Abstract
Clostridium acetobutylicum ATCC 824 is a solventogenic bacterium that grows heterotrophically on a variety of carbohydrates, including glucose, cellobiose, xylose, and lichenan, a linear polymer of beta-1,3- and beta-1,4-linked beta-D-glucose units. C. acetobutylicum does not degrade cellulose, although its genome sequence contains several cellulase-encoding genes and a complete cellulosome cluster of cellulosome genes. In the present study, we demonstrate that a low but significant level of induction of cellulase activity occurs during growth on xylose or lichenan. The celF gene, located in the cellulosome-like gene cluster and coding for a unique cellulase that belongs to glycoside hydrolase family 48, was cloned in Escherichia coli, and antibodies were raised against the overproduced CelF protein. A Western blot analysis suggested a possible catabolite repression by glucose or cellobiose and an up-regulation by lichenan or xylose of the extracellular production of CelF by C. acetobutylicum. Possible reasons for the apparent inability of C. acetobutylicum to degrade cellulose are discussed.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 5238-5243 |
Journal | Applied and Environmental Microbiology |
Volume | 70 |
Issue number | 9 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2004 |
Keywords
- cellulose-binding domain
- gram-positive bacteria
- catabolite repression
- trichoderma-reesei
- solvent production
- bacillus-subtilis
- cellulovorans
- gene
- thermocellum
- degradation