Two binding proteins of the ABC transporter that confers growth of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis ATCC27673 on ß-mannan possess distinct manno-oligosaccharide-binding profiles.

Human gut bifidobacteria rely on ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters for oligosaccharide uptake. Multiple oligosaccharide-specific solute-binding protein (SBP) genes are occasionally associated with a single ABC transporter, but the significance of this multiplicity remains unclear. Here, we characterize BlMnBP1 and BlMnBP2, the two SBPs associated to the ß-manno-oligosaccharide (MnOS) ABC transporter in Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis. Despite similar overall specificity and preference to mannotriose (Kd ≈80 nM), affinity of BlMnBP1 is up to 2570-fold higher for disaccharides than BlMnBP2. Structural analysis revealed a substitution of an asparagine that recognizes the mannosyl at position 2 in BlMnBP1, by a glycine in BlMnBP2, which affects substrate affinity. Both substitution types occur in bifidobacterial SBPs, but BlMnBP1-like variants prevail in human gut isolates. B. animalis subsp. lactis ATCC27673 showed growth on gluco and galactomannans and was able to outcompete a mannan-degrading Bacteroides ovatus strain in co-cultures, attesting the efficiency of this ABC uptake system. By contrast, a strain that lacks this transporter failed to grow on mannan. This study highlights SBP diversification as a possible strategy to modulate oligosaccharide uptake preferences of bifidobacterial ABC-transporters during adaptation to specific ecological niches. Efficient metabolism of galactomannan by distinct bifidobacteria, merits evaluating this plant glycan as a potential prebiotic.

Deletion of a cytotoxic, N-terminal putatitive signal peptide results in a significant increase in production yields in Escherichia coli and improved specific activity of Cel12A from Rhodothermus marinus.

The thermostable cellulase Cel12A from Rhodothermus marinus was produced at extremely low levels when expressed in Escherichia coli and was cytotoxic to the cells. In addition, severe aggregation occurred when moderately high concentrations of the enzyme were heat-treated at 65 degrees C, the growth optimum of R. marinus. Sequence analysis revealed that the catalytic module of this enzyme is preceded by a typical linker sequence and a highly hydrophobic putative signal peptide. Two deletion mutants lacking this hydrophobic region were cloned and successfully expressed in E. coli. These results indicated that the N-terminal putative signal peptide was responsible for the toxicity of the full-length enzyme in the host organism. This was further corroborated by cloning and expressing the hydrophobic N-terminal domain in E. coli, which resulted in extensive cell lysis. The deletion mutants, made up of either the catalytic module of Cel12A or the catalytic module and the putative linker sequence, were characterised and their properties compared to those of the full-length enzyme. The specific activity of the mutants was approximately three-fold higher than that of the full-length enzyme. Both mutant proteins were highly thermostable, with half-lives exceeding 2 h at 90 degrees C and unfolding temperatures up to 103 degrees C.

Carbohydrate-binding modules from a thermostable Rhodothermus marinus xylanase: cloning, expression and binding studies.

The two N-terminally repeated carbohydrate-binding modules (CBM4-1 and CBM4-2) encoded by xyn10A from Rhodothermus marinus were produced in Escherichia coli and purified by affinity chromatography. Binding assays to insoluble polysaccharides showed binding to insoluble xylan and to phosphoric-acid-swollen cellulose but not to Avicel or crystalline cellulose. Binding to insoluble substrates was significantly enhanced by the presence of Na(+) and Ca(2+) ions. The binding affinities for soluble polysaccharides were tested by affinity electrophoresis; strong binding occurred with different xylans and beta-glucan. CBM4-2 displayed a somewhat higher binding affinity than CBM4-1 for both soluble and insoluble substrates but both had similar specificities. Binding to short oligosaccharides was measured by NMR; both modules bound with similar affinities. The binding of the modules was shown to be dominated by enthalpic forces. The binding modules did not contribute with any significant synergistic effects on xylan hydrolysis when incubated with a Xyn10A catalytic module. This is the first report of family 4 CBMs with affinity for both insoluble xylan and amorphous cellulose.