Serological differences between the multiple amine oxidases of yeasts and comparison of the specificities of the purified enzymes from Candida utilis and Pichia pastoris.

1. Antiserum to purified methylamine oxidase of Candida boidinii formed precipitin lines (with spurs) in double-diffusion tests with crude extracts of methylamine-grown cells of the following yeast species: Candida nagoyaensis, Candida nemodendra, Hansenula minuta, Hansenula polymorpha and Pichia pinus. No cross-reaction was observed with extracts of Candida lipolytica, Candida steatolytica, Candida tropicalis, Candida utilis, Pichia pastoris, Sporobolomyces albo-rubescens, Sporopachydermia cereana or Trigonopsis variabilis. Quantitative enzyme assays enabled the relative titre of antiserum against the various methylamine oxidases to be determined. 2. The amine oxidases from two non-cross-reacting species, C. utilis and P. pastoris, were purified to near homogeneity. 3. The methylamine oxidases, despite their serological non-similarity, showed very similar catalytic properties to methylamine oxidase from C. boidinii. Their heat-stability, pH optima, molecular weights, substrate specificities and sensitivity to inhibitors are reported. 4. The benzylamine oxidases of C. utilis and P. pastoris both oxidized putrescine, and the latter enzyme failed to show any cross-reaction with antibody to C. boidinii methylamine oxidase. Benzylamine oxidase from C. boidinii itself also did not cross-react with antibody to methylamine oxidase. The heat-stability, molecular weights, substrate specificities and sensitivity to inhibitors of the benzylamine/putrescine oxidases are reported. 5. The benzylamine/putrescine oxidase of C. utilis differed only slightly from that of C. boidinii. 6. Benzylamine/putrescine oxidase from P. pastoris differed from the Candida enzymes in heat-stability, subunit molecular weight and substrate specificity. In particular it catalysed the oxidation of the primary amino groups of spermine, spermidine, lysine, ornithine and 1,2-diaminoethane, which are not substrates for either of the Candida benzylamine oxidases that have been purified. 7. Spermine and spermidine were oxidized at both primary amino groups; in the case of spermidine this is a different specificity from that of plasma amine oxidase. 8. Under appropriate conditions, P. pastoris benzylamine/putrescine oxidase (which is very easy to purify) can be a useful analytical tool in measuring polyamines.     

产朊假丝酵母(Candida utilis)基因工程研究进展

产朊假丝酵母是生物安全(Generally Recognized as Safe,GRAS)的微生物,也是一种重要的工业微生物。近20年来,随着分子生物学技术的发展,产朊假丝酵母的基因表达系统和基因工程研究及开发应用取得了显著的进展,使得利用该菌表达多种物质成为可能。本文概述了产朊假丝酵母的生物学特点、外源基因表达系统、基因敲除、遗传转化等方面的研究和应用进展。     

响应面法优化产朊假丝酵母培养及干燥工艺

本研究旨在优化产朊假丝酵母液体培养参数及干燥保护剂配方,提高产朊假丝酵母液体培养数量,制备出高复苏率的活性干酵母。以装液量、转速、温度和培养时间为影响因素,设计单因素试验,并采用Box-Behnken试验设计及响应面分析法优化产朊假丝酵母液体培养方案。在此条件下培养酵母,以L-谷氨酸钠、乳糖、脱脂奶粉为影响因素进行单因素保护试验,并采用响应面分析法优化干燥保护剂的组合。结果表明,产朊假丝酵母最佳培养条件为装液量45 mL/250 m L,转速200 r/min,温度30℃,培养时间24 h。在此条件下,培养的产朊假丝酵母数量可以达到9.34×10~8CFU/mL;最佳保护剂组合1%L-谷氨酸钠、12%脱脂奶粉、6%乳糖,经干燥后,产朊假丝酵母复苏率达到81.9%。此时活菌数7.65×10~8CFU/g,比未加保护剂组提高了3.83倍。     

Inhibition of the growth of Candida utilis by certain heavy metals

The effect of Zn2+, Mn2+, Cd2+ and Hg2+ ions on the kinetics of growth was studied with Candida utilis. The inhibition of Candida utilis growth by Zn2+ and Mn2+ ions is described by the equation for noncompetitive inhibition of enzymatic reactions which is not the case with Cd2+ and Hg2+ ions. The inhibition constants (Ki) for these metals have been determined.     

玉米秸秆和异Vc钠生产废液固态发酵生产高蛋白饲料研究

以玉米秸秆为原料,以麸皮和异Vc钠生产废液(WEP)为辅料进行生物蛋白饲料固态发酵研究.通过菌种配伍试验,确定了混菌发酵菌种为白地霉、产朊假丝酵母和枯草芽孢杆菌.在此基础上通过单因素优化试验确定了秸秆蛋白饲料的最优发酵条件:以玉米秸秆(5 g)和麸皮(1 g)为基料,4%WEP营养液,固液比1:4(g/mL),初始pH值4.5;以麸皮浸汁作种子培养液,种龄24 h,各菌接种比例为产朊假丝酵母∶白地霉∶枯草芽孢杆菌=3:1:1,接种量2 mL;28℃、静置发酵2 d,在此条件下,秸秆饲料中真蛋白含量为6.21%,比对照提高了23.95%.该研究为秸秆和异Vc钠生产废液的高质化利用提供了新的思路和途径.     

Biomass production of yeast isolate from salad oil manufacturing wastewater

Conversion of oil-rich salad oil manufacturing wastewater (SOMW) into protein source for animal feed through biomass production of yeast isolate was investigated in this study. Five species of yeasts, including Rhodotorula rubra, Candida tropicalis, C. utilis, C. boidinii, Trichosporon cutaneum, were isolated from SOMW following enrichment culture. Of them, C. utilis was chosen as the sole biomass producer in the study due to its greatest oil uptake rate, 0.96 kg oil kg(-1) biomass d(-1), and highest specific growth rate, 0.25 h(-1). The cells of C. utilis contained 26% protein, 9% crude lipid, 55% carbohydrate and balanced amino acid compositions. The initial N:C ratio in SOMW drastically influenced oil reduction efficiency, biomass production and protein content of C. utilis, and therefore a range between 1:6 and 1:8 was recommended in consideration of these three factors simultaneously.     

Production of ethyl acetate from dilute ethanol solutions by Candida utilis

The conversion of ethanol to ethyl acetate has an advantage as a method of ethanol recovery since ethyl acetate is amenable to simple solvent extraction. The potential of Candida utilis in this conversion was studied. The kinetics of accumulation of ethanol and ethyl acetate in glucose-grown C. utilis showed that ester formation resulted from ethanol utilization under appropriate aeration and was inhibited by Fe(3+) supplementation. Candida utilis converted ethanol to ethyl acetate optimally at pH 5.0-7.0. The five-hour rate of ester production increased as the ethanol concentration increased to 10 g/L, and rapidly declined to zero at concentrations exceeding 35 g/L. Thus, C. utilis has potential to recover dilute ethanol in the form of ethyl acetate.     

Yeast pyruvate decarboxylases: variation in biocatalytic characteristics for (R)-phenylacetylcarbinol production

Based on previous studies, Candida utilis pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) proved to be a stable and high productivity enzyme for the production (R)-phenylacetylcarbinol (PAC), a pharmaceutical precursor. However, a portion of the substrate pyruvate was lost to by-product formation. To identify a source of PDC which might overcome this problem, strains of four yeasts -- C. utilis, Candida tropicalis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Kluyveromyces marxianus -- were investigated for their PDC biocatalytic properties. Biotransformations were conducted with benzaldehyde and pyruvate as substrates and three experimental systems were employed (in the order of increasing benzaldehyde concentrations): (I) aqueous (soluble benzaldehyde), (II) aqueous/benzaldehyde emulsion, and (III) aqueous/octanol-benzaldehyde emulsion. Although C. utilis PDC resulted in the highest concentrations of PAC and was the most stable enzyme, C. tropicalis PDC was associated with the lowest acetoin formation. For example, in system (III) the ratio of PAC over acetoin was 35 g g(-1) for C. tropicalis PDC and 9.2 g g(-1) for C. utilis PDC. The study thereby opens up the potential to design a PDC with both high productivity and high yield characteristics.     

Non-enzymic protein phosphorylation. Phosphorylation of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase by acyl phosphates.

Incubation of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase from Candida utilis with either acetyl phosphate, 1,3-diphosphoglycerate or carbamoyl phosphate results in the phosphorylation of the protein. The binding of one phosphate residue per enzyme subunit does not affect significantly the kinetic properties, but makes the enzyme less reactive toward thiol reagents, trypsin and pyridoxal 5'-phosphate. We suggest indicate that: (1) 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase from C. utilis is phosphorylated non-enzymically by physiological acyl phosphates and (2) the phosphorylation of the enzyme modifies the rate of protein inactivation.     

Studies on hydrazone derivatives as antifungal agents

The increasing clinical importance of drug-resistant fungal pathogens has urged additional need to fungal research and new antifungal compound development. For this purpose, some N-(1-benzyl-2-phenylethylidene)-N'-[4-(aryl)thiazol-2-yl]hydrazone (1a-e) and N-(1-phenylbutylidene)-N'-[4-(aryl)thiazol-2-yl]hydrazone (2a-e) derivatives were synthesised and evaluated for antifungal activity. Their antifungal activities against standard and clinical strands of Candida albicans, Candida glabrata, Candida utilis, Candida tropicalis, Candida krusei, Candida zeylanoides, and Candida parapsilosis were investigated. A significant level of activity was observed.     

An airlift fermenter for continuous cultures at elevated pressures

Summary For continuous cultures at elevated pressures an airlift fermenter (10 1) has been developed. It has been tested by cultivating the yeast Candida utilis at aerobic conditions. With higher pressure (from 1.5 bars to 7.0 bars absolute) the consumption of substrate per unit biomass is increased.     

Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequence of the 3-isopropylmalate dehydrogenase gene of Candida utilis

A 3-isopropylmalate dehydrogenase (3-IMDH, EC 1.1.1.85) gene was cloned from a gene library of Candida utilis. One of the plasmids, pYKL30, could complement Escherichia coli leuB and Saccharomyces cerevisiae leu2 auxotrophs; a 2.2 kb HindIII fragment subcloned in pBR322 could still complement the leuB mutation. Southern hybridization confirmed that this fragment was derived from C. utilis. An open reading frame of 1089 bp that corresponded to a polypeptide of 363 amino acids, one residue shorter than the 3-IMDH of S. cerevisiae, was found in the cloned fragment. The homology between the 3-IMDHs of C. utilis and S. cerevisiae was 76.2% in nucleotides and 85.4% in amino acids. In contrast, the homology between the 3-IMDHs of C. utilis and Thermus thermophilus was much smaller and was restricted to some regions of the gene.     

The effect of inorganic phosphate on the stability of some enzymes.

In the presence of 5nM-P1, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase from the yeast Candida utilis is more resistant to proteolysis and to the inactivating action of some chemical and physical agents. P1 also protects other enzymes against proteolysis. A hypothesis for the mechanism of the stabilizing action of P1 is advanced.     

Ethanol production from xylose by a recombinant Candida utilis strain expressing protein-engineered xylose reductase and xylitol dehydrogenase

The industrial yeast Candida utilis can grow on media containing xylose as sole carbon source, but cannot ferment it to ethanol. The deficiency might be due to the low activity of NADPH-preferring xylose reductase (XR) and NAD(+)-dependent xylitol dehydogenase (XDH), which convert xylose to xylulose, because C. utilis can ferment xylulose. We introduced multiple site-directed mutations in the coenzyme binding sites of XR and XDH derived from the xylose-fermenting yeast Candida shehatae to alter their coenzyme specificities. Several combinations of recombinant and native XRs and XDHs were tested. Highest productivity was observed in a strain expressing CsheXR K275R/N277D (NADH-preferring) and native CsheXDH (NAD(+)-dependent), which produced 17.4 g/L of ethanol from 50 g/L of xylose in 20 h. Analysis of the genes responsible for ethanol production from the xylose capacity of C. utilis indicated that the introduction of CsheXDH was essential, while overexpression of CsheXR K275R/N277D improved efficiency of ethanol production.     

Candidate osmosensors from Candida utilis and Kluyveromyces lactis: structural and functional homology to the Sho1p putative osmosensor from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, increases in external osmolarity evoke osmostress-induced signalling via the HOG MAP kinase pathway. One of the upstream components of this signal transduction route is the putative osmosensor, Sho1p. With the aim to elucidate the molecular basis of osmosensing in budding yeast, we have cloned SHO1 homologues from Candida utilis and Kluyveromyces lactis which allowed determination of conserved domains of Sho1p. Results obtained from sequence comparisons, confirmed the importance of the transmembrane domains and the SH3 domain for Sho1p function. The K. lactis and S. cerevisiae Sho1p show the highest degree of homology, the isoform from C. utilis is a shorter protein. SHO1 from C. utilis, however, did complement the osmosensitivity of the sho1ssk2ssk22 strain by restoring HOG pathway function, since Hog1p dual phosphorylation after high osmotic challenge was restored in this strain after transformation with a plasmid bearing this SHO1 homologue.     

A biochemical explanation for lipid accumulation in Candida 107 and other oleaginous micro-organisms.

The biochemical explanation for lipid accumulation was investigated principally in Candida 107 and, for comparison, in the non-oleaginous yeast Candida utilis. There were no significant differences between these two yeasts in their control of glucose uptake; in both yeasts, the rates of glucose uptake were independent of the growth rate and were higher in carbon-limited chemostat cultures than in nitrogen-limited cultures. There was no lipid turnover in either yeast, as judged from [14C]acetate uptake and subsequent loss of 14C from the lipid of steady-state chemostat cultures. Acetyl-CoA carboxylase from both yeasts was similar in most characteristics except that from Candida 107 was activated by citrate (40% activation at 1 mM). The enzyme from Candida 107 was relatively unstable and, when isolated from nitrogen-limited (lipid-accumulating) cultures, was accompanied by a low molecular weight inhibitor. The reason for lipid accumulation is attributed to the decrease in the intracellular concentration of AMP as cultures become depleted of nitrogen. As the NAD+-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase of Candida 107, but not C. utilis, requires AMP for activity, the metabolism of citrate through the tricarboxylic acid cycle in the mitochondria becomes arrested. In Candida 107, but not in C. utilis, there is an active ATP:citrate lyase which converts the accumulating citrate, when it passes into the cytosol, into acetyl-CoA and oxaloacetate. The former product is then available for fatty acid biosynthesis which is stimulated by the high ATP concentration within the cells, by the activation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase by citrate and by the provision of NADPH generated as oxaloacetate is converted via malate to pyruvate. Similar characteristics were evident in oleaginous strains of Rhodotorula glutinis and Mucor circinelloides but not in non-oleaginous representatives of these species.     

Effect of cyclic changes in culture conditions on the growth kinetics and physiological characteristics of yeasts

Candida utilis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida scottii were used to study the effect of cyclic changes in the pH and pO2 within a range of 1 to 60 min on their growth kinetics and physiological properties. These changes were shown to increase the specific growth rate from 0.33 to 0.5-0.6 h-1 without decreasing the economic coefficient and the quantity of budding cells during 2-3 generations of the exponentially growing batch culture of C. utilis. Optimal conditions of cyclic changes in the pO2 (minutes) were found to increase the specific growth rate of C. scottii and S. cerevisiae. The authors discuss a hypothesis for the formation of intermediate products in the substrate oxidation in the course of pulse aeration by the yeasts during the aerobic stage and the utilization of the products at the anaerobic stage of cyclic regimes. The paper describes a mathematical model for the yeast growth under the nonsteady-state conditions of pH and pO2, which accounts for the formation and utilization of possible intermediate biosynthetic products within the studied time intervals.     

激光复合诱变选育叶酸高产菌

利用高效液相色谱测定发酵液中叶酸含量,比较产朊假丝酵母(Candida utilis)、异常汉逊酵母(ftan-senula anomala)和枯草芽孢杆菌(Bacillus subtilis)产叶酸能力的高低,从而确定生产叶酸的最佳菌种.出发菌株经紫外照射诱变后,再采用激光复合诱变方式进行进一步的筛选,并对其传代稳定性进行研究,以期进一步获得稳产高产叶酸产生菌突变株.结果表明产朊假丝酵母产叶酸量最高.紫外照射3 min得到的Y1.4菌株产叶酸量与原始菌株相比,产量提高了33.8%.激光一紫外复合诱变后筛选出4株产量较高的菌株,其中以Y2.12产量最高.Y2.12产叶酸量与原始菌株相比,提高了65.8%.经传代培养分析,Y2.12诱变株的产量稳定.该结果表明,激光复合诱变是获得高产叶酸的有效途径.     

Method of Purifying β-(1-3)-Glucanase from Candida utilis

A method has been developed to obtain a rapid purification of the β-(1-3)-glucanase present in culture fluids of the yeast Candida utilis.     

Identification of the chemical groups involved in the binding of periodate-oxidized NADP+ to 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase.

Periodate-oxidized NADP+ binds specifically and reversibly to the NADP+ binding site of 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.44) from Candida utilis. The inhibition can be stabilized by reduction with sodium borohydride. It has been shown that an aldehydic group of the inhibitor forms a Schiff base with a lysine residue of the enzyme.