Reduction of chalcogen oxyanions and generation of nanoprecipitates by the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus.

The facultative photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus is characterized in its interaction with the toxic oxyanions tellurite (Te(IV)) and selenite (Se(IV)) by a highly variable level of resistance that is dependent on the growth mode making this bacterium an ideal organism for the study of the microbial interaction with chalcogens. As we have reported in the past, while the oxyanion tellurite is taken up by R. capsulatus cells via acetate permease and it is reduced to Te(0) in the cytoplasm in the form of splinter-like black intracellular deposits no clear mechanism was described for Se(0) precipitation. Here, we present the first report on the biotransformation of tellurium and selenium oxyanions into extracellular Te(0) and Se(0)nanoprecipitates (NPs) by anaerobic photosynthetically growing cultures of R. capsulatus as a function of exogenously added redox-mediator lawsone, i.e. 2-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone. The NPs formation was dependent on the carbon source used for the bacterial growth and the rate of chalcogen reduction was constant at different lawsone concentrations, in line with a catalytic role for the redox mediator. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis demonstrated the Te(0) and Se(0) nature of the nanoparticles.

Analysis of the role of PrrA, PpsR, and FnrL in intracytoplasmic membrane differentiation of Rhodobacter sphaeroides 2.4.1 using transmission electron microscopy.

Oxygen dictates the catabolic "lifestyle" of Rhodobacter sphaeroides. When it is present, the bacteria are fully equipped for aerobic respiration. When it is absent, the cells outfit themselves to make use of energy-gathering options that do not require oxygen. Thus, while respiring on alternate electron acceptors in the absence of oxygen even in the dark, the cells are fully enabled for phototrophy. PrrA, PpsR, and FnrL are global regulatory proteins mediating oxygen control of gene expression in this organism. For each of these, regulon members include a subset of a cluster of genes known as the photosynthesis genes, which encode the structural proteins and enzymes catalyzing biosynthesis of the pigments of the light-harvesting and reaction center complexes. The complexes are housed in a specialized structure called the intracytoplasmic membrane (ICM). Although details are emerging as to the differentiation process leading to fully formed ICM, little is known of necessary regulatory events beyond changes in photosynthesis gene transcription. This study used transmission electron microscopy toward gaining additional insights into potential roles of PrrA, PpsR, and FnrL in the formation of ICM. The major findings were (1) the absence of either PrrA or FnrL negatively affects ICM formation, (2) the lack of ICM in the absence of PrrA is partially, but not fully reversed by removing PpsR from the cell, (3) unlike R. sphaeroides, ICM formation in Rhodobacter capsulatus does not require FnrL. New avenues these findings provide toward identifying additional genes involved in ICM formation are discussed.

Deep-UV resonance Raman analysis of the Rhodobacter capsulatus cytochrome bc1complex reveals a potential marker for the transmembrane peptide backbone.

Classical strategies for structure analysis of proteins interacting with a lipid phase typically correlate ensemble secondary structure content measurements with changes in the spectroscopic responses of localized aromatic residues or reporter molecules to map regional solvent environments. Deep-UV resonance Raman (DUVRR) spectroscopy probes the vibrational modes of the peptide backbone itself, is very sensitive to the ensemble secondary structures of a protein, and has been shown to be sensitive to the extent of solvent interaction with the peptide backbone [ Wang , Y. , Purrello , R. , Georgiou , S. , and Spiro , T. G. ( 1991 ) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 113 , 6368 - 6377 ]. Here we show that a large detergent solubilized membrane protein, the Rhodobacter capsulatus cytochrome bc(1) complex, has a distinct DUVRR spectrum versus that of an aqueous soluble protein with similar overall secondary structure content. Cross-section calculations of the amide vibrational modes indicate that the peptide backbone carbonyl stretching modes differ dramatically between these two proteins. Deuterium exchange experiments probing solvent accessibility confirm that the contribution of the backbone vibrational mode differences are derived from the lipid solubilized or transmembrane α-helical portion of the protein complex. These findings indicate that DUVRR is sensitive to both the hydration status of a protein's peptide backbone, regardless of primary sequence, and its secondary structure content. Therefore, DUVRR may be capable of simultaneously measuring protein dynamics and relative water/lipid solvation of the protein.

Heterogeneity of photosynthetic membranes from Rhodobacter capsulatus: size dispersion and ATP synthase distribution.

The density distribution of photosynthetic membrane vesicles (chromatophores) from Rhodobacter capsulatus has been studied by isopicnic centrifugation. The average vesicle diameters, examined by electron microscopy, varied between 61 and 72 nm in different density fractions (70 nm in unfractionated chromatophores). The ATP synthase catalytic activities showed maxima displaced toward the higher density fractions relative to bacteriochlorophyll, resulting in higher specific activities in those fractions (about threefold). The amount of ATP synthase, measured by quantitative Western blotting, paralleled the catalytic activities. The average number of ATP synthases per chromatophore, evaluated on the basis of the Western blotting data and of vesicle density analysis, ranged between 8 and 13 (10 in unfractionated chromatophores). Poisson distribution analysis indicated that the probability of chromatophores devoid of ATP synthase was negligible. The effects of ATP synthase inhibition by efrapeptin on the time course of the transmembrane electric potential (evaluated as carotenoid electrochromic response) and on ATP synthesis were studied comparatively. The ATP produced after a flash and the total charge associated with the proton flow coupled to ATP synthesis were more resistant to efrapeptin than the initial value of the phosphorylating currents, indicating that several ATP synthases are fed by protons from the same vesicle.

Biosorption and bioreduction of trivalent aurum by photosynthetic bacteria Rhodobacter capsulatus.

Biosorption has been shown to be an eco-friendly approach to remove heavy metal ions. In this study, the photosynthetic bacteria Rhodobacter capsulatus was screened and found to have strong ability to adsorb Au(III). The maximum specific uptake of living cells was over 92.43 mg HAuCl(4)/g dry weight of cell in the logarithmic phase. Biosorpion ability would be enhanced by an acidic environment. As the main cations, during biosorption the quantity of Mg(2+) exchanged was more than Na(+). Biosorbed Au(III) could be reduced by carotenoid and enzymes embedded and/or excreted by R. capsulatus, which might be the mechanism of photosynthtic bacteria metal tolerance.

In vitro assembly of a prohead-like structure of the Rhodobacter capsulatus gene transfer agent.

The gene transfer agent (GTA) is a phage-like particle capable of exchanging double-stranded DNA fragments between cells of the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus. Here we show that the major capsid protein of GTA, expressed in E. coli, can be assembled into prohead-like structures in the presence of calcium ions in vitro. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of uranyl acetate staining material and thin sections of glutaraldehyde-fixed material demonstrates that these associates have spherical structures with diameters in the range of 27-35 nm. The analysis of scanning TEM images revealed particles of mass approximately 4.3 MDa, representing 101+/-11 copies of the monomeric subunit. The establishment of this simple and rapid method to form prohead-like particles permits the GTA system to be used for genome manipulation within the photosynthetic bacterium, for specific targeted drug delivery, and for the construction of biologically based distributed autonomous sensors for environmental monitoring.

Recessiveness and dominance in barley mutants deficient in Mg-chelatase subunit D, an AAA protein involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis.

Mg-chelatase catalyzes the insertion of Mg2+ into protoporphyrin IX at the first committed step of the chlorophyll biosynthetic pathway. It consists of three subunits: I, D, and H. The I subunit belongs to the AAA protein superfamily (ATPases associated with various cellular activities) that is known to form hexameric ring structures in an ATP-dependant fashion. Dominant mutations in the I subunit revealed that it functions in a cooperative manner. We demonstrated that the D subunit forms ATP-independent oligomeric structures and should also be classified as an AAA protein. Furthermore, we addressed the question of cooperativity of the D subunit with barley (Hordeum vulgare) mutant analyses. The recessive behavior in vivo was explained by the absence of mutant proteins in the barley cell. Analogous mutations in Rhodobacter capsulatus and the resulting D proteins were studied in vitro. Mixtures of wild-type and mutant R. capsulatus D subunits showed a lower activity compared with wild-type subunits alone. Thus, the mutant D subunits displayed dominant behavior in vitro, revealing cooperativity between the D subunits in the oligomeric state. We propose a model where the D oligomer forms a platform for the stepwise assembly of the I subunits. The cooperative behavior suggests that the D oligomer takes an active part in the conformational dynamics between the subunits of the enzyme.

Photoresponsive flagellum-independent motility of the purple phototrophic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus.

We report the discovery of photoresponsive, flagellum-independent motility of the alpha-proteobacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus, a nonsulfur purple phototrophic bacterium. This motility takes place in the 1.5% agar-glass interface of petri plates but not in soft agar, and cells move toward a light source. The appearances of motility assay plates inoculated with wild-type or flagellum-deficient mutants indicate differential contributions from flagellar and flagellum-independent mechanisms. Electron microscopy confirmed the absence of flagella in flagellar mutants and revealed the presence of pilus-like structures at one pole of wild-type and mutant cells. We suggest that R. capsulatus utilizes a flagellum-independent, photoresponsive mechanism that resembles twitching motility to move in a line away from the point of inoculation toward a light source.

Reduction of potassium tellurite to elemental tellurium and its effect on the plasma membrane redox components of the facultative phototroph Rhodobacter capsulatus.

Anaerobically light-grown cells of Rhodobacter capsulatus B100 are highly resistant to the toxic oxyanion tellurite (TeO(3)(2-); minimal inhibitory concentration, 250 microg/ml). This study examines, for the first time, some structural and biochemical features of cells and plasma membrane fragments of this facultative phototroph grown in the presence of 50 microg of K(2)TeO(3) per ml. Through the use of transmission microscopy and X-ray microanalysis we show that several "needlelike" shaped granules of elemental tellurium are accumulated into the cytosol near the intracytoplasmic membrane system. Flash-spectroscopy, oxygen consumption measurements, and difference spectra analysis indicated that membrane vesicles (chromatophores) isolated from tellurite-grown cells are able to catalyze both photosynthetic and respiratory electron transport activities, although they are characterized by a low c-type cytochrome content (mostly soluble cytochrome c(2)). This feature is paralleled by a low cytochrome c oxidase activity and with an NADH-dependent respiration which is catalyzed by a pathway leading to a quinol oxidase (Qox) inhibited by high (millimolar) concentrations of cyanide (CN(-)). Conversely, membranes from R. capsulatus B100 cells grown in the absence of tellurite are characterized by a branched respiratory chain in which the cytochrome c oxidase pathway (blocked by CN(-) in the micromolar range) accounts for 35-40% of the total NADH-dependent oxygen consumption, while the remaining activity is catalyzed by the quinol oxidase pathway. These data have been interpreted to show that tellurite resistance of R. capsulatus B100 is characterized by the presence of a modified plasma-membrane-associated electron transport system.

Transmembrane orientation and topology of the NADH:quinone oxidoreductase putative quinone binding subunit NuoH.

NADH:quinone oxidoreductase, or Complex I, is a multi-subunit membrane-bound enzyme in the respiratory chain of many pro- and eukaryotes. The enzyme catalyzes the oxidation of NADH and donates electrons to the quinone pool, coupled to proton translocation across the membrane, but the mechanism of energy transduction is not understood. In bacteria the enzyme consists of 14 subunits, seven membrane spanning and seven protruding from the membrane. The hydrophobic NuoH (NQO8, ND1, NAD1, NdhA) subunit is seemingly involved in quinone binding. A homologous, structurally and most likely functionally similar subunit is also found in F(420)H2 oxidoreductases and in complex membrane-bound hydrogenases. We have made theoretical analyses of NuoH and NuoH-like polypeptides and experimentally analyzed the transmembrane topology of the NuoH subunit from Rhodobacter capsulatus by constructing and analyzing alkaline phosphatase fusion proteins. This demonstrated that the NuoH polypeptide has eight transmembrane segments, and four highly conserved hydrophilic sequence motifs facing the inside, bacterial cytoplasm. The N-terminal and C-terminal ends are located on the outside of the membrane. A topology model of NuoH based on these results is presented, and implications from the model are discussed.

Polyhydroxyalkanoate production in Rhodobacter capsulatus: genes, mutants, expression, and physiology.

Like many other prokaryotes, the photosynthetic bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus produces high levels of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) when a suitable carbon source is available. The three genes that are traditionally considered to be necessary in the PHA biosynthetic pathway, phaA (beta-ketothiolase), phaB (acetoacetylcoenzyme A reductase), and phaC (PHA synthase), were cloned from Rhodobacter capsulatus. In R. capsulatus, the phaAB genes are not linked to the phaC gene. Translational beta-galactosidase fusions to phaA and phaC were constructed and recombined into the chromosome. Both phaC and phaA were constitutively expressed regardless of whether PHA production was induced, suggesting that control is posttranslational at the enzymatic level. Consistent with this conclusion, it was shown that the R. capsulatus transcriptional nitrogen-sensing circuits were not involved in PHA synthesis. The doubling times of R. capsulatus transcriptional nitrogen-sensing circuits were not involved in PHA synthesis. The doubling times of R. capsulatus grown on numerous carbon sources were determined, indicating that this bacterium grows on C2 to C12 fatty acids. Grown on acetone, caproate, or heptanoate, wild-type R. capsulatus produced high levels of PHAs. Although a phaC deletion strain was unable to synthesize PHAs on any carbon source, phaA and phaAB deletion strains were able to produce PHAs, indicating that alternative routes for the synthesis of substrates for the synthase are present. The nutritional versatility and bioenergetic versatility of R. capsulatus, coupled with its ability to produce large amounts of PHAs and its genetic tractability, make it an attractive model for the study of PHA production.

Mutation of the Ser2 codon of the light-harvesting B870 alpha polypeptide of Rhodobacter capsulatus partially suppresses the pufX phenotype.

The exact function of the pufX gene product of Rhodobacter capsulatus is uncertain, but deletion of the pufX gene renders cells incapable of phototrophic growth on a minimal medium, and photosynthetic electron transfer is impaired in vitro. However, suppressor mutants that are able to grow phototropically are readily isolated. Two such suppressor mutants were characterized as to their phototrophic growth properties, their fluorescence at different incident light intensities, the integrity of their chromatophores, and their abilities to generate a transmembrane potential. We found that the photosynthetic apparatus in the suppressor mutants was less stable than that of the pseudo-wild-type and primary mutant strains and that the suppressor mutants used light energy less efficiently than the pseudo-wild-type strain. Therefore, the suppressor strains are more precisely designated partial suppressor mutants. The locations and sequences of the suppressor mutations were determined, and both were found to change the second codon of the pufA gene. It is hypothesized that the serine residue specified by this codon is important in interactions between the B870 alpha protein and other membrane-bound polypeptides and that suppressor mutations at this position partially compensate for loss of the PufX protein. A model is proposed for the function of the PufX protein.

Pleiotropic effects of pufX gene deletion on the structure and function of the photosynthetic apparatus of Rhodobacter capsulatus.

By deletion of the pufX gene of Rhodobacter capsulatus from a plasmid carrying the puf operon and complementation of a chromosomal puf operon deletion, we created pufX mutants and used them to characterize possible functions of the pufX gene product. The pufX mutants were incapable of photosynthetic growth in a minimal medium, or in a rich medium at low light intensities, although second-site mutations suppressed this phenotype. Measurements made in vitro with intact and solubilized chromatophore preparations indicated that the individual complexes of the photosynthetic unit seemed to function normally, but electron transfer from the reaction center to the cytochrome b/c1 complex was impaired. The structures of the photosynthetic apparatus of pseudo-wild type and mutant strains were evaluated using absorption spectroscopy and electron microscopy. The pufX mutants had intracytoplasmic membrane invaginations about 50% larger in diameter than those of the pseudo-wild type and higher levels of B870 light-harvesting complex. It is concluded that the PufX protein plays an important role in the structure of the functional photosynthetic unit, and its absence results in loss of efficient electron transfer from the QB site of the reaction center to the Qz site of the cytochrome b/c1 complex.

Spheroplast-derived membrane vesicles from Rhodobacter capsulatus cells catalyzing nucleotide transport.

Rodobacter capsulatus cells, which were cultured anaerobically in high light intensity, had fewer foldings in the cytoplasmic membrane than those which were grown in lower light intensities. Spheroplast-derived membrane fractions obtained from cells cultured under high light intensity contained a high yield of large right-side-out membrane vesicles. The right-side-out vesicles catalyzed reversible light-induced proton efflux as did intact cells. Nucleotide transport activity was also catalyzed by these membrane vesicles. This activity was indirectly monitored by measurement of photophosphorylation or hydrolysis of externally added diphospho- and triphosphonucleosides. These enzymatic activities occur inside the cytoplasmic membrane of spheroplasts and membrane vesicles and therefore require the transport of the externally added reagents. The indirect measurements of transport were complemented by the demonstration of direct uptake of radiolabeled nucleotides into the membrane vesicles. These data support the suggestion that a nucleotide transporter located in the cytoplasmic membrane of R. capsulatus bacteria mediates these activities.