Preliminary X-ray studies on Serratia protease

Preliminary X-ray studies on Serratia protease have been carried out using crystallographic and small angle scattering techniques. The enzyme has been crystallized in three different crystalline forms by microdialysis and vapor diffusion methods using 50 mM phosphate buffer, pH 6.0, at 24 degrees C. They have orthorhombic space groups: C222(1) for one form and P2(1)2(1)2(1) for the other two forms. A small angle X-ray scattering study showed that the radius of gyration and the maximal dimension of the molecule in aqueous solution are 26.6 A and 94.5 A, respectively. The molecular weight of the enzyme was determined to be 45,000-48,000 by various physical methods.     

Production enhancement of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa isoamylase

Isoamylase production in batchwise and fed-batch cultures of Pseudomonas amyloderomosa (strain WU7211-2) was investigated. By feeding maltose in a mode motivated by its structure gene (iam), the final isoamylase activity of 5100 U/ml was achieved, as compared to 4100 U/ml in batch cultivation and 3800 U/ml in shaken flasks. The enhancement may be due to the fact that the production of isoamylase can be induced effectively by the maltose only if the glucose concentration is maintained below the inhibitory level. Also, cultivations based on 500-ml shaken flasks, performed with different amount of proteimax HE90, showed that higher amounts of proteimax HE90 resulted in an increased value of pH that had an adverse effect on isoamylase yield.The authors wish to thank the Food Industry Research and Development Institute (FIRDI), Taiwan, R.O.C for the financial support (Cooperative Agreement 94M904-2B). Appreciation is also extended to Drs. C.C. Liao, W.S. Chu and L.L. Lin of FIRDI for their valuable discussions.     

Synthesis of branched cyclomalto-oligosaccharides using Pseudomonas isoamylase

Branched cyclomalto-oligosaccharides (cyclodextrins) were synthesised from cyclomalto-oligosaccharides and maltose or maltotriose through the reverse action of Pseudomonas isoamylase. The reaction rate was greater with maltotriose than with maltose, and with increasing size of the cyclomalto-oligosaccharide (cG₆ < cG₇ < cG₈). Maltotriose is effective as both a side-chain donor and acceptor, and three isomers of 6-O-α-maltotriosylmaltotriose (branched G₆) were formed through mutual condensation, but maltose was effective only as a side-chain donor. Each branched cyclomalto-oligosaccharide and G₆ was purified by liquid chromatography, and their structures were determined by chemical, enzymic, and ¹³C-n.m.r. spectroscopic analyses.     

Investigation on the immobilization of Pseudomonas isoamylase onto polysaccharide matrices

This study examined Pseudomonas isoamylase immobilized onto polysaccharide matrices, among which included agarose, cellulose, and raw corn starch. For chemical binding of polysaccharides activated with tosyl chloride, a high specific activity of 23144?U/g-starch was obtained as compared with matrices of cellulose and agarose with 3229?U/g-cellulose and 84?U/g-agarose, respectively. For raw corn starch, isoamylase desorption occurred when the immobilized enzyme by physical adsorption was subjected to 0.05?M acetate buffer with pH?5.2 at 40?°C; this is despite the considerable affinity between the enzyme and the matrix. In contrast, no detectable activity leached from the matrix for chemical binding, regardless of whether maltose, i.e. an affinity species to isoamylase, was added. For immobilized starch-isoamylase, its optimal activity performance was obtained in broader pH?ranges of 3.5–5.5 and 5?°C higher than those of the free enzymes. More specifically, the free enzyme's activity markedly decreased within five hours while the immobilized starch-isoamylase exhibited a fairly stable behavior over a three day incubation period at 40?°C. After 175 days of storage at 4?°C, the residues of relative activity of 75% and 45% were obtained with respect to immobilized and free isoamylases, respectively.     

Expression of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa isoamylase gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Isoamylase gene (iso) of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa was amplified by polymerase chain reaction and cloned into Saccharomyces cerevisiae vectors under the control of alcohol dehydrogenase gene and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene promoters. The signal sequence of iso gene was also replaced with that of Schwanniomyces occidentalis -amylase gene. The extracellular isoamylase activity of transformed Sacc. cerevisiae could reach 86 U ml–1 after a 4-days cultivation. © Rapid Science Ltd. 1998     

Preliminary X-ray studies on Chromatium vinosum flavocytochrome c552

Preliminary crystallographic data are given for Chromatium vinosum flavocytochrome c₅₅₂. This protein is a 72,000 M_r complex incorporating one flavin and two c-type cytochrome subunits. Interest attaches to the complex structure owing to observed rapid rates of electron transfer between the flavin and heme prosthetic groups. These results suggest that the structure determination of flavocytochrome c₅₅₂ will allow direct examination of a productive interprotein electron transfer complex.     

Effect of pH on isoamylase production by Pseudomonas amyloderamosa WU 5315

The isoamylase activity of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa WU 5315 was stable over the pH range from 5.5 to 6.25 while only about 30% of the activity remained at pH 6.5. Low isoamylase activity (418 U ml^-1) was produced by the cells grown at high pH. Activity reached almost 3000 U ml^-1 when pH was kept below 6.0 during the fermentation. With 1% glucose plus 2% maltose instead of 3% maltose as carbon source, however, no pH control was required and the isoamylase activity of Ps. amyloderamosa WU 5315 increased to 3400 U ml^-1.     

Preliminary X-ray crystallographic studies on alcohol dehydrogenase from Drosophila.

The alcohol dehydrogenase (ADHase) enzyme catalyses the oxidation of alcohols to aldehydes or ketones using NAD+ as a cofactor. Functional ADHase from Drosophila lebanonensis is a dimer, with a monomeric molecular weight of 27,000 and with 254 residues in each polypeptide chain. Crystals of the protein have been grown with and without NAD+. Two crystal forms have been observed. Most crystals are plate-like, 0.05 mm in their shortest dimension and up to 0.4 mm in their longest dimension. These crystals are generally too small to diffract efficiently using conventional X-ray sources, so preliminary studies were carried out using the Synchrotron Radiation Source at the SERC Daresbury Laboratory. Twinning was a severe problem with this crystal form. The second form is grown in the absence of NAD+ but with DL-dithiothreitol present. These crystals grow more evenly and diffract to better than 2 A resolution. They are monoclinic, with cell dimensions, a = 81.24(6) A, b = 55.75(4) A, c = 109.60(7) A and beta = 94.26(9) degrees, space group P2(1). There are two dimers in the asymmetric unit, but at low resolution a rotated cell with one dimer per asymmetric unit can be obtained.     

Production of isoamylase by Pseudomonas amyloderamosa mutant strain JD210

Nutritional requirements for the production of isoamylase by Pseudomonas amyloderamosa mutant strain JD210 were investigated. The optimal initial pH for enzyme production in shake-flask cultivation was 5.0. Maltose and soybean protein hydrolyzate were found to be the best carbon source and nitrogen source, respectively. The enzyme production was drastically inhibited by Zn+2 and Cu+2. Other metal ions phosphates and surfactants exhibited no significant inhibitory or accelerating effect on enzyme production. According to auxanography and single omission experiments, proline and isoleucine were required for growth. The supplement of 0.1% proline increased enzyme production by around 30% compared with no addition.     

Molecular weight of the undegraded polypeptide chain of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa isoamylase

Crystalline isoamylase of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa was found to be contaminated with a trace of proteolytic enzyme. This contaminant digested the isoamylase under neutral or alkaline conditions, especially in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). A reliable molecular weight of the enzyme was obtained by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and by gel filtration on Sepharose-6B in 6 M guanidine-hydrochloride after heat inactivation of the contaminant. The molecular weight of the undergraded polypeptide chain of the isoamylase was about 90 000. The lower molecular weight and the subunit structure of the enzyme reported previously are incorrect.     

Selection of antibiotic-resistant mutants with enhanced isoamylase activity in Pseudomonas amyloderamosa

Summary Isoamylase-hyperproducing strains of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa were bred by mutagenesis with UV light and N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (NTG). The selection criterion for such strains was based on the formation of large turbid zones around the bacterial colonies in agar medium containing antibiotics and 1% waxy corn starch. Mutant WN6410 was obtained by treating P. amyloderamosa JD210 with five cycles of 1 × 10⁴ J UV light and one cycle of NTG. P. amyloderamosa WN6410 had 22-fold increase in isoamylase activity when compared to wild-type strain SB15 and the maximal enzyme activity, 5,100 U/ml, could be achieved within 48 h in 2.5 L fed-batch fermentation.     

Preliminary X-ray crystallographic studies of pig kidney fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase

Preliminary x-ray data have been obtained from large single crystals of pig kidney fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase, grown from polyethylene glycol. The crystals have the symmetry of space group P3(1)21 or its enantiomorph P3(2)21, contain two subunits of the 146,000-dalton tetramer/asymmetric unit, and diffract to 2.9-A resolution on still photographs. The unit cell dimensions are a = b = 132.5 A and c = 68.0 A. Small single crystals have been grown in the presence of the inhibitor fructose 2,6-bisphosphate, with and without the allosteric effector AMP added. Crystals grown in the presence of both ligands are isomorphous with native crystals and generate diffraction patterns that show significant intensity changes.     

Preliminary X-ray diffraction studies on 2 Fe-ferredoxin from Halobacterium of the Dead Sea

The 2 Fe-ferredoxin from the Halobacterium of the Dead Sea has been crystallized. The space group is P6₃22 with one protein molecule per asymmetric unit. The cell parameters are $\text{a = b = 60.6}\text{A}\text{?}\text{, c = 127.8}\text{A}\text{?}$. The crystals are stable under radiation and diffract to high resolution.     

Preliminary X-ray studies on the GTP: AMP phosphotransferase from beef heart mitochondria

Crystals of GTP: AMP phosphotransferase from beef heart mitochondria suitable for X-ray analysis have been grown. They belong to space group I4 with unit cell dimensions: a = b = 88.2 A, c = 147.8 A. The asymmetric unit contains two molecules each of Mr = 26,000. So far, two heavy-atom derivatives have been obtained.     

Cloning and nucleotide sequence of the isoamylase gene from Pseudomonas amyloderamosa SB-15

The gene (iam) coding for isoamylase (glycogen 6-glucanohydrolase) of Pseudomonas amyloderamosa SB-15 was cloned. Its nucleotide sequence contained an open reading frame of 2313 nucleotides (771 amino acids) encoding a precursor of secreted isoamylase. The precursor contained a signal peptide of 26 amino acid residues at its amino terminus and three regions homologous with those conserved in alpha-amylases (1,4-alpha-D-glucan 4-glucanohydrolase) of species ranging from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. These homologous regions were also found in another debranching enzyme, pullulanase (pullulan 6-glucanohydrolase) from Klebsiella aerogenes. Sequences of the isoamylase also showed significant homology with those between positions 300 and the carboxyl terminus of pullulanase. The regions required for the specificity of isoamylase were discussed on the basis of a comparison of its amino acid sequence with those of alpha-amylases, cyclomaltodextrin glucanotransferases, and pullulanase.