Impact of TiO2 nanoparticles on growth, biofilm formation, and flavin secretion in Shewanella oneidensis.

Understanding of nanoparticle impacts on critical bacteria functions allows us to gain a mechanistic understanding of toxicity and guides us toward design rules for creating safe nanomaterials. Herein, biofilm formation, a general bacteria function, and riboflavin secretion, a species-specific function, were monitored in Shewanella oneidensis, a metal reducing bacterium, following exposure to a variety of TiO2 nanoparticle types (synthesized, Aeroxide P25, and T-Eco). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images show that dosed nanoparticles are in close proximity to the bacteria, but they are not internalized. Using quartz crystal microbalance (QCM), it was revealed that S. oneidensis biofilm formation is slowed in the presence of nanoparticles. Though S. oneidensis grows more slowly in the presence of TiO2 nanoparticles, riboflavin secretion, a function related to the S. oneidensis metal reducing capacity, was increased significantly in a nanoparticle dose-dependent manner. Both changes in biofilm formation and riboflavin secretion are supported by changes in gene expression in nanoparticle-exposed S. oneidensis. This broad study of bacterial nanotoxicity, including use of sensitive analytical tools for functional assessments of biofilm formation, riboflavin secretion, and gene expression, has implications for total ecosystem health as the use of engineered nanoparticles grows.

The flavin inhibitor diphenyleneiodonium renders Trichomonas vaginalis resistant to metronidazole, inhibits thioredoxin reductase and flavin reductase, and shuts off hydrogenosomal enzymatic pathways.

Infections with the microaerophilic protozoan parasite Trichomonas vaginalis are commonly treated with metronidazole, a 5-nitroimidazole drug. Metronidazole is selectively toxic to microaerophiles and anaerobes because reduction at the drug's nitro group, which is a precondition for toxicity, occurs only quantitatively in these organisms. In our previous work we identified the flavin enzyme thioredoxin reductase as an electron donor to 5-nitroimidazole drugs in T. vaginalis and observed that highly metronidazole-resistant cell lines lack thioredoxin reductase and flavin reductase activities. In this study we added the flavin inhibitor diphenyleneiodonium (DPI) to T. vaginalis cultures in order to test our hypothesis that metronidazole reduction is catalyzed by flavin enzymes, e.g. thioredoxin reductase, and intracellular free flavins. Indeed, within hours, DPI rendered T. vaginalis insensitive to metronidazole concentrations as high as 1mM and prevented the formation of metronidazole adducts with proteins. Thioredoxin reductase activity was absent from DPI-treated cells and flavin reductase activity was sharply decreased. In addition, DPI-treated cells also upregulated the expression of antioxidant enzymes, i.e. thioredoxin peroxidases and superoxide dismutases, and displayed a fundamentally altered metabolism caused by inactivation of pyruvate:ferredoxin oxidoreductase (PFOR) and concomitant upregulation of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity. Thus, the disruption of the cellular flavin metabolism by DPI mediated metabolic steps which are similar to that of cells with metronidazole resistance induced in vitro. Finally, we present direct evidence that the increased expression of antioxidant enzymes is dispensable for acquiring resistance to metronidazole.

Novel ATP-binding and autophosphorylation activity associated with Arabidopsis and human cryptochrome-1.

Cryptochromes are blue-light photoreceptors sharing sequence similarity to photolyases, a class of flavoenzymes catalyzing repair of UV-damaged DNA via electron transfer mechanisms. Despite significant amino acid sequence similarity in both catalytic and cofactor-binding domains, cryptochromes lack DNA repair functions associated with photolyases, and the molecular mechanism involved in cryptochrome signaling remains obscure. Here, we report a novel ATP binding and autophosphorylation activity associated with Arabidopsis cry1 protein purified from a baculovirus expression system. Autophosphorylation occurs on serine residue(s) and is absent in preparations of cryptochrome depleted in flavin and/or misfolded. Autophosphorylation is stimulated by light in vitro and oxidizing agents that act as flavin antagonists prevent this stimulation. Human cry1 expressed in baculovirus likewise shows ATP binding and autophosphorylation activity, suggesting this novel enzymatic activity may be important to the mechanism of action of both plant and animal cryptochromes.

[Genetic control of riboflavin biosynthesis in Pichia guilliermondii yeasts. The detection of a new regulator gene RIB81]. / Geneticheskii kontrol' biosinteza riboflavina u drozhzhei Pichia guilliermondii. Obnaruzhenie novogo reguliatornogo gena RIN81.

The properties of mutants resistant to 7-methyl-8-trifluoromethyl-10-(1'-D-ribityl)-isoalloxazine (MTRY) were studied. The mutants were isolated from a genetic line of Pichia guilliermondii. Several of them were riboflavin overproducers and had derepressed flavinogenesis enzymes (GTP cyclohydrolase, 6.7-dimethyl-8-ribityllumazine synthase) in iron-rich medium. An additional derepression of these enzymes as well as derepression of riboflavin synthase occurred in iron-deficient medium. The characters "riboflavin oversynthesis" and "derepression of enzymes" were recessive in mutants of the 1st class, or dominant in those of the 2nd class. The hybrids of analogue-resistant strains of the 1st class with previously isolated regulatory mutants ribR (novel designation rib80) possessed the wild-type phenotype and were only capable of riboflavin overproduction under iron deficiency. Complementation analysis of the MTRY-resistant mutants showed that vitamin B2 oversynthesis and enzymes' derepression in these mutants are caused by impairment of a novel regulatory gene, RIB81. Thus, riboflavin biosynthesis in P. guilliermondii yeast is regulated at least by two genes of the negative action: RIB80 and RIB81. The meiotic segregants which contained rib80 and rib81 mutations did not show additivity in the action of the above regulatory genes. The hybrids of rib81 mutants with natural nonflavinogenic strain P. guilliermondii NF1453-1 were not capable of riboflavin oversythesis in the iron-rich medium. Apparently, the strain NF1453-1 contains an unaltered gene RIB81.

[Changes in the enzyme activity of flavinogenesis in the process of culturing the fungus Eremothecium ashbyii]. / Izmenenie aktivnosti nekotorykh fermentov flavinogeneza v protsesse kul'tivirovaniia griba Eremothecium ashbyii.

The activity of enzymes involved in the beginning (GTP cyclohydrolase) and terminal steps (riboflavin synthase EC 2.5.1.9, riboflavin kinase EC 2.7.1.26 and FMN adenyltransferase EC 2.7.7.2) of flavinogenesis was studied in the mycelium of Erenmothecium ashbyii of different age. The activity of GTP cyclohydrolas, riboflavin kinase and FMN adenyltransferase was low in the young mycelium and increased in the process of growth, which was accompanied by the acceleration of flavinogenesis. The activity of riboflavin synthase was high in the young mycelium and changed only slightly in the process of subsequent cultivation of the fungus. 8-Azaadenine and 8-hydroxyquinoline added to the young culture of E. ashbyii inhibited the flavinogenesis of the mycelium and the increase of the enzyme activity.