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Dimethylformamide is a novel nitrilase inducer in Rhodococcus rhodochrous

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Abstract

Nitrilases are of commercial interest in the selective synthesis of carboxylic acids from nitriles. Nitrilase induction was achieved here in three bacterial strains through the incorporation of a previously unrecognised and inexpensive nitrilase inducer, dimethylformamide (DMF), during cultivation of two Rhodococcus rhodochrous strains (ATCC BAA-870 and PPPPB BD-1780), as well as a closely related organism (Pimelobacter simplex PPPPB BD-1781). Benzonitrile, a known nitrilase inducer, was ineffective in these strains. Biocatalytic product profiling, enzyme inhibition studies and protein sequencing were performed to distinguish the nitrilase activity from that of sequential nitrile hydratase-amidase activity. The expressed enzyme, a 40-kDa protein with high sequence similarity to nitrilase protein Uniprot Q-03217, hydrolyzed 3-cyanopyridine to produce nicotinic acid exclusively in strains BD-1780 and BD-1781. These strains were capable of synthesising both the vitamin nicotinic acid as well as β-amino acids, a compound class of pharmaceutical interest. The induced nitrilase demonstrated high enantioselectivity (> 99%) in the hydrolysis of 3-amino-3-phenylpropanenitrile to the corresponding carboxylic acid.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the following people at the University of the Witwatersrand: Prof. Joseph Michael; Prof. Charles De Koning; and Dr. Amanda Rousseau. At the CSIR, we would like to extend thanks to Mr. Sipho Mamputhu (for assistance with LC-MSMS protein sequencing) as well as Dr. Priyen Pillay, Dr. Lusisiwe Kwezi, Dr. Ofense Poe, Advaita Singh, Sibongile Mtimka, Dr. Daria Rutkovska, Dr. Kevin Wellington and Dr. Tsepo Tsekoa.

Funding

Support was received from the Department of Science and Technology Biocatalysis Initiative (Grant 0175/2013).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIR Biosciences, PO Box 395, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa

    V. P. Chhiba-Govindjee, K. Mathiba, C. W. van der Westhuyzen, P. Steenkamp & S. Stoychev

  2. Molecular Sciences Institute, School of Chemistry, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, PO Wits 2050, South Africa

    V. P. Chhiba-Govindjee, M. L. Bode & D. Brady

  3. The Department of Science and Technology (DST), Meiring Naude Road, Brummeria, Pretoria, 0001, South Africa

    J. K. Rashamuse

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  1. V. P. Chhiba-Govindjee
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  2. K. Mathiba
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  3. C. W. van der Westhuyzen
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  4. P. Steenkamp
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Correspondence to D. Brady.

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Chhiba-Govindjee, V.P., Mathiba, K., van der Westhuyzen, C.W. et al. Dimethylformamide is a novel nitrilase inducer in Rhodococcus rhodochrous. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 102, 10055–10065 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-018-9367-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-018-9367-9

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