The dual roles of AlgG in C-5-epimerization and secretion of alginate polymers in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains causing chronic pulmonary infections in cystic fibrosis patients produce high levels of alginate, an exopolysaccharide that confers a mucoid phenotype. Alginate is a linear polymer of d-mannuronate (M) and variable amounts of its C-5-epimer, l-guluronate (G). AlgG is a periplasmic C-5-epimerase that converts poly d-mannuronate to the mixed M+G sequence of alginate. To understand better the role and mechanism of AlgG activity, a mutant was constructed in the mucoid strain FRD1 with a defined non-polar deletion of algG. Instead of producing poly mannuronate, the algG deletion mutant secreted dialysable uronic acids, as does a mutant lacking the periplasmic protein AlgK. High levels of unsaturated ends and the nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy pattern revealed that the small, secreted uronic acids were the products of extensive polymer digestion by AlgL, a periplasmic alginate lyase co-expressed with AlgG and AlgK. Thus, AlgG is bifunctional with (i) epimerase activity and (ii) a role in protecting alginate from degradation by AlgL during transport through the periplasm. AlgK appears to share the second role. AlgG and AlgK may be part of a periplasmic protein complex, or scaffold, that guides alginate polymers to the outer membrane secretin (AlgE). To characterize the epimerase activity of AlgG further, the algG4 allele of poly mannuronate-producing FRD462 was shown to encode a protein lacking only the epimerase function. The sequence of algG4 has a Ser-272 to Asn substitution in a serine-threonine-rich and conserved region of AlgG, which revealed a critical residue for C-5-epimerase activity.     

The Pseudomonas fluorescens AlgG protein,but not its mannuronan C-5-epimerase activity,is needed for alginate polymer formation

Bacterial alginates are produced as 1-4-linked beta-D-mannuronan, followed by epimerization of some of the mannuronic acid residues to alpha-L-guluronic acid. Here we report the isolation of four different epimerization-defective point mutants of the periplasmic Pseudomonas fluorescens mannuronan C-5-epimerase AlgG. All mutations affected amino acids conserved among AlgG-epimerases and were clustered in a part of the enzyme also sharing some sequence similarity to a group of secreted epimerases previously reported in Azotobacter vinelandii. An algG-deletion mutant was constructed and found to produce predominantly a dimer containing a 4-deoxy-L-erythro-hex-4-enepyranosyluronate residue at the nonreducing end and a mannuronic acid residue at the reducing end. The production of this dimer is the result of the activity of an alginate lyase, AlgL, whose in vivo activity is much more limited in the presence of AlgG. A strain expressing both an epimerase-defective (point mutation) and a wild-type epimerase was constructed and shown to produce two types of alginate molecules: one class being pure mannuronan and the other having the wild-type content of guluronic acid residues. This formation of two distinct classes of polymers in a genetically pure cell line can be explained by assuming that AlgG is part of a periplasmic protein complex.     

The catalytic activities of the bifunctional Azotobacter vinelandii mannuronan C-5-epimerase and alginate lyase AlgE7 probably originate from the same active site in the enzyme

The Azotobacter vinelandii genome encodes a family of seven secreted Ca(2+)-dependent epimerases (AlgE1--7) catalyzing the polymer level epimerization of beta-D-mannuronic acid (M) to alpha-L-guluronic acid (G) in the commercially important polysaccharide alginate. AlgE1--7 are composed of two types of protein modules, A and R, and the A-modules have previously been found to be sufficient for epimerization. AlgE7 is both an epimerase and an alginase, and here we show that the lyase activity is Ca(2+)-dependent and also responds similarly to the epimerases in the presence of other divalent cations. The AlgE7 lyase degraded M-rich alginates and a relatively G-rich alginate from the brown algae Macrocystis pyrifera most effectively, producing oligomers of 4 (mannuronan) to 7 units. The sequences cleaved were mainly G/MM and/or G/GM. Since G-moieties dominated at the reducing ends even when mannuronan was used as substrate, the AlgE7 epimerase probably stimulates the lyase pathway, indicating a complex interplay between the two activities. A truncated form of AlgE1 (AlgE1-1) was converted to a combined epimerase and lyase by replacing the 5'-798 base pairs in the algE1-1 gene with the corresponding A-module-encoding DNA sequence from algE7. Furthermore, substitution of an aspartic acid residue at position 152 with glycine in AlgE7A eliminated almost all of both the lyase and epimerase activities. Epimerization and lyase activity are believed to be mechanistically related, and the results reported here strongly support this hypothesis by suggesting that the same enzymatic site can catalyze both reactions.     

Expression of SA5K, a secretion antigen of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, inside human macrophages and in sputum from tuberculosis patients

The Azotobacter vinelandii mannuronan C-5 epimerases AlgE1-7 can be used to improve the properties of the commercially important polysaccharide alginate that is widely used in a variety of products, such as food and pharmaceuticals. Since lactic acid bacteria are generally regarded as safe, they are attractive candidates for production of the epimerases. A. vinelandii genes are GC-rich, in contrast to those of lactic acid bacteria, but we show here that significant expression levels of the epimerase AlgE6 can be obtained in Lactococcus lactis using the nisin-controlled expression system. A 1200-fold induction ratio was obtained resulting in an epimerase activity of 23900 dpm mg(-1) h(-1), using a tritiated alginate substrate. The epimerase was detected by Western blotting and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy analysis of its reaction product showed that the enzyme displayed catalytic properties similar to those produced in Escherichia coli.     

Pseudomonas aeruginosa AlgG is a polymer level alginate C5-mannuronan epimerase.

Alginate is a viscous extracellular polymer produced by mucoid strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa that cause chronic pulmonary infections in patients with cystic fibrosis. Alginate is polymerized from GDP-mannuronate to a linear polymer of beta-1-4-linked residues of D-mannuronate and its C5-epimer, L-guluronate. We previously identified a gene called algG in the alginate biosynthetic operon that is required for incorporation of L-guluronate residues into alginate. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the product of algG is a C5-epimerase that directly converts D-mannuronate to L-guluronate. The DNA sequence of algG was determined, and an open reading frame encoding a protein (AlgG) of approximately 60 kDa was identified. The inferred amino terminus of AlgG protein contained a putative signal sequence of 35 amino acids. Expression of algG in Escherichia coli demonstrated both 60-kDa pre-AlgG and 55-kDa mature AlgG proteins, the latter of which was localized to the periplasm. An N-terminal analysis of AlgG showed that the signal sequence was removed in the mature form. Pulse-chase experiments in both E. coli and P. aeruginosa provided evidence for conversion of the 60- to the 55-kDa size in vivo. Expression of algG from a plasmid inan algG (i.e., polymannuronate-producing) mutant of P. aeruginosa restored production of an alginate containing L-guluronate residues. The observation that AlgG is apparently processed and exported from the cytoplasm suggested that it may act as a polymer-level mannuronan C5-epimerase. An in vitro assay for mannuronan C5 epimerization was developed wherein extracts of E. coli expressing high levels of AlgG were incubated with polymannuronate. Epimerization of D-mannuronate to L-guluronate residues in the polymer was detected enzymatically, using a L-guluronate-specific alginate lyase of Klebsiella aerogenes. Epimerization was also detected in the in vitro reaction between recombinant AlgG and poly-D-mannuronate, using high-performance anion-exchange chromatography. The epimerization reaction was detected only when acetyl groups were removed from the poly-D-mannuronate substrate, suggesting that AlgG epimerization activity in vivo may be sensitive to acetylation of the D-mannuronan residues. These results demonstrate that AlgG has polymer-level mannuronan C5-epimerase activity.     

Role of the Pseudomonas fluorescens alginate lyase (AlgL) in clearing the periplasm of alginates not exported to the extracellular environment

Alginate is an industrially widely used polysaccharide produced by brown seaweeds and as an exopolysaccharide by bacteria belonging to the genera Pseudomonas and Azotobacter. The polymer is composed of the two sugar monomers mannuronic acid and guluronic acid (G), and in all these bacteria the genes encoding 12 of the proteins essential for synthesis of the polymer are clustered in the genome. Interestingly, 1 of the 12 proteins is an alginate lyase (AlgL), which is able to degrade the polymer down to short oligouronides. The reason why this lyase is associated with the biosynthetic complex is not clear, but in this paper we show that the complete lack of AlgL activity in Pseudomonas fluorescens in the presence of high levels of alginate synthesis is toxic to the cells. This toxicity increased with the level of alginate synthesis. Furthermore, alginate synthesis became reduced in the absence of AlgL, and the polymers contained much less G residues than in the wild-type polymer. To explain these results and other data previously reported in the literature, we propose that the main biological function of AlgL is to degrade alginates that fail to become exported out of the cell and thereby become stranded in the periplasmic space. At high levels of alginate synthesis in the absence of AlgL, such stranded polymers may accumulate in the periplasm to such an extent that the integrity of the cell is lost, leading to the observed toxic effects.     

Characterization of Three New Azotobacter vinelandii Alginate Lyases,One of Which Is Involved in Cyst Germination

Alginates are polysaccharides composed of 1-4-linked β-d-mannuronic acid and α-l-guluronic acid. The polymer can be degraded by alginate lyases, which cleave the polysaccharide using a β-elimination reaction. Two such lyases have previously been identified in the soil bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii, as follows: the periplasmic AlgL and the secreted bifunctional mannuronan C-5 epimerase and alginate lyase AlgE7. In this work, we describe the properties of three new lyases from this bacterium, AlyA1, AlyA2, and AlyA3, all of which belong to the PL7 family of polysaccharide lyases. One of the enzymes, AlyA3, also contains a C-terminal module similar to those of proteins secreted by a type I secretion system, and its activity is stimulated by Ca²⁺. All three enzymes preferably cleave the bond between guluronic acid and mannuronic acid, resulting in a guluronic acid residue at the new reducing end, but AlyA3 also degrades the other three possible bonds in alginate. Strains containing interrupted versions of alyA1, alyA3, and algE7 were constructed, and their phenotypes were analyzed. Genetically pure alyA2 mutants were not obtained, suggesting that this gene product may be important for the bacterium during vegetative growth. After centrifugation, cultures from the algE7 mutants form a large pellet containing alginate, indicating that AlgE7 is involved in the release of alginate from the cells. Upon encountering adverse growth conditions, A. vinelandii will form a resting stage called cyst. Alginate is a necessary part of the protective cyst coat, and we show here that strains lacking alyA3 germinate poorly compared to wild-type cells.Azotobacter vinelandii is a nitrogen-fixing bacterium found in soil. A. vinelandii and several species belonging to the related genus Pseudomonas have been found to produce the polymer alginate. This linear, extracellular polysaccharide is composed of 1-4-linked β-d-mannuronic acid (M) and its C-5 epimer α-l-guluronic acid (G) (35), and the relative amount and distribution of these two residues vary according to the species and growth conditions. Some of the M residues in bacterial alginates may be O acetylated at C-2, C-3, or both C-2 and C-3 (34).Alginate is first synthesized as mannuronan, and the G residues are introduced by mannuronan C-5 epimerases. All genome-sequenced alginate-producing bacteria have been found to encode a periplasmic epimerase, AlgG, that epimerizes some of the M residues in the polymer into G residues (40). AlgG seems to be unable to epimerize an M residue next to a preexisting G residue in vivo. A. vinelandii also encodes a family of secreted mannuronan C-5 epimerases (AlgE1-7) (40), some of which are able to form stretches of consecutive G residues (G blocks). Alginates containing G blocks can be cross-linked by divalent cations and thereby form gels (35).Polysaccharide lyases (EC 4.2.2.-) are a group of enzymes which cleave the polymer chains via a β-elimination mechanism, resulting in the formation of a double bond at the newly formed nonreducing end. For alginate lyases, 4-deoxy-l-erythro-hex-4-enepyranosyluronate (denoted as Δ) is formed at the nonreducing end. Several such lyases have been purified from both alginate-producing and alginate-degrading organisms, as reviewed by Wong et al. (42). When they are classified according to primary structure, the alginate lyases belong to the polysaccharide-degrading enzyme families PL5, PL6, PL7, PL14, PL17, and PL18 (http://www.cazy.org). Alginate molecules may contain four different bonds (M-M, M-G, G-M, and G-G), and alginate lyases may therefore be classified according to their preferred substrate specificities. It is now possible to obtain pure mannuronan and nearly pure (MG)_n and G blocks (17, 19, 20), and this allows for an improved assessment of the substrate specificities of the alginate lyases.The following two alginate lyases have been characterized in A. vinelandii: the periplasmic AlgL that belongs to the PL5 family (15) and the extracellular bifunctional mannuronan C-5 epimerase and alginate lyase AlgE7 (36, 37). AlgL is encoded by the alginate biosynthesis operon, similar to what has been found in all characterized alginate-producing bacteria. This enzyme cleaves M-M and M-G bonds (15), while AlgE7 preferably degrades G-MM and G-GM bonds (37). The latter enzyme is also able to introduce G residues in the alginate, thus creating the preferred substrate for the lyase.When A. vinelandii experiences a lack of nutrients, it will develop into a dormant cell designated cyst (30). The cell is then protected against desiccation by a multilayered coat, of which gel-forming alginate is a necessary part. Resuspension of cysts in a medium containing glucose leads to a germination process in which vegetative cells eventually escape from the cyst coat. It has been proposed that an alginate lyase may be involved in the rupture of the coat (43). AlgL is dispensable for germination (38), while the biological function of AlgE7 is unknown. In this report, we use the available draft genome sequence of A. vinelandii to identify three additional putative lyases and evaluate their and AlgE7''s role in growth, encystment, and germination of the bacterium.     

Catalytic Mechanism and Mode of Action of the Periplasmic Alginate Epimerase AlgG

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that forms chronic biofilm infections in the lungs of cystic fibrosis patients. A major component of the biofilm during these infections is the exopolysaccharide alginate, which is synthesized at the inner membrane as a homopolymer of 1–4-linked β-d-mannuronate. As the polymer passages through the periplasm, 22–44% of the mannuronate residues are converted to α-l-guluronate by the C5-epimerase AlgG to produce a polymer of alternating β-d-mannuronate and α-l-guluronate blocks and stretches of polymannuronate. To understand the molecular basis of alginate epimerization, the structure of Pseudomonas syringae AlgG has been determined at 2.1-Å resolution, and the protein was functionally characterized. The structure reveals that AlgG is a long right-handed parallel β-helix with an elaborate lid structure. Functional analysis of AlgG mutants suggests that His³¹⁹ acts as the catalytic base and that Arg³⁴⁵ neutralizes the acidic group during the epimerase reaction. Water is the likely catalytic acid. Electrostatic surface potential and residue conservation analyses in conjunction with activity and substrate docking studies suggest that a conserved electropositive groove facilitates polymannuronate binding and contains at least nine substrate binding subsites. These subsites likely align the polymer in the correct register for catalysis to occur. The presence of multiple subsites, the electropositive groove, and the non-random distribution of guluronate in the alginate polymer suggest that AlgG is a processive enzyme. Moreover, comparison of AlgG and the extracellular alginate epimerase AlgE4 of Azotobacter vinelandii provides a structural rationale for the differences in their Ca²⁺ dependence.     

Structural and Functional Characterization of the R-modules in Alginate C-5 Epimerases AlgE4 and AlgE6 from Azotobacter vinelandii

The bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii produces a family of seven secreted and calcium-dependent mannuronan C-5 epimerases (AlgE1–7). These epimerases are responsible for the epimerization of β-d-mannuronic acid (M) to α-l-guluronic acid (G) in alginate polymers. The epimerases display a modular structure composed of one or two catalytic A-modules and from one to seven R-modules having an activating effect on the A-module. In this study, we have determined the NMR structure of the three individual R-modules from AlgE6 (AR1R2R3) and the overall structure of both AlgE4 (AR) and AlgE6 using small angle x-ray scattering. Furthermore, the alginate binding ability of the R-modules of AlgE4 and AlgE6 has been studied with NMR and isothermal titration calorimetry. The AlgE6 R-modules fold into an elongated parallel β-roll with a shallow, positively charged groove across the module. Small angle x-ray scattering analyses of AlgE4 and AlgE6 show an overall elongated shape with some degree of flexibility between the modules for both enzymes. Titration of the R-modules with defined alginate oligomers shows strong interaction between AlgE4R and both oligo-M and MG, whereas no interaction was detected between these oligomers and the individual R-modules from AlgE6. A combination of all three R-modules from AlgE6 shows weak interaction with long M-oligomers. Exchanging the R-modules between AlgE4 and AlgE6 resulted in a novel epimerase called AlgE64 with increased G-block forming ability compared with AlgE6.     

Structure and function of a hypothetical Pseudomonas aeruginosa protein PA1167 classified into family PL-7: a novel alginate lyase with a beta-sandwich fold

Structural and functional analyses of alginate lyases are important in the clarification of the biofilm-dependent ecosystem in Pseudomonas aeruginosa and in the development of therapeutic agents for bacterial disease. Most alginate lyases are classified into polysaccharide lyase (PL) family-5 and -7 based on their primary structures. Family PL-7 enzymes are still poorly characterized especially in structural properties. Among family PL-7, a gene coding for a hypothetical protein (PA1167) homologous to Sphingomonas alginate lyase A1-II was found to be present in the P. aeruginosa genome. PA1167 overexpressed in Escherichia coli cleaved glycosidic bonds in alginate and released unsaturated saccharides, indicating that PA1167 is an alginate lyase catalyzing a beta-elimination reaction. The enzyme acted preferably on heteropolymeric regions endolytically and worked most efficiently at pH 8.5 and 40 degrees C. The specific activity of PA1167, however, was much weaker than that of the known alginate lyase AlgL, suggesting that AlgL plays a main role in alginate depolymerization in P. aeruginosa. In addition to this specific activity, differences were found between PA1167 and AlgL in enzyme properties such as molecular mass, optimum pH, salt effect, and substrate specificity. The first crystal structure of the family PL-7 alginate lyase was determined at 2.0 A resolution. PA1167 was found to form a glove-like beta-sandwich composed of 15 beta-strands and 3 alpha-helices. The structural difference between the beta-sandwich PA1167 of family PL-7 and alpha/alpha-barrel AlgL of family PL-5 may be responsible for the enzyme characteristics. Crystal structures of polysaccharide lyases determined so far indicate that they can be assigned to three folding groups having parallel beta-helix, alpha/alpha-barrel, and alpha/alpha-barrel + antiparallel beta-sheet structures as basic frames. PA1167 is the fourth novel folding structure found among polysaccharide lyases.     

Single-molecular pair unbinding studies of Mannuronan C-5 epimerase AlgE4 and its polymer substrate

Alginate biosynthesis involves C-5-mannuronan epimerases catalyzing the conversion of beta-D-mannuronic acid to alpha-L-guluronic acid at the polymer level. Mannuronan epimerases are modular enzymes where the various modules yield specific sequential patterns of the converted residues in their polymer products. Here, the interaction between the AlgE4 epimerase and mannuronan is determined by dynamic force spectroscopy. The specific unbinding between molecular pairs of mannuronan and AlgE4 as well as its two modules, A and R, respectively, was studied as a function of force loading rate. The mean protein-mannuronan unbinding forces were determined to be in the range 73-144 pN, depending on the protein, at a loading rate of 0.6 nN/s, and increased with increasing loading rate. The position of the activation barrier was determined to be 0.23 +/- 0.04 nm for the AlgE4 and 0.10 +/- 0.02 nm for its A-module. The lack of interaction observed between the R-module and mannuronan suggest that the A-module contains the binding site for the polymer substrate. The ratio between the epimerase-mannuronan dissociation rate and the catalytic rate for epimerization of single hexose residues suggests a processive mode of action of the AlgE4 epimerase yielding the observed sequence pattern in the uronan associated with the A-module of this enzyme.     

The Azotobacter vinelandii AlgE mannuronan C-5-epimerase family is essential for the in vivo control of alginate monomer composition and for functional cyst formation

The industrially widely used polysaccharide alginate is a co-polymer of β- d -mannuronic acid and α- l -guluronic acid (G), and the G residues originate from a polymer-level epimerization process catalysed by mannuronan C-5-epimerases. In the genome of the alginate-producing bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii genes encoding one periplasmic (AlgG) and seven secreted such epimerases (AlgE1–7) have been identified. Here we report the generation of a strain (MS163171) in which all the algE genes were inactivated by deletion ( algE1–4 and algE6–7 ) or interruption ( algE5 ). Shake flask-grown MS163171 produced a polymer containing less than 2% G ( algG still active), while wild-type alginates contained 25% G. Interestingly, addition of proteases to the MS163171 growth medium resulted in a strong increase in the chain lengths of the alginates produced. MS163171 was found to be unable to form functional cysts, which is a desiccation-resistant differentiated form developed by A. vinelandii under certain environmental conditions. We also generated mutants carrying interruptions in each separate algE gene, and a strain containing algE5 only. Studies of these mutants indicated that single algE gene inactivations, with the exception of algE3 , did not affect the fractional G content much. However, for all strains tested the alginate composition varied somewhat as a response to the growth conditions.     

A Novel Alginate Lyase with High Activity on Acetylated Alginate of Pseudomonas aeruginosa FRD1 from Pseudomonas sp. QD03

Summary To exploit alginate lyase which could degrade bacterial alginates, degenerate PCR and long range-inverse PCR (LR-IPCR) were used to isolate alginate lyase genes from soil bacteria. Gene algL, an alginate lyase-encoding gene from Pseudomonas sp. QD03 was cloned, and it was composed of a 1122 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding 373 amino acid residues with the calculated molecular mass of 42.2 kDa. The deduced protein had a potential N-terminal signal peptide of 20 amino acid residues that was consistent with its proposed periplasmic location. Gene algL was expressed in pET24a (+)/E. coli BL21 (DE3) system. The recombinant AlgL was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity using affinity chromatography. The molecular weight of AlgL was estimated to be 42.8 kDa by SDS-PAGE. AlgL exhibited maximal activity at pH 7.5 and 37 °C. Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺ and Ba²⁺ significantly enhanced the activity of AlgL. AlgL could degrade alginate and mannuronate blocks, but hardly degrade guluronate blocks. In particular, AlgL could degrade acetylated alginate of Pseudomonas aeruginosa FRD1 (approximately 0.54 mol of O-acetyl group per mol of alginate). It might be possible to use alginate lyase AlgL as an adjuvant therapeutic medicine for the treatment of disease associated with P. aeruginosa infection.     

Mannuronan C-5 epimerases and cellular differentiation of Azotobacter vinelandii

Differentiation in Azotobacter vinelandii involves the encystment of the vegetative cell under adverse environmental circumstances and the germination of the resting cell into the vegetative state when growth conditions are satisfactory again. Morphologically, the encystment process involves the development of a protective coat around the resting cell. This coat partly consists of multiple layers of alginate, which is a co-polymer of β- d -mannuronic acid (M) and α- l -guluronic acid (G). Alginate contributes to coat rigidity by virtue of a high content of GG blocks. Such block structures are generated through a family of mannuronan C-5 epimerases that convert M to G after polymerization. Results from immunodetection and light microscopy, using stains that distinguish between different cyst components and types, indicate a correlation between cyst coat organization and the amount and appearance of mannuronan C-5 epimerases in the extracellular medium and attached to the cells. Specific roles of individual members of the epimerase family are indicated. Calcium and magnesium ions appear to have different roles in the structural organization of the cyst coat. Also reported is a new gene sharing strong sequence homology with parts of the epimerase-encoded R-modules. This gene is located within the epimerase gene cluster of Azotobacter vinelandii .     

Molecular modeling and redesign of alginate lyase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa for accelerating CRPA biofilm degradation

Administration of an efficient alginate lyase (AlgL) or AlgL mutant may be a promising therapeutic strategy for treatment of cystic fibrosis patients with Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections. Nevertheless, the catalytic activity of wild‐type AlgL is not sufficiently high. It is highly desired to design and discover an AlgL mutant with significantly improved catalytic efficiency against alginate substrates. For the purpose of identifying an AlgL mutant with significantly improved catalytic activity, in this study, we first constructed and validated a structural model of AlgL interacting with substrate, providing a better understanding of the interactions between AlgL and its substrate. Based on the modeling insights, further enzyme redesign and experimental testing led to discovery of AlgL mutants, including the K197D/K321A mutant, with significantly improved catalytic activities against alginate and acetylated alginate in ciprofloxacin‐resistant P. aeruginosa (CRPA) biofilms. Further anti‐biofilm activity assays have confirmed that the K197D/K321A mutant with piperacillin/tazobactam is indeed effective in degrading the CRPA biofilms. Co‐administration of the potent mutant AlgL and an antibiotic (such as a nebulizer) could be effective for therapeutic treatment of CRPA‐infected patients with cystic fibrosis. Proteins 2016; 84:1875–1887. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The A modules of the Azotobacter vinelandii mannuronan-C-5-epimerase AlgE1 are sufficient for both epimerization and binding of Ca2+.

The industrially important polysaccharide alginate is composed of the two sugar monomers beta-D-mannuronic acid (M) and its epimer alpha-L-guluronic acid (G). In the bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii, the G residues originate from a polymer-level reaction catalyzed by one periplasmic and at least five secreted mannuronan C-5-epimerases. The secreted enzymes are composed of repeats of two protein modules designated A (385 amino acids) and R (153 amino acids). The modular structure of one of the epimerases, AlgE1, is A1R1R2R3A2R4. This enzyme has two catalytic sites for epimerization, each site introducing a different G distribution pattern, and in this article we report the DNA-level construction of a variety of truncated forms of the enzyme. Analyses of the properties of the corresponding proteins showed that an A module alone is sufficient for epimerization and that A1 catalyzed the formation of contiguous stretches of G residues in the polymer, while A2 introduces single G residues. These differences are predicted to strongly affect the physical and immunological properties of the reaction product. The epimerization reaction is Ca2+ dependent, and direct binding studies showed that both the A and R modules bind this cation. The R modules appeared to reduce the Ca2+ concentration needed for full activity and also stimulated the reaction rate when positioned both N and C terminally.     

NMR structure of the R-module: a parallel beta-roll subunit from an Azotobacter vinelandii mannuronan C-5 epimerase

In the bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii, a family of seven secreted and calcium-dependent mannuronan C-5 epimerases (AlgE1-7) has been identified. These epimerases are responsible for the epimerization of beta-d-mannuronic acid to alpha-l-guluronic acid in alginate polymers. The epimerases consist of two types of structural modules, designated A (one or two copies) and R (one to seven copies). The structure of the catalytically active A-module from the smallest epimerase AlgE4 (consisting of AR) has been solved recently. This paper describes the NMR structure of the R-module from AlgE4 and its titration with a substrate analogue and paramagnetic thulium ions. The R-module folds into a right-handed parallel beta-roll. The overall shape of the R-module is an elongated molecule with a positively charged patch that interacts with the substrate. Titration of the R-module with thulium indicated possible calcium binding sites in the loops formed by the nonarepeat sequences in the N-terminal part of the molecule and the importance of calcium binding for the stability of the R-module. Structure calculations showed that calcium ions can be incorporated in these loops without structural violations and changes. Based on the structure and the electrostatic surface potential of both the A- and R-module from AlgE4, a model for the appearance of the whole protein is proposed.     

Alginate production by an <Emphasis Type="Italic">Azotobacter vinelandii</Emphasis> mutant unable to produce alginate lyase

Alginate is an industrially relevant linear copolymer composed of beta-1,4-linked D-mannuronic acid and its C-5 epimer L-guluronic acid. The rheological and gel-forming properties of alginates depend on the molecular weight and the relative content of the two monomers. Alginate produced by Azotobacter vinelandii was shown to be degraded towards the end of the culture, an undesirable situation in terms of potential alginate applications. A gene ( algL) encoding the alginate lyase activity AlgL is present within the alginate biosynthetic gene cluster of A. vinelandii. We constructed strain SML2, an A. vinelandii strain carrying a non-polar mutation within algL. No alginate lyase activity was detected in SML2. Under 3% dissolved oxygen tension, higher values of maximum mean molecular weight alginate were obtained (1240 kDa) with strain SML2, compared to those from the parental strain ATCC 9046 (680 kDa). These data indicate that AlgL activity causes the drop in the molecular weight of alginate produced by A. vinelandii.     

Identification and characterization of an Azotobacter vinelandii type I secretion system responsible for export of the AlgE-type mannuronan C-5-epimerases

Alginate is a linear copolymer of beta-d-mannuronic acid and its C-5-epimer, alpha-l-guluronic acid. During biosynthesis, the polymer is first made as mannuronan, and various fractions of the monomers are then epimerized to guluronic acid by mannuronan C-5-epimerases. The Azotobacter vinelandii genome encodes a family of seven extracellular such epimerases (AlgE1 to AlgE7) which display motifs characteristic for proteins secreted via a type I pathway. Putative ATPase-binding cassette regions from the genome draft sequence of the A. vinelandii OP strain and experimentally verified type I transporters from other species were compared. This analysis led to the identification of one putative A. vinelandii type I system (eexDEF). The corresponding genes were individually disrupted in A. vinelandii strain E, and Western blot analysis using polyclonal antibodies against all AlgE epimerases showed that these proteins were present in wild-type culture supernatants but absent from the eex mutant supernatants. Consistent with this, the wild-type strain and the eex mutants produced alginate with about 20% guluronic acid and almost pure mannuronan (< or =2% guluronic acid), respectively. The A. vinelandii wild type is able to enter a particular desiccation-tolerant resting stage designated cyst. At this stage, the cells are surrounded by a rigid coat in which alginate is a major constituent. Such a coat was formed by wild-type cells in a particular growth medium but was missing in the eex mutants. These mutants were also found to be unable to survive desiccation. The reason for this is probably that continuous stretches of guluronic acid residues are needed for alginate gel formation to take place.