Some Cheilostomata (Bryozoa) from the Java Sea, central Indonesian Archipelago, with a description of Pleurocodonellina jeparaensis n. sp. (Smittinidae).

The Java Sea region has a high diversity of marine organisms of interest to scientists and tourists alike. Neglected among this diversity are intertidal bryozoans, relatively few of which have been reported from this area. Here we describe six species, one of which is new to science. These were collected from three shallow-water localities-Karimunjawa Marine National Park, Awur Bay and Panjang Island-in the south-central part of the sea. The five known species belong to the families Candidae, Poricellariidae, Onychocellidae, Lepraliellidae, and Phidoloporidae. The new species, Pleurocodonellina jeparaensis n. sp. (Smittinidae), is found at Awur Bay, attached to a bivalve shell fragment. Biogeographically, the suite of species is predominantly tropical Indo-West Pacific in distribution, representing a small fraction of the additional hundreds of species that are anticipated for the Java Sea region.

Raw starch-degrading α-amylase from Bacillus aquimaris MKSC 6.2: isolation and expression of the gene, bioinformatics and biochemical characterization of the recombinant enzyme.

AIMS: The aims were to isolate a raw starch-degrading α-amylase gene baqA from Bacillus aquimaris MKSC 6.2, and to characterize the gene product through in silico study and its expression in Escherichia coli. METHODS AND RESULTS: A 1539 complete open reading frame of a starch-degrading α-amylase gene baqA from B. aquimaris MKSC 6·2 has been determined by employing PCR and inverse PCR techniques. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that B. aquimaris MKSC 6.2 α-amylase (BaqA) has no starch-binding domain, and together with a few putative α-amylases from bacilli may establish a novel GH13 subfamily most closely related to GH13_1. Two consecutive tryptophans (Trp201 and Trp202, BaqA numbering) were identified as a sequence fingerprint of this novel GH13 subfamily. Escherichia coli cells produced the recombinant BaqA protein as inclusion bodies. The refolded recombinant BaqA protein degraded raw cassava and corn starches, but exhibited no activity with soluble starch. CONCLUSIONS: A novel raw starch-degrading B. aquimaris MKSC 6.2 α-amylase BaqA is proposed to be a member of new GH13 subfamily. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study has contributed to the overall knowledge and understanding of amylolytic enzymes that are able to bind and digest raw starch directly.

Characterization of psychrotrophic bacteria in the surface and deep-sea waters from the northwestern Pacific Ocean based on 16S ribosomal DNA analysis.

Seventy-eight 4 degrees C-culturable bacteria were isolated using ZoBell 2216E medium from surface (0-200 m) and deep-sea (1000-9671 m) waters in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Growth studies indicated that all 4 degrees C-culturable bacteria were psychrotrophs. Six phylotypes were observed in the surface water samples and 8 phylotypes in the deep-sea waters. Phylogenetic characterization based on 16S ribosomal DNA sequence analysis of the representative phylotypes revealed that some bacterial genera, Pseudoalteromonas, Photobacterium, and Vibrio, were common to surface and deep-sea waters, and others, Pseudomonas and Halomonas, specifically occurred in surface water. Overall, the members of Vibrionaceae appear to be dominant in both habitats.