title: Screening, overexpression and characterization of an N-acylamino acid racemase from Amycolatopsis orientalis subsp. lurida.
abstract: Thirty-one different actinomycete strains were used in a genetic screening using PCR and Southern hybridization methods to detect N-acetylamino acid racemases (AAR) in order to obtain enzymes with different properties. Cloning and sequencing of a 2.5 kb EcoRI DNA fragment from Amycolatopsis orientalis subsp. lurida revealed the coding gene of an N-acetylamino acid racemase, which had identities to the aar gene of Amycolatopsis sp. TS-1-60 [Tokuyama and Hatano (1995) Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 42:884-889] of 86% at the level of DNA, and 90% at the level of amino acids. The heterologous overexpression in Escherichia coli resulted in a specific activity of about 0.2 U/mg of this racemase. A two-step purification with heat treatment followed by anion-exchange chromatography led to almost homogeneous enzyme. The optimum pH of the enzyme was 8.0 and it was stable at 50 degrees C for 30 min. The relative molecular mass of the native enzyme and the subunit was calculated to be 300 kDa and 40 kDa by gel filtration and SDS-PAGE, respectively. The isoelectric point (pI) of the AAR was 4.4. It catalyzed the racemization of optically active N-acetylamino acids such as N-acetyl-L- or -D-methionine and N-acetyl-L-phenylalanine. Further characterization of the racemase demonstrated a requirement for divalent metal ions (Co2+, Mn2+, Mg2+) for activity and inhibition by EDTA and p-hydroxymercuribenzoic acid. AAR is sensitive to substrate inhibition at concentrations exceeding 200 mM.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Enzyme Technology of the Heinrich-Heine-University Duesseldorf, Jülich, Germany.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Verseck
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bommarius
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Kula
mesh_terms: D000192:Actinomycetales / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D000591:Amino Acid Isomerases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004492:Edetic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D005822:Genetic Vectors; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006902:Hydroxymercuribenzoates / Q000494:pharmacology; D008670:Metals / Q000494:pharmacology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D006902:Hydroxymercuribenzoates; D008670:Metals; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C030601:4-hydroxymercuribenzoate; D004492:Edetic Acid; D000591:Amino Acid Isomerases