Effect of transferring 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase genes into Pseudomonas fluorescens strain CHA0 and its gacA derivative CHA96 on their growth-promoting and disease-suppressive capacities

Pseudomonas fluorescens strain CHA0, a root colonizing bacterium, has a broad spectrum of biocontrol activity against plant diseases. However, strain CHA0 is unable to utilize 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), the immediate precursor of plant ethylene, as a sole source of nitrogen. This suggests that CHA0 does not contain the enzyme ACC deaminase, which cleaves ACC to ammonia and alpha-ketobutyrate, and was previously shown to promote root elongation of plant seedlings treated with bacteria containing this enzyme. An ACC deaminase gene, together with its regulatory region, was transferred into P. fluorescens strains CHA0 and CHA96, a global regulatory gacA mutant of CHA0. ACC deaminase activity was expressed in both CHA0 and CHA96. Transformed strains with ACC deaminase activity increased root length of canola plants under gnotobiotic conditions, whereas strains without this activity had no effect. Introduction of ACC deaminase genes into strain CHA0 improved its ability to protect cucumber against Pythium damping-off, and potato tubers against Erwinia soft rot in small hermetically sealed containers. In contrast, ACC deaminase activity had no significant effect on the ability of CHA0 to protect tomato against Fusarium crown and root rot, and potato tubers against soft rot in large hermetically sealed containers. These results suggest that (i) ACC deaminase activity may have lowered the level of plant ethylene thereby increasing root length; (ii) the role of stress-generated plant ethylene in susceptibility or resistance depends on the host-pathogen system, and on the experimental conditions used; and (iii) the constructed strains could be developed as biosensors for the role of ethylene in plant diseases.     

Perspective of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) containing ACC deaminase in stress agriculture

Ethylene is a gaseous plant growth hormone produced endogenously by almost all plants. It is also produced in soil through a variety of biotic and abiotic mechanisms, and plays a key role in inducing multifarious physiological changes in plants at molecular level. Apart from being a plant growth regulator, ethylene has also been established as a stress hormone. Under stress conditions like those generated by salinity, drought, waterlogging, heavy metals and pathogenicity, the endogenous production of ethylene is accelerated substantially which adversely affects the root growth and consequently the growth of the plant as a whole. Certain plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) contain a vital enzyme, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase, which regulates ethylene production by metabolizing ACC (an immediate precursor of ethylene biosynthesis in higher plants) into α-ketobutyrate and ammonia. Inoculation with PGPR containing ACC deaminase activity could be helpful in sustaining plant growth and development under stress conditions by reducing stress-induced ethylene production. Lately, efforts have been made to introduce ACC deaminase genes into plants to regulate ethylene level in the plants for optimum growth, particularly under stressed conditions. In this review, the primary focus is on giving account of all aspects of PGPR containing ACC deaminase regarding alleviation of impact of both biotic and abiotic stresses onto plants and of recent trends in terms of introduction of ACC deaminase genes into plant and microbial species.     

Tolerance of transgenic canola expressing 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid deaminase to growth inhibition by nickel.

Plant growth-promoting bacteria are useful to phytoremediation strategies in that they confer advantages to plants in contaminated soil. When plant growth-promoting bacteria contain the enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase, the bacterial cell acts as a sink for ACC, the immediate biosynthetic precursor of the plant growth regulator ethylene thereby lowering plant ethylene levels and decreasing the negative effects of various environmental stresses. In an effort to gain the advantages provided by bacterial ACC deaminase in the phytoremediation of metals from the environment two transgenic canola lines with the gene for this enzyme were generated and tested. In these transgenic canola plants, expression of the ACC deaminase gene is driven by either tandem constitutive cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) 35S promoters or the root specific rolD promoter from Agrobacterium rhizogenes. Following the growth of transgenic and non-transformed canola in nickel contaminated soil, it was observed that the rolD plants demonstrate significantly increased tolerance to nickel compared to the non-transformed control plants.     

Subcellular localization of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid oxidase in apple fruit

1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) oxidase catalyzes the oxidation of ACC to the gaseous plant hormone, ethylene. Although the enzyme does not contain a typical N-terminal consensus sequence for the transportation across the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), it has recently been shown to locate extracellularly by immunolocalization study. It was of interest to examine whether the enzyme contains a signal peptide that is overlooked by structure prediction. We observed that the in vitro translated apple ACC oxidase was not co-processed or imported by the canine pancreatic rough microsomes, a system widely used to identify signal peptide for protein translocation across ER, suggesting that apple ACC oxidase does not contain a signal peptide for ER transport. A highly specific polyclonal antibody raised against the recombinant apple ACC oxidase was used to examine the subcellular localization of the enzyme in apple fruit (Malus domestica, var. Golden Delicious). The location of ACC oxidase appeared to be mainly in the cytosol of the apple fruit pericarp tissue as was demonstrated by electron microscopy using immunogold-labeled antibodies. The pre-immune serum or pre-climacteric fruit control gave essentially no positive signal. Based on these observations, we conclude that ACC oxidase is a cytosolic protein.     

具有ACC脱氨酶活性的麻疯树根际促生菌(PGPR)的分离筛选及系统发育分析

[目的]获得具有产ACC、IAA,铁载体,能固氮或解磷的潜在促生菌株.[方法]通过稀释涂布的方法,从麻疯树根际土壤中分离得到98株细菌,从中选取28株以产l-氨基环丙烷-1-羧酸(ACC)脱氨酶为主要促生指标进行筛选,同时检测了其产吲哚乙酸(IAA)、固氮、解磷及铁载体等促生指标的能力.[结果]结果显示,46％的菌株能产ACC脱氨酶,其含量最高可达到128.308 μmol α-KA/(mg.h),68％的菌株能产生IAA,54％的菌株有固氮的能力,32％的菌株有解磷的能力.少量菌株同时具有产ACC脱氨酶、IAA,固氮,解磷等能力.挑选代表性菌株进行16S rRNA序列分析,这些菌株属于芽孢杆菌属(Bacillus)、节杆菌属(Arthrobacter)、假单胞菌属(Pseudomonas)和产碱杆菌属(Advenella)等8个属,其中多数菌株(50％)属于芽孢杆菌属,系统发育分析表明菌株KLBMP 4817、KLBMP 4821和KLBMP 4824为窄食单胞菌属(Stenotrophomonas)和类芽孢杆菌属(Paenibacillus)的潜在新种.[结论]攀枝花麻疯树根际土壤细菌中含有丰富的遗传多样性,且存在大量的促生菌株.其中,菌株KLBMP 4804产ACC脱氨酶含量最高.菌株KLBMP4820产IAA含量最显著.     

The interconversion of ACC deaminase and <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">d</Emphasis>-cysteine desulfhydrase by directed mutagenesis

Progress in DNA sequencing of plant genomes has revealed that, in addition to microorganisms, a number of plants contain genes which share similarity to microbial 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminases. These enzymes cleave ACC, the immediate precursor of ethylene in plants, into ammonia and alpha-ketobutyrate. We therefore sought to isolate putative ACC deaminase cDNAs from tomato plants with the objective of establishing whether the product of this gene is a functional ACC deaminase. In the work reported here, it was demonstrated that the enzyme encoded by the putative ACC deaminase cDNA does not have the ability to break the cyclopropane ring of ACC, but rather it utilizes D: -cysteine as a substrate, and in fact encodes a D: -cysteine desulfhydrase. Kinetic characterization of the tomato enzyme indicates that it is similar to other, previously characterized, D: -cysteine desulfhydrases. Using site-directed mutagenesis, it was shown that altering only two amino acid residues within the predicted active site served to change the enzyme from D: -cysteine desulfhydrase to ACC deaminase. Conversely, by altering two amino acid residues at the same positions within the active site of ACC deaminase from Pseudomonas putida UW4 the enzyme was converted into D: -cysteine desulfhydrase. Therefore, it is possible that a change in these two residues may have occurred in an ancestral protein to result in two different enzymatic activities.     

ACC deaminase activity in avirulent Agrobacterium tumefaciens D3

Some plant-growth-promoting bacteria encode the enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase, which breaks down ACC, the direct precursor of ethylene biosynthesis in all higher plants, into ammonia and α-ketobutyrate and, as a result, reduces stress ethylene levels in plants caused by a wide range of biotic and abiotic stresses. It was previously shown that ACC deaminase can inhibit crown gall development induced by Agrobacterium tumefaciens and can partially protect plants from this disease. Agrobacterium tumefaciens D3 has been previously reported to contain a putative ACC deaminase structural gene (acdS) and a regulatory gene (acdR = lrpL). In the present study, it was found that A. tumefaciens D3 is an avirulent strain. ACC deaminase activity and its regulation were also characterized. Under gnotobiotic conditions, wild-type A. tumefaciens D3 was shown to be able to promote plant root elongation, while the acdS and lrpL double mutant strain A. tumefaciens D3-1 lost that ability. When co-inoculated with the virulent strain, A. tumefaciens C58, in wounded castor bean plants, both the wild-type A. tumefaciens D3 and the mutant A. tumefaciens D3-1 were found to be able to significantly inhibit crown gall development induced by A. tumefaciens C58.     

Reaction mechanisms of the bacterial enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase

The enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase promotes plant growth by sequestering and cleaving plant-produced ACC thereby lowering the level of ethylene in the plant. Decreased ethylene levels allow the plant to be more resistant to a wide variety of environmental stresses. Here the biochemical reaction mechanisms involved in ACC deaminase activity are critically reviewed.     

1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase from Pseudomonas putida UW4 facilitates the growth of canola in the presence of salt

The growth of canola plants treated with either wild-type Pseudomonas putida UW4 or a 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase minus mutant of this strain was monitored in the presence of inhibitory levels of salt, i.e., 1.0 mol/L at 10 degrees C and 150 mmol/L at 20 degrees C. This strain is psychrotolerant with a maximal growth rate of approximately 30 degrees C and the ability to proliferate at 4 degrees C. Although plant growth was inhibited dramatically by the addition of 1.0 mol/L salt at 10 degrees C and only slightly by 150 mmol/L salt at 20 degrees C under both sets of conditions, the addition of the wild type but not the mutant strain of P. putida UW4 significantly improved plant growth. This result confirms the previous suggestion that bacterial strains that contain ACC deaminase confer salt tolerance to plants by lowering salt-induced ethylene synthesis.     

Detection and Characterization of ACC Deaminase in Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria

The enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase converts ACC, the precursor of the plant hormone ethylene to α-ketobutyrate and ammonium. The enzyme has been identified in few soil bacteria, and is proposed to play a key role in plant growth promotion. In this study, the isolates of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria were screened for ACC deaminase activity based on their ability to grow on ACC as a sole nitrogen source. The selected isolates showed the presence of other plant growth promoting characteristics such as IAA production, phosphate solubilization and siderophore production. The role of ACC deaminase in lowering ethylene production under cadmium stress condition was also studied by measuring in vitro ethylene evolution by wheat seedlings treated with ACC deaminase positive isolates. Nucleic acid hybridization confirmed the presence of ACC deaminase gene (acdS) in the bacterial isolates.     

Methods for isolating and characterizing ACC deaminase-containing plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria

One of the major mechanisms utilized by plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) to facilitate plant growth and development is the lowering of ethylene levels by deamination of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) the immediate precursor of ethylene in plants. The enzyme catalysing this reaction, ACC deaminase, hydrolyses ACC to α -ketobutyrate and ammonia. Several bacterial strains that can utilize ACC as a sole source of nitrogen have been isolated from rhizosphere soil samples. All of these strains are considered to be PGPR based on the ability to promote canola seedling root elongation under gnotobiotic conditions. The treatment of plant seeds or roots with these bacteria reduces the amount of ACC in plants, thereby lowering the concentration of ethylene. Here, a rapid procedure for the isolation of ACC deaminase-containing bacteria, a root elongation assay for evaluating the effects of selected bacteria on root growth, and a method of assessing bacterial ACC deaminase activity are described in detail. This should allow researchers to readily isolate new PGPR strains adapted to specific environments.     

Cloning and Characterization of a Plasmid Encoded ACC Deaminase from an Indigenous Pseudomonas fluorescens FY32

In addition to the characterized mechanisms responsible for many direct effects of plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) on plants, it has been suggested that a number of PGPB contain the enzyme ACC deaminase that catalyzes degradation of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), the immediate precursor of ethylene, into α-ketobutyrate and ammonia. As part of an effort to obtain an ACC deaminase encoding gene from a collection of soil samples, only one bacterial isolate, Pseudomonas fluorescens FY32 was capable of growing on ACC as a sole source of nitrogen. The ACC deaminase gene was amplified from the above isolate by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) giving an expected DNA fragment, 1017 bp. Sequence analysis of the fragment showed that it was highly homologous (94% and 98% identities at nucleotide and amino acid levels, respectively) to the previously characterized acdS gene from Pseudomonas sp. 6G5. Furthermore, fusion of the ACC deaminase ORF with lacZ gene resulted in the expression of active enzyme in Escherichia coli. In addition, further analyses revealed that the acdS gene was plasmid-encoded so that a large plasmid (pFY32) with almost 50 kb in size was identified from this bacterium. Furthermore, transfer of pFY32 into E. coli DH5α proved its ACC deaminase activity. This result was in accordance with previous reports suggesting horizontal transfer of the acdS gene. However, it needs more investigation to identify whether this pFY32 plasmid has undergone lateral gene transfer during the evolutionary process.     

ACC deaminase from plant growth-promoting bacteria affects crown gall development

In addition to the well-known roles of indoleacetic acid and cytokinin in crown gall formation, the plant hormone ethylene also plays an important role in this process. Many plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) encode the enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase, which can degrade ACC, the immediate precursor of ethylene in plants, to alpha-ketobutyrate and ammonia and thereby lower plant ethylene levels. To study the effect of ACC deaminase on crown gall development, an ACC deaminase gene from the PGPB Pseudomonas putida UW4 was introduced into Agrobacterium tumefaciens C58, so that the effect of ACC deaminase activity on tumour formation in tomato and castor bean plants could be assessed. Plants were also coinoculated with A. tumefaciens C58 and P. putida UW4 or P. putida UW4-acdS- (an ACC deaminase minus mutant strain). In both types of experiments, it was observed that the presence of ACC deaminase generally inhibited tumour development on both tomato and castor bean plants.     

Determination of 1-aminocycopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) to assess the effects of ACC deaminase-containing bacteria on roots of canola seedlings

Previously, it was proposed that plant growth-promoting bacteria that possess the enzyme, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) deaminase, can reduce the amount of ethylene produced by a plant and thereby promote root elongation. To test this model, canola seeds were imbibed in the presence of the chemical ethylene inhibitor, 2-aminoethoxyvinyl glycine (AVG), various strains of plant growth-promoting bacteria, and a psychrophilic bacterium containing an ACC deaminase gene on a broad host range plasmid. The extent of root elongation and levels of ACC, the immediate precursor of ethylene, were measured in the canola seedling roots. A modification of the Waters AccQ.Tag Amino Acid Analysis Method was used to quantify ACC in the root extracts. It was found that, in the presence of the ethylene inhibitor, AVG, or any one of several ACC deaminase-containing strains of bacteria, the growth of canola seedling roots was enhanced and the ACC levels in these roots were lowered.     

Promotion of Plant Growth by Bacterial ACC Deaminase

To date, there has been only limited commercial use of plant growth-promoting bacteria in agriculture, horticulture, and silviculture. However, with recent progress toward understanding the mechanisms that these organisms utilize to facilitate plant growth, the use of plant growth-promoting bacteria is expected to continue to increase worldwide. One of the key mechanisms employed by plant growth-promoting bacteria to facilitate plant growth is the lowering of plant ethylene levels by the enzyme 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase. This article reviews the published work on this enzyme, with an emphasis on its biochemistry, protein structure, genes, and regulation. In addition, this article provides some initial insights into the changes in both plants and ACC deaminase-containing plant growth-promoting bacteria as a consequence of plant-microbe interactions. Finally, a brief discussion of how bacterial ACC deaminase and indoleacetic acid (IAA) together modulate plant growth and development is included.     

1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate synthase of Penicillium citrinum: primary structure and expression in Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

A plant hormone, ethylene, is formed through 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC). A fungus, Penicillium citrinum, was found to synthesize ACC and to degrade ACC into 2-oxobutyrate and ammonia. ACC synthase, responsible for ACC synthesis in P. citrinum, was characterized on the molecular level by sequencing of N terminal and proteolytic peptides of the enzyme, and cloning and sequencing of its cDNA. The ACC synthase from P. citrinum had 430 amino acid residues and a shorter C terminal than the plant enzyme. The enzyme purified from Escherichia coli transformed with ACC-synthase-encoding DNA showed similar properties to those of the purified enzyme from P. citrinum. Saccharomyces cerevisiae with ACC synthase accumulated ACC in the medium with increasing time of incubation. The sequence of ACC synthase from P. citrinum was compared with that of the plant enzyme with discussion about important residues for catalysis.     

Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria Facilitate the Growth of Barley and Oats in Salt-Impacted Soil: Implications for Phytoremediation of Saline Soils

Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) strains that contain the enzyme 1-amino- cyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC) deaminase can lower stress ethylene levels and improve plant growth. In this study, ACC deaminase-producing bacteria were isolated from a salt-impacted (～50 dS/m) farm field, and their ability to promote plant growth of barley and oats in saline soil was investigated in pouch assays (1% NaCl), greenhouse trials (9.4 dS/m), and field trials (6–24 dS/m). A mix of previously isolated PGPB strains UW3 (Pseudomonas sp.) and UW4 (P. sp.) was also tested for comparison. Rhizobacterial isolate CMH3 (P. corrugata) and UW3+UW4 partially alleviated plant salt stress in growth pouch assays. In greenhouse trials, CMH3 enhanced root biomass of barley and oats by 200% and 50%, respectively. UW3+UW4, CMH3 and isolate CMH2 also enhanced barley and oat shoot growth by 100%–150%. In field tests, shoot biomass of oats tripled when treated with UW3+UW4 and doubled with CHM3 compared with that of untreated plants. PGPB treatment did not affect salt uptake on a per mass basis; higher plant biomass led to greater salt uptake, resulting in decreased soil salinity. This study demonstrates a method for improving plant growth in marginal saline soils. Associated implications for salt remediation are discussed.     

甘蔗ACC氧化酶基因片段的克隆与序列分析

1- 氨基环丙烷-1-羧酸（ACC）氧化酶是植物乙烯合成的一个关键酶,乙烯作为一种内源激素,对植物生长、老熟过程有多方面的调节作用。根据报道的各种植物ACC氧化酶氨基酸序列上前后两个保守区设计两个简并引物,以甘蔗总DNA为模板,通过PCR扩增到一个940bp的基因片段。将片段序列在MCBI的BLAST软件上进行同源性搜寻,显示的63个序列全部是ACC氧化酶基因,因而认为克隆到的片段就是甘蔗ACC氧化酶基因的一个成员。经对不同植物来源的ACC氧化酶基因家族进行比较分析,去除一个103bp的“内含子“后,推导的氨基酸序列为279个残基,占推测全长氨基酸残基总数的86％左右。经同源性分析,序列与毛竹和水稻ACC氧化酶的同源率达到86％。系统进化分析表明,该序列最先与水稻、其次和香蕉的ACC氧化酶聚类,然后再与双子叶植物的ACC氧化酶聚类,符合按形态特征分类的血缘关系。基因的获得对下一步了解乙烯的合成表达与甘蔗生长、成熟过程之间的关系奠定了基础。