Involvement of protocatechuic acid in the metabolism of phenylacetic acid by Aspergillus niger

Abstract is not available.

Synthesis and thermo-decomposition mechanism of rare earth complexes with phenylacetic acid

Rare earth complexes with phenylacetic acid (LnL(3) . nH(2)O, Ln is Ce, Nd, Pr, Ho, Er, Yb and Y, L is phenylacetate, n = 1-2) were prepared and characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, chemical analysis, and X-ray crystal structure. The mechanism of thermal decomposition of the complexes was studied by means of TG-DTG, DTA and DSC. The activation energy and enthalpy change for the dehydration and melting processes were determined.

Molecular characterization of the phenylacetic acid catabolic pathway in Pseudomonas putida U: The phenylacetyl-CoA catabolon

Fourteen different genes included in a DNA fragment of 18 kb are involved in the aerobic degradation of phenylacetic acid by Pseudomonas putida U. This catabolic pathway appears to be organized in three contiguous operons that contain the following functional units: (i) a transport system, (ii) a phenylacetic acid activating enzyme, (iii) a ring-hydroxylation complex, (iv) a ring-opening protein, (v) a β-oxidation-like system, and (vi) two regulatory genes. This pathway constitutes the common part (core) of a complex functional unit (catabolon) integrated by several routes that catalyze the transformation of structurally related molecules into a common intermediate (phenylacetyl-CoA).

Dog bites man or man bites dog? The enigma of the amino acid conjugations

The proposition posed is that the value of amino acid conjugation to the organism is not, as in the traditional view, to use amino acids for the detoxication of aromatic acids. Rather, the converse is more likely, to use aromatic acids that originate from the diet and gut microbiota to assist in the regulation of body stores of amino acids, such as glycine, glutamate, and, in certain invertebrates, arginine, that are key neurotransmitters in the central nervous system (CNS). As such, the amino acid conjugations are not so much detoxication reactions, rather they are homeostatic and neuroregulatory processes. Experimental data have been culled in support of this hypothesis from a broad range of scientific and clinical literature. Such data include the low detoxication value of amino acid conjugations and the Janus nature of certain amino acids that are both neurotransmitters and apparent conjugating agents. Amino acid scavenging mechanisms in blood deplete brain amino acids. Amino acids glutamate and glycine when trafficked from brain are metabolized to conjugates of aromatic acids in hepatic mitochondria and then irreversibly excreted into urine. This process is used clinically to deplete excess nitrogen in cases of urea cycle enzymopathies through excretion of glycine or glutamine as their aromatic acid conjugates. Untoward effects of high-dose phenylacetic acid surround CNS toxicity. There appears to be a relationship between extent of glycine scavenging by benzoic acid and psychomotor function. Glycine and glutamine scavenging by conjugation with aromatic acids may have important psychosomatic consequences that link diet to health, wellbeing, and disease.

Electrochemical restructuring of copper surfaces using organic additives and its effect on the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate ions

This work describes the fabrication of nanostructured copper electrodes using a simple potential cycling protocol that involves oxidation and reduction of the surface in an alkaline solution. It was found that the inclusion of additives, such as benzyl alcohol and phenylacetic acid, has a profound effect on the surface oxidation process and the subsequent reduction of these oxides. This results in not only a morphology change, but also affects the electrocatalytic performance of the electrode for the reduction of nitrate ions. In all cases, the electrocatalytic performance of the restructured electrodes was significantly enhanced compared with the unmodified electrode. The most promising material was formed when phenylacetic acid was used as the additive. In addition, the reduction of residual oxides on the surface after the modification procedure to expose freshly active reaction sites on the surface before nitrate reduction was found to be a significant factor in dictating the overall electrocatalytic activity. It is envisaged that this approach offers an interesting way to fabricate other nanostructured electrode surfaces.

Metabolism of DL-(+/-)-phenylalanine by Aspergillus niger.

A fungus capable of degrading DL-phenylalanine was isolated from the soil and identified as Aspergillus niger. It was found to metabolize DL-phenylalanine by a new pathway involving 4-hydroxymandelic acid. D-Amino acid oxidase and L-phenylalanine: 2-oxoglutaric acid aminotransferase initiated the degradation of D- and L-phenylalanine, respectively. Both phenylpyruvate oxidase and phenylpyruvate decarboxylase activities could be demonstrated in the cell-free system. Phenylacetate hydroxylase, which required reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate, converted phenylacetic acid to 2- and 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid. Although 4-hydroxyphenylacetate was converted to 4-hydroxymandelate, 2-hydroxyphenylacetate was not utilized until the onset of sporulation. During sporulation, it was converted rapidly into homogentisate and oxidized to ring-cleaved products. 4-Hydroxymandelate was degraded to protocatechuate via

Isolation, antimicrobial activity, and metabolites of fungus Cladosporium sp associated with red alga Porphyra yezoensis

Cladosporium sp. isolate N5 was isolated as a dominant fungus from the healthy conchocelis of Porphyra yezoensis. In the re-infection test, it did not cause any pathogenic symptoms in the alga. Twenty-one cultural conditions were chosen to test its antimicrobial activity in order to obtain the best condition for large-scale fermentation. Phenylacetic acid, p-hydroxyphenylethyl alcohol, and L-beta-phenyllactic acid were isolated from the crude extract as strong antimicrobial compounds and they are the first reported secondary metabolites for the genus Cladosporium. In addition, the Cladosporium sp. produced the reported Porphyra yezoensis growth regulators phenylacetic acid and p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid. No cytotoxicity was found in the brine shrimp lethality test, which indicated that the environmental-friendly Cladosporium sp. could be used as a potential biocontrol agent to protect the alga from pathogens.

八株海洋微生物次级代谢产物的研究

本论文选取4株胶州湾海洋放线菌和4株条斑紫菜丝状体相关丝状真菌，进行了次级代谢产物的分离纯化与鉴定，共得到78个单体化合物，其中10个为新颖结构。对部分纯化合物进行了抑菌，抗肿瘤活性测试，并对菌株进行了菌种鉴定。具体结果如下： 从胶州湾放线菌M491，M097，M361和M353得到40个单体化合物，其中6个为新颖结构化合物。从M491分离到14个单体化合物，包括2个新结构倍半萜15-hydroxy-T-muurolol (1a)和11,15-dihydroxy-T-muurolol (1b)，2个首次报道的微生物来源的倍半萜T-muurolol (2b)和3α-hydroxy-T-muurolol (2c)，2个新颖结构大环内酯chalcomycin C (7)和chalcomycin D (8)。制备了3-oxo-T-muurolol (2a)单晶体，纠正了前人发表的错误结构。从M353分离得到10个化合物，包括2个新颖倍半萜5-hydroxy-epi-isozizaene (28)和5,14-dihydroxy-isozizaene (30)。自M097和M361分别分离得到12个，4个已知结构化合物。 从健康条斑紫菜丝状体分离得到了12株真菌。从优势附生菌N5分离得到了12个化合物，包括phenylacetic acid (42)，p-hydroxyphenylethyl alcohol (43)和L-β-phenyllactic acid (49)等广谱抗生素和紫菜生长调节剂。 对分离自白斑病条斑紫菜丝状体真菌N27，EF8，GA4进行了次级代谢产物研究，分离得到38个单体化合物。从GA4分离得到了16个化合物，4个为新结构化合物，包括1个酰脲类化合物hualyzin (62)和3个phenalenone族新化合物7-methyl isonorherqueinone (69)，7,8-dimethyl atrovenetin (70)和8-methyl-deoxyherqueinone (73)。从真菌N27和EF8分别分离得到12个和2个已知结构化合物。 采用MTT法，对37株人体肿瘤细胞株活性表明：chalcomycin C (7)和chalcomycin D (8)具有非常强的细胞毒活性，其平均IC50分别为0.027 μg/mL和0.007 μg/mL。7,8-Dimethyl atrovenetin (71)和8-methyl deoxyherqueinone (73)具有中等细胞毒活性，其平均IC50分别为5.1 μg/mL和0.7 μg/mL。 此外，本文首次报道了几个已知化合物的细胞毒活性，分别是chalcomycin （0.015 μg/mL），kalamycin (0.06 µg/mL)，(+)-homononactic acid（1.9 µg/mL），(+)-nonactic acid（2.3 µg/mL），griseoviridin（3.9 µg/mL），cyclo（L-Trp-L-Phe）（3.3 µg/mL），WIN 64821（5.8 µg/mL）和3,5-dihydroxy-2-methyl-4-pyrone（3.3 µg/mL）。 菌种鉴定结果表明：M353归属链霉菌，GA4，N27归属青霉属，EF8归属曲霉属，N5为枝孢霉属。

Investigation of global regulators influencing styrene metabolism and bioplastic synthesis in Pseudomonas putida CA-3

The genetics and biochemistry involved in the biodegradation of styrene and the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates in Pseudomonas putida CA-3 have been well characterised to date. Knowledge of the role played by global regulators in controlling these pathways currently represents a critical knowledge gap in this area. Here we report on our efforts to identify such regulators using mini-Tn5 transposon mutagenesis of the P. putida CA-3 genome. The library generated was subjected to phenotypic screening to identify mutants exhibiting a reduced sensitivity to the effects of carbon catabolite repression of aromatic pathway activity. Our efforts identified a clpX disrupted mutant which exhibited wild-type levels of growth on styrene but significantly reduced growth on phenylacetic acid. RT-PCR analysis of key PACoA catabolon genes necessary for phenylacetic acid metabolism, and SDS-PAGE protein profile analyses suggest that no direct alteration of PACoA pathway transcriptional or translational activity was involved. The influence of global regulators affecting the accumulation of PHAs in P. putida CA-3 was also studied. Phenotypic screening of the mini-Tn5 library revealed a gacS sensor kinase gene disruption resulting in the loss of PHA accumulation capacity in P. putida CA-3. Subsequent SDS-PAGE protein analyses of the wild type and gacS mutant strains identified post-transcriptional control of phaC1 synthase as a key point of control of PHA synthesis in P. putida CA-3. Disruption of the gacS gene in another PHA accumulating organism, P. putida S12, also demonstrated a reduction of PHA accumulation capacity. PHA accumulation was observed to be disrupted in the CA-3 gacS mutant under phosphorus limited growth conditions. Over-expression studies in both wild type CA-3 and gacS mutant demonstrated that rsmY over-expression in gacS disrupted P. putida CA-3 is insufficient to restore PHA accumulation in the cell however in wild type cells, over-expression of rsmY results in an altered PHA monomer compositions.

Profiling of phenols in human fecal water after raspberry supplementation.

The phenolic compositions of fecal water samples from ten free-living human subjects without marked dietary restrictions were monitored before and after intake of raspberry puree (200 g/day, 4 days) using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. No single phenolic component was increased in all subjects after intake, but a majority of subjects had significant elevations in phenylacetic acid (7/10), 4-hydroxyphenylacetic acid (6/10), 3-hydroxyphenylacetic acid (5/10), 3-phenylpropionic acid and 3-(4-hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid. The levels of 3,4-dihydroxbenzoic acid were elevated in 8/10 subjects, significantly for 6 subjects (p < 0.05), and not significantly reduced in the other 2 subjects. In addition, unlike most other fecal metabolites, the increase was always >2-fold. This metabolite may be representative of the increased colonic dose of cyanidin anthocyanins. The colonic microbiota varied greatly between individuals, and supplementation with raspberries did not produce any statistically significant alterations in the profile of colonic bacteria, nor was a common pattern revealed to account for the interindividual variations observed in the fecal water phenolic profiles.

Chemical Profile and Biological Potential of Non-Polar Fractions from Centroceras clavulatum (C. Agardh) Montagne (Ceramiales, Rhodophyta)

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Chemical Composition of Metapleural Gland Secretions of Fungus-Growing and Non-fungus-growing Ants

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)