Optimization and characterization of an extracellular polysaccharide produced byGlomerella cingulata

Summary A new strain of the fungusGlomerella cingulata has been isolated, which produces an extracellular highly viscous polysaccharide in a simple mineral medium. Optimum conditions for its production and properties are described. The polysaccharide produced was a glucan type. The viscosity remained stable during storage over a period of seven days. Large changes in temperature and pH have no effect on viscosity.     

Cadmium adsorption by bacterial capsular polysaccharide coatings

Conclusions Excretion of a polysaccharide capsular coating byP.putida provided enhanced cadmium uptake when compared to the noncapsularP.cruciviae. As this advantage is most significant for cadmium concentrations below 2.5 mg/l, levels which are commonly found in waste discharges, it does suggest a potential role for extracellular polysaccharide producers as biosorbents. These encouraging results have led to further work to determine the desorption characteristics, by pH adjustment, ofP.putida along with long term viability after successive cycles of adsorption and desorption.     

Optimization and characterization of an extracellular polysaccharide produced byMoniliella pollinis

Summary A yeast strainMoniliella pollinis produces an extracellular highly viscous gum-like polysaccharide of glucan type in a simple mineral medium. Optimum conditions for its production and properties are described. The viscosity decreased after lyophilization.     

Ocimum basilicum seeds as a pellicular support for immobilizing enzymes

Summary The swollen seeds ofOcimum basilicum consist of a hard core with a pectious porous outer layer to which urease was bound after epoxy activation, through ethylenediamine-glutaraldehyde arm. These seeds can serve as an inexpensive ready to use natural pellicular polysaccharide support for immobilizing enzymes.     

Influence of impeller speed upon the pullulan fermentation

Summary The effect of impeller speed on pullulan production and the morphology ofAureobasidium pullulans in batch culture was studied. Pullulan production and the percentage of yeast cells in the culture rose with impeller speed, as did molecular weight of the polysaccharide.     

Characterization of the polysaccharides from aLactobacillus brevis and from sugary kefir grains

Summary The gel-forming polysaccharide of the sugary kefir grains (11.5% of dry matter) or one taken from aLactobacillus brevis culture were identified as dextrans with some 1)-Gp-(3 links in the main chain, with a ratio (branched/total units) of 0.19 and 0.14 respectively, instead of 0.07 for the non-gelling polysaccharide.     

Enhancement of pullulan elaboration by fluoroacetate

Summary The addition of fluoroacetate, the precursor of the aconitase inhibitor, fluorocitrate, to resting cell suspensions of Aureobasidium pullulans was found to increase the quantity of extracellular polysaccharide elaborated and to raise the pullulan content to 93%.     

Exocellular polysaccharide production byStreptococcus thermophilus

Summary Streptococcus thermophilus strains grown on skim milk produce exocellular polysaccharide, essentially composed of galactose and glucose. Small amounts of xylose, arabinose, rhamnose and mannose are identified also. A relationship exists between viscosity of the culture medium and the amount of polymer produced. However, the thickness producing trait in the strains studied is highly unstable.     

New polysaccharide produced byE. coli CF3

Summary E. coli CF3 isolated after the infection ofE. coli K12 C600 with the bacteriophage B278 produces quantities of extracellular exopoly-saccharide characterized by gas chromatography as composed of glucose, galactose and fucose in the molar ratio 111.2 and being partly acetylated. Solutions of the polysaccharide were pseudoplastic and its viscosity is constant at extreme pH (3.5–10) and compatible with temperature (90°C).     

Tyrosine-kinases in bacteria: from a matter of controversy to the status of key regulatory enzymes

When considering protein phosphorylation in bacteria, phosphorylation of aspartic acid and histidine residues mediated by the two-component systems is the first to spring to mind. And yet other phosphorylation systems have been described in bacteria in the past 20 years including eukaryotic-like serine/threonine kinases and more recently tyrosine-kinases. Among the latter, a peculiar type is widespread among bacteria, but not in higher organisms. These enzymes possess unique structural features defining thus a new family of enzymes termed Bacterial tyrosine kinases (BY-kinases). BY-kinases have been shown to be mainly involved in polysaccharide production, but their ability to phosphorylate endogenous substrates indicates that they participate in the regulation of other functions of the bacterial cell. Recent advances in mass spectrometry based phosphoproteomics provided lists of many new phosphotyrosine-proteins, indicating that BY-kinases may be involved in regulating a large array of other cellular functions. One may expect that in a near future, tyrosine phosphorylation will turn out to be one of the key regulatory processes in the bacterial cell and will yield new insights into the understanding of its physiology.     

Preliminary studies on the production ani composition of the extracellular polysaccharide synthesized byPseudomonas sp. EPS-5028

Summary Exopolysaccharide production byPseudomonas sp. strain EPS-5028 increased under conditions of high C/N ratios at the pH range 6.7–8 and 25°C. The polymer was formed from a variety of carbon substrates and contains D-glucose, D-galactose and uronic acid in the approximate molar ratio of 325. The polysaccharide produced is of high viscosity (1,600 cP; 1% polymer in D. I. water).     

Instability of lactose and citrate metabolism of Leuconostoc strains

Summary The instability of Lac⁺ and Cit⁺ phenotypes was investigated inLeuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.cremoris ATCC 19245 and in four strains ofLeuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.dextranicum. The two phenotypes were linked respectively to a 14 Mdal and a 34 Mdal plasmid in Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.cremoris ATCC 19245. InLeuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.dextranicum the character Lac⁺ was linked to a 28 Mdal plasmid, while the Cit⁺ phenotype was stable.     

Improved L-lysine production by the amplification of theCorynebacterium glutamicum dapA gene encoding dihydrodipicolinate synthetase inE. coli

Summary ThedapA gene (L-2,3-dihydrodipicolinate synthetase: DHDP synthetase) ofCorynebacterium glutamicum JS231, a lysine overproducer, cloned and subcloned inE. coli/C. glutamicum shuttle vector pECCG117 was used to transformE. coli threonine producer and threonine and lysine coproducer. The plasmid pDHDP5812 carryingdapA gene ofC. glutamicum led to increase in lysine production in theseE. coli strains. Threonine and lysine co-producerE. coli TF1 with pDHDP5812 produced lysine with small amount of threonine. The DHDP synthetase activity ofE. coli TF1 carrying pDHDP5812 showed high resistance toward inhibition by lysine.     

Thermostable tryptophan synthase ofBacillus stearothermophilus expressed inEscherichia coli

Summary The tryptophan synthase genes,trpA andtrpB, from a moderate thermophile,Bacillus stearothermophilus IFO13737, were expressed efficiently inEscherichia coli. The recombinant tryptophan synthase amounted to 22% of the soluble cellular protein, and was purified to homogeneity by three steps. The enzyme is more thermostable thanE.coli tryptophan synthase, especially the subunit. The enzyme is also more resistant to sodium dodecylsulfate and methanol thanE.coli enzyme.     

Non-polluting wood and pulp delignification: Biomimetic ligninase system

Summary We report the delignification ofPinus radiata D Don,Eucalyptus globulus andEucalyptus grandis woods (formic acid treated and untreated) by 2 h treatment with a hemin/hydrogen peroxide system. The untreated chips and sawdust ofE. globulus were 30% and 50% delignified respectively. No significant effects were found forP. radiata sawdust;P. radiata treated chips (organosolv pulp) did not show any further delignification upon hemin/peroxide action, 25% delignification was achieved in untreated chips. In the case ofE. grandis untreated wood the delignification was better in sawdust than in chips, but in smaller percentage than in the otherEucalyptus species. This relation is maintained in substrates, treated with formic acid or untreated. The delignification of chips in both species ofEucalyptus was improved when they were pre-treated with formic acid. The loss of lignin in theE. grandis andE. globulus sawdust (pre-treated with formic acid) was 79% and 75% respectively.     

A high molecular weight plasmid ofZymomonas mobilis harbours genes for HgCl2 resistance

Summary Plasmids fromZ. mobilis could be stably maintained inE. coli HB101 in which the expression of various drug resistance markers could be monitored. A large molecular weight plasmid (5.2 kbp) ofZ. mobilis was found to harbour the genes for mercuric chloride degradation and to confer uponE. coli, resistance to a higher mercuric chloride concentration as compared toZ. mobilis. The introduction of this plamsid madeE. coli sensitive to concentrations of cadmium acetate which were originally non-inhibitory to it.     

Construction of aClostridium acetobutylicum-Escherichia coli shuttle vector

Summary A 4.1-kb cryptic plasmid, designated pCA134, has been isolated fromClostridium species. In order to develop a vector suitable for transforming saccharolytic clostridia three hybrid plasmids were constructed by inserting pCA134 into pHV32 withEcoRI, orBglII andBamHI. The newly constructed plasmids were propagated inEscherichia coli and were used to transformBacillus subtilis andClostridium acetobutylicum. One of them, pCAB32 (10.1 kb), which contains chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene and an origin of replication derived from pCA134 was introduced intoB.subtilis andC.acetobutylicum as well asE.coli.     

Influence of the inoculum size ofLactobacillus plantarum on the competition withEnterobacter cloacae

Summary The size of the inoculum ofLactobacillus plantarum or its natural density, appears to be of predominant importance in the exclusion ofEnterobacter cloacae in mixed fermentations, such as ensilage. In a liquid medium, simulating adverse silage conditions, an initial density ofL. plantarum at least twice that ofE. cloacae was found necessary in order to obtain a succesful silage.     

Partial characterization of anEscherichia coll strain harboring a xylanase encoding plasmid

Summary The plasmid pRH271, harboring a xylanase gene cioned fromBacilius subtilis, has been transferred into a mutant ofE. coli SK2284 which allowed the release of part of the xylanase in the culture supernatant. Kinetic parameters of this recombinantE. coll strain were determined in microscale batch culture with and without the selective pressure of antibiotics. No significant difference in µ_max was observed for the nontransformedE. coli strain when compared to the recombinant strain. However, K₅ values for glucose were two times higher in the case of the recombinant strain. Preliminary study of xylanase production in a large batch farmenter was also described.     

Characterization of a cytochrome oxidase-deficient yeast mutant which accumulates porphyrins

A cytochrome oxidase-deficient mutant (pop4) of Saccharomycescerevisiae which accumulates porphyrins has been characterized. The pop4 mutation is recessive and affects a single nuclear gene. The bulk of the accumulated porphyrins consists of uroporphyrin and its partial decar?ylation products, suggesting that the mutation causes a block at the level of uroporphyrinogen decar?ylase. However, pop4 is not allelic to hem6 or pop3, putative decar?ylase structural-gene mutants. These results suggest that there may be a uroporphyrinogen decar?ylase isoenzyme specifically involved in heme a production.