• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.16 no.8
• /
• pp.1236-1239
• /
• 2006

Allyl alcohol (2-propen-l-ol), found in considerable amounts in heated garlic, was able to discriminate yeasts from bacteria and was approximately three orders of magnitude more inhibitory towards yeasts than bacteria. The average minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of allyl alcohol for bacteria and yeasts was 5.0% and 0.0056%, respectively. The unsaturated primary alcohols, including allyl alcohol and 2-buten-l-ol, seemed to work differently from all the other saturated alcohols and unsaturated secondary alcohols in inhibiting various yeasts. An alcohol dehydrogenase-negative (ADH$^-$) strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was as resistant to allyl alcohol as various bacteria, exhibiting an MIC of 5.0%. The unsaturated primary alcohols were apparently oxidized into the corresponding unsaturated aldehydes before they inhibited the yeasts.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.13 no.5
• /
• pp.738-744
• /
• 2003

The gene ADH encoding NAD-dependent alcohol dehydrogenase from Bacillus stearothennophilus was cloned and overexpressed as a GST fusion protein at a high level in Escherichia coli. The expressed fusion protein was purified simply by glutathione affinity chromatography. GST fusion protein was then cleaved by thrombin, while soluble enzyme was further purified by glutathione affinity chromatography. The recombinant enzyme had the same elctrophoretic mobility as the native enzyme from Bacillus stearothennophilus. The recombinant enzyme catalyzed the oxidation of a number of alcohols and exhibited high activities towards secondary alcohols. The $K_m\;and\;V_{max}$ values of the recombinant enzyme for ethanol were 5.11 mM and 61.35 U/mg, respectively. Pyridine and imidazole notably inhibited the enzymatic activity. The activity of the recombinant enzyme optimally proceeded at pH 9.0 and $70^{\circ}C$. The midpoint of the temperature-stability curve for the recombinant enzyme was approximately $68^{\circ}C$, and the enzyme was not completely inactivated even at $85^{\circ}C$. The recombinant enzyme showed a high resistance towards denaturing agents (0.05% SDS, 0.1 M urea). Therefore, due to its stability and relatively broad substrate specificity, the recombinant enzyme could be utilized in bio-industrial processes and biosensors.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.9 no.4
• /
• pp.475-481
• /
• 1999

The study of lignin, a major component of secondary cell wall, has been partly focused on its removal from the woody part in the kraft pulping industry. Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD; EC 1.1.l95) catalyzes the synthesis of cinnamyl alcohols from corresponding cinnamaldehydes. A cDNA clone, MdCADl, encoding putative CAD from apples (Malus domestica Borkh. cv Fuji) was characterized in this study. The clone contains an open reading frame of 325 amino acid residues, which shows a greater than 80％ identity with Eucalyptus CADl. MdCADl mRNA was detectable in vegetative tissues and was strongly expressed in the fruit. The expression pattern of MdCADl mRNA in the fruit peel after light exposure was also examined. The mRNA was rapidly increased until 1 day after light exposure and remained stable thereafter, suggesting that MdCADl is light inducible. The inducibility of the MdCADl gene was examined using several environmental stresses. Mechanical wounding of leaves increased the MdCADl mRNA level and the induction was further increased by salicylic acid. Southern blot hybridization showed that there is either one or a few copies of CAD genes in apples. To our knowledge, it is believed that MdCADl is the first CAD clone expressed predominantly in fruit.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
• /
• v.47 no.4
• /
• pp.442-450
• /
• 2019

Despite its potential as a renewable source for fuels and chemicals, lignin valorization still faces technical challenges in many aspects. Overcoming such challenges associated with the chemical recalcitrance of lignin can provide many opportunities to innovate existing and emerging biorefineries. In this work, we leveraged a biomass genetic engineering technology to produce phenolic aldehyde-rich lignin structure via downregulation of cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD). The structurally altered lignin obtained from the Arabidopsis thaliana CAD mutant was pyrolyzed to understand the effect of structural alteration on thermal behavior of lignin. The pyrolysis was conducted at 400 and $500^{\circ}C$ using an analytical pyrolyzer connected with GC/MS and the products were systematically analyzed. The results indicate that aldehyde-rich lignin undergoes fragmentation reaction during pyrolysis forming a considerable amount of C6 units. Also, it was speculated that highly reactive phenolic aldehydes facilitate secondary repolymerization reaction as described by the lower yield of overall phenolic compounds compared to wild type (WT) lignin. Quantum mechanical calculation clearly shows the higher electrophilicity of transgenic lignin than that of WT, which could promote both fragmentation and recondensation reactions. This work provides mechanistic insights toward biomass genetic engineering and its application to the pyrolysis allowing to establish sustainable biorefinery in the future.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.266-272
• /
• 2009

Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD, EC 1.1.1.95), catalyzes the reduction of hydroxycinnamaldehydes to give hydroxycinnamyl alcohols, or "monolignols," the monomeric precursors of lignin. Lignins are important components of cell walls and lignified secondary cell walls play crucial roles in long distance transport of water and nutrients during plant growth and development and in plant defense against biotic and abiotic stresses. Here a cDNA clone containing a CAD gene, named as PgCAD, was isolated from a commercial medicinal plant Panax ginseng. PgCAD is predicted to encode a precursor protein of 177 amino acid residues, and its sequence shares high homology with a number of other plant CADS. The expression of PgCAD in adventitious roots and hairy roots of P. ginseng was analyzed using reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR under various abiotic stresses such as salt, salicylic acid, wounding and chilling treatment that triggered a significant induction of PgCAD at different time points within 2-48 h post-treatment. This study revealed that PgCAD may help the plants to survive against various abiotic stresses.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.25 no.4
• /
• pp.452-458
• /
• 2015

The biocatalytic efficiency of recombinant Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 13032 expressing the secondary alcohol dehydrogenase of Micrococcus luteus NCTC2665 was studied. Recombinant C. glutamicum converts ricinoleic acid to a product, identified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry as 12-ketooleic acid (12-oxo-cis-9-octadecenoic acid). The effects of pH, reaction temperature, and non-ionic detergent on recombinant C. glutamiucm whole cell bioconversion were examined. The determined optimal conditions for production of 12-ketooleic acid are pH 8.0, 35℃, and 0.05 g/l Tween80. Under these conditions, recombinant C. glutamicum produces 3.3 mM 12-ketooleic acid, with a 72% (mol/mol) maximum conversion yield, and 1.1 g/l/h volumetric productivity in 2 h; and 3.9 mM 12-ketooleic acid, with a 74% (mol/mol) maximum conversion yield, and 0.69 g/l/h maximum volumetric productivity in 4 h of fermentation. This study constitutes the first report of significant production of 12-ketooleic acid using a recombinant Corynebacterium glutamicum-based biocatalyst.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
• /
• v.10 no.2
• /
• pp.44-52
• /
• 2018

A synthetic pathway, which consisted of fatty acid double bond hydratase, alcohol dehydrogenase, and Baeyer-Villiger monooxygenase, was applied to Chlorella oil to produce ester fatty acids, which can be hydrolyzed into medium chain fatty acids. Since linoleic acid is a major fatty acid constituent of Chlorella oil, a fatty acid double bond hydratase from Lactobacillus acidophilus NBRC13951, which is able to convert linoleic acid into 13-hydroxyoctadec-9-enoic acid, was used. Recombinant Escherichia coli expressing the fatty acid double bond hydratase from L. acidophilus NBRC13951 successfully transformed linoleic acid in Chlorella oil hydrolysates into 13-hydroxyoctadec-9-enoic acid with approximately 60% conversion yield. 13-Hydroxyoctadec-9-enoic acid was further converted into ester fatty acids by the recombinant E. coli expressing a long chain secondary alcohol dehydrogenase and a Baeyer-Villiger monooxygenase. The resulting ester fatty acids were then hydrolyzed into medium chain fatty acids by a lipase. Overall, industrially relevant medium chain fatty acids were produced from Chlorella oil hydrolysates. Thereby, this study may contribute to biosynthesis of medium chain fatty acids from microalgae oils as well as long chain fatty acids.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.373-381
• /
• 2019

Site-directed mutagenesis was employed to generate five different triple point mutations in the double mutant (C295A/I86A) of Thermoanaerobacter ethanolicus alcohol dehydrogenase (TeSADH) by computer-aided modeling with the aim of widening the small alkyl-binding pocket. TeSADH engineering enables the enzyme to accept sterically hindered substrates that could not be accepted by the wild-type enzyme. The underline in the mutations highlights the additional point mutation on the double mutant TeSADH introduced in this work. The catalytic efficiency ($k_{cat}/K_M$) of the ${\underline{M151A}}$/C295A/I86A triple TeSADH mutant for acetophenone increased about 4.8-fold higher than that of the double mutant. A 2.4-fold increase in conversion of 3'-methylacetophenone to (R)-1-(3-methylphenyl)-ethanol with a yield of 87% was obtained by using ${\underline{V115A}}$/C295A/I86A mutant in asymmetric reduction. The ${\underline{A85G}}$/C295A/I86A mutant also produced (R)-1-(3-methylphenyl)-ethanol (1.7-fold) from 3'-methylacetophenone and (R)-1-(3-methoxyphenyl)-ethanol (1.2-fold) from 3'-methoxyacetophenone, with improved yield. In terms of thermal stability, the ${\underline{M151A}}$/C295A/I86A and ${\underline{V115A}}$/C295A/I86A mutants significantly increased ${\Delta}T_{1/2}$ by $+6.8^{\circ}C$ and $+2.4^{\circ}C$, respectively, with thermal deactivation constant ($k_d$) close to the wild-type enzyme. The ${\underline{M151A}}$/C295A/I86A mutant reacts optimally at $70^{\circ}C$ with almost 4 times more residual activity than the wild type. Considering broad substrate tolerance and thermal stability together, it would be promising to produce (R)-1-(3-methylphenyl)-ethanol from 3'-methylacetophenone by ${\underline{V115A}}$/C295A/I86A, and (R)-1-phenylethanol from acetophenone by ${\underline{M151A}}$/C295A/I86A mutant, in large-scale bioreduction processes.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.8 no.3
• /
• pp.157-161
• /
• 1993

In order to get infonnations on the development of alcohol induced cardiovascular disorders, primary cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (PVSMC) were treated with acetaldehyde, one of the most reactive metabolites of ethanol. Acetaldehyde caused the striking release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) from PVSMC and it stimulated the prostaglandin synthesis in the same system. But it didn't induce cyclooxygenase activity. lipoxygenase inhibitors-propyl gallate and nordihydroguaiaretic acid could reverse the effect of acetaldehyde, but dexamethasone, a phospholipase $A_2\;(PIA_2)$ inhibitor and cyclooxygenase inhibitors except indomethacin could not protect the cells from acetaldehyde toxicity. These results indicate that enhanced prostaglandin synthesis by acetaldehyde is not a direct cause of cell death, but secondary effect due to the activation of PIAl and also, the roles of the lipoxygenase metabolites and/or $PIA_2$ activity itself might be more important in the cytotoxicity of acetaldehyde.