Corynebacterium glutamicum genome contained, besides gltA, two additional citrate synthase homologous genes (prpC) located in two different prpDBC gene clusters, which were designated prpD1B1C1 and prpD2B2C2. The coding regions of the two gene clusters as well as the predicted gene products showed sequence identities of about 70 to 80%. Significant sequence similarities were found also to the prpBCDE operons of Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica, which are known to encode enzymes of the propionate-degrading 2-methylcitrate pathway. Homologous and heterologous overexpression of the C. glutamicum prpC1 and prpC2 genes revealed that their gene products were active as citrate synthases and 2-methylcitrate synthases. Growth tests showed that C. glutamicum used propionate as a single or partial carbon source, although the beginning of the exponential growth phase was strongly delayed by propionate for up to 7 days. Compared to growth on acetate, the specific 2-methylcitrate synthase activity increased about 50-fold when propionate was provided as the sole carbon source, suggesting that in C. glutamicum the oxidation of propionate to pyruvate occurred via the 2-methylcitrate pathway. Additionally, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis experiments combined with mass spectrometry showed strong induction of the expression of the C. glutamicum prpD2B2C2 genes by propionate as an additional carbon source. Mutational analyses revealed that only the prpD2B2C2 genes were essential for the growth of C. glutamicum on propionate as a sole carbon source, while the function of the prpD1B1C1 genes remains obscure.
KeywordMeSH Terms
14. Kotrba  P, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2001 )

The ptsI gene encoding enzyme I of the phosphotransferase system of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Biochemical and biophysical research communications 289 (5)
PMID : 11741338  :   DOI  :   10.1006/bbrc.2001.6116    
Abstract >>
The phosphoenolpyruvate:carbohydrate phosphotransferase system (PTS) is widespread among bacteria where it mediates carbohydrate uptake and often serves in carbon control. Here we present cloning and analysis of the monocistronic ptsI gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum R, which encodes PTS Enzyme I (EI). EI catalyzes the first reaction of PTS and the reported ptsI was shown to complement the corresponding defect in Escherichia coli. The deduced 59.2-kDa EI of 564 amino acids shares more than 50% homology with EIs from Bacillus stearothermophilus, Bacillus subtilis, and Lactobacillus sake. Chromosomal inactivation of ptsI demonstrated that EI plays an indispensable role in PTS of C. glutamicum R and this system represents a dominant sugar uptake system. Cellobiose was only transported and utilized in adaptive mutants of C. glutamicum R. Cellobiose transport was also found to be PTS-dependent and repressed by PTS sugar glucose.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
15. Venkova  T, Pátek  M, Nesvera  J,     ( 2001 )

Identification of a novel gene involved in stable maintenance of plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Plasmid 46 (3)
PMID : 11735365  :   DOI  :   10.1006/plas.2001.1536    
Abstract >>
The cryptic plasmid pGA1 (4.8 kb) from Corynebacterium glutamicum, replicating in the rolling-circle mode, has been reported to contain four open reading frames longer than 200 bp (ORFA/per, ORFA2, ORFB, ORFC/rep). Here we present another pGA1 gene, ORFE (174 bp), located in the region downstream of the per-ORFA2 gene cluster. The ORFE is transcribed into two RNA species in a direction opposite to that of the per-ORFA2 RNA. Introduction of ORFE in trans into the cells harboring the pGA1 derivatives carrying the main stability determinant, the per gene coding for a product that positively influences the pGA1 copy number and maintenance, increased their segregational stability. Mutation of the putative translational start of the ORFE abolished this observed positive effect in trans. ORFE thus codes for a protein acting as an accessory element involved in stable maintenance of plasmid pGA1 and was hence designated the aes gene (accessory effector of stable maintenance).
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
16. Radmacher  E, Vaitsikova  A, Burger  U, Krumbach  K, Sahm  H, Eggeling  L,     ( 2002 )

Linking central metabolism with increased pathway flux: L-valine accumulation by Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Applied and environmental microbiology 68 (5)
PMID : 11976094  :   DOI  :   10.1128/aem.68.5.2246-2250.2002     PMC  :   PMC127577    
Abstract >>
Mutants of Corynebacterium glutamicum were made and enzymatically characterized to clone ilvD and ilvE, which encode dihydroxy acid dehydratase and transaminase B, respectively. These genes of the branched-chain amino acid synthesis were overexpressed together with ilvBN (which encodes acetohydroxy acid synthase) and ilvC (which encodes isomeroreductase) in the wild type, which does not excrete L-valine, to result in an accumulation of this amino acid to a concentration of 42 mM. Since L-valine originates from two pyruvate molecules, this illustrates the comparatively easy accessibility of the central metabolite pyruvate. The same genes, ilvBNCD, overexpressed in an ilvA deletion mutant which is unable to synthesize L-isoleucine increased the concentration of this amino acid to 58 mM. A further dramatic increase was obtained when panBC was deleted, making the resulting mutant auxotrophic for D-pantothenate. When the resulting strain, C. glutamicum 13032DeltailvADeltapanBC with ilvBNCD overexpressed, was grown under limiting conditions it accumulated 91 mM L-valine. This is attributed to a reduced coenzyme A availability and therefore reduced flux of pyruvate via pyruvate dehydrogenase enabling its increased drain-off via the L-valine biosynthesis pathway.
KeywordMeSH Terms
17. Nampoothiri  KM, Hoischen  C, Bathe  B, Möckel  B, Pfefferle  W, Krumbach  K, Sahm  H, Eggeling  L,     ( 2002 )

Expression of genes of lipid synthesis and altered lipid composition modulates L-glutamate efflux of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 58 (1)
PMID : 11831479  :  
Abstract >>
L-Glutamate is made with Corynebacterium glutamicum on a scale of more than 106 tons/year. Nevertheless, formation of this amino acid is enigmatic and there is very limited molecular information available to unravel the apparently complex conditions leading to L-glutamate efflux. Here, we report the isolation and overexpression of the genes involved in lipid synthesis: acp, fadD 15, cma, cls, pgsA2, cdsA, gpsA, and plsC, and the inactivation of cma and cls. In addition, the consequences for phospholipid content, temperature sensitivity, as well as detergent-independent and detergent-dependent L-glutamate efflux were quantified. An in part strong alteration of the phospholipid composition was achieved; for instance, overexpression offadD15 encoding an acyl-CoA ligase resulted in an increase of phosphatidyl inositol from 12.6 to 30.2%. All strains, except that overexpressing acp (acyl carrier protein), exhibited increased temperature sensitivity, with the strongest sensitivity present upon cls (cardiolipin synthetase) inactivation. As a consequence of the genetically modified lipid synthesis, L-glutamate efflux changed quite dramatically; for instance, overexpression of plsC (acylglycerolacyl transferase) resulted in a detergent-triggered increase of L-glutamate accumulation from 92 mM to 108 mM, whereas acp overexpression reduced the accumulation to 24 mM. With some of the overexpressed genes, substantial L-glutamate excretion even without detergent addition was obtained when the fermentation temperature was elevated. These data show that the chemical and physical properties of the cytoplasmic membrane are altered and suggest that this is a necessary precondition to achieve L-glutamate efflux.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
18. Kim  HJ, Kim  Y, Lee  MS, Lee  HS,     ( 2001 )

Gene lmrB of Corynebacterium glutamicum confers efflux-mediated resistance to lincomycin.

Molecules and cells 12 (1)
PMID : 11561719  :  
Abstract >>
The lmrB gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum, which confers specific resistance to lincosamides, such as lincomycin and clindamycin, was isolated. C. glutamicum cells, carrying the lmrB gene in a multicopy plasmid, showed increased resistance to lincomycin with a MIC of 230 microg/ml, which is a 9-fold increase compared to that of the wild type. The lmrB-disrupted mutant became sensitive to the compound. No difference in sensitivity to erythromycin, penicillin G, tetracycline, chloramphenicol, spectinomycin, nalidixic acid, gentamicin, streptomycin, ethidium bromide, and sodium dodecyl sulfate was observed. The protonophore carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone abolished the lincomycin-resistance of lmrB-carrying cells. The putative protein product of the gene contained 14-transmembrane regions and showed high amino acid-sequence homology to the drug efflux pumps of other organisms. In addition, the putative protein contained a motif for major facilitators, suggesting a role in efflux-mediated resistance to lincomycin.
KeywordMeSH Terms
19. Sakamoto  J, Shibata  T, Mine  T, Miyahara  R, Torigoe  T, Noguchi  S, Matsushita  K, Sone  N,     ( 2001 )

Cytochrome c oxidase contains an extra charged amino acid cluster in a new type of respiratory chain in the amino-acid-producing Gram-positive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 147 (Pt 10)
PMID : 11577165  :   DOI  :   10.1099/00221287-147-10-2865    
Abstract >>
The membranes from Corynebacterium glutamicum cells contain a hydrophobic di-haem C protein as the cytochrome c subunit of the new type of cytochrome bc complex (complex III in the respiratory chain) encoded by the qcrCAB operon [Sone, N., Nagata, K., Kojima, H., Tajima, J., Kodera, Y., Kanamaru, T., Noguchi, S. & Sakamoto, J. (2001). Biochim Biophys Acta 1503, 279-290]. To characterize complex IV, cytochrome c oxidase and its structural genes were isolated. The oxidase is of the cytochrome aa(3) type, but mass spectrometry indicated that the haem is haem As, which contains a geranylgeranyl side-chain instead of a farnesyl group. The enzyme is a SoxM-type haem-copper oxidase composed of three subunits. Edman degradation and mass spectrometry suggested that the N-terminal signal sequence of subunit II is cleaved and that the new N-terminal cysteine residue is diacylglycerated, while neither subunit I nor subunit III is significantly modified. The genes for subunits II (ctaC) and III (ctaE) are located upstream of the qcrCAB operon, while that for subunit I (ctaD) is located separately. The oxidase showed low enzyme activity with extrinsic substrates such as cytochromes c from horse heart or yeast, and has the Cu(A)-binding motif in its subunit II. A prominent structural feature is the insertion of an extra charged amino acid cluster between the beta2 and beta4 strands in the substrate-binding domain of subunit II. The beta2-beta4 loop of this oxidase is about 30 residues longer than that of major cytochrome c oxidases from mitochondria and proteobacteria, and is rich in both acidic and basic residues. These findings suggest that the extra charged cluster may play a role in the interaction of the oxidase with the cytochrome c subunit of the new type of bc complex.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Cloning, Molecular
Genes, Bacterial
20. Takusagawa  Y, Otagiri  M, Ui  S, Ohtsuki  T, Mimura  A, Ohkuma  M, Kudo  T,     ( 2001 )

Purification and characterization of L-2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase of Brevibacterium saccharolyticum C-1012 expressed in Escherichia coli.

Bioscience, biotechnology, and biochemistry 65 (8)
PMID : 11577733  :   DOI  :   10.1271/bbb.65.1876    
Abstract >>
The L-2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase produced in E. coli JM109/pLBD2-CTC was purified by 5 steps. The molecular mass of this enzyme was estimated at 110 kDa and the subunit was measured to be 30 kDa. The L-BDH had some differences from the BDHs from other sources in substrate specificity, pI value, pH stability, effects of divalent cations, and organic acids.
KeywordMeSH Terms
21. Simic  P, Sahm  H, Eggeling  L,     ( 2001 )

L-threonine export: use of peptides to identify a new translocator from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of bacteriology 183 (18)
PMID : 11514515  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.183.18.5317-5324.2001     PMC  :   PMC95414    
Abstract >>
Bacterial mechanisms for the uptake of peptides and their hydrolysis to amino acids are known in great detail, whereas much less is known about the fates of the peptide-derived amino acids. We show that the addition of L-threonine-containing di- or tripeptides results in reduction of the growth of Corynebacterium glutamicum, with concomitant high intracellular accumulation of L-threonine to up to 130 mM. Using transposon mutagenesis and isolation of mutants with increased Thr peptide sensitivity, nine open reading frames (ORFs) were identified, almost all encoding hypothetical proteins of unknown function. Three ORFs encode membrane proteins. Their individual functional characterizations in the wild-type background led to the identification of thrE. Upon thrE overexpression, growth is no longer sensitive to the presence of the Thr peptide, and L-threonine is exported at a rate of 3.8 nmol min(-1) mg of dry weight(-1), whereas the rate of export of a thrE inactivation mutant is reduced to 1.1 nmol min(-1) mg of dry weight(-1). In addition to L-threonine, L-serine is also a substrate for the exporter. The exporter exhibits nine predicted transmembrane-spanning helices with long charged C and N termini and with an amphipathic helix present within the N terminus. All these data suggest that the carrier encoded by thrE serves to export small molecules such as L-threonine and that the carrier is a prototype of a new translocator family. Homologues of ThrE are present in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Streptomyces coelicolor.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Amino Acid Transport Systems, Neutral
Bacterial Proteins
22. Nolden  L, Farwick  M, Krämer  R, Burkovski  A,     ( 2001 )

Glutamine synthetases of Corynebacterium glutamicum: transcriptional control and regulation of activity.

FEMS microbiology letters 201 (1)
PMID : 11445173  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.2001.tb10738.x    
Abstract >>
Regulation of glnA expression and glutamine synthetase I activity was analyzed in Corynebacterium glutamicum. Transcription is regulated by the global repressor protein AmtR, essential for derepression of glnA transcription are GlnK and uridylyltransferase, key proteins of the C. glutamicum nitrogen regulatory system. Glutamine synthetase I activity is controlled by adenylylation/deadenylylation via adenylyltransferase. The gene encoding this bifunctional enzyme, glnE, was isolated and its function was characterized by deletion analysis. Upstream of glnE, a second gene encoding a GSI-type protein in C. glutamicum was isolated. This gene, designated glnA2, forms an operon with glnE, its transcription is not regulated and neither its deletion or overexpression showed any effect. Therefore, the physiological role of glnA2 remains unclear.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
Transcription, Genetic
23. Kim  JW, Kim  HJ, Kim  Y, Lee  MS, Lee  HS,     ( 2001 )

Properties of the Corynebacterium glutamicum metC gene encoding cystathionine beta-lyase.

Molecules and cells 11 (2)
PMID : 11355704  :  
Abstract >>
The metC gene encoding the cystathionine beta-lyase, the third enzyme in the methionine biosynthetic pathway, was isolated from Corynebacterium glutamicum by heterologous complementation of the Escherichia coli metC mutant. A DNA-sequence analysis of the cloned DNA identified two open-reading frames (ORFs) of ORF1 and ORF2 that consisted of 1,107 and 978 bp, respectively. A SDS-PAGE analysis identified a putative cystathionine beta-lyase band with approximate Mr of 41,000 that consisted of 368 amino acids encoded from ORF1. The translational product of the gene showed no significant homology with that of the metC gene from other organisms. Introduction of the plasmid containing the metC gene into C. glutamicum resulted in a 5-fold increase in the activity of the cystathionine beta-lyase. The putative protein product of ORF2, encoding a protein product of 35,574 Da, consisted of 325 amino acids and was identical to the previously reported aecD gene product, except for the existence of two different amino acids. Like the aecD gene, when present in multiple copies, the metC gene conferred resistance to S-(betaaminoethyl)-cysteine, which is a toxic lysine analog. However, genetic and biochemical evidence suggests that the natural activity of the metC gene product is to mediate methionine biosynthesis in C. glutamicum. Mutant strains of metC were constructed, and the strains showed methionine prototrophy. The mutant strains completely lost their ability to show resistance to the S-(beta-aminoethyl)-cysteine. These results suggest that, in addition to the transsulfuration, other biosynthetic pathway(s), such as a direct sulfhydrylation pathway, may be functional in C. glutamicum as a parallel biosynthetic route for methionine.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
24. Niebisch  A, Bott  M,     ( 2001 )

Molecular analysis of the cytochrome bc1-aa3 branch of the Corynebacterium glutamicum respiratory chain containing an unusual diheme cytochrome c1.

Archives of microbiology 175 (4)
PMID : 11382224  :  
Abstract >>
In this work, the genes for cytochrome aa3 oxidase and the cytochrome bc1 complex in the gram-positive soil bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum were identified. The monocistronic ctaD gene encoded a 65-kDa protein with all features typical for subunit I of cytochrome aa3 oxidases. A ctaD deletion mutant lacked the characteristic 600 nm peak in redox difference spectra, and growth in glucose minimal medium was strongly impaired. The genes encoding subunit III of cytochrome aa3 (ctaE) and the three characteristic subunits of the cytochrome bc1 complex (qcrABC) were clustered in the order ctaE-qcrCAB. Analysis of the deduced primary structures revealed a number of unusual features: (1) cytochrome c1 (QcrC, 30 kDa) contained two Cys-X-X-Cys-His motifs for covalent heme attachment, indicating that it is a diheme c-type cytochrome; (2) the 'Rieske' iron-sulphur protein (QcrA, 45 kDa) contained three putative transmembrane helices in the N-terminal region rather than only one; and (3) cytochrome b (QcrB, 60 kDa) contained, in addition to the conserved part with eight transmembrane helices, a C-terminal extension of about 120 amino acids, which presumably is located in the cytoplasm. Staining of C. glutamicum proteins for covalently bound heme indicated the presence of a single, membrane-bound c-type cytochrome with an apparent molecular mass of about 31 kDa. Since this protein was missing in a qcrCAB deletion mutant, it most likely corresponds to cytochrome c1. Similar to the deltactaD mutant, the deltaqcrCAB mutant showed strongly impaired growth in glucose minimal medium, which indicates that the bc1-aa3 pathway is the main route of respiration under these conditions.
KeywordMeSH Terms
25. Barreiro  C, González-Lavado  E, Martín  JF,     ( 2001 )

Organization and transcriptional analysis of a six-gene cluster around the rplK-rplA operon of Corynebacterium glutamicum encoding the ribosomal proteins L11 and L1.

Applied and environmental microbiology 67 (5)
PMID : 11319098  :   DOI  :   10.1128/AEM.67.5.2183-2190.2001     PMC  :   PMC92853    
Abstract >>
A cluster of six genes, tRNA(Trp)-secE-nusG-rplK-rplA-pkwR, was cloned and sequenced from a Corynebacterium glutamicum cosmid library and shown to be contiguous in the C. glutamicum genome. These genes encode a tryptophanyl tRNA, the protein translocase component SecE, the antiterminator protein NusG, and the ribosomal proteins L11 and L1 in addition to PkwR, a putative regulatory protein of the LacI-GalR family. S1 nuclease mapping analysis revealed that nusG and rplK are expressed as separate transcriptional units and rplK and rplA are cotranscribed as a single mRNA. A 19-nucleotide inverted repeat that appears to correspond to a transcriptional terminator was located in the 3' region downstream from nusG. Northern analysis with different probes confirmed the S1 mapping results and showed that the secE-rplA four-gene region gives rise to four transcripts. secE was transcribed as a 0.5-kb monocistronic mRNA, nusG formed two transcripts of 1.4 and 1.0 kb from different initiation sites, and the two ribosomal protein genes rplK and rplA were cotranscribed as a single mRNA of 1.6 kb. A consensus L1 protein binding sequence was identified in the leader region of the rplK-rplA transcript, suggesting that expression of the rplK-rplA cluster was regulated by autogenous regulation exerted by the L1 protein at the translation level. The promoters of the nusG and rplK-rplA genes were subcloned in a novel corynebacterial promoter-probe vector and shown to confer strong expression of the reporter gene.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
Transcription, Genetic
26. Wehmeier  L, Brockmann-Gretza  O, Pisabarro  A, Tauch  A, Pühler  A, Martin  JF, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2001 )

A Corynebacterium glutamicum mutant with a defined deletion within the rplK gene is impaired in (p)ppGpp accumulation upon amino acid starvation.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 147 (Pt 3)
PMID : 11238976  :   DOI  :   10.1099/00221287-147-3-691    
Abstract >>
The rplK gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC13032 comprises 438 nucleotides and encodes a protein of 145 amino acids with a molecular mass of 15.3 kDa. The amino acid sequence revealed extensive similarities to the large ribosomal subunit protein L11 from several Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The C. glutamicum rplK gene is located downstream of secE, representing part of the protein export apparatus, and of nusG, encoding a transcription antiterminator protein. The rplK gene is followed by an ORF homologous to rplA encoding the 50S ribosomal protein L1. Northern analysis revealed that transcription of the rplK-rplA cluster resulted in two different transcripts of 1.5 and 0.6 kb. The 1.5 kb transcript corresponds to the entire rplK-rplA cluster and the short transcript originates from the rplK gene. A C. glutamicum rplK mutant strain carrying a 12 bp in-frame deletion within rplK, which resulted in the loss of the tetrapeptide Pro-Ala-Leu-Gly in the L11 protein, was constructed. The mutant failed to accumulate (p)ppGpp in response to amino acid starvation and exhibited an increased tolerance to the antibiotic thiostrepton. Evidently, the C. glutamicum rplK gene is required for (p)ppGpp accumulation upon nutritional starvation.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Deletion
27. Grossmann  K, Herbster  K, Mack  M,     ( 2000 )

Rapid cloning of metK encoding methionine adenosyltransferase from Corynebacterium glutamicum by screening a genomic library on a high density colony-array.

FEMS microbiology letters 193 (1)
PMID : 11094286  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.2000.tb09409.x    
Abstract >>
The genes SAM1 and SAM2 encoding the two different methionine adenosyltransferases (EC 2.5.1.6) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae were used as templates to generate specific DNA-probes. This heterologous mixture of DNA-probes was hybridized under low stringency hybridization conditions to a Corynebacterium glutamicum colony-array representing the complete genome. Subsequently, one genomic fragment was isolated which contained the C. glutamicum methionine adenosyltransferase gene metK (1.224 kb). When overproduced in Escherichia coli, MetK (44.2 kDa) of C. glutamicum had methionine adenosyltransferase activity. In addition, overexpression of metK in C. glutamicum led to an increased intracellular S-adenosylmethionine concentration. The metK transcript was detected by reverse transcription PCR in C. glutamicum cells in the exponential growth phase but not in the stationary phase.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Cloning, Molecular
Genomic Library
28. Molenaar  D, van der Rest  ME, Drysch  A, Yücel  R,     ( 2000 )

Functions of the membrane-associated and cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenases in the citric acid cycle of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of bacteriology 182 (24)
PMID : 11092846  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.182.24.6884-6891.2000     PMC  :   PMC94811    
Abstract >>
Like many other bacteria, Corynebacterium glutamicum possesses two types of L-malate dehydrogenase, a membrane-associated malate:quinone oxidoreductase (MQO; EC 1.1.99.16) and a cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenase (MDH; EC 1.1.1.37) The regulation of MDH and of the three membrane-associated dehydrogenases MQO, succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), and NADH dehydrogenase was investigated. MQO, MDH, and SDH activities are regulated coordinately in response to the carbon and energy source for growth. Compared to growth on glucose, these activities are increased during growth on lactate, pyruvate, or acetate, substrates which require high citric acid cycle activity to sustain growth. The simultaneous presence of high activities of both malate dehydrogenases is puzzling. MQO is the most important malate dehydrogenase in the physiology of C. glutamicum. A mutant with a site-directed deletion in the mqo gene does not grow on minimal medium. Growth can be partially restored in this mutant by addition of the vitamin nicotinamide. In contrast, a double mutant lacking MQO and MDH does not grow even in the presence of nicotinamide. Apparently, MDH is able to take over the function of MQO in an mqo mutant, but this requires the presence of nicotinamide in the growth medium. It is shown that addition of nicotinamide leads to a higher intracellular pyridine nucleotide concentration, which probably enables MDH to catalyze malate oxidation. Purified MDH from C. glutamicum catalyzes oxaloacetate reduction much more readily than malate oxidation at physiological pH. In a reconstituted system with isolated membranes and purified MDH, MQO and MDH catalyze the cyclic conversion of malate and oxaloacetate, leading to a net oxidation of NADH. Evidence is presented that this cyclic reaction also takes place in vivo. As yet, no phenotype of an mdh deletion alone was observed, which leaves a physiological function for MDH in C. glutamicum obscure.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Citric Acid Cycle
29. Kim  HK, Yoo  SK, Park  SY,     ( 2000 )

Characterization of glk, a gene coding for glucose kinase of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

FEMS microbiology letters 188 (2)
PMID : 10913707  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.2000.tb09195.x    
Abstract >>
The glk gene from Corynebacterium glutamicum was isolated by complementation using Escherichia coli ZSC113 (ptsG ptsM glk). We sequenced a total of 3072 bp containing the 969-bp open reading frame encoding glucose kinase (Glk). The glk gene has a deduced molecular mass of 34.2 kDa and contains a typical ATP binding site. Comparison with protein sequences revealed homologies to Glk from Streptomyces coelicolor (43%) and Bacillus megaterium (35%). The glk gene in C. glutamicum was inactivated on the chromosome via single crossover homologous recombination and the resulting glk mutant was characterized. Interestingly, the C. glutamicum glk mutant showed poor growth on rich medium such as LB medium or brain heart infusion medium in the presence or absence of glucose, fructose, maltose or sucrose as the sole carbon source. Growth yield was reduced significantly when maltose was used as the sole carbon source using minimal medium. The growth defect of glk mutant on rich medium was complemented by a plasmid-encoded glk gene. A chromosomal glk-lacZ fusion was constructed and used to monitor glk expression, and it was found that glk was expressed constitutively under all tested conditions with different carbon sources.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
30. Jakoby  M, Nolden  L, Meier-Wagner  J, Krämer  R, Burkovski  A,     ( 2000 )

AmtR, a global repressor in the nitrogen regulation system of Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular microbiology 37 (4)
PMID : 10972815  :   DOI  :   10.1046/j.1365-2958.2000.02073.x    
Abstract >>
The uptake and assimilation of nitrogen sources is effectively regulated in bacteria. In the Gram-negative enterobacterium Escherichia coli, the NtrB/C two-component system is responsible for the activation of transcription of different enzymes and transporters, depending on the nitrogen status of the cell. In this study, we investigated regulation of ammonium uptake in Corynebacterium glutamicum, a Gram-positive soil bacterium closely related to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. As shown by Northern blot hybridizations, regulation occurs on the level of transcription upon nitrogen starvation. In contrast to enterobacteria, a repressor protein is involved in regulation, as revealed by measurements of methylammonium uptake and beta-galactosidase activity in reporter strains. The repressor-encoding gene, designated amtR, was isolated and sequenced. Deletion of amtR led to deregulation of transcription of amt coding for the C. glutamicum (methyl)ammonium uptake system. E. coli extracts from amtR-expressing cells were applied in gel retardation experiments, and binding of AmtR to the amt upstream region was observed. By deletion analyses, a target motif for AmtR binding was identified, and binding of purified AmtR protein to this motif, ATCTATAGN1-4ATAG, was shown. Furthermore, the binding of AmtR to this sequence was proven in vivo using a yeast one-hybrid system. Subsequent studies showed that AmtR not only regulates transcription of the amt gene but also of the amtB-glnK-glnD operon encoding an amt paralogue, the signal transduction protein PII and the uridylyltransferase/uridylyl-removing enzyme, key components of the nitrogen regulatory cascade. In summary, regulation of ammonium uptake and assimilation in the high G+C content Gram-positive bacterium C. glutamicum differs significantly from the mechanism found in the low G+C content Gram-positive model organism Bacillus subtilis and from the paradigm of nitrogen control in the Gram-negative enterobacteria.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Bacterial Proteins
31. Wachi  M, Hirasawa  T,     ( 2000 )

A mutation in the Corynebacterium glutamicum ltsA gene causes susceptibility to lysozyme, temperature-sensitive growth, and L-glutamate production.

Journal of bacteriology 182 (10)
PMID : 10781535  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.182.10.2696-2701.2000     PMC  :   PMC101969    
Abstract >>
The Corynebacterium glutamicum mutant KY9714, originally isolated as a lysozyme-sensitive mutant, does not grow at 37 degrees C. Complementation tests and DNA sequencing analysis revealed that a mutation in a single gene of 1,920 bp, ltsA (lysozyme and temperature sensitive), was responsible for its lysozyme sensitivity and temperature sensitivity. The ltsA gene encodes a protein homologous to the glutamine-dependent asparagine synthetases of various organisms, but it could not rescue the asparagine auxotrophy of an Escherichia coli asnA asnB double mutant. Replacement of the N-terminal Cys residue (which is conserved in glutamine-dependent amidotransferases and is essential for enzyme activity) by an Ala residue resulted in the loss of complementation in C. glutamicum. The mutant ltsA gene has an amber mutation, and the disruption of the ltsA gene caused lysozyme and temperature sensitivity similar to that in the KY9714 mutant. L-Glutamate production was induced by elevating growth temperature in the disruptant. These results indicate that the ltsA gene encodes a novel glutamine-dependent amidotransferase that is involved in the mechanisms of formation of rigid cell wall structure and in the L-glutamate production of C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
32. Bathe  B, Quast  K,     ( 1999 )

The Corynebacterium glutamicum insertion sequence ISCg2 prefers conserved target sequences located adjacent to genes involved in aspartate and glutamate metabolism.

Molecular & general genetics : MGG 262 (3)
PMID : 10589846  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s004380051119    
Abstract >>
An IS element, termed ISCg2, was identified in the chromosome of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032. After screening a cosmid library of the C. glutamicum ATCC 13032 genome, six copies of ISCg2 including their flanking regions were sequenced and analyzed. ISCg2 is 1636 bp in length and has 26-bp imperfect inverted repeats flanked by 3-bp direct repeats. By comparisons with other IS elements, ISCg2 was classified as a member of the IS30 family of insertion sequences. The six copies of ISCg2 were identical at the nucleotide level and were located in intergenic, AT-rich regions of the chromosome. The regions in which the six copies of ISCg2 were inserted displayed significant similarities. This similarity extends over a region of 65 bp, which was assumed to be the target region for ISCg2. Interestingly, five of the six copies of ISCg2 were located adjacent to genes that may be involved in aspartate and glutamate metabolism or its regulation. Investigation of the distribution of ISCg2 showed that the IS element is restricted to certain C. glutamicum strains. Analysis of various integration regions indicates active transposition of ISCg2 in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Conserved Sequence
33. Auling  G,     ( 1999 )

Ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032--genetic characterization of a second class IV enzyme.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 145 (Pt 7) (N/A)
PMID : 10439398  :   DOI  :   10.1099/13500872-145-7-1595    
Abstract >>
Ribonucleotide reductases (RNRs) encoded by nrd (nucleotide reduction) genes are unique enzymes providing the DNA precursors in all living organisms and several viruses. The designation of four classes of RNRs reflects their use of diverse metallo-cofactors. Using oligonucleotide primers derived from conserved domains of the primary structure of known NrdA and NrdE proteins, an internal 938 bp fragment of the nrdE gene was amplified from genomic DNA of Corynebacterium glutamicum. With this PCR product a 4.36 kb fragment was identified and cloned containing the nrdHIE genes of C. glutamicum. A probe derived from nrdF2 of Mycobacterium tuberculosis allowed the cloning and sequencing of the nrdF gene located 3.1 kb further downstream, encoding the small subunit of the C. glutamicum RNR. Conjugative introduction of nrdE from C. glutamicum complemented thermosensitive mutants of Corynebacterium ammoniagenes which had a defective catalytic subunit of the Mn-RNR. The authors provide arguments for allocation of the C. glutamicum NrdEF proteins to class IV in the RNR classification scheme of Stubbe & van der Donk (1995) [Chem Biol 2, 793-801].
KeywordMeSH Terms
34. Kim  JH, Hwang  HJ, Kim  HB, Kim  Y,     ( 1999 )

Analysis of Corynebacterium glutamicum methionine biosynthetic pathway: isolation and analysis of metB encoding cystathionine gamma-synthase.

Molecules and cells 9 (3)
PMID : 10420990  :  
Abstract >>
The metB gene encoding cystathionine y-synthase, the second enzyme of methionine biosynthetic pathway, was isolated from a pSL109-based Corynebacterium glutamicum gene library via complementation of an Escherichia coli metB mutant. A DNA-sequence analysis of the cloned DNA identified an open-reading frame of 1161 bp which encodes a protein with the molecular weight of 41,655 comprising of 386 amino acids. The putative protein product showed good amino acid-sequence homology to its counterpart in other organisms. Introduction of a plasmid carrying the cloned metB into the C. glutamicum resulted in a 10-fold increase in cystathionine gamma-synthase activities, demonstrating the identity of the cloned gene. The C. glutamicum metB mutant which was generated by the site-specific integration of the cloned DNA into its chromosome did not lose the ability to grow on glucose minimal medium lacking supplemental methionine. The growth rate of the mutant strain was also comparable to that of the parental strain. These data indicate that, in addition to the transsulfuration pathway, other methionine biosynthetic pathways may be present in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
35. Jakoby  M, Krämer  R,     ( 1999 )

Nitrogen regulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum: isolation of genes involved and biochemical characterization of corresponding proteins.

FEMS microbiology letters 173 (2)
PMID : 10227160  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.1999.tb13518.x    
Abstract >>
The regulation of nitrogen assimilation was investigated in the Gram-positive actinomycete Corynebacterium glutamicum. Biochemical studies and site-directed mutagenesis revealed that glutamine synthetase activity is regulated via adenylylation in this organism. The genes encoding the central signal transduction protein PH (glnB) and the primary nitrogen sensor uridylyltransferase (glnD) were isolated and sequenced. Additionally, genes putatively involved in the degradation of ornithine (ocd) and sarcosine (soxA), ammonium uptake (amtP) and protein secretion (ftsY, srp) were identified in C. glutamicum. Based on these observations, the mechanism of N regulation in C. glutamicum is similar to that of the Gram-negative Escherichia coli. As deduced from data base searches, the described regulation may also hold true for the important pathogen Mycobacterium glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
Genes, Bacterial
36. Sahm  H,     ( 1999 )

D-Pantothenate synthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum and use of panBC and genes encoding L-valine synthesis for D-pantothenate overproduction.

Applied and environmental microbiology 65 (5)
PMID : 10223988  :   PMC  :   PMC91285    
Abstract >>
D-Pantothenate is synthesized via four enzymes from ketoisovalerate, which is an intermediate of branched-chain amino acid synthesis. We quantified three of these enzyme activities in Corynebacterium glutamicum and determined specific activities ranging from 0.00014 to 0.001 micromol/min mg (protein)-1. The genes encoding the ketopantoatehydroxymethyl transferase and the pantothenate synthetase were cloned, sequenced, and functionally characterized. These studies suggest that panBC constitutes an operon. By using panC, an assay system was developed to quantify D-pantothenate. The wild type of C. glutamicum was found to accumulate 9 micrograms of this vitamin per liter. A strain was constructed (i) to abolish L-isoleucine synthesis, (ii) to result in increased ketoisovalerate formation, and (iii) to enable its further conversion to D-pantothenate. The best resulting strain has ilvA deleted from its chromosome and has two plasmids to overexpress genes of ketoisovalerate (ilvBNCD) and D-pantothenate (panBC) synthesis. With this strain a D-pantothenate accumulation of up to 1 g/liter is achieved, which is a 10(5)-fold increase in concentration compared to that of the original wild-type strain. From the series of strains analyzed it follows that an increased ketoisovalerate availability is mandatory to direct the metabolite flux into the D-pantothenate-specific part of the pathway and that the availability of beta-alanine is essential for D-pantothenate formation.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
37. Kikuchi  Y, Date  M, Itaya  H, Matsui  K, Wu  LF,     ( 2006 )

Functional analysis of the twin-arginine translocation pathway in Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13869.

Applied and environmental microbiology 72 (11)
PMID : 16997984  :   DOI  :   10.1128/AEM.01528-06     PMC  :   PMC1636197    
Abstract >>
Compared to those of other gram-positive bacteria, the genetic structure of the Corynebacterium glutamicum Tat system is unique in that it contains the tatE gene in addition to tatA, tatB, and tatC. The tatE homologue has been detected only in the genomes of gram-negative enterobacteria. To assess the function of the C. glutamicum Tat pathway, we cloned the tatA, tatB, tatC, and tatE genes from C. glutamicum ATCC 13869 and constructed mutants carrying deletions of each tat gene or of both the tatA and tatE genes. Using green fluorescent protein (GFP) fused with the twin-arginine signal peptide of the Escherichia coli TorA protein, we demonstrated that the minimal functional Tat system required TatA and TatC. TatA and TatE provide overlapping function. Unlike the TatB proteins from gram-negative bacteria, C. glutamicum TatB was dispensable for Tat function, although it was required for maximal efficiency of secretion. The signal peptide sequence of the isomaltodextranase (IMD) of Arthrobacter globiformis contains a twin-arginine motif. We showed that both IMD and GFP fused with the signal peptide of IMD were secreted via the C. glutamicum Tat pathway. These observations indicate that IMD is a bona fide Tat substrate and imply great potential of the C. glutamicum Tat system for industrial production of heterologous folded proteins.
KeywordMeSH Terms
38. Gunji  Y, Yasueda  H,     ( 2006 )

Enhancement of L-lysine production in methylotroph Methylophilus methylotrophus by introducing a mutant LysE exporter.

Journal of biotechnology 127 (1)
PMID : 16870294  :   DOI  :   10.1016/j.jbiotec.2006.06.003    
Abstract >>
The obligate methylotroph Methylophilus methylotrophus AS1 expressing a mutant form of dapA (dapA24) encoding a dihydrodipicolinate synthase desensitized from feedback inhibition by L-lysine could secrete L-lysine into the medium, but also maintained a high concentration of intracellular L-lysine. To improve the yield from excretion, we attempted to introduce an L-lysine/L-arginine exporter (LysE) from Corynebacterium glutamicum 2256 into M. methylotrophus. We were unable to stably transform M. methylotrophus with a plasmid expressing the wild type lysE gene, but happened to obtain a transformant carrying a spontaneously mutated lysE gene (designated lysE24) which could induce L-lysine production even in the wild type strain. The transformant also possessed increased tolerance to S-(2-aminoethyl)-L-cysteine (an L-lysine analog). lysE24 has a single-base insertion mutation in the middle of the lysE gene, and its product is presumably quite different in structure from wild-type LysE. When lysE24 was introduced into an L-lysine producer of M. methylotrophus carrying dapA24, the level of intracellular L-lysine fell. During fermentation, M. methylotrophus carrying both lysE24 and dapA24 produced 10-fold more L-lysine (11.3 gl(-1) in jar-fermentation) than the parent producer carrying only dapA24 or lysE24. These results show the importance of the factor (lysE24) involved in the excretion of L-lysine on its overproduction in M. methylotrophus.
KeywordMeSH Terms
39. Hansmeier  N, Albersmeier  A, Tauch  A, Damberg  T, Ros  R, Anselmetti  D, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2006 )

The surface (S)-layer gene cspB of Corynebacterium glutamicum is transcriptionally activated by a LuxR-type regulator and located on a 6 kb genomic island absent from the type strain ATCC 13032.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 152 (Pt 4)
PMID : 16549657  :   DOI  :   10.1099/mic.0.28673-0    
Abstract >>
The surface (S)-layer gene region of the Gram-positive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 14067 was identified on fosmid clones, sequenced and compared with the genome sequence of C. glutamicum ATCC 13032, whose cell surface is devoid of an ordered S-layer lattice. A 5.97 kb DNA region that is absent from the C. glutamicum ATCC 13032 chromosome was identified. This region includes cspB, the structural gene encoding the S-layer protomer PS2, and six additional coding sequences. PCR experiments demonstrated that the respective DNA region is conserved in different C. glutamicum wild-type strains capable of S-layer formation. The DNA region is flanked by a 7 bp direct repeat, suggesting that illegitimate recombination might be responsible for gene loss in C. glutamicum ATCC 13032. Transfer of the cloned cspB gene restored the PS2(-) phenotype of C. glutamicum ATCC 13032, as confirmed by visualization of the PS2 proteins by SDS-PAGE and imaging of ordered hexagonal S-layer lattices on living C. glutamicum cells by atomic force microscopy. Furthermore, the promoter of the cspB gene was mapped by 5' rapid amplification of cDNA ends PCR and the corresponding DNA fragment was used in DNA affinity purification assays. A 30 kDa protein specifically binding to the promoter region of the cspB gene was purified. Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and peptide mass fingerprinting of the purified protein led to the identification of the putative transcriptional regulator Cg2831, belonging to the LuxR regulatory protein family. Disruption of the cg2831 gene in C. glutamicum resulted in an almost complete loss of PS2 synthesis. These results suggested that Cg2831 is a transcriptional activator of cspB gene expression in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
Genomic Islands
Transcription, Genetic
40. Ruan  H, Gerstmeir  R, Schnicke  S, Eikmanns  BJ,     ( 2005 )

The amrG1 gene is involved in the activation of acetate in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Science in China. Series C, Life sciences 48 (2)
PMID : 15986882  :  
Abstract >>
During growth of Corynebacterium glutamicum on acetate as its carbon and energy source, the expression of the pta-ack operon is induced, coding for the acetate-activating enzymes, which are phosphotransacetylase (PTA) and acetate kinase (AK). By transposon rescue, we identified the two genes amrG1 and amrG2 found in the deregulated transposon mutant C. glutamicum G25. The amrG1 gene (NCBI-accession: AF532964) has a size of 732 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 243 amino acids and apparently is partially responsible for the regulation of acetate metabolism in C. glutamicum. We constructed an in-frame deletion mutant and an over-expressing strain of amrG1 in the C. glutamicum ATCC13032 wildtype. The strains were then analyzed with respect to their enzyme activities of PTA and AK during growth on glucose, acetate and glucose or acetate alone as carbon sources. Compared to the parental strain, the amrG1 deletion mutant showed higher specific AK and PTA activities during growth on glucose but showed the same high specific activities of AK and PTA on medium containing acetate plus glucose and on medium containing acetate. In contrast to the gene deletion, overexpression of the amrG1 gene in C. glutamicum 13032 had the adverse regulatory effect. These results indicate that the amrG1 gene encodes a repressor or co-repressor of the pta-ack operon.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
41. Suzuki  N, Okayama  S, Nonaka  H, Tsuge  Y, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2005 )

Large-scale engineering of the Corynebacterium glutamicum genome.

Applied and environmental microbiology 71 (6)
PMID : 15933044  :   DOI  :   10.1128/AEM.71.6.3369-3372.2005     PMC  :   PMC1151864    
Abstract >>
The engineering of Corynebacterium glutamicum is important for enhanced production of biochemicals. To construct an improved C. glutamicum genome, we developed a precise genome excision method based on the Cre/loxP recombination system and successfully deleted 11 distinct genomic regions identified by comparative analysis of C. glutamicum genomes. Despite the loss of several predicted open reading frames, the mutant cells exhibited normal growth under standard laboratory conditions. With a total of 250 kb (7.5% of the genome), the 11 genomic regions were loaded with cryptic prophages, transposons, and genes of unknown function which were dispensable for cell growth, indicating recent horizontal acquisitions to the genome. This provides an interesting background for functional genomic studies and can be used in the improvement of cell traits.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genome, Bacterial
Recombination, Genetic
42. Rossol  I, Pühler  A,     ( 1992 )

The Corynebacterium glutamicum aecD gene encodes a C-S lyase with alpha, beta-elimination activity that degrades aminoethylcysteine.

Journal of bacteriology 174 (9)
PMID : 1569026  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.174.9.2968-2977.1992     PMC  :   PMC205951    
Abstract >>
S-(beta-Aminoethyl)-cysteine (AEC) resistance was achieved in Corynebacterium glutamicum by cloning a chromosomal 1.5-kb EcoRV-BglII DNA fragment on a multicopy plasmid. DNA sequence analysis of the 1.5-kb DNA fragment revealed an open reading frame (ORF326) which represents the AEC resistance gene, designated aecD. The aecD gene directs the synthesis of a 36-kDa protein which was visualized by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The aecD gene is a nonessential gene and mediates AEC resistance only in an amplified state. C. glutamicum strains harboring an amplified aecD gene can utilize AEC as an alternative nitrogen source, indicating that the AEC resistance mechanism is due to AEC degradation. Since the AEC degradation products analyzed by high-pressure liquid chromatography were found to be pyruvate and aminoethanethiol (cysteamine), it was concluded that the aecD gene encodes a C-S lyase with alpha, beta-elimination activity. Besides AEC, the C-S lyase was also able to use cysteine, cystine, and cystathionine as substrates.
KeywordMeSH Terms
43. Inui  M, Murakami  S, Okino  S, Kawaguchi  H, Vertès  AA, Yukawa  H,     ( 2004 )

Metabolic analysis of Corynebacterium glutamicum during lactate and succinate productions under oxygen deprivation conditions.

Journal of molecular microbiology and biotechnology 7 (4)
PMID : 15383716  :   DOI  :   10.1159/000079827    
Abstract >>
Lactate and succinate were produced from glucose by Corynebacterium glutamicum under oxygen deprivation conditions without growth. Addition of bicarbonate to the reaction mixture led not only to a 3.6-fold increase in succinate production rate, but also to a 2.3- and 2.5-fold increase, respectively, of the rates of lactate production and glucose consumption, compared to the control. Furthermore, when small amounts of pyruvate were added to the reaction mixture, acid production rates and the glucose consumption rate were multiplied by a factor ranging from 2 to 3. These phenomena were paralleled by an increase in the NAD(+)/NADH ratio, thus corroborating the view that the efficient regeneration of NAD(+) could be triggered by the addition of either bicarbonate or pyruvate. To investigate the global metabolism of corynebacteria under oxygen deprivation conditions, we engineered several strains where the genes coding for key metabolic enzymes had been inactivated by gene disruption and replacement. A lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)-deficient mutant was not able to produce lactate, suggesting this enzyme has no other isozyme. Although a pyruvate carboxylase (pyc) mutant exhibited similar behavior to that of the wild type, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (ppc) mutants were characterized by a dramatic decrease in succinate production, which was concomitant to decreased lactate production and glucose consumption rates. This set of observations corroborates the view that in coryneform bacteria under oxygen deprivation conditions the major anaplerotic reaction is driven by the ppc gene product rather than by the pyc gene product. Moreover, intracellular NADH concentrations in C. glutamicum were observed to correlate to oxygen-deprived metabolic flows.
KeywordMeSH Terms
44. Hansmeier  N, Bartels  FW, Ros  R, Anselmetti  D, Tauch  A, Pühler  A, Kalinowski  J,     ( 2004 )

Classification of hyper-variable Corynebacterium glutamicum surface-layer proteins by sequence analyses and atomic force microscopy.

Journal of biotechnology 112 (1��2��)
PMID : 15288952  :   DOI  :   10.1016/j.jbiotec.2004.03.020    
Abstract >>
The structural S-layer proteins of 28 different Corynebacterium glutamicum isolates have been analyzed systematically. Treatment of whole C. glutamicum cells with detergents resulted in the isolation of S-layer proteins with different apparent molecular masses, ranging in size from 55 to 66 kDa. The S-layer genes analyzed were characterized by coding regions ranging from 1,473 to 1,533 nucleotides coding for S-layer proteins with a size of 490-510 amino acids. Using PCR techniques, the corresponding S-layer genes of the 28 C. glutamicum isolates were all cloned and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequences of the S-layer proteins showed identities between 69 and 98% and could be grouped into five phylogenetic classes. Furthermore, sequence analyses indicated that the S-layer proteins of the analyzed C. glutamicum isolates exhibit a mosaic structure of highly conserved and highly variable regions. Several conserved regions were assumed to play a key role in the formation of the C. glutamicum S-layers. Especially the N-terminal signal peptides and the C-terminal anchor sequences of the S-layer proteins showed a nearly perfect amino acid sequence conservation. Analyses by atomic force microscopy revealed a committed hexagonal structure. Morphological diversity of the C. glutamicum S-layers was observed in a class-specific unit cell dimension (ranging from 15.2 to 17.4 nm), which correlates with the sequence similarity-based classification. It could be demonstrated that differences in the primary structure of the S-layer proteins were reflected by the S-layer morphology.
KeywordMeSH Terms
45. Kim  HJ, Kim  TH, Kim  Y, Lee  HS,     ( 2004 )

Identification and characterization of glxR, a gene involved in regulation of glyoxylate bypass in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of bacteriology 186 (11)
PMID : 15150232  :   DOI  :   10.1128/JB.186.11.3453-3460.2004     PMC  :   PMC415749    
Abstract >>
A corynebacterial clone, previously isolated by scoring repression of lacZYA fused to the aceB promoter of Corynebacterium glutamicum, was analyzed further. In the clone, an open reading frame designated glxR, consisting of 681 nucleotides and encoding a 24,957-Da protein, was found. The molecular mass of a native GlxR protein was estimated by gel filtration column chromatography to be 44,000 Da, suggesting that the protein formed dimers. The predicted amino acid sequence contained both cyclic AMP (cAMP)- and DNA-binding motifs and was homologous with the cAMP receptor protein family of proteins. The aceB-repressing activity of the glxR clone was markedly relieved in an Escherichia coli cya mutant, but the activity was restored in growth medium containing cAMP. In glucose medium, the intracellular cAMP concentration of C. glutamicum reached 22 nmol/mg of protein in the early exponential phase and then decreased further; but in acetate medium, the intracellular cAMP concentration was only 5 nmol/mg of protein and remained low throughout the growth phase. The expression of glxR was not affected by the carbon source. Binding of purified GlxR to the promoter region of aceB could be demonstrated only in the presence of cAMP. These data suggest that GlxR may form dimers which bind to the aceB promoter region in the presence of cAMP and repress the glyoxylate bypass genes.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
46. Garbe  TR, Suzuki  N, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2004 )

Inhibitor-associated transposition events in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular genetics and genomics : MGG 271 (6)
PMID : 15221457  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s00438-004-1026-4    
Abstract >>
In up to 100% of all bacteria grown in the presence of initially inhibitory concentrations of five diverse inhibitors, an extra copy of the resident insertion element IS 31831 was found in specific chromosomal regions, the sites of which apparently depended on the inhibitor used. Thus, in nine out of nine independently isolated cyanide-associated transpositions, the acquired copy was located within an ORF encoding a protein related to the hypothetical but conserved protein YeiH of Escherichia coli. A putative Sox box upstream of the yeiH gene implicates superoxide as a potential regulator of the gene, a possibility further supported by the finding that superoxide dismutase (SodA) is overexpressed in cells cultured in cyanide-containing medium. Neither the cyanide-associated nor any of the other transposition mutations appeared to confer any discernible phenotypic advantage upon cells grown in the presence or absence of the inhibitors, as revealed most stringently by mixed-cell experiments. An alternative, albeit heterodox, explanation for the emergence of the mutants postulates a very high rate of transpositional activity in the presence of inhibitors. The initial emergence of the mutants was found to depend crucially upon the cell density. Thus, when growth medium was supplemented with 50 mM fluoropyruvate and inoculated to a density of 2 x 10(7) cfu/ml, single colonies with heterogeneous restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) were routinely isolated at a frequency of 6 to 16% after 1-2 days of incubation. After 3 days, 10-36% of the colonies showed RFLPs, but the type was now dominated by the fluoropyruvate-specific RFLP, which, at higher resolution, invariably proved to be heterogeneous. This heterogeneity proved that these specific mutants were of multiple origin, indicating that clonal enrichment was irrelevant to their emergence. It is suggested that the presence of the inhibitor induces the development of hyper-transpositional activity, which is regulated by a soluble bacterial product.
KeywordMeSH Terms
DNA Transposable Elements
47. Ramos  A, Honrubia  MP, Valbuena  N, Vaquera  J, Mateos  LM, Gil  JA,     ( 2003 )

Involvement of DivIVA in the morphology of the rod-shaped actinomycete Brevibacterium lactofermentum.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 149 (Pt 12)
PMID : 14663085  :   DOI  :   10.1099/mic.0.26653-0    
Abstract >>
In Brevibacterium lactofermentum, as in many Gram-positive bacteria, a divIVA gene is located downstream from the dcw cluster of cell-division- and cell-wall-related genes. This gene (divIVA(BL)) is mostly expressed during exponential growth, and the protein encoded, DivIVA(BL,) bears some sequence similarity to antigen 84 (Ag84) from mycobacteria and was detected with monoclonal antibodies against Ag84. Disruption experiments using an internal fragment of the divIVA(BL) gene or a disrupted divIVA(BL) cloned in a suicide conjugative plasmid were unsuccessful, suggesting that the divIVA(BL) gene is needed for cell viability in BREV: lactofermentum. Transformation of BREV: lactofermentum with a multicopy plasmid containing divIVA(BL) drastically altered the morphology of the corynebacterial cells, which became larger and bulkier, and a GFP fusion to DivIVA(BL) mainly localized to the ends of corynebacterial cells. This localization pattern, together with the overproduction phenotype, suggests that DivIVA may be important in regulating the apical growth of daughter cells.
KeywordMeSH Terms
48. Gueneau de Novoa  P, Williams  KP,     ( 2004 )

The tmRNA website: reductive evolution of tmRNA in plastids and other endosymbionts.

Nucleic acids research 32 (Database issue)
PMID : 14681369  :   DOI  :   10.1093/nar/gkh102     PMC  :   PMC308836    
Abstract >>
tmRNA combines tRNA- and mRNA-like properties and ameliorates problems arising from stalled ribosomes. Research on the mechanism, structure and biology of tmRNA is served by the tmRNA website (http://www.indiana.edu/~ tmrna), a collection of sequences, alignments, secondary structures and other information. Because many of these sequences are not in GenBank, a BLAST server has been added; another new feature is an abbreviated alignment for the tRNA-like domain only. Many tmRNA sequences from plastids have been added, five found in public sequence data and another 10 generated by direct sequencing; detection in early-branching members of the green plastid lineage brings coverage to all three primary plastid lineages. The new sequences include the shortest known tmRNA sequence. While bacterial tmRNAs usually have a lone pseudoknot upstream of the mRNA segment and a string of three or four pseudoknots downstream, plastid tmRNAs collectively show loss of pseudoknots at both postions. The pseudoknot-string region is also too short to contain the usual pseudoknot number in another new entry, the tmRNA sequence from a bacterial endosymbiont of insect cells, Tremblaya princeps. Pseudoknots may optimize tmRNA function in free-living bacteria, yet become dispensible when the endosymbiotic lifestyle relaxes selective pressure for fast growth.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Databases, Nucleic Acid
Evolution, Molecular
Internet
49. Costa-Riu  N, Maier  E, Burkovski  A, Krämer  R, Lottspeich  F, Benz  R,     ( 2003 )

Identification of an anion-specific channel in the cell wall of the Gram-positive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular microbiology 50 (4)
PMID : 14622416  :   DOI  :   10.1046/j.1365-2958.2003.03754.x    
Abstract >>
A cation-selective channel (porin), designated PorA, facilitates the passage of hydrophilic solutes across the cell wall of the mycolic acid-containing actinomycete Corynebacterium glutamicum. Biochemical and electrophysiological investigations of the cell wall of the mutant strain revealed the presence of an alternative channel-forming protein. This porin was purified to homogeneity and studied in lipid bilayer membranes. It forms small anion-selective channels with a diameter of about 1.4 nm and an average single-channel conductance of about 700 pS in 1 M KCl. The PorBCglut channel could be blocked by citrate in a dose-dependent manner. This result was in agreement with growth experiments in citrate as sole carbon source where growth in citrate was impaired as compared with growth in other carbon sources. The PorBCglut protein was partially sequenced and based on the resulting amino acid sequence of the corresponding gene, which was designated as porB, was identified as an unannotated 381 bp long open reading frame (ORF) in the published genome sequence of C. glutamicum ATCC13032. PorBCglut contains 126 amino acids with an N-terminal extension of 27 amino acids. One hundred and thirty-eight base pairs downstream of porB, we found an ORF that codes for a protein with about 30% identity to PorBCglut, which was named PorCCglut. The arrangement of porB and porC on the chromosome suggested that both genes belong to the same cluster. RT-PCR from overlapping regions between genes from wild-type C. glutamicum ATCC 13032 and its ATCC 13032DeltaporA mutant demonstrated that this is the case and that porB and porC are cotranscribed. The gene products PorBCglut and PorCCglut represent obviously other permeability pathways for the transport of hydrophilic compounds through the cell wall of C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
50. Hirasawa  T, Kumagai  Y, Nagai  K, Wachi  M,     ( 2003 )

A Corynebacterium glutamicum rnhA recG double mutant showing lysozyme-sensitivity, temperature-sensitive growth, and UV-sensitivity.

Bioscience, biotechnology, and biochemistry 67 (11)
PMID : 14646202  :  
Abstract >>
Corynebacterium glutamicum mutant KY9707 was originally isolated for lysozyme-sensitivity, and showed temperature-sensitive growth. Two DNA fragments from a wild-type C. glutamicum chromosomal library suppressed the temperature-sensitivity of KY9707. These clones also rescued the lysozyme-sensitivity of KY9707, although partially. One of them encodes a protein of 382 amino acid residues, the N-terminal domain of which was homologous to RNase HI. This gene suppressed the temperature-sensitive growth of an Escherichia coli rnhA rnhB double mutant. We concluded that this gene encodes a functional RNase HI of C. glutamicum and designated it as rnhA. The other gene encodes a protein of 707 amino acid residues highly homologous to RecG protein. The C. glutamicum recG gene complemented the UV-sensitivity of E. coli recG258::kan mutant. KY9707 showed increased UV-sensitivity, which was partially rescued by either the recG or rnhA gene of C. gluamicum. Point mutations were found in both recG and rnhA genes in KY9707. These suggest that temperature-sensitive growth, UV-sensitivity, and probably lysozyme-sensitivity also, of KY9707 were caused by mutations in the genes encoding RNase HI and RecG.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Ultraviolet Rays
51. Tsuchida  Y, Kimura  S, Suzuki  N, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2010 )

Characterization of a 24-kb plasmid pCGR2 newly isolated from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 87 (5)
PMID : 20552356  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s00253-010-2701-5    
Abstract >>
A 24-kb plasmid with 21 open reading frames (ORFs) was newly isolated from Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 14997 and named pCGR2. Three of its ORFs were indispensable for stable autonomous replication of pCGR2 in C. glutamicum: in the absence of selective pressure, deletion derivatives of pCGR2 containing the three ORFs showed stability in C. glutamicum for over 50 generations. The first of these ORFs encoded replicase repA whose gene product revealed high amino acid sequence similarity to corresponding gene products of C. glutamicum pCG1-family plasmids in general, and to that of pTET3 plasmid repA in particular. The other two ORFs were located upstream of repA and exhibited high sequence similarity to pTET3 parA and parB, respectively. Interestingly, plasmids based on the pCGR2 were compatible not only with those based on different family plasmids (pBL1, pCASE1) but also with those based on pCG1-family plasmid. Plasmids comprising pCGR2 repA showed a copy number of four in C. glutamicum. The number increased to 240 upon introduction of a mutation within the repA origin of the putative promoter for counter-transcribed RNA. This 60-fold increase in copy number should immensely contribute towards enhanced expression of desired genes in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
52. Otagiri  M, Ui  S, Takusagawa  Y, Ohtsuki  T, Kurisu  G, Kusunoki  M,     ( 2010 )

Structural basis for chiral substrate recognition by two 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenases.

FEBS letters 584 (1)
PMID : 19941855  :   DOI  :   10.1016/j.febslet.2009.11.068    
Abstract >>
2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase (BDH) catalyzes the NAD-dependent redox reaction between acetoin and 2,3-butanediol. There are three types of homologous BDH, each stereospecific for both substrate and product. To establish how these homologous enzymes possess differential stereospecificities, we determined the crystal structure of l-BDH with a bound inhibitor at 2.0 A. Comparison with the inhibitor binding mode of meso-BDH highlights the role of a hydrogen-bond from a conserved Trp residue(192). Site-directed mutagenesis of three active site residues of meso-BDH, including Trp(190), which corresponds to Trp(192) of L-BDH, converted its stereospecificity to that of L-BDH. This result confirms the importance of conserved residues in modifying the stereospecificity of homologous enzymes.
KeywordMeSH Terms
53. Bokas  D, Uy  D, Grattepanche  F, Duportail  G, Guedon  E, Delaunay  S, Goergen  JL,     ( 2007 )

Cell envelope fluidity modification for an effective glutamate excretion in Corynebacterium glutamicum 2262.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 76 (4)
PMID : 17619186  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s00253-007-1046-1    
Abstract >>
1-(4-trimethylammoniumphenyl)-6-phenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (TMA-DPH) was used to assess the cell envelope fluidity of Corynebacterium glutamicum 2262 during a temperature-triggered glutamate producing process. Because the fluorescence lifetime of TMA-DPH was shown to be constant all over the process, fluorescence anisotropy can be considered as a good index of cell envelope fluidity. When the temperature of the fed-batch culture was increased from 33 to 39 degrees C to induce glutamate excretion, the fluorescence anisotropy values decreased from 0.212 +/- 0.002 to 0.186 +/- 0.002 (corresponding to an increase in the cell fluidity), while the specific glutamate production rate reached its maximal value. The increase in fluidity of the C. glutamicum cell envelope was not due to a physical effect related to the temperature elevation, but rather to an alteration of the composition of the cell envelope. Using a mutant devoid of corynomycolates, significant differences in fluorescence anisotropy values were obtained compared to the wild-type strain, suggesting that TMA-DPH is mainly anchored into the corynomycomembrane. Differences in fluorescence anisotropy were also observed when the bacteria were cultivated at 33, 36, 38, and 39 degrees C in batch cultures, and a linear relationship was obtained between the maximum specific glutamate production rate and the measured fluidity. When using the glutamate non-producing variant of C. glutamicum 2262, the fluorescence anisotropy remained constant at 0.207 +/- 0.003 whatever the applied temperature shift. This suggests that the fluidity of the Corynebacteria mycomembrane plays an important role in glutamate excretion during the temperature-triggered process.
KeywordMeSH Terms
54. Tsuge  Y, Suzuki  N, Ninomiya  K, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2007 )

Isolation of a new insertion sequence, IS13655, and its application to Corynebacterium glutamicum genome mutagenesis.

Bioscience, biotechnology, and biochemistry 71 (7)
PMID : 17617717  :   DOI  :   10.1271/bbb.70091    
Abstract >>
A new functional Corynebacterium glutamicum insertion sequence (IS) element, IS13655, was isolated using a suicide vector. The IS element was 1,293 bp in size and contained 26-bp imperfect inverted repeats (IRs) and 3-bp target site duplication as direct repeats (DRs). IS13655 harbored two ORFs with high similarity to the transposase of IS1206, an IS3 family element. IS13655 revealed relatively high transposition efficiency, with low target site selectivity along the Corynebacterium glutamicum R genome, making it a potentially useful genetic engineering tool.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genome, Bacterial
Mutagenesis, Insertional
55. Han  SO, Inui  M, Yukawa  H,     ( 2007 )

Expression of Corynebacterium glutamicum glycolytic genes varies with carbon source and growth phase.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 153 (Pt 7)
PMID : 17600063  :   DOI  :   10.1099/mic.0.2006/004366-0    
Abstract >>
A basic pattern of gene expression and of relative expression levels during different growth phases was obtained for Corynebacterium glutamicum R grown on different carbon sources. The gapA-pgk-tpi-ppc gene cluster was transcribed as a mono- or polycistronic mRNA, depending on the growth phase. The 1.4 kb (gapA) and 2.3 kb (pgk-tip) mRNAs were expressed in the early through late exponential phases, whereas the 3.7 kb (gapA-pgk-tpi) and 5.4 kb (pgk-tpi-ppc) mRNAs were only detected in the mid-exponential phase. All other glycolytic genes except pps, glk and pgi were transcribed as monocistronic mRNAs under all tested conditions. Identification and alignment of the promoter regions of the transcriptional start sites of glycolytic genes revealed strong similarities to the sigma(A) consensus promoter sequences of Gram-positive bacteria. All genes involved in glycolysis were coordinately expressed in medium containing glucose. Growth in the presence of glucose gave rise to abundant expression of most glycolytic genes, with the level of gapA transcript being the highest. Glucose depletion led to a rapid repression of most glycolytic genes and a corresponding two- to fivefold increased expression of the gluconeogenic genes pps, pck and malE, which are induced by pyruvate, lactate, acetate and/or other organic acids.
KeywordMeSH Terms
56. Zhao  J, Hu  X, Li  Y, Wang  X,     ( 2015 )

Overexpression of ribosome elongation factor G and recycling factor increases L-isoleucine production in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 99 (11)
PMID : 25707863  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s00253-015-6458-8    
Abstract >>
Ribosome elongation factor G encoded by fusA promotes the translocation step of protein synthesis in bacteria; ribosome recycling factor encoded by frr, together with the elongation factor G, dissociates ribosomes from messenger RNA after the termination of translation. Both factors play important roles during protein synthesis in bacteria. In this study, we found that overexpression of fusA and/or frr led to the increase of L-isoleucine production in Corynebacterium glutamicum IWJ001, an L-isoleucine production strain generated by random mutagenesis. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that transcriptional levels of genes lysC, hom, thrB, ilvA, ilvBN, and ilvE encoding the key enzymes in the biosynthetic pathway of L-isoleucine increased in C. glutamicum IWJ001 when fusA and/or frr were overexpressed. Co-overexpression of fusA and frr, together with genes ilvA, ilvB, ilvN, and ppnk in C. glutamicum IWJ001, led to 76.5 % increase of L-isoleucine production in flask cultivation and produced 28.5 g/L L-isoleucine in 72-h fed-batch fermentation. The results demonstrate that overexpressing ribosome elongation factor G and ribosome recycling factor is an efficient approach to enhance L-isoleucine production in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Gene Expression
57. Townsend  PD, Jungwirth  B, Pojer  F, Bu?mann  M, Money  VA, Cole  ST, Pühler  A, Tauch  A, Bott  M, Cann  MJ, Pohl  E,     ( 2014 )

The crystal structures of apo and cAMP-bound GlxR from Corynebacterium glutamicum reveal structural and dynamic changes upon cAMP binding in CRP/FNR family transcription factors.

PloS one 9 (12)
PMID : 25469635  :   DOI  :   10.1371/journal.pone.0113265     PMC  :   PMC4254451    
Abstract >>
The cyclic AMP-dependent transcriptional regulator GlxR from Corynebacterium glutamicum is a member of the super-family of CRP/FNR (cyclic AMP receptor protein/fumarate and nitrate reduction regulator) transcriptional regulators that play central roles in bacterial metabolic regulatory networks. In C. glutamicum, which is widely used for the industrial production of amino acids and serves as a non-pathogenic model organism for members of the Corynebacteriales including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the GlxR homodimer controls the transcription of a large number of genes involved in carbon metabolism. GlxR therefore represents a key target for understanding the regulation and coordination of C. glutamicum metabolism. Here we investigate cylic AMP and DNA binding of GlxR from C. glutamicum and describe the crystal structures of apo GlxR determined at a resolution of 2.5 ?, and two crystal forms of holo GlxR at resolutions of 2.38 and 1.82 ?, respectively. The detailed structural analysis and comparison of GlxR with CRP reveals that the protein undergoes a distinctive conformational change upon cyclic AMP binding leading to a dimer structure more compatible to DNA-binding. As the two binding sites in the GlxR homodimer are structurally identical dynamic changes upon binding of the first ligand are responsible for the allosteric behavior. The results presented here show how dynamic and structural changes in GlxR lead to optimization of orientation and distance of its two DNA-binding helices for optimal DNA recognition.
KeywordMeSH Terms
58. von der Osten  CH, Barbas  CF, Wong  CH, Sinskey  AJ,     ( 1989 )

Molecular cloning, nucleotide sequence and fine-structural analysis of the Corynebacterium glutamicum fda gene: structural comparison of C. glutamicum fructose-1,6-biphosphate aldolase to class I and class II aldolases.

Molecular microbiology 3 (11)
PMID : 2615658  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1365-2958.1989.tb00148.x    
Abstract >>
The Corynebacterium glutamicum fda gene encoding fructose-1,6-biphosphate (FBP) aldolase has been isolated by complementation of an Escherichia coli mutant. The nucleotide sequence of a 3371 bp chromosomal fragment containing the C. glutamicum fda gene was determined. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of C. glutamicum FBP aldolase identified the correct initiation site for the fda gene, and a molecular weight of 37,092 was predicted for the fda polypeptide. S1 nuclease mapping identified the transcriptional start site, and Northern hybridization analysis indicated that the fda gene encodes a single 1.3 kb transcript. The primary structure of C. glutamicum FBP aldolase shows strong homology to class II FBP aldolases. Conservation of primary structure was observed between class I and class II aldolases, but several residues essential for catalytic activity in class I aldolases were absent from class II aldolases.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
59. Park  SH, Kim  HU, Kim  TY, Park  JS, Kim  SS, Lee  SY,     ( 2014 )

Metabolic engineering of Corynebacterium glutamicum for L-arginine production.

Nature communications 5 (N/A)
PMID : 25091334  :   DOI  :   10.1038/ncomms5618    
Abstract >>
L-arginine is an important amino acid for diverse industrial and health product applications. Here we report the development of metabolically engineered Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 21831 for the production of L-arginine. Random mutagenesis is first performed to increase the tolerance of C. glutamicum to L-arginine analogues, followed by systems metabolic engineering for further strain improvement, involving removal of regulatory repressors of arginine operon, optimization of NADPH level, disruption of L-glutamate exporter to increase L-arginine precursor and flux optimization of rate-limiting L-arginine biosynthetic reactions. Fed-batch fermentation of the final strain in 5 l and large-scale 1,500 l bioreactors allows production of 92.5 and 81.2 g l(-1) of L-arginine with the yields of 0.40 and 0.35 g L-arginine per gram carbon source (glucose plus sucrose), respectively. The systems metabolic engineering strategy described here will be useful for engineering Corynebacteria strains for the industrial production of L-arginine and related products.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Industrial Microbiology
60. Zhang  H, You  C, Ren  J, Xu  D, Han  M, Liao  W,     ( 2014 )

A simple one-step PCR walking method and its application of bacterial rRNA for sequencing identification.

Current microbiology 68 (2)
PMID : 24126601  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s00284-013-0462-y    
Abstract >>
There are many PCR walking methods applied currently, and they all have examples of successful application in organisms which are more complex than bacteria. However, to a certain extent, it will be more convenient for researchers if the complicated operation and poor specificity for bacteria can be improved. Here, we introduced an improved one-step PCR walking method of bacteria. Using a specific primer of the known sequence together with a universal semi-random primer, the unknown sequence adjacent to a known sequence can be obtained easily by just one ordinary round PCR. The products can be gel-purified and directly sequenced. Specific primers were designed according to the gene sequence of bacterial rRNA, and the variable and adjacent gene sequences were obtained by this method. The sequence analysis of the product showed that it can improve the resolution of bacterial identification to the species level.
KeywordMeSH Terms
RNA, Bacterial
RNA, Ribosomal
61. Candelaresi  M, Gumiero  A, Adamczyk  K, Robb  K, Bellota-Antón  C, Sangal  V, Munnoch  J, Greetham  GM, Towrie  M, Hoskisson  PA, Parker  AW, Tucker  NP, Walsh  MA, Hunt  NT,     ( 2013 )

A structural and dynamic investigation of the inhibition of catalase by nitric oxide.

Organic & biomolecular chemistry 11 (44)
PMID : 24121528  :   DOI  :   10.1039/c3ob41977k    
Abstract >>
Determining the chemical and structural modifications occurring within a protein during fundamental processes such as ligand or substrate binding is essential to building up a complete picture of biological function. Currently, significant unanswered questions relate to the way in which protein structural dynamics fit within the structure-function relationship and to the functional role, if any, of bound water molecules in the active site. Addressing these questions requires a multidisciplinary approach and complementary experimental techniques that, in combination, enhance our understanding of the complexities of protein chemistry. We exemplify this philosophy by applying both physical and biological approaches to investigate the active site chemistry that contributes to the inhibition of the Corynebacterium glutamicum catalase enzyme by nitric oxide. Ultrafast two-dimensional infrared spectroscopy (2D-IR) experiments exploit the NO ligand as a local probe of the active site molecular environment and shows that catalase displays a dynamically-restricted, 'tight,' structure. X-ray crystallography studies of C. glutamicum catalase confirm the presence of a conserved chain of hydrogen-bonded bound water molecules that link the NO ligand and the protein scaffold. This combination of bound water and restricted dynamics stands in stark contrast to other haem proteins, such as myoglobin, that exhibit ligand transport functionality despite the presence of a similar distal architecture in close proximity to the ligand. We conclude not only that the bound water molecules in the catalase active site play an important role in molecular recognition of NO but also may be part of the mechanistic operation of this important enzyme.
KeywordMeSH Terms
62.     ( 1997 )

A Corynebacterium glutamicum gene conferring multidrug resistance in the heterologous host Escherichia coli.

Journal of bacteriology 179 (7)
PMID : 9079937  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.179.7.2449-2451.1997     PMC  :   PMC178988    
Abstract >>
A chromosomal DNA fragment from the erythromycin-sensitive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 was shown to mediate resistance against erythromycin, tetracycline, puromycin, and bleomycin in Escherichia coli. Multicopy cloning of the fragment did not cause a resistance phenotype in C. glutamicum. The corresponding gene encodes a hydrophobic protein with 12 potential transmembrane-spanning ex-helical segments showing similarity to drug-H+ antiporters.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Bacterial Proteins
Drug Resistance, Microbial
Drug Resistance, Multiple
Escherichia coli Proteins
Genes, Bacterial
Membrane Transport Proteins
63.     ( 1997 )

Isolation of the putP gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum and characterization of a low-affinity uptake system for compatible solutes.

Archives of microbiology 168 (2)
PMID : 9238106  :  
Abstract >>
Corynebacterium glutamicum accumulates the compatible solutes proline, glycine betaine, and ectoine under conditions of high osmolality. Uptake of proline is mediated by both a high-affinity and a low-affinity secondary transport system. The low-affinity uptake system also accepts glycine betaine and ectoine as substrates. In the present study, the gene encoding the high-affinity proline uptake system PutP was isolated by heterologous complementation of Escherichia coli mutant strain WG389, which lacks the transport systems BetT, PutP, ProP, and ProU and is unable to synthesize proline and glycine betaine. This gene (putP) encodes a protein of 524 amino acids that shares identity with the proline transport systems PutP of E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhimurium, Haemophilus influenzae, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Functional studies of PutP synthesized in E. coli mutant strain MKH13, which also lacks the transport systems for compatible solutes and is unable to synthesize glycine betaine, revealed that this carrier system is not regulated by the external osmolality on the level of activity. Km values of 7.6 mM for proline and 1.3 mM for sodium as cotransported ion were determined. Deletion of the putP gene allowed the functional characterization of another proline uptake system with low affinity.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Amino Acid Transport Systems, Neutral
Bacterial Proteins
Genes, Bacterial
64.     ( 1997 )

Isolation of the Corynebacterium glutamicum glnA gene encoding glutamine synthetase I.

FEMS microbiology letters 154 (1)
PMID : 9297824  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.1997.tb12627.x    
Abstract >>
The Corynebacterium glutamicum glutamine synthetase I (GSI) structural gene glnA was cloned by a PCR approach using oligonucleotide primers derived from conserved amino acid sequences of the GSI proteins from various bacteria. Disruption or deletion of this gene in C. glutamicum led to a glutamine auxotrophic phenotype and complete loss of glutamine synthetase activity, indicating the key role of this enzyme in nitrogen metabolism. Additionally, indications for a second glutamine synthetase, GSII, were found.
KeywordMeSH Terms
65.     ( 1996 )

A new type of transporter with a new type of cellular function: L-lysine export from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular microbiology 22 (5)
PMID : 8971704  :   DOI  :   10.1046/j.1365-2958.1996.01527.x    
Abstract >>
We discovered that after deregulation of the L-lysine biosynthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum, L-lysine accumulated in the cytosol and the efflux properties of this amino acid in mutants used for L-lysine production were altered. In this study we describe the cloning and molecular identification of lysE, which encodes the translocator specifically exporting L-lysine from the cell. The lysE gene product does not display homology to any known transporter. It is only 236 amino acids in size, with the potential to span the membrane six times. The LysE protein was oversynthesized to confirm its deduced M(r) of 25425 Da. A probable regulatory gene, lysG, is localized immediately adjacent to lysE and displays all the typical structural features of an autoregulatory transcriptional regulator of the LysR-type family. L-Lysine export is correlated with lysE expression. A null mutant is unable to excrete L-lysine, whereas with overexpressed lysE, L-lysine is exported at a rate of 3.76 nmol min-1 mg-1 dry weight, which is five times the rate that was obtained with the wild type. A deletion mutant was constructed to search for a natural function of this unique carrier. Surprisingly, growth of this mutant is abolished on a salt medium in the presence of the dipeptide Lys-Ala. The quantification of the intracellular L-lysine concentrations revealed that, in response to peptide addition, there was an accumulation of the exceptionally high concentration of more than 1100 mM L-lysine. These results distinguish LysE as an exporter, which: (i) structurally represents a new type of translocator; (ii) demonstrates that exporters are also present for primary metabolites such as amino acids; and (iii) serves in one physiological function to link import with export activity.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Amino Acid Transport Systems, Basic
66.     ( 1996 )

Molecular cloning of a novel gene, dtsR, which rescues the detergent sensitivity of a mutant derived from Brevibacterium lactofermentum.

Bioscience, biotechnology, and biochemistry 60 (10)
PMID : 8987652  :  
Abstract >>
Several strains of Corynebacterium and Brevibacterium are known for their ability to secrete large amounts of amino acids, especially L-glutamate. We focused on the mechanism of L-glutamate secretion triggered by a detergent, namely polyoxyethylenesorbitan monopalmitate (PESP). A mutant strain, AJ11060, derived from Brevibacterium lactofermentum ATCC 13869 indicates the sensitivity to PESP. A multicopy suppresser gene that compliments the sensitivity of AJ11060 to the detergent was derived from a gene library of B. lactofermentum AJ12036. A 2855-bp DNA fragment was cloned and sequenced. An open reading frame was found that coded for the rescuer gene of the sensitivity to PESP of AJ11060 and was designated dtsR. The expression of the dtsR gene in B. lactofermentum was confirmed by using anti-DtsR antibody. The deduced DtsR protein indicated significant homology with some biotin enzymes such as the beta chain of propionyl-CoA carboxylase from rat (48.3%) and human (48.7%), or a 12S chain of methylmalonyl-CoA carboxyltransferase from Propionibacterium freudenreichii (43.1%).
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
67.     ( 1996 )

The galE gene encoding the UDP-galactose 4-epimerase of Brevibacterium lactofermentum is coupled transcriptionally to the dmdR gene.

Gene 177 (1��2��)
PMID : 8921853  :   DOI  :   10.1016/0378-1119(96)00283-1    
Abstract >>
The galE gene of Brevibacterium lactofermentum, encoding UDP-galactose 4-epimerase (EC 5.1.3.2), has been identified by DNA sequencing downstream from the orf1-sigB-dmdR region. The arrangement of the sigB-dtxR-galE cluster is also conserved in Corynebacterium diphtheriae. The deduced galE product was a protein of 329 aa residues (35.4 kDa) that shared a high degree of identity to known UDP-galactose 4-epimerase proteins from Gram-positive microorganisms (Streptomyces lividans and Streptococcus thermophilus). Transcriptional analysis of the dmdR and galE genes in nutrient-rich medium showed that these genes are part of an operon, that is actively transcribed as a bicistronic mRNA during the exponential growth phase, but transcription of the operon is decreased during the stationary growth phase. In addition, the dmdR gene was also expressed as a monocistronic 0.7-kb transcript during the active growth phase.
KeywordMeSH Terms
68.     ( 1997 )

Plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum codes for a gene product that positively influences plasmid copy number.

Journal of bacteriology 179 (5)
PMID : 9045809  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.179.5.1525-1532.1997     PMC  :   PMC178862    
Abstract >>
The complete nucleotide sequence (4,826 bp) of the cryptic plasmid pGA1 from Corynebacterium glutamicum was determined. DNA sequence analysis revealed four putative coding regions (open reading frame A [ORFA], ORFA2, ORFB, and ORFC). ORFC was identified as a rep gene coding for an initiator of plasmid replication (Rep) according to the high level of homology of its deduced amino acid sequence with the Rep proteins of plasmids pSR1 (from C. glutamicum) and pNG2 (from Corynebacterium diphtheriae). This function was confirmed by deletion mapping of the minimal replicon of pGA1 (1.7 kb) which contains only ORFC. Deletion derivatives of pGA1 devoid of ORFA exhibited significant decreases in the copy number in C. glutamicum cells and displayed segregational instability. Introduction of ORFA in trans into the cells harboring these deletion plasmids dramatically increased their copy number and segregational stability. The ORFA gene product thus positively influences plasmid copy number. This is the first report on such activity associated with a nonintegrating bacterial plasmid. The related plasmids pGA1, pSR1, and pNG2 lacking significant homology with any other plasmid seem to be representatives of a new group of plasmids replicating in the rolling-circle mode.
KeywordMeSH Terms
DNA-Binding Proteins
69.     ( 1996 )

A Corynebacterium glutamicum gene encoding a two-domain protein similar to biotin carboxylases and biotin-carboxyl-carrier proteins.

Archives of microbiology 166 (2)
PMID : 8772169  :  
Abstract >>
Following the analysis of transposon Tn5432-induced mutants of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032, a gene encoding a protein with a biotin-binding motif was cloned. The DNA sequence of this gene revealed an open reading frame encoding 591 amino acids with a calculated mol. mass of 63.4 kDa. The protein is composed of two domains, an N-terminal biotin carboxylase and a C-terminal biotin-carboxyl-carrier protein, that are highly similar to corresponding subunits from prokaryotic and eukaryotic biotin enzymes. Over 70% identity was found to a protein from Mycobacterium leprae proposed to be part of an acyl-CoA carboxylase. Since it was not possible to inactivate the C. glutamicum gene, the gene most likely encodes a subunit of the essential acetyl-CoA carboxylase, which catalyzes the committed step in fatty acid synthesis.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Carbon-Nitrogen Ligases
70.     ( 1993 )

Characterization of the cspB gene encoding PS2, an ordered surface-layer protein in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular microbiology 9 (1)
PMID : 8412676  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1365-2958.1993.tb01672.x    
Abstract >>
PS2 is one of two major proteins detected in the culture media of various Corynebacterium glutamicum strains. The coding and promoter regions of the cspB gene encoding PS2 were cloned in lambda gt11 using polyclonal antibodies raised against PS2 for screening. Expression of the cspB gene in Escherichia coli led to the production of a major anti-PS2 labelled peptide of 63,000 Da, corresponding presumably to the mature form of PS2. It was detected in the cytoplasm, periplasm and surrounding medium of E. coli. Three other slower migrating bands of 65,000 68,000 and 72,000 Da were detected. The largest one probably corresponds to the precursor form of PS2 in E. coli. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence revealed an open reading frame (ORF) of 1533 nucleotides. The deduced 510-amino-acid polypeptide had a calculated molecular mass of 55,426 Da. According to the predicted amino acid sequence, PS2 is synthesized with a N-terminal segment of 30-amino-acid residues reminiscent of eukaryotic and prokaryotic signal peptides, and a hydrophobic domain of 21 residues near the C-terminus. Although no significant homologies were found with other proteins, it appears that some characteristics and the amino acid composition of PS2 share several common features with surface-layer proteins. The cspB gene was then disrupted in C. glutamicum by gene replacement. Freeze-etching electron microscopy performed on the wild-type strain indicated that the cell wall of C. glutamicum is covered with an ordered surface of proteins (surface layer, S-layer) which is in very close contact with other cell-wall components. These structures are absent from the cspB-disrupted strain but are present after reintroduction of the cspB gene on a plasmid into this mutant. Thus we demonstrate that the S-layer protein is the product of the cspB gene.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
Membrane Glycoproteins
71.     ( 1993 )

The DNA sequence and minimal replicon of the Corynebacterium glutamicum plasmid pSR1: evidence of a common ancestry with plasmids from C. diphtheriae.

Journal of general microbiology 139 (8)
PMID : 8409918  :   DOI  :   10.1099/00221287-139-8-1753    
Abstract >>
The complete nucleotide sequence of pSR1, a 3 kb multicopy cryptic plasmid from Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 19223 has been determined. pSR1 is unrelated to the 4.4 kb Brevibacterium lactofermentum plasmid pBL1 and shows no DNA sequence conservation with plasmids from Staphylococcus. Transposon insertion and deletion mutants located the minimal replicon to within a 2.1 kb NcoI-BclI restriction fragment. This region contains a single large open reading frame, ORF2, flanked at the 5' end by a series of inverted repeat sequences which may modulate its expression, and at the 3' end by a region which may contain a replication origin. ORF2 (position 1633-2636) with a maximum coding potential of 36 kDa is essential for pSR1 replication and was designated the rep gene. The predicted ORF2 protein product exhibits 47% identity over a length of 343 amino acids with a replication-associated ORF in the C. diphtheriae plasmid pNG2, many of the changes being in the third base position. This observation suggests that pSR1 and pNG2, which are two plasmids from environmentally separated Corynebacterium species, may share a common ancestral rep gene.
KeywordMeSH Terms
72.     ( 1996 )

Mutations in the Corynebacterium glutamicum proline biosynthetic pathway: a natural bypass of th proA step.

Journal of bacteriology 178 (15)
PMID : 8755867  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.178.15.4412-4419.1996     PMC  :   PMC178206    
Abstract >>
Two chromosomal loci containing the Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 17965 proB and proC genes were isolated by complementation of Escherichia coli proB and proC auxotrophic mutants. Together with a proA gene described earlier, these new genes describe the major C. glutamicum proline biosynthetic pathway. The proB and proA genes, closely linked in most bacteria, are in C. glutamicum separated by a 304-amino-acid open reading frame (unk) whose predicted sequence resembles that of the 2-hydroxy acid dehydrogenases. C. glutamicum mutants that carry null alleles of proB, proA, and proC were constructed or isolated from mutagenized cultures. Single proC mutants are auxotrophic for proline and secrete delta1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate, which are the expected phenotypes of bacterial proC mutants. However, the phenotypes or proB and proA mutants are unexpected. A proB mutant has a pleiotropic phenotype, being both proline auxotrophic and affected in cell morphology. Null proA alleles still grow slowly under proline starvation, which suggests that a proA-independent bypass of this metabolic step exists in C. glutamicum. Since proA mutants are complemented by a plasmid that contains the wild-type asd gene of C. glutamicum, the asd gene may play a role in this bypass.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
Mutation
73.     ( 1996 )

Electrotransformation of highly DNA-restrictive corynebacteria with synthetic DNA.

Plasmid 35 (1)
PMID : 8693028  :   DOI  :   10.1006/plas.1996.0007    
Abstract >>
Highly DNA-restrictive Corynebacteria can be transformed with DNA made in vitro by PCR amplification of a sequence that contains the replication origin of pBL1, a plasmid common to many Corynebacteria. In all strains examined, the transformation efficiencies of PCR-synthetized DNA equal or improve the performances of heterologous DNA extracted from wild-type and dam(-)-dcm-strains of Escherichia coli. The transformation efficiencies obtained with PCR-made DNA may be high enough to permit its general application to experiments of gene integration.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Transformation, Bacterial
74.     ( 1995 )

Multicopy suppression by asd gene and osmotic stress-dependent complementation by heterologous proA in proA mutants.

Journal of bacteriology 177 (24)
PMID : 8522535  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.177.24.7255-7260.1995     PMC  :   PMC177607    
Abstract >>
Auxotrophic proA mutants of Escherichia coli were complemented by two different classes of Corynebacterium glutamicum genes. One of these was the asd gene. The E. coli asd gene also complements the same proA alleles. Complementation of proA by the asd+ gene requires a high asd dosage and the proB and the proC gene products. The reciprocal complementation pattern (asd by the proA+ gene) was not observed. This complementation appears to be due to multicopy suppression by a proline biosynthetic gene whose product was expected to play a negligible role in this pathway. The other class of complementing clones carries the C. glutamicum proA gene. Complementation of E. coli proA mutants by the C. glutamicum proA+ gene was optimal at high osmolarity.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Genes, Bacterial
Genes, Suppressor
75.     ( 1996 )

Multiple sigma factor genes in Brevibacterium lactofermentum: characterization of sigA and sigB.

Journal of bacteriology 178 (2)
PMID : 8550480  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.178.2.550-553.1996     PMC  :   PMC177692    
Abstract >>
Four rpoD hybridizing signals have been identified in the chromosome of Brevibacterium lactofermentum. Two rpoD-like genes, sigA and sigB, have been cloned and sequenced, and they encode principal sigma factors of the RNA polymerase. The deduced amino acid sequences of SigA and SigB showed very high similarities to those of Mycobacterium smegmatis MysA and MysB proteins, respectively, and also to those of HrdB proteins from different Streptomyces species. SigA and SigB maintain the conserved motifs of sigma 70-like principal sigma factors. sigB is closely linked to the dtxR gene (encoding a repressor of iron-regulated promoters homologous to the diphtheria toxin repressor from Corynebacterium diphtheriae.
KeywordMeSH Terms
76.     ( 1996 )

Cloning and characterization of an IS-like element present in the genome of Brevibacterium lactofermentum ATCC 13869.

Gene 170 (1)
PMID : 8621097  :   DOI  :   10.1016/0378-1119(95)00866-7    
Abstract >>
A repetitive DNA element of the Gram+ Brevibacterium lactofermentum (Bl), cloned by a modification of the subtractive hybridization method, contained a 1.4-kb IS-like element, IS13869, which included an open reading frame (ORF) inside a perfect 26-bp terminal inverted repeat (TIR). An 8-bp direct repeat (DR) was found outside each TIR. The ORF encoded a deduced protein of 436 amino acids (49 380 Da) with extensive similarity to other known transposases of insertion elements of Mycobacterium smegmatis (IS1096). Pseudomonas sp. (tpnA) and Corynebacterium glutamicum (IS31831). Distinct patterns were observed in different strains of Bl by hybridization with a probe internal to IS13869: four copies of IS13869 occurred in the wild type (wt) and R31 strains, but only three of them were observed in a recA derivative of the wt. Analysis by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis suggested that at least one copy of IS13869 had changed its position inside the chromosome during the lineage of a Bl derivative.
KeywordMeSH Terms
77.     ( 1993 )

Isoleucine synthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum: molecular analysis of the ilvB-ilvN-ilvC operon.

Journal of bacteriology 175 (17)
PMID : 8366043  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.175.17.5595-5603.1993     PMC  :   PMC206616    
Abstract >>
Acetohydroxy acid synthase (AHAS) and isomeroreductase (IR) catalyze subsequent reactions in the flux of metabolites towards isoleucine, valine, leucine, and pantothenate. A 4,705-bp DNA fragment from Corynebacterium glutamicum known to code for AHAS and IR was sequenced and analyzed by Northern (RNA blot) analysis. As in other bacteria, the AHAS of this gram-positive organism is encoded by two genes, ilvB and ilvN. Gene disruption verified that these genes encode the single AHAS activity in C. glutamicum. The start of ilvB was determined by amino-terminal sequencing of a fusion peptide. By Northern analysis of the ilvBNC cluster, three in vivo transcripts of 3.9, 2.3, and 1.1 kb were identified, corresponding to ilvBNC, ilvNC, and ilvC messages, respectively. The ilvC transcript (encoding IR) was by far the most abundant one. With a clone from which the ilvB upstream regions had been deleted, only the ilvNC and ilvC transcripts were synthesized, and with a clone from which the ilvN upstream regions had been deleted, only the smallest ilvC transcript was formed. It is therefore concluded that in the ilv operon of C. glutamicum, three promoters are active. The amounts of the ilvBNC and ilvNC transcripts increased in response to the addition of alpha-ketobutyrate to the growth medium. This was correlated to an increase in specific AHAS activity, whereas IR activity was not increased because of the relatively large amount of the ilvC transcript present under all conditions assayed. Therefore, the steady-state level of the ilvBNC and ilvNC messages contributes significantly to the total activity of the single AHAS. The ilvC transcript of this operon, however, is regulated independently and present in a large excess, which is in accord with the constant IR activities determined.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Operon
78.     ( 1994 )

Isolation and characterization of IS31831, a transposable element from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Molecular microbiology 11 (4)
PMID : 8196545  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1365-2958.1994.tb00351.x    
Abstract >>
A transposable element from a coryneform bacterium, Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 31831 was isolated and characterized. The element IS31831 is a 1453 bp insertion sequence with 24 bp imperfect terminal inverted repeats. It contains one open reading frame highly homologous at the amino acid level to the transposase of IS1096 from Mycobacterium smegmatis. Both IS31831 and IS1096 exhibit several common characteristics suggesting that they constitute a new family of insertion sequences. IS31831 was isolated by taking advantage of the sucrose sensitivity of coryneform bacteria conferred by expression of the Bacillus subtilis sacB gene. An Escherichia coli/Corynebacterium shuttle vector useful for the isolation of transposable elements from the coryneform group of bacteria was constructed.
KeywordMeSH Terms
DNA Transposable Elements
79.     ( 1994 )

Cloning and characterization of a DNA region encoding a stress-sensitive restriction system from Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 and analysis of its role in intergeneric conjugation with Escherichia coli.

Journal of bacteriology 176 (23)
PMID : 7961503  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.176.23.7309-7319.1994     PMC  :   PMC197120    
Abstract >>
RP4-mediated transfer of mobilizable plasmids in intergeneric conjugation of Escherichia coli donors with Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 is severely affected by a restriction system in the recipient that can be inactivated by a variety of exogenous stress factors. In this study a rapid test procedure based on intergeneric conjugal plasmid transfer that permitted the distinction between restriction-negative and restriction-positive C. glutamicum clones was developed. By using this procedure, clones of the restriction-deficient mutant strain C. glutamicum RM3 harboring a plasmid library of the wild-type chromosome were checked for their restriction properties. A complemented clone with a restriction-positive phenotype was isolated and found to contain a plasmid with a 7-kb insertion originating from the wild-type chromosome. This plasmid, termed pRES806, is able to complement the restriction-deficient phenotype of different C. glutamicum mutants. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of two open reading frames (orf1 and orf2) on the complementing DNA fragment. The region comprising orf1 and orf2 displayed a strikingly low G+C content and was present exclusively in C. glutamicum strains. Gene disruption experiments with the wild type proved that orf1 is essential for complementation, but inactivation of orf2 also resulted in a small but significant increase in fertility. These results were confirmed by infection assays with the bacteriophage CL31 from Corynebacterium lilium ATCC 15990.
KeywordMeSH Terms
80. Bonamy  C, Labarre  J, Reyes  O, Leblon  G,     ( 1994 )

Identification of IS1206, a Corynebacterium glutamicum IS3-related insertion sequence and phylogenetic analysis.

Molecular microbiology 14 (3)
PMID : 7885235  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1365-2958.1994.tb02190.x    
Abstract >>
Integration of plasmid pCGL320 into a Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC21086 derivative led to tandem amplification of the inserted plasmid (Labarre et al., 1993). One amplification event was associated with integration of an insertion sequence that we have named IS1206. Hybridizing sequences were only found in C. glutamicum strains and at various copy numbers. IS1206 is 1290 bp long, carries 32 bp imperfect inverted repeats and generates a 3 bp duplication of the target DNA upon insertion. IS1206 presents the features characteristic of the IS3 family and part of the DNA sequence centering on the putative transposase region (orfB) is similar to those of IS3 and some other related elements. Phylogenetic analysis of orfB deduced protein sequences from IS1206 and IS3-related elements contradicts the phylogeny of the species, suggesting that evolution of these elements might be complex. Horizontal transfer could be invoked but other alternatives like ancestral polymorphism or/and different rates of evolution could also be involved.
KeywordMeSH Terms
DNA Transposable Elements
Phylogeny
81. Wehrmann  A, Morakkabati  S, Krämer  R, Sahm  H, Eggeling  L,     ( 1995 )

Functional analysis of sequences adjacent to dapE of Corynebacterium glutamicum reveals the presence of aroP, which encodes the aromatic amino acid transporter.

Journal of bacteriology 177 (20)
PMID : 7592354  :   DOI  :   10.1128/jb.177.20.5991-5993.1995     PMC  :   PMC177429    
Abstract >>
An initially nonclonable DNA locus close to a gene of L-lysine biosynthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum was analyzed in detail. Its stepwise cloning and its functional identification by monitoring the amino acid uptakes of defined mutants, together with mechanistic studies, identified the corresponding structure as aroP, the general aromatic amino acid uptake system.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Amino Acid Transport Systems
Escherichia coli Proteins
82. Jetten  MS, Follettie  MT, Sinskey  AJ,     ( 1995 )

Effect of different levels of aspartokinase on the lysine production by Corynebacterium lactofermentum.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 43 (1)
PMID : 7766138  :  
Abstract >>
A 2.9-kb SacI fragment containing the ask-asd operon, encoding aspartokinase and aspartatesemialdehyde dehydrogenase, was cloned from an aminoethylcysteine-resistant, lysine-producing Corynebacterium lactofermentum strain. Enzymatic analysis showed that the aspartokinase (ASK) activity was completely resistant to inhibition by mixtures of lysine and threonine. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequence of the beta submit of the ask gene showed three amino acid residue changes with ask gene encoding wild-type, feedback-sensitive enzymes. Three C. lactofermentum strains, one being aspartokinase-negative, one carrying two ask genes on the chromosome and one having a sixfold higher specific ASK activity than the parental strain, were constructed by transconjugation and electroporation, and used to analyse the role of ASK in the lysine production by C. lactofermentum. The results indicate that, in this study, feed-back-resistant ASK is necessary for high-level lysine production, but dispensable for lysine and diaminopimelate synthesis required for cell growth.
KeywordMeSH Terms
83. Wehrmann  A, Eggeling  L, Sahm  H,     ( 1994 )

Analysis of different DNA fragments of Corynebacterium glutamicum complementing dapE of Escherichia coli.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 140 (Pt 12) (N/A)
PMID : 7881553  :   DOI  :   10.1099/13500872-140-12-3349    
Abstract >>
In Corynebacterium glutamicum L-lysine is synthesized simultaneously via the succinylase and dehydrogenase variant of the diaminopimelate pathway. Starting from a strain with a disrupted dehydrogenase gene, three different-sized DNA fragments were isolated which complemented defective Escherichia coli mutants in the succinylase pathway. Enzyme studies revealed that in one case the dehydrogenase gene had apparently been reconstituted in the heterologous host. The two other fragments resulted in desuccinylase activity; one of them additionally in succinylase activity. However, the physical analysis showed that structural changes had taken place in all fragments. Using a probe derived from one of the fragments we isolated a 3.4 kb BamHI DNA fragment without selective pressure (by colony hybridization). This was structurally intact and proved functionally to result in tenfold desuccinylase overexpression. The nucleotide sequence of a 1966 bp fragment revealed the presence of one truncated open reading frame of unknown function and that of dapE encoding N-succinyl diaminopimelate desuccinylase (EC 3.5.1.18). The deduced amino acid sequence of the dapE gene product shares 23% identical residues with that from E. coli. The C. glutamicum gene now available is the first gene from the succinylase branch of lysine synthesis of this biotechnologically important organism.
KeywordMeSH Terms
84. Heery  DM, Dunican  LK,     ( 1993 )

Cloning of the trp gene cluster from a tryptophan-hyperproducing strain of Corynebacterium glutamicum: identification of a mutation in the trp leader sequence.

Applied and environmental microbiology 59 (3)
PMID : 7683184  :   PMC  :   PMC202191    
Abstract >>
Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 21850 produces up to 5 g of extracellular L-tryptophan per liter in broth culture and displays resistance to several synthetic analogs of aromatic amino acids. Here we report the cloning of the tryptophan biosynthesis (trp) gene cluster of this strain on a 14.5-kb BamHI fragment. Subcloning and complementation of Escherichia coli trp auxotrophs revealed that as in Brevibacterium lactofermentum, the C. glutamicum trp genes are clustered in an operon in the order trpE, trpD, trpC, trpB, trpA. The cloned fragment also confers increased resistance to the analogs 5-methyltryptophan and 6-fluorotryptophan on E. coli. The sequence of the ATCC 21850 trpE gene revealed no significant changes when compared to the trpE sequence of a wild-type strain reported previously. However, analysis of the promoter-regulatory region revealed a nonsense (TGG-to-TGA) mutation in the third of three tandem Trp codons present within a trp leader gene. Polymerase chain reaction amplification and sequencing of the corresponding region confirmed the absence of this mutation in the wild-type strain. RNA secondary-structure predictions and sequence similarities to the E. coli trp attenuator suggest that this mutation results in a constitutive antitermination response.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Multigene Family
Mutation
85. Toliusis  P, Tamulaitiene  G, Grigaitis  R, Tuminauskaite  D, Silanskas  A, Manakova  E, Venclovas  C, Szczelkun  MD, Siksnys  V, Zaremba  M,     ( 2018 )

The H-subunit of the restriction endonuclease CglI contains a prototype DEAD-Z1 helicase-like motor.

Nucleic acids research 46 (5)
PMID : 29471489  :   DOI  :   10.1093/nar/gky107     PMC  :   PMC5861437    
Abstract >>
CglI is a restriction endonuclease from Corynebacterium glutamicum that forms a complex between: two R-subunits that have site specific-recognition and nuclease domains; and two H-subunits, with Superfamily 2 helicase-like DEAD domains, and uncharacterized Z1 and C-terminal domains. ATP hydrolysis by the H-subunits catalyses dsDNA translocation that is necessary for long-range movement along DNA that activates nuclease activity. Here, we provide biochemical and molecular modelling evidence that shows that Z1 has a fold distantly-related to RecA, and that the DEAD-Z1 domains together form an ATP binding interface and are the prototype of a previously undescribed monomeric helicase-like motor. The DEAD-Z1 motor has unusual Walker A and Motif VI sequences those nonetheless have their expected functions. Additionally, it contains DEAD-Z1-specific features: an H/H motif and a loop (aa 163-aa 172), that both play a role in the coupling of ATP hydrolysis to DNA cleavage. We also solved the crystal structure of the C-terminal domain which has a unique fold, and demonstrate that the Z1-C domains are the principal DNA binding interface of the H-subunit. Finally, we use small angle X-ray scattering to provide a model for how the H-subunit domains are arranged in a dimeric complex.
KeywordMeSH Terms
86. Tomita  T, Yin  L, Nakamura  S, Kosono  S, Kuzuyama  T, Nishiyama  M,     ( 2017 )

Crystal structure of the 2-iminoglutarate-bound complex of glutamate dehydrogenase from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

FEBS letters 591 (11)
PMID : 28486765  :   DOI  :   10.1002/1873-3468.12667    
Abstract >>
The NADP+ -dependent glutamate dehydrogenase from Corynebacterium glutamicum (CgGDH) is considered to be one of the key enzymes in the industrial fermentation of glutamate due to its high glutamate-producing activity. We determined the crystal structure of CgGDH complexed with NADP+ and 2-iminoglutarate. Among six subunits of hexameric CgGDH-binding NADP+ , only four subunits bind 2-iminoglutarate in a closed form, while the other two are in an open form. In the closed form, 2-iminoglutarate is bound to the substrate-binding site with the 2-imino group stacked by the nicotinamide ring of the coenzyme, suggesting a prehydride transfer state in a hypothesized reaction scheme with the imino intermediate. We also conducted MD simulations and provide insights into the extreme preference for the glutamate-producing reaction of CgGDH. The atomic coordinate and structure factors have been deposited in the RCSB PDB database under the accession number 5GUD.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Corynebacterium glutamicum
2-iminoglutarate-bound complex
crystal structure
glutamate dehydrogenase
Corynebacterium glutamicum
2-iminoglutarate-bound complex
crystal structure
glutamate dehydrogenase
Corynebacterium glutamicum
2-iminoglutarate-bound complex
crystal structure
glutamate dehydrogenase
87.     ( 2013 )

Evaluation of the food grade expression systems NICE and pSIP for the production of 2,5-diketo-D-gluconic acid reductase from Corynebacterium glutamicum.

AMB Express 3 (1)
PMID : 23356419  :   DOI  :   10.1186/2191-0855-3-7     PMC  :   PMC3565945    
Abstract >>
2,5-diketo-D-gluconic acid reductase (2,5-DKG reductase) catalyses the reduction of 2,5-diketo-D-gluconic acid (2,5-DKG) to 2-keto-L-gulonic acid (2-KLG), a direct precursor (lactone) of L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C). This reaction is an essential step in the biocatalytic production of the food supplement vitamin C from D-glucose or D-gluconic acid. As 2,5-DKG reductase is usually produced recombinantly, it is of interest to establish an efficient process for 2,5-DKG reductase production that also satisfies food safety requirements. In the present study, three recently described food grade variants of the Lactobacillales based expression systems pSIP (Lactobacillus plantarum) and NICE (Lactococcus lactis) were evaluated with regard to their effictiveness to produce 2,5-DKG reductase from Corynebacterium glutamicum. Our results indicate that both systems are suitable for 2,5-DKG reductase expression. Maximum production yields were obtained with Lb. plantarum/pSIP609 by pH control at 6.5. With 262 U per litre of broth, this represents the highest heterologous expression level so far reported for 2,5-DKG reductase from C. glutamicum. Accordingly, Lb. plantarum/pSIP609 might be an interesting alternative to Escherichia coli expression systems for industrial 2,5-DKG reductase production.
KeywordMeSH Terms
88.     ( 2013 )

NrdH-redoxin of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Corynebacterium glutamicum dimerizes at high protein concentration and exclusively receives electrons from thioredoxin reductase.

The Journal of biological chemistry 288 (11)
PMID : 23362277  :   DOI  :   10.1074/jbc.M112.392688     PMC  :   PMC3597831    
Abstract >>
NrdH-redoxins are small reductases with a high amino acid sequence similarity with glutaredoxins and mycoredoxins but with a thioredoxin-like activity. They function as the electron donor for class Ib ribonucleotide reductases, which convert ribonucleotides into deoxyribonucleotides. We solved the x-ray structure of oxidized NrdH-redoxin from Corynebacterium glutamicum (Cg) at 1.5 ? resolution. Based on this monomeric structure, we built a homology model of NrdH-redoxin from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mt). Both NrdH-redoxins have a typical thioredoxin fold with the active site CXXC motif located at the N terminus of the first �\-helix. With size exclusion chromatography and small angle x-ray scattering, we show that Mt_NrdH-redoxin is a monomer in solution that has the tendency to form a non-swapped dimer at high protein concentration. Further, Cg_NrdH-redoxin and Mt_NrdH-redoxin catalytically reduce a disulfide with a specificity constant 1.9 �� 10(6) and 5.6 �� 10(6) M(-1) min(-1), respectively. They use a thiol-disulfide exchange mechanism with an N-terminal cysteine pKa lower than 6.5 for nucleophilic attack, whereas the pKa of the C-terminal cysteine is ~10. They exclusively receive electrons from thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) and not from mycothiol, the low molecular weight thiol of actinomycetes. This specificity is shown in the structural model of the complex between NrdH-redoxin and TrxR, where the two surface-exposed phenylalanines of TrxR perfectly fit into the conserved hydrophobic pocket of the NrdH-redoxin. Moreover, nrdh gene deletion and disruption experiments seem to indicate that NrdH-redoxin is essential in C. glutamicum.
KeywordMeSH Terms
89.     ( 1998 )

Different modes of diaminopimelate synthesis and their role in cell wall integrity: a study with Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Journal of bacteriology 180 (12)
PMID : 9620966  :   PMC  :   PMC107817    
Abstract >>
In eubacteria, there are three slightly different pathways for the synthesis of m-diaminopimelate (m-DAP), which is one of the key linking units of peptidoglycan. Surprisingly, for unknown reasons, some bacteria use two of these pathways together. An example is Corynebacterium glutamicum, which uses both the succinylase and dehydrogenase pathways for m-DAP synthesis. In this study, we clone dapD and prove by enzyme experiments that this gene encodes the succinylase (M(r) = 24082), initiating the succinylase pathway of m-DAP synthesis. By using gene-directed mutation, dapD, as well as dapE encoding the desuccinylase, was inactivated, thereby forcing C. glutamicum to use only the dehydrogenase pathway of m-DAP synthesis. The mutants are unable to grow on organic nitrogen sources. When supplied with low ammonium concentrations but excess carbon, their morphology is radically altered and they are less resistant to mechanical stress than the wild type. Since the succinylase has a high affinity toward its substrate and uses glutamate as the nitrogen donor, while the dehydrogenase has a low affinity and incorporates ammonium directly, the m-DAP synthesis is another example of twin activities present in bacteria for access to important metabolites such as the well-known twin activities for the synthesis of glutamate or for the uptake of potassium.
KeywordMeSH Terms
90.     ( 1998 )

Identification, characterization, and chromosomal organization of the ftsZ gene from Brevibacterium lactofermentum.

Molecular & general genetics : MGG 259 (1)
PMID : 9738885  :   DOI  :   10.1007/s004380050793    
Abstract >>
The ftsZ gene was cloned from the chromosomal DNA of Brevibacterium lactofermentum by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using two oligonucleotides designed from two conserved regions found in most of the previously cloned and sequenced ftsZ genes from other microorganisms. ftsZ is a single-copy gene in corynebacteria and is located downstream from ftsQ and murC, indicating linkage between genes involved in peptidoglycan synthesis (mur genes) and genes involved in cell division (fts genes). The organisation of the cluster is similar to that in Streptomyces and different from those of Escherichia coli or Bacillus subtilis because ftsA is not located upstream of ftsZ. The gene was expressed in E. coli using the T7 expression system; the calculated molecular weight of the expressed protein was 50 kDa. Expression of the B. lactofermentum ftsZ gene in E. coli inhibited cell division and led to filamentation. The ftsZ gene of this organism does not complement ftsZ mutations or deletions in E. coli, when cloned on low or high-copy-number vectors.
KeywordMeSH Terms
Cytoskeletal Proteins
91.     ( 1998 )

An integron of class 1 is present on the plasmid pCG4 from gram-positive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum.

FEMS microbiology letters 169 (2)
PMID : 9868786  :   DOI  :   10.1111/j.1574-6968.1998.tb13345.x    
Abstract >>
The streptomycin/spectinomycin resistance determinant of the 29-kb plasmid pCG4 from Corynebacterium glutamicum was found to be a part of a typical class 1 integron. The sequence analysis revealed that the integron (designated InCg) identified in this Gram-positive bacterium is almost identical to the integron InC present on the plasmid pSA1700 from the Gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Differences in only two base pairs were found in the 3.8-kb sequence. One base substitution (G-->C) is present in the streptomycin/spectinomycin resistance determinant which is thus identical to the aadA2a gene from the integron In6 of the broad-host-range plasmid pSa. The other one (C-->G) is present in the extended -10 region of the integron promoter involved in expression of the antibiotic resistance gene. It was shown that this novel version of the integron promoter displays five times higher activity in both C. glutamicum and Escherichia coli than the original one.
KeywordMeSH Terms
92.     ( 1998 )

The role of the Corynebacterium glutamicum rel gene in (p)ppGpp metabolism.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 144 (Pt 7) (N/A)
PMID : 9695918  :   DOI  :   10.1099/00221287-144-7-1853    
Abstract >>
To investigate the metabolism of (p)ppGpp in amino-acid-producing coryneform bacteria, a PCR-based strategy using degenerate consensus oligonucleotides was applied to isolate the rel gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032. The gene consists of 2283 nucleotides and encodes a protein of 760 amino acids with a molecular mass of 84.4 kDa. The amino acid sequence revealed extensive similarities to the related proteins RelA and SpoT of Escherichia coli, which are known to be involved in (p)ppGpp biosynthesis and degradation. The C. glutamicum rel gene is located downstream of the apt gene encoding an adenine phosphoribosyltransferase, and an ORF with similarities to dciAE, which represents part of a dipeptide transport system in E. coli. A C. glutamicum mutant strain carrying a defined deletion in the rel gene was constructed. This mutant failed to accumulate (p)ppGpp in response to amino acid starvation. When overexpressed in E. coli, the C. glutamicum rel gene was able to reverse growth defects caused by an overexpressed relA gene. It is proposed that the C. glutamicum rel gene encodes a bifunctional enzyme with (p)ppGpp synthetase and (p)ppGpp-degrading activities.
KeywordMeSH Terms
93.     ( 1998 )

Biochemical and biophysical characterization of the cell wall porin of Corynebacterium glutamicum: the channel is formed by a low molecular mass polypeptide.

Biochemistry 37 (43)
PMID : 9790664  :   DOI  :   10.1021/bi980961e    
Abstract >>
The cell wall of the Gram-positive bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum contains a channel (porin) for the passage of hydrophilic solutes. The channel-forming protein was identified, by lipid bilayer experiments, in the cell envelope fractions isolated by sucrose-density centrifugations and in organic solvent of whole cells. It was purified to homogeneity by fast-protein liquid chromatography across a Mono-Q column. The pure protein had a rather low molecular mass of about 5 kDa as judged by SDS-PAGE, which suggested that the cell wall channel is formed by a protein oligomer. The monomer has according to partial sequencing no significant homology to known protein sequences. The purified protein formed large ion-permeable channels in lipid bilayer membranes from phosphatidylcholine/phosphatidylserine mixtures with a single-channel conductance of 5.5 nS in 1 M KCl. Experiments with different salts suggested that the cell wall channel of C. glutamicum was highly cation-selective caused by negative charges localized at the channel mouth. The analysis of the single-channel conductance data using the Renkin correction factor suggested that the diameter of the cell wall channel is about 2.2 nm. Channel-forming properties of the cell wall channel of C. glutamicum were compared with those of mycobacteria. These channels share common features because they form large and water-filled channels that contain point net charges.
KeywordMeSH Terms
94.     ( 1998 )

Sequence of the Corynebacterium glutamicum pyruvate carboxylase gene.

Applied microbiology and biotechnology 50 (3)
PMID : 9802220  :  
Abstract >>
Pyruvate carboxylase is an important anaplerotic enzyme replenishing oxaloacetate consumed for biosynthesis during growth, or lysine and glutamic acid production in industrial fermentations. We used regions of homology from pyruvate carboxylase sequences of 12 different species (corresponding to the ATP- and pyruvate-binding sites), to design polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primers for amplifying a fragment of the pyruvate carboxylase (pc) gene from C. glutamicum genomic DNA. This 850-base-pair fragment was used to probe a C. glutamicum cosmid library and four candidate pc cosmids were identified. The fragment was sequenced and the sequence of the complete gene was obtained by several rounds of primer synthesis, PCR on one of the positive cosmids, and sequencing. The C. glutamicum pc sequence shows 64% homology with the pc gene of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and 44% homology with the human pc gene. Regions of ATP, pyruvate and biotin binding have also been identified.
KeywordMeSH Terms
95.     ( 1998 )

Pyruvate carboxylase from Corynebacterium glutamicum: characterization, expression and inactivation of the pyc gene.

Microbiology (Reading, England) 144 (Pt 4) (N/A)
PMID : 9579065  :   DOI  :   10.1099/00221287-144-4-915    
Abstract >>
In addition to phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPCx), pyruvate carboxylase (PCx) has recently been found as an anaplerotic enzyme in the amino-acid-producing bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum. Using oligonucleotides designed according to conserved regions of PCx amino acid sequences from other organisms, a 200 bp fragment central to the C. glutamicum PCx gene (pyc) was amplified from genomic DNA by PCR. This fragment was then used to identify and to subclone the entire C. glutamicum pyc gene. The cloned pyc gene was expressed in C. glutamicum, as cells harbouring the gene on plasmid showed four- to fivefold higher specific PCx activities when compared to the wild-type (WT). Moreover, increased PCx protein levels in the pyc-plasmid-carrying strain were readily detected after SDS-PAGE of cell-free extracts. DNA sequence analysis of the pyc gene, including its 5' and 3' flanking regions, and N-terminal sequencing of the pyc gene product predicts a PCx polypeptide of 1140 amino acids with an M(r) of 123070. The amino acid sequence of this polypeptide shows between 62% and 45% identity when compared to PCx enzymes from other organisms. Transcriptional analyses revealed that the pyc gene from C. glutamicum is monocistronic (3.5 kb mRNA) and that its transcription is initiated at an A residue 55 bp upstream of the translational start. Inactivation of the chromosomal pyc gene in C. glutamicum WT led to the absence of PCx activity and to negligible growth on lactate, indicating that PCx is essential for growth on this carbon source. Inactivation of both the PCx gene and the PEPCx gene in C. glutamicum led additionally to the inability to grow on glucose, indicating that no further anaplerotic enzymes for growth on carbohydrates exist in this organism.
KeywordMeSH Terms
96.     ( 1997 )

The Corynebacterium glutamicum cglIM gene encoding a 5-cytosine methyltransferase enzyme confers a specific DNA methylation pattern in an McrBC-deficient Escherichia coli strain.

Gene 203 (2)
PMID : 9426239  :   DOI  :   10.1016/s0378-1119(97)00519-2    
Abstract >>
The cglIM gene of the coryneform soil bacterium Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 has been cloned and characterized. The coding region comprises 1092 nucleotides and specifies a protein of 363 amino acid residues with a deduced Mr of 40700. The amino acid sequence showed striking similarities to methyltransferase enzymes generating 5-methylcytosine residues, especially to M x NgoVII from Neisseria gonorrhoeae recognizing the sequence GCSGC. The cglIM gene is organized in an unusual operon which contains, in addition, two genes encoding stress-sensitive restriction enzymes. Using PCR techniques the entire gene including the promoter region was amplified from the wild-type chromosome and cloned in Escherichia coli. Expression of the cglIM gene in E. coli under the control of its own promoter conferred the C. glutamicum-specific methylation pattern to co-resident shuttle plasmids and led to a 260-fold increase in the transformation rate of C. glutamicum. In addition, the methylation pattern produced by this methyltransferase enzyme is responsible for the sensitivity of DNA from C. glutamicum to the modified cytosine restriction (Mcr) system of E. coli.
KeywordMeSH Terms
DNA Methylation
DNA Restriction Enzymes
97.     ( 1998 )

Isoleucine uptake in Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 is directed by the brnQ gene product.

Archives of microbiology 169 (4)
PMID : 9531631  :  
Abstract >>
By complementation analysis of an isoleucine-uptake-deficient Escherichia coli strain, it was shown that a 1.6-kb HindIII-StuI fragment of Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032, located downstream of the aecD gene, encodes an isoleucine uptake system. Sequence analysis revealed that the complementing fragment carried an open reading frame, termed brnQ, that encodes a protein with sequence similarities to branched-chain amino acid carriers of gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The brnQ gene specifies a predominantly hydrophobic protein of 426 amino acid residues with a calculated molecular mass of 44.9 kDa. A topology prediction by neural network computer analysis suggests the existence of 12 hydrophobic segments that most probably form transmembrane alpha-helices. A C. glutamicum mutant strain harboring a defined deletion of brnQ in the chromosome showed a considerably lower isoleucine uptake rate of 0.04 nmol min-1 mg (dry mass)-1 as compared to the wild-type strain rate of 1.2 nmol min-1 mg (dry mass)-1. Overexpression of brnQ by means of a tac promotor resulted in an elevated uptake rate for isoleucine of 11.3 nmol min-1 mg (dry mass)-1. Evidently, the brnQ gene encodes the only transport system in C. glutamicum directing isoleucine uptake.
KeywordMeSH Terms

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