ABSTRACT
A gene encoding poly(tetramethylene succinate), PBS, depolymerase, pbsA, has been cloned from Acidovorax delafieldii strain BS-3 chromosomal DNA. The clone expressed in Escherichia coli showed the ability to degrade both PBS and poly[(tetramethylene succinate)-co-adipate] that are kinds of biodegradable plastics. PBS depolymerase was considered to be a kind of lipase, since it also degrades olive oil. It had no apparent hydrophobic-amino-acid-rich region which exists in other known plastic-degrading enzymes. From the result of amino acid homology search, PbsA was found to have some similarities with lipases of Streptomyces sp. and Mollaxella sp. In the motif surrounding the active site Ser residue (Gly-X1-Ser-X2-Gly), PbsA was revealed to have a Trp residue in the X1 position instead of His which is most likely found in other bacterial lipases.
