Skip to content
1887

Abstract

Exopolysaccharide-synthesizing variants of NCIB 10541 were isolated on media containing carbenicillin. The exopolysaccharide was identified as alginic acid with a mannuronic acid:guluronic acid ratio of 1:2. These strains lost the ability to produce alginate at a high frequency, but more stable mutants which produced increased amounts of polysaccharide could be isolated by subsequent mutagenesis. High concentrations of polysaccharide (approximately 20 g 1) were obtained in nitrogen-limited continuous culture with a minimal glucose medium. In common with other bacterial alginates, the polymer is acetylated and has similar rheological properties to alginate from brown algae. An alginate lyase activity was present in cultures at sufficient specific activities to result in a low molecular weight, low viscosity polymer with rheology similar to printing grade alginate. This degradation was overcome by incorporation of a proteolytic enzyme into the growth medium without adverse effects on bacterial or polysaccharide yields. As an organism for the study of alginate biosynthesis. possesses advantages over or in terms of yield, strain stability, and absence of known pathogenicity.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-129-11-3473
1983-11-01
2025-01-25
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/micro/129/11/mic-129-11-3473.html?itemId=/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-129-11-3473&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Bartell P.F., Orr T.E., Chudio B. 1970; Purification and chemical composition of the protective slime antigen ofPseudomonas aeruginosa. Infection and Immunity 2:543–548
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Booth E. 1975; Seaweeds in Industry. In Chemical Oceanography pp. 219–268 Edited by Riley J.P., Skirrow G. London: Academic Press;
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Brown M.R.W., Foster J.H.S., Clamp J.R. 1969; Composition of Pseudomonas aeruginosaslime. Biochemical Journal 112:521–525
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Bucke C. 1974; Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of alginic acid. Journal of Chromatography 89:99–102
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Davidson I.W. 1975 Alginate lyases and their substrates Ph.D. thesis University of Edinburgh; U.K.:
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Deavin L., Jarman T.R., Lawson C.J., Righelato R.C., Slocombe S. 1977; The production of alginic acid by Azotobacter vinelandii in batch and continuous culture. In Extracellular Microbial Polysaccharides pp. 14–26 Edited by Sandford P.A., Laskin A. Washington: American Chemical Society;
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Doggett R.C., Harrison G.M. 1969; Significance of the pulmonary flora associated with chronic pulmonary disease in cystic fibrosis. In Proceedings of the 5 th International Cystic Fibrosis Conference pp. 175–178 Edited by Lawson D. London: Cambridge Press;
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Evans L.R., Linker A. 1973; Production and characterisation of the slime polysaccharide of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Journal of Bacteriology 116:914–923
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Farmer J.J.III 1976; Pseudomonas in the hospital. Hospital Practice February 1976 pp. 63–70
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Fillipov H.P., Kohn R. 1974; Determination of composition of alginates by infra-red spectroscopic method. Chemical Zvesti 28:817–819
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Gilardi G.L. 1972; Infrequently encountered Pseudomonas species causing infection in humans. Armais of Internal Medicine 77:211–215
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Gorin P.A.J., Spencer J.F.T. 1966; Exocellular alginic acid from Azotobacter vinelandii. Canadian Journal of Chemistry 44:993–998
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Govan J.R.W. 1975; Mucoid strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the influence of culture medium on the stability of mucus production. Journal of Medical Microbiology 8:513–522
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Govan J.R.W., Fyfe J.A.M. 1978; Mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa and cystic fibrosis: resistance of the mucoid form to carbenicillin, flucloxacillin and tobramycin and the isolation of mucoid variants in vitro. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy 4:233–240
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Govan J.R.W., Fyfe J.A.M., Jarman T.R. 1981; Isolation of alginate producing mutants of Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas putida and Pseudomonas mendocina. Journal of General Microbiology 125:217–220
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Govan J.R.W., Fyfe J.A.M., Baker N.R. 1983; Heterogeneity and reduced pulmonary clearance of mucoid Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Reviews of Infectious Diseases in the Press
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Jarman T.R. 1979; Bacterial alginate synthesis. In Microbial Polysaccharides and Poly saccharoses pp. 35–50 Edited by Berkeley R.C.W., Gooday G.W., Ellwood D.C. London: Academic Press;
    [Google Scholar]
  18. Jarman T.R., Deavin L., Slocombe S., Righelato R.C. 1978; An investigation of the effect of environmental conditions on the rate of exopolysaccharide synthesis in Azotobacter vinelandii. Journal of General Microbiology 107:59–64
    [Google Scholar]
  19. Jayasuria G.C.N. 1955; The isolation and characteristics of an oxalate decomposing organism. Journal of General Microbiology 12:419–428
    [Google Scholar]
  20. Kulczcki L.L., Murphy T.M., Bellanti J.A. 1978; Pseudomonas colonization in cystic fibrosis. Journal of the American Medical Association 240:30–34
    [Google Scholar]
  21. Larsen B., Haug A. 1971; Biosynthesis of alginate. Composition and structure of alginate produced by Azotobacter vinelandii (Lipman). Carbohydrate Research 17:287–296
    [Google Scholar]
  22. Martin D.R. 1973; Mucoid variation in Pseudomonas aeruginosa induced by the action of phage. Journal of Medical Microbiology 6:111–118
    [Google Scholar]
  23. Mccomb E.A., Mccready R.M. 1957; Determination of acetyl in pectin and in acetylated carbohydrate polymers. Analytical Chemistry 29:819–821
    [Google Scholar]
  24. Mian F., Jarman T.R., Righelato R.C. 1978; Studies on the biosynthesis of exopolysaccharide by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Journal of Bacteriology 134:418–422
    [Google Scholar]
  25. Palleroni N.J., Doudoroff M., Stanier R.Y., Solanes R.E. 1970; Taxonomy of the aerobic pseudomonads: the properties of the Pseudomonas stutzeri group. Journal of General Microbiology 60:215–231
    [Google Scholar]
  26. Pitt T.L., Raisbeck L.C. 1978; Degradation of the mucoid polysaccharide of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by Beneckea pelagia. Journal of Applied Bacteriology 45:297–300
    [Google Scholar]
  27. Preiss J., Ashwell C. 1962; Alginic acid metabolism in bacteria. 1. Enzymatic formation of unsaturated oligosaccharides and deoxy-l-erythro-5-hexo-seulose uronic acid. Journal of Biological Chemistry 237:309–316
    [Google Scholar]
  28. Sadoff H.L. 1975; Encystment and germination in Azotobacter vinelandii. Bacteriological Reviews 39:516–539
    [Google Scholar]
  29. Schwarzmann S., Boring J.R. 1971; Antiphagocytic effect of slime from a mucoid strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Infection and Immunity 3:762–767
    [Google Scholar]
  30. Sutherland I.W. 1972; Bacterial exopolysaccharides. Advances in Microbial Physiology 8:143–213
    [Google Scholar]
  31. Sutherland I.W., Keen G.A. 1981; Alginases from Beneckea pelagia and Pseudomonas spp. Journal of Applied Biochemistry 3:48–57
    [Google Scholar]
  32. Van Wazer J.R., Lyons J.W., Kim K.Y., Colwell R.E. 1963 Viscosity and Flow Measurement p. 15 New York & London: Interscience;
    [Google Scholar]
  33. Weissbach A., Hurwitz J. 1959; The formation of 2-keto-3-deoxy-heptonic acid in extracts of Escherichia coli B. Journal of Biological Chemistry 234:705–709
    [Google Scholar]
/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-129-11-3473
Loading
/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-129-11-3473
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error