Tetsuo Hamamoto

Characterization of a gene responsible for the Na+/H+ antiporter system of alkalophilic Bacillus species strain C‐125

An alkali‐sensitive mutant, 38154, of the alkalophilic Bacillus sp. strain C‐125 could not grow at an alkaline pH. The nucleotide sequence of a 3.7 kb parental DNA fragment that recovers the growth of 38154 at alkaline pH has four open reading frames (ORF1–4). By sub‐cloning the fragment, we demonstrated that a 0.25 kb DNA region is responsible for the recovery. Direct sequencing of the mutants corresponding region revealed a G to A substitution. The mutation resulted in an amino acid substitution from Gly‐393 to Arg of the putative 0RF1 product, which was deduced to be an 804‐amino‐acid polypeptide with a molecular weight of 89 070. The N‐terminal part of the putative ORF1 product showed amino acid similarity to those of the chain‐5 products of eukaryotic NADH quinine oxidoreductases. Membrane vesicles prepared from 38154 did not show membrane potential (δψ)‐driven Na+/H+ antiporter activity. Antiporter activity was resumed by introducing a parental DNA fragment which recovered the mutants alkalophily. These results indicate that the mutation in 38154 affects, either directly or indirectly, the electrogenic Na+/H+ antiporter activity. This is the first report which shows that a gene responsible for the Na+/H+ anti‐porter system is important in the alkalophily of alkalo‐philic microorganisms.

Molecular Cloning and Nucleotide Sequence of the Cyclomaltodextrin Glucanotransferase Gene from the Alkalophilic Bacillus sp. Strain No. 38-2

The cyclomaltodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase, EC 2.4.1.19) gene from the alkalophilic Bacillus sp. strain no. 38-2 was cloned in Escherichia coli using pBR322. A plasmid, pCS8, was isolated from a transformant producing CGTase and the cloned CGTase gene was found to be in a 5.3 kb DNA fragment. The nucleotide sequence of a 2.5 kb segment encoding the CGTase was determined. This segment showed an open reading frame which would encode a polypeptide of 712 amino acids. The pCS8 CGTase had the same enzymic properties as those of the extracellular CGTase produced by the alkalophilic Bacillus sp. strain no. 38-2. The nucleotide and amino acid sequences of this CGTase gene and gene product, respectively, have strong homology with those of the Bacillus macerans CGTase.

Haloarcula japonica sp. nov., a new triangular halophilic archaebacterium

Summary A new, extremely halophilic triangular archaebacterium was isolated from a Japanese saltern soil. This organism has a typically triangular shape under normal growth conditions. Polar lipid analyses indicate an affinity with members of the genus Haloarcula , but the isolate differs significantly from known species of this genus. We propose a new species for the isolate as Haloarcula japonica sp. nov.

Construction of a Chimeric Series of Bacillus Cyclomaltodextrin Glucanotransferases and Analysis of the Thermal Stabilities and pH Optima of the Enzymes

The cyclomaltodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase, EC 2.4.1.19) gene from the alkalophilic Bacillus sp. strain no. 17-1 was cloned in Escherichia coli. The cloned CGTase gene consisted of a single open reading frame which would encode a polypeptide of 713 amino acids, and the first 27 amino acid residues comprised a signal peptide. The nucleotide sequence and the amino acid sequence of this CGTase (CGTase 17-1) gene had strong homology with those of the CGTase (CGTase 38-2) gene previously cloned in our laboratory from the alkalophilic Bacillus sp. strain no. 38-2, although the enzymic properties of the CGTase 17-1 were distinct from those of the CGTase 38-2. To analyse those enzymic properties further, we constructed 12 chimeric CGTases using three restriction nuclease sites and compared the enzymic properties of the chimeric CGTases. The N-terminal part of the enzyme was important for heat stability, and the pH-activity profile was influenced by both the N- and the C-terminal parts. A third segment was less important for enzymic properties.

Isolation of halophilic and halotolerant bacteria from a Japanese salt field and comparison of the partial 16S rRNA gene sequence of an extremely halophilic isolate with those of other extreme halophiles

Halophilic and halotolerant bacteria were isolated from soil samples of a Japanese salt field, an environment where salt concentrations vary annually. From 1 g of each of the five samples collected, over 1×103 bacterial colonies (colony forming units (cfu)g-1) grew on agar medium containing 2M Na+. In contrast, 0–4 bacterial colonies (cfu g-1) were observed on agar medium containing 4M Na+. Two of the five samples contained numerous bacteria (102–103 cfu g-1) capable of growth on a 2M Na+ alkaline (pH=9.5) medium, while few bacterial colonies were observed from the other three samples. Only one of the five samples was shown to contain bacteria capable of growth on a 4M Na+ alkaline medium. Most of the bacteria isolated on 4M Na+ agar were eubacteria, but one extreme halophile (TR-1, already described as Haloarcula japonica JCM7785) was also isolated. The 16S rRNA sequence of TR-1 was determined and shows high homology (94.4–98.5%) to Ha. marismortui and Ha. sinaiiensis. These results suggested that: 1) environments with seasonally varying salinity can harbour halotolerants as well as halophiles and, 2) closely related halophiles can be isolated from geographically distant habitats.

Characterization of a bacterium isolated from amber

A bacterium has been isolated from Baltic amber, after it was soaked in ethanol and flamed. The bacterium was a Gram-positive aerobic spore-forming rod whose 16S rDNA sequence had a 99.6% homology to that of Bacillus subtilis. Accordingly, the bacterium was identified as a strain in the species Bacillus subtilis. Considering the isolation procedure that was employed, the isolate should not be a contaminant of the contemporary Bacillus population; however, it may not be considered as a bacterium trapped when the amber was formed. These results suggest that amber might contain bacteria that were derived from the environments in which the amber had been located.