• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.240-245
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• 2000

Two genes encoding maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (SaMTS) and maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (SaMTH) were isolated from a hyperthermophilic microorganism, Sulfolobus acidocaldarius (ATCC 49462). ORFs of the SaMTS and SaMTH genes are 2,163 and 1,671 bp long and encode 720 and 556 amino acid residues, respectively. A bifunctional fusion enzyme (SaMTSH) was constructed through the gene fusion of SaMTS and SaMTH. Recombinant SaMTS, SaMTH, and SaMTSH fusion enzyme were overexpressed in E. coli BL21. SaMTS and SaMTH produced trehalose and maltotriose from maltopentaose in a sequential reaction. SaMTSH fusion enzyme catalyzed the sequential reaction in which the formation of maltotriosyltrehalose was followed by hydrolysis leading to the synthesis of trehalose and maltotriose. The SaMTSH fusion enzyme showed the highest activity at pH 5.0-5.5 and $70-75^{\circ}C$. SaMTS, SaMTH, and SaMTSH fusion enzyme were active in soluble starch, which resulted in the production of trehalose.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.1544-1549
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• 2008

MhMTS and MhMTH are trehalose ($\alpha$-D-glucopyranosyl-[1,1]-$\alpha$-D-glucopyranose) biosynthesis genes of the thermophilic microorganism Metallosphaera hakonensis, and encode a maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (MhMTS) and a maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (MhMTH), respectively. In this study, the two genes were fused in-frame in a recombinant DNA, and expressed in Escherichia coli to produce a bifunctional fusion enzyme, MhMTSH. Similar to the two-step reactions with MhMTS and MhMTH, the fusion enzyme catalyzed the sequential reactions on maltopentaose, maltotriosyltrehalose formation, and following hydrolysis, producing trehalose and maltotriose. Optimum conditions for the fusion enzyme-catalyzed trehalose synthesis were around $70^{\circ}C$ and pH 5.0-6.0. The MhMTSH fusion enzyme exhibited a high degree of thermostability, retaining 80% of the activity when pre-incubated at $70^{\circ}C$ for 48 h. The stability was gradually abolished by incubating the fusion enzyme at above $80^{\circ}C$. The MhMTSH fusion enzyme was active on various sizes of maltooligosaccharides, extending its substrate specificity to soluble starch, the most abundant natural source of trehalose production.

• BMB Reports
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.27-32
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• 2014

Plant abiotic stress tolerance has been modulated by engineering the trehalose synthesis pathway. However, many stress-tolerant plants that have been genetically engineered for the trehalose synthesis pathway also show abnormal development. The metabolic intermediate trehalose 6-phosphate has the potential to cause aberrations in growth. To avoid growth inhibition by trehalose 6-phosphate, we used a gene that encodes a bifunctional in-frame fusion (BvMTSH) of maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (BvMTS) and maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (BvMTH) from the nonpathogenic bacterium Brevibacterium helvolum. BvMTS converts maltooligosaccharides into maltooligosyltrehalose and BvMTH releases trehalose. Transgenic rice plants that over-express BvMTSH under the control of the constitutive rice cytochrome c promoter (101MTSH) or the ABA-inducible Ai promoter (105MTSH) show enhanced drought tolerance without growth inhibition. Moreover, 101MTSH and 105MTSH showed an ABA-hyposensitive phenotype in the roots. Our results suggest that over-expression of BvMTSH enhances drought-stress tolerance without any abnormal growth and showes ABA hyposensitive phenotype in the roots.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.579-586
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• 2010

A genomic DNA fragment encoding a putative maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (NfMTS) for trehalose biosynthesis was cloned by the degenerate primer-PCR from cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme. The ORF of NfMTS was 2,799 bp in length and encoded 933 amino acid residues constituting a 106.6 kDa protein. The deduced amino acid sequence of NfMTS contained 4 regions highly conserved for MTSs. By expression of NfMTS in E. coli, it was demonstrated that the recombinant protein catalyzed the conversion of maltohexaose to maltooligosyl trehalose. The $K_m$ of the recombinant enzyme for maltohexaose was 1.87 mM and the optimal temperature and pH of the recombinant enzyme was at $50^{\circ}C$ and 7.0, respectively. The expression of MTS of N. flagelliforme was upregulated, and both trehalose and sucrose contents increased significantly in N. flagelliforme during drought stress. However, trehalose accumulated in small quantities (about 0.36 mg/g DW), whereas sucrose accumulated in high quantities (about 0.90 mg/g DW), indicating both trehalose and sucrose were involved in dehydration stress response in N. flagelliforme and sucrose might act as a chemical chaperone rather than trehalose did during dehydration stress.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.830-837
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• 2011

A genomic DNA fragment encoding a putative maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (NfMTH) for trehalose biosynthesis was cloned by the degenerate primer- PCR from cyanobacterium Nostoc flagelliforme. The ORF of NfMTH is 1,848 bp in length and encodes 615 amino acid residues, constituting a 70 kDa protein. The deduced amino acid sequence of NfMTH contains 4 regions highly conserved for MTHs. By expression of NfMTH in E. coli, the function of this protein was demonstrated, where the recombinant protein catalyzed the hydrolysis of maltooligosyl trehalose to trehalose. The expressions of MTH and maltooligosyltrehalose synthase in the filaments of N. flagelliforme were upregulated significantly under dehydration stress, NaCl stress, and high temperature-drought stress. The accumulations of both trehalose and sucrose in the filaments of N. flagelliforme were also improved significantly under the above stresses. Furthermore, trehalose accumulated in smaller quantities than sucrose did when under NaCl stress, but accumulated in higher quantities than sucrose did when under temperature-drought stress, indicating that both trehalose and sucrose were involved in N. flagelliforme adapted to stresses and different strategies conducted in response to various stress conditions.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.123-129
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• 2007

The trehalose $({\alpha}-D-glucopyranosyl-[1,1]-{\alpha}-D-glucopyranose)$ biosynthesis genes MhMTS and MhMTH, encoding a maltooligosyltrehalose synthase (MhMTS) and a maltooligosyltrehalose trehalohydrolase (MhMTH), respectively, have been cloned from the hyperthermophilic archaebacterium Metallosphaera hakonesis. The ORF of MhMTS is 2,142 bp long, and encodes 713 amino acid residues constituting a 83.8 kDa protein. MhMTH is 1,677 bp long, and encodes 558 amino acid residues constituting a 63.7 kDa protein. The deduced amino acid sequences of MhMTS and MhMTH contain four regions highly conserved for MTSs and three for MTHs that are known to constitute substrate-binding sites of starch-hydrolyzing enzymes. Recombinant proteins obtained by expressing the MhMTS and MhMTH genes in E. coli catalyzed a sequential reaction converting maltooligosaccharides to produce trehalose. Optimum pH of the MhMTS/MhMTH enzyme reaction was around 5.0 and optimum temperature was around 70 C. Trehalose-producing activity of the MhMTS/ MhMTH was notably stable, retaining 80% of the activity after preincubation of the enzyme mixture at $70^{\circ}C$ for 48 h, but was gradually abolished by incubating at above $85^{\circ}C$. Addition of thermostable $4-{\alpha}-glucanotransferase$ increased the yield of trehalose production from maltopentaose by 10%. The substrate specificity of the MhMTS/MhMTH-catalyzed reaction was extended to soluble starch, the most abundant maltodextrin in nature.