Biological Production of (S)-acetoin: A State-of-the-Art Review.

Acetoin is an important four-carbon compound that has many applications in foods, chemical synthesis, cosmetics, cigarettes, soaps, and detergents. Its stereoisomer (S)-acetoin, a high-value chiral compound, can also be used to synthesize optically active drugs, which could enhance targeting properties and reduce side effects. Recently, considerable progress has been made in the development of biotechnological routes for (S)-acetoin production. In this review, various strategies for biological (S)- acetoin production are summarized, and their constraints and possible solutions are described. Furthermore, future prospects of biological production of (S)-acetoin are discussed.

Simulated Protein Thermal Detection (SPTD) for Enzyme Thermostability Study and an Application Example for Pullulanase from Bacillus deramificans.

BACKGROUND: The relationship between protein structure and its bioactivity is one of the fundamental problems for protein engineering and pharmaceutical design. METHOD: A new method, called SPTD (Simulated Protein Thermal Detection), was proposed for studying and improving the thermal stability of enzymes. The method was based on the evidence observed by conducting the MD (Molecular Dynamics) simulation for all the atoms of an enzyme vibrating from the velocity at a room temperature (e.g., 25°C) to the desired working temperature (e.g., 65°C). According to the recorded MD trajectories and the coordinate deviations of the constituent residues under the two different temperatures, some new strategies have been found that are useful for both drug delivery and starch industry. CONCLUSION: The SPTD technique presented in this paper may become a very useful tool for pharmaceutical design and protein engineering.

Fabrication and Characterization of Graphene Microcrystal Prepared from Lignin Refined from Sugarcane Bagasse.

Graphene microcrystal (GMC) is a type of glassy carbon fabricated from lignin, in which the microcrystals of graphene are chemically bonded by sp³ carbon atoms, forming a glass-like microcrystal structure. The lignin is refined from sugarcane bagasse using an ethanol-based organosolv technique which is used for the fabrication of GMC by two technical schemes: The pyrolysis reaction of lignin in a tubular furnace at atmospheric pressure; and the hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of lignin at lower temperature, followed by pyrolysis at higher temperature. The existence of graphene nanofragments in GMC is proven by Raman spectra and XRD patterns; the ratio of sp² carbon atoms to sp³ carbon atoms is demonstrated by XPS spectra; and the microcrystal structure is observed in the high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) images. Temperature and pressure have an important impact on the quality of GMC samples. With the elevation of temperature, the fraction of carbon increases, while the fraction of oxygen decreases, and the ratio of sp² to sp³ carbon atoms increases. In contrast to the pyrolysis techniques, the HTC technique needs lower temperatures because of the high vapor pressure of water. In general, with the help of biorefinery, the biomass material, lignin, is found to be qualified and sustainable material for the manufacture of GMC. Lignin acts as a renewable substitute for the traditional raw materials of glassy carbon, copolymer resins of phenol formaldehyde, and furfuryl alcohol-phenol.

A comparative study for the organic byproducts from hydrothermal carbonizations of sugarcane bagasse and its bio-refined components cellulose and lignin.

Sugarcane bagasse was refined into cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin using an ethanol-based organosolv technique. The hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) reactions were applied for bagasse and its two components cellulose and lignin. Based on GC-MS analysis, 32 (13+19) organic byproducts were derived from cellulose and lignin, more than the 22 byproducts from bagasse. Particularly, more valuable catechol products were obtained from lignin with 56.8% share in the total GC-MS integral area, much higher than the 2.263% share in the GC-MS integral areas of bagasse. The organic byproducts from lignin make up more than half of the total mass of lignin, indicating that lignin is a chemical treasure storage. In general, bio-refinery and HTC are two effective techniques for the valorization of bagasse and other biomass materials from agriculture and forest industry. HTC could convert the inferior biomass to superior biofuel with higher energy quantity of combustion, at the same time many valuable organic byproducts are produced. Bio-refinery could promote the HTC reaction of biomass more effective. With the help of bio-refinery and HTC, bagasse and other biomass materials are not only the sustainable energy resource, but also the renewable and environment friendly chemical materials, the best alternatives for petroleum, coal and natural gas.

Enhanced production of optical (S)-acetoin by a recombinant Escherichia coli whole-cell biocatalyst with NADH regeneration.

Acetoin is an important platform chemical with a variety of applications in foods, cosmetics, chemical synthesis, and especially in the asymmetric synthesis of optically active pharmaceuticals. It is also a useful breath biomarker for early lung cancer diagnosis. In order to enhance production of optical (S)-acetoin and facilitate this building block for a series of chiral pharmaceuticals derivatives, we have developed a systematic approach using in situ-NADH regeneration systems and promising diacetyl reductase. Under optimal conditions, we have obtained 52.9 g L-1 of (S)-acetoin with an enantiomeric purity of 99.5% and a productivity of 6.2 g (L h)-1. The results reported in this study demonstrated that the production of (S)-acetoin could be effectively improved through the engineering of cofactor regeneration with promising diacetyl reductase. The systematic approach developed in this study could also be applied to synthesize other optically active α-hydroxy ketones, which may provide valuable benefits for the study of drug development.

2L-PCA: a two-level principal component analyzer for quantitative drug design and its applications.

A two-level principal component predictor (2L-PCA) was proposed based on the principal component analysis (PCA) approach. It can be used to quantitatively analyze various compounds and peptides about their functions or potentials to become useful drugs. One level is for dealing with the physicochemical properties of drug molecules, while the other level is for dealing with their structural fragments. The predictor has the self-learning and feedback features to automatically improve its accuracy. It is anticipated that 2L-PCA will become a very useful tool for timely providing various useful clues during the process of drug development.

Microbial Routes to (2R,3R)-2,3-Butanediol: Recent Advances and Future Prospects.

(2R,3R)-2,3-Butanediol has many industrial applications, such as it is used as an antifreeze agent and low freezing point fuel. In addition, it is particularly important to provide chiral groups in drugs. In recent years, this valuable bio-based chemical has attracted increasing attention, and significant progress has been made in the development of microbial cell factories for (2R,3R)-2,3-butanediol production. This article reviews recent advances and challenges in microbial routes to (2R,3R)-2,3- butanediol production, and highlights the metabolic engineering and synthetic biological approaches used to improve titers, yields, productivities, and optical purities. Finally, a systematic and integrative strategy for developing high-performance microbial cell factories is proposed.

The Intrinsic Relationship Between Structure and Function of the Sialyltransferase ST8Sia Family Members.

As a subset of glycosyltransferases, the family of sialyltransferases catalyze transfer of sialic acid (Sia) residues to terminal non-reducing positions on oligosaccharide chains of glycoproteins and glycolipids, utilizing CMP-Neu5Ac as the activated sugar nucleotide donor. In the four known sialyltransferase families (ST3Gal, ST6Gal, ST6GalNAc and ST8Sia), the ST8Sia family catalyzes synthesis of α2, 8-linked sialic/polysialic acid (polySia) chains according to their acceptor specificity. We have determined the 3D structural models of the ST8Sia family members, designated ST8Sia I (1), II(2), IV(4), V(5), and VI(6) using the Phyre2 server. Accuracy of these predicted models are based on the ST8Sia III crystal structure as the calculated template. The common structural features of these models are: (1) Their parallel templates and disulfide bonds are buried within the enzymes and are predominately surrounded by helices; (2) The anti-parallel ß-sheets are located at the N-terminal region of the enzymes; (3) The mono-sialytransferases (mono-STs), ST8Sia I and ST8Sia VI, contain only a single pair of disulfide bonds, and there are no anti-parallel ß-sheets in ST8Sia VI; (4) The Nterminal region of all of the mono-STs are located some distant away from their core structure; (5) These conformational features show that the 3D structures of the mono-STs are less compact than the two polySTs, ST8Sia II and ST8Sia IV, and the oligo-ST, ST8Sia III. These structural features relate to the catalytic specificity of the monoSTs; (6) In contrast, the more compact structural features of ST8Sia II, ST8Sia IV and ST8Sia III relate to their ability to catalyze the processive synthesis of oligo- (ST8Sia III) and polySia chains (ST8Sia II & ST8Sia IV); (7) Although ST8Sia II, III and IV have similar conformations in their corresponding polysialyltransferase domain (PSTD) and polybasic region (PBR) motifs, the structure of ST8Sia III is less compact than ST8Sia II and ST8Sia IV, and the amino acid components of the several three-residue-loops in the two motifs of ST8Sia III are different from that in ST8Sia II and ST8Sia IV. This is likely the structural basis for why ST8Sia III is an oligoST and not able to polysialylate and; (8) In contrast, essentially all amino acids within the threeresidue- loops in the PSTD of ST8Sia II and ST8Sia IV are highly conserved, and many amino acids in the loops and the helices of these two motifs are critical for NCAM polysialylation, as determined by mutational analysis and confirmed by our recent NMR results. In summary, these new findings provide further insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying polyST-NCAM recognition, polySTpolySia/ oligoSia interactions, and polysialylation of NCAM.

Exploring the possibility to store the mixed oxygen-hydrogen cluster in clathrate hydrate in molar ratio 1:2 (O2+2H2).

An interesting possibility is explored: storing the mixture of oxygen and hydrogen in clathrate hydrate in molar ratio 1:2. The interaction energies between oxygen, hydrogen, and clathrate hydrate are calculated using high level quantum chemical methods. The useful conclusion points from this study are summarized as follows. (1) The interaction energies of oxygen-hydrogen mixed cluster are larger than the energies of pure hydrogen molecular cluster. (2) The affinity of oxygen molecules with water molecules is larger than that of the hydrogen molecules with water molecules. (3) The dimension of O2-2H2 interaction structure is smaller than the dimension of CO2-2H2 interaction structure. (4) The escaping energy of oxygen molecules from the hydrate cell is larger than that of the hydrogen molecules. (5) The high affinity of the oxygen molecules with both the water molecules and the hydrogen molecules may promote the stability of oxygen-hydrogen mixture in the clathrate hydrate. Therefore it is possible to store the mixed (O2+2H2) cluster in clathrate hydrate.

A new type of two-dimensional carbon crystal prepared from 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene.

A new two-dimensional (2D) carbon crystal, different from graphene, has been prepared from 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene, consisting of 4-carbon and 6-carbon rings in 1:1 ratio, named 4-6 carbophene by authors, in which all carbon atoms possess sp2 hybrid orbitals with some distortion, forming an extensive conjugated π-bonding planar structure. The angles between the three σ-bonds of the carbon sp2 orbitals are roughly 120°, 90°, and 150°. Each of the three non-adjacent sides of a 6C-ring is shared with a 4C-ring; and each of the two opposite sides of a 4C-ring is shared with a 6C-ring. Dodecagonal holes with a diameter of approximate 5.8 Å are regularly located throughout the 2D carbon crystal. Even though the bond energies in 4-6 carbophene are weaker than those in the graphene, the new planar crystal is quite stable in ambient conditions. The 4-6 carbophene can be synthetized from 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene or other benzene derivatives through dehydration and polymerization reactions, and may possess several possible patterns that form a family of 2D carbon crystals. A possible side reaction involving 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene is also discussed, which may produce a carbon-oxygen two dimensional crystal.

Active Hydrogen Bond Network (AHBN) and Applications for Improvement of Thermal Stability and pH-Sensitivity of Pullulanase from Bacillus naganoensis.

A method, so called "active hydrogen bond network" (AHBN), is proposed for site-directed mutations of hydrolytic enzymes. In an enzyme the AHBN consists of the active residues, functional residues, and conservative water molecules, which are connected by hydrogen bonds, forming a three dimensional network. In the catalysis hydrolytic reactions of hydrolytic enzymes AHBN is responsible for the transportation of protons and water molecules, and maintaining the active and dynamic structures of enzymes. The AHBN of pullulanase BNPulA324 from Bacillus naganoensis was constructed based on a homologous model structure using Swiss Model Protein-modeling Server according to the template structure of pullulanase BAPulA (2WAN). The pullulanase BNPulA324 are mutated at the mutation sites selected by means of the AHBN method. Both thermal stability and pH-sensitivity of pullulanase BNPulA324 were successfully improved. The mutations at the residues located at the out edge of AHBN may yield positive effects. On the other hand the mutations at the residues inside the AHBN may deprive the bioactivity of enzymes. The AHBN method, proposed in this study, may provide an assistant and alternate tool for protein rational design and protein engineering.

Exploring Strong Interactions in Proteins with Quantum Chemistry and Examples of Their Applications in Drug Design.

OBJECTIVES: Three strong interactions between amino acid side chains (salt bridge, cation-π, and amide bridge) are studied that are stronger than (or comparable to) the common hydrogen bond interactions, and play important roles in protein-protein interactions. METHODS: Quantum chemical methods MP2 and CCSD(T) are used in calculations of interaction energies and structural optimizations. RESULTS: The energies of three types of amino acid side chain interactions in gaseous phase and in aqueous solutions are calculated using high level quantum chemical methods and basis sets. Typical examples of amino acid salt bridge, cation-π, and amide bridge interactions are analyzed, including the inhibitor design targeting neuraminidase (NA) enzyme of influenza A virus, and the ligand binding interactions in the HCV p7 ion channel. The inhibition mechanism of the M2 proton channel in the influenza A virus is analyzed based on strong amino acid interactions. CONCLUSION: (1) The salt bridge interactions between acidic amino acids (Glu- and Asp-) and alkaline amino acids (Arg+, Lys+ and His+) are the strongest residue-residue interactions. However, this type of interaction may be weakened by solvation effects and broken by lower pH conditions. (2) The cation- interactions between protonated amino acids (Arg+, Lys+ and His+) and aromatic amino acids (Phe, Tyr, Trp and His) are 2.5 to 5-fold stronger than common hydrogen bond interactions and are less affected by the solvation environment. (3) The amide bridge interactions between the two amide-containing amino acids (Asn and Gln) are three times stronger than hydrogen bond interactions, which are less influenced by the pH of the solution. (4) Ten of the twenty natural amino acids are involved in salt bridge, or cation-, or amide bridge interactions that often play important roles in protein-protein, protein-peptide, protein-ligand, and protein-DNA interactions.

Genome sequence of type strain Paenibacillus polymyxa DSM 365, a highly efficient producer of optically active (R,R)-2,3-butanediol.

Paenibacillus polymyxa DSM 365, an efficient producer of (R,R)-2,3-butanediol, is known to show the highest production titer and productivity reported to date. Here, the first draft genome sequence of this promising strain may provide the genetic basis for further insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the production of (R,R)-2,3-butanediol with high optical purity and at a high titer. It will also facilitate the design of rational strategies for further strain improvements, as well as construction of artificial biosynthetic pathways through synthetic biology for asymmetric synthesis of chiral 2,3-butanediol or acetoin in common microbial hosts.

Insight into a molecular interaction force supporting peptide backbones and its implication to protein loops and folding.

Although not being classified as the most fundamental protein structural elements like α-helices and ß-strands, the loop segment may play considerable roles for protein stability, flexibility, and dynamic activity. Meanwhile, the protein loop is also quite elusive; i.e. its interactions with the other parts of protein as well as its own shape-maintaining forces have still remained as a puzzle or at least not quite clear yet. Here, we report a molecular force, the so-called polar hydrogen-π interaction (Hp-π), which may play an important role in supporting the backbones of protein loops. By conducting the potential energy surface scanning calculations on the quasi π-plane of peptide bond unit, we have observed the following intriguing phenomena: (1) when the polar hydrogen atom of a peptide unit is perpendicularly pointing to the π-plane of other peptide bond units, a remarkable Hp-π interaction occurs; (2) the interaction is distance and orientation dependent, acting in a broad space, and belonging to the 'point-to-plane' one. The molecular force reported here may provide useful interaction concepts and insights into better understanding the loop's unique stability and flexibility feature, as well as the driving force of the protein global folding.

Recent development of peptide drugs and advance on theory and methodology of peptide inhibitor design.

Due to the low toxicity, easy synthesis, rapid elimination, and less side effect, more and more peptide inhibitors are emerging as the effective drugs that are clinically used in therapies of a number of diseases. At the same time the computer-aided drug design (CADD) methods have remarkably developed. In this mini review the newly developed peptide inhibitors and drugs are introduced, including peptide vaccines for cancers, peptide inhibitors for HIV, Alzheimer's disease and related diseases, and the peptides as the leading compounds of drugs. The recent progress in the theory and methodology of peptide inhibitor design is reviewed. (1) The flexible protein-peptide docking model is introduced, in which the peptide structures are treated as segment-flexible chains using genetic algorithm and special force field parameters. (2) The "Wenxiang diagram" is illustrated for protein-peptide interaction analysis that has been successfully used in the coiled-coil interaction analysis. (3) The "Distorted key" theory is reviewed, which is an effective method to convert the peptide inhibitors to the small chemical drugs. (4) The amino acid property-based peptide prediction method (AABPP) is described that is a twolevel QSAR prediction network for the bioactivity prediction of peptide inhibitors. (5) Finally, several types of molecular interactions between protein and peptide ligands are summarized, including cation-π interactions; polar hydrogen-π interactions; and π-π stocking interactions.

Genome Sequence of Tumebacillus flagellatus GST4, the First Genome Sequence of a Species in the Genus Tumebacillus.

We present here the first genome sequence of a species in the genus Tumebacillus. The draft genome sequence of Tumebacillus flagellatus GST4 provides a genetic basis for future studies addressing the origins, evolution, and ecological role of Tumebacillus organisms, as well as a source of acid-resistant amylase-encoding genes for further studies.

Biotechnological production of muconic acid: current status and future prospects.

Muconic acid (MA), a high value-added bio-product with reactive dicarboxylic groups and conjugated double bonds, has garnered increasing interest owing to its potential applications in the manufacture of new functional resins, bio-plastics, food additives, agrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals. At the very least, MA can be used to produce commercially important bulk chemicals such as adipic acid, terephthalic acid and trimellitic acid. Recently, great progress has been made in the development of biotechnological routes for MA production. This present review provides a comprehensive and systematic overview of recent advances and challenges in biotechnological production of MA. Various biological methods are summarized and compared, and their constraints and possible solutions are also described. Finally, the future prospects are discussed with respect to the current state, challenges, and trends in this field, and the guidelines to develop high-performance microbial cell factories are also proposed for the MA production by systems metabolic engineering.

Optimization of medium composition for cis,cis-muconic acid production by a Pseudomonas sp. mutant using statistical methods.

cis,cis-Muconic acid (CCMA) is used as a platform chemical for the production of several high-value compounds. For this article, an optimization strategy has been used to optimize medium composition for CCMA production from fairly cheap benzoate by Pseudomonas sp. 1167. The effect of different concentrations of medium components on CCMA production was studied. CCMA yields obtained from Plackett-Burman design (PBD) showed wide variation (3.95-5.87 g/L), and the first-order model indicated that (NH(4))(2)SO(4) (P < 0.01) and K(2)HPO(4) · 3H(2)O (P < 0.02) were the significant components for CCMA production. Then the optimization was performed by steepest ascent design (SAD) and central composite design (CCD), and a validation experiment was conducted to verify the predicted value. The optimal medium composition was: 12 g/L sodium benzoate, 2.5 g/L sodium succinate, 0.7932 g/L (NH(4))(2)SO(4), 1.5612 g/L K(2)HPO(4) · 3H(2)O, 1.2 g/L MgSO(4) · 7H(2)O, 0.4 g/L yeast extract, 0.08 g/L FeCl(3) · 6H(2)O, and 0.08 g/L ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA). Under these conditions, a maximum of 7.18 g/L CCMA was produced per 12 g/L benzoate with a highly efficient process within 11 hr and a molecular conversion yield of 61%. Altogether, our results provide valuable insights into nutritional supplementation of CCMA production by using statistical methods, which may benefit a cost-competitive industrial fed-batch fermentation process using a cheap substrate.