Inhibition of the Bacterial Cell Wall Synthesis in vitro by Enduracidin,a New Polypeptide Antibiotic

Adenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (APS) kinase from a thermophilic bacterium, Bacillus st ear other mophilus, was purified to apparent homogeneity. The apparent molecular weight was 50 kDa, consisting of two 26-kDa subunits. The enzyme was very thermostable and lacked cysteine and methionine residues. Enzyme activity was more stimulated with Mn^{2 +} , Zn^{2 +}, or Co^{2 +} than with Mg^{2 +} and the K_m for ATP and APS were 220 µM and 42 µM, respectively.     

Detection of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Erwinia amylovora</Emphasis> by novel chromosomal polymerase chain reaction primers

A new sensitive and specific method for the detection of Erwinia amylovora was developed. The method is based on the detection of a chromosomal DNA sequence specific for this bacterial species and enables detection of E. amylovora pathogenic strains, including recent isolates that lack plasmid pEA29 and thus cannot be detected by the previously popular PCR methods based on the detection of this plasmid. A species-specific random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker was identified, cloned, and sequenced, and sequence characterized amplified region (SCAR) primers for specific PCR were developed. The E. amylovora specific sequence, 1269 bp long, was amplified in polymerase chain reaction and detected with electrophoresis in agarose gel stained with ethidium bromide. Amplification with other bacterial species did not produce any PCR product detectable by electrophoresis. Matching of the E. amylovora specific sequence to chromosomal DNA was confirmed by computer analysis of the E. amylovora genome. A consistent sensitivity limit of the method was 3 CFU/reaction, and in some cases it was possible to detect 0.6 CFU/reaction. Due to its high sensitivity and specificity, our method of E. amylovora detection is currently the most reliable, taking into account that the reliability of PCR methods based on plasmid pEA29 has been compromised by the isolation of pathogenic E. amylovora strains that lack this plasmid.     

Chlorobium Tepidum: Insights into the Structure,Physiology, and Metabolism of a Green Sulfur Bacterium Derived from the Complete Genome Sequence

Green sulfur bacteria are obligate, anaerobic photolithoautotrophs that synthesize unique bacteriochlorophylls (BChls) and a unique light-harvesting antenna structure, the chlorosome. One organism, Chlorobium tepidum, has emerged as a model for this group of bacteria primarily due to its relative ease of cultivation and natural transformability. This review focuses on insights into the physiology and biochemistry of the green sulfur bacteria that have been derived from the recently completed analysis of the 2.15-Mb genome of Chl. tepidum. About 40 mutants of Chl. tepidum have been generated within the last 3 years, most of which have been made based on analyses of the genome. This has allowed a nearly complete elucidation of the biosynthetic pathways for the carotenoids and BChls in Chl. tepidum, which include several novel enzymes specific for BChl c biosynthesis. Facilitating these analyses, both BChl c and carotenoid biosynthesis can be completely eliminated in Chl. tepidum. Based particularly on analyses of mutants lacking chlorosome proteins and BChl c, progress has also been made in understanding the structure and biogenesis of chlorosomes. In silico analyses of the presence and absence of genes encoding components involved in electron transfer reactions and carbon assimilation have additionally revealed some of the potential physiological capabilities, limitations, and peculiarities of Chl. tepidum. Surprisingly, some structural components and biosynthetic pathways associated with photosynthesis and energy metabolism in Chl. tepidum are more similar to those in cyanobacteria and plants than to those in other groups of photosynthetic bacteria.     

特色香料作物油樟叶内生Bacillus velezensis YZ12的鉴定及拮抗病原菌活性

植物内生菌关系到植物的健康生长,且与植物产生的相关功效产物紧密关联。以我国四川宜宾油樟叶片分离筛选得到的内生细菌作为研究对象,利用传统微生物培养方法,基于形态学观察,16S rRNA和gyrA基因系统发育分析的多相分类学方法,将其鉴定为贝莱斯芽胞杆菌(Bacillus velezensis);并通过对从油樟叶片中分离的油樟真菌YZP-01以及常见植物病原真菌绳状篮状菌(Talaromyces funiculosus)、拟轮枝镰孢菌(Fusarium verticillioides)、草酸青霉(Penicillium oxalicum)四种致病菌株进行了拮抗试验,发现了该菌株具有广谱且良好的拮抗病原菌活性。使用特定引物扩增功能基因(bioA,bmyB,ituC,fenD,srfAA,srfAB,yngG和yndJ),并成功从菌株YZ12中扩增出这些基因。     

一个新的产氢细菌的鉴定及产氢特性的研究

利用Hungate滚管技术从福建省漳州垃圾处理厂厌氧消化器的颗粒污泥中分离到一株产氢的细菌L15。菌株L15为严格厌氧的革兰氏阳性杆菌,菌体大小为0.5μm～0.7μm×2.5μm～5.0μm,以侧生鞭毛运动。在孢肉培养基上产生端生的卵圆形芽孢。温度生长范围15℃～45℃（最适温度30℃～37℃）;pH 范围5.0～8.4（最适pH 6.3～6.8）。该菌株不水解明胶和七叶灵,不还原硫酸盐,牛奶变酸但不凝固,发酵多糖和少数的单糖、双糖和寡糖;发酵葡萄糖的最终产物为乙酸、丁酸、H2和CO2。G+C含量为298mol%。16S rDNA序列分析表明,该菌株属于梭菌的簇Ⅰ,与Clostridium paraputrificum较为接近（相似性为97.1%）。通过生理特征和16S rDNA序列的同源性分析,表明菌株L15应是梭菌属簇Ⅰ中的一个新种,命名为Clostridium defluvii。菌株L15保藏在中国普通微生物菌种保藏中心,保藏号为AS1.3489。菌株L15的最佳产氢温度为34℃、pH为7.0。当葡萄糖浓度为0.4%时,氢气产率可达到1.41mol H2/mol 葡萄糖。该菌可利用下列底物产酸产氢,括号内为产氢率(底物浓度1%)：果糖(1.00mol H2/mol)、麦芽糖(2.17mol H2/mol)、蔗糖(1.69mol H2/mol)、菊糖(4.70mol H2/mol)、糖原(5.49mmol H2/g)、淀粉(7.34mmol H2/g)。     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Halobacillus locisalis</Emphasis> sp. nov., a halophilic bacterium isolated from a marine solar saltern of the Yellow Sea in Korea

A Gram-positive, motile, endospore-forming and rod-shaped halophilic bacterial strain MSS-155 (KCTC 3788 and KCCM 41687) was isolated from a marine solar saltern of the Yellow Sea in Korea and was subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic study. This organism grew at temperature of 10.0–42.0°C with an optimum of 35°C. Strain MSS-155 grew optimally in the presence of 10% NaCl and did not grow in the absence of NaCl. The cell wall peptidoglycan type of strain MSS-155 was A4 based on l-Orn-d-Asp. Strain MSS-155 was also characterized chemotaxonomically by having menaquinone-7 (MK-7) as the predominant isoprenoid quinone and anteiso-C_15:0 as the major fatty acid. The DNA G+C content was 44.0 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA sequences showed that strain MSS-155 falls within the radiation of the cluster comprising Halobacillus species. Levels of 16S rDNA sequence similarity between strain MSS-155 and the type strains of four Halobacillus species were in the range 97.6–98.8%. Strain MSS-155 exhibited levels of DNA-DNA relatedness of 6.2–11.2% to the type strains of Halobacillus species described previously. On the basis of phenotypic properties, phylogeny, and genomic data, strain MSS-155 should be placed in the genus Halobacillus as a member of a novel species, for which we propose the name Halobacillus locisalis sp. nov.Communicated by W.D. Grant     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Chlorobaculum tepidum</Emphasis> regulates chlorosome structure and function in response to temperature and electron donor availability

Green sulfur bacteria (GSB) rely on the chlorosome, a light-harvesting apparatus comprised almost entirely of self-organizing arrays of bacteriochlorophyll (BChl) molecules, to harvest light energy and pass it to the reaction center. In Chlorobaculum tepidum, over 97% of the total BChl is made up of a mixture of four BChl c homologs in the chlorosome that differ in the number and identity of alkyl side chains attached to the chlorin ring. C. tepidum has been reported to vary the distribution of BChl c homologs with growth light intensity, with the highest degree of BChl c alkylation observed under low-light conditions. Here, we provide evidence that this functional response at the level of the chlorosome can be induced not only by light intensity, but also by temperature and a mutation that prevents phototrophic thiosulfate oxidation. Furthermore, we show that in conjunction with these functional adjustments, the fraction of cellular volume occupied by chlorosomes was altered in response to environmental conditions that perturb the balance between energy absorbed by the light-harvesting apparatus and energy utilized by downstream metabolic reactions.     

Isolation of the murI gene from Brevibacterium lactofermentum ATCC 13869 encoding d-glutamate racemase

The murI gene encoding D-glutamate racemase plays an important role in the biosynthesis of D-glutamic acid, an essential component of cell wall peptidoglycan of almost all eubacteria. A DNA fragment that could rescue the auxotrophy of D-glutamic acid in the Escherichia coli murI mutant strain WM335 was isolated from Brevibacterium lactofermentum ATCC 13869 belonging to the coryneform bacteria. DNA sequencing reveals that it encodes a protein of 284 amino acid residues, which shows a high level of homology with D-glutamate racemases from several other bacteria.     

Schistosoma mansoni: Phospholipid nature of the “agglutinin”

The haemagglutinating activity of the membrane-associated Schistosoma mansoni “agglutinin” is mainly due to acidic phospholipids, particularly phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylserine. The role of these phospholipids in possible lipid-protein interactions in the host-parasite relationship is discussed.     

Expression of CspA and GST by an Antarctic psychrophilic bacterium Colwellia sp. NJ341 at near-freezing temperature

Summary A psychrotrophic bacterium Colwellia sp. NJ341 from Antarctic sea ice could grow at −5 and 22 °C, and the extent of cellular protein content and growth were greater at low temperatures (0–10 °C) than at higher temperatures. SDS-PAGE analysis demonstrated the presence of a 7 kDa cold-shock protein. The further result of two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) showed that two proteins a and c were newly synthesized at near-freezing temperatures. With matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis, proteins a and c were identified as glutathione S-transferase (GST) and cold-shock protein A (CspA), respectively, which were involved in cold-adaptation at near-freezing temperature in an Antarctic psychrophilic bacterium Colwellia sp. NJ341.