Identification of a Novel N-Acyl Homoserine Lactone Synthase, AhyI, in Aeromonas hydrophila and Structural Basis for Its Substrate Specificity.

In the Gram-negative bacterium Aeromonas hydrophila, N-acyl homoserine lactone (AHL)-mediated quorum sensing (QS) influences pathogenicity, protein secretion, and motility. However, the catalytic mechanism of AHL biosynthesis and the structural basis and substrate specificity for AhyI members remain unclear. In this study, we cloned the ahyI gene from the isolate A. hydrophila HX-3, and the overexpressed AhyI protein was confirmed to produce six types of AHLs by ultraperformance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) analysis, contrasting with previous reports that AhyI only produces N-butanoyl-l-homoserine lactone (C4-HSL) and N-hexanoyl-l-homoserine lactone (C6-HSL). The results of an in vitro biosynthetic assay showed that purified AhyI can catalyze the formation of C4-HSL using S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) and butyryl-acyl carrier protein (ACP) as substrates and indicated that the fatty acyl substrate used in AhyI-mediated AHL synthesis is derived from acyl-ACP rather than acyl-CoA. The kinetic data of AhyI using butyryl-ACP as an acyl substrate indicated that the catalytic efficiency of the A. hydrophila HX-3 AhyI enzyme is within an order of magnitude compared to other LuxI homologues. In this study, for the first time, the tertiary structural modeling results of AhyI and those of molecular docking and structural and functional analyses showed the importance of several crucial residues, as well as the secondary structure with respect to acylation. A Phe125-Phe152 clamp grasps the terminal methyl group to assist in stabilizing the long acyl chains in a putative binding pocket. The stacking interactions within a strong hydrophobic environment, a hydrogen-bonding network, and a ß bulge presumably stabilize the ACP acyl chain for the attack of the SAM α-amine toward the thioester carbon, offering a relatively reasonable explanation for how AhyI can synthesize AHLs with diverse acyl-chain lengths. Moreover, Trp34 participates in forming the binding pocket for C4-ACP and becomes ordered upon SAM binding, providing a good basis for catalysis. The novel finding that AhyI can produce both short- and long-chain AHLs enhances current knowledge regarding the variety of AHLs produced by this enzyme. These structural data are expected to serve as a molecular rationale for AHL synthesis by AhyI.

A colorimetric detection of acrylamide in potato chips based on nucleophile-initiated thiol-ene Michael addition.

Acrylamide (AA), a neurotoxin and a potential carcinogen, has been found in various thermally processed foods such as potato chips, biscuits, and coffee. Simple, cost-effective, and sensitive methods for the rapid detection of AA are needed to ensure food safety. Herein, a novel colorimetric method was proposed for the visual detection of AA based on a nucleophile-initiated thiol-ene Michael addition reaction. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were aggregated by glutathione (GSH) because of a ligand-replacement, accompanied by a color change from red to purple. In the presence of AA, after the thiol-ene Michael addition reaction between GSH and AA with the catalysis of a nucleophile, the sulfhydryl group of GSH was consumed by AA, which hindered the subsequent ligand-replacement and the aggregation of AuNPs. Therefore, the concentration of AA could be determined by the visible color change caused by dispersion/aggregation of AuNPs. This new method showed high sensitivity with a linear range from 0.1 µmol L(-1) to 80 µmol L(-1) and a detection limit of 28.6 nmol L(-1), and especially revealed better selectivity than the fluorescence sensing method reported previously. Moreover, this new method was used to detect AA in potato chips with a satisfactory result in comparison with the standard methods based on chromatography, which indicated that the colorimetric method can be expanded for the rapid detection of AA in thermally processed foods.