Effect of branch frequency in Aspergillus oryzae on protein secretion and culture viscosity.

Highly branched mutants of two strains of Aspergillus oryzae (IFO4177, which produces alpha-amylase, and a transformant of IFO4177 [AMG#13], which produces heterologous glucoamylase in addition to alpha-amylase) were generated by UV or nitrous acid mutagenesis. Four mutants of the parental strain (IFO4177), which were 10 to 50% more branched than the parental strain, were studied in stirred batch culture and no differences were observed in either the amount or the rate of enzyme production. Five mutants of the transformed parental strain (AMG#13), which were 20 to 58% more branched than the parental strain, were studied in either batch, fed-batch or continuous culture. In batch culture, three of the mutants produced more glucoamylase than the transformed parental strain, although only two mutants produced more glucoamylase and alpha-amylase combined. No increase in enzyme production was observed in either chemostat or fed-batch culture. Cultures of highly branched mutants were less viscous than those of the parental and transformed parental strains. A linear relationship was found between the degree of branching (measured as hyphal growth unit length) and culture viscosity (measured as the torque exerted on the rheometer impeller) for these strains. DOT-controlled fed-batch cultures (in which the medium feed rate was determined by the DOT) were thus inoculated with either the transformed parent or highly branched mutants of the transformed parent to determine whether the reduced viscosity would improve aeration and give higher enzyme yields. The average rate of medium addition was higher for the two highly branched mutants (ca. 8.3 g medium h(-1)) than for the parental strain (5.7 g medium h(-1)). Specific enzyme production in the DOT controlled fed-batch cultures was similar for all three strains (approx. 0.24 g alpha-amylase and glucoamylase [g of biomass](-1)), but one of the highly branched mutants made more total enzyme (24.3 +/- 0.2 g alpha-amylase and glucoamylase) than the parental strain (21.7 +/- 0.4 g alpha-amylase and glucoamylase).     

Strain improvement of Rhizopus oryzae for production of l(+)-lactic acid and glucoamylase

Thirty-eight l(+)-lactic acid-overproducing mutants were isolated by mutagenizing a parent strain of Rhizopus oryzae NRRL 395 with u.v. and/or N -methyl- N '-nitro- N -nitrosoguanidine. Three mutants, 1N1, 3N4 and 3N6, were found to yield significantly more l(+)-lactic acid in a rice medium than the parent strain. Of the mutants examined, only mutant 3N4 produced more glucoamylase than the parent strain.     

Use of catabolic repression in the selection of the glucoamylase-producer Aspergillus niger

The effect of various carbon sources and cAMP on the glucoamylase synthesis in Aspergillus niger was studied to find carbon sources repressed the enzyme synthesis and conditions for the selection of catabolite stable mutants. Maltose at a concentration of 0.5% stimulated the glucoamylase synthesis, but at a concentration of 4% it repressed not only the enzyme synthesis but the growth of the parental strain on the agar medium. The more active mutant 66 was obtained as a result of treatment of Asp. niger st 6 with NG. This mutant is able to grow on the Czapek's medium containing maltose at concentrations 4 or 6%. The mutant 66 produced about 2.9 times more glucoamylase than its parent when maltose was added at 0.5% concentration to the medium. The glucoamylase synthesis in the parental strain was completely repressed under repressing conditions, while the level of the mutant strain activity was 35% from the level of enzyme activity on the medium without the repressor. The addition of cAMP (5.10(-5] resulted in a partial release of maltose (4%) repression of the glucoamylase synthesis in both strains. The results obtained indicate a possibility to select Asp niger mutants with the partially derepressed glucoamylase synthesis. Other regulation mechanisms in addition to catabolite repression may be involved in the regulation of the glucoamylase synthesis.     

Increased ATP-dependent proteolytic activity in lon-deficient Escherichia coli strains lacking the DnaK protein.

Extracts made from Escherichia coli null dnaK strains contained elevated levels of ATP-dependent proteolytic activity compared with levels in extracts made from dnaK+ strains. This ATP-dependent proteolytic activity was not due to Lon, Clp, or Alp-associated protease. Comparison of the levels of ATP-dependent proteolytic activity present in lon rpoH dnaK mutants and in lon rpoH dnaK+ mutants showed that the level of ATP-dependent proteolytic activity was elevated in the lon rpoH dnaK mutant strain. These findings suggest that DnaK negatively regulates a new ATP-dependent proteolytic activity, independently of sigma 32. Other results indicate that an ATP-dependent proteolytic activity was increased in a lon alp strain after heat shock. It is not yet known whether the same protease is associated with the increased ATP-dependent proteolytic activity in the dnaK mutants and in the heat-shocked lon alph strain.     

新一代糖化酶高产菌株的选育及其工业应用

【目的】建立对糖化酶生产菌种黑曲霉随机突变文库进行筛选的方法,以获得糖化酶酶活提高的突变菌株。【方法】以一株可产糖化酶的黑曲霉菌株Aspergillus niger X1为出发菌株,经硫酸二乙酯诱变获得突变文库,采用葡萄糖的结构类似物——2-脱氧葡萄糖进行筛选,并在筛选过程中逐渐提高2-脱氧葡萄糖浓度,定向选育具有2-脱氧葡萄糖抗性、高产糖化酶的突变株。【结果】获得的高产突变菌株DG36摇瓶发酵糖化酶产量比出发菌株A.niger X1提高22.2%–33.8%,经工业水平50 m~3罐发酵测试,突变株DG36发酵128 h糖化酶活可达49094 U/m L,在相同发酵时间内,其酶活较出发菌株A.niger X1提高32.8%,发酵时间缩短16.9%。【结论】本研究开发了一种以2-脱氧葡萄糖为抗性标记选育高产糖化酶突变株的方法,所得突变株DG36遗传性状稳定,与出发菌相比具有菌丝粗壮、产酶期提前、糖化酶活高、发酵时间短、有利于发酵后处理的优点。     

保加利亚乳杆菌H+-ATPase缺陷型菌株的筛选

【目的】从传统乳制品中筛选具有新霉素抗性的H+-ATPase缺陷的德氏乳杆菌保加利亚亚种自发突变株,为最终开发弱后酸化的酸奶发酵剂奠定基础。【方法】利用API 50 CH细菌鉴定系统和16s rRNA基因序列分析对菌株进行鉴定。新霉素作为筛选压力,筛选具有新霉素抗性自发突变菌株,比较亲本和突变菌株的H+-ATPase活力及其代谢情况。【结果】从内蒙古地区的传统发酵酸奶中分离鉴定出一株德氏乳杆菌保加利亚亚种（Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus）,并命名为KLDS 1.9201。以此为出发菌株,筛选出两株H+-ATPase缺陷的自发突变株,分别命名为KLDS 1.9201-1、KLDS 1.9201-4,它们的H+-ATPase活力分别比亲本KLDS 1.9201降低了46%和60%。在MRS培养基中生长24 h后,KLDS 1.9201、KLDS 1.9201-1和KLDS 1.9201-4对初始葡萄糖的代谢率分别为65%、41%和31%,终产物中乳酸的浓度分别为26g/L、18g/L和15g/L,突变菌株的生物量均低于亲本。【结论】H+-ATPase活力降低的德氏乳杆菌保加利亚亚种的自发突变株具有较低的生长速率和弱产酸能力,它们可被用于制作弱后酸化的酸奶发酵剂。     

Production of raw cassava starch-digestive glucoamylase by a 2-deoxyglucose-resistant mutant of Rhizopus sp.

In order to improve the productivity of raw cassava starch-digestive glucoamylase of Rhizopus sp. MB46 in a liquid culture, a mutant strain, AF-1, which is resistant to 2-deoxyglucose, was derived. The mutant strain produced glucoamylase in the presence of 0.5% glucose though the parent strain did not. With a rice bran liquid medium the productivity was over 2-times that of the wild type strain. A rice bran liquid medium supplemented with β-cyclodextrin was also effective for glucoamylase production. Other maceration enzymes were also produced at a higher level with mutant strain AF-1 than with the wild type strain in a liquid culture as well as in a solid culture. The elution patterns of these enzymes on CM-cellulose column chromatography were principally the same with both strains except for glucoamylase. When 10% of raw cassava starch and cassava waste were digested with the culture filtrate of mutant strain AF-1, glucose was produced in 7% after 60-h incubation and 3.2% after 48-h incubation, respectively.     

A new method for screening and isolation of hypersecretion mutants in Aspergillus niger

Although filamentous fungi have a unique property of secreting a large amount of homologous extracellular proteins, the use of filamentous fungi as hosts for the production of heterologous proteins is limited because of the low production levels that are generally reached. Here, we report a general screening method for the isolation of mutants with increased protein production levels. The screening method makes use of an Aspergillus niger strain that lacks the two major amylolytic enzymes, glucoamylase (GlaA) and acid amylase (AamA). The double-mutant strain grows poorly on starch and its growth is restored after reintroducing the catalytic part of the glucoamylase gene (GlaA₅₁₂). We show that the fusion of a heterologous protein, a laccase from Pleurotus ostreatus (Pox2), to the catalytic part of glucoamylase (GlaA₅₁₂–Pox2) severely hampers efficient production of the glucoamylase protein, resulting in a slow-growth phenotype on starch. Laccase-hypersecreting mutants were obtained by isolating mutants that displayed improved growth on starch plates. The mutant with the highest growth rate on starch displayed the highest laccase activity, indicating that increased glucoamylase protein levels are correlated with higher laccase production levels. In principle, our method can be applied to any low-produced heterologous protein that is secreted as a fusion with the glucoamylase protein.     

Relationships of in Vitro Pathogen Inhibition and Soil Colonization to Potato Scab Biocontrol by Antagonistic Streptomyces spp

Spontaneous mutants of two scab-suppressive streptomycetes that were defective in in vitro pathogen inhibition activity were isolated. Morphological characterization of these mutants by rep-PCR genomic DNA fingerprinting or by fatty acid analysis indicated that the mutants of each parent were closely related to one another and to their respective parent, though the mutants could be differentiated from the parent strains and from one another. Despite the reduced in vitro pathogen inhibition activity, most of the mutants demonstrated significant scab biocontrol activity against pathogenic Streptomyces scabies strains. These results suggest that pathogen inhibition activity detected in vitro may not be an accurate predictor of scab biocontrol. Colonization of the suppressive strain or its mutants was generally reduced in the presence versus in the absence of the pathogen. In addition, colonization assays showed no significant differences in pathogen population density among the suppressive strain and mutant strain treatments.     

The effect of acid proteinases on the activity and stability of glucoamylase preparations

It was demonstrated that the presence of acid proteinases in the preparation isolated from Aspergillus awamori decreased the activity and stability of glucoamylase. Patterns of changes in the enzymatic activity and stability of glucoamylase at increased temperature and various pH values were studied over a long-term storage. A biospecific sorbent for removal of acid proteinases was synthesized, and glucoamylase preparations free of proteolytic activity were produced.     

Mobilization of the Proteus morganii chromosome by R plasmids

Mutants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAC1 which could grow on L-threonine were isolated. These mutants, like the parent strain, synthesized a biosynthetic threonine deaminase, but its apparent Km value for threonine was higher than that of the enzyme from strain PAC1. These mutants also synthesized an inducible NAD-dependent threonine dehydrogenase, which was not present in the parent strain. No threonine aldolase activity could be detected. The results suggest that the threonine deaminase with lowered affinity for L-threonine, together with L-threonine dehydrogenase, enabled these mutants to utilize L-threonine as the sole source of carbon for growth.     

Isolation of Penicillinase-deficient Mutants of Kluyvera citrophila KY 3641

Penicillinase-deficient mutants were isolated from Kluyvera citrophila KY 3641 capable of carrying out enzymatic synthesis of 6-aminopenicillanic acid (6-APA) or d(–)-α-amino-benzylpenicillin (APc). Acridine orange treatment was found effective for the isolation of such mutants, some of which could produce larger amounts of 6-APA or APc than the parent strain. Particularly during an earlier stage of growth, the penicillin acylase activity of these penicillinase-deficient mutants did emerge due to the absence of penicillinase, while that of the parent strain did not appear because of its penicillinase activity.     

The effect of acid proteinases on the activity and stability of glucoamylase preparations

It was demonstrated that the presence of acid proteinases in the preparation isolated from Aspergillus awamori decreased the activity and stability of glucoamylase. Patterns of changes in the enzymatic activity and stability of glucoamylase at increased temperature and various pH values were studied over a long-term storage. A biospecific sorbent for removal of acid proteinases was synthesized and glucoamylase preparations free of proteolytic activity were produced.     

Evolution of a recombinant (gucoamylase-producing) strain of Fusarium venenatum A3/5 in chemostat culture

Fusarium venenatum JeRS 325 is a transformant of strain A3/5 which produces Aspergillus niger glucoamylase (GAM) under the control of a Fusarium oxysporum trypsin-like protease promoter. The evolution of JeRS 325 was studied in glucose-limited chemostat cultures grown on NaNO3 or (NH4)2SO4 as the nitrogen source. Thirteen mutants which were more highly branched and four mutants which were more sparsely branched than the parental strain were isolated from the NaNO3 chemostat. The highly branched mutants detected in this chemostat did not displace the sparsely branched population. The mutants isolated from the NaNO3 chemostat complemented representative strains previously isolated from glucose-limited chemostat cultures of F. venenatum A3/5 grown on (NH4)2SO4, but showed little complementation between themselves. By contrast, a highly branched mutant isolated from the (NH4)2SO4 chemostat culture displaced the sparsely branched mycelial population. None of the mutants isolated from the NaNO3 or (NH4)2SO4 chemostats produced as much GAM as JeRS 325. Southern blot analysis showed that all except one mutant had lost copies of both the glucoamylase and the acetamidase (the selectable marker) genes. However, specific GAM production was not necessarily correlated with the extent of glaA gene loss observed. Further, 10 of the mutants had lost the ability to grow on acetamide as the sole nitrogen source, although they retained copies of the amdS gene. In competition studies, mutants which could not utilize acetamide displaced mutants which could. The presence of foreign DNA in JeRS 325 resulted in a reduced specific growth rate (compared to A3/5), but the presence of the foreign DNA did not prevent the evolution of the strain or the isolation of mutants which had improved growth rates.     

Proteolytic inactivation of the NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase in proteinase-deficient mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The proteolytic inactivation of NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase (l-glutamate: NADP⁺ oxidoreductase, EC 1.4.1.4) during carbon starvation was studied using several proteinase-deficient mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Strains bearing mutations in the structural genes for proteinase B, proteinase C (carboxypeptidase Y), or in both genes catalyzed the inactivation and initial proteolytic cleavage of NADP-glutamate dehydrogenase at a rate indistinguishable from that of the wild-type parent strain. In addition, the pleiotropic mutation, pep4-3, which results in a deficiency for proteinases A, B, and C, did not affect the inactivation or initial proteolytic cleavage of NADP-glutamate dehydrogenase.     

In vitro andin vivo nitrogenase activity ofRhizobium mutants and their symbiotic effectivity

A slow growing nitrogen-fixing strain ofVigna radiata var.aureus (mung bean)Rhizobium which expressed nitrogenase activity in a synthetic medium was isolated from its native population. Mutants with decreased and increased nitrogenase activity were derived from this strain by treatment with acridine orange and ethidium bromide. These mutants were tested for symbiotic effectivity invivo. The effectivity of mutants with decreased nitrogenase activity in the culture medium was lower than the parent strain; however, the effectivity of mutants with higher nitrogenase activity did not increase above that of the parent. This suggests that the plant is perhaps a limiting factor in the full expression of rhizobial nitrogenase in the nodules.     

Evidence that the glucoamylases and alpha-amylase secreted by Aspergillus niger are proteolytically processed products of a precursor enzyme

A 125-kDa starch hydrolysing enzyme of Aspergillus niger characterised by its ability to dextrinise and saccharify starch [Suresh et al. (1999) Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 51, 673-675] was also found to possess activity towards raw starch. Segregation of these activities in the 71-kDa glucoamylase and a 53-kDa alpha-amylase-like enzyme supported by antibody cross-reactivity studies and the isolation of mutants based on assay screens for the secretion of particular enzyme forms revealed the 125-kDa starch hydrolysing enzyme as their precursor. N-terminal sequence analysis further revealed that the 71-kDa glucoamylase was the N-terminal product of the precursor enzyme. Immunological cross reactivity of the 53-kDa amylase with antibodies raised against the precursor enzyme but not with the 71- and 61-kDa glucoamylase antibodies suggested that this enzyme activity is represented by the C-terminal fragment of the precursor. The N-terminal sequence of the 53-kDa protein showed similarity to the reported Taka amylase of Aspergillus oryzae. Antibody cross-reactivity to a 10-kDa non-enzymic peptide and a 61-kDa glucoamylase described these proteins as products of the 71-kDa glucoamylase. Identification of only the precursor starch hydrolysing enzyme in the protein extracts of fungal protoplasts suggested proteolytic processing in the cellular periplasmic space as the cause for the secretion of multiple forms of amylases by A. niger.     

Auxotrophic mutants in the selection of the rubomycin producer, Actinomyces coeruleorubidus

A total of 351 auxotrophic mutants with different antibiotic activity, including several mutants with activity higher than that of the parent prototrophic strains were obtained under the effect of gamma-rays from 3 prototrophic strains of Act. coeruleorubidus. It was shown that most of the auxotrophic mutants did not preserve the property of biochemical insufficiency on passages on complete media. A mutant strain 1059-32 with activity 2 times higher than that of the prototrophic strain 2-39 and the parent auxotrophic culture was obtained from the revertants. Requirements in 29 growth factors including 17 amino acids, 4 nitrous bases, 8 vitamins and coenzymes were determined in 46 stable auxotrophic mutants isolated. The effect of the specific and non-specific growth factors on the culture antibiotic production was studied.     

黑曲霉pepB基因缺失菌株的构建及其功能分析

以黑曲霉(Aspergillus niger)GICC2773基因组DNA为模板,用PCR方法分别扩增pepB基因中的上游约1．4kb和下游约1．3kb两段DNA序列,将此两段序列按同一方向分别插入质粒pMW1中潮霉素抗性基因(hph)表达单元的5′和3′端,构建成重组质粒pMW1-pepB,用于通过同源重组靶向破坏基因组中的pepB基因。同源重组则采用原生质体-PEG方法,将酶切pMW1-pepB得到的线性片段转化A．niger GICC2773菌株,通过潮霉素选择平板得到62个Hgy抗性转化子,然后采用PCR方法从这些抗性转化子中筛选到1个由于同源重组产生的pepB基因缺失突变菌株pepB29。功能分析显示该突变株的酸性蛋白酶活性有明显下降,外源蛋白漆酶的分泌表达有所提高。     

Reversal of 2-bromoethanesulfonate inhibition of methanogenesis in Methanosarcina sp.

2-Bromoethanesulfonate (BES) inhibition of methanogenesis from methanol by resting-cell suspensions or cell extracts of Methanosarcina was reversed by coenzyme M. BES inhibition of methylcoenzyme M methylreductase activity in cell-free extracts was reversed by methylcoenzyme M but not by coenzyme M. Methanol/coenzyme M methyltransferase activity was not inhibited by 10 microM BES. Inhibition of methylreductase by BES and 3-bromopropionate was competitive with methylcoenzyme M, but inhibition by 2-bromoethanol exhibited mixed kinetics. The Ki values for the inhibitors in cell-free extracts were similar to the concentrations which inhibited intact cells. BES-resistant mutants of strain 227 were apparently permeability mutants because in vitro assays showed that mutant and parent strain methylreductases were equally sensitive to BES.