title: Identification of natural rubber degradation gene in Rhizobacter gummiphilus NS21.
abstract: A Gram-negative rubber-degrading bacterium, Rhizobacter gummiphilus NS21 grew and produced aldehyde metabolites on a deproteinized natural rubber (DPNR)-overlay agar medium forming a clearing zone. A transposon-insertion mutant, which had lost the ability to degrade DPNR, was isolated to identify the rubber degradation genes. Sequencing analysis indicated that the transposon was inserted into a putative oxygenase gene, latA. The deduced amino acid sequence of latA has 36% identity with that of roxA, which encodes a rubber oxygenase of Xanthomonas sp. strain 35Y. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that LatA constitutes a distinct group from RoxA. Heterologous expression in a Methylibium host and deletion analysis of latA indicated that the latA product is responsible for the depolymerization of DPNR. The quantitative reverse transcription-PCR analysis indicated that the transcription of latA is induced during the growth on DPNR. These results strongly suggest that latA is directly involved in the degradation of rubber in NS21.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Daisuke
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kasai
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Shunsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Imai
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Shota
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Asano
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Michiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tabata
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: So
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Iijima
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Naofumi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kamimura
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Masai
authors.affiliation: a Department of Bioengineering , Nagaoka University of Technology , Nagaoka , Japan.
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukuda
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D020562:Betaproteobacteria / Q000235:genetics; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D042521:Burkholderiaceae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D015964:Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D010105:Oxygenases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D010802:Phylogeny; D012408:Rubber / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D012408:Rubber; D010105:Oxygenases
keywords: Rhizobacter gummiphilus; natural rubber; poly(cis-1,4-isoprene); rubber degradation