Cloning and characterisation of four catA genes located on the chromosome and large plasmid of Pseudomonas putida ND6

Background: Although the functional redundancy of catechol 1,2-dioxygenase (C12O) genes has been reported in several microorganisms, limited enzymes were characterised, let alone the advantage of the coexistence of the multiple copies of C12O genes. Results: In this study, four novel C12O genes, designated catA, catAI, catAII and catAIII, in the naphthalene-degrading strain Pseudomonas putida ND6, were cloned and characterised. Phylogenetic analysis of their deduced amino acid sequences revealed that the four C12O isozymes each formed independent subtrees, together with homologues from other organisms. All four enzymes exhibited maximum activity at pH 7.4 and higher activity in alkaline than in acidic conditions. Furthermore, CatA, CatAI and CatAIII were maximally active at a temperature of 45°C, whereas a higher optimum temperature was observed for CatAII at a temperature of 50°C. CatAI exhibited superior temperature stability compared with the other three C12O isozymes, and kinetic analysis indicated similar enzyme activities for CatA, CatAI and CatAII, whereas that of CatAIII was lower. Significantly, among metal ions tested, only Cu2+ substantially inhibited the activity of these C12O isozymes, thus indicating that they have potential to facilitate bioremediation in environments polluted with aromatics in the presence of metals. Moreover, gene expression analysis at the mRNA level and determination of enzyme activity clearly indicated that the redundancy of the catA genes has increased the levels of C12O. Conclusion: The results clearly imply that the redundancy of catA genes increases the available amount of C12O in P. putida ND6, which would be beneficial for survival in challenging environments.

Multipoint Mutation and Over-expression in Pichia pastoris of Phytase Gene / 中国生物工程杂志

According to bias in codon choice of Pichia pastoris, The phytase phyA gene from Aspergillus niger N25 was mutated without changing its amino acid sequence. The expression plasmid pPIC9k-phyAm was constructed and transformed into GS115 strain. Positive clones,of which the chromosomes were integrated with phyA gene,were identified by the phenotype and PCR. SDS-PAGE analysis suggust that the size of enzyme protein of the expression product was about 70.15kDa.Southern blotting analysis to the yeast transformants showed that phyA gene was intergrated into the chromosome genome. The phytase activity of PP-NP m-4-4 with codons optimized reached 136 000U/ml in malt wort culture medium after being induced with 36h, which was the 2.8 times of the original strain PP-NPm-8.