Rhodococcus sp. strain RHA1, a soil bacterium related to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, degrades an exceptionally broad range of organic compounds. Transcriptomic analysis of cholesterol-grown RHA1 revealed a catabolic pathway predicted to proceed via 4-androstene-3,17-dione and 3,4-dihydroxy-9,10-seconandrost-1,3,5(10)-triene-9,17-dione (3,4-DHSA). Inactivation of each of the hsaC, supAB, and mce4 genes in RHA1 substantiated their roles in cholesterol catabolism. Moreover, the hsaC ؊ mutant accumulated 3,4-DHSA, indicating that HsaCRHA1, formerly annotated as a biphenyl-degrading dioxygenase, catalyzes the oxygenolytic cleavage of steroid ring A. Bioinformatic analyses revealed that 51 rhodococcal genes specifically expressed during growth on cholesterol, including all predicted to specify the catabolism of rings A and B, are conserved within an 82-gene cluster in M. tuberculosis H37Rv and Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Gué rin. M. bovis bacillus Calmette-Gué rin grew on cholesterol, and hsaC and kshA were up-regulated under these conditions. Heterologously produced HsaCH37Rv and HsaDH37Rv transformed 3,4-DHSA and its ring-cleaved product, respectively, with apparent specificities Ϸ40-fold higher than for the corresponding biphenyl metabolites. Overall, we annotated 28 RHA1 genes and proposed physiological roles for a similar number of mycobacterial genes. During survival of M. tuberculosis in the macrophage, these genes are specifically expressed, and many appear to be essential. We have delineated a complete suite of genes necessary for microbial steroid degradation, and pathogenic mycobacteria have been shown to catabolize cholesterol. The results suggest that cholesterol metabolism is central to M. tuberculosis's unusual ability to survive in macrophages and provide insights into potential targets for novel therapeutics.catabolic pathway ͉ oxygenase ͉ Rhodococcus ͉ steroid degradation

Rhodococcus sp. RHA1 (RHA1) is a potent polychlorinated biphenyl-degrading soil actinomycete that catabolizes a wide range of compounds and represents a genus of considerable industrial interest. RHA1 has one of the largest bacterial genomes sequenced to date, comprising 9,702,737 bp (67% G؉C) arranged in a linear chromosome and three linear plasmids. A targeted insertion methodology was developed to determine the telomeric sequences. RHA1's 9,145 predicted protein-encoding genes are exceptionally rich in oxygenases (203) and ligases (192). Many of the oxygenases occur in the numerous pathways predicted to degrade aromatic compounds (30) or steroids (4). RHA1 also contains 24 nonribosomal peptide synthase genes, six of which exceed 25 kbp, and seven polyketide synthase genes, providing evidence that rhodococci harbor an extensive secondary metabolism. Among sequenced genomes, RHA1 is most similar to those of nocardial and mycobacterial strains. The genome contains few recent gene duplications. Moreover, three different analyses indicate that RHA1 has acquired fewer genes by recent horizontal transfer than most bacteria characterized to date and far fewer than Burkholderia xenovorans LB400, whose genome size and catabolic versatility rival those of RHA1. RHA1 and LB400 thus appear to demonstrate that ecologically similar bacteria can evolve large genomes by different means. Overall, RHA1 appears to have evolved to simultaneously catabolize a diverse range of plantderived compounds in an O2-rich environment. In addition to establishing RHA1 as an important model for studying actinomycete physiology, this study provides critical insights that facilitate the exploitation of these industrially important microorganisms.biodegradation ͉ actinomycete ͉ linear chromosome ͉ aromatic pathways ͉ oxygenase

We determined the complete genome sequence of Streptomyces griseus IFO 13350, a soil bacterium producing an antituberculosis agent, streptomycin, which is the first aminoglycoside antibiotic, discovered more than 60 years ago. The linear chromosome consists of 8,545,929 base pairs (bp), with an average G؉C content of 72.2%, predicting 7,138 open reading frames, six rRNA operons (16S-23S-5S), and 66 tRNA genes. It contains extremely long terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) of 132,910 bp each. The telomere's nucleotide sequence and secondary structure, consisting of several palindromes with a loop sequence of 5-GGA-3, are different from those of typical telomeres conserved among other Streptomyces species. In accordance with the difference, the chromosome has pseudogenes for a conserved terminal protein (Tpg) and a telomere-associated protein (Tap), and a novel pair of Tpg and Tap proteins is instead encoded by the TIRs. Comparisons with the genomes of two related species, Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) and Streptomyces avermitilis, clarified not only the characteristics of the S. griseus genome but also the existence of 24 Streptomyces-specific proteins. The S. griseus genome contains 34 gene clusters or genes for the biosynthesis of known or unknown secondary metabolites. Transcriptome analysis using a DNA microarray showed that at least four of these clusters, in addition to the streptomycin biosynthesis gene cluster, were activated directly or indirectly by AdpA, which is a central transcriptional activator for secondary metabolism and morphogenesis in the A-factor (a ␥-butyrolactone signaling molecule) regulatory cascade in S. griseus.The gram-positive, soil-inhabiting, filamentous bacterial genus Streptomyces is characterized by its ability to produce a wide variety of secondary metabolites, such as antibiotics, parasiticides, herbicides, and pharmacologically active substances, including antitumor agents and immunosuppressants. Another characteristic feature of the genus is its complex multicellular development. Spores germinate to form a branched, multinucleoid substrate mycelium, which then produces an aerial mycelium. After septa have been formed at regular intervals along the aerial hyphae, long chains of uninucleoid spores are formed. Because of its complex morphogenesis and industrial and medical importance, Streptomyces has become a model prokaryote for the study of multicellular differentiation and secondary metabolism. The complete genomic sequences of two Streptomyces species, a model strain, Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) (3), and an industrial strain, Streptomyces avermitilis (20, 36), have been published.Unlike most other eubacterial chromosomes, the chromosome of Streptomyces is linear and contains a centrally located origin of replication (oriC) and unique terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) with terminal proteins (Tpgs) covalently bound to the 5Ј ends. Replication proceeds bidirectionally from oriC, and a terminal single-stranded gap on the discontinuous lagging strand is filled in by DNA synthesis ...

We isolated Comamonas sp. strain E6, which utilizes terephthalate (TPA) as the sole carbon and energy source via the protocatechuate (PCA) 4,5-cleavage pathway. Two almost identical TPA degradation gene clusters, tphR I C I A2 I A3 I B I A1 I and tphR II C II A2 II A3 II B II A1 II , were isolated from this strain. Based on amino acid sequence similarity, the genes tphR, tphC, tphA2, tphA3, tphB, and tphA1 were predicted to code, respectively, for an IclR-type transcriptional regulator, a periplasmic TPA binding receptor, the large subunit of the oxygenase component of TPA 1,2-dioxygenase (TPADO), the small subunit of the oxygenase component of TPADO, a 1,2-dihydroxy-3,5-cyclohexadiene-1,4-dicarboxylate (DCD) dehydrogenase, and a reductase component of TPADO. The growth of E6 on TPA was not affected by disruption of either tphA2 I or tphA2 II singly; however, the tphA2 I tphA2 II double mutant no longer grew on TPA, suggesting that both TPADO genes are involved in TPA degradation. Introduction of a plasmid carrying tphR II C II A2 II A3 II B II A1 II conferred the TPA utilization phenotype on Comamonas testosteroni IAM 1152, which is able to grow on PCA but not on TPA. Disruption of either tphR II or tphC II on this plasmid resulted in the loss of the growth of IAM 1152 on TPA, suggesting that these genes are essential to convert TPA to PCA in E6. The genes tphA1 II , tphA2 II , tphA3 II , and tphB II were expressed in Escherichia coli, and the resultant cell extracts containing TphA1 II , TphA2 II , and TphA3 II converted TPA in the presence of NADPH into a product which was transformed to PCA by TphB II . On the basis of these results, TPADO was strongly suggested to be a two-component dioxygenase which consists of the terminal oxygenase component (TphA2 and TphA3) and the reductase (TphA1), and tphB codes for the DCD dehydrogenase.Protocatechuate (PCA) is an important intermediate metabolite in the bacterial degradation of various aromatic compounds, including vanillate, hydroxybenzoates, and phthalates. There are three recognized catabolic pathways for the degradation of PCA: the PCA 2,3-cleavage (9), PCA 3, and PCA 4,20) pathways. Previously, we characterized the genes and enzymes involved in the PCA 4,5-cleavage pathway of Sphingomonas paucimobilis SYK-6, a well-characterized degrader of lignin-derived compounds (14,15,21,22). During the course of the study on the PCA 4,5-cleavage pathway genes, one of the intermediate metabolites, 2-pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylate (PDC), was found to be useful as a starting material for the production of biodegradable PDC polyamides and polyesters (29,30). PDC production from lignin is expected to serve as a new process to exploit lignin as an abundant aromatic bioresource. In addition, PDC production via PCA from various petrochemical aromatic compounds, including phthalate isomers, may also be valuable for the production of biodegradable polymers from petrochemical materials. Terephthalate (TPA) is largely used for the production of polyethylene terephthalate and may be a good...

SummaryPlasmid carriage requires appropriate expression of the genes on the plasmid or host chromosome through cooperative transcriptional regulation. To clarify the impact of plasmid carriage on the host chromosome, we compared the chromosomal RNA maps of plasmid-free and plasmid-containing host strains using the incompatibility group P-7 archetype plasmid pCAR1, which is involved in carbazole degradation, and three distinct Pseudomonas strains. The possession of pCAR1 altered gene expression related to the iron acquisition systems in each host. Expression of the major siderophore pyoverdine was greater in plasmid-containing P. putida KT2440 and P. aeruginosa PAO1 than in the plasmid-free host strains, in part due to the expression of carbazoledegradative genes on pCAR1. The mexEFoprN operon encoding an efflux pump of the resistancenodulation-cell division family was specifically upregulated by the carriage of pCAR1 in P. putida KT2440, whereas the expression of orthologous genes in the other species remained unaltered. Induction of the mexEFoprN genes increased the resistance of pCAR1-containing KT2440 to chloramphenicol compared with pCAR1-free KT2440. Our findings indicate that the possession of pCAR1 altered the growth rate of the host via the expression of genes on pCAR1 and the host chromosomes.

Rhodococcus sp. RHA1 grows on a broad range of aromatic compounds and vigorously degrades polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Previous work identified RHA1 genes encoding multiple isozymes for most of the seven steps of the biphenyl (BPH) pathway, provided evidence for coexpression of some of these isozymes, and indicated the involvement of some of these enzymes in the degradation of BPH, ethylbenzene (ETB), and PCBs. To investigate the expression of these isozymes and better understand how they contribute to the robust degradative capacity of RHA1, we comprehensively analyzed the 9.7-Mb genome of RHA1 for BPH pathway genes and characterized the transcriptome of RHA1 growing on benzoate (BEN), BPH, and ETB. Sequence analyses revealed 54 potential BPH pathway genes, including 28 not previously reported. Transcriptomic analysis with a DNA microarray containing 70-mer probes for 8,213 RHA1 genes revealed a suite of 320 genes of diverse functions that were upregulated during growth both on BPH and on ETB, relative to growth on the control substrate, pyruvate. By contrast, only 65 genes were upregulated during growth on BEN. Quantitative PCR assays confirmed microarray results for selected genes and indicated that some of the catabolic genes were upregulated over 10,000-fold. Our analysis suggests that up to 22 enzymes, including 8 newly identified ones, may function in the BPH pathway of RHA1. The relative expression levels of catabolic genes did not differ for BPH and ETB, suggesting a common regulatory mechanism. This study delineated a suite of catabolic enzymes for biphenyl and alkyl-benzenes in RHA1, which is larger than previously recognized and which may serve as a model for catabolism in other environmentally important bacteria having large genomes.

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