Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Bacteriology logoLink to Journal of Bacteriology
. 1978 May;134(2):501–505. doi: 10.1128/jb.134.2.501-505.1978

Acquisition of ability to utilize Xylitol: disadvantages of a constitutive catabolic pathway in Escherichia coli.

G A Scangos, A M Reiner
PMCID: PMC222279  PMID: 207668

Abstract

Ribitol+ strains of Escherichia coli acquire the ability to utilize xylitol by mutating to constitutive production of the coordinately controlled ribitol catabolic enzymes ribitol dehydrogenase (RDH) and D-ribulokinase (DRK). Such strains concomitantly acquire toxicity to galacitol and L-arabitol, and to D-arabitol if they are unable to utilize it for growth. Strains selected for resistance to these polyols have DRK structural gene mutations or other mutations that eliminate the constitutive production of DRK, consistent with the view that DRK phosphorylates those polyols to toxic substances. Ribitol+ strains selected for growth on 8 mM xylitol fail to grow on 30 mM xylitol. A product of ribitol and xylitol catabolism represses synthesis of RDH, an enzyme required for growth on xylitol. At 30 mM xylitol, greater than 99% of RDH synthesis is repressed. Strains that grow on 8 mM xylitol can mutate to grow on 30 mM xylitol. Such mutants, relieved of this repression, overproduce RDH, resulting in good growth on the poor substrate, xylitol, but poor growth on the normal substrate, ribitol.

Full text

PDF
501

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. ANDERSON R. L., WOOD W. A. Purification and properties of L-xylulokinase. J Biol Chem. 1962 Apr;237:1029–1033. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bachmann B. J., Low K. B., Taylor A. L. Recalibrated linkage map of Escherichia coli K-12. Bacteriol Rev. 1976 Mar;40(1):116–167. doi: 10.1128/br.40.1.116-167.1976. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. ENGLESBERG E., ANDERSON R. L., WEINBERG R., LEE N., HOFFEE P., HUTTENHAUER G., BOYER H. L-Arabinose-sensitive, L-ribulose 5-phosphate 4-epimerase-deficient mutants of Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol. 1962 Jul;84:137–146. doi: 10.1128/jb.84.1.137-146.1962. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Ferenci T., Kornberg H. L. The utilization of fructose by Escherichia coli. Properties of a mutant defective in fructose 1-phosphate kinase activity. Biochem J. 1973 Feb;132(2):341–347. doi: 10.1042/bj1320341. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Freedberg W. B., Kistler W. S., Lin E. C. Lethal synthesis of methylglyoxal by Escherichia coli during unregulated glycerol metabolism. J Bacteriol. 1971 Oct;108(1):137–144. doi: 10.1128/jb.108.1.137-144.1971. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Inderlied C. B., Mortlock R. P. Growth of Klebsiella aerogenes on xylitol: implications for bacterial enzyme evolution. J Mol Evol. 1977 Apr 29;9(2):181–190. doi: 10.1007/BF01732747. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Katz L. Selection of araB and araC mutants of Escherichia coli B-r by resistance to ribitol. J Bacteriol. 1970 May;102(2):593–595. doi: 10.1128/jb.102.2.593-595.1970. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. LERNER S. A., WU T. T., LIN E. C. EVOLUTION OF A CATABOLIC PATHWAY IN BACTERIA. Science. 1964 Dec 4;146(3649):1313–1315. doi: 10.1126/science.146.3649.1313. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. LIN E. C., LERNER S. A., JORGENSEN S. E. A method for isolating constitutive mutants for carbohydrate-catabolizing enzymes. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1962 Jul 2;60:422–424. doi: 10.1016/0006-3002(62)90423-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. LOWRY O. H., ROSEBROUGH N. J., FARR A. L., RANDALL R. J. Protein measurement with the Folin phenol reagent. J Biol Chem. 1951 Nov;193(1):265–275. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Mortlock R. P. Catabolism of unnatural carbohydrates by micro-organisms. Adv Microb Physiol. 1976;13:1–53. doi: 10.1016/s0065-2911(08)60037-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Mortlock R. P., Fossitt D. D., Wood W. A. A basis for utlization of unnatural pentoses and pentitols by Aerobacter aerogenes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1965 Aug;54(2):572–579. doi: 10.1073/pnas.54.2.572. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Reiner A. M. Genes for ribitol and D-arabitol catabolism in Escherichia coli: their loci in C strains and absence in K-12 and B strains. J Bacteriol. 1975 Aug;123(2):530–536. doi: 10.1128/jb.123.2.530-536.1975. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Reiner A. M. Xylitol and D-arabitol toxicities due to derepressed fructose, galactitol, and sorbitol phosphotransferases of Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol. 1977 Oct;132(1):166–173. doi: 10.1128/jb.132.1.166-173.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Rigby P. W., Burleigh B. D., Jr, Hartley B. S. Gene duplication in experimental enzyme evolution. Nature. 1974 Sep 20;251(5472):200–204. doi: 10.1038/251200a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. SIMPSON F. J., WOOD W. A. Degradation of L-arabinose by Aerobacter aerogenes. II. Purification and properties of L-ribulokinase. J Biol Chem. 1958 Jan;230(1):473–486. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Scangos G. A., Reiner A. M. Ribitol and D-arabitol catabolism in Escherichia coli. J Bacteriol. 1978 May;134(2):492–500. doi: 10.1128/jb.134.2.492-500.1978. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Solomon E., Lin E. C. Mutations affecting the dissimilation of mannitol by Escherichia coli K-12. J Bacteriol. 1972 Aug;111(2):566–574. doi: 10.1128/jb.111.2.566-574.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. WOOD W. A., McDONOUGH M. J., JACOBS L. B. Rihitol and D-arabitol utilization by Aerobacter aerogenes. J Biol Chem. 1961 Aug;236:2190–2195. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Wilson A. C., Carlson S. S., White T. J. Biochemical evolution. Annu Rev Biochem. 1977;46:573–639. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.46.070177.003041. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Wilson B. L., Mortlock R. P. Regulation of D-xylose and D-arabitol catabolism by Aerobacter aerogenes. J Bacteriol. 1973 Mar;113(3):1404–1411. doi: 10.1128/jb.113.3.1404-1411.1973. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Wu T. T., Lin E. C., Tanaka S. Mutants of Aerobacter aerogenes capable of utilizing xylitol as a novel carbon. J Bacteriol. 1968 Aug;96(2):447–456. doi: 10.1128/jb.96.2.447-456.1968. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Yarmolinsky M. B., Wiesmeyer H., Kalckar H. M., Jordan E. HEREDITARY DEFECTS IN GALACTOSE METABOLISM IN ESCHERICHIA COLI MUTANTS, II. GALACTOSE-INDUCED SENSITIVITY. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1959 Dec;45(12):1786–1791. doi: 10.1073/pnas.45.12.1786. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Bacteriology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES