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Metabolic pathway of 3,6-anhydro-D-galactose in carrageenan-degrading microorganisms

  • Applied microbial and cell physiology
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Abstract

Complete hydrolysis of κ-carrageenan produces two sugars, D-galactose and 3,6-anhydro-D-galactose (D-AnG). At present, however, we do not know how carrageenan-degrading microorganisms metabolize D-AnG. In this study, we investigated the metabolic pathway of D-AnG degradation by comparative genomic analysis of Cellulophaga lytica LIM-21, Pseudoalteromonas atlantica T6c, and Epulopiscium sp. N.t. morphotype B, which represent the classes Flavobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Clostridia, respectively. In this bioinformatic analysis, we found candidate common genes that were believed to be involved in D-AnG metabolism. We then experimentally confirmed the enzymatic function of each gene product in the D-AnG cluster. In all three microorganisms, D-AnG metabolizing genes were clustered and organized in operon-like arrangements, which we named as the dan operon (3,6-d-anhydro-galactose). Combining bioinformatic analysis and experimental data, we showed that D-AnG is metabolized to pyruvate and D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate via four enzyme-catalyzed reactions in the following route: 3,6-anhydro-D-galactose → 3,6-anhydro-D-galactonate → 2-keto-3-deoxy-D-galactonate (D-KDGal) → 2-keto-3-deoxy-6-phospho-D-galactonate → pyruvate + D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate. The pathway of D-AnG degradation is composed of two parts: transformation of D-AnG to D-KDGal using two D-AnG specific enzymes and breakdown of D-KDGal to two glycolysis intermediates using two DeLey–Doudoroff pathway enzymes. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the metabolic pathway of D-AnG degradation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, 790-784, South Korea

    Sun Bok Lee, Jeong Ah Kim & Hyun Seung Lim

  2. Graduate School of Engineering Mastership, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, 790-784, South Korea

    Sun Bok Lee

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  1. Sun Bok Lee
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  2. Jeong Ah Kim
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Correspondence to Sun Bok Lee.

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Funding

This study was funded by POSCO and in part by the Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology grant funded by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (2015 Establishment of GEM, No. H2001-13-1001).

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

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Lee, S.B., Kim, J.A. & Lim, H.S. Metabolic pathway of 3,6-anhydro-D-galactose in carrageenan-degrading microorganisms. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 100, 4109–4121 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-016-7346-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-016-7346-6

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