Gene cloning, expression, and characterization of a cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase from Arthrobacter sp. CGMCC 3584

Knockout of pde gene in Arthrobacter sp. CGMCC 3584 and transcriptomic analysis of its effects on cAMP production

Arthrobacter sp. CGMCC 3584 is used for the industrial production of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). However, because of the paucity of genetic engineering tools for genetic manipulation on Arthrobacter species, only a few metabolically engineered Arthrobacter have been constructed and investigated. In this study, for the first time, we constructed an arpde knockout mutant of Arthrobacter without any antibiotic resistance marker by a PCR-targeting-based homologous recombination method. Our results revealed that the deletion of arpde had little effect on biomass production and improved cAMP production by 31.1%. Furthermore, we compared the transcriptomes of the arpde knockout strain and the wild strain, aiming to understand the capacities of cAMP production due to arpde inactivation at the molecular level. Comparative transcriptomic analysis revealed that arpde inactivation had two major effects on metabolism: inhibition of glycolysis, PP pathway, and amino acid metabolism (phenylalanine, tryptophan, branched-chain amino acids, and glutamate metabolism); promotion of the purine metabolism and carbon flux from the precursor 5'-phosphoribosyl 1-pyrophosphate, which benefited cAMP production.

An atypical phosphodiesterase capable of degrading haloalkyl phosphate diesters from Sphingobium sp. strain TCM1

Sphingobium sp. strain TCM1 can degrade tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) to inorganic phosphate and 2-chloroethanol. A phosphotriesterase (PTE), phosphodiesterase (PDE) and phosphomonoesterase (PME) are believed to be involved in the degradation of TCEP. The PTE and PME that respectively catalyze the first and third steps of TCEP degradation in TCM1 have been identified. However, no information has been reported on a PDE catalyzing the second step. In this study, we identified, purified, and characterized a PDE capable of hydrolyzing haloalkyl phosphate diesters. The final preparation of the enzyme had a specific activity of 29 µmol min⁻¹ mg⁻¹ with bis(p-nitrophenyl) phosphate (BpNPP) as the substrate. It also possessed low PME activity with p-nitrophenyl phosphate (pNPP) as substrate. The catalytic efficiency (k_cat/K_m) with BpNPP was significantly higher than that with pNPP, indicating that the enzyme prefers the organophosphorus diester to the monoester. The enzyme degraded bis(2,3-dibromopropyl) phosphate, bis(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate and bis(2-chloroethyl) phosphate, suggesting that it is involved in the metabolism of haloalkyl organophosphorus triesters. The primary structure of the PDE from TCM1 is distinct from those of typical PDE family members and the enzyme belongs to the polymerase and histidinol phosphatase superfamily.

Identification of the cAMP phosphodiesterase CpdA as novel key player in cAMP-dependent regulation in Corynebacterium glutamicum

The second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP) plays an important role in the metabolism of Corynebacterium glutamicum, as the global transcriptional regulator GlxR requires complex formation with cAMP to become active. Whereas a membrane-bound adenylate cyclase, CyaB, was shown to be involved in cAMP synthesis, enzymes catalyzing cAMP degradation have not been described yet. In this study we identified a class II cAMP phosphodiesterase named CpdA (Cg2761), homologs of which are present in many Actinobacteria. The purified enzyme has a Kmapp value of 2.5 ± 0.3 mM for cAMP and a Vmaxapp of 33.6 ± 4.3 µmol min^-1 mg^-1 . A ΔcpdA mutant showed a twofold increased cAMP level on glucose and reduced growth rates on all carbon sources tested. A transcriptome comparison revealed 247 genes with a more than twofold altered mRNA level in the ΔcpdA mutant, 82 of which are known GlxR targets. Expression of cpdA was positively regulated by GlxR, thereby creating a negative feedback loop allowing to counteract high cAMP levels. The results show that CpdA plays a key role in the control of the cellular cAMP concentration and GlxR activity and is crucial for optimal metabolism and growth of C. glutamicum.

In Search of Enzymes with a Role in 3', 5'-Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate Metabolism in Plants

In plants, nitric oxide (NO)-mediated 3', 5'-cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) synthesis plays an important role during pathogenic stress response, stomata closure upon osmotic stress, the development of adventitious roots and transcript regulation. The NO-cGMP dependent pathway is well characterized in mammals. The binding of NO to soluble guanylate cyclase enzymes (GCs) initiates the synthesis of cGMP from guanosine triphosphate. The produced cGMP alters various cellular responses, such as the function of protein kinase activity, cyclic nucleotide gated ion channels and cGMP-regulated phosphodiesterases. The signal generated by the second messenger is terminated by 3', 5'-cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase (PDEs) enzymes that hydrolyze cGMP to a non-cyclic 5'-guanosine monophosphate. To date, no homologues of mammalian cGMP-synthesizing and degrading enzymes have been found in higher plants. In the last decade, six receptor proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana have been reported to have guanylate cyclase activity in vitro. Of the six receptors, one was shown to be a NO dependent guanylate cyclase enzyme (NOGC1). However, the role of these proteins in planta remains to be elucidated. Enzymes involved in the degradation of cGMP remain elusive, albeit, PDE activity has been detected in crude protein extracts from various plants. Additionally, several research groups have partially purified and characterized PDE enzymatic activity from crude protein extracts. In this review, we focus on presenting advances toward the identification of enzymes involved in the cGMP metabolism pathway in higher plants.