A Rapid Screening Test for Aflatoxin-synthesizing Aspergilli of the flavus-oryzae Group

A rapid test for the recognition of aflatoxin-synthesizing strains of the Aspergillus flavus–oryzae group is described. For this purpose the strains are cultivated on Czapek–Dox agar enriched with an aqueous extract of groundnuts, and in which sodium nitrate is replaced by ammonium chloride. Toxin production is observed by the production of a bright blue fluorescence in the medium when placed under an ultraviolet lamp.     

Phosphorylation of phospholipase C-gamma by cAMP-dependent protein kinase

The mechanism by which cAMP modulates the activity of phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C (PLC) was studied. Elevation of cAMP inhibited both basal and norepinephrine-stimulated phosphoinositide breakdown in C6Bu1 cells which contain at least three PLC isozymes, PLC-beta, PLC-gamma, and PLC-delta. Treatment of C6Bu1 cells with cAMP-elevating agents (cholera toxin, isobutylmethylxanthine, forskolin, and 8-bromo-cAMP) increased serine phosphate in PLC-gamma, but the phosphate contents in PLC-beta and PLC-delta were not changed. In addition, cAMP-dependent protein kinase selectively phosphorylated purified PLC-gamma among the three isozymes and added a single phosphate at serine. The serine phosphorylation, nevertheless, did not affect the activity of PLC-gamma in vitro. We propose, therefore, that the phosphorylation of PLC-gamma by cAMP-dependent protein kinase alters its interaction with putative modulatory proteins and leads to its inhibition.     

Tyrosine phosphorylation of phospholipase C-II in vitro by the epidermal growth factor receptor

In a number of cell lines, epidermal growth factor (EGF) rapidly stimulates the breakdown of inositol phospholipids. Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PLC), therefore, plays an important role in this biological response to EGF, but the mechanism by which EGF-receptor complexes modulate the activation of PLC is not understood. We have previously suggested that tyrosine phosphorylation of PLC or an unknown PLC-associated protein by the EGF receptor is involved in the activation process (Wahl, M. I., Daniel, T. O., and Carpenter, G. (1988) Science 241, 968-970) and have recently shown by immunoprecipitation that the addition of EGF to 32P-labeled cells increases tyrosine and serine phosphorylation of PLC-II (Wahl, M. I., Nishibe, S., Suh, P.-G., Rhee, S. G., and Carpenter, G. (1989) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 86, 1568-1572). In this communication we demonstrate that PLC-II (Mr = 145,000) purified from bovine brain can be phosphorylated in vitro in an EGF-dependent manner by the tyrosine kinase activity of the purified EGF receptor. While PLC-II is an efficient phosphorylation substrate for the purified EGF receptor, PLC-I is a poor substrate and PLC-III is not phosphorylated to any detectable extent. Though all three PLC isozymes possess typical tyrosine phosphorylation sequences, the EGF receptor is surprisingly selective in vitro for the phosphorylation of PLC-II. High performance liquid chromatography comparison of tryptic phosphotyrosyl peptides from PLC-II phosphorylated in vivo and in vitro indicated a similar pattern of multiple tyrosine phosphorylation sites. These findings show that the EGF receptor can directly phosphorylate PLC-II in an efficient and selective manner.     

A Protein Kinase-Dependent Block to Reinitiation of DNA Replication in G2 Phase in Mammalian Cells

Eukaryotic cells normally replicate their DNA only once between mitoses. Unlike G1 nuclei, intact G2 nuclei do not replicate during incubation inXenopusegg extract. However, artificial permeabilization of the nuclear membrane of G2 nuclei allows induction of new initiations byXenopusegg extract. This is consistent with the action of a replication licensing factor which is believed to enter the nucleus when the nuclear membrane breaks down at mitosis. Here, we show that G2 nuclei will initiate a new round of replication in the absence of nuclear membrane permeabilization, if they are preexposed to protein kinase inhibitorsin vivo.Competence to rereplicate is generated within 30 min of drug treatment, well before the scheduled onset of mitosis. This demonstrates that a protein kinase-dependent mechanism is continually active in G2 phase to actively prevent regeneration of replication capacity in mammalian cells. Kinase inhibition in G2 cells causes nuclear accumulation of replication protein A. Rereplication of kinase-inhibited G2 nuclei also depends on factors supplied byXenopusegg extract, which are distinct from those required for replication licensing.     

Effect of soybean oil on the enhanced expression of hirudin gene in Hansenula polymorpha

Summary A heterologous gene from bloodsucking leech for anticoagulant, hirudin, has been expressed in the methylotrophic yeast Hansenula polymorpha. The addition of 1%(v/v) soybean oil to the medium as a stabilizer enhanced the expression of the hirudin gene in H. polymorpha with MOX promoter. The production of hirudin in the medium with soybean oil was 320mg/L in a 5L fermenter.     

Optimal conditions for levan formation by an overexpressed recombinant levansucrase

Summary A genetically modified levansucrase, which contained His-affinity tag in its C-terminal, was constructed by PCR reaction using two synthetic primers. This modified protein was produced up to 30 % in total cell protein of E. coli, and was purified by a one-step affinity chromatography. The optimum pH for levan production was pH 5 and the optimum temperature was 0 °C. The higher velocity of levan formation within shorter enzyme reaction times was achieved by increasing the levels of enzyme concentration. The optimal sucrose concentration for levan production was around 20 %. Under these conditions, more than 50 g levan/l was produced.     

Phosphorylation of serine-15 of maize leaf sucrose synthase. Occurrence in vivo and possible regulatory significance.

Experiments were conducted to determine whether sucrose synthase (SuSy) was phosphorylated in the elongation zone of maize (Zea mays L.) leaves. The approximately 90-kD subunit of SuSy was 32P-labeled on seryl residue(s) when excised shoots were fed [32P]orthophosphate. Both isoforms of SuSy (the SS1 and SS2 proteins) were phosphorylated in vivo, and tryptic peptide-mapping analysis suggested a single, similar phosphorylation site in both proteins. A combination of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and automated Edman sequencing analysis unequivocally identified the phosphorylation site in the maize SS2 protein as serine-15. This site was phosphorylated in vitro by endogenous protein kinase(s) in a strictly Ca(2+)-dependent manner. A synthetic peptide, based on the phosphorylation site sequence, was used to identify and partially purify an endogenous Ca(2+)-dependent protein kinase(s) from the maize leaf elongation zone and expanding spinach leaves. Phosphorylation of SuSy in vitro selectively activates the cleavage reaction by increasing the apparent affinity of the enzyme for sucrose and UDP, suggesting that phosphorylation may be of regulatory significance. Conservation of the phosphorylation site, and the sequences surrounding it, among plant species suggests that phosphorylation of SuSy may be widespread, if not universal, in plants.     

Biodegradation of pyridine by freely suspended and immobilized Pimelobacter sp.

Freely suspended and Ca-alginate-immobilized cells of Pimelobacter sp. were used for degradation of pyridine. When the pyridine concentration was up to 2 g l^–1, freely suspended cells completely degraded pyridine regardless of the initial cell concentrations used. However, when the pyridine concentration increased to 4 g l^–1, the initial cell concentration in freely suspended cell culture should be higher than 1.5 g dry cell weight l^–1 for complete degradation of pyridine. In addition, a freely suspended cell culture with a high initial cell concentration resulted in a high volumetric pyridine-degradation rate, suggesting the potential use of immobilized cells for pyridine-degradation. When the immobilized cells were used for pyridine-degradation, neither specific pyridine-degradation rate nor tolerance against pyridine was improved. However, a high volumetric pyridine-degradation rate in the range 0.082–0.129 g l^–1 hr^–1 could be achieved by the immobilized cells because of the high cell concentration. Furthermore, when the immobilized cells were reused in degrading pyridine at a concentration of 2–4 g l^–1 they did not lose their pyridine-degrading activity for 2 weeks. Taken together, the data obtained here showed the feasibility of using immobilized cells for pyridine-degradation.     

Hydrolysis of triglyceride by the whole cell of Pseudomonas putida 3SK in two-phase batch and continuous reactors systems

Batch and continuous hydrolysis of olive oil in an organic-aqueous two-phase system using the live whole cell of Pseudomonas putida 3SK as a source of a lipase is investigated. The strain was not only fully viable and grown well, but also produced extracellular lipase simultaneously. The degree of hydrolysis, depending on olive oil concentration in the solvents, was maximal at 13.5% (w/v) and decreased with the increase of the substrate concentration. At the optimal condition, a degree of hydrolysis higher than 95% was achieved with 24 h at 30 degrees C when the reaction was carried out in a two-phase batch stirred reactor. For long-term operation a continuous stirred reactor was designed. When the reaction was carried out in a continuous stirred reactor, the degree was hydrolysis reached 86% at a dilution rate of 0.2 h(-1). Satisfactory performance of a two-phase bioreactor was obtained in a long-term continous operation, which lasted for at least 30 days by feeding organic solvent containing olive oil and aqueous media separately. (c) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.