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Transcriptional regulation of nitric oxide reduction in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Nitric oxide reduction in Ralstonia eutropha H16 is catalysed by the quinol-dependent NO reductase NorB. norB and the adjacent norA form an operon that is controlled by the sigma(54)-dependent transcriptional activator NorR in response to NO. A NorR derivative containing MalE in place of the N-terminal domain binds to a 73 bp region upstream of norA that includes three copies of the putative upstream activator sequence GGT-(N(7))-ACC. Mutations altering individual bases of this sequence resulted in an 80-90% decrease in transcriptional activation by wild-type NorR. Similar motifs are present in several proteobacteria upstream of genes encoding proteins of NO metabolism. The N-terminal domain of NorR contains a GAF module and is hypothesized to interact with a signal molecule. A NorR derivative lacking this domain activates the norAB promoter constitutively. Amino acid exchanges within the GAF module identified a cysteine residue that is essential for promoter activation by NorR. Signal sensing by NorR is negatively modulated by the iron-containing protein NorA.

Catalysis↗

Genome sequence of the bioplastic-producing "Knallgas" bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16.

The H(2)-oxidizing lithoautotrophic bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16 is a metabolically versatile organism capable of subsisting, in the absence of organic growth substrates, on H(2) and CO(2) as its sole sources of energy and carbon. R. eutropha H16 first attracted biotechnological interest nearly 50 years ago with the realization that the organism's ability to produce and store large amounts of poly[R-(-)-3-hydroxybutyrate] and other polyesters could be harnessed to make biodegradable plastics. Here we report the complete genome sequence of the two chromosomes of R. eutropha H16. Together, chromosome 1 (4,052,032 base pairs (bp)) and chromosome 2 (2,912,490 bp) encode 6,116 putative genes. Analysis of the genome sequence offers the genetic basis for exploiting the biotechnological potential of this organism and provides insights into its remarkable metabolic versatility.

Aerobiosis↗

NO-dependent transcriptional activation of gene expression in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

The sigma54-dependent transcriptional regulator NorR of Ralstonia eutropha H16 activates gene expression in response to nitric oxide (NO). The N-terminal domain of NorR is thought to be involved in signal perception. A C112S exchange within this domain abolished promoter activation by the mutated protein, indicating that Cys(112) is essential for the signalling mechanism of NorR. The DNA region recognized by NorR contains three copies of a conserved element termed the NorR-box. Alteration of bases within any of the NorR-boxes resulted in a significant decrease in promoter activation. Therefore all three boxes have to be recognized by NorR to activate its target promoter. NorR controls expression of an operon that encodes a redox-active non-haem-iron protein NorA and an NO reductase NorB. NorA exerts a negative effect on signal-dependent promoter activation by NorR. Optical spectroscopy of purified NorA indicates that the reduced protein can react with NO to form a ferrous nitrosyl adduct. Hence, NO binding by NorA opens up the possibility that NorA and NorR compete for NO in the cytoplasm.

Cupriavidus necator↗

Catalytic triad of intracellular poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) depolymerase (PhaZ1) in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

The amino acid sequence of an intracellular poly[D(-)-3-hydroxybutyrate] (PHB) depolymerase (PhaZ1) from Ralstonia eutropha H16 was compared with the sequences of various proteins using the BLAST search. It showed a number of matches including with intracellular PHB depolymerases, conserved hypothetical proteins, and PHB synthases. From an alignment of these proteins, we constructed nine mutants: C87A, S118A, H120Q, C183A, C183S, D355A, D356A, C370A, and H388Q. The C183A, D355A, and H388Q mutants lost their activities, but C183S and the other mutants did not. C183, D355, and H388 in PhaZ1 were positioned similarly to the amino acids of the catalytic triad of PHB synthase. These results indicated that C183, D355, and H388 make up the catalytic triad of PhaZ1.

Journal Article↗

Chemical modification of catalytically essential functional groups of NAD-dependent hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Amino acid residues His and Cys of the NAD-dependent hydrogenase from the hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16 were chemically modified with specific reagents. The modification of His residues of the nonactivated hydrogenase resulted in decrease in both hydrogenase and diaphorase activities of the enzyme. Activation of NADH hydrogenase under anaerobic conditions led to the modification of additional His residue (or residues) significant only for the hydrogenase activity. The rate of decrease in the diaphorase activity was unchanged. The modification of thiol groups of the nonactivated enzyme did not affect the activity of the hydrogenase. The effect of thiol-modifying agents on the activated hydrogenase was accompanied by inactivation of both diaphorase and hydrogenase activities. The modification degree and changes in the corresponding catalytic activities depended on conditions of the enzyme activation. Data on the modification of cysteine and histidine residues of the hydrogenase suggested that the enzyme activation should be associated with significant conformational changes in the protein globule.

Cupriavidus necator↗

A physical map of the megaplasmid pHG1, one of three genomic replicons in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

We have used pulsed field gel electrophoresis and megabase DNA techniques to investigate the basic genomic organization of Ralstonia eutropha H16, and to construct a physical map of its indigenous megaplasmid pHG1. This Gram-negative, soil-dwelling bacterium is a facultative chemolithoautotroph and a denitrifier. In the absence of organic substrates it can grow on H2 as its sole energy source and CO2 as its sole source of carbon. Under anaerobic conditions it can utilize nitrate as a terminal electron acceptor, whereby dinitrogen is released. Essential genetic determinants of the enzyme systems responsible for these metabolic processes are linked to the 0.44-Mb conjugative megaplasmid pHG1. Aside from pHG1, the genome of R. eutropha H16 is comprised of two circular chromosomes measuring 4.1 and 2.9 Mb, adding up to a total genome size of 7.1 Mb. An estimated five copies of rDNA are distributed on the two chromosomes. A macrorestriction map of pHG1 was derived for the endonucleases DraI and XbaI. Hybridization studies showed that genes for anaerobic metabolism are located on all three genomic replicons.

Anaerobiosis↗

Regulation of phasin expression and polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) granule formation in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Regulation of expression of the phasin PhaP, which is the major protein at the surface of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) granules in Ralstonia eutropha H16, was studied and analysed at the molecular level. The regulation of PhaP expression is achieved by an autoregulated repressor, which is encoded by phaR in R. eutropha. The occurrence of PhaR homologues and the organization of phaR genes was analysed in detail in 29 different bacteria. Three kinds of molecule to which PhaR binds were identified in cells of R. eutropha, as revealed by gel-mobility-shift assays, DNaseI footprinting, cell fractionation, immunoelectron microscopy studies employing anti-PhaR antibodies raised against purified N-terminal hexahistidine-tagged PhaR and in vitro binding studies employing artificial PHA granules. PhaR binds upstream of phaP at two sites comprising the transcriptional start site plus the -10 region and a region immediately upstream of the -35 region of the sigma(70) promoter of phaP, where two imperfect 12 bp repeat sequences (GCAMMAAWTMMD) were identified on the sense and anti-sense strands. PhaR also binds 86 bp upstream of the phaR translational start codon, where the sigma(54)-dependent promoter was identified. PhaR also binds to the surface of PHA granules. In the cytoplasm of a phaROmegaKm mutant of R. eutropha H16, increased quantities of PhaP were detected and the cells formed by this strain were much smaller and had many more PHA granules present than the wild-type. These data support the following model for the regulation of phaP expression. Under cultivation conditions not permissive for PHA biosynthesis or in mutants defective in PHA biosynthesis, PhaR binds to the phaP promoter region and represses transcription of this gene. After the onset of PHA biosynthesis, under conditions that are permissive for the formation of nascent granules, PhaR binds to PHA granules and phaP is transcribed. At the later stages of PHA accumulation, PhaR no longer binds to the granules and the transcription of phaP is again repressed. In addition to this, phaR expression is subject to autoregulation. Excess PhaR that has not bound to the phaP upstream region or to PHA granules binds to the phaR upstream region, thereby repressing its own transcription.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Cloning of an intracellular Poly[D(-)-3-Hydroxybutyrate] depolymerase gene from Ralstonia eutropha H16 and characterization of the gene product.

An intracellular poly[D(-)-3-hydroxybutyrate] (PHB) depolymerase gene (phaZ) has been cloned from Ralstonia eutropha H16 by the shotgun method, sequenced, and characterized. Nucleotide sequence analysis of a 2.3-kbp DNA fragment revealed an open reading frame of 1,260 bp, encoding a protein of 419 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 47,316 Da. The crude extract of Escherichia coli containing the PHB depolymerase gene digested artificial amorphous PHB granules and released mainly oligomeric D(-)-3-hydroxybutyrate, with some monomer. The gene product did not hydrolyze crystalline PHB or freeze-dried artificial amorphous PHB granules. The deduced amino acid sequence lacked sequence corresponding to a classical lipase box, Gly-X-Ser-X-Gly. The gene product was expressed in R. eutropha cells concomitant with the synthesis of PHB and localized in PHB granules. Although a mutant of R. eutropha whose phaZ gene was disrupted showed a higher PHB content compared to the wild type in a nutrient-rich medium, it accumulated PHB as much as the wild type did in a nitrogen-free, carbon-rich medium. These results indicate that the cloned phaZ gene encodes an intracellular PHB depolymerase in R. eutropha.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The soluble NAD+-Reducing [NiFe]-hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha H16 consists of six subunits and can be specifically activated by NADPH.

The soluble [NiFe]-hydrogenase (SH) of the facultative lithoautotrophic proteobacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16 has up to now been described as a heterotetrameric enzyme. The purified protein consists of two functionally distinct heterodimeric moieties. The HoxHY dimer represents the hydrogenase module, and the HoxFU dimer constitutes an NADH-dehydrogenase. In the bimodular form, the SH mediates reduction of NAD(+) at the expense of H(2). We have purified a new high-molecular-weight form of the SH which contains an additional subunit. This extra subunit was identified as the product of hoxI, a member of the SH gene cluster (hoxFUYHWI). Edman degradation, in combination with protein sequencing of the SH high-molecular-weight complex, established a subunit stoichiometry of HoxFUYHI(2). Cross-linking experiments indicated that the two HoxI subunits are the closest neighbors. The stability of the hexameric SH depended on the pH and the ionic strength of the buffer. The tetrameric form of the SH can be instantaneously activated with small amounts of NADH but not with NADPH. The hexameric form, however, was also activated by adding small amounts of NADPH. This suggests that HoxI provides a binding domain for NADPH. A specific reaction site for NADPH adds to the list of similarities between the SH and mitochondrial NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase (Complex I).

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Purification and characterization of the single-component nitric oxide reductase from Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Nitric oxide (NO) reductase was purified from Ralstonia eutropha (formerly Alcaligenes eutrophus) using a two step chromatographic procedure. Unlike the common NO reductases, the enzyme consists of a single subunit of 75 kDa which contains both high-spin and low-spin heme b, but lacks heme c. One additional iron atom, probably a ferric non-heme iron, was identified per enzyme molecule. Whereas reduced cytochrome c was ineffective as electron donor, NO was reduced at a specific activity of 2.3 micromol/min per mg of protein in the presence of 2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinol.

Ascorbic Acid↗

Complete nucleotide sequence of pHG1: a Ralstonia eutropha H16 megaplasmid encoding key enzymes of H(2)-based ithoautotrophy and anaerobiosis.

The self-transmissible megaplasmid pHG1 carries essential genetic information for the facultatively lithoautotrophic and facultatively anaerobic lifestyles of its host, the Gram-negative soil bacterium Ralstonia eutropha H16. We have determined the complete nucleotide sequence of pHG1. This megaplasmid is 452,156 bp in size and carries 429 potential genes. Groups of functionally related genes form loose clusters flanked by mobile elements. The largest functional group consists of lithoautotrophy-related genes. These include a set of 41 genes for the biosynthesis of the three previously identified hydrogenases and of a fourth, novel hydrogenase. Another large cluster carries the genetic information for denitrification. In addition to a dissimilatory nitrate reductase, both specific and global regulators were identified. Also located in the denitrification region is a set of genes for cytochrome c biosynthesis. Determinants for several enzymes involved in the mineralization of aromatic compounds were found. The genes for conjugative plasmid transfer predict that R.eutropha forms two types of pili. One of them is related to the type IV pili of pathogenic enterobacteria. pHG1 also carries an extensive "junkyard" region encompassing 17 remnants of mobile elements and 22 partial or intact genes for phage-type integrase. Among the mobile elements is a novel member of the IS5 family, in which the transposase gene is interrupted by a group II intron.

Anaerobiosis↗

Reduction of unusual iron-sulfur clusters in the H2-sensing regulatory Ni-Fe hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha H16.

The regulatory Ni-Fe hydrogenase (RH) from Ralstonia eutropha functions as a hydrogen sensor. The RH consists of the large subunit HoxC housing the Ni-Fe active site and the small subunit HoxB containing Fe-S clusters. The heterolytic cleavage of H(2) at the Ni-Fe active site leads to the EPR-detectable Ni-C state of the protein. For the first time, the simultaneous but EPR-invisible reduction of Fe-S clusters during Ni-C state formation was demonstrated by changes in the UV-visible absorption spectrum as well as by shifts of the iron K-edge from x-ray absorption spectroscopy in the wild-type double dimeric RH(WT) [HoxBC](2) and in a monodimeric derivative designated RH(stop) lacking the C-terminal 55 amino acids of HoxB. According to the analysis of iron EXAFS spectra, the Fe-S clusters of HoxB pronouncedly differ from the three Fe-S clusters in the small subunits of crystallized standard Ni-Fe hydrogenases. Each HoxBC unit of RH(WT) seems to harbor two [2Fe-2S] clusters in addition to a 4Fe species, which may be a [4Fe-3S-3O] cluster. The additional 4Fe-cluster was absent in RH(stop). Reduction of Fe-S clusters in the hydrogen sensor RH may be a first step in the signal transduction chain, which involves complex formation between [HoxBC](2) and tetrameric HoxJ protein, leading to the expression of the energy converting Ni-Fe hydrogenases in R. eutropha.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

[NiFe]-hydrogenases of Ralstonia eutropha H16: modular enzymes for oxygen-tolerant biological hydrogen oxidation.

Recent research on hydrogenases has been notably motivated by a desire to utilize these remarkable hydrogen oxidation catalysts in biotechnological applications. Progress in the development of such applications is substantially hindered by the oxygen sensitivity of the majority of hydrogenases. This problem tends to inspire the study of organisms such as Ralstonia eutropha H16 that produce oxygen-tolerant [NiFe]-hydrogenases. R. eutropha H16 serves as an excellent model system in that it produces three distinct [NiFe]-hydrogenases that each serve unique physiological roles: a membrane-bound hydrogenase (MBH) coupled to the respiratory chain, a cytoplasmic, soluble hydrogenase (SH) able to generate reducing equivalents by reducing NAD+ at the expense of hydrogen, and a regulatory hydrogenase (RH) which acts in a signal transduction cascade to control hydrogenase gene transcription. This review will present recent results regarding the biosynthesis, regulation, structure, activity, and spectroscopy of these enzymes. This information will be discussed in light of the question how do organisms adapt the prototypical [NiFe]-hydrogenase system to function in the presence of oxygen.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Biotransformation of eugenol to ferulic acid by a recombinant strain of Ralstonia eutropha H16.

The gene loci ehyAB, calA, and calB, encoding eugenol hydroxylase, coniferyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and coniferyl aldehyde dehydrogenase, respectively, which are involved in the first steps of eugenol catabolism in Pseudomonas sp. strain HR199, were amplified by PCR and combined to construct a catabolic gene cassette. This gene cassette was cloned in the newly designed broad-host-range vector pBBR1-JO2 (pBBR1-JO2ehyABcalAcalB) and transferred to Ralstonia eutropha H16. A recombinant strain of R. eutropha H16 harboring this plasmid expressed functionally active eugenol hydroxylase, coniferyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and coniferyl aldehyde dehydrogenase. Cells of R. eutropha H16(pBBR1-JO2ehyABcalAcalB) from the late-exponential growth phase were used as biocatalysts for the biotransformation of eugenol to ferulic acid. A maximum conversion rate of 2.9 mmol of eugenol per h per liter of culture was achieved with a yield of 93.8 mol% of ferulic acid from eugenol within 20 h, without further optimization.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Oxygen tolerance of the H2-sensing [NiFe] hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha H16 is based on limited access of oxygen to the active site.

Hydrogenases, abundant proteins in the microbial world, catalyze cleavage of H2 into protons and electrons or the evolution of H2 by proton reduction. Hydrogen metabolism predominantly occurs in anoxic environments mediated by hydrogenases, which are sensitive to inhibition by oxygen. Those microorganisms, which thrive in oxic habitats, contain hydrogenases that operate in the presence of oxygen. We have selected the H2-sensing regulatory [NiFe] hydrogenase of Ralstonia eutropha H16 to investigate the molecular background of its oxygen tolerance. Evidence is presented that the shape and size of the intramolecular hydrophobic cavities leading to the [NiFe] active site of the regulatory hydrogenase are crucial for oxygen insensitivity. Expansion of the putative gas channel by site-directed mutagenesis yielded mutant derivatives that are sensitive to inhibition by oxygen, presumably because the active site has become accessible for oxygen. The mutant proteins revealed characteristics typical of standard [NiFe] hydrogenases as described for Desulfovibrio gigas and Allochromatium vinosum. The data offer a new strategy how to engineer oxygen-tolerant hydrogenases for biotechnological application.

Base Sequence↗

The Ralstonia eutropha H16 phasin PhaP1 is targeted to intracellular triacylglycerol inclusions in Rhodococcus opacus PD630 and Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2155, and provides an anchor to target other proteins.

In Ralstonia eutropha, the H16 phasin PhaP1 represents the major phasin that binds to the surface of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) inclusions. In this study, C-terminal fusions of PhaP1 with enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) and with Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase (LacZ) were expressed separately in the triacylglycerol (TAG)-accumulating actinomycetes Rhodococcus opacus PD630 and Mycobacterium smegmatis mc(2)155, employing the M. smegmatis acetamidase (ace) promoter of the Escherichia-Mycobacterium/Rhodococcus shuttle plasmid pJAM2. PhaP1 and the PhaP1 fusion proteins were expressed stably in the recombinant strains. Western blot analysis of cell fractions of Rh. opacus revealed that PhaP1 and the PhaP1-eGFP fusion protein were associated with the TAG inclusions, whereas no phasin or phasin fusion protein was detected in the soluble and membrane fractions. Additional electron microscopy/immunocytochemistry studies demonstrated that PhaP1 was mainly located on the surface of intracellular TAG inclusions; in addition, some PhaP1 also occurred at the plasma membrane. Fluorescence microscopic investigations of the subcellular distribution of the PhaP1-eGFP fusion protein in vivo and on isolated TAG inclusions revealed that the fusion protein was bound to TAG inclusions at all stages of their formation, and to some extent at the cytoplasmic membrane. The PhaP1-LacZ fusion protein also bound to the TAG inclusions, and could be separated together with the inclusions from Rh. opacus crude extracts, thus demonstrating the immobilization of beta-galactosidase activity on the inclusions. This is believed to be the first report demonstrating the ability of PhaP1 to bind to lipid inclusions in addition to PHA inclusions. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that this non-specificity of PhaP1 can be utilized to anchor enzymically active fusion proteins to a matrix of bacterial TAG inclusions.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Influence of homologous phasins (PhaP) on PHA accumulation and regulation of their expression by the transcriptional repressor PhaR in Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Phasins play an important role in the formation of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) [poly(3HB)] granules and affect their size. Recently, three homologues of the phasin protein PhaP1 were identified in Ralstonia eutropha strain H16. The functions of PhaP2, PhaP3 and PhaP4 were examined by analysis of R. eutropha H16 deletion strains (DeltaphaP1, DeltaphaP2, DeltaphaP3, DeltaphaP4, DeltaphaP12, DeltaphaP123 and DeltaphaP1234). When cells were grown under conditions permissive for poly(3HB) accumulation, the wild-type strain and all single-phasin negative mutants (DeltaphaP2, DeltaphaP3 and DeltaphaP4), with the exception of DeltaphaP1, showed similar growth and poly(3HB) accumulation behaviour, and also the size and number of the granules were identical. The single DeltaphaP1 mutant and the DeltaphaP12, DeltaphaP123 and DeltaphaP1234 mutants showed an almost identical growth behaviour; however, they accumulated poly(3HB) at a significantly lower level than wild-type and the single DeltaphaP2, DeltaphaP3 or DeltaphaP4 mutants. Gel-mobility-shift assays and DNaseI footprinting experiments demonstrated the capability of the transcriptional repressor PhaR to bind to a DNA region +36 to +46 bp downstream of the phaP3 start codon. The protected sequence exhibited high similarity to the binding sites of PhaR upstream of phaP1, which were identified recently. In contrast, PhaR did not bind to the upstream or intergenic regions of phaP2 and phaP4, thus indicating that the expression of these two phasins is regulated in a different way. Our current model for the regulation of phasins in R. eutropha strain H16 was extended and confirmed.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Use of a reverse micelle system for study of oligomeric structure of NAD+-reducing hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha H16.

Inclusion of an oligomeric enzyme, NAD+-dependent hydrogenase from the hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium Ralstonia eutropha, into a system of reverse micelles of different sizes resulted in its dissociation into catalytically active heterodimers and subunits, which were characterized in reactions with various substrates. It was found that: 1) the native tetrameric form of this enzyme catalyzes all types of studied reactions; 2) hydrogenase dimer, HoxHY, is a minimal structural unit catalyzing hydrogenase reaction with an artificial electron donor, reduced methyl viologen; 3) all structural fragments containing FMN and NAD+/NADH-binding sites exhibit catalytic activity in diaphorase reactions with one- and two-electron acceptors; 4) small subunits, HoxY and HoxU also exhibit activity in diaphorase reactions with artificial acceptors. These results can be considered as indirect evidence that the second FMN molecule may be associated with one of the small subunits (HoxY or HoxU) of the hydrogenase from R. eutropha.

Catalysis↗