A study in UF-membrane reactor on activity and stability of nitrile hydratase from Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 resting cells for propionamide production

The bioconversion of propionitrile to propionamide was catalysed by nitrile hydratase (NHase) using resting cells of Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 (formerly, Brevibacterium imperiale). This microorganism, cultivated in a shake flask, at 28 °C, presented a specific NHase activity of 34.4 U mg_DCW⁻¹ (dry cell weight). The kinetic parameters, K_m and V_max, tested in 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.0, in the propionitrile bioconversion was evaluated in batch reactor at 10 °C and resulted 21.6 mM and 11.04 μmol min⁻¹ mg_DCW⁻¹, respectively. The measured apparent activation energy, 25.54 kJ mol⁻¹, indicated a partial control by mass transport, more likely through the cell wall.

UF-membrane reactors were used for kinetic characterisation of the NHase catalysed reaction. The time dependence of enzyme deactivation on reaction temperature (from 5 to 25 °C), on substrate concentrations (from 100 to 800 mM), and on resting cell loading (from 1.5 to 200 μg  ml⁻¹) indicated: lower diffusional control (E_a=37.73 kJ mol⁻¹); and NHase irreversible damage caused by high substrate concentration. Finally, it is noteworthy that in an integral reactor continuously operating for 30 h, at 10 °C, 100% conversion of propionitrile (200 mM) was attained using 200 μg  ml⁻¹ of resting cells, with a maximum volumetric productivity of 0.5 g l⁻¹ h⁻¹.     

Improvement of stability of nitrile hydratase via protein fragment swapping

Nitrile hydratase (NHase), which catalyzes the hydration of nitriles to amides, is the key enzyme for the production of amides in industries. However, the poor stability of this enzyme under the reaction conditions is a drawback of its industrial application. In this study, we aimed to improve the stability of NHase (PpNHase) from Pseudomonas putida NRRL-18668 using a homologous protein fragment swapping strategy. One thermophilic NHase fragment from Comamonas testosteroni 5-MGAM-4D and two fragments from Pseudonocardia thermophila JCM3095 were selected to swap the corresponding fragments of PpNHase. Seven chimeric NHases were designed using STAR (site targeted amino recombination) software and molecular dynamics to determine the crossover sites for fragment recombination. All constructed chimeric NHases showed 1.4- to 3.5-fold enhancement in thermostability and six of them become more tolerant to high-concentration product. Notably, one of these NHases, 3AB, exhibited a 1.4 ± 0.05-fold increase in activity compared to the wild-type PpNHase. Circular dichroism spectrum analysis and homology modeling revealed that the 3AB slightly differed in secondary structure from wild-type PpNHase. The 3AB constructed in this study is useful for further industrial application, and the method for designing the chimeric protein using homologous protein fragment swapping without a decrease in activity may be a strategy to improve the stability of other enzymes.     

Efficient inducible expression of nitrile hydratase in Corynebacterium glutamicum

Nitrile hydratases are important industrial catalysts to produce valuable amides. In this study, we describe a comprehensive and systematic approach to the development of an inducible expression system for enhanced nitrile hydratase expression in Corynebacterium glutamicum. Through promoter engineering, codon optimization and design of ribosome binding site sequences, the nitrile hydratase activity toward 3-cyanopyridine was improved from 0.33 U/mg DCW to 12.03 U/mg DCW in shake-flask culture. By introduction of the novel inducible mmp expression system, the nitrile hydratase activity was further elevated to 14.97 U/mg DCW. Finally, a high nitrile hydratase yield of 1432 U/mL was achieved in a fed-batch fermentation process and used for nicotinamide production. These results provide new insights for the development of heterologous protein expression systems in C. glutamicum.     

Cobalt-dependent transcription of the nitrile hydratase gene in Rhodococcus rhodochrous M8

Abstract The effects of cobalt ions on the activities of Rhodococcus rhodochrous M8 enzymes for nitrile utilization, nitrile hydratase and amidase, were investigated. In contrast to amidase, synthesis of nitrile hydratase and its activity required cobalt ions in the growth medium. Northern blot analysis showed that in the presence of cobalt ions, the level of mRNA for nitrile hydratase genes was several times higher than that under cobalt-limited conditions. It was assumed that the low nitrile hydratase activity in cells grown in the absence of cobalt ions is connected either with the weak expression of nitrile hydratase genes or with the rapid degradation of nitrile hydratase mRNA.     

Purification and characterization of the enantioselective nitrile hydratase from Rhodococcus sp. AJ270

Nitrile hydratase (NHase, EC 4.2.1.84) from Rhodococcus sp. AJ270 was purified with 23.96% yield after sonication, ammonium sulfate fractionation, ion exchange, hydrophobic and gel-filtration column chromatography. The enzyme showed intriguing characteristics: it hydrated not only aliphatic and heterocyclic nitriles but also aromatic ones. Some substrates were also hydrated enantioselectively to the corresponding amides. The enantiomeric excess (ee) value of the enzyme hydrating trans-2,2-dimethyl-3-phenylcyclopropanecarbonitrile was 84.7. The enzyme is composed of two subunits: an alpha subunit and beta subunit of 22 975 Da and 23 493 Da, respectively. The optimal temperature and pH for the catalytic reaction of the enzyme was 25 degrees C and pH 7.6. The enzyme activity of the purified NHase was strongly inhibited by some oxidizing agents and heavy metals.     

Hydration of 3-cyanopyridine to nicotinamide by crude extract nitrile hydratase

Summary The kinetic and stability characteristics of crude extract nitrile hydratase fromBrevibacterium R-312 were studied for the hydration of 3-cyanopyridine to nicotinamide. The enzyme was substrate and product inhibited and had the following kinetic constants:K _m =28 mM;K _p =36 mM;K _s =155 mM;V _m =5.8 mol/min/mg protein (25°C). Itsmaximum temperature and pH (phosphate buffer) were 35°C and 8.0, respectively and it had half-lives of 50 days, 10 days and 1 day at 4°C, 10°C and 25°C, respectively. The crude extract also exhibited amidase activity on nicotinamide, but it became significant only at nicotinamide concentrations greater than 300 mM. Mathematical models for batch and fed-batch hydrations were developed to account for substrate and product inhibitions and for enzyme decay. They predicted to within 10% experimental results for initial substrate and final product concentrations up to 300 mM; the accuracies decreased at higher concentrations primarily because of the relatively rapid hydrolysis of nicotinamide.     

Biotransformation of nitriles to amides using soluble and immobilized nitrile hydratase from Rhodococcus erythropolis A4

A semi-purified nitrile hydratase from Rhodococcus erythropolis A4 was applied to biotransformations of 3-oxonitriles 1a–4a, 3-hydroxy-2-methylenenitriles 5a–7a, 4-hydroxy-2-methylenenitriles 8a–9a, 3-hydroxynitriles 10a–12a and 3-acyloxynitrile 13a into amides 1b–13b. Cross-linked enzyme aggregates (CLEAs) with nitrile hydratase and amidase activities (88% and 77% of the initial activities, respectively) were prepared from cell-free extract of this microorganism and used for nitrile hydration in presence of ammonium sulfate, which selectively inhibited amidase activity. The genes nha1 and nha2 coding for and β subunits of nitrile hydratase were cloned and sequenced.     

Cloning of the nitrile hydratase gene from Nocardia sp. in Escherichia coli and Pichia pastoris and its functional expression using site-directed mutagenesis

To obtain a recombinant Rhodococcus or Nocardia with not only higher enzymatic activity but also better operational stability and product-tolerance ability for bioconversion of acrylamide from acrylonitrile, an active and stable expression system of nitrile hydratase (NHase) was tried to construct as the technical platform of genetic manipulations. Two NHase genes, NHBA and NHBAX, from Nocardia YS-2002 were successfully cloned, based on bioinformatics design of PCR primers, and inserted into plasmid pUC18 and pET32a, respectively. Then, two recombinant Escherichia coli strains, JM105 (pUC18-NHBA) and BL21 (DE3) (pET32a-NHBAX) were constructed and their expressions of NHase were focused. The induction results showed that there was either no NHase activity in JM105 (pUC18-NHBA), or as low as 0.04 U (1 U=1 μmol acrylamide min⁻¹ mg⁻¹ dry cell) in BL21 (DE3) (pET32a-NHBAX). SDS-PAGE results showed that the -subunit of NHBA and NHBAX could not be efficiently expressed in both recombinant E. coli strains. The novel Pichia pastoris system was also applied to express NHase, but the expression level remained quite low (0.5–0.6 U) and the protein was unstable. For solving this problem, a possible genetic strategy, site-directed mutagenesis of the -subunit of the NHase was carried out. After the successful mutagenesis of the original rare start codon gtg into atg, a new recombinant strain, E. coli XL1-Blue (pUC18-NHBA^M), was screened and the NHase activity stably reached as high as 51 U under the same induction conditions.     

Large-scale preparation of a nitrile-hydrolysing biocatalyst: Rhodococcus R 312 (CBS 717.73)

Lyophilized cells of Rhodococcus R 312 (CBS 717.73) can be employed as an easy-to-use biocatalyst for the biocatalytic hydrolysis of nitriles to furnish the corresponding carboxamides or acids on a preparative scale. The following practical aspects are advantageous: (i) Fermentation yields a high biomass (10 g dry cell weight l⁻¹), (ii) enzyme induction is not required, (iii) a maximum of activity is obtained at the late exponential growth phase (25.7 μmol min⁻¹ mg⁻¹), which can be monitored by a simple photometic assay and (iv) the cells can be stored at +4°C for several months without significant loss of activity.     

Biochemical characterization of Rhodococcus erythropolis N′4 nitrile hydratase acting on 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile

The Rhodococcus erythropolis strain (N′4) possesses the ability to convert 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile into the corresponding acid. This conversion was determined to be performed by its nitrile hydratase and amidase. Ammonium sulfate fractionation, DEAE ion exchange chromatography, and phenyl chromatography were used to partially purify nitrile hydratase from cell-free extract. A SDS-PAGE showed that the partially purified enzyme had two subunits and gel filtration chromatography showed that it consisted of four subunits of α₂β₂. The purified enzyme had a high specific activity of 860 U mg⁻¹ toward methacrylonitrile. The enzyme was found to have high activity at low temperature range, with a maximum activity occurring at 25 °C and be stable in the presence of organic acids at higher temperatures. The enzyme exhibited a preference for aliphatic saturated nitrile substrates over aliphatic unsaturated or aromatic ones. It was inhibited by sulfhydryl, oxidizing, and serine protease inhibitors, thus indicating that essential cysteine and serine residues can be found in the active site.The purified nitrile hydratase was able to convert 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile into the corresponding amide at 15 °C. GC analysis showed that the initial conversion rate of the reaction was 215 mg substrate consumed min⁻¹ mg⁻¹. This demonstrated that this enzyme could be used in conjunction with a stereoselective amidase to synthesize ethyl (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyrate, an intermediate for a hypercholesterolemia drug, Atorvastatin.     

Chaperone-assisted maturation of the recombinant Fe-type nitrile hydratase is insufficient for fully active expression in Escherichia coli

Nitrile hydratase (NHase) has attracted substantial attention for industrial applications to produce large-scale amides. Several NHases have been investigated for functional expression in Escherichia coli (E. coli). A Fe-type NHase was obtained from an acetamiprid-degrading bacterium, Pseudoxanthomonas sp. AAP-7 and functionally expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3). No significant NHase activity was detected from the E. coli expressing either the NHase gene alone or NHase and P46K genes transcribed as one unit. Purified recombinant NHase, co-expressed with P46K on two separate plasmids, exhibited the maximal enzyme activity. Furthermore, a GST tag attached to the N-terminus of α subunit resulted in a slight increase in the solubility and stability of NHase compared with a His tag at the C-terminus of β subunit. When co-expressed with the chaperones GroEL-GroES, the yield of the soluble recombinant NHase was improved substantially, while a small decrease in NHase activity was observed. The putative activator P46K was strictly required for production of the recombinant NHase for full enzyme activity, although the chaperones GroEL-GroES appeared to assist NHase to fold properly. This study of the expression of a fully active Fe-type NHase would provide another example to enhance our understanding of NHase biosynthesis.     

Nitrile bioconversion by Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 resting cells in batch and ultrafiltration membrane bioreactors

The biohydration of acrylonitrile, propionitrile and benzonitrile catalysed by the NHase activity contained in resting cells of Microbacterium imperiale CBS 498-74 was operated at 5, 10 and 20°C in laboratory-scale batch and membrane bioreactors. The bioreactions were conducted in buffered medium (50 mM Na₂HPO₄/NaH₂PO₄, pH 7.0) in the presence of distilled water or tap-water, to simulate a possible end-pipe biotreatment process. The integral bioreactor performances were studied with a cell loading (dry cell weight; DCW) varying from 0.1 mg_DCW per reactor to 16 mg_DCW per reactor, in order to realize near 100% bioconversion of acrylonitrile, propionitrile and benzonitrile without consistent loss of NHase activity.     

诺卡氏菌腈水合酶基因在重组毕赤酵母中的表达

为从基因水平上改造腈水合酶,进行了诺卡氏菌腈水合酶基因的外源表达研究。在重组大肠杆菌表达系统内,腈水合酶的α亚基几乎不能正常表达,在重组E. coli BL21(DE3) (pET32aNHBAX)中,腈水合酶活性仅为0.04U/mg。构建重组毕赤酵母表达质粒pPIC3.5kNHBAX,采用电穿孔转化法将其转入宿主菌P. pastoris GS115中,经过菌株培养和腈水合酶的诱导表达,筛选获得了优选菌株P. pastoris NH4。对P. pastoris NH4的细胞培养和腈水合酶的诱导表达条件进行优化,结果表明,重组腈水合酶在毕赤酵母中的表达水平可以达到0.52U/mg,但不能稳定积累。     

Optimization of Culture Conditions of Brevibacterium SP. A4 for the Production of Nitrile Hydratase

Optimum culture conditions of Brevibacterium sp. A4 for production of nitrile hydratase were determined by two mathematical methods: the Hadamard method and graphic analysis of response areas. A minimal medium was optimized and the basic roles of Fe²⁺ and Mg²⁺ were clearly shown. The influence of physico-chemical factors (pH, temperature and light conditions) on the culture and on nitrile hydratase were also studied. Various results permit the production of Brevibacterium sp. A4 cells with low protease and high nitrile hydratase contents.     

An over expression and high efficient mutation system of a cobalt-containing nitrile hydratase

A superior novel recombinant strain, E. coli BL21(DE3)/pETNH^M, containing the start codon mutation of the subunit, was constructed and selected as an overexpression and high efficient mutation platform for the genetic manipulation of the nitrile hydratase (NHase). Under optimal conditions, the specific activity of the recombinant strain reached as high as 452 U/mg dry cell. Enzymatic characteristics studies showed that the reaction activation energy of the recombinant NHase^M was 24.4 ± 0.5 kJ/mol, the suited pH range for catalysis was 5.5–7.5, and the K_m value was 4.34 g/L (82 mM). To assess the feasibility of the NHase improvement by protein rational design using this E. coli, site-directed mutagenesis of S122A, S122C, S122D and βW47E of the NHase^M were carried out. The NHase^M (S122A) and NHase^M (S122D) mutants were entirely inactive due to the charge change of the side-chain group. The product tolerance of the NHase^M (S122C) mutant was enhanced while its activity decreased by 30%. The thermo-stability of the NHase^M (βW47E) mutant was significantly strengthened, while its activity reduced by nearly 50%. These results confirmed that the specific activity of the mutant NHase expressed by the recombinant E. coli BL21(DE3)/pETNH^M can reasonably change with and without mutations. Therefore, this recombinant E. coli can be efficiently and confidently used for the further rational/random evolution of the NHase to simultaneously improve the activity, thermo-stability and product tolerance of the target NHase.     

Rapid and specific identification of nitrile hydratase (NHase)-encoding genes in soil samples by polymerase chain reaction

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) protocol was developed for the specific detection of genes coding nitrile hydratase (NHase). Primer design was based on the highly conserved sequences found in the coding region of the alpha-subunit gene corresponding to the metal-binding site. Purified genomic DNA from bacterial strains or directly from soil can serve as the target for the PCR, thus affording a simple and rapid method for screening NHase genes. The primer pairs, NHCo1/NHCo2 and NHFe1/NHFe2 yield PCR products corresponding to a partial coding sequence of cobalt and iron NHase genes, respectively. Using the PCR method, both types of iron- and cobalt-NHase-encoding genes were detected in DNA from pure cultures and soil samples. Furthermore consensus primers allowed rapid cloning and expression of novel NHases in Escherichia coli.     

Hydration of cyanopyridine to nicotinamide by whole cell nitrile hydratase

Summary 3-cyanopyridine was hydrated to nicotinamide by whole cells ofBrevibacterium R-312 containing nitrile hydratase. Cells used for kinetic studies had an initial activity of 0.30 mg nicotinamide/mg cells(dry)-min and storage half-lives (pH 8) of approximately 100 days, 10 days, 5 days and less than 1 day at 4°C, 10°C, 25°C, and 30°C respectively. Temperature and pH maxima were 35°C and 8.0, respectively. Fermentations gave a maximum total hydratase activity of 1.25 mg nicotinamide/min, but at this maximum the amidase activity was unacceptably high (25% of the hydratase activity): nicotinamide was converted too rapidly to nicotinic acid. But systematic fermentation studies (7 1) showed that harvesting at mid-log phase (18–20 h) prior to the attainment of maximum total activity gave reasonably high levels of hydratase (0.3 mg nicotinamide/mg cells-min) and acceptable levels of amidase (0.03 mg nicotinic acid/mg cells-min).     

Incorporation of thiolate donation using 2,2'-dithiodibenzaldehyde: complexes of a pentadentate N2S3 ligand with relevance to the active site of Co nitrile hydratase

The use of 2,2'-dithiodibenzaldehyde (DTDB) as a reactant for incorporating thiolate donors into the coordination sphere of a transition metal complex without the need for protecting groups is expanded to include the synthesis of complexes with pentadentate ligands. The ligand N,N'-bis(thiosalicylideneimine)-2,2'-thiobis(ethylamine) (tsaltp) is synthesized at a cobalt center by the reaction of DTDB with a Co complex of thiobis(ethylamine). The resulting Co complexes are thus coordinated by the N(2)S(3) pentadentate ligand through two imine N atoms, two thiolate S atoms, and one thioether S atom. A dimeric, bis-thiolate-bridged complex (1) is isolated and converted to a monomeric CN adduct (2) by treatment with KCN. The N(2)S(3) coordination environment provided by the tsaltp ligand is similar to that provided by the protein donors at the active site of the nitrile hydratase enzymes, with 2 being the first octahedral Co complex reported with such a coordination sphere.     

Efficient cloning and expression of a thermostable nitrile hydratase in Escherichia coli using an auto-induction fed-batch strategy

A nitrile hydratase (NHase) gene from Aurantimonas manganoxydans was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). A downstream gene adjacent to the β-subunit was necessary for the functional expression of the recombinant NHase. The structural gene order of the Co-type NHase was α-subunit beyond β-subunit, different from the order typically reported for Co-type NHase genes. The NHase exhibited adequate thermal stability, with a half-life of 1.5 h at 50 °C. The NHase efficiently hydrated 3-cyanopyridine to produce nicotinamide. In a 1-L reaction mixture, 3.6 mol of 3-cyanopyridine was completely converted to nicotinamide in four feedings, exhibiting a productivity of 187 g nicotinamide/g dry cell weight/h. An industrial auto-induction medium was applied to produce the recombinant NHase in 10-L fermenter. A glycerol-limited feeding method was performed, and a final activity of 2170 U/mL culture was achieved. These results suggested that the recombinant NHase was efficiently cloned and produced in E. coli.     

Enzymatic hydrolysis of cyanohydrins with recombinant nitrile hydratase and amidase from hodococcus erythropolis

Nitrile hydratase and amidase from Rhodococcus erythropolis CIMB11540 were both cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli.Crude cell free extracts were used for the hydrolysis of different aromatic cyanohydrins. Nitrile hydratase expression was increased up to 5-fold by redesign of the expression cassette. The recombinant enzymes were successfully used for the conversion of several cyanohydrins to the corresponding α-hydroxy amides and acids while retaining enantiopurity.