The CpxRA two-component system is involved in the maintenance of the integrity of the cell envelope in the rumen bacterium Mannheimia succiniciproducens.

In this study, we characterized the CpxRA two-component signal transduction system of the rumen bacterium Mannheimia succiniciproducens. The truncated form of the CpxA sensor kinase protein without its transmembrane domain was able to autophosphorylate and transphosphorylate the CpxR response regulator protein in vitro. We identified 152 putative target genes for the Cpx system in M. succiniciproducens, which were differentially expressed by more than twofold upon overexpression of the CpxR protein. Genes of a putative 16-gene operon related to the cell wall and lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis were induced strongly upon CpxR overexpression. The promoter region of the first gene of this operon, wecC encoding UDP-N-acetyl-D-mannosaminuronate dehydrogenase, was analyzed and found to contain a sequence homologous to the CpxR box of Escherichia coli. An electrophoretic mobility shift assay showed that the phosphorylated CpxR proteins were able to bind specifically to PCR-amplified DNA fragments containing the promoter sequence of wecC. Furthermore, a cpxR-disrupted mutant strain exhibited increased envelope permeability compared with a wild-type strain. These results suggest that the Cpx system of M. succiniciproducens is involved in the maintenance of the integrity of the cell envelope.

Production of 4-hydroxybutyric acid by metabolically engineered Mannheimia succiniciproducens and its conversion to γ-butyrolactone by acid treatment.

γ-Butyrolactone (GBL) is an important four carbon (C4) chemical, which has a wide range of industrial applications. GBL can be produced by acid treatment of 4-hydroxybutyric acid (4-HB), which is a derivative of succinic acid. Heterologous metabolic pathways were designed and established in succinic acid overproducing Mannheimia succiniciproducens LPK7 (ldhA pflD pta ackA mutant) by the introduction of heterologous genes that encode succinyl-CoA synthetase, CoA-dependent succinate semialdehyde dehydrogenase, and either 4-hydroxybutyrate dehydrogenase in LPK7 (p3S4CD) or succinate semialdehyde reductase in LPK7 (p3SYCD). Fed-batch cultures of LPK7 (p3S4CD) and LPK7 (p3SYCD) resulted in the production of 6.37 and 6.34 g/L of 4-HB (molar yields of 0.143 and 0.139), respectively. Finally, GBL was produced by acid treatment of the 4-HB obtained from the fermentation broth with molar yield of 0.673. This study demonstrates that 4-HB, and potentially other four carbon platform chemicals, can be produced by the engineered rumen bacterium M. succiniciproducens.

Cas5d processes pre-crRNA and is a member of a larger family of CRISPR RNA endonucleases.

Small RNAs derived from clustered, regularly interspaced, short palindromic repeat (CRISPR) loci in bacteria and archaea are involved in an adaptable and heritable gene-silencing pathway. Resistance to invasive genetic material is conferred by the incorporation of short DNA sequences derived from this material into the genome as CRISPR spacer elements separated by short repeat sequences. Processing of long primary transcripts (pre-crRNAs) containing these repeats by a CRISPR-associated (Cas) RNA endonuclease generates the mature effector RNAs that target foreign nucleic acid for degradation. Here we describe functional studies of a Cas5d ortholog, and high-resolution structural studies of a second Cas5d family member, demonstrating that Cas5d is a sequence-specific RNA endonuclease that cleaves CRISPR repeats and is thus responsible for processing of pre-crRNA. Analysis of the structural homology of Cas5d with the previously characterized Cse3 protein allows us to model the interaction of Cas5d with its RNA substrate and conclude that it is a member of a larger family of CRISPR RNA endonucleases.

Distinct roles of ß-galactosidase paralogues of the rumen bacterium Mannheimia succiniciproducens.

Mannheimia succiniciproducens, a rumen bacterium belonging to the family Pasteurellaceae, has two putative ß-galactosidase genes, bgaA and bgaB, encoding polypeptides whose deduced amino acid sequences share 56% identity with each other and show approximately 30% identity to the Escherichia coli gene for LacZ. The M. succiniciproducens bgaA (MsbgaA) gene-deletion mutant was not able to grow on lactose as the sole carbon source, suggesting its essential role in lactose metabolism, whereas the MsbgaB gene-deletion mutant did not show any growth defect on a lactose medium. Furthermore, the expression of the MsbgaA gene was induced by the addition of lactose in the growth medium, whereas the MsbgaB gene was constitutively expressed independently of a carbon source. Biochemical characterization of the recombinant proteins revealed that MsBgaA is more efficient than MsBgaB in hydrolyzing o-nitrophenyl-ß-d-galactopyranoside and p-nitrophenyl-ß-d-galactopyranoside. MsBgaA was highly specific for the hydrolysis of lactose, with a catalytic efficiency of 46.9 s(-1) mM(-1). However, MsBgaB was more efficient for the hydrolysis of lactulose than lactose, and the catalytic efficiency was 10.0 s(-1) mM(-1). Taken together, our results suggest that the ß-galactosidase paralogues of M. succiniciproducens BgaA and BgaB play a critical role in lactose metabolism and in an unknown but likely specific function for rumen bacteria, respectively.

Development of sucrose-utilizing Escherichia coli K-12 strain by cloning ß-fructofuranosidases and its application for L-threonine production.

Sucrose is one of the most promising carbon sources for industrial fermentation. To achieve sucrose catabolism, the sucrose utilization operons have been introduced into microorganisms that are not able to utilize sucrose. However, the rates of growth and sucrose uptake of these engineered strains were relatively low to be successfully employed for industrial applications. Here, we report a practical example of developing sucrose-utilizing microorganisms using Escherichia coli K-12 as a model system. The sucrose utilizing ability was acquired by introducing only ß-fructofuranosidase from three different sucrose-utilizing organisms (Mannheimia succiniciproducens, E. coli W, and Bacillus subtilis). Among them, the M. succiniciproducens ß-fructofuranosidase was found to be the most effective for sucrose utilization. Analyses of the underlying mechanism revealed that sucrose was hydrolyzed into glucose and fructose in the extracellular space and both liberated hexoses could be transported by their respective uptake systems in E. coli K-12. To prove that this system can also be applied for the production of useful metabolites, the M. succiniciproducens ß-fructofuranosidase was introduced into the engineered L-threonine production strain of E. coli K-12. This recombinant strain was able to produce 51.1 g/L L-threonine by fed-batch culture, resulting in an overall yield of 0.284 g L-threonine per g sucrose. This simple approach to make E. coli K-12 to acquire sucrose-utilizing ability and its successful biotechnological application can be employed to develop sustainable bioprocesses using renewable biomass.

Proteome-based physiological analysis of the metabolically engineered succinic acid producer Mannheimia succiniciproducens LPK7.

Using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry, the proteome of a metabolically engineered succinic acid-overproducing bacterium, Mannheimia succiniciproducens LPK7, was examined and compared with that of its wild type strain, MBEL55E, to elucidate the physiological and metabolic changes responsible for succinic acid overproduction and cell growth. Comparative proteomic studies clearly showed that the expression levels of enzymes involved in the ATP formation and consumption (AtpD, Ppa, SerS, ProS, Pnp, PotD, MalK, RbsB, and TbpA), pyruvate metabolism (AceF and Lpd), glycolysis (GapA, Pgk, Fba, and TpiA), and amino acid biosynthesis (Asd, DapA, DapD, Gdh, ArgD, and ArgG) varied significantly in the LPK7 strain compared with those in the MBEL55E strain. Based on the comparative proteome profiling, the formation of pyruvic acid, a newly formed byproduct in the engineered LPK7 strain, could be reduced by adding into the culture medium pantothenate and L: -cysteine, which serve as precursors of CoA biosynthesis.

Genome-based metabolic engineering of Mannheimia succiniciproducens for succinic acid production.

Succinic acid is a four-carbon dicarboxylic acid produced as one of the fermentation products of anaerobic metabolism. Based on the complete genome sequence of a capnophilic succinic acid-producing rumen bacterium, Mannheimia succiniciproducens, gene knockout studies were carried out to understand its anaerobic fermentative metabolism and consequently to develop a metabolically engineered strain capable of producing succinic acid without by-product formation. Among three different CO2-fixing metabolic reactions catalyzed by phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) carboxykinase, PEP carboxylase, and malic enzyme, PEP carboxykinase was the most important for the anaerobic growth of M. succiniciproducens and succinic acid production. Oxaloacetate formed by carboxylation of PEP was found to be converted to succinic acid by three sequential reactions catalyzed by malate dehydrogenase, fumarase, and fumarate reductase. Major metabolic pathways leading to by-product formation were successfully removed by disrupting the ldhA, pflB, pta, and ackA genes. This metabolically engineered LPK7 strain was able to produce 13.4 g/liter of succinic acid from 20 g/liter glucose with little or no formation of acetic, formic, and lactic acids, resulting in a succinic acid yield of 0.97 mol succinic acid per mol glucose. Fed-batch culture of M. succiniciproducens LPK7 with intermittent glucose feeding allowed the production of 52.4 g/liter of succinic acid, with a succinic acid yield of 1.16 mol succinic acid per mol glucose and a succinic acid productivity of 1.8 g/liter/h, which should be useful for industrial production of succinic acid.