• Bioindustry News
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.15-20
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• 1998

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.804-810
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• 1999

There is a possibility that carvone, a monoterpene from spearmint (Mentha spicata), could induce the bph degradative pathway and genes in Alcaligenes eutrophus H850, which is a known Gram-negative PCB degrader with a broad substrate specificity that was thoroughly investigated with Arthrobacter sp. BIB, a Gram-positive PCB degrader. The strains BIB and H850 were unable to utilize and grow on the plant terpene [(R)-(-)-carvone] (50ppm) to be recognized as a sole carbon source. Nevertheless, the carvone did induce 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (encoded by bphC) in the strain B lB, as observed by a resting cell assay that monitors accumulation of a yellow meta ring fission product from 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl (DCBp). The monoterpene, however, did not appear to induce the meta cleavage pathway in the strain H850. Instead, an assumption was made that the strain might be using an alternative pathway, probably the ortho-cleavage pathway. A reverse transcription (RT)-PCR system, utilizing primers designed from a conserved region of the bphC gene of Arthrobacter sp. M5, was employed to verify the occurrence of the alternative pathway. A successful amplification (182bp) of mRNA transcribed from the N-terminal region of the bphC gene was accomplished in H850 cells induced by carvone (50ppm) as well as in biphenyl-growth cells. It is, therefore, likely that H850 possesses a specific PCB degradation pathway and hence a different substrate specificity compared with B1B. This study will contribute to an elucidation of the dynamic aspects of PCB bioremediation in terms of roles played by PCB degraders and plant terpenes as natural inducer substrates that are ubiquitous and environmentally compatible.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.177-179
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• 2019

Pseudomonas kribbensis CHA-19 was isolated from a temperate forest soil (mid latitude) in New Jersey, USA, for its ability to degrade humic acids, a main component of humic substances (HS), and subsequently confirmed to be able to decolorize lignin (a surrogate for HS) and catabolize lignin-derived ferulic and vanillic acids. The draft genome sequence of CHA-19 was analyzed to discover the putative genes for depolymerization of polymeric HS (e.g., dye-decolorizing peroxidases and laccase-like multicopper oxidases) and catabolic degradation of HS-derived small aromatics (e.g., vanillate O-demethylase and biphenyl 2,3-dioxygenase). The genes for degradative activity were used to propose a HS degradation pathway of soil bacteria.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.9
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• pp.1867-1875
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• 2024

Identification of the biochemical metabolic pathway for lignin decomposition and the responsible degradative enzymes is needed for the effective biotechnological valorization of lignin to renewable chemical products. In this study, we investigated the decomposition of kraft lignin by the soil bacterium Pseudomonas kribbensis CHA-19, a strain that can utilize kraft lignin and its main degradation metabolite, vanillic acid, as growth substrates. Gel permeation chromatography revealed that CHA-19 decomposed polymeric lignin and degraded dehydrodivanillin (a representative lignin model compound); however, the degradative enzyme(s) and mechanism were not identified. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction with mRNAs from CHA-19 cells induced in the presence of lignin showed that the putative genes coding for two laccase-like multicopper oxidases (LMCOs) and three dye-decolorizing peroxidases (DyPs) were upregulated by 2.0- to 7.9-fold compared with glucose-induced cells, which indicates possible cooperation with multiple enzymes for lignin decomposition. Computational homology analysis of the protein sequences of LMCOs and DyPs also predicted their roles in lignin decomposition. Based on the above data, CHA-19 appears to initiate oxidative lignin decomposition using multifunctional LMCOs and DyPs, producing smaller metabolites such as vanillic acid, which is further degraded via ortho- and meta-ring cleavage pathways. This study not only helps to better understand the role of bacteria in lignin decomposition and thus in terrestrial ecosystems, but also expands the biocatalytic toolbox with new bacterial cells and their degradative enzymes for lignin valorization.

• BMB Reports
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.143-150
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• 2018

The Hippo signaling pathway plays an essential role in adult tissue homeostasis and organ size control. Abnormal regulation of Hippo signaling can be a cause for multiple types of human cancers. Since the awareness of the importance of the Hippo signaling in a wide range of biological fields has been continually grown, it is also understood that a thorough and well-rounded comprehension of the precise dynamics could provide fundamental insights for therapeutic applications. Several components in the Hippo signaling pathway are known to be targeted for proteasomal degradation via ubiquitination by E3 ligases. ${\beta}-TrCP$ is a well-known E3 ligase of YAP/TAZ, which leads to the reduction of YAP/TAZ levels. The Hippo signaling pathway can also be inhibited by the E3 ligases (such as ITCH) which target LATS1/2 for degradation. Regulation via ubiquitination involves not only complex network of E3 ligases but also deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs), which remove ubiquitin from its targets. Interestingly, non-degradative ubiquitin modifications are also known to play important roles in the regulation of Hippo signaling. Although there has been much advanced progress in the investigation of ubiquitin modifications acting as regulators of the Hippo signaling pathway, research done to date still remains inadequate due to the sheer complexity and diversity of the subject. Herein, we review and discuss recent developments that implicate ubiquitin-mediated regulatory mechanisms at multiple steps of the Hippo signaling pathway.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.208-214
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• 1995

The effects of various 2, 4-D-degradative plasmids on the axenic growth patterns, the degradation phenotypes, and the competitiveness of different host bacteria were evaluated in liquid cultures; the organisms and plasmids used were Alcaligenes eutrophus JMP134/pJP4, Alcaligenes paradoxus/p2811, Pseudomonas pickettii/p712, pJP4, and p712 or p 2811 exhibited very different restriction fragment profiles in restriction endonuclease digests. These plasmids were transferred to the recipients (P. cepacia and Alcaligenes JMP228) at relatively high frequencies ranging from 8.9 $\times$ 10$^3$ to 1.6 $\times$ 10$^5$ per donar cell. In the axenic liquid cultures the fast-growing strains, such as P. pseudomallei/p745 and P. cepacia/pJP4, exhibited short lag periods, high specific growth rates, and high relative fitness coefficients, while the slow-growing strains, such as P. pickettii/p712 and A. paradoxus/p2811, had long lag periods, low specific growth rates, and low relative fitness coefficients. Depending on the type of plasmid containing the genes for the 2, 4-D pathway, some transconjugants exhibited intermediate grwoth patterns between the fast-growing strains and the slow-growing strains. The plasmid and plasmid-host interactions determined specific growth rate and lag time, respectively, which were shown to be principal determinants of competitiveness among the strains, but relative fitness coefficient derived from the axenic culture was not always predictive for the mixed culture condition.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.83-85
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• 2019

Pseudomonas sp. PAMC 29040 was isolated from a maritime tundra soil in Antarctica for its ability to degrade lignin and subsequently confirmed to be able to depolymerize heterogeneous humic substance (HS), a main component of soil organic matter. The draft genome sequences of PAMC 29040 were analyzed to discover the putative genes for depolymerization of polymeric HS (e.g., dye-decolorizing peroxidase) and catabolic degradation of HS-derived small aromatics (e.g., vanillate O-demethylase). The information on degradative genes will be used to finally propose the HS degradation pathway(s) of soil bacteria inhabiting cold environments.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.63-67
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• 1994

A microorganism showing degradative activity towards benzene, toluene and ${\rho}-xylene$ (BTX) was isolated from an activated sewage sludge and was tentatively identified as Pseudomonas fluorescence BE103. This strain was found to utilize benzene and toluene as growth substrates, but to degrade ${\rho}-xylene$ in the obligate presence of a growth substrate. The metabolic product resulted from the cometabolism of ${\rho}-xylene$ was identified as 3, 6-dimethylpyrocatechol by LC/MS analysis, and the metabolic pathway was analyzed to be similar to the tod pathway. From the kinetic studies done regarding BTX biodegradation using Pseudomonas fluorescence BE103, it was revealed that the cometabolism of ${\rho}-xylene$ is significantly affected by the ratio of growth substrate concentration to biomass concentration, and that the cometabolism of ${\rho}-xylene$ initiates only when this ratio was about 0.03.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.334-341
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• 1989

Toluate degradative plasmid from Pseudomonas cepacia SUB37 was determined to be molecular weight as $79.3\times 10^6$

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.7
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• pp.1037-1051
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• 2018

The genus Rhodococcus is a phylogenetically and catabolically diverse group that has been isolated from diverse environments, including polar and alpine regions, for its versatile ability to degrade a wide variety of natural and synthetic organic compounds. Their metabolic capacity and diversity result from their diverse catabolic genes, which are believed to be obtained through frequent recombination events mediated by large catabolic plasmids. Many rhodococci have been used commercially for the biodegradation of environmental pollutants and for the biocatalytic production of high-value chemicals from low-value materials. Recent studies of their physiology, metabolism, and genome have broadened our knowledge regarding the diverse biotechnological applications that exploit their catabolic enzymes and pathways.