Biochemical characteristics and function of a threonine dehydrogenase encoded by ste11 in Ebosin biosynthesis of Streptomyces sp. 139

Aims:  Ebosin, a novel exopolysaccharide (EPS) produced by Streptomyces sp. 139 has antagonistic activity for interleukin-1 receptor (IL-1R) in vitro and remarkable anti-rheumatic arthritis activity in vivo. Ebosin biosynthesis gene ( ste ) cluster has been identified in our laboratory. This paper reports our effort to characterize the function of ste11 gene.
Methods and Results:  After the ste11 gene was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21, the recombinant Ste11 was purified and found capable of catalyzing NAD⁺ and l -threonine to NADH and 2-amino-3-ketobutyrate, hence identified as a threonine dehydrogenase (TDH). To investigate its function in the biosynthesis of Ebosin, the ste11 gene was knocked out with a double crossover via homologous recombination. The monosaccharide composition of EPS produced by the mutant strain (EPS-m) was altered from that of Ebosin. The analysis of IL-1R antagonist activity for EPSs showed that the bioactivity of EPS-m was lower than Ebosin.
Conclusions:  ste11 gene encoding a TDH may function as a modifier gene of Ebosin during its biosynthesis.
Significance and Impact of the Study:  TDH encoded by ste11 is functional in Ebosin biosynthesis. It is the first characterized TDH in Streptomyces .     

RNAi and microRNA: breakthrough technologies for the improvement of plant nutritional value and metabolic engineering

This article raises the complex issue of improving plant nutritional value through metabolic engineering and the potential of using RNAi and micro RNA technologies to overcome this complexity, focusing on a few key examples. It also highlights current knowledge of RNAi and microRNA functions and discusses recent progress in the development of new RNAi vectors and their applications. RNA interference (RNAi) and microRNA (miRNA) are recent breakthrough discoveries in the life sciences recognized by the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. The importance of these discoveries relates not only to elucidating the fundamental regulatory aspects of gene expression, but also to the tremendous potential of their applications in plants and animals. Here, we review recent applications of RNAi and microRNA for improving the nutritional value of plants, discuss applications of metabolomics technologies in genetic engineering, and provide an update on the related RNAi and microRNA technologies.     

Comparison of methods for deploying female gypsy moths to evaluate mating disruption treatments

1 Mating disruption is the primary tactic used to reduce rates of gypsy moth population spread in the United States Department of Agriculture’s Slow‐the‐Spread of the gypsy moth programme (STS). Because STS targets very low‐density gypsy moth populations within which it is extremely difficult to collect females or egg masses, mating success in native populations cannot be determined. Therefore, the evaluation of mating disruption treatments in field experiments such as those designed to test new formulations and application methods requires deploying and recovering laboratory‐reared female moths to determine mating success. 2 Five methods of deploying females were evaluated for cost, rates of female and egg mass recovery, and female mating success. The deployment methods tested were: modified delta trap, square barrier, single and double trunk bands, and tethered females. 3 Deployment of tethered females had the highest cost and mating success rate, but it did not yield the highest rates of female and egg mass recovery. Deployment of females in delta traps produced the lowest cost and mating success rate, but yielded the highest recovery rate. Neither of these deployment methods is recommended because of unacceptably high cost (tethered female) or low mating success (delta trap). 4 There were no significant differences in cost or mating success among the other three deployment methods. 5 The differences among the square barrier, single trunk band, and double trunk band methods in cost, female and egg mass recovery, and mating success are too small to recommend any one over the others.     

Antioxidative response of ascorbate-glutathione pathway enzymes and metabolites to desiccation of recalcitrant Acer saccharinum seeds

Ascorbate–glutathione systems were studied during desiccation of recalcitrant seeds of the silver maple (Acer saccharinum L.). The desiccated seeds gradually lost their germination capacity and this was strongly correlated with an increase in electrolyte leakage from seeds. Simultaneously the increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) (superoxide radical – O₂⁻ and hydrogen peroxide – H₂O₂) production was observed. The results indicate that remarkable changes in the concentrations and redox status of ascorbate and glutathione occur in embryo axes and cotyledons. After shedding, concentrations of ascorbic acid (ASA) and the reduced form of glutathione (GSH) are higher in embryo axes than in cotyledons and their redox status is high in both embryo parts. Cotyledons in freshly shed seeds are devoid of GSH. At the first stages of desiccation, up to a level of 43% of moisture content, ASA content in embryo axes and GSH content in cotyledons increased. Below this level of moisture content, the antioxidant contents as well as their redox status rapidly decreased. The enzymes of the ascorbate–glutathione pathway: ascorbate peroxidase (APX) (EC 1.11.1.11), monodehydroascorbate reductase (MR) (EC 1.6.5.4), dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR) (EC 1.8.5.1) and glutathione reductase (GR) (EC 1.6.4.2) increased their activity during desiccation, but mainly in embryonic axes. The changes are probably required for counteracting the production of ROS during desiccation. The relationship between ascorbate and glutathione metabolism and their relevance during desiccation of recalcitrant Acer saccharinum seeds is discussed.     

枯草芽孢杆菌嘌呤核苷磷酸化酶酶学性质研究及在利巴韦林酶法合成中的应用

利用PCR技术从枯草芽孢杆菌基因组DNA中扩增出其编码嘌呤核苷磷酸化酶的两种基因deoD和punA,构建工程菌并采用金属螯合层析纯化PNP₇₀₂和PNP₈₁₆,酶学性质研究表明:二者具有一致的最适反应温度(60℃)和最适反应pH值(7~8),PNP₈₁₆磷酸解肌苷的催化效率(k_cat/K_m)比PNP₇₀₂高出11.12倍。底物特异性试验表明:PNP₇₀₂为高分子量的六聚体,而PNP₈₁₆为低分子量的三聚体。分别以纯化酶和工程菌菌体为酶源,以肌苷或鸟苷为核糖基供体,TCA(1,2,4-三氮唑-3-甲酰胺)为底物,酶法合成核苷类抗病毒药物利巴韦林,PNP₈₁₆和工程菌XL-Blue(pPNP₈₁₆)较PNP₇₀₂和工程菌XL-Blue(pPNP₇₀₂)具有更高的催化速度和底物转化率,表明来源于微生物的低分子量的三聚体PNP在核苷类药物和中间体微生物酶法合成中具有更高的应用价值。     

低温脂肪酶的产酶条件优化及其酶学性质

利用单因素筛选和正交试验对Burkholderia sp. SYBC LIP-Y发酵产酶的液体培养基和发酵条件进行了优化,其优化配方为：可溶性淀粉10 g/L、牛肉膏15 g/L、NaNO3 0.252 g/L、橄榄油40ml/L、Triton x-100 10ml/L、初始pH 7.5、接种量10%(V/V),脂肪酶酶活达到85.23U/ml,是优化前的3.63倍。通过对双水相纯化得到的脂肪酶进行酶学性质研究,确定该酶反应的最适pH为10.0,最适温度为30℃,40℃下保温60min酶活性还有80%以上,该脂肪酶为低温脂肪酶,热稳定性好,具有一定的耐醇性,应用前景广阔。     

酿酒酵母ADH3基因的敲除

设计含有与酿酒酵母(Saccharomyces cerevisiae)编码乙醇脱氢酶Ⅲ的ADH3基因ORF两侧序列同源的长引物,以质粒pUG6为模板进行PCR构建带有Cre/loxP系统的敲除组件。转化酿酒酵母YS3(Saccharomyces cerevisiae),并将质粒pSH65转入阳性克隆子。半乳糖诱导表达Cre酶切除Kanr基因,在YPD培养基中连续传代培养丢失pSH65质粒,在原ORF处留下一个loxP位点,获得ADH3单倍体缺陷型菌株。利用同样的方法再次敲除双倍体的另一个等位基因。最终获得ADH3双倍体基因缺陷型突变株YS3-ADH3。     

Evidence of the presence of 2-O-beta-D-xylopyranosyl-alpha-l-arabinofuranose side chains in barley husk arabinoxylan

(Glucurono)arabinoxylans were extracted from barley husks and degraded with endo-beta-xylanase or subjected to periodate oxidation. The released oligosaccharide fragments were separated and isolated on Biogel-P2, and their structures were determined by NMR spectroscopy. The oligosaccharides identified consisted of beta-d-(1-->4)-linked xylopyranosyl residues, of which some were substituted at O-3 with alpha-l-arabinofuranosyl groups or at O-2 with 4-O-methylglucuronic acid. In addition to these substituents, a disaccharide side chain, 2-O-beta-d-xylopyranosyl-alpha-l-arabinofuranose, attached at position O-3 of the main chain, was proved to exist in arabinoxylan from barley husks. The compound was fully characterized with NMR, and all (1)H and (13)C NMR signals were assigned. The arabinose to xylose ratio was low (approximately 0.2) and no 2,3-disubstitution existed. No blocks of substituted xylose residues could be observed along the main chain.     

Linkage analysis of the myosin heavy chain gene in Dictyostelium discoideum using a mutation generated by homologous recombination

Summary A mutation (mhcA1 in strain HMM) created by insertional gene inactivation was used to map the Dictyostelium discoideum myosin heavy chain gene (mhcA) to linkage group IV. Three phenotypic traits associated with this mutation (slow colony growth, inability of the mutant to develop past aggregation, and the presence of five to ten integrated vector copies) cosegregated as expected for the consequences of a single insertional event. This linkage was confirmed using a restriction fragment length polymorphism. The mhcA1 mutation was recessive to wild type and was nonallelic with mutations at the following loci on linkage group IV: aggJ, aggL, couH, minA, phgB and tsgB. This work demonstrates the ability to apply standard techniques developed for D. discoideum parasexual genetic analyses to mutants generated by transformation, which is of particular relevance to analysis of genes for which no classical mutations or restriction fragment length polymorphisms are available.     

Cloning and characterization of theeapB andeapC genes ofCryphonectria parasitica encoding two new acid proteinases, and disruption ofeapC

Two new proteinases secreted byCryphonectria parasitica, namely EapB and EapC, have been purified. The corresponding structural genes were isolated by screening a cosmid library, and sequenced. Comparison of genomic and cDNA sequences revealed that theeapB andeapC genes contain three and two introns, respectively. The products of theeapB andeapC genes as deduced from the nucleotide sequences, are 268 and 269 residues long, respectively. N-terminal amino acid sequencing data indicates that EapC is synthesized as a zymogen, which yields a mature 206-amino acid enzyme after cleavage of the prepro sequence. Similarly, sequence alignment studies suggest that EapB is secreted as a 203-residue form which shares extensive similarities not only with EapC but also with two other acid fungal proteinases. However, they display distinct structural features; for example, no cysteine residue is found in EapC. TheeapC gene was mutated using a two-step gene replacement strategy which allowed the specific introduction of several stop codons at the beginning of theeapC coding sequence in an endothiapepsin-deficient (EapA⁺)C. parasitica strain. Although the resulting strain did not secrete EapC, it still exhibited residual extracellular proteolytic activity, which could be due to EapB.