Lip-like genes in Phanerochaete sordida and Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, white rot fungi with no detectable lignin peroxidase activity

The genome of the white-rot fungus Pycnoporus cinnabarinus: a basidiomycete model with a versatile arsenal for lignocellulosic biomass breakdown

BACKGROUND

Saprophytic filamentous fungi are ubiquitous micro-organisms that play an essential role in photosynthetic carbon recycling. The wood-decayer Pycnoporus cinnabarinus is a model fungus for the study of plant cell wall decomposition and is used for a number of applications in green and white biotechnology.

RESULTS

The 33.6 megabase genome of P. cinnabarinus was sequenced and assembled, and the 10,442 predicted genes were functionally annotated using a phylogenomic procedure. In-depth analyses were carried out for the numerous enzyme families involved in lignocellulosic biomass breakdown, for protein secretion and glycosylation pathways, and for mating type. The P. cinnabarinus genome sequence revealed a consistent repertoire of genes shared with wood-decaying basidiomycetes. P. cinnabarinus is thus fully equipped with the classical families involved in cellulose and hemicellulose degradation, whereas its pectinolytic repertoire appears relatively limited. In addition, P. cinnabarinus possesses a complete versatile enzymatic arsenal for lignin breakdown. We identified several genes encoding members of the three ligninolytic peroxidase types, namely lignin peroxidase, manganese peroxidase and versatile peroxidase. Comparative genome analyses were performed in fungi displaying different nutritional strategies (white-rot and brown-rot modes of decay). P. cinnabarinus presents a typical distribution of all the specific families found in the white-rot life style. Growth profiling of P. cinnabarinus was performed on 35 carbon sources including simple and complex substrates to study substrate utilization and preferences. P. cinnabarinus grew faster on crude plant substrates than on pure, mono- or polysaccharide substrates. Finally, proteomic analyses were conducted from liquid and solid-state fermentation to analyze the composition of the secretomes corresponding to growth on different substrates. The distribution of lignocellulolytic enzymes in the secretomes was strongly dependent on growth conditions, especially for lytic polysaccharide mono-oxygenases.

CONCLUSIONS

With its available genome sequence, P. cinnabarinus is now an outstanding model system for the study of the enzyme machinery involved in the degradation or transformation of lignocellulosic biomass.

Lignin-degrading peroxidases from genome of selective ligninolytic fungus Ceriporiopsis subvermispora

The white-rot fungus Ceriporiopsis subvermispora delignifies lignocellulose with high selectivity, but until now it has appeared to lack the specialized peroxidases, termed lignin peroxidases (LiPs) and versatile peroxidases (VPs), that are generally thought important for ligninolysis. We screened the recently sequenced C. subvermispora genome for genes that encode peroxidases with a potential ligninolytic role. A total of 26 peroxidase genes was apparent after a structural-functional classification based on homology modeling and a search for diagnostic catalytic amino acid residues. In addition to revealing the presence of nine heme-thiolate peroxidase superfamily members and the unexpected absence of the dye-decolorizing peroxidase superfamily, the search showed that the C. subvermispora genome encodes 16 class II enzymes in the plant-fungal-bacterial peroxidase superfamily, where LiPs and VPs are classified. The 16 encoded enzymes include 13 putative manganese peroxidases and one generic peroxidase but most notably two peroxidases containing the catalytic tryptophan characteristic of LiPs and VPs. We expressed these two enzymes in Escherichia coli and determined their substrate specificities on typical LiP/VP substrates, including nonphenolic lignin model monomers and dimers, as well as synthetic lignin. The results show that the two newly discovered C. subvermispora peroxidases are functionally competent LiPs and also suggest that they are phylogenetically and catalytically intermediate between classical LiPs and VPs. These results offer new insight into selective lignin degradation by C. subvermispora.

Comparative genomics of Ceriporiopsis subvermispora and Phanerochaete chrysosporium provide insight into selective ligninolysis

Efficient lignin depolymerization is unique to the wood decay basidiomycetes, collectively referred to as white rot fungi. Phanerochaete chrysosporium simultaneously degrades lignin and cellulose, whereas the closely related species, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, also depolymerizes lignin but may do so with relatively little cellulose degradation. To investigate the basis for selective ligninolysis, we conducted comparative genome analysis of C. subvermispora and P. chrysosporium. Genes encoding manganese peroxidase numbered 13 and five in C. subvermispora and P. chrysosporium, respectively. In addition, the C. subvermispora genome contains at least seven genes predicted to encode laccases, whereas the P. chrysosporium genome contains none. We also observed expansion of the number of C. subvermispora desaturase-encoding genes putatively involved in lipid metabolism. Microarray-based transcriptome analysis showed substantial up-regulation of several desaturase and MnP genes in wood-containing medium. MS identified MnP proteins in C. subvermispora culture filtrates, but none in P. chrysosporium cultures. These results support the importance of MnP and a lignin degradation mechanism whereby cleavage of the dominant nonphenolic structures is mediated by lipid peroxidation products. Two C. subvermispora genes were predicted to encode peroxidases structurally similar to P. chrysosporium lignin peroxidase and, following heterologous expression in Escherichia coli, the enzymes were shown to oxidize high redox potential substrates, but not Mn(2+). Apart from oxidative lignin degradation, we also examined cellulolytic and hemicellulolytic systems in both fungi. In summary, the C. subvermispora genetic inventory and expression patterns exhibit increased oxidoreductase potential and diminished cellulolytic capability relative to P. chrysosporium.

Effectiveness of microbial pretreatment by Ceriporiopsis subvermispora on different biomass feedstocks

Different types of feedstocks, including corn stover, wheat straw, soybean straw, switchgrass, and hardwood, were tested to evaluate the effectiveness of fungal pretreatment by Ceriporiopsis subvermispora. After 18-d pretreatment, corn stover, switchgrass, and hardwood were effectively delignified by the fungus through manganese peroxidase and laccase. Correspondingly, glucose yields during enzymatic hydrolysis reached 56.50%, 37.15%, and 24.21%, respectively, which were a 2 to 3-fold increase over those of the raw materials. A further 10-30% increase in glucose yields was observed when pretreatment time extended to 35d. In contrast, cellulose digestibility of wheat straw and soybean straw was not significantly improved by fungal pretreatment. When external carbon sources and enzyme inducers were added during fungal pretreatment of wheat straw and soybean straw, only glucose and malt extract addition improved cellulose digestibility of wheat straw. The cellulose digestibility of soybean straw was not improved.

Characterization of three mnp genes of Fomitiporia mediterranea and report of additional class II peroxidases in the order hymenochaetales

We report the sequence-based characterization and expression patterns of three manganese peroxidase genes from the white rot fungus and grape vine pathogen Fomitiporia mediterranea (Agaricomycotina, Hymenochaetales), termed Fmmnp1, Fmmnp2, and Fmmnp3. The predicted open reading frames (ORFs) are 1,516-, 1,351-, and 1,345-bp long and are interrupted by seven, four, and four introns, respectively. The deduced amino acid sequences encode manganese peroxidases (EC 1.11.1.13) containing 371, 369, and 371 residues, respectively, and are similar to the manganese peroxidases of the model white rot organism Phanerochaete chrysosporium. The expression of the genes is most likely differentially regulated, as revealed by real-time PCR analysis. Phylogenetic analysis reveals that other members of the order Hymenochaetales harbor mnp genes encoding proteins that are related only distantly to those of F. mediterranea. Furthermore, multiple partial lip- and mnp-like sequences obtained for Pycnoporus cinnabarinus (Agaricomycotina, Polyporales) suggest that lignin degradation by white rot taxa relies heavily on ligninolytic peroxidases and is not efficiently achieved by laccases only.

Production and regulation of lignocellulose-degrading enzymes of Poria-like wood-inhabiting basidiomycetes

The wood-decomposing fungal species Antrodia macra, A. pulvinascens, Ceriporiopsis aneirina, C. resinascens and Dichomitus albidofuscus were determined for production of laccase (LAC), Mn peroxidase (MnP), lignin peroxidase (LiP), endo-l,4-P-beta-glucanase, endo-l,4-beta-xylanase, cellobiohydrolase, 1,4-beta-glucosidase and 1,4-beta-xylosidase. The results confirmed the brown-rot mode of Antrodia spp. which did not produce the activity of LAC and MnP. The remaining species performed detectable activity of both enzymes while no strain produced LiP. Significant inhibition of LAC production by high nitrogen was found in all white-rot species while only MnP of D. albidofuscus was regulated in the same way. The endoglucanase and endoxylanase activities of white-rotting species were inhibited by glucose in the medium while those of Antrodia spp. were not influenced by glucose concentration. The regulation of enzyme activity and bio-mass production can vary even within a single fungal genus.

Expression on wood, molecular cloning and characterization of three lignin peroxidase (LiP) encoding genes of the white rot fungus Phlebia radiata

Lignin peroxidase (LiP) is the first enzyme connected to oxidative breakdown of the aromatic plant heteropolymer lignin and related xenobiotics. However, this extracellular enzyme has been described in only a few species of wood-decaying basidiomycetous fungi. The white rot basidiomycete Phlebia radiata 79 readily produces a versatile set of lignin-oxidizing enzymes including lignin and manganese peroxidases (LiPs and MnPs) and laccases. Here we describe genomic and primary structure of two new LiP-encoding genes, Pr-lip1 and Pr-lip4, and genomic characterization for isozyme LiP3/LIII of P. radiata, encoded by the gene depicted Pr-lip3. Pr-lip1 and Pr-lip4 code for 370- and 361-amino-acid long proteins beginning with 26- and 24-amino-acid secretion pre-propeptides, respectively. Translated LiP1 and LiP4 share the highest protein sequence identity (74 and 86%) with P. radiata LiP3, and 70% identity with the one deduced LiP from Bjerkandera adusta. The three P. radiata LiP sequences form a coherent phylogenetic cluster, which is further supported by similarities within gene organization interrupted by 11-introns. To find out the significance of LiP upon fungal growth on natural lignocellulose, such as wood, we studied ligninolytic gene expression on hardwood (milled alder) and softwood (spruce chips). All the LiP-encoding genes were expressed on wood with predominance of Pr-lip3 transcript abundance, in particular on spruce wood chips, where also time-dependent expression of the multiple lip genes was observed.

The two manganese peroxidases Pr-MnP2 and Pr-MnP3 of Phlebia radiata, a lignin-degrading basidiomycete, are phylogenetically and structurally divergent

Two new, at primary sequence and protein structure levels different, manganese peroxidase encoding genes from the white rot basidiomycete Phlebia radiata are described. Both genes are expressed in liquid cultures of P. radiata containing milled alder wood or glucose as carbon source, and high Mn(2+) concentration. The gene Pr-mnp2 contains 7 introns and codes for a 390 amino-acid polypeptide, whereas Pr-mnp3 presents 11 introns and codes for a 362 amino-acid protein. The 3-D molecular models confirm this diversity; the predicted Pr-MnP2 with a long C-terminal extension has the highest structural similarity with the crystal structure of Phanerochaete chrysosporium MnP1, whereas the shorter Pr-MnP3 protein is structurally more related to lignin peroxidases (P. chrysosporium LiPH8/H2). In Pr-MnP3, however, an alanine replaces the exposed tryptophan present in LiP and versatile peroxidases, and both Pr-MnPs include the conserved Mn(2+)-binding amino-acid ligands. This is the first occasion when two enzymes of similar function and origin fall into phylogenetically distinct subfamilies within the expanding dendrogram of the class II fungal secretory heme peroxidases.

Characteristics of novel lignin peroxidases produced by white-rot fungusPhanerochaete sordidaYK-624

We characterized a lignin peroxidase (YK-LiP2) isolated from shaking culture inoculated with the white-rot fungus Phanerochaete sordida YK-624. The YK-LiP2 enzyme was identified and purified to homogeneity by anion-exchange chromatography and gel permeation chromatography. The molecular weight of YK-LiP2 was approximately 45 kDa, and its absorption spectrum was almost the same as that of the LiP (Pc-LiP) from P. chrysosporium. Steady-state kinetics of veratryl alcohol (VA) oxidation by YK-LiP2 revealed an ordered bi-bi ping-pong mechanism, although the Pc-LiP oxidation of ferrocytochrome c obeys peroxidase ping-pong kinetics rather than ordered bi-bi ping-pong kinetics. Degradation of dimeric lignin model compounds by YK-LiP2 was more effective than that by Pc-LiP. Moreover, YK-LiP2 and YK-LiP1, which was previously isolated from static culture inoculated with P. sordida YK-624, oxidized VA under a higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide (>2.5 mM) although Pc-LiP could not oxidize VA in the presence of 2.5 mM hydrogen peroxide.

Screening of basidiomycetes and xylariaceous fungi for lignin peroxidase and laccase gene-specific sequences

Lignin peroxidase and laccase gene-specific PCR primers were used to screen 38 diverse basidiomycetes and xylariaceous fungi. Lignin peroxidase gene-specific sequences were obtained for basidiomycetes only and were highly divergent. Possession of laccase genes was relatively widespread among basidiomycetes, and is shown for the first time in Xylariaceae. All sequences were highly conserved with no variation resulting in changes to predicted amino acid sequence. Those basidiomycetes shown to possess lignin peroxidase and laccase genes also produced the enzyme in vitro. Conversely none of the xylariaceous fungi shown to possess laccase genes were able to do so, whilst others decolorized Poly R yet yielded no PCR amplicons.

Manganese peroxidase of Agaricus bisporus: grain bran-promoted production and gene characterization

The main manganese peroxidase (MnP) isoenzyme of Agaricus bisporus ATCC 62459 produced in lignocellulose-containing cultures was isolated, cloned and sequenced. In liquid medium, where MnP was previously detected only in trace amounts, the production of MnP was enhanced by rye and wheat bran supplements. The pI (3.25) and N-terminal amino acid sequence (25 aa) of the enzyme from bran-containing cultures were identical to those reported from compost-isolated MnP1. MnP1 is a 328-aa long polypeptide preceded by a 26-aa leader peptide. The nucleotide sequence and putative amino acid sequence of MnP1 reveal its similarity to Pleurotus ostreatus MnP3 (62.5%), Lepista irina versatile peroxidase (VP) (61.8%) and Pleurotus eryngii VPs VPL2 and VPL1 (61.9% and 61.2%, respectively). The intron-exon structure resembles that of P. ostreatus MnP1 and P. eryngii VPL1. Despite the sequence similarity to VPs, in the A. bisporus MnP1 sequence, alanine (A163) is present instead of tryptophane (W164), distinguishing it from the veratryl alcohol oxidising P. eryngii VPLs. The MnP sequence can be used as a tool to examine the pattern of ligninolytic gene expression during the growth and fruiting of A. bisporus to optimise compost composition, fungal growth and mushroom production.

A novel extracellular multicopper oxidase from Phanerochaete chrysosporium with ferroxidase activity

Lignin degradation by the white rot basidiomycete Phanerochaete chrysosporium involves various extracellular oxidative enzymes, including lignin peroxidase, manganese peroxidase, and a peroxide-generating enzyme, glyoxal oxidase. Recent studies have suggested that laccases also may be produced by this fungus, but these conclusions have been controversial. We identified four sequences related to laccases and ferroxidases (Fet3) in a search of the publicly available P. chrysosporium database. One gene, designated mco1, has a typical eukaryotic secretion signal and is transcribed in defined media and in colonized wood. Structural analysis and multiple alignments identified residues common to laccase and Fet3 sequences. A recombinant MCO1 (rMCO1) protein expressed in Aspergillus nidulans had a molecular mass of 78 kDa, as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and the copper I-type center was confirmed by the UV-visible spectrum. rMCO1 oxidized various compounds, including 2,2'-azino(bis-3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonate) (ABTS) and aromatic amines, although phenolic compounds were poor substrates. The best substrate was Fe2+, with a Km close to 2 micro M. Collectively, these results suggest that the P. chrysosporium genome does not encode a typical laccase but rather encodes a unique extracellular multicopper oxidase with strong ferroxidase activity.

Purification and characterization of a novel lignin peroxidase from white-rot fungus Phanerochaete sordida YK-624

We characterized kinetics and substrate oxidation of a novel lignin peroxidase (YK-LiP) isolated from white-rot fungus Phanerochaete sordida YK-624. YK-LiP enzyme was identified and purified to homogeneity by anion-exchange chromatography and gel permeation chromatography. The molecular mass of YK-LiP was approximately 50 kDa, and the absorption spectrum of YK-LiP was almost the same as that of the LiP (Pc-LiP) from Phanerochaete chrysosporium. Steady-state kinetics of veratryl alcohol oxidation by YK-LiP (unlike that by Pc-LiP) revealed a bi-reactant sequential mechanism, although reactivity of YK-LiP to various monomeric substituted aromatic compounds was similar to that of Pc-LiP. Degradation of dimeric lignin model compounds was more effective by YK-LiP than by Pc-LiP, and the oxidation rate of sinapyl alcohol oligomer by YK-LiP was much faster than that by Pc-LiP.

Lignin-modifying enzymes of the white rot basidiomycete Ganoderma lucidum

Ganoderma lucidum, a white rot basidiomycete widely distributed worldwide, was studied for the production of the lignin-modifying enzymes laccase, manganese-dependent peroxidase (MnP), and lignin peroxidase (LiP). Laccase levels observed in high-nitrogen (HN; 24 mM N) shaken cultures were much greater than those seen in low-nitrogen (2.4 mM N), malt extract, or wood-grown cultures and those reported for most other white rot fungi to date. Laccase production was readily seen in cultures grown with pine or poplar (100-mesh-size ground wood) as the sole carbon and energy source. Cultures containing both pine and poplar showed 5- to 10-fold-higher levels of laccase than cultures containing pine or poplar alone. Since syringyl units are structural components important in poplar lignin and other hardwoods but much less so in pine lignin and other softwoods, pine cultures were supplemented with syringic acid, and this resulted in laccase levels comparable to those seen in pine-plus-poplar cultures. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of concentrated extracellular culture fluid from HN cultures showed two laccase activity bands (M(r) of 40,000 and 66, 000), whereas isoelectric focusing revealed five major laccase activity bands with estimated pIs of 3.0, 4.25, 4.5, 4.8, and 5.1. Low levels of MnP activity ( approximately 100 U/liter) were detected in poplar-grown cultures but not in cultures grown with pine, with pine plus syringic acid, or in HN medium. No LiP activity was seen in any of the media tested; however, probing the genomic DNA with the LiP cDNA (CLG4) from the white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium showed distinct hybridization bands suggesting the presence of lip-like sequences in G. lucidum.

Extracellular lipid peroxidation of selective white-rot fungus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora

Ceriporiopsis subvermispora is capable of decomposing lignin without penetration of enzymes into wood cell walls. To elucidate the mechanism of lignolysis at a site far from enzymes, peroxidation of low molecular mass compounds produced by this fungus was analyzed. C. subvermispora produced free 9,12-octadecadienoic, 9-octadecenoic, 11-octadecenoic, hexadecanoic and octadecanoic acids, predominantly at an early stage of cultivation on wood meal cultures. In prolonged cultivation period after 2 weeks, the amount of intact fatty acids decreased with increasing organic hydroperoxide and TBARS production. These results suggest that lignin degradation by C. subvermispora is related to extracellular lipid peroxidation.

Evidence That Ceriporiopsis subvermispora Degrades Nonphenolic Lignin Structures by a One-Electron-Oxidation Mechanism

The white-rot fungus Ceriporiopsis subvermispora is able to degrade nonphenolic lignin structures but appears to lack lignin peroxidase (LiP), which is generally thought to be responsible for these reactions. It is well established that LiP-producing fungi such as Phanerochaete chrysosporium degrade nonphenolic lignin via one-electron oxidation of its aromatic moieties, but little is known about ligninolytic mechanisms in apparent nonproducers of LiP such as C. subvermispora. To address this question, C. subvermispora and P. chrysosporium were grown on cellulose blocks and given two high-molecular-weight, polyethylene glycol-linked model compounds that represent the major nonphenolic arylglycerol-(beta)-aryl ether structure of lignin. The model compounds were designed so that their cleavage via one-electron oxidation would leave diagnostic fragments attached to the polyethylene glycol. One model compound was labeled with (sup13)C at C(inf(alpha)) of its propyl side chain and carried ring alkoxyl substituents that favor C(inf(alpha))-C(inf(beta)) cleavage after one-electron oxidation. The other model compound was labeled with (sup13)C at C(inf(beta)) of its propyl side chain and carried ring alkoxyl substituents that favor C(inf(beta))-O-aryl cleavage after one-electron oxidation. To assess fungal degradation of the models, the high-molecular-weight metabolites derived from them were recovered from the cultures and analyzed by (sup13)C nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry. The results showed that both C. subvermispora and P. chrysosporium degraded the models by routes indicative of one-electron oxidation. Therefore, the ligninolytic mechanisms of these two fungi are similar. C. subvermispora might use a cryptic LiP to catalyze these C(inf(alpha))-C(inf(beta)) and C(inf(beta))-O-aryl cleavage reactions, but the data are also consistent with the involvement of some other one-electron oxidant.

Manganese-Dependent Cleavage of Nonphenolic Lignin Structures by Ceriporiopsis subvermispora in the Absence of Lignin Peroxidase

Many ligninolytic fungi appear to lack lignin peroxidase (LiP), the enzyme generally thought to cleave the major, recalcitrant, nonphenolic structures in lignin. At least one such fungus, Ceriporiopsis subvermispora, is nevertheless able to degrade these nonphenolic structures. Experiments showed that wood block cultures and defined liquid medium cultures of C. subvermispora rapidly depolymerized and mineralized a (sup14)C-labeled, polyethylene glycol-linked, high-molecular-weight (beta)-O-4 lignin model compound (model I) that represents the major nonphenolic structure of lignin. The fungus cleaved model I between C(inf(alpha)) and C(inf(beta)) to release benzylic fragments, which were shown in isotope trapping experiments to be major products of model I metabolism. The C(inf(alpha))-C(inf(beta)) cleavage of (beta)-O-4 lignin structures to release benzylic fragments is characteristic of LiP catalysis, but assays of C. subvermispora liquid cultures that were metabolizing model I confirmed that the fungus produced no detectable LiP activity. Three results pointed, instead, to the participation of a different enzyme, manganese peroxidase (MnP), in the degradation of nonphenolic lignin structures by C. subvermispora. (i) The degradation of model I and of exhaustively methylated (nonphenolic), (sup14)C-labeled, synthetic lignin by the fungus in liquid cultures was almost completely inhibited when the Mn concentration of the medium was decreased from 35 (mu)M to approximately 5 (mu)M. (ii) The fungus degraded model I and methylated lignin significantly faster in the presence of Tween 80, a source of unsaturated fatty acids, than it did in the presence of Tween 20, which contains only saturated fatty acids. Previous work has shown that nonphenolic lignin structures are degraded during the MnP-mediated peroxidation of unsaturated lipids. (iii) In experiments with MnP, Mn(II), and unsaturated lipid in vitro, this system mimicked intact C. subvermispora cultures in that it cleaved nonphenolic (beta)-O-4 lignin model compounds between C(inf(alpha)) and C(inf(beta)) to release a benzylic fragment.