Carbohydrate metabolism in mutants of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 defective in glycogen synthesis.

ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (AGPase) and glycogen synthase (GS) catalyze the first two reactions of glycogen synthesis in cyanobacteria. Mutants defective in each of these enzymes in Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942 were constructed and characterized. Activities of the corresponding enzymes in the selected mutants were virtually undetectable, and their ability to synthesize glycogen was entirely abolished. The maximal activities of photosynthetic O(2) evolution and the rates of respiration in the dark were significantly decreased in the mutants compared to those in wild-type cells. Addition of 0.2 M NaCl or 3 mM H(2)O(2) to liquid cultures markedly inhibited the growth of the AGPase and GS mutants, while the same treatment had only marginal effects on the wild type. These results suggest a significant role for storage polysaccharides in tolerance to salt or oxidative stress.

Role of the GlgX protein in glycogen metabolism of the cyanobacterium, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942.

The putative glgX gene encoding isoamylase-type debranching enzyme was isolated from the cyanobacterium, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942. The deduced amino acid sequence indicated that the residues essential to the catalytic activity and substrate binding in bacterial and plant isoamylases and GlgX proteins were all conserved in the GlgX protein of S. elongatus PCC 7942. The role of GlgX in the cyanobacterium was examined by insertional inactivation of the gene. Disruption of the glgX gene resulted in the enhanced fluctuation of glycogen content in the cells during light-dark cycles of the culture, although the effect was marginal. The glycogen of the glgX mutant was enriched with very short chains with degree of polymerization 2 to 4. When the mutant was transformed with putative glgX genes of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, the short chains were decreased as compared to the parental mutant strain. The result indicated that GlgX protein contributes to form the branching pattern of polysaccharide in S. elongatus PCC 7942.

A layered tungstic acid H2W2O7 x nH2O with a double-octahedral sheet structure: conversion process from an aurivillius phase Bi2W2O9 and structural characterization.

The conversion process of an Aurivillius phase, Bi(2)W(2)O(9), into a layered tungstic acid by hydrochloric acid treatment has been investigated, and resultant H(2)W(2)O(7) x nH(2)O has been fully characterized. The c parameter of Bi(2)W(2)O(9) [2.37063(5) nm] decreases to 2.21(1) nm in an acid-treated product dried at ambient temperature. The a and b parameters of Bi(2)W(2)O(9) [a = 0.54377(1) nm and b = 0.54166(1) nm] also decrease slightly to a = 0.524(1) nm and b = 0.513(1) nm in the acid-treated product dried at ambient temperature, indicating structural changes in the ReO(3)-like slabs in Bi(2)W(2)O(9) upon acid treatment. Drying at 120 degrees C leads to a further decrease in the c parameter [1.86(1) nm] with no notable change in the a and b parameters [a = 0.5249(2) nm and b = 0.513(2) nm]. The formation of an expandable layered structure is demonstrated by the successful intercalation of n-octylamine [interlayer distance 2.597(9) nm] and n-dodecylamine [interlayer distance 3.56(2) nm]. The compositions of the acid-treated products are determined to be H(2)W(2)O(7) x nH(2)O typically with n = 0.58 for the air-dried product and n = 0 for the product dried at 120 degrees C. As a consequence, the composition of the layer is H(2)W(2)O(7), and the decrease in the c parameter upon drying is ascribable to the loss of interlayer water. Scanning electron microscopy reveals no morphological change during acid treatment, which strongly suggests a selective leaching of the bismuth oxide sheets as a reaction mechanism. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM) observation of the acid-treated product shows consistency with a structural model for H(2)W(2)O(7), derived from Bi(2)W(2)O(9) through removal of the bismuth oxide sheets and contraction along the c axis. HREM observation also reveals that the WO(6) octahedra arrangement changes slightly with acid treatment. A one-dimensional electron density map projected on the c axis for the product dried at 120 degrees C, H(2)W(2)O(7), shows good consistency with that calculated for the structural model.