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Bao YQ, Zhang MT, Feng BY, Jieensi W, Xu Y, Xu LR, Han YY, Chen YP. Construction, Characterization, and Application of an Ammonium Transporter (AmtB) Deletion Mutant of the Nitrogen-Fixing Bacterium Kosakonia radicincitans GXGL-4A in Cucumis sativus L. Seedlings. Curr Microbiol 2023; 80:58. [PMID: 36588112 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-022-03160-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Nitrogen is an important factor affecting crop yield, but excessive use of chemical nitrogen fertilizer has caused decline in nitrogen utilization and soil and water pollution. Reducing the utilization of chemical nitrogen fertilizers by biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is feasible for green production of crops. However, there are few reports on how to have more ammonium produced by nitrogen-fixing bacteria (NFB) flow outside the cell. In the present study, the amtB gene encoding an ammonium transporter (AmtB) in the genome of NFB strain Kosakonia radicincitans GXGL-4A was deleted and the △amtB mutant was characterized. The results showed that deletion of the amtB gene had no influence on the growth of bacterial cells. The extracellular ammonium nitrogen (NH4+) content of the △amtB mutant under nitrogen-free culture conditions was significantly higher than that of the wild-type strain GXGL-4A (WT-GXGL-4A), suggesting disruption of NH4+ transport. Meanwhile, the plant growth-promoting effect in cucumber seedlings was visualized after fertilization using cells of the △amtB mutant. NFB fertilization continuously increased the cucumber rhizosphere soil pH. The nitrate nitrogen (NO3-) content in soil in the △amtB treatment group was significantly higher than that in the WT-GXGL-4A treatment group in the short term but there was no difference in soil NH4+ contents between groups. Soil enzymatic activities varied during a 45-day assessment period, indicating that △amtB fertilization influenced soil nitrogen cycling in the cucumber rhizosphere. The results will provide a solid foundation for developing the NFB GXGL-4A into an efficient biofertilizer agent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Qing Bao
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, China
| | - Meng-Ting Zhang
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Bao-Yun Feng
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Wulale Jieensi
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Yu Xu
- College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Lu-Rong Xu
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Ying-Ying Han
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, China
| | - Yun-Peng Chen
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
- Ministry of Science and Technology, Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-Environmental Change and Research Station, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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Schnabel T, Sattely E. Engineering Posttranslational Regulation of Glutamine Synthetase for Controllable Ammonia Production in the Plant Symbiont Azospirillum brasilense. Appl Environ Microbiol 2021; 87:e0058221. [PMID: 33962983 PMCID: PMC8231714 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00582-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Nitrogen requirements for modern agriculture far exceed the levels of bioavailable nitrogen in most arable soils. As a result, the addition of nitrogen fertilizer is necessary to sustain productivity and yields, especially for cereal crops, the planet's major calorie suppliers. Given the unsustainability of industrial fertilizer production and application, engineering biological nitrogen fixation directly at the roots of plants has been a grand challenge for biotechnology. Here, we designed and tested a potentially broadly applicable metabolic engineering strategy for the overproduction of ammonia in the diazotrophic symbiont Azospirillum brasilense. Our approach is based on an engineered unidirectional adenylyltransferase (uAT) that posttranslationally modifies and deactivates glutamine synthetase (GS), a key regulator of nitrogen metabolism in the cell. We show that this circuit can be controlled inducibly, and we leveraged the inherent self-contained nature of our posttranslational approach to demonstrate that multicopy redundancy can improve strain evolutionary stability. uAT-engineered Azospirillum is capable of producing ammonia at rates of up to 500 μM h-1 unit of OD600 (optical density at 600 nm)-1. We demonstrated that when grown in coculture with the model monocot Setaria viridis, these strains increase the biomass and chlorophyll content of plants up to 54% and 71%, respectively, relative to the wild type (WT). Furthermore, we rigorously demonstrated direct transfer of atmospheric nitrogen to extracellular ammonia and then plant biomass using isotopic labeling: after 14 days of cocultivation with engineered uAT strains, 9% of chlorophyll nitrogen in Setaria seedlings was derived from diazotrophically fixed dinitrogen, whereas no nitrogen was incorporated in plants cocultivated with WT controls. This rational design for tunable ammonia overproduction is modular and flexible, and we envision that it could be deployable in a consortium of nitrogen-fixing symbiotic diazotrophs for plant fertilization. IMPORTANCE Nitrogen is the most limiting nutrient in modern agriculture. Free-living diazotrophs, such as Azospirillum, are common colonizers of cereal grasses and have the ability to fix nitrogen but natively do not release excess ammonia. Here, we used a rational engineering approach to generate ammonia-excreting strains of Azospirillum. Our design features posttranslational control of highly conserved central metabolism, enabling tunability and flexibility of circuit placement. We found that our strains promote the growth and health of the model grass S. viridis and rigorously demonstrated that in comparison to WT controls, our engineered strains can transfer nitrogen from 15N2 gas to plant biomass. Unlike previously reported ammonia-producing mutants, our rationally designed approach easily lends itself to further engineering opportunities and has the potential to be broadly deployable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Schnabel
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Elizabeth Sattely
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University and HHMI, Stanford, California, USA
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Li Q, He X, Liu P, Zhang H, Wang M, Chen S. Synthesis of nitrogenase by Paenibacillus sabinae T27 in presence of high levels of ammonia during anaerobic fermentation. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2021; 105:2889-2899. [PMID: 33745008 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11231-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Biological nitrogen fixation is usually inhibited by fixed nitrogen. Paenibacillus sabinae T27, a Gram-positive, spore-forming diazotroph, possesses high nitrogenase activity and has 3 copies of nifH (nifH, nifH2, nifH3), a copy of nifDK, and multiple nifHDK-like genes. In this study, we found that P. sabinae T27 showed nitrogenase activities not only in low (0-3 mM) concentrations of NH4+ but also in high (30-300 mM) concentrations of NH4+, no matter whether this bacterium was grown in a flask or in a fermenter on scale cultivation. qRT-PCR and western blotting analyses supported that Fe protein and MoFe protein were synthesized under both low (0-3 mM) and high (30-300 mM) concentrations of NH4+. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis revealed that MoFe protein was encoded by nifDK and Fe protein was encoded by both nifH and nifH2. The cross-reaction suggested the purified Fe and MoFe components from P. sabinae T27 grown in both nitrogen-limited and nitrogen-excess conditions were active. This is the first time to report that diazotrophs show nitrogenase activity in presence of high (30-300 mM) concentrations of NH4+. Our study will provide a clue for studying the mechanisms of nitrogen fixation in presence of the high concentration of NH4+. KEY POINTS: • P. sabinae T27 can synthesize active nitrogenase in presence of high levels of ammonia. •Fe and MoFe proteins of nitrogenase purified in absence of ammonia are the same as those purified from the high concentration of ammonia. • Fe protein is encoded by nifH and nifH2, and MoFe protein is encoded by nifDK.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qin Li
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaojuan He
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
| | - Pengxi Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
| | - Haowei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
| | - Mingyang Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
| | - Sanfeng Chen
- State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Yuanmingyuan West Road No. 2, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China.
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Lu K, Jin Q, Lin Y, Lu W, Li S, Zhou C, Jin J, Jiang Q, Ling L, Xiao M. Cell-Free Fermentation Broth of Bacillus velezensis Strain S3-1 Improves Pak Choi Nutritional Quality and Changes the Bacterial Community Structure of the Rhizosphere Soil. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:2043. [PMID: 33071994 PMCID: PMC7533579 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.02043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Accepted: 08/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus velezensis is a plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) that has long been proven to improve the growth of plants, and it has been widely used in agriculture. However, in many reports, we observed that during the application of bacterial fluids, it appeared that the effect of the cell-free fermentation broth (CFB) was ignored. The purpose of this study is to compare the effect of the no inoculation treatment (CK), the B. velezensis strain S3-1 treatment (S), the CFB treatment in the Pak choi, soil bacterial community structure, soil enzyme activity, and field soil properties. The results have shown that, compared to the inoculation B. velezensis strain S3-1 treatment and the no-inoculation treatment; the inoculation of the CFB treatment can significantly enhance the soluble protein, soluble solids, ascorbic acid of Pak choi and increase the total phosphorus content and electrical conductivity (EC) in the soil. Based on high-throughput sequencing data, our analysis of soil microbial communities used R, NETWORK, and PICRUSt showed that the CFB treatment can enhance the relative abundance of Acidobacteria in the soil, decrease the abundance of native Bacillus in the soil, change the microbial community structure of the top 50 operational taxonomic units (OTUs), and improve soil microbial carbon metabolism and nitrogen metabolism. Overall, we observed that CFB treatment can also improve plant nutrition and change soil microbial communities. This study provides new insights for the application of microbial fertilizers in agricultural production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaiheng Lu
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Qing Jin
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yibo Lin
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenwei Lu
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Songshuo Li
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chenhao Zhou
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jieren Jin
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Qiuyan Jiang
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lichen Ling
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ming Xiao
- Shanghai Engineering and Technical Research Center of Plant Germplasm Resources, College of Life Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
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Abstract
ADP-ribosylation is an intricate and versatile posttranslational modification involved in the regulation of a vast variety of cellular processes in all kingdoms of life. Its complexity derives from the varied range of different chemical linkages, including to several amino acid side chains as well as nucleic acids termini and bases, it can adopt. In this review, we provide an overview of the different families of (ADP-ribosyl)hydrolases. We discuss their molecular functions, physiological roles, and influence on human health and disease. Together, the accumulated data support the increasingly compelling view that (ADP-ribosyl)hydrolases are a vital element within ADP-ribosyl signaling pathways and they hold the potential for novel therapeutic approaches as well as a deeper understanding of ADP-ribosylation as a whole.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Luca Palazzo
- Institute for the Experimental Endocrinology and Oncology, National Research Council of Italy, 80145 Naples, Italy
| | - Ivan Ahel
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3RE, United Kingdom
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Stefanello AA, Oliveira MASD, Souza EM, Pedrosa FO, Chubatsu LS, Huergo LF, Dixon R, Monteiro RA. Regulation of Herbaspirillum seropedicae NifA by the GlnK PII signal transduction protein is mediated by effectors binding to allosteric sites. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-PROTEINS AND PROTEOMICS 2019; 1868:140348. [PMID: 31866507 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2019.140348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2019] [Revised: 11/19/2019] [Accepted: 12/17/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Herbaspirillum seropedicae is a plant growth promoting bacterium that is able to fix nitrogen and to colonize the surface and internal tissues of important crops. Nitrogen fixation in H. seropedicae is regulated at the transcriptional level by the prokaryotic enhancer binding protein NifA. The activity of NifA is negatively affected by oxygen and positively stimulated by interaction with GlnK, a PII signaling protein that monitors intracellular levels of the key metabolite 2-oxoglutarate (2-OG) and functions as an indirect sensor of the intracellular nitrogen status. GlnK is also subjected to a cycle of reversible uridylylation in response to intracellular levels of glutamine. Previous studies have established the role of the N-terminal GAF domain of NifA in intramolecular repression of NifA activity and the role of GlnK in relieving this inhibition under nitrogen-limiting conditions. However, the mechanism of this control of NifA activity is not fully understood. Here, we constructed a series of GlnK variants to elucidate the role of uridylylation and effector binding during the process of NifA activation. Our data support a model whereby GlnK uridylylation is not necessary to activate NifA. On the other hand, binding of 2-OG and MgATP to GlnK are very important for NifA activation and constitute the most important signal of cellular nitrogen status to NifA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriano Alves Stefanello
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil
| | | | - Emanuel Maltempi Souza
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil
| | - Fábio Oliveira Pedrosa
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil
| | - Leda Satie Chubatsu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil
| | - Luciano Fernandes Huergo
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil; Setor Litoral, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Matinhos, PR, CEP 80060-000, Brazil
| | - Ray Dixon
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, John Innes Centre, NR4 7UH Norwich, UK
| | - Rose Adele Monteiro
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Paraná, CEP 81530-900 Curitiba, PR, Brazil.
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Nji E, Traore DAK, Ndi M, Joko CA, Doyle DA. BioStruct-Africa: empowering Africa-based scientists through structural biology knowledge transfer and mentoring - recent advances and future perspectives. JOURNAL OF SYNCHROTRON RADIATION 2019; 26:1843-1850. [PMID: 31490179 DOI: 10.1107/s1600577519008981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Being able to visualize biology at the molecular level is essential for our understanding of the world. A structural biology approach reveals the molecular basis of disease processes and can guide the design of new drugs as well as aid in the optimization of existing medicines. However, due to the lack of a synchrotron light source, adequate infrastructure, skilled persons and incentives for scientists in addition to limited financial support, the majority of countries across the African continent do not conduct structural biology research. Nevertheless, with technological advances such as robotic protein crystallization and remote data collection capabilities offered by many synchrotron light sources, X-ray crystallography is now potentially accessible to Africa-based scientists. This leap in technology led to the establishment in 2017 of BioStruct-Africa, a non-profit organization (Swedish corporate ID: 802509-6689) whose core aim is capacity building for African students and researchers in the field of structural biology with a focus on prevalent diseases in the African continent. The team is mainly composed of, but not limited to, a group of structural biologists from the African diaspora. The members of BioStruct-Africa have taken up the mantle to serve as a catalyst in order to facilitate the information and technology transfer to those with the greatest desire and need within Africa. BioStruct-Africa achieves this by organizing workshops onsite at our partner universities and institutions based in Africa, followed by post-hoc online mentoring of participants to ensure sustainable capacity building. The workshops provide a theoretical background on protein crystallography, hands-on practical experience in protein crystallization, crystal harvesting and cryo-cooling, live remote data collection on a synchrotron beamline, but most importantly the links to drive further collaboration through research. Capacity building for Africa-based researchers in structural biology is crucial to win the fight against the neglected tropical diseases, e.g. ascariasis, hookworm, trichuriasis, lymphatic filariasis, active trachoma, loiasis, yellow fever, leprosy, rabies, sleeping sickness, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis, etc., that constitute significant health, social and economic burdens to the continent. BioStruct-Africa aims to build local and national expertise that will have direct benefits for healthcare within the continent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuel Nji
- Centre for Biomembrane Research, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Daouda A K Traore
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Infection and Immunity Program, Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Mama Ndi
- Centre for Biomembrane Research, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Carolyn A Joko
- Faculty of Science and Engineering, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, Finland
| | - Declan A Doyle
- Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK
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Manipulating nitrogen regulation in diazotrophic bacteria for agronomic benefit. Biochem Soc Trans 2019; 47:603-614. [PMID: 30936245 PMCID: PMC6490700 DOI: 10.1042/bst20180342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2019] [Revised: 03/05/2019] [Accepted: 03/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is controlled by intricate regulatory mechanisms to ensure that fixed nitrogen is readily assimilated into biomass and not released to the environment. Understanding the complex regulatory circuits that couple nitrogen fixation to ammonium assimilation is a prerequisite for engineering diazotrophic strains that can potentially supply fixed nitrogen to non-legume crops. In this review, we explore how the current knowledge of nitrogen metabolism and BNF regulation may allow strategies for genetic manipulation of diazotrophs for ammonia excretion and provide a contribution towards solving the nitrogen crisis.
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