Principles and Biotechnological Applications of Bacterial Ice Nucleation

Abstract

Certain aerobic, Gram-negative bacteria, including the epiphytic plant pathogen, Pseudomonas syringae, possess a membrane protein that enables them to nucleate crystallization in supercooled water. Currently, these ice-nucleating (IN) bacteria are being used in snow making and have potential applications in the production and texturing of frozen foods, and as a replacement of silver iodide in cloud seeding. A negative aspect of these IN bacteria is frost damage to plant surfaces. Thus, of the various types of biological ice nucleators, bacteria have been the subject of most research and also appear relevant to the anticipated practical uses. The intent of this review is to explain the identification and ecology of the ice-nucleating bacteria, as well as to discuss aspects of molecular biology related to ice nucleation and consider existing and potential applications of this unique phenomenon.

Functional display of foreign protein on surface of Escherichia coli using N‐terminal domain of ice nucleation protein

“…INP is a membrane-bound protein which confers on host cells the ability to nucleate crystallization in supercooled water (Mararitis and Bassi, 1991). It has potential biological applications in many fields, including the food industry, spray-ice technology, and other biotechnological processes (Mararitis and Bassi, 1991;Cochet and Widehem, 2000).…”

“…It has potential biological applications in many fields, including the food industry, spray-ice technology, and other biotechnological processes (Mararitis and Bassi, 1991;Cochet and Widehem, 2000). It is composed of three domains structurally distinguished as the N-terminal domain (191 amino acids, 15% of the protein), which is the portion most responsible for targeting to the cell surface, the C-terminal domain (49 amino acids, 4% of the protein), and the central domain, composed of repeats comprising an 8-, 16-, and 48-residue periodicity that acts as a template for ice crystal formation (Kozloff et al, 1991;Schimid et al, 1997).…”

The Urine that Would Not Freeze

“…One may suspect ethanol contamination if repeated freezing errors are generated on a freezing point depression osmometer. In the course of our investigation we also found a report demonstrating that certain bacteria are capable of nucleating crystallization and could potentially interfere with the operation of freezing point depression osmometers (2).…”

Expression of Single Chain Antibodies (ScFvs) for c‐myc Oncoprotein in Recombinant Escherichiacoli Membranes by Using the Ice‐Nucleation Protein of Pseudomonassyringae

“…The ice nucleation protein (INP), an outer membrane protein from Pseudomonas syringae, is able to catalyze the formation of ice crystals in supercooled water (15)(16)(17). The INP resides on the surface of cells (18) and is stable in the stationary phase of the culture (19).…”