These results reveal that CgPrx functions as a multifunctional protein crucial for adapting appropriate responses to different levels of oxidative challenge in C. glutamicum. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 26, 1-14.

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) is used widely in industry, and associated environmental pollution is a serious problem. Herein, we report a novel, efficient PVA degrader, QL-P4, isolated from fallen leaves from a virgin forest in the Qinling Mountains. The complete genome was obtained using single-molecule real-time (SMRT) technology and corrected using Illumina sequencing. Bioinformatics analysis revealed eight PVA/vinyl alcohol oligomer (OVA)-degrading genes. Of these, seven genes were predicted to be involved in the classic intracellular PVA/OVA degradation pathway, and one (BAY15_3292) was identified as a novel PVA oxidase. Five PVA/OVA-degrading enzymes were purified and characterized. One of these, BAY15_1712, a PVA dehydrogenase (PVADH), displayed high catalytic efficiency toward PVA and OVA substrate. All reported PVADHs only have PVA-degrading ability. Most importantly, we discovered a novel PVA oxidase (BAY15_3292) that exhibited higher PVA-degrading efficiency than the reported PVADHs. Further investigation indicated that BAY15_3292 plays a crucial role in PVA degradation in QL-P4. Knocking out BAY15_3292 resulted in a significant decline in PVA-degrading activity in QL-P4. Interestingly, we found that BAY15_3292 possesses exocrine activity, which distinguishes it from classic PVADHs. Transparent circle experiments further proved that BAY15_3292 greatly affects extracellular PVA degradation in QL-P4. The exocrine characteristics of BAY15_3292 facilitate its potential application to PVA bioremediation. In addition, we report three new efficient secondary alcohol dehydrogenases (SADHs) with OVA-degrading ability in QL-P4; in contrast, only one OVA-degrading SADH was reported previously. With the widespread application of PVA in industry, PVA-related environmental pollution is an increasingly serious issue. Because PVA is difficult to degrade, it accumulates in aquatic environments and causes chronic toxicity to aquatic organisms. Biodegradation of PVA, as an economical and environment-friendly method, has attracted much interest. To date, effective and applicable PVA-degrading bacteria/enzymes have not been reported. Herein, we report a new efficient PVA degrader ( QL-P4) that has five PVA/OVA-degrading enzymes with high catalytic efficiency, among which BAY15_1712 is the only reported PVADH with both PVA- and OVA-degrading abilities. Importantly, we discovered a novel PVA oxidase (BAY15_3292) that is not only more efficient than other reported PVA-degrading PVADHs but also has exocrine activity. Overall, our findings provide new insight into PVA-degrading pathways in microorganisms and suggest QL-P4 and its enzymes have the potential for application to PVA bioremediation to reduce or eliminate PVA-related environmental pollution.

In the present study, we evaluated a bacterium that was isolated from waste water for its ability to take up cadmium and manganese. The strain, identified both biochemically and by its 16S rRNA gene sequence as Klebsiella, was named Yangling I2 and was found to be highly resistant to heavy metals. Surface characterization of the bacterium via SEM revealed gross morphological changes, with cells appearing as biconcave discs after metal exposure rather than their typical rod shape. The effects of pH, temperature, heavy metal concentration, agitation and biomass concentration on the uptake of Cd(II) and Mn(II) was measured using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The results showed that the biosorption was most affected by pH and incubation temperature, being maximized at pH 5.0 and 30°C, with absorption capacities of 170.4 and 114.1 mg/g for Cd(II) and Mn(II), respectively. Two models were investigated to compare the cells’ capacity for the biosorption of Cd and Mn, and the Langmuir model based on fuzzy linear regression was found to be close to the observed absorption curves and yield binding constants of 0.98 and 0.86 for Cd and Mn, respectively. This strain of Klebsiella has approximately ten times the absorption capacity reported for other strains and is promising for the removal of heavy metals from waste water.

A Gram-staining-negative, rod-shaped, strictly aerobic, non-motile, non-spore-forming, orange bacterium, which was designated strain YL28-9, was isolated from sandy soil in the district of Yulin, Shaanxi province, PR China, and was characterized by using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The optimal growth conditions of the strain were 30 °C, pH 7.0, 0 % (w/v) NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis, based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence, revealed that YL28-9 represented a member of the genus Pedobacter and showed the highest sequence similarity to Pedobacter rhizosphaeraeKACC 14938 (95.1 %). The genomic DNA G+C content of this strain was 50.4 mol%, which was out of the range reported for the other strains of members of the genus Pedobacter. The only respiratory quinone detected in YL28-9 was menaquinone-7 (MK-7). The predominant cellular fatty acids were identified as iso-C15 : 0, summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c) and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH. The major polar lipid was phosphatidylethanolamine. On the basis of the results of phenotypic, genotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic analysis, YL28-9 could be distinguished from the most closely related species of the genus Pedobacter. It is evident from the derived data that YL28-9 represents a novel species of the genus Pedobacter,for which the name Pedobacter yulinensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YL28-9 (=CGMCC 1.16050=KCTC 62104). An emended description of the genus Pedobacteris proposed.

Filamentous fungi are intensively used for producing industrial enzymes, including lignocellulases. Employing insoluble cellulose to induce the production of lignocellulases causes some drawbacks, e.g., a complex fermentation operation, which can be overcome by using soluble inducers such as cellobiose. Here, a triple β-glucosidase mutant of Neurospora crassa, which prevents rapid turnover of cellobiose and thus allows the disaccharide to induce lignocellulases, was applied to profile the proteome responses to cellobiose and cellulose (Avicel). Our results revealed a shared proteomic response to cellobiose and Avicel, whose elements included lignocellulases and cellulolytic product transporters. While the cellulolytic proteins showed a correlated increase in protein and mRNA levels, only a moderate correlation was observed on a proteomic scale between protein and mRNA levels (R2 = 0.31). Ribosome biogenesis and rRNA processing were significantly overrepresented in the protein set with increased protein but unchanged mRNA abundances in response to Avicel. Ribosome biogenesis, as well as protein processing and protein export, was also enriched in the protein set that showed increased abundance in response to cellobiose. NCU05895, a homolog of yeast CWH43, is potentially involved in transferring a glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor to nascent proteins. This protein showed increased abundance but no significant change in mRNA levels. Disruption of CWH43 resulted in a significant decrease in cellulase activities and secreted protein levels in cultures grown on Avicel, suggesting a positive regulatory role for CWH43 in cellulase production. The findings should have an impact on a systems engineering approach for strain improvement for the production of lignocellulases. IMPORTANCE Lignocellulases are important industrial enzymes for sustainable production of biofuels and bio-products. Insoluble cellulose has been commonly used to induce the production of lignocellulases in filamentous fungi, which causes a difficult fermentation operation and enzyme loss due to adsorption to cellulose. The disadvantages can be overcome by using soluble inducers, such as the disaccharide cellobiose. Quantitative proteome profiling of the model filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa revealed cellobiose-dependent pathways for cellulase production, including protein processing and export. A protein (CWH43) potentially involved in protein processing was found to be a positive regulator of lignocellulase production. The cellobiose-dependent mechanisms provide new opportunities to improve the production of lignocellulases in filamentous fungi.