title: Rubredoxin reductase from Alcanivorax borkumensis: expression and characterization.
abstract: Oil pollution is an environmental problem of increasing importance. Alcanivorax borkumensis, with a high potential for biotechnological applications, is a key marine hydrocarbonoclastic bacterium and plays a critical role in the bioremediation of oil-polluted marine systems. In oil degrading bacteria, the first step of alkane degradation is catalyzed by a monooxygenase. The reducing electrons are tunneled from NAD(P)H via rubredoxin, one of the most primitive metalloproteins, to the hydroxylase. Rubredoxin reductase is a flavoprotein catalyzing the reduction of rubredoxin. There are two rubredoxin genes, alkG and rubA, in A. borkumensis genome. In this work, the genes encoding rubredoxin reductase (ABO_0162, rubB) and AlkG(ABO_2708, alkG) were cloned and functionally overexpressed in E. coli. Our results demonstrate that RubB could reduce AlkG, therefore compensating for the absence of AlkT, also a rubredoxin reductase, missing in A. borkumensis SK2 genome. These results will increase our knowledge concerning biological alkane degradation and will lead us to design more efficient biotransformation and bioremediation systems.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Biochemistry, Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics (IBB), University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Afsaneh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Teimoori
authors.forename: Shahin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ahmadian
authors.forename: Armin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Madadkar-Sobhani
authors.forename: Bijan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bambai
mesh_terms: D053521:Alcanivoraceae / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D001483:Base Sequence; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D015153:Blotting, Western; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D017931:DNA Primers; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009247:NADH, NADPH Oxidoreductases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; C023091:rubredoxin-NAD+ reductase; D009247:NADH, NADPH Oxidoreductases