Anna A. Toymentseva

Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus pumilus 7P, Isolated from the Soil of the Tatarstan Republic, Russia

ABSTRACT Here, we present a draft genome sequence of Bacillus pumilus strain 7P. This strain was isolated from soil as an extracellular RNase-producing microorganism. The RNase of B. pumilus 7P is considered to be a potential antiviral and therapeutic antitumor agent, and it might be appropriate for agriculture and academic synthesis of oligoribonucleotides.

Bacterial enzymes effectively digest Alzheimer's β-amyloid peptide

Aggregated β-amyloid peptides play key roles in the development of Alzheimers disease, and recent evidence suggests that microbial particles, among others, can facilitate their polymerization. Bacterial enzymes, however, have been proved to be beneficial in degrading pathological fibrillar structures in clinical settings, such as strepto-kinases in resolving blood-clots. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ability of bacterial substances to effectively hydrolyze β-amyloid peptides. Degrading products of several proteinases from Bacillus pumilus were evaluated using MALDI-TOF mass-spectrometry, and their toxicity was assessed in vitro using cell-culture assays and morphological studies. These enzymes have proved to be non-toxic and were demonstrated to cleave through the functional domains of β-amyloid peptide. By yielding inactive fragments, proteinases of Bacillus pumilus may be used as candidate anti-amyloid agents.

Draft Genome Sequence of Serratia grimesii Strain A2.

ABSTRACT We report the first draft genome assembly of Serratia grimesii strain A2, previously identified as Escherichia coli strain A2, which produces protease ECP32 with a high specificity toward actin. S. grimesii strain A2 has multidrug resistance associated with a number of efflux pump genes.

Purification of recombinant extracellular proteases from Bacillus pumilus for ß-amyloid peptide cleavage

Using the expression vector pGP382 containing a constitutive promoter (PdegQ36) and an affinity tag (Strep-tag), we have obtained highly purified recombinant Bacillus pumilus 3-19 proteinases with different substrate specificities: glutamylendopeptidase (GseBp), subtilisin-like protease (AprBp), and metalloendopeptidase (MprBp). The products of the hydrolysis of the ß-amyloid peptide by the bacterial proteases from B. pumilus have been studied. The findings on the potential of the practical application of these bacterial enzymes as the agents preventing the development of the Alzheimer’s disease are presented.

Genetic mechanisms of bacilli adaptation

Adaptive strategies of bacilli involving genetic regulatory mechanisms are reviewed. The role of master regulators and signal transduction systems that coordinate the interaction of the extracellular signals and the genetic programs responsible for the metabolic state of bacteria are discussed. Most of the known regulatory pathways are directly or indirectly regulated by the DegU, Spo0A, AbrB, and CodY global regulators. The main factor affecting the development of cell phenotype is the concentration of the regulatory protein and its ability to bind with varying affinity to promoters of the genes and operons. The effect of the regulatory systems on the bistability of microbial populations is discussed.

Effect of nucleases on bacteria infected with bacteriophages

The effect of bacterial nucleases on bacteria infected by DNA- or RNA-containing bacteriophages with different serogroups was studied. Bacillary RNases have a strong inhibitory effect on RNA-containing bacteriophages. It was shown that nucleases suppressed the infection process of bacteria by bacteriophages M12, f2, PP7, and QB. The minimal inhibitory concentration ranged from 0.6 to 6 μg/mL. Bacterial ribonucleases have no impact on the development of DNA-containing bacteriophages PZ-A, PZ-B, P3k, P118, and a lysogenic culture of Escherichia coli (λ) and Bacillus subtilis 168 (phi105). RNase from Bacillus pumilus did not inactivate bacteriophages Qβ and f2 in vitro and did not influence the adsorption on bacteriophages on the cell wall of the bacteria host E. coli AB301. The enzyme effect was shown at the level of bacteriophage infection of the host bacteria. Presumably, the phase between the adsorption and penetration of phage RNA into bacterial pili is the most sensitive to the effect of RNases.

Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus ginsengihumi Strain M2.11 with Phytase Activity.

ABSTRACT This paper announces the genome sequence of Bacillus ginsengihumi strain M2.11, which has been characterized as a strain which produces the enzyme with the ability to degrade phytase. The genome of the strain M2.11 is 3.7 Mb and harbors 3,082 coding sequences.