The respiratory chain of a newly isolated Methylomonas Pl1

Physiology and genetics of methylotrophic bacteria

Methylotrophic bacteria comprise a broad range of obligate aerobic microorganisms, which are able to proliferate on (a number of) compounds lacking carbon-carbon bonds. This contribution will essentially be limited to those organisms that are able to utilize methanol and will cover the physiological, biochemical and genetic aspects of this still diverse group of organisms. In recent years much progress has been made in the biochemical and genetic characterization of pathways and the knowledge of specific reactions involved in methanol catabolism. Only a few of the genetic loci hitherto found have been matched by biochemical experiments through the isolation or demonstration of specific gene products. Conversely, several factors have been identified by biochemical means and were shown to be involved in the methanol dehydrogenase reaction or subsequent electron transfer. For the majority of these components, their genetic loci are unknown. A comprehensive treatise on the regulation and molecular mechanism of methanol oxidation is therefore presented, followed by the data that have become available through the use of genetic analysis. The assemblage of methanol dehydrogenase enzyme, the role of pyrrolo-quinoline quinone, the involvement of accessory factors, the evident translocation of all these components to the periplasm and the dedicated link to the electron transport chain are now accepted and well studied phenomena in a few selected facultative methylotrophs. Metabolic regulation of gene expression, efficiency of energy conservation and the question whether universal rules apply to methylotrophs in general, have so far been given less attention. In order to expand these studies to less well known methylotrophic species initial results concerning such area as genetic mapping, the molecular characterization of specific genes and extrachromosomal genetics will also pass in review.

Characterisation of the electron transport chain of an obligate methylotroph, strain 4025

1. The obligate methanol-utilising bacterium strain 4025 contains cytochromes b and c. Cytochrome a is never present. 2. The soluble cytochrome c is similar to that from other methylotrophs in reacting (slowly) with carbon monoxide and it can be separated into two types, differing markedly in their isoelectric points. 3. Some of the cytochrome b reacts rapidly with carbon monoxide and is thus the likely cytochrome oxidase (cytochrome o). 4. The partially purified, NAD+-independent methanol dehydrogenase is similar to such enzymes from the other methanol-utilising bacteria in respect of its prosthetic group, dependence on ammonia or methylamine for activity and its wide substrate specificity. 5. The fluorescence seen in colonies of this organism is probably due to a flavin derivative. 6. This study of electron transport components does not shed any light on the unusually high copper requirement shown by this methylotroph.

Respiratory ubiquinone-9 from Hyphomicrobium spec. Strain ZV 580

Ubiquinone-9, an ubiquinone with a side-chain containing 9 prenyl residues, was purified from Hyphomicrobium spec. strain ZV 580, and identified by thin-layer chromatography, UV spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. The participation of the quinone in the reactions of the respiratory chain was established by observing its increasing reduction in a membrane fraction upon the addition of NADH, the exhaustion of oxygen, and in the presence of NADH plus cyanide. The degrees of reduction in these states matched those of the cytochromes b and c.

Aerobic and anaerobic growth of Paracoccus denitrificans on methanol

1. The dye-linked methanol dehydrogenase from Paracoccus denitrificans grown aerobically on methanol has been purified and its properties compared with similar enzymes from other bacteria. It was shown to be specific and to have high affinity for primary alcohols and formaldehyde as substrate, ammonia was the best activator and the enzyme could be linked to reduction of phenazine methosulphate. 2. Paracoccus denitrificans could be grown anaerobically on methanol, using nitrate or nitrite as electron acceptor. The methanol dehydrogenase synthesized under these conditions could not be differentiated from the aerobically-synthesized enzyme. 3. Activities of methanol dehydrogenase, formaldehyde dehydrogenase, formate dehydrogenase, nitrate reductase and nitrite reductase were measured under aerobic and anaerobic growth conditions. 4. Difference spectra of reduced and oxidized cytochromes in membrane and supernatant fractions of methanol-grown P. denitrificans were measured. 5. From the results of the spectral and enzymatic analyses it has been suggested that anaerobic growth on methanol/nitrate is made possible by reduction of nitrate to nitrite using electrons derived from the pyridine nucleotide-linked dehydrogenations of formaldehyde and formate, the nitrite so produced then functioning as electron acceptor for methanol dehydrogenase via cytochrome c and nitrite reductase.