Response of the cyanobacterium,Oscillatoria tenuis,to low iron environments: the effect on growth rate and evidence for siderophore production

Cyanobacteria vary in their ability to grow in media contaning low amounts of biologically available iron. Some strains, such as Oscillatoria tenuis, are well adapted to thrive in low-iron environments. We investigated the mechanism of iron scavenging in O. tenuis and found that this cyanobacterium has a siderophore-mediated iron transport system that differs significantly from the traditional hydroxamate-siderophore transport system reported from other cyanobacteria. Unlike other cyanobacteria, this strain produces two types of siderophores, a hydroxamate-type siderophore and a catechol-type siderophore. Production of these two siderophores is expressed at two different iron levels in the medium, suggesting two different iron regulated uptake systems. We compared the production of each siderophore with the growth rate of the culture and found that the production of the catechol siderophore enhances the growth rate of the cyanobacterium, whereas the cells maintain lower than maximal growth rates when only the hydroxamate-type siderophore is being produced.Abbreviation EDDA ethylene diamine di-(o-hydroxyphenylacetic acid)     

Iron mediated regulation of growth and siderophore production in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica

Iron mediated regulation of growth and siderophore production has been studied in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica. Iron-starved cells of A. cylindrica exhibited reduced growth (30%) when the cells were growing under N2-fixing conditions. In contrast, N03-, NO2-, NH4' and urea grown cells exhibited almost 50% reduction in their growth in the absence of iron as compared to their respective counterparts cultured in the presence of iron. However, at 60 microM of iron, A. cylindrica cells exhibited almost equal growth regardless of the nitrogen source available. Siderophore production in A. cylindrica was started after day 2nd of the cell growth and attained its optimal level on day 5th when the cells were at their mid-log phase. No siderophore production was, however, recorded on day 2nd at all the concentrations of iron tested. The production of siderophore in A. cylindrica further increased with increase in iron concentration and attained its optimum level on day 5th at 60 microM iron. A. cylindrica cells took at least 3 days for initiation of siderophore production and produced about 60% siderophore on day 5th even under iron-starved condition. A. cylindrica produced dihydroxamate type of siderophore.     

Mutation in the glmS gene responsible for the cell wall synthesis increases resistance to the herbicide amitrole in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC6803

A DNA fragment transforming the cells of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 to amitrole (3-amino-1,2,4-triazole) resistance was cloned from the Atr2 mutant resistant to this herbicide. The transforming activity of the cloned fragment was shown to be related to the missence-mutation "Val250-->Leu250" in the glmS gene encoding glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase, a key enzyme of cell wall synthesis. The amino acid substitution is localized in the central nonconservative part of the GlmS protein, far from two reaction centers positioned at the ends of a polypeptide. It is suggested that the mutant protein has lost sensitivity to amitrole. In the wild type strain, this herbicide causes conditional glucosamine auxotrophy (exogenous glucosamine restores ability of the cells to row in the presence of the lethal amitrole concentrations). Val250 is proposed to be allosteric binding site of AM in the GlmS protein of cyanobacterium.     

Structure of acinetoferrin,a new citrate-based dihydroxamate siderophore fromAcinetobacter haemolyticus

From low-iron cultures of Acinetobacter haemolyticus ATCC 17906, a new hydroxamate siderophore was purified by XAD-7 adsorption followed by preparative thin layer chromatography. The siderophore, named acinetoferrin, released citric acid, 1,3-diaminopropane and (E)-2-octenoic acid upon hydrolysis with HCl, reductive hydrolysis with HI and oxidation with periodate, respectively. Structure elucidation by a combination of NMR spectroscopy and positive fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry revealed that acinetoferrin is a derivative of citric acid, both of its terminal carboxyl groups being symmetrically amide-linked with the 1-amino-3-(N-hydroxy-N-2-octenylamino)propane residues. The (E)-2-octenoic acid is novel as a component of the siderophores.     

X-ray diffraction study of the interaction between carboxypeptidase A and (S)-(+)-1-amino-2-phenylethyl phosphonic acid.

The structure of the carboxypeptidase A complex with the inhibitor (S)-(+)-1-amino-2-phenylethylphosphonic acid has been determined at 0.23 nm resolution. The delta F map shows electron-density peaks both in the S1 and S'1 sites, where the inhibitor molecule can be modeled in two different orientations with approximate 50% occupancy. In the proposed model, the phosphonate group binds to the zinc ion in a monodentate fashion. Other anchoring groups for the inhibitor molecule are Arg127 (hydrogen bonds with the phosphonate oxygen atoms) and Glu270 (hydrogen bond with the amino group in one of the two orientations). A recent spectroscopic investigation of the complex between cobalt(II) carboxypeptidase A and (S)-(+)-1-amino-2-phenylethylphosphonic acid is essentially in agreement with our results.     

Identification of 2-amino-6-O-(2-amino-2-deoxy-beta-D-glucopyranosyl)-2-deoxy-D-glucose as a major constituent of the hydrophobic region of the Bordetella pertussis endotoxin

2-Amino-6-O-(2-amino-2-deoxy-β- d-glucopyranosyl)-2-deoxy- d-glucose substituted on the amino group of the reducing 2-amino-2-deoxy- d-glucose unit by a 3-hydroxytetradecanoyl group was shown to be a major constituent of the “Lipid A” fragment obtained by acid hydrolysis of the Bordetella pertussis endotoxin.     

Isolation and characterization of the siderophore N-deoxyschizokinen from Bacillus megaterium ATCC 19213

N-Deoxyschizokinen, a novel siderophore, was isolated from stationary phase cultures of Bacillus megaterium ATCC 19213 and identified as 4-[(3(acetylhydroxyamino)propyl)amino]-2-[2-[(3-(acetylamino)propyl)amino]-2-oxoethyl]-2-hydroxy-4-oxo-butanoic acid. The siderophore was purified by HPLC and its structure determined using ¹H and ¹³C NMR, ¹H-¹H COSY and electrospray mass spectroscopy. The monohydroxamate siderophore has the same carbon skeleton as schizokinen but the hydroxyl group on one hydroxamate is replaced by a hydrogen. A detailed ¹H NMR study of schizokinen, N-deoxyschizokinen and their imides, schizokinen A and N-deoxyschizokinen A is presented.     

Wewakamide A and guineamide G, cyclic depsipeptides from the marine cyanobacteria Lyngbya semiplena and Lyngbya majuscula

Two new cyclic depsipeptides wewakamide A (1) and guineamide G (2) have been isolated from the marine cyanobacterium Lyngbya semiplena and Lyngbya majuscula, respectively, collected from Papua New Guinea. The amino and hydroxy acid partial structures of wewakamide A and guineamide G were elucidated through extensive spectroscopic techniques, including HR-FABMS, 1D (1)H and (13)C NMR, as well as 2D COSY, HSQC, HSQCTOCSY, and HMBC spectra. The sequence of the residues of wewakamide A was determined through a combination of ESI-MS/MS, HMBC, and ROESY. Wewakamide A possesses a β-amino acid, 3-amino-2-methylbutanoic acid (Maba) residue, which has only been previously identified in two natural products, guineamide B (3) and dolastatin D (4). Although both new compounds (1,2) showed potent brine shrimp toxicity, only guineamide G displayed significant cytotoxicity to a mouse neuroblastoma cell line with LC(50) values of 2.7 micrometer.     

Bioassay for siderophore utilization by Candida albicans

A convenient plate assay which is sensitive to medium pH has been developed to evaluate potential siderophores of Candida albicans. Adding a siderophore to a filter paper disk on chemically defined Lee's agar (final pH 7.2) seeded with the test strain reversed the growth inhibitory effects of the supplemented (25-100 micrograms/ml) iron chelator ethylenediaminedi(o-hydroxyphenylacetic acid), to provide a zone of growth stimulation. This bioassay has been used to demonstrate the structure-activity relationships of ferrichrome and several water-soluble hydroxamate peptide building blocks of this natural siderophore. Of all compounds so evaluated, ferrichrome exhibited the best activity.     

A spectrophotometric assay for the degradation of the siderophore deferrioxamine B

A spectrophotometric assay using ferric perchlorate in a perchloric acid solution has been developed to monitor the degradation of the trihydroxamate siderophore deferrioxamine B to monohydroxamates. Using the ferric perchlorate solution and employing various concentrations of acetohydroxamic acid (as the model monohydroxamic acid) while maintaining a constant amount of deferrioxamine B resulted in the shifting of the absorption maximum from that of ferrioxamine B to longer wavelengths and toward that of a pure ferri-acetomonohydroxamic acid solution. A similar result was noted when a cell-free extract, from a bacterium capable of using deferrioxamine B as its sole carbon source, was given the siderophore in a phosphate buffer and aliquots of the enzyme-deferrioxamine B solution were removed for analysis. The assay may thus be used to monitor the formation of the monohydroxamic acid degradation products of the siderophore by the enzyme(s) in the cell-free extract.     

Design and synthesis of APTCs (aminopyrrolidinetricarboxylic acids): identification of a new group III metabotropic glutamate receptor selective agonist

A new family of mGlu receptor orthosteric ligands called APTCs was designed and synthesized using a parallel chemistry approach. Amongst 65 molecules tested on mGlu4, mGlu6 and mGlu8 subtypes, (2S,4S)-4-amino-1-[(E)-3-carboxyacryloyl]pyrrolidine-2,4-dicarboxylic acid (8a06-FP0429) has been shown to be a full mGlu4 agonist and a partial mGlu8 agonist. In addition, 8a06 was shown to be selective versus group I and II mGlu subtypes. A possible explanation for this efficacy difference is proposed by docking experiment performed with molecular model of the receptor.     

Isolation and biological characterization of staphyloferrin B, a compound with siderophore activity from staphylococci

Abstract A highly hydrophilic compound with siderophore activity has been isolated from the supernatant of Staphylococcus hyicus DSM 20459 grown under iron-restricted conditions. The metabolite, named staphyloferrin B, is strictly iron-regulated and produced by a large variety of staphylococci strains. In vivo iron transport measurements and the growth-promoting activity in a bioassay establish staphyloferrin B as the second siderophore for staphylococci besides the previously described staphyloferrin A. The structure elucidation revealed 2,3-diaminopropionic acid, citrate, ethylenediamine and 2-ketoglutaric acid as structural components of the compound. Thus, staphyloferrin B is a structurally new siderophore of the complexone type.     

Alr0397 is an outer membrane transporter for the siderophore schizokinen in Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120

Iron uptake in proteobacteria by TonB-dependent outer membrane transporters represents a well-explored subject. In contrast, the same process has been scarcely investigated in cyanobacteria. The heterocyst-forming cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 is known to secrete the siderophore schizokinen, but its transport system has remained unidentified. Inspection of the genome of strain PCC 7120 shows that only one gene encoding a putative TonB-dependent iron transporter, namely alr0397, is positioned close to genes encoding enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of a hydroxamate siderophore. The expression of alr0397, which encodes an outer membrane protein, was elevated under iron-limited conditions. Inactivation of this gene caused a moderate phenotype of iron starvation in the mutant cells. The characterization of the mutant strain showed that Alr0397 is a TonB-dependent schizokinen transporter (SchT) of the outer membrane and that alr0397 expression and schizokinen production are regulated by the iron homeostasis of the cell.     

Multiple modes of iron uptake by the filamentous,siderophore‐producing cyanobacterium,Anabaena sp. PCC 7120

Iron is a member of a small group of nutrients that limits aquatic primary production. Mechanisms for utilizing iron have to be efficient and adapted according to the ecological niche. In respect to iron acquisition cyanobacteria, prokaryotic oxygen evolving photosynthetic organisms can be divided into siderophore‐ and non‐siderophore‐producing strains. The results presented in this paper suggest that the situation is far more complex. To understand the bioavailability of different iron substrates and the advantages of various uptake strategies, we examined iron uptake mechanisms in the siderophore‐producing cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. PCC 7120. Comparison of the uptake of iron complexed with exogenous (desferrioxamine B, DFB) or to self‐secreted (schizokinen) siderophores by Anabaena sp. revealed that uptake of the endogenous produced siderophore complexed to iron is more efficient. In addition, Anabaena sp. is able to take up dissolved, ferric iron hydroxide species (Fe′) via a reductive mechanism. Thus, Anabaena sp. exhibits both, siderophore‐ and non‐siderophore‐mediated iron uptake. While assimilation of Fe′ and FeDFB are not induced by iron starvation, FeSchizokinen uptake rates increase with increasing iron starvation. Consequently, we suggest that Fe′ reduction and uptake is advantageous for low‐density cultures, while at higher densities siderophore uptake is preferred.     

Comparative stability of 1-alkoxyalkyl alpha-D-glucosides in the presence of acid or alpha-D-glucosidase from yeast

The aminated 1-alkoxyalkyl glycosides [(S)-2-amino-1-methoxyethyl] 6-amino-6-deoxy-alpha-D-glucopyranoside (3) and [(R,S)-1-ethoxyethyl] 6-amino-6-deoxy-alpha-D-glucopyranoside (4) have been synthesised and characterised. These compounds as well as [(R)-2-amino-1-methoxyethyl] alpha-D-glucopyranoside (1) prepared earlier are resistant against alpha-D-glucosidase (maltase, alpha-D-glucoside glucohydrolase, E.C. 3.2.1.20) from yeast, yet undergo hydrolysis under relatively mild acidic conditions. The kinetic parameters of the interaction with alpha-D-glucosidase and with acid were determined. The relative rates of acid hydrolysis of aminated 1-alkoxyalkyl glycosides compared with aminated ordinary glycosides suggest essential differences in the mechanism of acid-catalysed hydrolysis.     

Purification and characterization of thioredoxin from the N2-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica

Thioredoxin has been purified to homogeneity from the cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica. The protein consists of a single polypeptide chain with a relative molecular mass of about 11 680 which has two cysteine residues (residues 31 and 34) in the sequence-Cys-Gly-Pro-Cys- and an isoelectric point at pH 4.55. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of 39 residues shows distinct homologies with the sequences of Escherichia coli and Corynebacterium nephridii thioredoxins. Anti-(A. cylindrica thioredoxin) antiserum was used to quantify the thioredoxin which constituted about 0.22% of the soluble protein in cell-free extracts of N2-fixing, NO3- -grown or NH4+-grown A. cylindrica. Activation of fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase of A. cylindrica, activation of glutamine synthetase and NADP+-dependent malate dehydrogenase of the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus but not of A. cylindrica, and deactivation of glucose-6-P dehydrogenase of the cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis were all achieved using the same thioredoxin species. No other thioredoxin species were detected in extracts of A. cylindrica when examined for the activation of these enzymes.     

Structure of vulnibactin,a new polyamine-containing siderophore from Vibrio vulnificus

A new siderophore named vulnibactin has been isolated from low iron cultures of Vibrio vulnificus, a human pathogen. The structure was established as N-[3-(2,3-dihydroxybenzamido)propyl]-1,3-bis[2-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-trans-5-methyl-2-oxazoline-4-carboxamido]propane by a combination of acid hydrolysis, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and positive fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry. Vulnibactin is characterized as containing one residue of 2,3-dihydroxybenzoic acid as well as two residues of salicylic acid, both of which are involved in the formation of oxazoline rings with l-threonine bound to a norspermidine backbone. In addition, two other compounds with siderophore activity were purified and their structures were also determined. These two compounds provided further support for the structure of vulnibactin.