• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.316-321
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• 1992

Catechol 2, 3-dioxygenase (C230) catalyses the oxidative ring cleavage of catechol to 2-hydroxymuconic semialdehyde. This is one of the key reactions in the metabolism of the widespresd pollutant aniline. We have cloned a gene encoding C230 from cells of the aniline degrading bacteria, Pseudomonas acidovorance KCTC2494 strain and expressed in E. coli, A 11.3-kilobase Sau3A partial digested DNA fragment from KCTC2494 was cloned into phagemid vector pBluescript and designated as pLP201. The C230 gene was mapped to a 2.8-kb region, and the derection of transcription was determined. The cloned C230 gene contains its own promoter which can be recognized and employed by E. coli transcriptional apparatus. C230 activities of subclones were identified by enzyme assay and activity staining. The T7 RNA promoter/polymerase system and maxicell analysis showed that a polypeptide with Mw of 35 kDa is the C230 gene product.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.743-748
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• 1996

For the biological treatment of phenolic resin wastewater containing phenol and formaldehyde, a phenol-degrading yeast was isolated from the papermill sludge, and then identified as Candida tropicalis PW-51 according to morphological, physiological and biochemical properties. The strain was able to degrade high phenol concentrations up to 2,000mg/l within 58 hours in batch cultures. Phenol-degrading efficiency by the strain was maximum at the culture conditions of a final concentration of 9 $\times$ 10$^{6}$ cells/ml, 30$\circ$C and pH 7.0. The mean degradation rate of phenol was highest at 45.5mg/l/h in 1,000mg/l phenol from 500mg/l to 2,000mg/l phenol. Because the enzyme activity of catechol 1,2-dioxygenase increased in the course of degradation of phenol, it seems that this strain degrades phenol via the ortho-cleavage of benzene ring. The isolate C. tropicalis PW-51 could be effectively used for the biological treatment of phenolic resin wastewater.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.237-241
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• 1997

Two isolated strains, Comamonas testosteroni CPW301 and Arthrobacter ureafaciens CPR706, were able to use 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) as a sole carbon and energy source. CPW301 was found to degrade 4-CP via a meta-cleavage pathway in which the chloro-substituent was eliminated even when 4-chlorocatechol was cleaved by the catechol 2, 3-dioxygenase. In contrast, CPR706 removed chloride from 4-CP prior to the ring-fission reaction, producing hydroquinone as a transient intermediate during 4-CP degradation. CPR706 exhibited much higher tolerance for 4-CP than CPW301, which was indicated by the maximum degradable concentration and degradation rate.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.7
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• pp.875-885
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• 2023

Volatile organic compounds such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and isomers of xylenes (BTEX) constitute a group of monoaromatic compounds that are found in petroleum and have been classified as priority pollutants. In this study, based on its newly sequenced genome, we reclassified the previously identified BTEX-degrading thermotolerant strain Ralstonia sp. PHS1 as Cupriavidus cauae PHS1. Also presented are the complete genome sequence of C. cauae PHS1, its annotation, species delineation, and a comparative analysis of the BTEX-degrading gene cluster. Moreover, we cloned and characterized the BTEX-degrading pathway genes in C. cauae PHS1, the BTEX-degrading gene cluster of which consists of two monooxygenases and meta-cleavage genes. A genome-wide investigation of the PHS1 coding sequence and the experimentally confirmed regioselectivity of the toluene monooxygenases and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase allowed us to reconstruct the BTEX degradation pathway. The degradation of BTEX begins with aromatic ring hydroxylation, followed by ring cleavage, and eventually enters the core carbon metabolism. The information provided here on the genome and BTEX-degrading pathway of the thermotolerant strain C. cauae PHS1 could be useful in constructing an efficient production host.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.129-134
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• 1993

The pchAB genes of Pseudomonas sp. DJ-12 produce the enzymes of 4-chlorobipheny] (4CB) dioxygenase and dihydrodiol dehydrogenase which act on the first and second steps in degradation of 4CB and biphenyl. The genes were cloned in E coli XLI-Blue. The pcbAB genes of about 2.2 kb in size were contained in the pCUlO1 hybrid plasmid in the cloned cell of CUIOI. The genes were found to have their own promoter and three restriction sites for HindlII. 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl was detected by the resting cell assay, as the metabolite transformed from biphenyl by the cloned cell of CUIOI. This means that the pcbAB genes are well expressed in E. coli. But dechlorination was unlikely involved in the pchAB gene expression but was believed to occur by functioning on 4CBA produced after ring-cleavage of 4CB.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.68-73
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• 1995

Pseudomonas sp. P20 was shown to be capable of degrading biphenyl and 4-chlorobiphenyl (4CB) to produce the corresponding benzoic acids wnich were not further degraded. But the potential of the strain for biodegradation of 4CB was shown to be excellent. The pcbA, B, C and D genes responsible for the aromatic ring-cleavage of biphenyl and 4CB degradation were cloned from the chromosomal DNA of the strain. In this study, the pebC and D genes specifying degradation of 2, 3-dihydroxybiphenyl (2, 3-DHBP) produced from biphenyl by the pebAB-encoded enzymes were cloned by using pBluescript SK(＋) as a vector. From the pCK102 (9.3 kb) containing pebC and D genes, pCK1022 inserted with a EcoRI-HindIII DNA fragment (4.1 kb) carrying pebC and D and a pCK1092 inserted with EcoRI-XbaI fragment (1.95 kb) carrying pebC were constructed. The expression of pcbC and D' in E. coli CK102 and pebC in E. coli CK1092 was examined by gas chromatography and UV-vis spectrophotometry. 2.3-dihydroxybiphenyl was readily degraded to produce meta-cleavage product (MCP) by E. coli CK102 after incubation for 10 min, and then only benzoic acid(BA) was detected in the 24-h old culture. The MCP was detected in E. coli CK1022 containing pebC and 0 genes (by the resting cells assay) for up to 3 h after incubation and then diminished completely in 8 h, whereas the MCP accumulated in the E. coli CK1092 culture even after 6 h of incubation. The 2, 3-DHBP dioxygenases (product of pebC gene) produced by E. coli CK1, CK102, CK1023, and CK1092 strains were measured by native PAGE analysis to be about 250 kDa in molecular weight, which were about same as those of Pseudomonas sp. DJ-12, P. pseudoa1caligenes KF707, and P. putida OU83.

• 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.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.1943-1950
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• 2016

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are commonly present xenobiotics in natural and contaminated soils. We studied three (phenanthrene, naphthalene, and biphenyl) xenobiotics, catabolism, and associated proteins in Sphingobium chungbukense DJ77 by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) analysis. Comparative analysis of the growth-dependent 2-DE results revealed that the intensity of 10 protein spots changed identically upon exposure to the three xenobiotics. Among the upregulated proteins, five protein spots, which were putative dehydrogenase, dioxygenase, and hydrolase and involved in the catabolic pathway of xenobiotic degradation, were induced. Identification of these major multifunctional proteins allowed us to map the multiple catabolic pathway for phenanthrene, naphthalene, and biphenyl degradation. A part of the initial diverse catabolism was converged into the catechol degradation branch. Detection of intermediates from 2,3-dihydroxy-biphenyl degradation to pyruvate and acetyl-CoA production by LC/MS analysis showed that ring-cleavage products of PAHs entered the tricarboxylic acid cycle, and were mineralized in S. chungbukense DJ77. These results suggest that S. chungbukense DJ77 completely degrades a broad range of PAHs via a multiple catabolic pathway.