Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Biodiversity Science, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Department of Microbiology, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Appl Environ Microbiol. 2021 Jun 25;87(14):e0022721. doi: 10.1128/AEM.00227-21.
The families of copper-containing membrane-bound monooxygenases (CuMMOs) and soluble di-iron monooxygenases (SDIMOs) are involved not only in methane oxidation but also in short-chain alkane oxidation. Here, we describe sp. strain ZPP, a bacterium able to grow with ethane or propane as the sole carbon and energy source, and report on the horizontal gene transfer (HGT) of actinobacterial hydrocarbon monooxygenases (HMOs) of the CuMMO family and the sMMO (soluble methane monooxygenase)-like SDIMO in the genus . The key function of HMO in strain ZPP for propane oxidation was verified by allylthiourea inhibition. The HMO genes (designated ) and those encoding sMMO-like SDIMO (designated ) are located on a linear megaplasmid (pRZP1) of strain ZPP. Comparative genomic analysis of similar plasmids indicated the mobility of these plasmids within the genus . The plasmid pRZP1 in strain ZPP could be conjugatively transferred to a recipient Rhodococcus erythropolis strain in a mating experiment and showed similar ethane- and propane-consuming activities. Finally, our findings demonstrate that the horizontal transfer of plasmid-based CuMMO and SDIMO genes confers the ability to use ethane and propane on the recipient. CuMMOs and SDIMOs initiate the aerobic oxidation of alkanes in bacteria. Here, the supposition that horizontally transferred plasmid-based CuMMO and SDIMO genes confer on the recipient similar abilities to use ethane and propane was proposed and confirmed in This study is a living example of HGT of CuMMOs and SDIMOs and outlines the plasmid-borne properties responsible for gaseous alkane degradation. Our results indicate that plasmids can support the rapid evolution of enzyme-mediated biogeochemical processes.
含铜膜结合单加氧酶 (CuMMO) 和可溶性二铁单加氧酶 (SDIMO) 的家族不仅参与甲烷氧化，还参与短链烷烃氧化。在这里，我们描述了一种能够以乙烷或丙烷作为唯一碳源和能源生长的细菌 sp. 菌株 ZPP，并报告了放线菌烃单加氧酶 (HMO) 的 CuMMO 家族和属中的 sMMO（可溶性甲烷单加氧酶）样 SDIMO 的水平基因转移 (HGT)。通过烯丙基硫脲抑制验证了 HMO 在菌株 ZPP 中用于丙烷氧化的关键功能。HMO 基因（命名为 ）和编码 sMMO 样 SDIMO（命名为 ）位于菌株 ZPP 的线性大质粒 (pRZP1) 上。对类似质粒的比较基因组分析表明，这些质粒在属内具有移动性。在交配实验中，菌株 ZPP 中的质粒 pRZP1 可以被接合转移到受体红球菌菌株中，并表现出类似的乙烷和丙烷消耗活性。最后，我们的研究结果表明，基于质粒的 CuMMO 和 SDIMO 基因的水平转移赋予了受体利用乙烷和丙烷的能力。CuMMO 和 SDIMO 启动细菌中烷烃的需氧氧化。在这里，提出并证实了水平转移的基于质粒的 CuMMO 和 SDIMO 基因赋予受体类似利用乙烷和丙烷的能力。本研究是 CuMMO 和 SDIMO 的 HGT 的活例证，并概述了负责气态烷烃降解的质粒携带特性。我们的研究结果表明，质粒可以支持酶介导的生物地球化学过程的快速进化。
