Genetic characterization of 4-cresol catabolism in Corynebacterium glutamicum.
Corynebacterium glutamicum uses 4-cresol as sole carbon source for growth. Protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase activity had been detected when C. glutamicum was grown with 4-cresol. In this work, we found that 4-cresol was catabolized via 4-hydroxybenzoate and protocatechuate as intermediate metabolites, and a genetic cluster called cre (designated for 4-cresol, creABCDEFGHIR, tagged as ncgl0521-ncgl0531 in NCBI) was identified. The cre gene cluster comprises of 11 genes, and six of them were experimentally confirmed to be involving in 4-cresol catabolism. The genes creD, creE, and creJ were involved in oxidation of 4-cresol into 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol. The creD encoded a protein showing Mg(2+)-dependent phosphohydrolase activity. The genes creE, creF, creJ encoded a putative P450 system. The creG encoded a NAD(+)-dependent dehydrogenase and catalyzed 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol to 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde. Two other genes creH and creI were involved in conversion of 4-hydroxybenzyl alcohol to 4-hydroxybenzoate, but their catalytic function is still unknown. Similar genetic clusters with high DNA sequence identity were identified in Arthrobacter and additional Corynebacterium species, suggesting that this genetic organization for 4-cresol catabolism might be more widely distributed in Gram-positive bacteria.
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China.
Tang
T
Li
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China.
Xi
X
Chen
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China.
Muhammad Tausif
MT
Chaudhry
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China.
Bo
B
Zhang
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China; Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology Research Center, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China.
Cheng-Ying
CY
Jiang
State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China; Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology Research Center, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, PR China. Electronic address: liusj@im.ac.cn.
Shuang-Jiang
SJ
Liu
D048230:Corynebacterium glutamicum / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D003408:Cresols / Q000378:metabolism*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D023281:Genomics; D062385:Hydroxybenzoates / Q000378:metabolism; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways / Q000235:genetics*; D005810:Multigene Family / Q000235:genetics*; D010226:Parabens / Q000378:metabolism
D003408:Cresols; D062385:Hydroxybenzoates; D010226:Parabens; C032538:4-cresol; C009091:protocatechuic acid; C038193:4-hydroxybenzoic acid
4-Cresol; Aromatic compound degradation; Corynebacterium glutamicum; P450; cre genes