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Recognition of mucin components by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa remains one of the most important bacterial pathogens in lung diseases and especially in Cystic fibrosis. This unusual predilection is best explained by the existence of defects in host defense mechanisms as resulting from the genetic lesion and the presence of a specific colonization niche within the lungs. The niche has been identified as the mucus layer wherein mucin glycoproteins provide a substrate for binding and allows the persistence of this organism in this milieu by a number of possible mechanisms. While this organism is capable of binding to non CF mucins, it is perhaps a combination of factors e.g. increased binding and decreased mucociliary clearance that is responsible for this marked state of colonization in CF. The organism uses chiefly proteins of its flagellar apparatus to initiate this binding and recognizes a variety of oligosaccharides that have been identified in mucins. Among these are both, neutral oligosaccharides and several forms of acidic oligosaccharides derived from the Lewis antigens. There are more than likely a larger repertoire of receptors than those identified and certainly more adhesins present than those currently known. However, the information gathered to date provides an excellent example of the specificity of bacterial interactions with mucins that will certainly be expanded as we study more pulmonary pathogens.

Bacterial Adhesion↗

Spontaneous release of lipopolysaccharide by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO grown in glucose mineral salts medium released lipopolysaccharide which was chemically and immunologically similar to the cellular lipopolysaccharide. In addition, it possessed identical phage E79-inactivating properties. Through neutralization of phage activity and hemolysis inhibition assays, the organism was found to liberate lipopolysaccharide at a constant rate during log-phase growth equivalent to 1.3 to 2.2 ng/10(8) cells over a growth temperature range of 25 to 42 degrees C. At 19 degrees C, a lipopolysaccharide was released which was deficient in phage-inactivating activity but retained its immunological properties. Chemical analysis of lipopolysaccharide extracted from cells grown at 19 degrees C showed a deficiency in the O-side-chain component fucosamine. Gel exclusion chromatography of the polysaccharide fraction derived from lipopolysaccharide isolated from cells grown at 19 degrees C exhibited a decreased content of side-chain polysaccharide as well as a difference in the hexosamine:hexose ratio. The results of sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analysis confirmed these results as well as establishing that an essentially normal distribution of side-chain repeating unit lengths were to be found in the 19 degrees C preparation. These results suggest a decrease in the frequency of capping R-form lipopolysaccharide at 19 degrees C.

Adsorption↗

A facile reactor process for producing 7,10-dihydroxy-8(E)-octadecenoic acid from oleic acid conversion by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PR3 (NRRL B-18602) converts oleic acid to a novel compound, 7,10-dihydroxy-8(E)-octadecenoic acid (DOD). The bioconversion was scaled up in a 7-l bench-top, stirred-batch reactor to produce DOD for testing of potential industrial uses. Aeration was supplied continuously from the top through two ports on the headplate and periodically through a bottom sparger, in conjunction with the use of marine impellers for agitation. This unique aeration arrangement maintained the dissolved O2 concentration in the 40-60% range during the period of maximal bioconversion and it also avoided excessive medium foaming during the reaction. Furthermore, the level of dissolved O2 in the first 24 h of reaction played an important role in the initial rate of DOD production. DOD production reached a plateau after 72 h with a yield up to 100 g (or 50% recovery) from a total of 9 l medium from two reactors run simultaneously. The final culture broth was processed using newly adapted procedures in the pilot plant that included crystallization of DOD from ethyl acetate solution at -15 degrees C. The newly developed bioprocess will serve as a platform for the scale-up production of other value-added products derived from vegetable oils and their component fatty acids.

Bioreactors↗

Nitrate transport and its regulation by O2 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an obligate respirer which can utilize nitrate as a terminal electron acceptor under anaerobic conditions (denitrification). Immediate, transient regulation of nitrate respiration is mediated by oxygen through the inhibition of nitrate uptake. In order to gain an understanding of the bioenergetics of nitrate transport and its regulation by oxygen, the effects of various metabolic inhibitors on the uptake process and on oxygen regulation were investigated. Nitrate uptake was stimulated by the protonophores carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone and 2,4-dinitrophenol, indicating that nitrate uptake is not strictly energized by, but may be affected by the proton motive force. Oxygen regulation of nitrate uptake might in part be through redox-sensitive thiol groups since N-ethylmaleimide at high concentrations decreased the rate of nitrate transport. Cells grown with tungstate (deficient in nitrate reductase activity) and azide-treated cells transported nitrate at significantly lower rates than untreated cells, indicating that physiological rates of nitrate transport are dependent on nitrate reduction. Furthermore, tungstate grown cells transported nitrate only in the presence of nitrite, lending support to the nitrate/nitrite antiport model for transport. Oxygen regulation of nitrate transport was relieved (10% that of typical anaerobic rates) by the cytochrome oxygen reductase inhibitors carbon monoxide and cyanide.

2,4-Dinitrophenol↗

High temperature induced antibiotic sensitivity changes in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which was resistant to a wide variety of antibiotics, became sensitive to several of these antibiotics when grown and tested at 46 degrees C. Cell wall antibiotics such as penicillin G and ampicillin were only effective when added to cells growing at 46 degrees C prior to a temperature shift to 37 degrees C. Antibiotics which penetrate the cytoplasmic membrane to express their inhibiting action present a pattern different from those which are active against the outer cell wall. In order that these compounds be effective, the permeability of the cytoplasmic membrane must be further altered with agents such as EDTA which allow the penetration of actinomycin D. Inhibitors of protein synthesis, such as streptomycin and chloramphenicol, have increased access to their sites of action in cells grown at 46 degrees C. Cells grown at 46 degrees C have 40% less lipopolysaccharide (LPS) than cells grown at 37 degrees C and the LPS aggregates were of large molecular size in cells grown at 46 degrees C. Growth at 46 degrees C affects the permeability properties of the outer cell wall more than the permeability properties of the cytoplasmic membrane and this was due, in part, to the selective release of LPS of LPS-protein complexes at elevated growth temperatures.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗

Evaluation on the use of beta-lactamase and aminoglycoside modifying enzyme gene sequences as markers for the early detection of antibiotic resistance profile of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is one of the major causes of infections including the hospital acquired (Nosocomial) infections. Detection of them and their antibiotic resistance profile by conventional method takes about three days. Recently, DNA based diagnostic methods are being used for the identification of the pathogens. Hence we have tested a rapid and sensitive method using DNA sequences as markers for detecting the presence of three genes coding for the enzymes that inactivate the two most commonly used Anti-pseudomonadal drugs such as beta-lactam antibiotics (Penicillin, and its derivatives) and Aminoglycosides such as Gentamicin, Tobramycin, Amikacin, Streptomycin. The internal region of these genes were used for designing and synthesizing primers and these primers were used in Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) to screen for the presence of these genes in the clinical isolates and to label them non-radioactively with Biotin. They in turn were used to detect the presence of the antibiotic resistance genes in the clinical isolates by hybridization. The specificity (ratio of positive results obtained in both methods and the sensitivity (the minimum amount of sample DNA and the labeled probe required for the tests) were evaluated.

Amikacin↗

Evidence for two distinct mechanisms of resistance to polymyxin B in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa H181 and H185 are resistant to initial exposure to polymyxin B and continue to grow in its presence. Growth of the strains in the presence of 50 U of polymyxin B per ml was characterized by a doubling time of 120 min, whereas the doubling time in the absence of polymyxin was 60 min. Growth for two generations in the presence of polymyxin caused a 23 to 31% increase in lipopolysaccharide content. In addition, a marked increase in susceptibility to the detergents sodium deoxycholate, Triton X-100, and sodium dodecyl sulfate was observed. The resistant mutants had a small but significant reduction in their levels of dodecanoic acid as compared with the parent strain; however, this was the only consistent alteration observed in levels of fatty acids or readily extractable lipids. Polymyxin was fluorescently labeled by coupling to 1-dimethylaminonaphthalene-5-sulfonyl chloride (dansyl chloride). Growth of strains H181 and H185 in the presence of dansylated polymyxin resulted in a stable association between the fluorescent antibiotic and the outer membrane. We postulate that these alterations are part of an adaptive response by the strains to the presence of polymyxin in the growth medium and reflect a resistance mechanism distinct from the mechanism affording polymyxin B resistance when these strains are initially exposed to the antibiotic.

Bacterial Proteins↗

OXA-17, a further extended-spectrum variant of OXA-10 beta-lactamase, isolated from Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates 871 and 873 were isolated at Hacettepe University Hospital in Ankara and were highly resistant to ceftazidime (MIC, 128 microg/ml). Each produced three beta-lactamases, with pIs of 5.3, 6.1, and 7.9. The beta-lactamase with a pI of 5.3 was previously shown to be PER-1 enzyme. The antibiograms of the isolates were not entirely explained by production of PER-1 enzyme, insofar as ceftazidime resistance was incompletely reversed by clavulanate. The enzymes with pIs of 6.1 and 7.9 were therefore investigated. The enzyme with a pI of 6.1 proved to be a novel mutant of OXA-10, which we designated OXA-17, and had asparagine changed to serine at position 73 of the protein. When cloned into Escherichia coli XL1-blue, OXA-17 enzyme conferred greater resistance to cefotaxime, latamoxef, and cefepime than did OXA-10, but it had only a marginal (two- to fourfold) effect on the MIC of ceftazidime. This behavior contrasted with that of previous OXA-10 mutants, specifically OXA-11, -14, and -16, which predominately compromise ceftazidime. Extracted OXA-17 enzyme had relatively greater activity than OXA-10 against oxacillin, cloxacillin, and cefotaxime but, in terms of kcat/Km, it had lower catalytic efficiency against most beta-lactams. The enzyme with a pI of 7.9 was shown by gene sequencing to be OXA-2.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Subunit swapping in the Mex-extrusion pumps in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa encodes three sets of antibiotic extrusion proteins designated as MexA,B.OprM, MexC,D-OprJ and MexE,F-OprN regulated by the nalB, nfxB and nfxC genes, respectively. MexB,D,F, OprM, J,N and MexA,C,E function as the inner membrane pumps, the outer membrane channels and the membrane fusion proteins, respectively. To investigate the possibility of subunit interchangeability, we constructed the following combinations of chimeric pumps: MexA,D-OprM/delta MexB, MexC,B-OprM/delta MexA, and MexA,B-OprJ/delta OprM. The strains producing MexA,D-OprM/delta MexB and MexC,B-OprM/delta MexA failed to restore the antibiotic resistance shown in the strains producing the natural combinations of the subunit proteins. These results suggested that the inner membrane components cannot be interchanged. In contrast, the stains producing MexA,B-OprJ/delta OprM exhibited higher resistance to several antibiotics than the mutant lacking OprM and lower resistance than the strain overexpressing OprM. This result suggests that OprJ may complement the OprM function partially. A spectrum of antibiotics, of which the minimum inhibitory concentrations were restored partially by the complementation, was the same as the spectrum to which the nalB type mutant shows resistance. We surmised from these results that the MexA/MexB unit sustains the substrate specificity of the MexA,B-OprM machinery.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Genetic mapping of bra genes affecting branched-chain amino acid transport in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO mutants defective in the transport systems for branched-chain amino acids were isolated and characterized. Two mutations in strains selected for trifluoroleucine resistance, braA300 and braB307, were mapped in the met-9020-dcu-9108 and the nar-9011-puuC10 region, respectively. The mutation loci in strains selected for azaleucine resistance, braC310 and bra-311 through bra-314, were all located near the fla genes, with an order of region I fla-bra-region II fla. Strains with braA300 showed a marked reduction in the high-affinity branched-chain amino acid transport system (LIV-I) and a considerable decrease in the lower-affinity system (LIV-II). Strains with braB307 were found to be defective in the LIV-II system. Strains selected for azaleucine resistance were all defective only in the LIV-I system and fell into three phenotypically distinct classes. Strains with braC310 produced a binding protein for leucine, isoleucine, valine, alanine, and threonine (LIVAT-BP) altered in binding ability, indicating that the braC gene is the structural one for the LIVAT-BP. Strains with bra-311 or bra-312 showed a complete loss of production of the LIVAT-BP. Strains with bra-313 or bra-314 produced normal levels of functional LIVAT-BP, suggesting that these mutations are located in a gene(s) other than braC.

Amino Acids, Branched-Chain↗

Effect of nutrient limitation on adhesion characteristics of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes a variety of diseases in humans including lung and ocular infections. Infections of the cornea are usually associated with wearing contact lenses and can result in loss of vision. This study aimed to determine the effect of carbon or nitrogen limitation on the adhesion to contact lenses of a strain of Ps. aeruginosa isolated from contact lens-related corneal inflammation. Cells were grown in a continuous culture apparatus in varying levels of glucose or ammonia to effect nutrient limitation. Adhesion to contact lenses was measured as total counts and viable counts. The cell surface hydrophobicity and charge were measured using adhesion to surface-modified Sepharose. Changes in lipopolysaccharide were determined using 1D SDS-PAGE and changes in cell-surface proteins were measured using 2D gel electrophoresis. The more the cultures were nitrogen limited, the greater the increase in adhesion to unworn hydrogel contact lenses 0.3 x 10(3) - 2.2 x 10(3) cells/mm2 on Etafilon A lenses. Cells that were carbon limited showed a greater increase in adhesion to contact lenses when the lenses had been coated in artificial tears. It appeared that lipopolysaccharide may have been involved in the constitutive adhesion to unworn lenses that occurred during C-limitation, whereas changes in the outer membrane proteins contributed to the increased adhesion under nitrogen limitation, or the change in adhesion that occurred to carbon-limited cells using contact lenses coated in artificial tears. Nine cell-surface proteins appeared during nitrogen limitation with kDa/pI of 75/4.8, 4.9, 5.0; 62/5.6; 89/6.5; 38/6.4; 28/1.5; 18/6.4; 12/4.5. Any or all of these may have been involved in the increased adhesion and further experiments are underway to examine this possibility.

Bacterial Adhesion↗

The gnyRDBHAL cluster is involved in acyclic isoprenoid degradation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 mutants affected in the ability to degrade acyclic isoprenoids were isolated with transposon mutagenesis. The gny cluster (for geranoyl), which encodes the enzymes involved in the lower pathway of acyclic isoprenoid degradation, was identified. The gny cluster is constituted by five probable structural genes, gnyDBHAL, and a possible regulatory gene, gnyR. Mutations in the gnyD, gnyB, gnyA, or gnyL gene caused inability to assimilate acyclic isoprenoids of the citronellol family of compounds. Transcriptional analysis showed that expression of the gnyB gene was induced by citronellol and repressed by glucose, whereas expression of the gnyR gene had the opposite behavior. Western blot analysis of citronellol-grown cultures showed induction of biotinylated proteins of 70 and 73 kDa, which probably correspond to 3-methylcrotonoyl-coenzyme A (CoA) carboxylase and geranoyl-CoA carboxylase (GCCase) alpha subunits, respectively. The 73-kDa biotinylated protein, identified as the alpha-GCCase subunit, is encoded by gnyA. Intermediary metabolites of the isoprenoid pathway, citronellic and geranic acids, were shown to accumulate in gnyB and gnyA mutants. Our data suggest that the protein products encoded in the gny cluster are the beta and alpha subunits of geranoyl-CoA carboxylase (GnyB and GnyA), the citronelloyl-CoA dehydrogenase (GnyD), the gamma-carboxygeranoyl-CoA hydratase (GnyH), and the 3-hydroxy-gamma-carboxygeranoyl-CoA lyase (GnyL). We conclude that the gnyRDBHAL cluster is involved in isoprenoid catabolism.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Heterologous expression, purification, and characterization of an l-ornithine N(5)-hydroxylase involved in pyoverdine siderophore biosynthesis in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that produces the siderophore pyoverdine, which enables it to acquire the essential nutrient iron from its host. Formation of the iron-chelating hydroxamate functional group in pyoverdine requires the enzyme PvdA, a flavin-dependent monooxygenase that catalyzes the N(5) hydroxylation of l-ornithine. pvdA from P. aeruginosa was successfully overexpressed in Escherichia coli, and the enzyme was purified for the first time. The enzyme possessed its maximum activity at pH 8.0. In the absence of l-ornithine, PvdA has an NADPH oxidase activity of 0.24 +/- 0.02 micromol min(-1) mg(-1). The substrate l-ornithine stimulated this activity by a factor of 5, and the reaction was tightly coupled to the formation of hydroxylamine. The enzyme is specific for NADPH and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD(+)) as cofactors, as it cannot utilize NADH and flavin mononucleotide. By fluorescence titration, the dissociation constants for NADPH and FAD(+) were determined to be 105.6 +/- 6.0 microM and 9.9 +/- 0.3 microM, respectively. Steady-state kinetic analysis showed that the l-ornithine-dependent NADPH oxidation obeyed Michaelis-Menten kinetics with apparent K(m) and V(max) values of 0.58 mM and 1.34 micromol min(-1) mg(-1). l-Lysine was a nonsubstrate effector that stimulated NADPH oxidation, but uncoupling occurred and hydrogen peroxide instead of hydroxylated l-lysine was produced. l-2,4-Diaminobutyrate, l-homoserine, and 5-aminopentanoic acid were not substrates or effectors, but they were competitive inhibitors of the l-ornithine-dependent NADPH oxidation reaction, with K(ic)s of 3 to 8 mM. The results indicate that the chemical nature of effectors is important for simulation of the NADPH oxidation rate in PvdA.

Amino Acids, Neutral↗

OXA-11, an extended-spectrum variant of OXA-10 (PSE-2) beta-lactamase from Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa ABD, which was isolated in October 1991 from blood cultures of a burn patient in Turkey, was resistant to cephalosporins, particularly ceftazidime (MIC, 512 micrograms/ml), penicillins, aztreonam, and meropenem, but not to imipenem. Cephalosporin and penicillin resistance transferred to P. aeruginosa PU21 and was associated with a beta-lactamase with a pI of 6.4 encoded by a 100-MDa plasmid designated pMLH52. Like extended-spectrum TEM and SHV beta-lactamases, this enzyme hydrolyzed penicillins and newer cephalosporins but did not hydrolyze cefoxitin or carbapenems. However, it differed from TEM and SHV derivatives in being a potent oxacillinase, and its encoding gene did not hybridize with probes to TEM and SHV genes. To characterize the enzyme, libraries of total DNA were cloned into plasmid pUC19 and were transformed into Escherichia coli DH5 alpha. Recombinant plasmids that gave ceftazidime resistance all contained a 3.65-kb BamHI fragment. Deletions from this fragment allowed the beta-lactamase gene to be located on a 1.4-kb section of DNA, which contained an open reading frame of 798 bases. This encoded a protein that was deduced to differ from PSE-2 beta-lactamase only in having serine instead of asparagine at position 143 and aspartate instead of glycine at position 157. It is concluded that the resistance of isolate ABD dependent on an extended-spectrum variant of the PSE-2 enzyme. The ability of this enzyme to cause ceftazidime resistance dependent primarily on a low Km for the compound; Vmax remained low. It is proposed that PSE-2 should be transferred to the OXA group as OXA-10 and that the new enzyme be designated OXA-11.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The role of specific surface loop regions in determining the function of the imipenem-specific pore protein OprD of Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa OprD is a specific porin which facilitates the uptake of basic amino acids and imipenem across the outer membrane. In this study, we examined the effects of deletions in six of the proposed eight surface loops of OprD on the in vivo and in vitro functions of this protein. Native OprD formed very small channels in planar lipid bilayers, with an average single-channel conductance in 1.0 M KCl of 20 pS. When large numbers of OprD channels were incorporated into lipid bilayer membranes, addition of increasing concentrations of imipenem to the bathing solutions resulted in a progressive blocking of the membrane conductance of KCl, indicating the presence of a specific binding site(s) for imipenem in the OprD channel. From these experiments, the concentration of imipenem value of resulting in 50% inhibition of the initial conductance was calculated as approximately 0.6 microM. In contrast, no decrease in channel conductance was observed for the OprDdeltaL2 channel upon addition of up to 2.4 microM imipenem, confirming that external loop 2 was involved in imipenem binding. Deletion of four to eight amino acids from loops 1 and 6 had no effect on antibiotic susceptibility, whereas deletion of eight amino acids from loops 5, 7, and 8 resulted in supersusceptibility to beta-lactams, quinolones, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline. Planar lipid bilayer analysis indicated that the OprDdeltaL5 channel had a 33-fold increase in single-channel conductance in 1 M KCl but had retained its imipenem binding site. The disposition of these loop regions in the interior of the OprD channel is discussed.

Bacterial Outer Membrane Proteins↗

Identification of type II and type III pyoverdine receptors from Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa produces, under conditions of iron limitation, a high-affinity siderophore, pyoverdine (PVD), which is recognized at the level of the outer membrane by a specific TonB-dependent receptor, FpvA. So far, for P. aeruginosa, three different PVDs, differing in their peptide chain, have been described (types I-III), but only the FpvA receptor for type I is known. Two PVD-producing P. aeruginosa strains, one type II and one type III, were mutagenized by a mini-TnphoA3 transposon. In each case, one mutant unable to grow in the presence of the strong iron chelator ethylenediaminedihydroxyphenylacetic acid (EDDHA) and the cognate PVD was selected. The first mutant, which had an insertion in the pvdE gene, upstream of fpvA, was unable to take up type II PVD and showed resistance to pyocin S3, which is known to use type II FpvA as receptor. The second mutant was unable to take up type III PVD and had the transposon insertion in fpvA. Cosmid libraries of the respective type II and type III PVD wild-type strains were constructed and screened for clones restoring the capacity to grow in the presence of PVD. From the respective complementing genomic fragments, type II and type III fpvA sequences were determined. When in trans, type II and type III fpvA restored PVD production, uptake, growth in the presence of EDDHA and, in the case of type II fpvA, pyocin S3 sensitivity. Complementation of fpvA mutants obtained by allelic exchange was achieved by the presence of cognate fpvA in trans. All three receptors posses an N-terminal extension of about 70 amino acids, similar to FecA of Escherichia coli, but only FpvAI has a TAT export sequence at its N-terminal end.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Hidden overflow pathway to L-phenylalanine in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is representative of a large group of pseudomonad bacteria that possess coexisting alternative pathways to L-phenylalanine (as well as to L-tyrosine). These multiple flow routes to aromatic end products apparently account for the inordinate resistance of P. aeruginosa to end product analogs. Manipulation of carbon source nutrition produced a physiological state of sensitivity to p-fluorophenylalanine and m-fluorophenylalanine, each a specific antimetabolite of L-phenylalanine. Analog-resistant mutants obtained fell into two classes. One type lacked feedback sensitivity of prephenate dehydratase and was the most dramatic excretor of L-phenylalanine. The presence of L-tyrosine curbed phenylalanine excretion to one-third, a finding explained by potent early-pathway regulation of 3-deoxy-D-arabinoheptulosonate 7-phosphate (DAHP) synthase-Tyr (a DAHP synthase subject to allosteric inhibition by L-tyrosine). The second class of regulatory mutants possessed a completely feedback-resistant DAHP synthase-Tyr, the major species (greater than 90%) of two isozymes. Deregulation of DAHP synthase-Tyr resulted in the escape of most chorismate molecules produced into an unregulated overflow route consisting of chorismate mutase (monofunctional), prephenate aminotransferase, and arogenate dehydratase. In the wild type the operation of the overflow pathway is restrained by factors that restrict early-pathway flux. These factors include the highly potent feedback control of DAHP synthase isozymes by end products as well as the strikingly variable abilities of different carbon source nutrients to supply the aromatic pathway with beginning substrates. Even in the wild type, where all allosteric regulation in intact, some phenylalanine overflow was found on glucose-based medium, but not on fructose-based medium. This carbon source-dependent difference was much more exaggerated in each class of regulatory mutants.

3-Deoxy-7-Phosphoheptulonate Synthase↗

Genes and enzymes of lysine catabolism in Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PAO1 cannot utilize L-lysine effectively as a carbon source for growth but grows on cadaverine and glutarate. Strains PAO1 and PAO1632 (Hut-Ami-) have low activities for L-lysine uptake and for L-lysine decarboxylase but both strains gave rise to mutants that grew well on L-lysine. Strain PAO2087, isolated from PAO1, had an active L-lysine uptake system and an inducible L-lysine decarboxylase. Strain PAO2070, isolated from strain PAO1632, had an active L-lysine uptake system and a constitutive L-lysine decarboxylase. We suggest that the genetic defect of strain PAO1 (and PAO1632) that prevents growth of L-lysine is in a regulatory gene controlling the expression of linked genes for L-lysine permease and L-lysine decarboxylase. Mutants unable to utilize L-lysine as a carbon source, isolated from strain PAO2070, exhibited four distinct growth phenotypes. Transductional analysis showed that the genetic defects of these mutants could be distinguished from each other and from that of strain PAO1. Group I mutants, unable to utilize glutarate, formed a single transduction linkage group and were mapped at about 20 min on the chromosome. The mutations of groups II, III and IV appeared to be in separate but linked genes. The group II mutants had no detectable L-lysine decarboxylase activity and the gene locus was mapped by interrupted mating in the 50 to 60 min region of the chromosome. The group III mutants possessed all the early enzymes of the L-lysine decarboxylase pathway and lacked only an active L-lysine uptake system.

Cadaverine↗