Cloning, sequencing, and expression of the cellulase genes of Humicola grisea var. thermoidea

We have cloned an endoglucanase (EGI) gene and a cellobiohydrolase (CBHI) gene of Humicola grisea var. thermoidea using a portion of the Trichoderma reesei endoglucanase I gene as a probe, and determined their nucleotide sequences. The deduced amino acid sequence of EGI was 435 amino acids in length and the coding region was interrupted by an intron. The EGI lacks a hinge region and a cellulose-binding domain. The deduced amino acid sequence of CBHI was identical to the H. grisea CBHI previously reported, with the exception of three amino acids. The H. grisea EGI and CBHI show 39.8% and 37.7% identity with the T. Reesei EGI, respectively. In addition to TATA box and CAAT motifs, putative CREA binding sites were observed in the 5′ upstream regions of both genes. The cloned cellulase genes were expressed in Aspergillus oryzae and the gene products were purified. The optimal temperatures of CBHI and EGI were 60 °C and 55–60 °C, respectively. The optimal pHs of these enzymes were 5.0. CBHI and EGI had distinct substrate specificities: CBHI showed high activity toward Avicel, whereas EGI showed high activity toward carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC).     

Cold shock during liquid production increases storage shelf-life of Cryptococcus nodaensis OH 182.9 after air-drying

Fermentation, formulation and drying studies are necessary and important in order to simplify production, transportation, storage and application of biocontrol agents. Air-drying is a convenient and economical drying method for developing microbial biocontrol products. Experiments were designed to determine the effect of temperature shock during liquid cultivation on cell survival of a Fusarium head blight biocontrol agent Cryptococcus nodaensis OH 182.9 after air-drying. OH 182.9 cultures were grown at various temperatures in semi-defined complete liquid media, with cultures grown at 25°C for 48 h serving as the standard control culture condition. Harvested cultures were mixed with 10% diatomaceous earth (DE), vacuum filtered, air dried for 20 h at 60-70% RH, and stored at 4°C. In general, cells grown at 25°C for 20 h followed by cultivation at 15°C for 28 h survived air-drying better than control cells. The survival of cells subjected to heat shock at 31°C generally did not differ from control cells regardless of whether heat shock was applied at the late exponential or early stationary stage of growth. In another experiment designed to optimize the effect of cold temperatures during cultivation on subsequent survival of air-dried cells in DE at 4°C and room temperature (25°C), prolonged (28 h) cold shock at 10 and 15°C after incubation at 25°C for 20 h enhanced the storage stability (shelf-life) of a DE-formulated OH 182.9 product. In greenhouse tests, air-dried cells of OH 182.9 stored for 6 weeks at 4°C maintained a higher biocontrol efficacy than cells stored for 6 weeks at 25°C.     

A nicotinamide mononucleotide adenylyltransferase with unique adenylyl group donor specificity from a hyperthermophilic archaeon, Pyrococcus horikoshii OT-3

A gene encoding a nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) adenylyltransferase (NMNAT, EC 2.7.7.1) homologue was identified via genome sequencing in the anaerobic hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus horikoshii OT-3. The gene encoded a protein of 186 amino acids with a molecular weight of 21,391. The deduced amino acid sequence of the gene showed 59% identities to the NMNAT from Methanococcus jannaschii. The gene was overexpressed in Escherichia coli, and the produced enzyme was purified to homogeneity. Characterization of the enzyme revealed that it is an extremely thermostable NMNAT; the activity was not lost after incubation at 80 °C for 30 min. The native molecular mass was estimated to be 77 kDa. The K_m values for ATP and NMN were calculated to be 0.056 and 0.061 mM, respectively. The optimum temperature of the reaction was estimated to be around 90 °C. The adenylyl group donor specificity was examined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). At 70 °C, ATP was a prominent donor. However, above 80 °C, a relatively small, but significant, NMNAT activity was detected when ATP was replaced by ADP or AMP in the reaction mixture. To date, an NMNAT that utilizes ADP or AMP as an adenylyl group donor has not been found. The present study provides interesting information in which a di- or mono-phosphate nucleotide can be utilized by adenylyltransferase at high temperature.     

Identification of the Vibrio vulnificus htpG gene and its influence on cold shock recovery

An htpG gene encoding the heat shock protein HtpG was identified and cloned from Vibrio vulnificus. The deduced amino acid sequence of HtpG from V. vulnificus exhibited 71 and 85% identity to those reported from Escherichia coli and V. cholera, respectively. Functions of HtpG were assessed by the construction of an isogenic mutant whose htpG gene was deleted and by evaluating its phenotype changes during and after cold shock. The results demonstrated that recovery of the wild type from cold shock was significantly faster (p<0.05) than that of the htpG mutant, and indicated that the chaperone protein HtpG contributes to cold shock recovery, rather than cold shock tolerance, of V. vulnificus.     

Influence of formulation additives on the desiccation tolerance and storage stability of blastospores of the entomopathogenic fungus Paecilomyces fumosoroseus (Deuteromycotina: Hyphomycetes)

Blastospores of the entomopathogenic fungus Paecilomyces fumosoroseus were formulated with 10% lactose/1% bovine serum albumin (BSA) or various compositions of Fantesk™, a starch-oil composite prepared by jet-cooking an aqueous dispersion of starch and oil. Storage stability studies with wet blastospore formulations showed that maximum blastospore survival was achieved during low-temperature storage at -20°C with lactose/BSA formulations or starch-oil formulations supplemented with sucrose, zein protein, and whole milk. Under conditions of wet storage at -20°C, the addition of whole milk to starch-oil formulations significantly improved blastospore stability while the addition of sucrose or zein protein had no effect. In freeze-drying studies, no significant differences were seen in blastospore desiccation tolerance or in stability during storage at either 4 or -20°C when blastospores of P. fumosoroseus were formulated with lactose/BSA or starch-oil formulations with sucrose, zein protein, and whole milk. Freeze-dried blastospore formulations stored at 4°C showed no loss in blastospore viability after 3 months storage and blastospore formulations stored at -20°C showed no loss in viability during the entire 12-month study. For freeze-dried, starch-oil formulations, sucrose was shown to improve blastospore survival during the freeze-drying process. The addition of whole milk to starch-oil formulations significantly improved the stability of freeze-dried blastospores stored at 4°C. Compared to unformulated blastospore suspensions that showed blastospore settling after 30 min, suspensions of blastospores formulated with lactose/BSA or starch-oil composites remained stable for up to 2 h after mixing.     

Thermostable glutamate dehydrogenase from a commensal thermophile, Symbiobacterium toebii; overproduction, characterization, and application

A gene encoding glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) was found in the genome sequence of a commensal thermophile, Symbiobacterium toebii. The amino acid sequence deduced from the gdh I of S. toebii was well conserved with other thermostable GDHs. The gdh I which encodes GDH consisting of 409 amino acids was cloned and expressed in E. coli DH5 under the control of a highly constitutive expression (HCE) promoter in a pHCE system. The recombinant GDH was expressed without addition of any inducers in a soluble form. The molecular mass of the GDH was estimated to be 263 kDa by Superose 6 HR gel filtration chromatography and 44 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) indicating that the GDH was composed of hexameric form. The optimal temperature and pH of the purified enzyme were 60 °C and 9.0, respectively, and the purified GDH retained more than 75% of its original activity after an incubation at 70 °C for 30 min. Although NADP(H) was the preferred cofactor, S. toebii GDH was able to utilize either NADP(H) or NAD(H) as coenzyme.     

Heat shock mRNA accumulation during recovery from cold shock in Drosophila melanogaster

Heat shock protein synthesis is induced in response to a variety of chemical and physical stresses. Among these are heating above normal growing temperatures, treatment with heavy metals, amino acid analogues, steroid hormones and a variety of other chemicals (CRC Crit. Rev. Biochem. 18, 239–280). We have shown previously that heat shock proteins are also synthesized during recovery from prolonged 0°C treatment in Drosophila larval salivary glands. In this paper we describe the cold treatments which induce heat shock protein synthesis in more detail, and show that heat shock mRNA does not accumulate during the cold treatment, but rather during the recovery period when the larvae are returned to 25°C. The implications of these results for the regulation of heat shock mRNA levels, and for the role of heat shock proteins in recovery from cold shock are discussed.     

Over-expression of highly conserved mitochondrial 70-kDa heat-shock protein in the sea anemone Anemonia viridis

Organisms react to cellular stress by inducing the synthesis of heat-shock proteins (Hsp). One such protein is the mitochondrial 70-kDa Hsp (mHsp70). The expression of mHsp70 in organisms that undergo stress in their natural habitat is unknown. We used a biochemical approach enabling to identify an mHsp70 from the sea anemone Anemonia viridis, which is abundant in highly fluctuating marine habitats. Antibodies raised specifically against yeast mHsp70 recognized a 70-kDa protein from A. viridis. We found that A. viridis mHsp70 is constitutively expressed at 22–23 °C, but over-expressed upon exposure to heat shock (31 °C) or to temperature fluctuations, suggesting that mHsp70 plays a significant role in adaptation of sessile marine invertebrates to highly fluctuating environmental conditions. Using an affinity column we were able to obtain a partially purified fraction of this protein. Partial amino acid sequences proved that the purified Hsp70 functions in the mitochondria.     

Biochemical changes in tissue composition of Periplaneta americana (Linn.) acclimated to high and low temperatures

1. 1.|Cold acclimation apparently favours an increase of water content in fat body, but not in coxal muscle, of cockroaches.

2. 2.|A remarkable enhancement in the accumulation of total protein in fat body characterizes the cold acclimation of cockroaches, particularly adult males (175% increase in protein/DNA ratio). The increase in protein content of coxal muscle during acclimination to 15°C, observed in nymphs (16%) and males (16%) but not in females, is less pronounced than that of fat body.

3. 3.|A diminution (28–32%) in the free amino acid/DNA ratio due to cold acclimation has been recorded in both coxal muscle and fat body of nymphs and females, but not in males.

4. 4.|No qualitative change occurs in the free amino acid spectrum of haemolymph and tissues of this insect during acclimation to 15 and 35°C.

5. 5.|An augmentation (15–30%) of the RNA/DNA ratio occurs in fat body and coxal muscle of nymphs and males but in fat body alone of females following cold acclimation.

6. 6.|The glycogen reserve has been shown to increase by up to 30% in fat body and coxal muscle of cold acclimated cockroaches compared to warm acclimated ones.

Slaughterhouse by-products preserved by Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation as feed for mink and foxes

Lactic acid fermentation was evaluated as a method to preserve abattoir waste for use in fur animal diets. The method used involved grinding, acidifying to pH 5–5.2 by formic acid and propionic acid, addition of 6% molasses as a carbohydrate source and a starter culture of Lactobacillus plantarum. Fermentation was completed after 2–3 days at 25°C. The final pH of the fermented product was 3.8–4.1.

Storage experiments revealed satisfactory stability. The fermented products could be kept for weeks at room temperature (20°C) and for months in a cold room (4°C).

The amino acid composition of the 4 types of abattoir waste tested was not significantly changed by fermentation. Digestibility studies with mink revealed slight, but significant (P < 0.05), effects of fermentation. The digestibility of cystine and threonine was reduced and that of glycine and proline increased.

Two types of fermented abattoir waste were investigated in 2 long-term feeding experiments with mink and blue foxes. In the mink trial, diets with 10 or 20% fermented abattoir waste supported normal reproduction, kit mortality and body growth. In one experiment, there was a significant reduction in mink kit body weights with 20%, but not with 10% fermented abattoir waste in the diet. In the fox trial, litter sizes and kit viability tended to improve with 20% fermented abattoir waste, while kit body weights were unaffected. It is concluded that fermentation could be an acceptable process for the preservation of abattoir waste intended for the feeding of fur animals.     

Molecular cloning and heterologous expression of an alkaline xylanase from Bacillus pumilus HBP8 in Pichia pastoris

The xynHB gene, encoding alkaline xylanase was cloned from Bacillus pumilus by a shot-gun method. The gene was cloned into vector pHBM905A, and expressed in Pichia pastoris GS115. Xylanase-secreting transformants were selected on plates containing RBB-xylan. Enzymatic activity in the culture supernatants was up to 644 U mL^-1 and the optimal secretion time was 4 days at 25°C. SDS-PAGE showed two bands, of 32.2 kDa and 29.6 kDa, both larger than the predicted mass of 22.4 kDa based on its amino acid sequence. Zymogram analysis demonstrated that the enzyme in both bands could hydrolyze xylan. Deglycosylation by endoglycosidase H revealed that both were derived from the same protein but contain different extents of glycosylation (30 and 25%). The optimal pH and temperature of the enzyme was pH6-9 and 50°C, respectively.     

Cloning, expression and characterization of a novel thermal stable and short-chain alcohol tolerant lipase from Burkholderia cepacia strain G63

A lipase gene lipA and its chaperone gene lipB were cloned from Burkholderia cepacia strain G63. The lipA was composed of 1092 bp, encoding 363 amino acid residues, and the lipB composed of 1035 bp, corresponding to 344 amino acid residues. The significant amino acid similarity with Pseudomonas cepacia lipase revealed that this enzyme could be classified into the lipolytic subfamily I.2. The lipA and lipB genes were cloned into pBBR1Tp vector and conjugated into B. cepacia strains G63 with the help of pRK2013. The recombinant strain was fermented in 10 l bioreactor and the lipase was purified by a combination of ammonium sulfate fractionation, DEAE ion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration. The purified lipase kept stable at a temperature range of 40–70 °C. After incubated at 70 °C, the optimal temperature of this enzyme, for 10 h it remained 86.1% of its activity. The enzyme was also highly tolerant to a series of organic solution. Incubated in 50% methanol solution up to 48 h, the enzyme still kept 98.3% of its activity. The transesterification activity of soybean oil to fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) reached 87.8% after 72 h, indicating that it is a potential biocatalyzer for biodiesel production.     

Characterization of the thermophilic isoamylase from the thermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus ATCC 35092

Isoamylase catalyzes the hydrolysis of -1,6-glucosidic linkages of starch and related polysaccharides. In this study, the treX gene (GenBank accession no. AE006815 REGION: 9279 … 11435) encoding the thermophilic isoamylase was PCR-cloned from the genomic DNA of Sulfolobus solfataricus ATCC 35092 to an expression vector with a T7lac promoter. Both wild-type and His-tagged isoamylases were expressed in Escherichia coli. The wild-type isoamylase was purified sequentially using heat treatment, nucleic acid precipitation, ion-exchange chromatography, and gel filtration chromatography while the His-tagged isoamylase was purified from the cell-free extract directly by metal chelating chromatography. Both enzymes were active only under their homo-trimer forms. In the absence of NaCl, both enzymes became inactive monomers. In addition, both enzymes were more stable when being stored at room temperature than at 4 °C. They had an apparent optimal pH of 5 and an optimal temperature at 75 °C. The enzyme activities remained unchanged after a 2 h incubation at 80 and 75 °C for the wild-type and His-tagged enzymes, respectively. These thermophilic isoamylases showed a potential to be used in industry to degrade the branching points of starch at a high temperature.     

Structure and function of psychrophilic alanine racemase

We describe the structure and function of psychrophilic alanine racemases from Bacillus psychrosaccharolyticus and Pseudomonas fluorescens. These enzymes showed high catalytic activities even at 0°C and were extremely labile at temperatures over 35°C. The enzymes were also found to be less resistant to organic solvents than alanine racemases from thermophilic and mesophilic bacteria, both in vivo and in vitro. Both enzymes have a dimeric structure and contain 2 mol of pyridoxal 5′-phosphate (PLP) per mol as a coenzyme. The enzyme from B. psychrosaccharolyticus was found to have a markedly large K_m value (5.0 μM) for PLP in comparison with other reported alanine racemases, and was stable at temperatures up to 50°C in the presence of excess amounts of PLP. The dissociation of PLP from the P. fluorescens enzyme may trigger the unfolding of the secondary structure. The enzyme from B. psychrosaccharolyticus has a distinguishing hydrophilic region around residue no. 150 in its deduced amino acid sequence, whereas the corresponding regions of other Bacillus alanine racemases are hydrophobic. The position of this region in the three dimensional structure of this enzyme was predicted to be in a surface loop surrounding the active site. This hydrophilic region may interact with solvent, reduce the compactness of the active site, and destabilize the enzyme.     

天山雪莲SiSAD基因与拟南芥AtFAB2基因转化 烟草的抗寒性分析

通过转基因烟草(Nicotiana tabacum)验证天山雪莲(Saussurea involucrata) Δ9硬脂酰-ACP脱饱和酶基因SiSAD与拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)中同源基因AtFAB2的抗寒性功能。利用农杆菌介导法将植物表达载体P_SiSAD:AtFAB2和P_SiSAD:SiSAD导入烟草, 然后将2种转基因和野生型烟草分别置于20°C、10°C、5°C、0°C及-2°C下处理2小时, 检测其相对电导率、丙二醛(MDA)含量、叶绿素荧光参数(F_v/F_m)及脂肪酸含量。将-2°C处理2小时后的植株置于25°C培养1周进行生长恢复实验。结果表明, 生长恢复实验中转SiSAD基因烟草的恢复效果显著优于转AtFAB2基因和野生型烟草。在0°C和-2°C处理2小时后, 转SiSAD、AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的相对电导率和丙二醛含量呈现显著递增趋势; 转SiSAD、AtFAB2基因型烟草的F_v/F_m显著高于野生型烟草, 其中, 转SiSAD基因烟草的F_v/F_m显著高于转AtFAB2基因烟草。转AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的油酸(C18:1)含量随着温度的降低逐渐升高后降低并在0°C时达到最高值; 而转SiSAD基因型烟草C18:1含量持续升高, 并在-2°C时达到最高值, 其含量分别是转AtFAB2基因型和野生型烟草的1.58倍和1.7倍。以上结果表明, 天山雪莲Δ9硬脂酰-ACP脱饱和酶基因SiSAD与拟南芥中同源基因AtFAB2均可以显著增强非低温驯化烟草的抗寒性, 但是SiSAD基因效果显著优于AtFAB2。     

Thermal avoidance and preference in Daphnia magna

1. Water fleas (Daphnia magna) bred at 23°C were non-responsive to temperatures between 13 and 25°C.

2. At the lower (11°C) and upper limits (30°C) their klinokinetic avoidance behaviour showed a larger intraindividual than interindividual variation.

3. Thermal sensitivity for avoidance responses in D. magna was about 1.5°C.

4. For D. magna bred for one parthenogenetic generation at 14°C heat avoidance temperature was about 8°C lower, and cold avoidance temperature was about 1°C higher than in D. magna from 23°C.

5. In group experiments the animals showed some preference for the acclimation temperature.

6. Cold induced stenothermy and warm induced eurythermy in D. magna were related to the mode of reproduction.

Metabolic characteristics of sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus (Selenka) during aestivation

Metabolic characteristics of the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus (Selenka) during aestivation were studied in the laboratory. The effects of water temperature on oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and ammonia-N excretion rate (AER) in A. japonicus were determined by the Winkler and Hypobromite methods, respectively. Mature (large, 148.5 ± 15.4 g, medium 69.3 ± 6.9 g) and immature (small, 21.2 ± 4.7 g) individuals aestivated at water temperatures of 20 and 25 °C, respectively. The metabolic characteristics of mature individuals were different from immature individuals during this period. The OCR of mature sea cucumbers peaked at 20 °C, and then dropped significantly at higher temperatures, whereas the OCR of the immature animals continued to increase slightly, even beyond the aestivation temperature. The AER of mature individuals peaked at 20 °C, while that of the immature animals peaked at 25 °C. The relationships between dry weight (DW) and absolute oxygen consumption (R) and absolute ammonia-N excretion (N) could be described by the regression equation R or N = aW^b. With the exception of 15 °C, the O / N ratios (calculated in atomic equivalents) of large size sea cucumbers was close to 20 across the temperatures used in this study, indicating that their energy source was a combination of lipid and protein. On the other hand, apart from small individuals maintained at 10 °C, the O / N ratios of the medium and small sea cucumbers were close to 10, indicating that protein was their major energy source. The O / N ratios in all size groups remained unchanged after aestivation was initiated.     

Cardiovascular and thermoregulatory responses to repeated anticholinesterase administration

1. 1.|Pyridostigmine administration decreased resting heart rate by 11 ± 7 beats/min and resting oesophageal temperature by 0.23 ± 12°C after 50 h (P < 0.05). In addition, red blood cell cholinesterase activity was decreased an average of 43 ± 7% after 50 h of pyridostigmine treatment.

2. 2.|The lower heart rates and core temperatures at rest were continued during high intensity exercise in a 35°C environment. Whole body sweating was 12 ± 18% higher (P = 0.20) during exercise in the heat after 50 h of pyridostigmine treatment.

3. 3.|Repeated anticholinesterase administration had little effect on cardiovascular and thermoregulatory responses during high intensity exercise.

Non-shivering thermogenesis in winter-acclimatized and in long-scotophase and cold-acclimated Apodemus mystacinus (Rodentia)

1. 1.|Resistance to cold through non-shivering thermogenesis (the absolute increase in O₂ consumption caused by noradrenaline injection) was increased 3-fold in individuals of the broad-toothed mouse A. mystacinus, kept for 3 weeks under a short photoperiod (long scotophase 8L:16D) at an ambient temperature of 28°C, compared to control conditions (12L:12D; 28°C), and did not differ significantly from the winter-acclimatized group.

2. 2.|Acclimation of the same individuals to long scotophase and cold (8L:16d; 7°C) caused a significant (P < 0.01) increase in absolute O₂ consumption and maximal body temperature, as a response to noradrenaline injectin, when compared to long-scotophase individuals (8L:16D; 28°C).

3. 3.|The results of this study support the idea that winter acclimatization of heat-production mechanisims may be induced by the extension of scotophase, which cycles very regulary in nature and in the Mediterranean region occurs before the beginning of the cold season.