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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, June 2001, p. 2669-2676, Vol. 67, No. 6
Department of Microbiology and Immunology,
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T
1Z3, Canada
Received 17 October 2000/Accepted 16 March 2001
We investigated induction of biphenyl dioxygenase in the
psychrotolerant polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) degrader
Pseudomonas strain Cam-1 and in the mesophilic PCB degrader
Burkholderia strain LB400. Using a counterselectable gene
replacement vector, we inserted a lacZ-Gmr
fusion cassette between chromosomal genes encoding the large subunit
(bphA) and small subunit (bphE) of biphenyl
dioxygenase in Cam-1 and LB400, generating Cam-10 and LB400-1,
respectively. Potential inducers of bphA were added to cell
suspensions of Cam-10 and LB400-1 incubated at 30°C, and then
beta-galactosidase activity was measured. Biphenyl induced
beta-galactosidase activity in Cam-10 to a level approximately six
times greater than the basal level in cells incubated with pyruvate. In
contrast, the beta-galactosidase activities in LB400-1 incubated with
biphenyl and in LB400-1 incubated with pyruvate were indistinguishable.
At a concentration of 1 mM, most of the 40 potential inducers
tested were inhibitory to induction by biphenyl of beta-galactosidase
activity in Cam-10. The exceptions were naphthalene, salicylate,
2-chlorobiphenyl, and 4-chlorobiphenyl, which induced
beta-galactosidase activity in Cam-10, although at levels that were no
more than 30% of the levels induced by biphenyl. After incubation for
24 h at 7°C, biphenyl induced beta-galactosidase activity in
Cam-10 to a level approximately four times greater than the basal level
in cells incubated with pyruvate. The constitutive level of
beta-galactosidase activity in LB400-1 grown at 15°C was
approximately five times less than the level in LB400-1 grown at
30°C. Thus, there are substantial differences in the effects of
physical and chemical environmental conditions on genetic regulation of
PCB degradation in different bacteria.
0099-2240/01/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/AEM.67.6.2669-2676.2001
Copyright © 2001, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Induction of bphA, Encoding Biphenyl Dioxygenase,
in Two Polychlorinated Biphenyl-Degrading Bacteria,
Psychrotolerant Pseudomonas Strain Cam-1 and Mesophilic
Burkholderia Strain LB400
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of
Microbiology and Immunology, University of British Columbia, 300-6174 University Blvd., Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6T 1Z3. Phone: (604) 822-4285. Fax: (604) 822-6041. E-mail:
wmohn{at}interchange.ubc.ca.
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