• Molecules and Cells
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.392-400
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• 2005

The genes encoding the DNA gyrase A (GyrA) and B subunits (GyrB) of Methylovorus sp. strain SS1 were cloned and sequenced. gyrA and gyrB coded for proteins of 846 and 799 amino acids with calculated molecular weights of 94,328 and 88,714, respectively, and complemented Escherichia coli gyrA and gyrB temperature sensitive (ts) mutants. To analyze the role of type II topoisomerases in the intrinsic quinolone resistance of methylotrophic bacteria, the sequences of the quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDRs) in the A subunit of DNA gyrase and the C subunit (ParC) of topoisomerase IV (Topo IV) of Methylovorus sp. strain SS1, Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 NCIB 9133, Methylobacillus sp, strain SK1 DSM 8269, and Methylophilus methylotrophus NCIB 10515 were determined. The deduced amino acid sequences of the QRDRs of the ParCs in the four methylotrophic bacteria were identical to that of E. coli ParC. The sequences of the QRDR in GyrA were also identical to those in E. coli GyrA except for the amino acids at positions 83, 87, or 95. The $Ser^{83}$ to Thr substitution in Methylovorus sp. strain SS1, and the $Ser^{83}$ to Leu and $Asp^{87}$ to Asn substitutions in the three other methylotrophs, agreed well with the minimal inhibitory concentrations of quinolones in the four bacteria, suggesting that these residues play a role in the intrinsic susceptibility of methylotrophic bacteria to quinolones.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.266-287
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• 2004

The non infecting, plant associated bacteria have attracted increased attention for stimulating plant growth and as environmental friendly plant protecting agents. Pink-pigmented facultatively methylotrophic bacteria (PPFMs), classified as Methylobacterium spp., are persistent colonizers of plant leaf surfaces. As the leaves of most or all plants harbor PPFMs that utilize leaf methanol as their sole source of carbon and energy, which is a specific attribute of the genus Methylobacterium. Although they are not well known, these bacteria are co-evolved, interacting partners in plant metabolism. This claim is supported, for example, by the following observations: (1) PPFMs are seed-transmitted, (2) PPFMs are frequently found in putatively axenic cell cultures, (3) Low numbers of seed-borne PPFMs correlate with low germinability, (4) Plants with reduced numbers of PPFM show elevated shoot/root ratios, (5) Foliar application of PPFMs to soybean during pod fill enhances seed set and yield, (6) Liverwort tissue in culture requires PPFM-produced vitamin B12 for growth, (7) treated plants to suppress or decrease disease incidence of sheath blight caused by Rhizoctonia solani in rice, and (8) the PPFM inoculation induced number of stomata, chlorophyll concentration and malic acid content, they led to increased photosynthetic activity. Methylobacterium spp. are bacterial symbionts of plants, shown previously to participate in plant metabolism by consuming plant waste products and producing metabolites useful to the plant. There are reports that inform about the beneficial interactions between this group of bacteria and plants. Screening of such kind of bacteria having immense plant growth promoting activities like nitrogen fixation, phytohormone production, alleviating water stress to the plants can be successfully isolated and characterized and integration of such kind of organism in crop production will lead to increased productivity.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.46-53
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• 2004

In this study, we compared the levels of methylotrophic bacterial community diversity in the leaf, stem, grain, root and rhizosphere soil sainples of four rice cultivars collected from three regions of Korea. Thirty five pigmented and five non-pigmented isolates showing characteristic growth on methanul were obtained. When phylotypes were defined by performing numerical analysis of 42 characteristics, four distinct clusters were formed. While two clusters, I and IV diverged on the basis of nitrate and nitrite reduction, other two clusters, comprising only pink pigmented colonies, diverged on the basis of cellulase activity. Out of the two reference strains used in the analysis, Methyhbacterium extorquens AM1 diverged from all the clusters and M. fujisawaense KACC 10744 grouped under cluster III. All the isolates were positive for urease, oxidase, catalase and pectinase activity and negative for indole production, MR and VP test, $H_2S$ production, starch, and casein hydrolysis. No clusters were found to possess thermotolerant isolates, as no growth of the isolates was observed at $45^{\circ}C$. Two strains in cluster I were found to possess gelatin hydrolysis and methane utilizing properties respectively. Most of the isolates in all the four clusters utilized monosaccliarides, disaccharide and polyols as carbon source. Six isolates showed considerable nitrogenase activity ranging from 86.2 to $809.9nmol\;C_2H_4\;h^{-1}\;mg^{-1}$ protein.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.215-222
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• 1999

Methylotrophic actinomycetes No. 155 produced an aminoglycoside antibiotics(AG)-resistant inhibitor. We have previously reported that the inhibitor shows strong inhibition to sisomicin-resistant strain. In order to understand the functions of inhibitor and sisomicin-resistance, characterizations and purification of inhibitor were investigated. Strain No. 155 was tentatively identified as Nocardiopsis sp. based on morphological and some physiological characteristics. In the antimicrobial activity test, the addition of inhibitor to sisomicin showed a reduction effect of MIC on the test strains such as Gram(+), Gram(-) bacteria and yeasts. The combination of the inhibitor and various antibiotics revealed synergistic against E. coli K-12 and B. subtilis PCI 219. The induced intracellular proteins from sisomicin-resistant strain exhibited the sisomicin inactivation by invitro test. And the induced intracellular proteins were inactivated by addition of the inhibitor. The inhibitor compound was purified by anion exchange chromatography(Dowex-1) and HPLC using Asahipak ES-502C column. The purified inhibitor compound was detected in a single peak(above 98.5% purity) through the HPLC analysis.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.10
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• pp.1645-1654
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• 2007

The total methylotrophic population associated with rice plants from different cultivars was enumerated at three different stages: vegetative, flowering, and harvesting. The bacterial population in the leaf, rhizosphere soil, endophytic in the stem and roots, and epiphytic in the florets and grains were determined from four rice cultivars, Il-mi, Nam-pyeoung, O-dae, and Dong-jin, sampled from three different field sites. The methylotrophic bacteria isolated on AMS media containing 0.5% methanol as the sole carbon source uniformly showed three distinct morphologies, which were recorded as separate groups and their distribution among the various samples was determined using the ecophysiological index. The growth stage at the time of sampling had a more significant effect on the methylotrophic population and their distribution than the field site or cultivar. A similar effect was also observed for the PPFMs, where their population in different plant parts increased from V10 to R4 and then decreased towards stage R9. A canonical discriminant analysis of the PPFM population from different parts of rice showed clear variations among the cultivars, sampled sites, and growth stages, although the variations were more prominent among the growth stages.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.212-218
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• 1998

An obligately methylotrophic bacterium which produces extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) was isolated through methanol-enrichment culture technique. The isolate was aerobic, nonmotile, and gram negative rod and exibited catalase, but no oxidase, activity. Plasmid, carotenoid, and poly-${\beta}$-hydroxybutyric acid were not found. The guanine plus cytosine content of DNA was 52-56%. The isolate was found to grow only on methanol and monomethylamine. Growth was optimal ($t_d=2.4h$) at $35^{\circ}C$ and pH 6.5 in a mineral medium containing 0.5% (v/v) methanol, 25 mM phosphate, and 0.212% ammonium sulfate. Methanol was assimilated through the ribulose monophosphate pathway. Maximun amount of EPS was produced in cells growing at the mid-stationary growth phase at $30^{\circ}C$ in a mineral medium (PH 6.5) containing 1.0% (v/v) methanol in the CIN ratio of 54.7. Thin-layer chromatographic and high performance liquid chromatographic analysis revealed that the EPS was composed of glucose and galactose. EPS which was not treated with ethanol (Pbe) exhibited stable viscosity under various concentrations of salts and temperatures hut showed high viscosity at low pH. EPS precipitated with ethanol (Pae) was found to be more stable in viscosity than the Pbe at various salt concentrations, temperatures, and pH. The Pae also exhibited higher viscosity than the Pbe and xanthan gum. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the lyophilized Pbe and Pae have a multi-layered structure and a structure of thick fibers, respectively.

• BMB Reports
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.695-702
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• 2005

The groESL bicistronic operon of a restricted facultative methylotrophic bacterium Methylovorus sp. strain SS1 DSM 11726 was cloned and characterized. It was found to consist of two ORFs encoding proteins with molecular masses of 11,395 and 57,396 daltons, which showed a high degree of homology to other bacterial GroES and GroEL proteins. The genes were clustered in the transcription order groES-groEL. Northern blot analyses suggested that the groESL operon is transcribed as a bicistronic 2.2-kb mRNA, the steady-state level of which was markedly increased by temperature elevation. Primer extension analysis demonstrated one potential transcription start site preceding the groESL operon, which is located 100bp upstream of the groES start codon. The transcription start site was preceded by a putative promoter region highly homologous to the consensus sequences of Escherichia coli ${\sigma}^{32}$-type heat shock promoter, which functioned under both normal and heat shock conditions in E. coli. Heat shock mRNA was maximally produced by Methylovorus sp. strain SS1 approximately 10min after increasing the temperature from 30 to $42^{\circ}C$. The groESL operon was also induced by hydrogen peroxide or salt shock.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.819-825
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• 2002

Methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) is a key enzyme in the process of methanol oxidation in methylotrophic bacteria. However, information on MDH genes from genus Methylobacillus is limited. In this study, a 6.5-kb HindIII DNA fragment of Methylobacillus sp. SK-5 chromosomal DNA was isolated from the genomic library of the strain by using a degenerate oligonucleotide probe that was designed based on JV-terminal amino acid sequence of the MDH $\alpha$ subunit purified from the strain. Molecular analysis of the fragment revealed four tightly clustered genes (mxaFJGI) involved in the methanol oxidation. The first and fourth genes were very similar to mxaF (77% identity for nucleotides an 78% identity for amino acids) and mxaF (67% Identity for nucleotides and 68% Identity for amino acids) genes, respectively, from Methylovorus sp. SSI. Genes mxaF and mxaI encode $\alpha$ and $\beta$ subunits of MDH, respectively. The two subunits were identified from purified MDH from Methylobacillus sp. SK-5. A dendrogram constructed by comparison of amino acid sequences of MDH u subunits suggests that MxaF from Methylobacillus sp. SK-5 belongs to a subfamily cluster of MDH u subunits from $\beta$-subgroup Proteobacteria. The subfamily cluster is separated from the other subfamily that consists of $\beta$- and $\gamma$-subgroup Proteobacteria. This study provided information on mn genes from a methylotrophic bacterium in $\beta$-subgroup Proteobacteria, which would aid to better develop a gene probe to detect one-carbon metabolizing bacteria.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.391-398
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• 1999

A methylotrophic actinomycetes strain MO-16, which produce the antimicrobial compound, was isolated from soil and supposed as Amycolatopsis sp. based on taxonomic studies. The cell-free extract of methanol-grown strain MO-16 showed dehydrogenase activity for methanol and formaldehyde when various electron acceptors were added for oxidation. On the other hand, methanol did not affect the production of antimicrobial compounds, and organic nitrogen sources such as corn steep liquor and peptone were better than inorganic nitrogen sources. These compounds showed broad antimicrobial spectrum to the tested strains such as bacteria and yeast. The antimicrobial comounds were very stable under heat(121$^{\circ}C$), acid(pH2.0), alkali(pH11.0) treatments. These compounds were isolated by ethylacetate extract, silica gel column chromatography and reverse phase HPLC. Two compounds(peak 1 and 2) were detected as antimicrobial compounds through the HPLC analysis. The peak 2 was purified as a single compound and revealed a 98% purity.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.235-244
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• 2004

In this study, we compared the levels of methylotrophic bacterial community diversity in the leaf samples of 19 rice cultivars collected from three regions of Korea. Nineteen pink pigmented isolates showing characteristic growth on methanol were obtained. Physiological and biochemical characters of each isolate were examined according to methods described in Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology. When phylotypes were defined by performing numerical analysis of 37 characteristics, four distinct clusters were formed. The two reference strains, Methylobacterium extorquens AM1 and Methylobacterium fujisawaense KACC10744 were found to group under cluster IV and cluster III respectively. Cluster I diverged on the basis of nitrate reduction and four isolates showed tolerance upto 0.5 M NaCl concentrations. Two strains in cluster I and III were found to possess methane utilizing properties. Most of the isolates in all the four clusters utilized monosaccharides, disaccharide and polyols as carbon source. When the isolates were subjected for indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) analysis in the presence of L-tryptophan, only 8 isolates exhibited IAA production. In addition, the nitrogen source in the medium was found to influence the IAA production. Addition of $(NH_4)_2SO_4$ in the medium led to a 2 to 30 fold increase in the indole synthesis. However, $KNO_3$, $NH_4NO_3$ and $NH_4Cl$ substitution did not significantly stimulate the synthesis of IAA in the growth medium. Result of gnotobiotic root elongation assay significantly increased roots and shoots lengths, and number of lateral roots, which is mediated by IAA production in the culture medium. The rice seedlings primary roots from seeds treated with methylotrophic isolates were on average 27 to 56% longer than the roots from seeds treated with the uninoculated seeds. In addition, application of different high concentrations of authentic IAA ($400g\;mL^{-1}$) to roots of rice seedlings inhibited root growth. However, the IAA concentration from 10 to $200g\;mL^{-1}$, IAA promoted root growth of rice seedlings. These results suggest that bacterial IAA plays a major role in the development of the host plant root system.