The Synthesis of l-dopa-l-Tyr and The Interaction of l-dopa-l-Tyr With ctDNA

l-dopa-l-Tyr was synthesized by Fmoc solid-phase peptide synthesis, purified by reversed-phase HPLC and characterized by using ¹H, ¹³C NMR and ESI–MS analyses. The interaction of l-dopa-l-Tyr and l-dopa with ctDNA has been investigated respectively by UV–vis absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. The results showed that both l-dopa and l-dopa-l-Tyr interacted with ctDNA through intercalative mode and l-dopa-l-Tyr showed a higher affinity for DNA. Meanwhile, compared with the free l-dopa, gel electrophoresis assay also demonstrated that l-dopa-l-Tyr interacted with DNA by intercalation.     

Cyclic dipeptides from rhabditid entomopathogenic nematode-associated Bacillus cereus have antimicrobial activities

The cell free culture filtrate of Bacillus cereus associated with an entomopathogenic nematode, Rhabditis (Oscheius) sp. exhibited strong antimicrobial activity. The ethyl acetate extract of the bacterial culture filtrate was purified by silica gel column chromatography to obtain four bioactive compounds. The structure and absolute stereochemistry of these compounds were determined based on extensive spectroscopic analyses (FABMS, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, ¹H–¹H COSY, ¹H–¹³C HMBC) and Marfey’s method. The compounds were identified as cyclic dipeptides (CDPs): cyclo(l-Pro-l-Trp), cyclo(l-Leu-l-Val), cyclo(d-Pro-d-Met), and cyclo(d-Pro-d-Phe), respectively. Compounds recorded significant antibacterial activity against all the test bacteria (Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and methicillin-resistant S. aureus) except cyclo(l-Leu-l-Val). Cyclo(l-Leu-l-Val) recorded activity only against Gram positive bacteria. Best antibacterial activity was recorded by cyclo(l-Pro-l-Trp) against S. aureus (4 μg/ml). The four compounds were active against all the five fungi tested (Trichophyton rubrum, Aspergillus flavus, Candida albicans, Candida tropicalis and Cryptococcus neoformans) and the activity was compared with amphotericin B, the standard fungicide. The highest activity of 1 μg/ml by cyclo(l-Pro-l-Trp) was recorded against T. rubrum, a human pathogen responsible for causing athlete’s foot, jock itch, and ringworm. The activity of cyclo(l-Pro-l-Trp) against T. rubrum, C. neoformans and C. albicans were better than amphotericin B, the standard antifungal agent. To our knowledge, this is the first report of antifungal activity of CDPs against the human pathogenic fungi T. rubrum and C. neoformans. The four CDPs are nontoxic to healthy human cell line up to 200 μg/ml. We conclude that the bacterium associated with entomopathogenic nematode is promising sources of natural antimicrobial secondary metabolites, which may receive greater benefit as potential sources of new drugs in the pharmaceutical industry.     

Backbone and side-chain 1H, 15N and 13C assignment of apo- and imipenem-acylated l,d-transpeptidase from Bacillus subtilis

The d,d-transpeptidase activity of Penicillin Binding Proteins (PBPs) is essential to maintain cell wall integrity. PBPs catalyze the final step of the peptidoglycan synthesis by forming 4 → 3 cross-links between two peptide stems. Recently, a novel β-lactam resistance mechanism involving l,d-transpeptidases has been identified in Enterococcus faecium and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In this resistance pathway, the classical 4 → 3 cross-links are replaced by 3 → 3 cross-links, whose formation are catalyzed by the l,d-transpeptidases. To date, only one class of the entire β-lactam family, the carbapenems, is able to inhibit the l,d-transpeptidase activity. Nevertheless, the specificity of this inactivation is still not understood. Hence, the study of this new transpeptidase family is of considerable interest in order to understand the mechanism of the l,d-transpeptidases inhibition by carbapenems. In this context, we present herein the backbone and side-chain ¹H, ¹⁵N and ¹³C NMR assignment of the l,d-transpeptidase from Bacillus subtilis (Ldt_Bs) in the apo and in the acylated form with a carbapenem, the imipenem.     

l-leucine, l-methionine, and l-phenylalanine share a Na+/K+-dependent amino acid transporter in shrimp hepatopancreas

Hepatopancreatic brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV), made from Atlantic White shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus), were used to characterize the transport properties of ³H-l-leucine influx by these membrane systems and how other essential amino acids and the cations, sodium and potassium, interact with this transport system. ³H-l-leucine uptake by BBMV was pH-sensitive and occurred against transient transmembrane concentration gradients in both Na⁺- and K⁺-containing incubation media, suggesting that either cation was capable of providing a driving force for amino acid accumulation. ³H-l-leucine uptake in NaCl or KCl media were each three times greater in acidic pH (pH 5.5) than in alkaline pH (pH 8.5). The essential amino acid, l-methionine, at 20 mM significantly (p < 0.0001) inhibited the 2-min uptakes of 1 mM ³H-l-leucine in both Na⁺- and K⁺-containing incubation media. The residual ³H-l-leucine uptake in the two media were significantly greater than zero (p < 0.001), but not significantly different from each other (p > 0.05) and may represent an l-methionine- and cation-independent transport system. ³H-l-leucine influxes in both NaCl and KCl incubation media were hyperbolic functions of [l-leucine], following the carrier-mediated Michaelis–Menten equation. In NaCl, ³H-l-leucine influx displayed a low apparent K _M (high affinity) and low apparent J _max, while in KCl the transport exhibited a high apparent K _M (low affinity) and high apparent J _max. l-methionine or l-phenylalanine (7 and 20 mM) were competitive inhibitors of ³H-l-leucine influxes in both NaCl and KCl media, producing a significant (p < 0.01) increase in ³H-l-leucine influx K _M, but no significant response in ³H-l-leucine influx J _max. Potassium was a competitive inhibitor of sodium co-transport with ³H-l-leucine, significantly (p < 0.01) increasing ³H-l-leucine influx K _M in the presence of sodium, but having negligible effect on ³H-l-leucine influx J _max in the same medium. These results suggest that shrimp BBMV transport ³H-l-leucine by a single l-methionine- and l-phenylalanine-shared carrier system that is enhanced by acidic pH and can be stimulated by either Na⁺ or K⁺ acting as co-transport drivers binding to shared activator sites.     

l-Arabinose/d-galactose 1-dehydrogenase of Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. trifolii characterised and applied for bioconversion of l-arabinose to l-arabonate with Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Four potential dehydrogenases identified through literature and bioinformatic searches were tested for l-arabonate production from l-arabinose in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The most efficient enzyme, annotated as a d-galactose 1-dehydrogenase from the pea root nodule bacterium Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. trifolii, was purified from S. cerevisiae as a homodimeric protein and characterised. We named the enzyme as a l-arabinose/d-galactose 1-dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.-), Rl AraDH. It belongs to the Gfo/Idh/MocA protein family, prefers NADP⁺ but uses also NAD⁺ as a cofactor, and showed highest catalytic efficiency (k _cat/K _m) towards l-arabinose, d-galactose and d-fucose. Based on nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and modelling studies, the enzyme prefers the α-pyranose form of l-arabinose, and the stable oxidation product detected is l-arabino-1,4-lactone which can, however, open slowly at neutral pH to a linear l-arabonate form. The pH optimum for the enzyme was pH 9, but use of a yeast-in-vivo-like buffer at pH 6.8 indicated that good catalytic efficiency could still be expected in vivo. Expression of the Rl AraDH dehydrogenase in S. cerevisiae, together with the galactose permease Gal2 for l-arabinose uptake, resulted in production of 18 g of l-arabonate per litre, at a rate of 248 mg of l-arabonate per litre per hour, with 86 % of the provided l-arabinose converted to l-arabonate. Expression of a lactonase-encoding gene from Caulobacter crescentus was not necessary for l-arabonate production in yeast.     

Improvement of l-lactic acid production by osmotic-tolerant mutant of Lactobacillus casei at high temperature

l-Lactic acid production by Lactobacillus casei was used as a model to study the mechanism of substrate inhibition and the strategy for enhancing l-lactic acid production. It was found that the concentration of cell growth and l-lactate decreased with the increase of glucose concentration and fermentation temperature. To enhance the osmotic stress resistance of the strain at high temperature, a mutant G-03 was screened and selected with 360?g/L glucose at 45°C as the selective criterion. To further increase the cell growth for lactic acid production, 3?g/L of biotin was supplemented to the medium. As a result, l-lactate concentration by the mutant G-03 reached 198.2?g/L (productivity of 5.5?g?L^?1?h^?1) at 41°C in a 7-L fermentor with 210?g/L glucose as carbon source. l-Lactate concentration and productivity of mutant G-03 were 115.2% and 97.8% higher than those of the parent strain, respectively. The strategy for enhancing l-lactic acid production by increasing osmotic stress resistance at high temperature may provide an alternative approach to enhance organic acid production with other strains.     

Phenylalanine hydroxylase activity in a mutant of Geotrichum candidum

A mutant of Geotrichum candidum was isolated with a tyrosine requirement which could be satisfied by l-tyrosine or l-phenylalanine. l-Phenylalanine is converted by cell suspensions to l-tyrosine, which can be detected in the growth medium. The incorporation of the tyrosine into cell protein is described. l-Phenylalanine is converted to tyrosine by cell-free extracts with a requirement for some dialysable components. The adaptation of intact cells to phenylalanine metabolism is also described.     

l-Valine production with minimization of by-products’ synthesis in Corynebacterium glutamicum and Brevibacterium flavum

Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC13032 and Brevibacterium flavum JV16 were engineered for l-valine production by over-expressing ilvEBN ^r C genes at 31?°C in 72?h fermentation. Different strategies were carried out to reduce the by-products’ accumulation in l-valine fermentation and also to increase the availability of precursor for l-valine biosynthesis. The native promoter of ilvA of C. glutamicum was replaced with a weak promoter MPilvA (P-ilvAM1CG) to reduce the biosynthetic rate of l-isoleucine. Effect of different relative dissolved oxygen on l-valine production and by-products’ formation was recorded, indicating that 15?% saturation may be the most appropriate relative dissolved oxygen for l-valine fermentation with almost no l-lactic acid and l-glutamate formed. To minimize l-alanine accumulation, alaT and/or avtA was inactivated in C. glutamicum and B. flavum, respectively. Compared to high concentration of l-alanine accumulated by alaT inactivated strains harboring ilvEBN ^r C genes, l-alanine concentration was reduced to 0.18?g/L by C. glutamicum ATCC13032MPilvA△avtA pDXW-8-ilvEBN ^r C, and 0.22?g/L by B. flavum JV16avtA::Cm pDXW-8-ilvEBN ^r C. Meanwhile, l-valine production and conversion efficiency were enhanced to 31.15?g/L and 0.173?g/g by C. glutamicum ATCC13032MPilvA△avtA pDXW-8-ilvEBN ^r C, 38.82?g/L and 0.252?g/g by B. flavum JV16avtA::Cm pDXW-8-ilvEBN ^r C. This study provides combined strategies to improve l-valine yield by minimization of by-products’ production.     

Enhanced production of l-phenylalanine in Corynebacterium glutamicum due to the introduction of Escherichia coli wild-type gene aroH

Metabolic engineering is a powerful tool which has been widely used for producing valuable products. For improving l-phenylalanine (l-Phe) accumulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum, we have investigated the target genes involved in the biosynthetic pathways. The genes involved in the biosynthesis of l-Phe were found to be strictly regulated genes by feedback inhibition. As a result, overexpression of the native wild-type genes aroF, aroG or pheA resulted in a slight increase of l-Phe. In contrast, overexpression of aroF ^wt or pheA ^fbr from E. coli significantly increased l-Phe production. Co-overexpression of aroF ^wt and pheA ^fbr improved the titer of l-Phe to 4.46 ± 0.06 g l^?1. To further analyze the target enzymes in the aromatic amino acid synthesis pathway between C. glutamicum and E. coli, the wild-type gene aroH from E. coli was overexpressed and evaluated in C. glutamicum. As predicted, upregulation of the wild-type gene aroH resulted in a remarkable increase of l-Phe production. Co-overexpression of the mutated pheA ^fbr and the wild-type gene aroH resulted in the production of l-Phe up to 4.64 ± 0.09 g l^?1. Based on these results we conclude that the wild-type gene aroH from E. coli is an appropriate target gene for pathway engineering in C. glutamicum for the production of aromatic amino acids.     

d-Amino Acid-Induced Expression of d-Amino Acid Oxidase in the Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe

We investigated d-amino acid oxidase (DAO) induction in the popular model yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The product of the putative DAO gene of the yeast expressed in E.?coli displayed oxidase activity to neutral and basic d-amino acids, but not to an l-amino acid or acidic d-amino acids, showing that the putative DAO gene encodes catalytically active DAO. DAO activity was weakly detected in yeast cells grown on a culture medium without d-amino acid, and was approximately doubled by adding d-alanine. The elimination of ammonium chloride from culture medium induced activity by up to eight-fold. l-Alanine also induced the activity, but only by about half of that induced by d-alanine. The induction by d-alanine reached a maximum level at 2?h cultivation; it remained roughly constant until cell growth reached a stationary phase. The best inducer was d-alanine, followed by d-proline and then d-serine. Not effective were N-carbamoyl-d,l-alanine (a better inducer of DAO than d-alanine in the yeast Trigonopsis variabilis), and both basic and acidic d-amino acids. These results showed that S. pombe DAO could be a suitable model for analyzing the regulation of DAO expression in eukaryotic organisms.     

d-Lactic acid biosynthesis from biomass-derived sugars via Lactobacillus delbrueckii fermentation

Poly-lactic acid (PLA) derived from renewable resources is considered to be a good substitute for petroleum-based plastics. The number of poly l-lactic acid applications is increased by the introduction of a stereocomplex PLA, which consists of both poly-l and d-lactic acid and has a higher melting temperature. To date, several studies have explored the production of l-lactic acid, but information on biosynthesis of d-lactic acid is limited. Pulp and corn stover are abundant, renewable lignocellulosic materials that can be hydrolyzed to sugars and used in biosynthesis of d-lactic acid. In our study, saccharification of pulp and corn stover was done by cellulase CTec2 and sugars generated from hydrolysis were converted to d-lactic acid by a homofermentative strain, L. delbrueckii, through a sequential hydrolysis and fermentation process (SHF) and a simultaneous saccharification and fermentation process (SSF). 36.3 g L^?1 of d-lactic acid with 99.8 % optical purity was obtained in the batch fermentation of pulp and attained highest yield and productivity of 0.83 g g^?1 and 1.01 g L^?1 h^?1, respectively. Luedeking–Piret model described the mixed growth-associated production of d-lactic acid with a maximum specific growth rate 0.2 h^?1 and product formation rate 0.026 h^?1, obtained for this strain. The efficient synthesis of d-lactic acid having high optical purity and melting point will lead to unique stereocomplex PLA with innovative applications in polymer industry.     

Exploring the allosteric mechanism of dihydrodipicolinate synthase by reverse engineering of the allosteric inhibitor binding sites and its application for lysine production

Dihydrodipicolinate synthase (DHDPS, EC 4.2.1.52) catalyzes the first committed reaction of l-lysine biosynthesis in bacteria and plants and is allosterically regulated by l-lysine. In previous studies, DHDPSs from different species were proved to have different sensitivity to l-lysine inhibition. In this study, we investigated the key determinants of feedback regulation between two industrially important DHDPSs, the l-lysine-sensitive DHDPS from Escherichia coli and l-lysine-insensitive DHDPS from Corynebacterium glutamicum, by sequence and structure comparisons and site-directed mutation. Feedback inhibition of E. coli DHDPS was successfully alleviated after substitution of the residues around the inhibitor’s binding sites with those of C. glutamicum DHDPS. Interestingly, mutagenesis of the lysine binding sites of C. glutamicum DHDPS according to E. coli DHDPS did not recover the expected feedback inhibition but an activation of DHDPS by l-lysine, probably due to differences in the allosteic signal transduction in the DHDPS of these two organisms. Overexpression of l-lysine-insensitive E. coli DHDPS mutants in E. coli MG1655 resulted in an improvement of l-lysine production yield by 46 %.     

Effects of l-lysine and d-lysine on ɛ-Poly-l-lysine biosynthesis and their metabolites by Streptomyces ahygroscopicus GIM8

?-Poly-l-lysine (?-PL), produced by Streptomyces or Kitasatospora strains, is a homo-poly-amino acid of l-lysine, which is used as a safe food preservative. In this study, the effects of l-lysine and its isomer, d-lysine, on ?-PL biosynthesis and their metabolites by the ?-PL-producing strain Streptomyces ahygroscopicus GIM8 were determined. The results indicated that l-lysine added into the fermentation medium in the production phase mainly served as a precursor for ?-PL biosynthesis during the flask culture phase, leading to greater ?-PL production. At an optimum level of 3 mM l-lysine, a ?-PL yield of 1.16 g/L was attained, with a 41.4% increment relative to the control of 0.78 g/L. Regarding d-lysine, the production of ?-PL increased by increasing its concentrations up to 6 mM in the initial fermentation medium. Interestingly, ?-PL production (1.20 g/L) with the addition of 3 mM d-lysine into the initial fermentation medium in flasks was higher than that of the initial addition of 3 mM L-lysine (1.06 g/L). The mechanism by which d-lysine improves ?-PL biosynthesis involves its utilization that leads to greater biomass. After S. ahygroscopicus GIM8 was cultivated in the defined medium with L-lysine, several key metabolites, including 5-aminovalerate, pipecolate, and l-2-aminoadipate formed in the cells, whereas only l-2-aminoadipate was observed after d-lysine metabolism. This result indicates that l-lysine and d-lysine undergo different metabolic pathways in the cells. Undoubtedly, the results of this study are expected to aid the understanding of ?-PL biosynthesis and serve as reference for the formulation of an alternative approach to improve ?-PL productivity using l-lysine as an additional substrate in the fermentation medium.     

Characterization of uptake and release processes ford- andl-aspartate in primary cultures of astrocytes and cerebellar granule cells

The uptake ofl-andd-aspartate was studied in astrocytes cultured from prefrontal cortex and in granule cells cultured from cerebellum. A high affinity uptake system forl- andd-aspartate was found in both cell types, and the two stereoisomers exhibited essentially the sameK _m - andV _max -values in bouth astrocytes (l-aspartate:K _m 77 μM;V _max 11.8 nmol×min^?1×mg^?1;d-aspartate:K _m 83 μM;V _max 14.0 nmol×min^?1×mg^?1) and granule cells (l-aspartate:K _m 32 μM;V _max 2.8 nmol ×min^?1×mg^?1;d-aspartate:K _m 26 μM;V _max 3.0 nmol×min^?1×mg^?1). To investigate whetherl-glutamate,l-aspartate andd-aspartate use the same uptake system a detailed kenetic analysis was performed. The uptake kinetics of each one of the three amino acids was studied in the presence of the two other amino acids, and no essential differences between the uptake characteristics of the amino acids were found. In addition to the uptake studies the release ofD-aspartate from cerebellar granule cells was investigated and compared withl-glutamate release. A Ca²⁺-dependent, K⁺-induced release was found for both amino acids.     

Characterization of a recombinant l-fucose isomerase from Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus that isomerizes l-fucose, d-arabinose, d-altrose, and l-galactose

A recombinant l-fucose isomerase from Caldicellulosiruptor saccharolyticus was purified as a single 68 kDa band with an activity of 76 U mg^?1. The molecular mass of the native enzyme was 204 kDa as a trimer. The maximum activity for l-fucose isomerization was at pH 7 and 75°C in the presence of 1 mM Mn²⁺. Its half-life at 70°C was 6.1 h. For aldose substrates, the enzyme displayed activity in decreasing order for l-fucose, with a k _cat of 11,910 min^?1 and a K _m of 140 mM, d-arabinose, d-altrose, and l-galactose. These aldoses were converted to the ketoses l-fuculose, d-ribulose, d-psicose, and l-tagatose, respectively, with 24, 24, 85, 55% conversion yields after 3 h.     

Polarized spectroscopic elucidation of N-acetyl-l-cysteine, l-cysteine, l-cystine, l-ascorbic acid and a tool for their determination in solid mixtures

Method of linear polarized vibrational (both IR- and Raman) spectroscopy of oriented colloids in nematic host is applied on N-acetyl-l-cysteine, l-cysteine, l-cystine and l-ascorbic acid with a view to obtain experimental bands assignment and local structural elucidation in solid-state. Structural results are compared with available crystallographic data for all of the systems studied. Scopes and limitations of the polarized method are shown. Discussion on the correlation between polarized spectroscopic data and the space group type as well as the number of the molecules in the unit cell (Z) is performed. Compounds with monoclinic space group P2₁, containing Z = 1 (N-acetyl-l-cysteine) and 2 (l-cysteine and l-ascorbic acid) are elucidated. One of the rare for organic molecules, hexagonal P6₁22 space group and Z = 6 (l-cystine) is also elucidated. Experimental assignment of the characteristics frequencies is obtained, explaining the typical for the crystals Fermi-resonance, Fermy–Davydov and Davydov splitting effects. For first time in the literature we are reported the orientation of the solid-mixture in nematic host, using the trade product ACC (Hexal, Germany), containing mainly N-acetyl-l-cysteine and l-ascorbic acid. Quantitative IR-spectroscopic approach for determination of solid mixtures is presented as well. The intensity ratio between 1,716 cm^?1 (characteristic for N-acetyl-l-cysteine) and 990 cm^?1, (attributed N-acethyl-cysteine and vitamin C) is used. Linear regression analysis between content and the peak ratio data for ten solid-binary mixtures, leads to straight-line plot y = 1.08₂ (±0.04₉) + (?0.11₄ ± 0.01₁)x, where x = 1/X _i . Factor r of 0.9641 and a reliability of 98.85% are obtained. The analysis of ACC 200 (Hexal, Germany) show that the IR measurements leads to standard deviation of 0.010 and 0.011 at P about 0.0500 for the systems and a confidence of >98.77₁%.     

Optimization of Biotransformation of l-Tyrosine to l-DOPA by Yarrowia lipolytica-NCIM 3472 Using Response Surface Methodology

l-DOPA (3,4-dihydroxyphenyl-l-alanine) is the most widely used drug for treatment of Parkinson’s disease. In this study Yarrowia lipolytica-NCIM 3472 biomass was used for transformation of l-tyrosine to l-DOPA. The process parameters were optimized using response surface methodology (RSM). The optimum values of the tested variables for the production of l-DOPA were: pH 7.31, temperature 42.9 °C, 2.31 g l^?1 cell mass and 1.488 g l^?1 l-tyrosine. The highest yield obtained with these optimum parameters along with recycling of the cells was 4.091 g l^?1. This optimization of process parameters using RSM resulted in 4.609-fold increase in the l-DOPA production. The statistical analysis showed that the model was significant. Also coefficient of determination (R²) was 0.9758, indicating a good agreement between the experimental and predicted values of l-DOPA production. The highest tyrosinase activity observed was 7,028 U mg^?1 tyrosine. l-DOPA production was confirmed by HPTLC and HPLC analysis. Thus, RSM approach effectively enhanced the potential of Y. lipolytica-NCIM 3472 as an alternative source to produce l-DOPA.     

Characterization of a recombinant l-rhamnose isomerase from Bacillus subtilis and its application on production of l-lyxose and l-mannose

The gene of an l-rhamnose isomerase (RhaA) from Bacillus subtilis was cloned to the pET28a(+) and then expressed in the E. coli ER2566. The expressed enzyme was purified with a specific activity of 3.58 U/mg by His-Trap affinity chromatography. The recombinant enzyme existed as a 194 kDa tetramer and the maximal activity was observed at pH 8.0 and 60°C. The RhaA displayed activity for l-rhamnose, l-lyxose, l-mannose, d-allose, d-gulose, d-ribose, and l-talose, among all aldopentoses and aldohexoses and it showed enzyme activity for l-form monosaccharides such as l-rhamnose, l-lyxose, l-mannose, and l-talose. The catalytic efficiency (k _cat/K _m) of the recombinant enzyme for l-rhamnose, l-lyxose, and l-mannose were 7,460, 1,013, and 258 M/sec. When l-xylulose 100 g/L and l-fructose 100 g/L were used as substrates, the optimum concentrations of RpiB were determined with 6 and 15 U/mL, respectively. The l-lyxose 40 g/L was produced from l-xylulose 100 g/L by the enzyme during 60 min, while l-mannose 25 g/L was produced from l-fructose 100 g/L for 80 min. The results suggest that RhaA from B. subtilis is a potential producer of l-form monosaccharides.     

Synthesis of enantiomeric pureCis-dichloroplatinum(II) amino acid complexes

The reaction of potassium tetrachloroplatinate(II) with six representative sulfurcontaining amino acids, namely,d- andl-cysteine,d- andl-methionine and its methyl ester hydrochloride gives the corresponding enantiomerically purecis-dichloroplatinum(II) complexes. This represents the first reported series of well-characterized enantiomerically pure platinum(II) complexes for bothd- andl-amino acids. The spectroscopic properties, including IR,¹H-NMR, and¹³C NMR, of these complexes and their configuration are discussed.