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A group of sequence-related sphingomonad enzymes catalyzes cleavage of ?-aryl ether linkages in lignin ?-guaiacyl and ?-syringyl ether dimers.

ABSTRACT: Lignin biosynthesis occurs via radical coupling of guaiacyl and syringyl hydroxycinnamyl alcohol monomers (i.e., "monolignols") through chemical condensation with the growing lignin polymer. With each chain-extension step, monolignols invariably couple at their ?-positions, generating chiral centers. Here, we report on activities of bacterial glutathione-S-transferase (GST) enzymes that cleave ?-aryl ether bonds in lignin dimers that are composed of different monomeric units. Our data reveal that these sequence-related enzymes from Novosphingobium sp. strain PP1Y, Novosphingobium aromaticivorans strain DSM12444, and Sphingobium sp. strain SYK-6 have conserved functions as ?-etherases, catalyzing cleavage of each of the four dimeric ?-keto-?-aryl ether-linked substrates (i.e., guaiacyl-?-guaiacyl, guaiacyl-?-syringyl, syringyl-?-guaiacyl, and syringyl-?-syringyl). Although each ?-etherase cleaves ?-guaiacyl and ?-syringyl substrates, we have found that each is stereospecific for a given ?-enantiomer in a racemic substrate; LigE and LigP ?-etherase homologues exhibited stereospecificity toward ?(R)-enantiomers whereas LigF and its homologues exhibited ?(S)-stereospecificity. Given the diversity of lignin's monomeric units and the racemic nature of lignin polymers, we propose that bacterial catabolic pathways have overcome the existence of diverse lignin-derived substrates in nature by evolving multiple enzymes with broad substrate specificities. Thus, each bacterial ?-etherase is able to cleave ?-guaiacyl and ?-syringyl ether-linked compounds while retaining either ?(R)- or ?(S)-stereospecificity.

SUBMITTER: Gall DL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4207535 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:New environmentally sound technologies are needed to derive valuable compounds from renewable resources. Lignin, an abundant polymer in terrestrial plants comprised predominantly of guaiacyl and syringyl monoaromatic phenylpropanoid units, is a potential natural source of aromatic compounds. In addition, the plant secondary metabolite tricin is a recently discovered and moderately abundant flavonoid in grasses. The most prevalent interunit linkage between guaiacyl, syringyl, and tricin units is the β-ether linkage. Previous studies have shown that bacterial β-etherase pathway enzymes catalyze glutathione-dependent cleavage of β-ether bonds in dimeric β-ether lignin model compounds. To date, however, it remains unclear whether the known β-etherase enzymes are active on lignin polymers. Here we report on enzymes that catalyze β-ether cleavage from bona fide lignin, under conditions that recycle the cosubstrates NAD+ and glutathione. Guaiacyl, syringyl, and tricin derivatives were identified as reaction products when different model compounds or lignin fractions were used as substrates. These results demonstrate an in vitro enzymatic system that can recycle cosubstrates while releasing aromatic monomers from model compounds as well as natural and engineered lignin oligomers. These findings can improve the ability to produce valuable aromatic compounds from a renewable resource like lignin.IMPORTANCE Many bacteria are predicted to contain enzymes that could convert renewable carbon sources into substitutes for compounds that are derived from petroleum. The β-etherase pathway present in sphingomonad bacteria could cleave the abundant β-O-4-aryl ether bonds in plant lignin, releasing a biobased source of aromatic compounds for the chemical industry. However, the activity of these enzymes on the complex aromatic oligomers found in plant lignin is unknown. Here we demonstrate biodegradation of lignin polymers using a minimal set of β-etherase pathway enzymes, the ability to recycle needed cofactors (glutathione and NAD+) in vitro, and the release of guaiacyl, syringyl, and tricin as depolymerized products from lignin. These observations provide critical evidence for the use and future optimization of these bacterial β-etherase pathway enzymes for industrial-level biotechnological applications designed to derive high-value monomeric aromatic compounds from lignin.

Project description:Sphingobium sp. strain SYK-6 converts four stereoisomers of arylglycerol-β-guaiacyl ether into achiral β-hydroxypropiovanillone (HPV) via three stereospecific reaction steps. Here, we determined the HPV catabolic pathway and characterized the HPV catabolic genes involved in the first two steps of the pathway. In SYK-6 cells, HPV was oxidized to vanilloyl acetic acid (VAA) via vanilloyl acetaldehyde (VAL). The resulting VAA was further converted into vanillate through the activation of VAA by coenzyme A. A syringyl-type HPV analog, β-hydroxypropiosyringone (HPS), was also catabolized via the same pathway. SLG_12830 (hpvZ), which belongs to the glucose-methanol-choline oxidoreductase family, was isolated as the HPV-converting enzyme gene. An hpvZ mutant completely lost the ability to convert HPV and HPS, indicating that hpvZ is essential for the conversion of both the substrates. HpvZ produced in Escherichia coli oxidized both HPV and HPS and other 3-phenyl-1-propanol derivatives. HpvZ localized to both the cytoplasm and membrane of SYK-6 and used ubiquinone derivatives as electron acceptors. Thirteen gene products of the 23 aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) genes in SYK-6 were able to oxidize VAL into VAA. Mutant analyses suggested that multiple ALDH genes, including SLG_20400, contribute to the conversion of VAL. We examined whether the genes encoding feruloyl-CoA synthetase (ferA) and feruloyl-CoA hydratase/lyase (ferB and ferB2) are involved in the conversion of VAA. Only FerA exhibited activity toward VAA; however, disruption of ferA did not affect VAA conversion. These results indicate that another enzyme system is involved in VAA conversion.IMPORTANCE Cleavage of the β-aryl ether linkage is the most essential process in lignin biodegradation. Although the bacterial β-aryl ether cleavage pathway and catabolic genes have been well documented, there have been no reports regarding the catabolism of HPV or HPS, the products of cleavage of β-aryl ether compounds. HPV and HPS have also been found to be obtained from lignin by chemoselective catalytic oxidation by 2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyano-1,4-benzoquinone/tert-butyl nitrite/O2, followed by cleavage of the β-aryl ether with zinc. Therefore, value-added chemicals are expected to be produced from these compounds. In this study, we determined the SYK-6 catabolic pathways for HPV and HPS and identified the catabolic genes involved in the first two steps of the pathways. Since SYK-6 catabolizes HPV through 2-pyrone-4,6-dicarboxylate, which is a building block for functional polymers, characterization of HPV catabolism is important not only for understanding the bacterial lignin catabolic system but also for lignin utilization.

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A group of sequence-related sphingomonad enzymes catalyzes cleavage of ?-aryl ether linkages in lignin ?-guaiacyl and ?-syringyl ether dimers.

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