Genetic analysis of mutations affecting pckA regulation in Rhizobium (Sinorhizobium) meliloti

A Key Regulator of the Glycolytic and Gluconeogenic Central Metabolic Pathways in Sinorhizobium meliloti

The order Rhizobiales contains numerous agriculturally, biotechnologically, and medically important bacteria, including the rhizobia, and the genera Agrobacterium, Brucella, and Methylobacterium, among others. These organisms tend to be metabolically versatile, but there has been relatively little investigation into the regulation of their central carbon metabolic pathways. Here, RNA-sequencing and promoter fusion data are presented to show that the PckR protein is a key regulator of central carbon metabolism in Sinorhizobium meliloti; during growth with gluconeogenic substrates, PckR represses expression of the complete Entner-Doudoroff glycolytic pathway and induces expression of the pckA and fbaB gluconeogenic genes. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays indicate that PckR binds an imperfect palindromic sequence that overlaps the promoter or transcriptional start site in the negatively regulated promoters, or is present in tandem upstream the promoter motifs in the positively regulated promoters. Genetic and in vitro electrophoretic mobility shift assay experiments suggest that elevated concentrations of a PckR effector ligand results in the dissociation of PckR from its target binding site, and evidence is presented that suggests phosphoenolpyruvate may function as the effector. Characterization of missense pckR alleles identified three conserved residues important for increasing the affinity of PckR for its cognate effector molecule. Bioinformatics analyses illustrates that PckR is limited to a narrow phylogenetic range consisting of the Rhizobiaceae, Phyllobacteriaceae, Brucellaceae, and Bartonellaceae families. These data provide novel insights into the regulation of the core carbon metabolic pathways of this pertinent group of α-proteobacteria.

Transport and metabolism in legume-rhizobia symbioses

Symbiotic nitrogen fixation by rhizobia in legume root nodules injects approximately 40 million tonnes of nitrogen into agricultural systems each year. In exchange for reduced nitrogen from the bacteria, the plant provides rhizobia with reduced carbon and all the essential nutrients required for bacterial metabolism. Symbiotic nitrogen fixation requires exquisite integration of plant and bacterial metabolism. Central to this integration are transporters of both the plant and the rhizobia, which transfer elements and compounds across various plant membranes and the two bacterial membranes. Here we review current knowledge of legume and rhizobial transport and metabolism as they relate to symbiotic nitrogen fixation. Although all legume-rhizobia symbioses have many metabolic features in common, there are also interesting differences between them, which show that evolution has solved metabolic problems in different ways to achieve effective symbiosis in different systems.

NAD(P)+-malic enzyme mutants of Sinorhizobium sp. strain NGR234, but not Azorhizobium caulinodans ORS571, maintain symbiotic N2 fixation capabilities

C(4)-dicarboxylic acids appear to be metabolized via the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle in N(2)-fixing bacteria (bacteroids) within legume nodules. In Sinorhizobium meliloti bacteroids from alfalfa, NAD(+)-malic enzyme (DME) is required for N(2) fixation, and this activity is thought to be required for the anaplerotic synthesis of pyruvate. In contrast, in the pea symbiont Rhizobium leguminosarum, pyruvate synthesis occurs via either DME or a pathway catalyzed by phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK) and pyruvate kinase (PYK). Here we report that dme mutants of the broad-host-range Sinorhizobium sp. strain NGR234 formed nodules whose level of N(2) fixation varied from 27 to 83% (plant dry weight) of the wild-type level, depending on the host plant inoculated. NGR234 bacteroids had significant PCK activity, and while single pckA and single dme mutants fixed N(2) at reduced rates, a pckA dme double mutant had no N(2)-fixing activity (Fix(-)). Thus, NGR234 bacteroids appear to synthesize pyruvate from TCA cycle intermediates via DME or PCK pathways. These NGR234 data, together with other reports, suggested that the completely Fix(-) phenotype of S. meliloti dme mutants may be specific to the alfalfa-S. meliloti symbiosis. We therefore examined the ME-like genes azc3656 and azc0119 from Azorhizobium caulinodans, as azc3656 mutants were previously shown to form Fix(-) nodules on the tropical legume Sesbania rostrata. We found that purified AZC3656 protein is an NAD(P)(+)-malic enzyme whose activity is inhibited by acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) and stimulated by succinate and fumarate. Thus, whereas DME is required for symbiotic N(2) fixation in A. caulinodans and S. meliloti, in other rhizobia this activity can be bypassed via another pathway(s).

Characterization of a (pckA) mutant of the non-nodulating bacterium Rhizobium pusense NRCPB10 induced by transposon Tn5 mutagenesis

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK) catalyzes the decarboxylation and phosphorylation of oxaloacetate to phosphoenolpyruvate in the gluconeogenic pathway in most organisms. A pckA gene encoding PCK was cloned and sequenced from strain Rhizobium pusense NRCPB100, a spontaneous rifampicin resistant mutant of R. pusense NRCPB10^T (JCM16209^T) of a recently described new species of a non-nodulating and non-tumorigenic bacterium. The mapping of the pck gene region following Tn5 mutagenesis located the gene downstream of a transcriptional regulatory protein gene (chvI) and upstream of a conserved hypothetical protein gene. The pck of 1,611 bp was deduced to encode 536 amino acids and showed high homology to the genes of known ATP-dependent PCK enzymes. Phylogenetic analysis of the gene placed it in a cluster with pck of other known members of Rhizobiales. Amino acid sequences of the putative functional regions of the deduced enzyme were found to be conserved.

Global protein expression pattern of Bradyrhizobium japonicum bacteroids: a prelude to functional proteomics

As a prelude to using functional proteomics towards understanding the process of symbiotic nitrogen fixation between the legume soybean and the soil bacteria Bradyrhizobium japonicum, we examined the total protein expression pattern of the nodule bacteria, often referred to as bacteroids. A partial proteome map was constructed by separating the total bacteroid proteins using high-resolution 2-DE. Of the several hundred protein spots analyzed using PMF, 180 spots were tentatively identified by searching the available database for B. japonicum, (http://www.kazusa.or.jp/index.html). The data showed that the bacteroid expressed a dominant and elaborate protein network for nitrogen and carbon metabolism, which is closely dependent on the plant supplied metabolites, and seems aptly supported by a selective group of bacteroid transporter proteins. However, they seem to lack a defined fatty acid and nucleic acid metabolism. Interestingly, the proteins related to protein synthesis, scaffolding and degradation were among the most predominant spots of the bacteroid proteome. In addition, several proteins, which showed fairly good expression, were identified to be involved with cellular detoxification, stress regulation and signaling communication components. This preliminary proteomic data matches very well with several biochemical and genetic reports, and clearly shows the inter-connection between several metabolic pathways that meet the needs of the bacteroid. It is expected that in the future this will allow us to develop testable hypotheses about the roles of several of these proteins in context to the metabolic pathway connections and metabolite fluxes.

Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris possesses a single gluconeogenic pathway that is required for virulence

Disruption of ppsA, a key gene in gluconeogenesis, of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris resulted in the failure of the pathogen to grow in medium with pyruvate or C4-dicarboxylates as the sole carbon source and a significant reduction in virulence, indicating that X. campestris pv. campestris possesses only the malic enzyme-PpsA route in gluconeogenesis, which is required for virulence.

Molecular and functional characterization of the Rhodopseudomonas palustris no. 7 phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase gene

The pckA gene, encoding the gluconeogenic enzyme phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK), was cloned by PCR amplification from the purple nonsulfur bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris No. 7. Sequencing of a 2.5-kb chromosomal SmaI-PstI fragment containing the structural gene revealed an open reading frame encoding 537 amino acids, homologous to known pckA genes. Primer extension analysis identified a transcriptional start site 72 bp upstream of the pckA initiation codon and an upstream sequence similar to sigma70 promoters. Studies of a pckA-lacZ gene fusion indicated that when cells were grown in minimal media with various carbon sources, such as succinate, malate, pyruvate, lactate, or ethanol, under both anaerobic light and aerobic dark conditions, the pckA gene was induced in log phase, irrespective of the carbon source. A R. palustris No. 7 PEPCK-deficient strain showed growth characteristics identical to those of the wild-type strain either anaerobically in the light or aerobically in the dark when a C4-dicarboxylic acid, such as succinate or malate, was used as a carbon source. These results indicate that in R. palustris No. 7, an alternative gluconeogenic pathway may exist in addition to PEPCK.

Tricarboxylic acid cycle and anaplerotic enzymes in rhizobia

Rhizobia are a diverse group of Gram-negative bacteria comprised of the genera Rhizobium, Bradyrhizobium, Mesorhizobium, Sinorhizobium and Azorhizobium. A unifying characteristic of the rhizobia is their capacity to reduce (fix) atmospheric nitrogen in symbiotic association with a compatible plant host. Symbiotic nitrogen fixation requires a substantial input of energy from the rhizobial symbiont. This review focuses on recent studies of rhizobial carbon metabolism which have demonstrated the importance of a functional tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle in allowing rhizobia to efficiently colonize the plant host and/or develop an effective nitrogen fixing symbiosis. Several anaplerotic pathways have also been shown to maintain TCA cycle activity under specific conditions. Biochemical and physiological characterization of carbon metabolic mutants, along with the analysis of cloned genes and their corresponding gene products, have greatly advanced our understanding of the function of enzymes such as citrate synthase, oxoglutarate dehydrogenase, pyruvate carboxylase and malic enzymes. However, much remains to be learned about the control and function of these and other key metabolic enzymes in rhizobia.