Sequence analysis and distribution of an IS3-like insertion element isolated from Salmonella enteritidis

The nucleotide sequence of a 3 kb region immediately upstream of the sef operon of Salmonella enteritidis was determined. A 1230 base pair insertion sequence which shared sequence identity (>75%) with members of the IS3 family was revealed. This element, designated IS1230, had almost identical (90% identity) terminal inverted repeats to Escherichia coli IS3 but unlike other IS3-like sequences lacked the two characteristic open reading frames which encode the putative transposase. S. enteritidis possessed only one copy of this insertion sequence although Southern hybridisation analysis of restriction digests of genomic DNA revealed another fragment located in a region different from the sef operon which hybridised weakly which suggested the presence of an IS1230 homologue. The distribution of IS1230 and IS1230-like elements was shown to be widespread amongst salmonellas and the patterns of restriction fragments which hybridised differed significantly between Salmonella serotypes and it is suggested that IS1230 has potential for development as a differential diagnostic tool.     

IS186: an Escherichia coli insertion element isolated from a cDNA library.

Escherichia coli IS186 was isolated from cDNA libraries made from rainbow trout RNA and maintained in E. coli RR1. The element was 1,347 base pairs in length, had a perfect inverted repeat of 25 base pairs, and had an open reading frame of 375 amino acids. The hypothetical protein sequence of IS186 had limited homology to the E. coli IS4 hypothetical protein I sequence. There were three copies of IS186 in E. coli RR1.     

Gluconate kinase from Zymomonas mobilis: isolation and characteristics

The enzyme gluconate kinase EC 2.7.1.12 has been found at high levels in glucose-grown Zymomonas mobilis cells. A simple procedure, based on differential dye-ligand chromatography, has been used to isolate the enzyme, purifying it some 600-fold. The purified enzyme is a monomer of molecular weight 18,000 Da, which is much smaller than other gluconate kinases reported. It has a relatively low affinity for ATP. (Km = 1.5 mM), but high for gluconate (Km = 0.33 mM), and has little activity with any other potential substrates.     

IS801, an insertion sequence element isolated from Pseudomonas syringae pathovar phaseolicola

A transposable element, designated IS801, was isolated from strain LR781 of Pseudomonas syringae pathovar phaseolicola in two independent events using the entrapment plasmid, pUCD800. IS801 is 1517 base pairs in length and contains open reading frames that potentially encode proteins of 311 and 172 amino acids, as well as smaller proteins. Unlike most other prokaryotic transposable elements, IS801 lacks terminal repeats. Sequence analysis revealed two target pentamers for IS801 insertion that differ by one base pair. One copy of IS801 generated a perfect duplication of its target, TGAAC. The second copy of IS801 was flanked by the target, TGGAC, at one end, and TGAAC at the other end. A third copy of IS801 was cloned from pMMC7105, an indigenous plasmid of strain LR781, and it was flanked by copies of the pentamer TGAAC.     

Ethanol production from cane juice by Zymomonas mobilis

Summary Zymomonas mobilis Z 7 fermented 100 to 200 g.l^{- 1} sucrose in cane juice to ethanol without addition of cofactors or mineral salts in 1 ltr laboratory and 100 ltr pilot plant fermenters. Ethanol yields (E_yield) were from 60 to 88% with fermentation times of 20 to 29 h at 35 °C.Nomenclature V_s max g.1^-1 .h^-1 maximum sucrose hydrolysis rate - V_g max g.1^-1 .h^-1 maximum glucose uptake rate - V_fmax g.1^-1 .h^-1 maximum fructose uptake rate - V_e max g.1^-1 .h^-1 maximum ethanol production rate - S_h g.1^-1 sucrose hydrolyzed at t_ferm - G_u g.1^-1 glucose utilized at t_ferm - F_u g.1^-1 fructose utilized at t_ferm - E_max g.1^-1 ethanol produced at t_ferm - G_i g.1^-1 initial free glucose (before sucrose hydrolysis) - E_yield g.g^-1 ethanol produced divided by the theoretical ethanol yield from sucrose hydrolyzed - t_ferm h fermentation time to ethanol max     

The kinetics of glucose-fructose oxidoreductase from Zymomonas mobilis

Glucose-fructose oxidoreductase operates by a classic ping-pong mechanism with a single site for all substrates: glucose, fructose, gluconolactone and sorbitol. The Km values for these substrates were determined. The values of kcat are 200 s-1 and 0.8 s-1 for the forward and reverse directions respectively. The overall catalytic process consists of two half-reactions with alternate reduction of NADP+ and oxidation of NADPH tightly bound to the enzyme. Reduction of enzyme-NADP+ by glucose and oxidation of enzyme-NADPH by gluconolactone involve single first-order processes. The values of the rate constants at saturating substrate are 2100 s-1 and 8 s-1 respectively; deuterium isotope effects indicate that these are for the hydrogen transfer step. Oxidation of enzyme-NADPH by fructose is first order with a limiting rate constant of at least 430 s-1. The reaction of enzyme-NADP+ with sorbitol is biphasic, with rate constants for both phases less than 1 s-1. This behaviour is explained by a mechanism in which the slow cyclisation of the acyclic form of fructose follows its dissociation from the enzyme. The rate-determining steps for the overall reaction are probably dissociation of gluconolactone in the forward direction and hydrogen transfer from sorbitol to enzyme-bound NADP+ in the reverse direction.     

NADP+-dependent acetaldehyde dehydrogenase from Zymomonas mobilis

An NADP⁺-linked acetaldehyde dehydrogenase (EC 1.2.1.4) from the ethanol producing bacterium Zymomonas mobilis was purified 180-fold to homogeneity. The enzyme is a cytosolic protein with an isoelectric point of 8.0 and has an apparent molecular weight of 210000. It showed a single band in sodium dodecylsulfate gel electrophoresis with a molecular weight of 55000, which indicates that it consists of four probably identical subunits. The apparent K _m values for the substrate acetaldehyde were 57 M and for the cosubstrate NADP⁺ 579 M. The enzyme was almost inactive with NAD⁺ as cofactor. Several other aldehydes besides acetaldehyde were accepted as a substrate but not formaldehyde or trichloroacetaldehyde. In anaerobically grown cells of Zymomonas mobilis the enzyme showed a specific activity of 0.035 U/mg protein but its specific activity could be increased up to 0.132 U/mg protein by adding acetaldehyde to the medium during the exponential growth phase or up to 0.284 U/mg protein when cells were grown under aeration. The physiological role of the enzyme is discussed.Abbreviations ALD-DH acetaldehyde dehydrogenases from Z. mobilis - DTT dithiothreitol - MES 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid - MOPS 3-(N-morpholino)propanesulfonic acid - SDS sodium dodecylsulfate Dedicated to Prof. Dr. H.-G. Schlegel, Universität Göttingen, on the occasion of his 65th birthday     

Ethanol production from wheat flour by Zymomonas mobilis

Starch from wheat flour was enzymatically hydrolyzed and used for ethanol production by Zymmonas mobilis. The addition of a nitrogen source like ammonium sulfate was sufficient to obtain a complete fermentation of the hdyrolyzed strach. In batch culture a glucose concentration as high as 223 g/l could be fermented (conversion 99.5%) to 105 g/l of ethanol in 70 h with an ethanol yield of 0.47 g/g (92% of theoretical). In continuous culture the use of a flocculent strain and a fermentor with an internal settler resulted (D=1,4 h⁻¹) in a high ethanol productivity of 70.7 g/l·h with: ethanol concentration 49.5 g/l, ethanol yield 0.50 g/g (98% of theoretical and substrate conversion 99%.     

Target specificity of insertion element IS30

The Escherichia coli resident mobile element IS 30 has pronounced target specificity. Upon transposition, the element frequently inserts exactly into the same position of a preferred target sequence. Insertion sites in phages, plasmids and in the genome of E. coli are characterized by an exceptionally long palindromic consensus sequence that provides strong specificity for IS 30 insertions, despite a relatively high level of degeneracy. This 24-bp-long region alone determines the attractiveness of the target DNA and the exact position of IS 30 insertion. The divergence of a target site from the consensus and the occurrence of 'non-permitted' bases in certain positions influence the target activity. Differences in attractiveness are emphasized if two targets are present in the same replicon, as was demonstrated by quantitative analysis. In a system of competitive targets, the oligonucleotide sequence representing the consensus of genomic IS 30 insertion sites proved to be the most efficient target. Having compared the known insertion sites, we suppose that IS 30 -like target specificity, which may represent an alternative strategy in target selection among mobile elements, is characteristic of the insertion sequences IS 3 , IS 6 and IS 21 , too.     

Cellulosic ethanol production by Zymomonas mobilis harboring an endoglucanase gene from Enterobacter cloacae

Enterobactercloacae was isolated from the gut of the wood feeding termite, Heterotermesindicola, and a 2.25-kb fragment conferring cellulase activity was cloned in Escherichiacoli. The cloned fragment contained a 1083-bp ORF which could encode a protein belonging to glycosyl hydrolase family 8. The cellulase gene was introduced into Zymomonasmobilis strain Microbial Type Culture Collection centre (MTCC) on a plasmid and 0.134 filter paper activity unit (FPU)/ml units of cellulase activity was observed with the recombinant bacterium. Using carboxymethyl cellulose and 4% NaOH pretreated bagasse as substrates, the recombinant strain produced 5.5% and 4% (V/V) ethanol respectively, which was threefold higher than the amount obtained with the original E.cloacae isolate. The recombinant Z. mobilis strain could be improved further by simultaneous expression of cellulase cocktails before utilizing it for industrial level ethanol production.     

Zymomonas mobilis Mutants with an Increased Rate of Alcohol Production

Two new derivatives of Zymomonas mobilis CP4 were isolated from enrichment cultures after 18 months of serial transfers. These new strains were selected for the ability to grow and produce ethanol rapidly on transfer into fresh broth containing ethanol and allyl alcohol. Ethanol production by these strains was examined in batch fermentations under three sets of conditions. Both new derivatives were found to be superior to the parent strain CP4 with respect to the speed and completeness of glucose conversion to ethanol. The best of these, strain YO2, produced 9.5% ethanol (by weight; 11.9% by volume) after 17.4 h compared with 31.8 h for the parent strain CP4. The addition of 1 mM magnesium sulfate improved ethanol production in all three strains. Two factors contributed to the decrease in fermentation time required by the mutants: more rapid growth with minimal lag on subculturing and the retention of higher rates of ethanol production as fermentation proceeded. Alcohol dehydrogenase isozymes were altered in both new strains and no longer catalyzed the oxidation of allyl alcohol into the toxic product acrolein. This loss of allyl alcohol-oxidizing capacity is proposed as a primary factor contributing to increased allyl alcohol resistance, although it is likely that other mutations affecting glycolysis also contribute to the improvement in ethanol production.     

Zymomonas mobilis cell viability: measurement method comparison

Comparison of three different cell viability methods: slide count, plate count and methylene blue staining techniques, applied onZymomonas mobilis cultures, was performed. The slide technique proved to be faster and more accurate than the plate count method, and both of them far more reliable than the standard methylene blue method which constantly overestimated theZymomonas cell viability. The slide technique is advantageous also because it gives information on the cell morphology changes, notably the abnormal cell elongation, in the ethanol fermentation.     

Transfer of Plasmids to an Antibiotic-Sensitive Mutant of Zymomonas mobilis

Wild-type strains of Zymomonas mobilis exhibit multiple antibiotic resistance and thus restrict the use of many broad-host-range plasmids in them as cloning vehicles. Antibiotic-sensitive mutants of Z. mobilis were isolated and used as hosts for the conjugal transfer of broad-host-range plasmids from Escherichia coli. Such antibiotic-sensitive strains can facilitate the application of broad-host-range plasmids to the study of Z. mobilis.     

The production of ethanol from sucrose using Zymomonas mobilis

Summary A new single-batch fermentation process for the commercial production of ethanol from refined sucrose, raw sugar, sugar cane juice and sugar cane syrup has been developed using a highly adapted and efficient strain of Zymomonas mobilis. The process gives a 94–98% sucrose hydrolysis efficiency and a 95–98% ethanol conversion efficiency. Within 24–30 h, 200 g/l sucrose is converted to produce 95.5 g/l ethanol. Reinoculation is carried out from the fermented broth without the need for centrifugation or membrane filtration.