Nucleotide sequence and expression of the Enterobacter aerogenes alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase gene in brewer's yeast.

The nucleotide sequence of a 1.4-kilobase DNA fragment containing the alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase gene of Enterobacter aerogenes was determined. The sequence contains an entire protein-coding region of 780 nucleotides which encodes an alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase of 260 amino acids. The DNA sequence coding for alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase was placed under the control of the alcohol dehydrogenase I promoter of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a plasmid capable of autonomous replication in both S. cerevisiae and Escherichia coli. Brewer's yeast cells transformed by this plasmid showed alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase activity and were used in laboratory-scale fermentation experiments. These experiments revealed that the diacetyl concentration in wort fermented by the plasmid-containing yeast strain was significantly lower than that in wort fermented by the parental strain. These results indicated that the alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase activity produced by brewer's yeast cells degraded alpha-acetolactate and that this degradation caused a decrease in diacetyl production.     

Nucleotide sequence and expression of the Enterobacter aerogenes alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase gene in brewer's yeast

The nucleotide sequence of a 1.4-kilobase DNA fragment containing the alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase gene of Enterobacter aerogenes was determined. The sequence contains an entire protein-coding region of 780 nucleotides which encodes an alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase of 260 amino acids. The DNA sequence coding for alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase was placed under the control of the alcohol dehydrogenase I promoter of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a plasmid capable of autonomous replication in both S. cerevisiae and Escherichia coli. Brewer's yeast cells transformed by this plasmid showed alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase activity and were used in laboratory-scale fermentation experiments. These experiments revealed that the diacetyl concentration in wort fermented by the plasmid-containing yeast strain was significantly lower than that in wort fermented by the parental strain. These results indicated that the alpha-acetolactate decarboxylase activity produced by brewer's yeast cells degraded alpha-acetolactate and that this degradation caused a decrease in diacetyl production.     

Pseudomonas cepacia 2,2-dialkylglycine decarboxylase. Sequence and expression in Escherichia coli of structural and repressor genes

A 3969-base pair PstI-PstI fragment of Pseudomonas cepacia DNA containing the gene for the pyridoxal 5'-phosphate dependent 2,2-dialkylglycine decarboxylase (pyruvate) (EC 4.1.1.64) was cloned in Escherichia coli. The insert was sequenced by the dideoxy method using nested deletions from both ends, revealing a central 1302-base pair region that codes for the decarboxylase subunit. The recombinant enzyme was expressed in E. coli, purified to homogeneity, and sequenced at the amino terminus. Also, a cofactor-labeled active site peptide was sequenced. The carboxyl terminus of the deduced amino acid sequence is homologous with the carboxyl terminus of mammalian ornithine aminotransferase; the active site sequence is similar to the active site sequences of several other aminotransferases. No homologies with known decarboxylase sequences could be found. Expression of the decarboxylase gene is negatively controlled by a 687-nucleotide sequence upstream of and diverging from the structural gene. Expression is induced by S-isovaline, 2-methylalanine, and D-2-aminobutanoic acid, but not by glycine, D- or L-alanine, L-2-aminobutanoic acid, R-isovaline, or other alkyl amino acids.     

Structural characterization of Escherichia coli phosphatidylserine decarboxylase

Phosphatidylserine decarboxylase of Escherichia coli is one of a small group of pyruvoyl-dependent enzymes (Satre, M., and Kennedy, E.P. (1978) J. Biol. Chem. 253, 479-483). The DNA sequence of the structural gene (psd) and partial protein sequence studies demonstrate that the enzyme contains two nonidentical subunits, alpha (Mr = 7,332) and beta (Mr = 28,579), which are derived from a single proenzyme. These two subunits are blocked at their respective amino termini. Reduction of the enzyme with NaCNBH3 in the presence of radiolabeled phosphatidylserine resulted in association of the label with the alpha subunit. Similar reduction in the presence of ammonium ions exposed a new amino terminus for the alpha subunit beginning with alanine. Therefore, the pyruvate prosthetic group is in amide linkage to the amino terminus of the alpha subunit. The amino terminus of the beta subunit was determined to be formylmethionine. The carboxyl terminus of the beta subunit was determined to be glycine as predicted by the DNA sequence. Comparison of the DNA sequence and protein sequence information revealed that the decarboxylase is made as a proenzyme (Mr = 35,893), and the predicted amino acid at the position of the pyruvate within the open reading frame of the proenzyme is serine. Therefore, as with other pyruvoyl-dependent decarboxylases, the prosthetic group is derived from serine through a post-translational cleavage of a proenzyme.     

Spermidine biosynthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Biosynthesis and processing of a proenzyme form of S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase

We have cloned and sequenced the Saccharomyces cerevisiae gene for S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase. This enzyme contains covalently bound pyruvate which is essential for enzymatic activity. We have shown that this enzyme is synthesized as a Mr 46,000 proenzyme which is then cleaved post-translationally to form two polypeptide chains: a beta subunit (Mr 10,000) from the amino-terminal portion and an alpha subunit (Mr 36,000) from the carboxyl-terminal portion. The protein was overexpressed in Escherichia coli and purified to homogeneity. The purified enzyme contains both the alpha and beta subunits. About half of the alpha subunits have pyruvate blocking the amino-terminal end; the remaining alpha subunits have alanine in this position. From a comparison of the amino acid sequence deduced from the nucleotide sequence with the amino acid sequence of the amino-terminal portion of each subunit (determined by Edman degradation), we have identified the cleavage site of the proenzyme as the peptide bond between glutamic acid 87 and serine 88. The pyruvate moiety, which is essential for activity, is generated from serine 88 during the cleavage. The amino acid sequence of the yeast enzyme has essentially no homology with S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase of E. coli (Tabor, C. W., and Tabor, H. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 16037-16040) and only a moderate degree of homology with the human and rat enzymes (Pajunen, A., Crozat, A., J?nne, O. A., Ihalainen, R., Laitinen, P. H., Stanley, B., Madhubala, R., and Pegg, A. E. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 17040-17049); all of these enzymes are pyruvoyl-containing proteins. Despite this limited overall homology the cleavage site of the yeast proenzyme is identical to the cleavage sites in the human and rat proenzymes, and seven of the eight amino acids adjacent to the cleavage site are identical in the three eukaryote enzymes.     

Purification and primary amino acid sequence of the L subunit of glycine decarboxylase. Evidence for a single lipoamide dehydrogenase in plant mitochondria.

In order to purify the lipoamide dehydrogenase associated with the glycine decarboxylase complex of pea leaf mitochondria, the activity of free lipoamide dehydrogenase has been separated from those of the pyruvate and 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complexes under conditions in which the glycine decarboxylase dissociates into its component subunits. This free lipoamide dehydrogenase which is normally associated with the glycine decarboxylase complex has been further purified and the N-terminal amino acid sequence determined. Positive cDNA clones isolated from both a pea leaf and embryo lambda gt11 expression library using an antibody raised against the purified lipoamide dehydrogenase proved to be the product of a single gene. The amino acid sequence deduced from the open reading frame included a sequence matching that determined directly from the N terminus of the mature protein. The deduced amino acid sequence shows good homology to the sequence of lipoamide dehydrogenase associated with the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex from Escherichia coli, yeast, and humans. The corresponding mRNA is strongly light-induced both in etiolated pea seedlings and in the leaves of mature plants following a period of darkness. The evidence suggests that the mitochondrial enzyme complexes: pyruvate dehydrogenase, 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase, and glycine decarboxylase all use the same lipoamide dehydrogenase subunit.     

Site of pyruvate formation and processing of mammalian S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase proenzyme

Mammalian S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase was expressed at a high level in an Escherichia coli mutant deficient in this enzyme. The proenzyme form of this enzyme was cleaved and processed to the mature decarboxylase which contains two pairs of nonidentical subunits, the larger of which contains a pyruvate prosthetic group. In order to determine the site of formation of the pyruvate, two approaches were used. First, the mammalian S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase produced in E. coli was purified to homogeneity and the pyruvate converted to alanine by a reductive amination. The large subunit was then isolated by reversed phase high pressure liquid chromatography and the amino-terminal sequence determined and compared with the sequence of the proenzyme derived from its cDNA. These results indicated that the bond between glutamic acid 67 and serine 68 was the site of cleavage. Second, each of the serine residues in portion of the proenzyme likely to contain the cleavage site were altered by site-directed mutagenesis and the RNA produced from plasmids containing these mutations was translated in a reticulocyte lysate. The translation products were tested for processing and for S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase activity. Altering the serine residues at positions 50, 66, and 69 to alanines had little effect but changing serine at position 68 to alanine completely prevented both processing and activity. These results indicate that the serine residue at position 68 of the proenzyme which is in the underlined position in the sequence -Leu-Ser-Glu-Ser-Ser-Met- is the residue which is converted to the pyruvate prosthetic group in human S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase.     

Nucleotide sequence of the pyruvate decarboxylase gene from Zymomonas mobilis.

Pyruvate decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.1), the penultimate enzyme in the alcoholic fermentation pathway of Zymomonas mobilis, converts pyruvate to acetaldehyde and carbon dioxide. The complete nucleotide sequence of the structural gene encoding pyruvate decarboxylase from Zymomonas mobilis has been determined. The coding region is 1704 nucleotides long and encodes a polypeptide of 567 amino acids with a calculated subunit mass of 60,790 daltons. The amino acid sequence was confirmed by comparison with the amino acid sequence of a selection of tryptic fragments of the enzyme. The amino acid composition obtained from the nucleotide sequence is in good agreement with that obtained experimentally.     

Expression of active yeast pyruvate decarboxylase in Escherichia coli.

We have shown by appropriate modification of the translational signals and using the strong T7 RNA polymerase promoter phi 10, that a cloned Saccharomyces cerevisiae pyruvate decarboxylase gene (pdc1) can be expressed in Escherichia coli. This protein, which migrated as a single band on SDS-polyacrylamide gels, was found to have a subunit molecular mass of approximately 62 kDa, similar to that of the enzyme produced by yeast. Polyclonal antibodies raised against purified yeast pyruvate decarboxylase recognized this bacterially produced protein. We found that this recombinant enzyme is active, indicating that the homotetramer encoded by the pdc1 gene is functional.     

Coexistence of the genes for putrescine transport protein and ornithine decarboxylase at 16 min on Escherichia coli chromosome

The nucleotide sequence of one of the putrescine transport operons (pPT71), located at 16 min of the Escherichia coli chromosome, was determined. It contained the genes for an induced ornithine decarboxylase and a putrescine transport protein. The gene for the ornithine decarboxylase contained a 2,196-nucleotide open reading frame encoding a 732-amino acid protein whose calculated Mr was 82,414, and the predicted amino acid sequence from the open reading frame had 65% homology with that of a constitutive ornithine decarboxylase encoded by the gene at 64 min. The ornithine decarboxylase activity was observed in the cells carrying pPT71 cultured at pH 5.2, but not in the cells cultured at pH 7.0. The gene for the putrescine transport protein contained a 1,317-nucleotide open reading frame encoding a 439-amino acid protein whose calculated Mr was 46,494. The hydropathy profile of the putrescine transport protein revealed that it consisted of 12 putative transmembrane spanning segments linked by hydrophilic segments of variable length. The transport protein was in fact found in the membrane fraction. When the gene for the putrescine transport protein was linked to the tet promoter of the vector instead of its own promoter, the putrescine transport activity increased greatly. The results suggest that the gene expression of the operon is repressed strongly under standard conditions.     

Pyruvate decarboxylase is like acetolactate synthase (ILV2) and not like the pyruvate dehydrogenase E1 subunit

Protein sequences of pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) derived from cloned yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) and bacterial (Zymomonas mobilis) genes were compared with each other and with sequence databases. Extensive sequence similarities were found between them and with two others: cytochrome-linked pyruvate oxidase from Escherichia coli and acetolactate synthase (ilvI in E. coli; ILV2 gene in S. cerevisiae). All catalyse decarboxylation of pyruvate using thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) as cofactor. General overall similarity suggests common ancestry for these enzymes. None of the sequences was similar to the E1 component of pyruvate dehydrogenase from E. coli which also decarboxylates pyruvate with the help of TPP.     

Mandelate pathway of Pseudomonas putida: sequence relationships involving mandelate racemase, (S)-mandelate dehydrogenase, and benzoylformate decarboxylase and expression of benzoylformate decarboxylase in Escherichia coli

The genes that encode the five known enzymes of the mandelate pathway of Pseudomonas putida (ATCC 12633), mandelate racemase (mdlA), (S)-mandelate dehydrogenase (mdlB), benzoylformate decarboxylase (mdlC), NAD(+)-dependent benzaldehyde dehydrogenase (mdlD), and NADP(+)-dependent benzaldehyde dehydrogenase (mdlE), have been cloned. The genes for (S)-mandelate dehydrogenase and benzoylformate decarboxylase have been sequenced; these genes and that for mandelate racemase [Ransom, S. C., Gerlt, J. A., Powers, V. M., & Kenyon, G. L. (1988) Biochemistry 27, 540] are organized in an operon (mdlCBA). Mandelate racemase has regions of sequence similarity to muconate lactonizing enzymes I and II from P. putida. (S)-Mandelate dehydrogenase is predicted to be 393 amino acids in length and to have a molecular weight of 43,352; it has regions of sequence similarity to glycolate oxidase from spinach and ferricytochrome b2 lactate dehydrogenase from yeast. Benzoylformate decarboxylase is predicted to be 499 amino acids in length and to have a molecular weight of 53,621; it has regions of sequence similarity to enzymes that decarboxylate pyruvate with thiamin pyrophosphate as cofactor. These observations support the hypothesis that the mandelate pathway evolved by recruitment of enzymes from preexisting metabolic pathways. The gene for benzoylformate decarboxylase has been expressed in Escherichia coli with the trc promoter, and homogeneous enzyme has been isolated from induced cells.     

Cloning and sequence analysis of the genes encoding the alpha and beta subunits of the E1 component of the pyruvate dehydrogenase multienzyme complex of Bacillus stearothermophilus

A 4175-bp EcoRI fragment of DNA that encodes the alpha and beta chains of the pyruvate dehydrogenase (lipoamide) component (E1) of the pyruvate dehydrogenase multienzyme complex of Bacillus stearothermophilus has been cloned in Escherichia coli. Its nucleotide sequence was determined. Open reading frames (pdhA, pdhB) corresponding to the E1 alpha subunit (368 amino acids, Mr 41,312, without the initiating methionine residue) and E1 beta subunit (324 amino acids, Mr 35,306, without the initiating methionine residue) were identified and confirmed with the aid of amino acid sequences determined directly from the purified polypeptide chains. The E1 beta gene begins just 3 bp downstream from the E1 alpha stop codon. It is followed, after a longer gap of 73 bp, by the start of another but incomplete open reading frame that, on the basis of its known amino acid sequence, encodes the dihydrolipoyl acetyltransferase (E2) component of the complex. All three genes are preceded by potential ribosome-binding sites and the gene cluster is located immediately downstream from a region of DNA showing numerous possible promoter sequences. The E1 alpha and E1 beta subunits of the B. stearothermophilus pyruvate dehydrogenase complex exhibit substantial sequence similarity with the E1 alpha and E1 beta subunits of pyruvate and branched-chain 2-oxo-acid dehydrogenase complexes from mammalian mitochondria and Pseudomonas putida. In particular, the E1 alpha chain contains the highly conserved sequence motif that has been found in all enzymes utilizing thiamin diphosphate as cofactor.     

Structure and expression of the Lactococcus lactis gene for phospho-beta-galactosidase (lacG) in Escherichia coli and L. lactis

The Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis 712 lacG gene encoding phospho-beta-galactosidase was isolated from the lactose mini-plasmid pMG820 and cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli and L. lactis. The low phospho-beta-galactosidase activity in L. lactis transformed with high-copy-number plasmids containing the lacG gene contrasted with the high activity found in L. lactis containing the original, low-copy-number lactose plasmid pMG820, and indicated that the original lactose promoter was absent from the cloned DNA. In E. coli the phospho-beta-galactosidase could be overproduced using the strong inducible lambda PL promoter, which allowed a rapid purification of the active enzyme. The complete nucleotide sequence of the L. lactis lacG gene and its surrounding regions was determined. The deduced amino acid sequence was confirmed by comparison with the amino acid composition of the purified phospho-beta-galactosidase and its amino-terminal sequence. This also allowed the exact positioning of the lacG gene and identification of its characteristic Gram-positive translation initiation signals. The homologous expression data and the sequence organization of the L. lactis lacG gene indicate that the gene is organized into a large lactose operon which contains an intergenic promoter located in an inverted repeat immediately preceding the lacG gene. The organization and sequence of the L. lactis lacG gene were compared with those of the highly homologous lacG gene from Staphylococcus aureus. A remarkable bias for leucine codons was observed in the lacG genes of these two species. Heterogramic homology was observed between the deduced amino acid sequence of the L. lactis phospho-beta-galactosidase, that of the functionally analogous E. coli phospho-beta-glucosidase, and that of an Agrobacterium beta-glucosidase (cellobiase).     

Nucleotide sequence of the Synechococcus sp. PCC7942 branching enzyme gene (glgB): expression in Bacillus subtilis

The nucleotide sequence of the Synechococcus sp. PCC7942 glgB gene has been determined. The gene contains a single open reading frame (ORF) of 2322 bp encoding a polypeptide of 774 amino acids (aa) with an Mr of 89,206. Extensive sequence similarity exists between the deduced aa sequence of the Synechococcus sp. glgB gene product and that of the Escherichia coli branching enzyme in the middle portions of the proteins (62% identical aa). In contrast, the N-terminal portions shared little homology. The sequenced region which follows glgB contains an ORF encoding 79 aa of the N terminus of a polypeptide that shares extensive sequence similarity (41% identical aa) with human and rat uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase. This suggests that the region downstream from glgB contains the hemE gene and, therefore, that the organization of genes involved in glycogen biosynthesis in Synechococcus sp. is different from that described for E. coli. A fusion gene was constructed between the 5' end of the Bacillus licheniformis penP gene and the Synechococcus sp. glgB gene. The fusion gene was efficiently expressed in the Gram+ micro-organism Bacillus subtilis and specified a branching enzyme with an optimal temperature for activity similar to the wild-type enzyme.     

Nucleotide sequence and LexA regulation of the Escherichia coli recN gene.

The nucleotide sequence of a 2224 bp region of the Escherichia coli chromosome that carries the LexA regulated recN gene has been determined. A region of 1701 nucleotides encoding a polypeptide of 567 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 63,599 was identified as the most probable sequence for the recN structural gene. The proposed initiation codon is preceded by a reasonable Shine-Dalgarno sequence and a promoter region containing two 16 bp sequences, separated by 6 bp, that match the consensus sequence (SOS box) for binding LexA protein. DNA fragments containing this putative promoter region are shown to bind LexA in vitro and to have LexA-regulated promoter activity in vivo. The amino acid sequence of RecN predicted from the DNA contains a region that is homologous to highly conserved sequences found in several DNA repair enzymes and other proteins that bind ATP. A sequence of 9 amino acids was found to be homologous to a region of the RecA protein of E. coli postulated to have a role in DNA/nucleotide binding.     

Purification of acetoacetate decarboxylase from Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 and cloning of the acetoacetate decarboxylase gene in Escherichia coli.

In Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824, acetoacetate decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.4) is essential for solvent production, catalyzing the decarboxylation of acetoacetate to acetone. We report here the purification of the enzyme from C. acetobutylicum ATCC 824 and the cloning and expression of the gene encoding the acetoacetate decarboxylase enzyme in Escherichia coli. A bacteriophage lambda EMBL3 library of C. acetobutylicum DNA was screened by plaque hybridization, using oligodeoxynucleotide probes derived from the N-terminal amino acid sequence obtained from the purified protein. Phage DNA from positive plaques was analyzed by Southern hybridization. Restriction mapping and subsequent subcloning of DNA fragments hybridizing to the probes localized the gene within an approximately 2.1 kb EcoRI/Bg/II fragment. A polypeptide with a molecular weight of approximately 28,000 corresponding to that of the purified acetoacetate decarboxylase was observed in both Western blots (immunoblots) and maxicell analysis of whole-cell extracts of E. coli harboring the clostridial gene. Although the expression of the gene is tightly regulated in C. acetobutylicum, it was well expressed in E. coli, although from a promoter sequence of clostridial origin.