This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Gourdon, P.
Right arrow Articles by Guyonvarch, A.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Gourdon, P.
Right arrow Articles by Guyonvarch, A.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Gourdon, P.
Right arrow Articles by Guyonvarch, A.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2000, p. 2981-2987, Vol. 66, No. 7
0099-2240/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Cloning of the Malic Enzyme Gene from Corynebacterium glutamicum and Role of the Enzyme in Lactate Metabolism

Pierre Gourdon,1 Marie-France Baucher,2 Nic D. Lindley,1,* and Armel Guyonvarch2

Laboratoire de Biotechnologie-Bioprocédés, UMR INSA/CNRS 5504 and UMR INRA 792, Centre de Bioingénierie Gilbert Durand, Institut National des Sciences Appliqueés, 31077 Toulouse Cedex,1 and Institut de Génétique et Microbiologie, UMR CNRS 8621, Université Paris-Sud, Centre Universitaire d'Orsay, 91405 Orsay Cedex,2 France

Received 10 March 2000/Accepted 12 May 2000

Malic enzyme is one of at least five enzymes, known to be present in Corynebacterium glutamicum, capable of carboxylation and decarboxylation reactions coupling glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle. To date, no information is available concerning the physiological role of the malic enzyme in this bacterium. The malE gene from C. glutamicum has been cloned and sequenced. The protein encoded by this gene has been purified to homogeneity, and the biochemical properties have been established. Biochemical characteristics indicate a decarboxylation role linked to NADPH generation. Strains of C. glutamicum in which the malE gene had been disrupted or overexpressed showed no detectable phenotype during growth on either acetate or glucose, but showed a significant modification of growth behavior during lactate metabolism. The wild type showed a characteristic brief period of exponential growth on lactate followed by a linear growth period. This growth pattern was further accentuated in a malE-disrupted strain (Delta malE). However, the strain overexpressing malE maintained exponential growth until all lactate had been consumed. This strain accumulated significantly larger amounts of pyruvate in the medium than the other strains.


* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Laboratoire de Biotechnologie Bioprocedes, Centre de Bioingénierie Gilbert Durand, Institut National des Sciences Appliquées, 135 Ave. de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse Cedex 4, France. Phone: (33) 561 559 489. Fax: (33) 561 559 400. E-mail: lindley{at}insa-tlse.fr.


Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2000, p. 2981-2987, Vol. 66, No. 7
0099-2240/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Mounier, J., Rea, M. C., O'Connor, P. M., Fitzgerald, G. F., Cogan, T. M. (2007). Growth Characteristics of Brevibacterium, Corynebacterium, Microbacterium, and Staphylococcus spp. Isolated from Surface-Ripened Cheese. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 7732-7739 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Bologna, F. P., Andreo, C. S., Drincovich, M. F. (2007). Escherichia coli Malic Enzymes: Two Isoforms with Substantial Differences in Kinetic Properties, Metabolic Regulation, and Structure. J. Bacteriol. 189: 5937-5946 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Han, S. O., Inui, M., Yukawa, H. (2007). Expression of Corynebacterium glutamicum glycolytic genes varies with carbon source and growth phase. Microbiology 153: 2190-2202 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Mitsch, M. J., Cowie, A., Finan, T. M. (2007). Malic Enzyme Cofactor and Domain Requirements for Symbiotic N2 Fixation by Sinorhizobium meliloti. J. Bacteriol. 189: 160-168 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lerondel, G., Doan, T., Zamboni, N., Sauer, U., Aymerich, S. (2006). YtsJ Has the Major Physiological Role of the Four Paralogous Malic Enzyme Isoforms in Bacillus subtilis. J. Bacteriol. 188: 4727-4736 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Lee, S. J., Song, H., Lee, S. Y. (2006). Genome-Based Metabolic Engineering of Mannheimia succiniciproducens for Succinic Acid Production.. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 1939-1948 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Velayudhan, J., Kelly, D. J. (2002). Analysis of gluconeogenic and anaplerotic enzymes in Campylobacter jejuni: an essential role for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase. Microbiology 148: 685-694 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Merkamm, M., Guyonvarch, A. (2001). Cloning of the sodA Gene from Corynebacterium melassecola and Role of Superoxide Dismutase in Cellular Viability. J. Bacteriol. 183: 1284-1295 [Abstract] [Full Text]