Purification and crystallization of Lactobacillus casei folylpolyglutamate synthetase expressed in Escherichia coli.

Folylpolyglutamate synthetase (FPGS) from Lactobacillus casei has been crystallized with polyethylene glycol and acetate buffer at pH 5.0. The enzyme was obtained from Escherichia coli strain SF4 harboring the L. casei FPGS chromosomal gene on a pEMBL vector (pGT3-8.1). Crystals of the enzyme were obtained which diffract to 2.6 A resolution. The crystals are monoclinic, space group P2(1), with unit cell dimensions of a = 54.07 A, b = 45.83 A, c = 84.37 A and beta = 107.92 degrees. A unit cell contains one molecule of the 43,000 Da enzyme per asymmetric unit. A complete X-ray data set on the native crystals has been collected.     

Crystal structure of the trigonal form of bovine beta-lactoglobulin and of its complex with retinol at 2.5 A resolution

The structure of the trigonal crystal form of bovine beta-lactoglobulin has been determined by X-ray diffraction methods. An electron density map, calculated with phases obtained by the multiple isomorphous replacement method, served as a starting point for alternate cycles of model building and restrained least-squares refinement. The model of the molecule fitted to the initial Fourier map was the one built for the orthorhombic crystal form of beta-lactoglobulin, solved at 2.8 A resolution (1 A = 0.1 nm). The final R factor for 1456 atoms (1276 non-hydrogen protein atoms and 180 solvent atoms) is 0.22, including 5245 reflections from 6.0 to 2.5 A. The molecule shows significant differences in the two crystal forms mentioned, mainly due to different packing. In the trigonal form, the species crystallized does not appear to be dimeric, but a linear polymer with tight intermolecular contacts. A difference electron density map between the complex of beta-lactoglobulin with retinol and the native protein shows no significant peaks in the cavity which, in the similar retinol-binding protein, binds the chromophore. Instead, differences are found at a surface pocket, which is limited almost completely by hydrophobic residues.     

Effect of amino acid substitutions at the subunit interface on the stability and aggregation properties of a dimeric protein: role of Arg 178 and Arg 218 at the Dimer interface of thymidylate synthase

The significance of two interface arginine residues on the structural integrity of an obligatory dimeric enzyme thymidylate synthase (TS) from Lactobacillus casei was investigated by thermal and chemical denaturation. While the R178F mutant showed apparent stability to thermal denaturation by its decreased tendency to aggregate, the Tm of the R218K mutant was lowered by 5 degrees C. Equilibrium denaturation studies in guanidinium chloride (GdmCl) and urea indicate that in both the mutants, replacement of Arg residues results in more labile quaternary and tertiary interactions. Circular dichroism studies in aqueous buffer suggest that the protein interior in R218K may be less well-packed as compared to the wild type protein. The results emphasize that quaternary interactions may influence the stability of the tertiary fold of TS. The amino acid replacements also lead to notable alteration in the ability of the unfolding intermediate of TS to aggregate. The aggregated state of partially unfolded intermediate in the R178F mutant is stable over a narrower range of denaturant concentrations. In contrast, there is an exaggerated tendency on the part of R218K to aggregate in intermediate concentrations of the denaturant. The 3 A crystal structure of the R178F mutant reveals no major structural change as a consequence of amino acid substitution. The results may be rationalized in terms of mutational effects on both the folded and unfolded state of the protein. Site specific amino acid substitutions are useful in identifying specific regions of TS involved in association of non-native protein structures.     

The crystal structure of isobutyl 2,3,4-tri-O-acetyl-1-thio-beta-D-xylopyranoside

Isobutyl 2,3,4-tri-O-acetyl-1-thio-beta-D-xylopyranoside is monoclinic, P21, with a = 10.134(4), b = 7.748(3), c = 11.726(4) A, beta = 96.63(3) degrees, V = 914.55 A3, Z = 2, Dm = 1.262, Dx = 1.264 g . cm-3, mu(MoK alpha) = 226 M-1. The X-ray intensities of 1724 reflections were measured with Nb-filtered MoK alpha radiation (lambda = 0.7107 A) at room temperature. The structure was solved by direct methods, and refined by full-matrix least squares, with anisotropic thermal parameters for the carbon and oxygen atoms and isotropic thermal parameters for the hydrogen atoms, to a final agreement factor of R = 0.08. The molecule has the 4C1(D) conformation, with puckering parameters Q = 0.582 A, theta = 5.6 degrees, phi = 334.7 degrees. The acetyl groups have the planar, (S)-cis configuration most commonly observed. They are oriented, as in many other per-O-acetylated aldopyranosides, with the acetyl planes within +/- 30 degrees of the C-H bond at the ring-carbon atom to which they are attached. Although this is primarily a van der Waals structure, there is some evidence for CH---O hydrogen-bonding.     

Selective enumeration of Lactobacillus casei in yoghurt-type fermented milks based on a 15°C incubation temperature

A procedure was developed to enumerate selectively Lactobacillus casei populations in yoghurt-type fermented milks that can also contain strains of Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium infantis. Commercial LBS agar was acidified to pH 5.4, and the plates were incubated at 15°C for 14 days under anaerobic conditions. Acidification prevented the development of streptococci, and incubation at 15°C limited the development of the lactobacilli and the bifidobacteria. L. casei formed colonies on HHD medium which were different from those obtained with L. bulgaricus. Counts of L. casei on HHD confirmed results obtained on LBS - pH 5.4 medium and incubated at 15°C. L. casei did not form colonies on M17, nor did L. acidophilus or L. bulgaricus.     

Lactose metabolism and lactase gene sequence homologies amongst lactobacilli

A number of strains of Lactobacillus spp., including the thermophilic and mesophilic dairy species, were screened for the presence of β -galactosidase ( β -gal) and phospho- β -galactosidase (pbg) enzyme activities. The majority of lactose fermenting strains exhibited β -gal rather than pbg enzyme activity with the highest levels in the thermophilic dairy species.
Correlation between these enzymes and the presence of specific genetic determinants was sought using probes for β -gal and pbg genes from Lactobacillus casei ssp. casei strain 64H. Southern transfer and filter hybridization showed that the β-gal probe shared homology with one strain of Lact. casei ssp. casei only. Sequences homologous to the pbg gene were detected only in plasmid DNA from the same strain of Lact. casei ssp. casei and with plasmid DNA from an apparently unrelated strain of Lactobacillus which exhibited no pbg activity. Two other strains of Lact. casei ssp. casei appeared to show homology between their chromosomal DNA and the pbg gene probe. No other homologies were detected. Therefore, although lactase activity could be detected in many strains of Lactobacillus spp., the genetic determinants involved did not share extensive homology.     

Crystallization and initial crystallographic results for pepstatin A inhibited bovine cathepsin D.

Cathepsin D was purified from bovine liver by a method using two pepstatin A affinity columns. The eluted protein was combined with pepstatin A and the complex crystallized from 15% polyethylene glycol 8000 at pH 5.9. The crystals diffract to a resolution of 3.0 A and have space group P2(1)2(1)2(1) with unit cell dimensions a = 74.8 A, b = 76.0 A, c = 157.7 A. There are two molecules in the asymmetric unit. The structure was solved by molecular replacement using a pepsin search model and both molecules showed clearly interpretable density in the position expected for pepstatin A in a preliminary difference map. The refined model has r.m.s. deviations from ideal bond lengths and angles of 0.014 A and 3.2 degrees, respectively, and a crystallographic R factor of 17%.     

环丙沙星预先处理牙鲆消化道对干酪乳杆菌定植的影响

利用1株干酪乳杆菌,通过实验研究用环丙沙星预先处理牙鲆消化道后乳杆菌的定植和演替规律。在投喂含有1.2×10^9CFU/g乳杆菌的饲料5 d后,消化道定植的乳杆菌超过106CFU/g,其后维持在10^6～10^8CFU/g动态平衡中。同时随着乳杆菌的投喂,不经环丙沙星预先处理牙鲆消化道的正常组,鱼消化道的弧菌数从10^7～8CFU/g降低到10^6CFU/g左右;而经环丙沙星预先处理牙鲆消化道的药饵组,鱼胃、小肠和盲囊的弧菌数则是先增加,然后显著下降。停喂乳杆菌7 d后,2个实验组鱼消化道的乳杆菌均从10^5～6CFU/g下降到10^4CFU/g,干酪乳杆菌正常组鱼盲囊中弧菌从10^5CFU/g回升到10^6CFU/g,胃和小肠中弧菌数量基本不变。干酪乳杆菌药饵组则有所不同：除胃中弧菌数量则基本不变外,盲囊和小肠中弧菌数量继续下降,其原因有待进一步研究。实验结果表明,干酪乳杆菌能在牙鲆消化道内定植,而用预先处理牙鲆消化道后,更有利于乳杆菌的定植;乳杆菌的投喂和定植,使牙鲆消化道中的弧菌数量明显下降。     

Functional analysis of the p40 and p75 proteins from Lactobacillus casei BL23

The genomes of Lactobacillus casei/paracasei and Lactobacillus rhamnosus strains carry two genes encoding homologues of p40 and p75 from L. rhamnosus GG, two secreted proteins which display anti-apoptotic and cell protective effects on human intestinal epithelial cells. p40 and p75 carry cysteine, histidine-dependent aminohydrolase/peptidase (CHAP) and NLPC/P60 domains, respectively, which are characteristic of proteins with cell-wall hydrolase activity. In L. casei BL23 both proteins were secreted to the growth medium and were also located at the bacterial cell surface. The genes coding for both proteins were inactivated in this strain. Inactivation of LCABL_00230 (encoding p40) did not result in a significant difference in phenotype, whereas a mutation in LCABL_02770 (encoding p75) produced cells that formed very long chains. Purified glutathione-S-transferase (GST)-p40 and -p75 fusion proteins were able to hydrolyze the muropeptides from L. casei cell walls. Both fusions bound to mucin, collagen and to intestinal epithelial cells and, similar to L. rhamnosus GG p40, stimulated epidermal growth factor receptor phosphorylation in mouse intestine ex vivo. These results indicate that extracellular proteins belonging to the machinery of cell-wall metabolism in the closely related L. casei/paracasei-L. rhamnosus group are most likely involved in the probiotic effects described for these bacteria.     

Disulfide engineering at the dimer interface of Lactobacillus casei thymidylate synthase: crystal structure of the T155C/E188C/C244T mutant

The crystal structure of a covalently cross-linked Lactobacillus casei thymidylate synthase has been determined at 2.8 A resolution. The sites for mutation to achieve the bis-disulfide linked dimer were identified using the disulfide modeling program MODIP. The mutant so obtained was found to be remarkably thermostable. This increase in stability has been reasoned to be entirely a consequence of the covalent gluing between the two subunits.     

A kinetic study of wild-type and mutant dihydrofolate reductases from Lactobacillus casei

A kinetic scheme is presented for Lactobacillus casei dihydrofolate reductase that predicts steady-state kinetic parameters. This scheme was derived from measuring association and dissociation rate constants and pre-steady-state transients by using stopped-flow fluorescence and absorbance spectroscopy. Two major features of this kinetic scheme are the following: (i) product dissociation is the rate-limiting step for steady-state turnover at low pH and follows a specific, preferred pathway in which tetrahydrofolate (H4F) dissociation occurs after NADPH replaces NADP+ in the ternary complex; (ii) the rate constant for hydride transfer from NADPH to dihydrofolate (H2F) is rapid (khyd = 430 s-1), favorable (Keq = 290), and pH dependent (pKa = 6.0), reflecting ionization of a single group. Not only is this scheme identical in form with the Escherichia coli kinetic scheme [Fierke et al. (1987) Biochemistry 26, 4085] but moreover none of the rate constants vary by more than 40-fold despite there being less than 30% amino acid homology between the two enzymes. This similarity is consistent with their overall structural congruence. The role of Trp-21 of L. casei dihydrofolate reductase in binding and catalysis was probed by amino acid substitution. Trp-21, a strictly conserved residue near both the folate and coenzyme binding sites, was replaced by leucine. Two major effects of this substitution are on (i) the rate constant for hydride transfer which decreases 100-fold, becoming the rate-limiting step in steady-state turnover, and (ii) the affinities for NADPH and NADP+ which decrease by approximately 3.5 and approximately 0.5 kcal mol-1, respectively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

A survey of lactic acid bacteria in Italian silage

G razia , L. & S uzzi , G. 1984. A survey of lactic acid bacteria in Italian silage. Journal of Applied Bacteriology 56 , 373–379.
Lactic acid bacteria, isolated from Italian ensiled products, were represented by strains of the genera Lactobacillus and Leuconostoc . The predominant strains were heterofermentative lactobacilli, with Lactobacillus buchneri being the most frequent. Among homofermentative lactic acid bacteria, strains of Lact. plantarum and Lact. casei were recovered. Almost all strains utilized malic acid and showed good acid-tolerance, but only some of them were able to metabolize malic acid at extremely low pH; these were five homofermentative lactobacilli (4 Lact. plantarum and 1 Lacr. casei var. casei ) and two heterofermentative lactobacilli ( Lact. cellobiosus and Lactobacillus sp.).     

Crystal structure of an RNA duplex r(gugucgcac)(2) with uridine bulges.

The crystal structure of a nonamer RNA duplex with a uridine bulge in each strand, r(gugucgcac)(2), was determined at 1.4 A resolution. The structure was solved by multiple anomalous diffraction phasing method using a three-wavelength data set collected at the Advanced Protein Source and refined to a final R(work)/R(free) of 21.2 %/23.4 % with 33,271 independent reflections (Friedel pairs unmerged). The RNA duplex crystallized in the tetragonal space group P4(1)22 with two independent molecules in the asymmetric unit. The unit cell dimensions are a=b=47.18 A and c=80.04 A. The helical region of the nonamer adopts the A-form conformation. The uridine bulges assume similar conformations, with uracils flipping out and protruding into the minor groove. The presence of the bulge induces very large twist angles (approximately +50 degrees) between the base-pairs flanking the bulges while causing profound kinks in the helix axis at the bulges. This severe twist and the large kink in turn produces a very narrow major groove at the middle of the molecule. The ribose sugars of the guanosines before the bulges adopt the C2'-endo conformation while the rest, including the bulges, are in the C3'-endo conformation. The intrastrand phosphate-phosphate (P-P) distance of the phosphate groups flanking the bulges (approximately 4.4 A) are significantly shorter than the average P-P distance in the duplex (6.0 A). This short distance between the two phosphate groups brings the non-bridging oxygen atoms close to each other where a calcium ion is bound to each strand. The calcium ions in molecule 1 are well defined while the calcium ions in molecule 2 are disordered.     

Ribotyping ofLactobacillus casei group strains isolated from dairy products

A series of lactobacilli isolated from dairy products were characterized using biotyping and ribotyping with EcoRI and HindIII restriction enzymes. Biotyping assigned 14 strains as Lactobacillus casei, 6 strains as Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei and 12 as Lactobacillus rhamnosus. The obtained ribotype patterns separated all analyzed strains into two clearly distinguished groups corresponding to L. rhamnosus and L. casei/L. paracasei subsp. paracasei. The HindIII ribotypes of individual strains representing these two groups were visually very similar. In contrast, EcoRI ribotyping revealed high intraspecies variability. All ribotypes of L. casei and L. paracasei subsp. paracasei dairy strains were very close and some strains even shared identical ribotype profiles. The type strains L. casei CCM 7088T (= ATCC 393T) and Lactobacillus zeae CCM 7069T revealing similar ribopatterns formed a separate subcluster using both restriction enzymes. In contrast, the ribotype profile of L. casei CCM 7089 (= ATCC 334) was very close to ribopatterns obtained from the dairy strains. These results support synonymy of L. casei and L. paracasei species revealed by other studies as well as reclassification of the type strain L. casei CCM 7088T as L. zeae and designation of L. casei CCM 7089 as the neotype strain.     

The structure of a rhombohedral R6 insulin hexamer that binds phenol.

Different hexameric forms of insulin have been crystallized from a variety of conditions. In the presence of 1% phenol, 1.0 M sodium chloride, and at a pH of 8.5, a rhombohedral form is produced with two monomers in the asymmetric unit, space group R3, a = 79.92 A and c = 40.39 A. The structure has been solved and refined, using data between 8.0 and 2.5 A resolution, to a residual of 0.157. Each of the monomers adopts an R conformation, that is residues B1-B8 are alpha-helical. As a result of the T to R transition, an elliptical cavity is created between symmetry-related monomers and is occupied by a phenol molecule. A region of density within bonding distance to one of the zinc ions has been interpreted as an additional phenol molecule.     

Membrane ATPases and acid tolerance of Actinomyces viscosus and Lactobacillus casei.

Lactobacillus casei ATCC 4646 and Actinomyces viscosus OMZ105E were found to differ markedly in acid tolerance. For example, pH profiles for glycolysis of intact cells in dense suspensions indicated that glycolysis by L. casei had an optimal pH of about 6.0 and that glucose degradation was reduced by 50% at a pH of 4.2. Comparable values for A. viscosus cells were at pHs of about 7.0 and 5.6. The difference in acid tolerance appeared to depend mainly on membrane physiology, and the addition of 40 microM gramicidin to cell suspensions increased the sensitivity of the glycolytic system by as much as 1.5 pH units for L. casei and up to 0.5 pH unit for A. viscosus. L. casei cells were inherently somewhat more resistant to severe acid damage than were A. viscosus cells, in that Mg release from L. casei cells in medium with a pH of 3.0 occurred only after a lag of some 4 h, compared with rapid release from A. viscosus cells. However, the major differences pertinent to the physiology of the organisms appeared to be related to proton-translocating ATPases. Isolated membranes of L. casei had about 3.29 U of ATPase per mg of protein, compared with only about 0.06 U per mg of protein for those of A. viscosus. Moreover, the ATPase of L. casei had a pH optimum for hydrolytic activity of about 5, compared with an optimal pH of about 7 for that of A. viscosus.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Membrane ATPases and acid tolerance of Actinomyces viscosus and Lactobacillus casei

Lactobacillus casei ATCC 4646 and Actinomyces viscosus OMZ105E were found to differ markedly in acid tolerance. For example, pH profiles for glycolysis of intact cells in dense suspensions indicated that glycolysis by L. casei had an optimal pH of about 6.0 and that glucose degradation was reduced by 50% at a pH of 4.2. Comparable values for A. viscosus cells were at pHs of about 7.0 and 5.6. The difference in acid tolerance appeared to depend mainly on membrane physiology, and the addition of 40 microM gramicidin to cell suspensions increased the sensitivity of the glycolytic system by as much as 1.5 pH units for L. casei and up to 0.5 pH unit for A. viscosus. L. casei cells were inherently somewhat more resistant to severe acid damage than were A. viscosus cells, in that Mg release from L. casei cells in medium with a pH of 3.0 occurred only after a lag of some 4 h, compared with rapid release from A. viscosus cells. However, the major differences pertinent to the physiology of the organisms appeared to be related to proton-translocating ATPases. Isolated membranes of L. casei had about 3.29 U of ATPase per mg of protein, compared with only about 0.06 U per mg of protein for those of A. viscosus. Moreover, the ATPase of L. casei had a pH optimum for hydrolytic activity of about 5, compared with an optimal pH of about 7 for that of A. viscosus.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Tracking local conformational changes of ribonuclease A using picosecond time-resolved fluorescence of the six tyrosine residues

The six tyrosine residues of ribonuclease A (RNase A) are used as individual intrinsic probes for tracking local conformational changes during unfolding. The fluorescence decays of RNase A are well described by sums of three exponentials with decay times (tau(1) = 1.7 ns, tau(2) = 180 ps, and tau(3) = 30 ps) and preexponential coefficients (A(1) = 1, A(2) = 1, and A(3) = 4) at pH 7, 25 degrees C. The decay times are controlled by photo-induced electron transfer from individual tyrosine residues to the nearest disulphide (-SS-), bridge, which is distance (R) dependent. We assign tau(1) to Tyr-76 (R = 12.8 A), tau(2) to Tyr-115 (R = 6.9 A), and tau(3) to Tyr-25, Tyr-73, Tyr-92, and Tyr-97 (all four at R = 5.5 +/- 0.3 A) at 23 degrees C. On the basis of this assignment, the results show that, upon thermal or chemical unfolding only Tyr-25, Tyr-92, and Tyr-76 undergo significant displacement from their nearest -SS- bridge. Despite reporting on different regions of the protein, the concordance between the transition temperatures, T(m), obtained from Tyr-76 (T(m) = 59.2 degrees C) and Tyr-25 and Tyr-92 (T(m) = 58.2 degrees C) suggests a single unfolding event in this temperature range that affects all these regions similarly.     

益生菌Lactobacillus casei Zhang固态发酵条件的优化

利用一株分离自传统发酵酸马奶中的益生干酪乳杆菌（Lactobacillus casei Zhang）进行固态发酵（Solid State Fermentation,SSF）。以发酵物中的活菌数为主要指标,采用九因素四水平（L32（4^9））的正交试验优化固态发酵培养基,并在优化的培养基基础上研究不同的初始含水量及培养时间对Lactobacillus casei Zhang活菌数的影响。实验结果表明,在固态发酵培养基组成为4g豆粕、5g麸皮、0．6g乳清粉、0．3g葡萄糖、0．3g碳酸钙、0．02g硫酸铵、0．01g硫酸镁,初始含水量为55％的优化条件下,37℃发酵60h,发酵物中Lactobacillus casei Zhang活菌数可达到4．08×10^10CFU／g。