Pathways for 3-chloro- and 4-chlorobenzoate degradationin Pseudomonas aeruginosa 3mT

A bacterial isolate, Pseudomonas aeruginosa 3mT, exhibited the ability to degrade high concentrations of 3-chlorobenzoate (3-CBA, 8 g l^-1) and 4-chlorobenzoate (4-CBA 12 g l^-1) (Ajithkumar 1998). In this study, by delineating the initial biochemical steps involved in the degradation of these compounds, we investigated how this strain can do so well. Resting cells, permeabilised cells as well as cell-free extracts failed to dechlorinate both 3-CBA and 4-CBA under anaerobic conditions, whereas the former two readily degraded both compounds under aerobic conditions. Accumulation of any intermediary metabolite was not observed during growth as well as reaction with resting cells under highly aerated conditions. However, on modification of reaction conditions, 3-chlorocatechol (3-CC) and 4-chlorocatechol (4-CC) accumulated in 3-CBA and 4-CBA flasks, respectively. Fairly high titres of pyrocatechase II (chlorocatechol 1,2-dioxygenase) activity were obtained in extracts of cells grown on 3-CBA and 4-CBA. Meta-pyrocatechase (catechol 2,3-dioxygenase) activity against4-CC and catechol, but not against 3-CC, was also detected in low titres. Accumulation of small amounts of 2-chloro-5-hydroxy muconic semialdehyde, the meta-cleavage product of 4-CC, was detected in the medium, when 4-CBA concentration was 4 mM or greater, indicating the presence of a minor meta-pathway in strain 3mT. However, 3-CBA exclusively, and more than 99% of 4-CBA were degraded through the formation of the respective chlorocatechol, via a modified ortho-pathway. This defies the traditional view that the microbes that follow chlorocatechol pathways are not very good degraders of chlorobenzoates. 4-Hydroxybenzoatewas readily (and 3-hydroxybenzoate to a lesser extent) degraded by the strain, through the formation of protocatechuate and gentisate, respectively, as intermediary dihydroxy metabolites.     

Stabilization of water-in-oil emulsion by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhodococcus opacus</Emphasis> B-4 and its application to biotransformation

Rhodococcus opacus B-4, which has recently been isolated as an organic solvent-tolerant bacterium, stabilized water-in-oil (w/o) emulsions by inhibition of droplet coalescence when the cells were dispersed in 90% (v/v) organic solvents. Confocal microscopy revealed that many bacterial cells assembled at the interface between oil and water droplets, though free cells were also detectable at the inside of water droplets. Bacterial cells in the w/o emulsion were capable of utilizing both a water-soluble (glucose) and an oil-soluble substrate (oleic acid) as an energy source. Availability of the w/o emulsion as an immobilized cell system in organic solvents was demonstrated using production of indigo from indole and production of o-cresol from toluene as model conversions. When glucose and oleic acid were simultaneously supplied as energy sources, the w/o emulsion culture of R. opacus B-4 produced indigo and o-cresol at levels of 0.217 and 2.12 mg ml⁻¹, respectively, by 12 h.     

Utilization of tannery solid waste for protease production by Synergistes sp. in solid‐state fermentation and partial protease characterization

Synergistes sp. DQ560074 produced a protease in submerged fermentation (SmF) at 400–420 U/mL and in solid‐state fermentation (SSF) at 745–755 U/g. The protease, which belongs to the aspartic protease class, was active over a wide range of pH (5–7) and at high temperatures (25–45°C). The protease is stable and active in various polar protic solvents (50% v/v) like ethanol, isopropanol, n–butanol, in polar aprotic solvents (50% v/v) like acetonitrile, and in non‐polar solvents (50% v/v) such as ethylacetate and toluene, but not in hydrophilic organic solvents (methyl alcohol and acetone). As far as we know, this is the first contribution to the production of a mesophilic protease with solvent stability in SSF using a proteinaceous solid waste.     

Dehalogenation of 4-chlorobenzoate

Pseudomonas sp. CBS3 is capable of growing with 4-chlorobenzoate as sole source of carbon and energy. The removal of the chlorine of 4-chlorobenzoate is performed in the first degradation step by an enzyme system consisting of three proteins. A 4-halobenzoate-coenzyme A ligase activates 4-chlorobenzoate in a coenzyme A, ATP and Mg²⁺ dependent reaction to 4-chlorobenzoyl-coenzyme A. This thioester intermediate is dehalogenated by the 4-chlorobenzoyl-coenzyme A dehalogenase. Finally coenzyme A is split off by a 4-hydroxybenzoyl-CoA thioesterase to form 4-hydroxybenzoate. The involved 4-chlorobenzoyl-coenzyme A dehalogenase was purified to apparent homogeneity by a five-step purification procedure. The native enzyme had an apparent molecular mass of 120,000 and was composed of four identical polypeptide subunits of 31 kDa. The enzyme displayed an isoelectric point of 6.7. The maximal initial rate of catalysis was achieved at pH 10 at 60 °C. The apparent K _m value for 4-chlorobenzoyl-coenzyme A was 2.4–2.7 µM. V _max was 1.1 × 10^–7 M sec^–1 (2.2 µmol min^–1 mg^–1 of protein). The NH₂-terminal amino acid sequence was determined. All 4-halobenzoyl-coenzyme A thioesters, except 4-fluorobenzoyl-coenzyme A, were dehalogenated by the 4-chlorobenzoyl-CoA dehalogenase.Abbreviations CBA chlorobenzoate - CoA coenzyme A - HBA hydroxybenzoate - DTT dithiothreitol - HPLC high performance liquid chromatography - PAGE polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis     

Utilization of hydrophobic bacterium <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhodococcus opacus</Emphasis> B-4 as whole-cell catalyst in anhydrous organic solvents

Rhodococcus opacus strain B-4, which has recently been isolated as an organic solvent-tolerant bacterium, has a high hydrophobicity and exhibits a high affinity for hydrocarbons. This bacterium was able to survive for at least 5 days in organic solvents, including n-tetradecane, oleyl alcohol, and bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (BEHP), which contained water less than 1% (w/v). The biocatalytic ability of R. opacus B-4 was demonstrated in the essentially nonaqueous BEHP using indigo production from indole as a model conversion. By the catabolism of oleic acid for NADH regeneration, indigo production increased up to 71.6 μg ml⁻¹ by 24 h.     

Water activity does not influence the enantioselectivity of Lipase PS and lipoprotein lipase in organic solvents

Summary The activity and enantioselectivity of Lipase PS from Pseudomonas cepacia and lipoprotein lipase from Pseudomonas sp. were investigated in organic solvents preequilibrated to water activities ranging from <0.1 to 0.53, using as a model reaction the transesterification between (±)-sulcatol and vinyl acetate. Variations of water activity markedly influenced the transesterification rate but did not modify the enantioselectivity of the two enzymes.     

Transphosphatidylation reaction of phosphatidylcholine to 4-methoxyphenol in water-immiscible organic solvents with immobilized phospholipase D

Immobilized phospholipase D (PLD) from Streptomyces sp. catalyzed the transfer reaction of the dipalmitoylphosphatidyl residue from 1,2-dipalmitoyl-3-sn-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) to an aromatic hydroxy group on 4-methoxyphenol in water-immiscible organic solvents, to afford 1,2-dipalmitoyl-3-sn-phosphatidyl-4-methoxyphenol (DPP-PMP) with a 45% yield, accompanied by a trace amount of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-3-sn-phosphatidic acid sodium salt (DPPA-Na). The formation of DPP-PMP was affected by organic solvents used in the reaction. Benzene, toluene, and methylene chloride gave DPP-PMP with moderate yields but use of diethyl ether resulted in a low yield of DPP-PMP. In both ethyl acetate and water-miscible organic solvents, the transfer reaction did not take place. Immobilization of PLD was carried out by adding a 1 % volume of PLD solution to a suspension of a cation-exchange resin (Amberlite IRC-50, 5% w/v) in benzene with stirring and sonication. In a repeated batch reaction for DPP-PMP synthesis with immobilized PLD, after ten batch cycles the enzyme retained 74% of its initial activity.     

化学修饰的和固定化的脂肪酶在有机溶剂中的催化作用研究

本文对聚乙二醇修饰脂肪酶、多孔玻璃载体吸附酶、多孔玻璃载体丙酮沉积酶、硅藻土吸附酶、氧化铝吸附酶和琼脂珠疏水载体吸附酶在有机相中酯合成和酯交换反应的催化作用进行了研究。实验表明,不同形式的酶需要不同的最适加水量。而且,在各自最适条件下,对各种形式酶进行了比较,得出硅藻土和琼脂珠疏水载体是很好的固定化载体,疏水性琼脂珠固定化酶在有机相中的活力比酶粉高46.5％。     

Oxidation of aromatic compounds in organic solvents with laccase from Trametes versicolor

Summary Laccase purified from Trametes versicolor oxidizes 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (2,6-DMP) and syringaldazine in hydrophobic solvents presaturated with water, and in hydrophilic organic solvents provided that a sufficient amount of water is added. Ease of performance of the laccase test in organic solvents is improved after immobilization of the enzyme by entrapping in Sepharose CL-6B during enzyme filtration through the gel beads. The gel-enzyme association has been shown to be stable in water-presaturated solvents. Efficiency of the immobilized laccase in organic solvents containing 7% water was 10%–20% of that in potassium-citrate buffer. Immobilized laccase in organic solvents showed good stability and high tolerance to elevated temperatures.     

Lipid Composition and Lipid Molecular Species of Lipomyces starkeyi Cultivated in Medium Containing 1,2-Propanediol

Spore suspensions of 15 strains in 15 species of Micromonospora prepared with ultrasonication-technique were tested for resistance to moist heat, acid, alkali, and organic solvents (5 alcohols, 4 ketones and ether). More than 50% spore-survival was found in most organisms heated at 60°C for 20min, but less than 0.5% survived at 80°C. The spore-viability did not change at pH 6 to 8, but decreased beyond this range, and remarkably at acidic pH. A maximum reduction in viability was found with most organic solvents at a concentration of around 80%, and the spores were more resistant to ketone than alcohols and dioxane. Several Streptomyces species were also studied, and their spores were less resistant to heat and organic solvents than those of Micromonospora.     

Immobilization imparts stability to watermelon urease to work in water miscible organic media

The behaviour of alginate immobilized and soluble watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) urease in water miscible organic solvents like, acetonitrile, dimethylformamide (DMF), ethanol, methanol, and propanol is described. The organic solvents exhibited a concentration dependent inhibitory effect on both the immobilized and the soluble urease in the presence of urea. Pretreatment of soluble enzyme preparations with organic solvents in the absence of substrate for 10 min at 30°C led to rapid loss in the activity, while similar pretreatment of immobilized urease with 50% (v/v) of ethanol, propanol, and acetonitrile was ineffective. Time-dependent inactivation of immobilized urease, both in the presence and in the absence of urea, revealed stability for longer duration of time even at very high concentration of organic solvents. The soluble enzyme, on the other hand, was rapidly inactivated even at fairly lower concentrations. The results suggest that the immobilization of watermelon urease in calcium alginate make it suitable for its application in organic media. the observations are discussed.     

Tolerance of β-diketone hydrolases as representatives of the crotonase superfamily towards organic solvents

Crotonase superfamily enzymes catalyze a wide variety of reactions, including hydrolytic C–C bond cleavage in symmetrical β‐diketones by 6‐oxo camphor hydrolase (OCH) from Rhodococcus sp. The organic solvent tolerance and temperature stability of OCH and its structurally related ortholog Anabaena β‐diketone hydrolase have been investigated. Both enzymes showed excellent tolerance toward organic solvents; for instance, even in the presence of 80% (v/v) THF or dioxane, OCH was still active. In most solvent mixtures, except methanol, the stereospecificity was conserved (>99% e.e. of product), hence neither the type of solvent nor its concentration appeared to have an effect on the stereoselectivity of the enzyme. Attempts to correlate the observed activities with log P, functional solvent group or denaturing capacity (DC) of the solvent were only successful in the case of DC for water miscible solvents. This study represents the first investigation of organic solvent stability for members of the crotonase superfamily. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011;108: 2815–2822. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Anaerobic bioformation of 4-hydroxybenzoate from 4-chlorobenzoate by the coryneform bacterium NTB-1

Summary Resting cells of the coryneform strain NTB-1, previously incorrectly classified as Alcaligenes denitrificans NTB-1, quantitatively converted 4-chlorobenzoate (4-CBA) to 4-hydroxybenzoate (4-HBA) under strict anaerobic conditions in the presence of ferricyanide or nitrate. 4-HBA formation was enhanced by supplying anaerobic cells with glucose as an energy source. Using permeabilized cells it was shown that energy is not needed to drive the energy-dependent uptake of 4-CBA but also to convert 4-CBA into 4-HBA. In extracts it was subsequently demonstrated that a coenzymeA-thioester of 4-CBA is involved in the metabolism of 4-CBA. Offprint requests to: P. E. J. Groenewegen     

Effects of water miscible organic solvents on the activity and conformation of the Baeyer-Villiger monooxygenases from Thermobifida fusca and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus: a comparative study

A broader exploitation of enzymes in organic synthesis can be achieved by increasing their tolerance toward organic solvents. In this study, the stability and activity of Baeyer–Villiger monooxygenases from Thermobifida fusca (PAMO) and Acinetobacter sp. (CHMO) in the presence of water miscible organic solvents were compared. PAMO was more stable than CHMO. The concentration of solvent (v/v) at which it halved its activity (C₅₀) was 4‐ to 16‐fold higher than that observed for CHMO. For PAMO, the C₅₀ varied from 16% to 55% of solvent and followed the destabilizing order methanol < ethanol < 1,4‐dioxane < acetonitrile < trifluoroethanol. In the case of CHMO, the maximal C₅₀ was 7% with methanol and even lower with the other solvents. Therefore, methanol was the most tolerated solvent. In the case of PAMO, methanol induced a significant increase of enzyme activity (up to fivefold), which was optimal at 20% (v/v) solvent. Only minor spectral variations were observed with PAMO in 20% methanol, suggesting that the increase of activity observed in this condition is not due to marked conformational changes. Fluorescence and circular dichroism analyses showed that the lower stability of CHMO toward organic solvent correlates with a more pronounced destructive effect on its secondary and tertiary structure. A possible rationale for the higher stability of PAMO could be inferred from inspection of the PAMO and CHMO (two enzymes of similar size) structure, which revealed a higher (up to twofold) number of ionic bridges in PAMO with respect to CHMO. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011; 108:491–499. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Lipase in aqueous‐polar organic solvents: Activity,structure, and stability

Studying alterations in biophysical and biochemical behavior of enzymes in the presence of organic solvents and the underlying cause(s) has important implications in biotechnology. We investigated the effects of aqueous solutions of polar organic solvents on ester hydrolytic activity, structure and stability of a lipase. Relative activity of the lipase monotonically decreased with increasing concentration of acetone, acetonitrile, and DMF but increased at lower concentrations (upto ～20% v/v) of dimethylsulfoxide, isopropanol, and methanol. None of the organic solvents caused any appreciable structural change as evident from circular dichorism and NMR studies, thus do not support any significant role of enzyme denaturation in activity change. Change in 2D [15N, 1H]‐HSQC chemical shifts suggested that all the organic solvents preferentially localize to a hydrophobic patch in the active‐site vicinity and no chemical shift perturbation was observed for residues present in protein's core. This suggests that activity alteration might be directly linked to change in active site environment only. All organic solvents decreased the apparent binding of substrate to the enzyme (increased K_m); however significantly enhanced the k_cat. Melting temperature (T_m) of lipase, measured by circular dichroism and differential scanning calorimetry, altered in all solvents, albeit to a variable extent. Interestingly, although the effect of all organic solvents on various properties on lipase is qualitatively similar, our study suggest that magnitudes of effects do not appear to follow bulk solvent properties like polarity and the solvent effects are apparently dictated by specific and local interactions of solvent molecule(s) with the protein.     

Activity,stability and enantioselectivity of lipase-coated microcrystals of inorganic salts in organic solvents

Lipase-coated microcrystals of inorganic salts were prepared by dissolving enzymes in buffers and then mixing with 3 volumes of saturated salt solutions followed by drop-wise addition into polar precipitating organic solvents. The Mucor javanicus lipase-coated microcrystals did not show any activity for esterification of lauric acid with 1-propanol in isooctane when NaCl and Na₂SO₄ were used as the salts but showed much higher activity than the enzyme powder when KCl (10.0 times) and K₂SO₄ (5.8 times) were used as the salts and precipitated in 1-propanol. Acetonitrile was found to be the best precipitating solvent for preparing M. javanicus lipase-coated microcrystals, with enzyme activities 26.2 and 22.4 times higher than that of the enzyme powder when KCl and K₂SO₄ were used as precipitating salts, respectively. The presence of water in the precipitating solvents markedly decreased the enzyme activity. The M. javanicus lipase-coated microcrystals prepared using K₂SO₄ as the salt and acetonitrile as the precipitating solvent was as active at 80°C as at 40°C. No significant improvement in enantioselectivity of Candida rugosa lipase-coated microcrystals was observed for transesterification of 1-phenylethanol with vinyl acetate in hexane when the microcrystals were prepared by dissolving the enzymes in salt solutions containing 25% (v/v) of acetone or 2-propanol before precipitating in polar solvents.     

Heat Effects of Dehydration of Human Serum Albumin in Hydrophilic Organic Solvents

A thermochemical model for describing the transfer of water from the protein phase to the organic solvent liquid phase and for determining how the solvation ability of organic solvents affects this process was developed. Enthalpy changes on the interaction of dried and hydrated human serum albumin (HSA) with hydrophilic organic solvents (dimethyl sulfoxide, formamide, ethanol, methanol and acetic acid) and water were measured by isothermal calorimetry at 25 °C. The initial hydration level of human serum albumin was varied in the entire water content range from 0–30 % [g water/g HSA]. The dependence of the interaction enthalpies on the initial water content is complex. The interaction enthalpies of the dried HSA with organic solvents are exothermic. At low water contents (less than 0.1 g/g), there is a sharp increase in the interaction enthalpy values. At the highest water contents (more than 0.2 g/g), the interaction enthalpies are endothermic for acetic acid and formamide and exothermic for DMSO, methanol, and ethanol. These thermochemical data were analyzed in conjunction with the results for the water adsorption in organic solvents to calculate the molar enthalpies of dehydration of HSA in organic liquids. It was found that the dehydration enthalpy changes may be endothermic or exothermic depending on the initial water content and the water solvation enthalpy value. From the results obtained, it can be concluded that: (i) only the solvation of water by hydrophilic organic solvent determines the changes in the dehydration enthalpy values, and (ii) the data for the enthalpies of solvation of water by the solvent at infinite dilution reflect this effect.     

Differences in biochemical properties of two 5′-nucleotidases from deep- and shallow-sea Shewanella species under various harsh conditions

Deep-sea Shewanella violacea 5′-nucleotidase (SVNTase) activity exhibited higher NaCl tolerance than that of a shallow-sea Shewanella amazonensis homologue (SANTase), the sequence identity between them being 70.4%. Here, SVNTase exhibited higher activity than SANTase with various inorganic salts, similar to the difference in their NaCl tolerance. In contrast, SVNTase activity decreased with various organic solvents, while SANTase activity was retained with the same concentrations of the solvents. Therefore, SVNTase is more robust than SANTase with inorganic salts, but more vulnerable with organic solvents. As to protein stability, SANTase was more stable against organic solvents and heat than SVNTase, which correlated with the differences in their enzymatic activities. We also found that SANTase retained higher activity for three weeks than SVNTase did in the presence of glycerol. These findings will facilitate further application of these enzymes as appropriate biological catalysts under various harsh conditions.

Abbreviations: NTase: 5′-nucleotidase; SANTase: Shewanella amazonensis 5′-nucleotidase; SVNTase: Shewanella violacea 5′-nucleotidase; CD: circular dichroism     

Modification Effects of Organic Solvents on Microenvironment of the Enzyme in Thermolysin-catalyzed Peptide Synthesis of N-(Benzyloxycarbonyl)-l-phenylalanyl-l-phenylalanine Methyl Ester

Thermolysin-catalyzed peptide synthesis using N-benzyloxycarbonyl)-l-phenylalanine (Z-Phe) and l-phenylalanine methyl ester (Phe-OMe) as substrates was done mainly in a water-organic one phase solvent system. The organic solvent content used was less than the saturation concentration in buffer. With organic solvents with high log P values, the enzymatic activity increased as the organic solvent content increased; but further increases in the organic solvent content decreased the enzymatic activity, showing an “organic activity” profile. On the other hand, with organic solvents of low log P values, the enzymatic reaction was inhibited even by the initial addition of organic solvents. When a correlation between maximum activities and logP values or Hildebrand solubility parameters was investigated, a linear correlation was obtained among the same category of organic solvents, but not between categories. This suggests that the direct effect of organic solvents on the microenvironment of the enzyme largely depends on the molecular structure of the solvents.     

4种有机溶剂对蒙古裸腹溞急性和慢性毒性研究

研究了乙醇、二甲基亚砜、二甲基甲酰胺和丙酮对蒙古裸腹溞的急性和慢性毒性作用下的种群增长率(r_m)、产幼间隔、每胎产幼个数和产幼前发育期的影响研究。结果表明:四种有机物对蒙古裸腹溞毒性大小的顺序如下:二甲基甲酰胺>乙醇>二甲基亚砜>丙酮。蒙古裸腹溞的内禀增长率随着二甲基甲酰胺、乙醇浓度增加而下降。每胎产幼个数随着四种有机物浓度的增加而下降,产幼间隔随浓度增加而增加。内禀增长率是蒙古裸腹溞对有机物的毒性敏感的生殖毒理学指标。