Production of soluble methane monooxygenase during growth of Methylosinus trichosporium on methanol

Soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) can degrade many chlorinated and aromatic pollutants. It is produced by certain methanotrophs such as Methylosinus trichosporium when grown on methane under copper limitation but, due to its low aqueous solubility, methane cannot support dense biomass growth. Since it is water soluble, methanol may be a more attractive growth substrate, but it is widely believed that sMMO is not produced on methanol. In this study, when the growth-limiting substrate was switched from methane to methanol, in the presence of the particulate MMO inhibitor, allylthiourea, growth of M. trichosporium OB3b continued unabated and sMMO activity was completely retained. When allylthiourea was then removed, sMMO activity was maintained for an additional 24 generations, albeit at a slightly lower level due to the presence of 0.70 microM of Cu(2+) in the feed medium. While a biomass density of only 2 g l(-1) could be obtained on methane, 7.4 g l(-1) was achieved by feeding methanol exponentially, and 29 g l(-1) was obtained using a modified feeding strategy employing on-line carbon dioxide production measurement. It was concluded that methanol can be employed to produce large amounts of M. trichosporium biomass containing sMMO.     

Molecular biology and regulation of methane monooxygenase

Methanotrophs are ubiquitous in the environment and play an important role in mitigating global warming due to methane. They are also potentially interesting for industrial applications such as production of bulk chemicals or bioremediation. The first step in the oxidation of methane is the conversion to methanol by methane monooxygenase, the key enzyme, which exists in two forms: the cytoplasmic, soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) and the membrane-bound, particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO). This paper reviews the biochemistry and molecular biology of both forms of MMO. In the past few years there have been many exciting new findings. sMMO components have been expressed in heterologous and homologous hosts. The pMMO has been purified and biochemically studied in some detail and the genes encoding the pMMO have been sequenced. Copper ions have been shown to play a key role in regulating the expression of both MMO enzyme complexes. We also present a model for copper regulation based on results from Northern analysis, primer-extensions and new sequence data, and raise a number of unanswered questions for future studies.     

Marker Exchange Mutagenesis of mxaF,Encoding the Large Subunit of the Mxa Methanol Dehydrogenase,in Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b

Methanotrophs have remarkable redundancy in multiple steps of the central pathway of methane oxidation to carbon dioxide. For example, it has been known for over 30 years that two forms of methane monooxygenase, responsible for oxidizing methane to methanol, exist in methanotrophs, i.e., soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) and particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO), and that expression of these two forms is controlled by the availability of copper. Specifically, sMMO expression occurs in the absence of copper, while pMMO expression increases with increasing copper concentrations. More recently, it was discovered that multiple forms of methanol dehydrogenase (MeDH), Mxa MeDH and Xox MeDH, also exist in methanotrophs and that the expression of these alternative forms is regulated by the availability of cerium. That is, expression of Xox MeDH increases in the presence of cerium, while Mxa MeDH expression decreases in the presence of cerium. As it had been earlier concluded that pMMO and Mxa MeDH form a supercomplex in which electrons from Mxa MeDH are back donated to pMMO to drive the initial oxidation of methane, we speculated that Mxa MeDH could be rendered inactive through marker-exchange mutagenesis but growth on methane could still be possible if cerium was added to increase the expression of Xox MeDH under sMMO-expressing conditions. Here we report that mxaF, encoding the large subunit of Mxa MeDH, could indeed be knocked out in Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, yet growth on methane was still possible, so long as cerium was added. Interestingly, growth of this mutant occurred in both the presence and the absence of copper, suggesting that Xox MeDH can replace Mxa MeDH regardless of the form of MMO expressed.     

Epoxypropane biosynthesis by whole cell suspension of methanol-growth Methylosinus trichosporium IMV 3011

Methanotrophs containing methane monooxygenase (MMO) can catalyze the epoxidation of propene to epoxypropane. Methane cannot support dense biomass growth due to its low aqueous solubility. Low growth rate is important limiting factor for the application of methanotrophs. Methanol can act as growth substrate, but direct addition of methanol is toxic to most methanotrophs. The MMO activity during growth on methanol is also uncertain. In this paper, methanol-adapted Methylosinus trichosporium IMV 3011 was successfully cultivated at high cell densities using methanol as sole carbon source. A biomass density of 1.68 g dry weight cell l^?1 was achieved and cells contained almost 80% of the MMO activity measured for cells grown with methane. It has been found that methanol can also act as the electron-donating substrate to regenerate the NADH and drive epoxypropane synthesis. The effect of methanol supply on the epoxidation capacity of Methylosinus trichosporium IMV3011 was studied in batch reactor. 0.016% methanol concentration was found to give the highest propene epoxidation capacity.     

Cultivation of Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b: III. production of particulate methane monooxygenase in continuous culture

Continous culture experiments with the obligatory methanotroph, Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, were conducted to study the whole-cell methane monooxygenase (MMO) and nitrogenase activities in a nitrate minimal salts medium under oxygen-limited conditions with methane as the carbone source. The important variables investigated were the feed medium concentrations of copper and nitrate, CO(2) addition, the agitation speed, and the dilution rate. M. trichosporium OB3b required quantitative amounts of copper (2.6 x 10(-4) g Cu/g dry cell Wt) for the exclusive production of particulate MMo during continous culture growth. When the feed medium nitrate concentration was varied in the range of 5-50 mM, the whole-cell specific pMMO activity exhibited a maximum at 40 mM. The elimination of external CO(2) gassing decreased pMMO activity by more than 30%. The steady-state cell density increased continuously over a 300-700 rpm range of agitation speed, whereas, the pMMO activity became maximal at 400 rpm. Also, the pMMO activity increased with the dilution rate up to 0.06 h(-1) and remained constant thereafter. Maximal continuous pMMO productivity was, thus, achieved in Higgin's medium containing 10 muM Cu, 80 muM Fe, and 40 mM nitrate with an agitation speed of 500 rpm and a dilution rate of 0.06 h(-1). Nitrogenase activity, on the other hand, increased over a feed medium copper concentration of 2-15 muM, falling sharply at 20 muM, and it exhibited a minimum at 20 mM when the feed medium nitrate concentration was varied. (c) 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Optimization of lab scale methanol production by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Methylosinus trichosporium</Emphasis> OB3b

Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b is a methanotrophic bacterium containing particulate methane monooxygenase (MMO), which catalyzes the hydroxylation of methane to methanol. The methanol is further oxidized to formaldehyde by methanol dehydrogenase (MDH). We developed a novel compulsory circulation diffusion system for cell cultivation. A methane/air mixture (1:1, v/v) was prepared in a tightly sealed gas reservoir and pumped into a nitrate mineral salt culture medium under optimal conditions (5 μM CuSO₄, pH 7.0, 30°C). Cells were harvested, washed, and resuspended (0.6 mg dry cells/mL) in a 500 mL flask in 100 mL of 10 mM phosphate buffer (pH 7.0) containing 100 mM NaCl and 1 mM EDTA as MDH inhibitors, and 20 mM sodium formate. A single 12 h batch reaction at 25°C yielded a final concentration of 13.2 mM methanol. The use of a repeated batch mode, in which the accumulated methanol was removed after each of three 8 h cycles over a 24 h period, showed a productivity of 2.17 μmol methanol/h/mg dry cell wt. Finally, a lab-scale reaction performed using a 3 L cylindrical reactor with a working volume of 1 L produced 13.7 mM methanol after 16 h. Our results identify a simple process for improving the productivity of biologically derived methanol and, therefore the utility of methane as an energy source.     

Hydroxylation of methane through component interactions in soluble methane monooxygenases

Methane hydroxylation through methane monooxygenases (MMOs) is a key aspect due to their control of the carbon cycle in the ecology system and recent applications of methane gas in the field of bioenergy and bioremediation. Methanotropic bacteria perform a specific microbial conversion from methane, one of the most stable carbon compounds, to methanol through elaborate mechanisms. MMOs express particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO) in most strains and soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) under copper-limited conditions. The mechanisms of MMO have been widely studied from sMMO belonging to the bacterial multicomponent monooxygenase (BMM) superfamily. This enzyme has diiron active sites where different types of hydrocarbons are oxidized through orchestrated hydroxylase, regulatory and reductase components for precise control of hydrocarbons, oxygen, protons, and electrons. Recent advances in biophysical studies, including structural and enzymatic achievements for sMMO, have explained component interactions, substrate pathways, and intermediates of sMMO. In this account, oxidation of methane in sMMO is discussed with recent progress that is critical for understanding the microbial applications of C-H activation in one-carbon substrates.     

Batch cultivation of Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b: II. Production of particulate methane monooxygenase

The obligatory methanotroph, Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, was studied to optimize the batch culture conditions for the formation of particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO) in a nitrate minimal salts medium. The important medium components investigated were copper, carbon dioxide, and nitrate. The whole-cell specific pMMO activity decreased sharply with increasing copper concentrations in the range of 10-40 muM and remained constant upon further increases of the copper concentration to 120 muM. The cell growth rate (mu), on the other hand, decreased over the entire range (10-120 muM) of copper concentrations tested. When pMMO was produced in a bioreactor with an optimal initial copper concentration of 10 muM, M. trichosporium OB3b exhibited a much faster overall growth rate and a higher whole-cell propene epoxidation activity compared to our earlier study, in which soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) was produced with copper-deficient medium. The addition of external carbon dioxide to the bioreactor culture eliminated an initial lag period in the cell growth. When the standard culture medium nitrate concentration (10 mM) was depleted, the pMMO activity, but not the growth rate, decreased rapidly. The whole-cell specific pMMO activity could be maintained by subsequent supplementation of nitrate. A 4-fold higher initial culture medium nitrate concentration of 40 mM, however, resulted in slower cell growth and lower pMMO activity. These observations demonstrate that, in addition to affecting the exclusive production of pMMO, copper also has an important previously unrecognized role in enhancing the growth rate of M. trichosporium OB3b. They also indicate that for the optimal batch production of pMMO with the minimal medium under study, nitrate should be supplied intermittently during the course of cultivation until other culture medium components become growth-limiting.     

颗粒状甲烷单加氧酶异源表达方法

由于甲烷氧化菌只能利用甲烷作为唯一的碳源和能源,存在生长缓慢、细胞密度低、培养困难等问题,限制了其工业应用。解决该问题的有效途径之一是在容易实现高密度培养的异源宿主菌中表达甲烷单加氧酶(Methane monooxygenase,MMO)。本实验室前期首次在一种红球菌中成功地表达了来自于甲烷氧化菌(Methylosinus trichosporium)OB3b的pMMO(颗粒状甲烷单加氧酶),但比酶活较原始菌低很多。本实验在该结果的基础上,通过选用不同的启动子和宿主细胞探索表达pMMO的可能性,结果得到了具有氧化甲烷活性的重组菌,但是产物检测到乙醇的生成,且该重组菌的pMMO活性不稳定,暗示pMMO的催化特性可能发生了变化。另外,很多重组菌检测到pMMO蛋白的表达,但没有催化活性,说明pMMO在宿主细胞中的正确组装是其功能表达的关键。     

Effect of mineral nutrients on the kinetics of methane utilization by methanotrophs

The effect of different mineral nutrients on the kinetics of methane biodegradation by a mixed culture of methanotrophic bacteria was studied. The substrate factors examined were ammonia, iron, copper, manganese, phosphate, and sulphide. The presence of iron in the growth medium had a strong effect on the yield coefficient. Yield coefficients up to 0.49 mg protein per mg methane were observed when iron was added at concentrations of 0.10–5.0 mg/l. Iron addition also increased the maximum methane utilization rate. The same effect was observed after addition of ammonium to a medium where nitrate was the only nitrogen source. The observed Monod constant for methane utilization increased with increasing concentration of ammonia. This shows that ammonia is a weak competitive inhibitor as observed by other researchers. Relatively high levels of both ammonia (70 mg/l) and copper (300 µg/l) inhibited the methane degradation, probably due to the toxic effect of copper-amine complexes.     

The Biotransformation of Propylene to Propylene Oxide by Methylococcus Capsulatus (Bath): 2. A Study of the Biocatalyst Stability

Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath) possesses methane monooxygenase (MMO) which catalyses the epoxidation of propylene to propylene oxide. MMO activity could be maintained in whole cells by storage in unagitated vessels for several days. However if these cells were agitated and aerated in the absence of a carbon and energy source then 80% of the propylene-oxidizing activity Was lost within 24 h. It was shown that this loss of activity was due to the inability of the cells to provide energy to drive the oxidation process rather than the loss of MMO activity per se. If propylene oxide was added to these aerated cells then the rate of inactivation was increased and 50% of the activity was lost over a 10 min period. The addition of an exogenous energy source caused a doubling in the rate of inactivation. These marked increases in the rates of inactivation in the presence of propylene oxide were found to be caused by the loss of the methane monooxygenase activity per se rather than a further loss of the energy-producing systems. Cells actively producing propylene oxide from propylene, using methanol as an energy source, also lost their propylene oxide-producing capacity rapidly due to loss of the methane monooxygenase activity. The rate of inactivation under these circumstances was related to the rate of propylene oxide production from propylene rather than the level of this product in the culture supernatant.     

Use of allylthiourea to produce soluble methane monooxygenase in the presence of copper

Methanotrophs expressing soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) may find use in a variety of industrial applications. However, sMMO expression is strongly inhibited by copper, and the growth rate may be limited by the aqueous solubility of methane. In this study, addition of allylthiourea decreased intracellular copper in Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, allowing sMMO production at Cu/biomass ratios normally not permitting sMMO synthesis. The presence of about 1.5 μmoles intracellular Cu g⁻¹ dry biomass resulted in sMMO activity of about 250 μmoles 1-napthol formed per hour gram dry biomass whether this intracellular Cu concentration was achieved by Cu limitation or by allylthiourea addition. No loss of sMMO activity occurred when the growth substrate was switched from methane to methanol when allylthiourea had been added to growth medium containing copper. Addition of copper to medium that was almost copper-free increased the yield of dry biomass from methanol from 0.20 to 0.36 g g⁻¹, demonstrating that some copper was necessary for good growth. This study demonstrated a method by which sMMO can be produced by M. trichosporium OB3b while growing on methanol in copper-containing medium.     

Enrichment of anaerobic nitrate-dependent methanotrophic ‘ Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens’ archaea from an Italian paddy field soil

Paddy fields are a significant source of methane and contribute up to 20% of total methane emissions from wetland ecosystems. These inundated, anoxic soils featuring abundant nitrogen compounds and methane are an ideal niche for nitrate-dependent anaerobic methanotrophs. After 2 years of enrichment with a continuous supply of methane and nitrate as the sole electron donor and acceptor, a stable enrichment dominated by ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens’ archaea and ‘Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera’ NC10 phylum bacteria was achieved. In this community, the methanotrophic archaea supplied the NC10 phylum bacteria with the necessary nitrite through nitrate reduction coupled to methane oxidation. The results of qPCR quantification of 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene copies, analysis of metagenomic 16S rRNA reads, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) correlated well and showed that after 2 years, ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens’ had the highest abundance of (2.2 ± 0.4 × 108) 16S rRNA copies per milliliter and constituted approximately 22% of the total microbial community. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the 16S rRNA genes of the dominant microorganisms clustered with previously described ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens ANME2D’ (96% identity) and ‘Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera’ (99% identity) strains. The pooled metagenomic sequences resulted in a high-quality draft genome assembly of ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens Vercelli’ that contained all key functional genes for the reverse methanogenesis pathway and nitrate reduction. The diagnostic mcrA gene was 96% similar to ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens ANME2D’ (WP_048089615.1) at the protein level. The ‘Candidatus Methylomirabilis oxyfera’ draft genome contained the marker genes pmoCAB, mdh, and nirS and putative NO dismutase genes. Whole-reactor anaerobic activity measurements with methane and nitrate revealed an average methane oxidation rate of 0.012 mmol/h/L, with cell-specific methane oxidation rates up to 0.57 fmol/cell/day for ‘Candidatus Methanoperedens nitroreducens’. In summary, this study describes the first enrichment and draft genome of methanotrophic archaea from paddy field soil, where these organisms can contribute significantly to the mitigation of methane emissions.     

Physiology, biochemistry, and specific inhibitors of CH4, NH4+, and CO oxidation by methanotrophs and nitrifiers.

Ammonia oxidizers (family Nitrobacteraceae) and methanotrophs (family Methylococcaceae) oxidize CO and CH4 to CO2 and NH4+ to NO2-. However, the relative contributions of the two groups of organisms to the metabolism of CO, CH4, and NH4+ in various environments are not known. In the ammonia oxidizers, ammonia monooxygenase, the enzyme responsible for the conversion of NH4+ to NH2OH, also catalyzes the oxidation of CH4 to CH3OH. Ammonia monooxygenase also mediates the transformation of CH3OH to CO2 and cell carbon, but the pathway by which this is done is not known. At least one species of ammonia oxidizer, Nitrosococcus oceanus, exhibits a Km for CH4 oxidation similar to that of methanotrophs. However, the highest rate of CH4 oxidation recorded in an ammonia oxidizer is still five times lower than rates in methanotrophs, and ammonia oxidizers are apparently unable to grow on CH4. Methanotrophs oxidize NH4+ to NH2OH via methane monooxygenase and NH4+ to NH2OH via methane monooxygenase and NH2OH to NO2- via an NH2OH oxidase which may resemble the enzyme found in ammonia oxidizers. Maximum rates of NH4+ oxidation are considerably lower than in ammonia oxidizers, and the affinity for NH4+ is generally lower than in ammonia oxidizers. NH4+ does not apparently support growth in methanotrophs. Both ammonia monooxygenase and methane monooxygenase oxidize CO to CO2, but CO cannot support growth in either ammonia oxidizers or methanotrophs. These organisms have affinities for CO which are comparable to those for their growth substrates and often higher than those in carboxydobacteria. The methane monooxygenases of methanotrophs exist in two forms: a soluble form and a particulate form. The soluble form is well characterized and appears unrelated to the particulate. Ammonia monooxygenase and the particulate methane monooxygenase share a number of similarities. Both enzymes contain copper and are membrane bound. They oxidize a variety of inorganic and organic compounds, and their inhibitor profiles are similar. Inhibitors thought to be specific to ammonia oxidizers have been used in environmental studies of nitrification. However, almost all of the numerous compounds found to inhibit ammonia oxidizers also inhibit methanotrophs, and most of the inhibitors act upon the monooxygenases. Many probably exert their effect by chelating copper, which is essential to the proper functioning of some monooxygenases. The lack of inhibitors specific for one or the other of the two groups of bacteria hampers the determination of their relative roles in nature.     

Three-dimensional structure determination of a protein supercomplex that oxidizes methane to formaldehyde in Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath)

The oxidation of methane to methanol in methanotrophs is catalyzed by the enzyme methane monooxygenase (MMO). Two distinct forms of this enzyme exist, a soluble cytoplasmic MMO (sMMO) and a membrane-bound particulate form (pMMO). The active protein complex termed pMMO-C was purified recently from Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath). The complex consists of pMMO hydroxylase and an additional component pMMO-R, which was proposed to be the reductase for the pMMO complex. Further study of this complex has led here to the proposal that the pMMO-R is in fact methanol dehydrogenase, the subsequent enzyme in the methane oxidation pathway by methanotrophs. We describe here the biochemical and biophysical characterization of a stable purified complex of pMMO hydroxylase (pMMO-H) with methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) and report the first three-dimensional (3D) structure, determined by cryoelectron microscopy and single particle analysis to approximately 16 A resolution. The 3D structure reported here provides the first insights into the supramolecular organization of pMMO with MDH. These studies of pMMO-MDH complexes have provided further understanding of the structural basis for the particular functions of the enzymes in this system which might also be of relevance to the complete process of methane oxidation by methanotrophs under high copper concentration in the environment.     

Anaerobic energy metabolism of the sulfur-reducing bacterium “Spirillum” 5175 during dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonia

In a batch culture experiment the microaerophilic Campylobacter-like bacterium “Spirillum” 5175 derived its energy for growth from the reduction of nitrate to nitrite and nitrite to ammonia. Hereby, formate served as electron donor, acetate as carbon source, and l-cysteine as sulfur source. Nitrite was quantitatively accumulated in the medium during the reduction of nitrate; reduction of nitrite began only after nitrate was exhausted from the medium. The molar growth yield per mol formate consumed, Y_m, was 2.4g/mol for the reduction of nitrate to nitrite and 2.0 g/mol for the conversion of nitrite to ammonia. The gain of ATP per mol of oxidized formate was 20% higher for the reduction of nitrate to nitrite, compared to the reduction of nitrite to ammonia. With succinate as carbon source and nitrite as electron acceptor, Y_m was 3.2g/mol formate, i.e. 60% higher than with acetate as carbon source. No significant amount of nitrous oxide or dinitrogen was produced during growth with nitrate or nitrite both in the presence or absence of acetylene. No growth on nitrous oxide was found. The hexaheme c nitrite reductase of “Spirillum” 5175 was an inducible enzyme. It was present in cells cultivated with nitrate or nitrite as electron acceptor. It was absent in cells grown with fumarate, but appeared in high concentration in “Spirillum” 5175 grown on elemental sulfur. Furthermore, the dissimilatory enzymes nitrate reductase and hexaheme c nitrite reductase were localized in the periplasmic part of the cytoplasmic membrane.     

Cerium Regulates Expression of Alternative Methanol Dehydrogenases in Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b

Methanotrophs have multiple methane monooxygenases that are well known to be regulated by copper, i.e., a “copper switch.” At low copper/biomass ratios the soluble methane monooxygenase (sMMO) is expressed while expression and activity of the particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO) increases with increasing availability of copper. In many methanotrophs there are also multiple methanol dehydrogenases (MeDHs), one based on Mxa and another based on Xox. Mxa-MeDH is known to have calcium in its active site, while Xox-MeDHs have been shown to have rare earth elements in their active site. We show here that the expression levels of Mxa-MeDH and Xox-MeDH in Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b significantly decreased and increased, respectively, when grown in the presence of cerium but the absence of copper compared to the absence of both metals. Expression of sMMO and pMMO was not affected. In the presence of copper, the effect of cerium on gene expression was less significant, i.e., expression of Mxa-MeDH in the presence of copper and cerium was slightly lower than in the presence of copper alone, but Xox-MeDH was again found to increase significantly. As expected, the addition of copper caused sMMO and pMMO expression levels to significantly decrease and increase, respectively, but the simultaneous addition of cerium had no discernible effect on MMO expression. As a result, it appears Mxa-MeDH can be uncoupled from methane oxidation by sMMO in M. trichosporium OB3b but not from pMMO.     

Isolation of mutants of the obligate methanotroph Methylomonas albus defective in growth on methane

A strain of Methylomonas albus BG8WM, a type 1 obligate methanotroph, which had been maintained for 2 ycars by serial passage on solid medium containing methanol as a carbon source was found to mutate at a frequency of 10^-5-10^-6 to resistance to dichloromethane (DCM^R), the parental strain BG8 did not give rise to DCM^R colonies. DCM^R strains were no longer capable of growth on methane as a carbon cource and exhibited greatly reduced or undetectable methane mono-oxygenase activity. The mutants fell into three groups on the basis of SDS-PAGE analysis of the polypeptide profiles of the particulate fraction of cell extracts. One or more of four polypeptides of Mr 70,000, 50,000, 25,000 and 23,000 were implicated as being components of the methane mono-oxygenase. Spontaneous reversion to growth on methane and sensitivity to dichloromethane occurred at a frequency of about 10^-8. The loss of methane mono-oxygenase activity was not associated with loss of the resident 55 kb plasmid.Abbreviations DCM^R dichloromethane-resistant - SDS-PAGE sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis - NMS nitrate minimal salts medium     

Batch cultivation of Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b. I: Production of soluble methane monooxygenase

Methanotrophs have promising applications in bioremediation and in the production of fuel-related chemicals due to their nonspecific enzyme, methane monooxygenase (MMO). The optimal conditions for cell growth and production of the soluble from of MMO (sMMO) were determined from batch cultivations of an obligatory methanotrophs, Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b, in shake flasks and a 5-L bioreactor. It was confirmed that a copper deficiency is essential for the formation of the cytoplasmic sMNO. Optimum cell growth without added copper was observed at pH 6.0-7.0, temperature of 30-34 degrees C, and phosphate concentration of 10-40 mM. In the bioreactor experiments, external CO(2) addition eliminated the long lag period observed in the absence of added CuSO(4), i.e., prior to the exponential cell growth phase. When methane was continuously supplied, the profile of the cell growth showed two different phases depending on the availability of nitrate, an initial fast exponential growth phase (specific growth rate, mu = 0.08 h(-1)) and a later slow growth phase (mu = 0.008 h(-1)). The cell density at the transition from a fast to a slow growth rate was proportional to the initial medium nitrate concentration in the range 5-20 mM and cell yield was estimated to be 7.14 g dry cell wt/g N. Whole-cell sMNO activity remained essentially constant regardless of the growth rate unit cell growth stopped. With an initial medium iron concentration below 40 mM, an abrupt decrease in sMNO activity was observed. The lower sMNO activity could be restored by supplying additional iron to the bioreactor culture. Cell yield on iron was estimated to be 1.3 x 10(3) g dry cell wt/g Fe.