A unique d-to-l racemization of arginine by coupled arginine dehydrogenases DauA and DauB encoded by the dauBAR operon has been recently reported as a prerequisite for d-arginine utilization as the sole source of carbon and nitrogen through l-arginine catabolic pathways in P. aeruginosa. In this study, enzymic properties of the catabolic FAD-dependent d-amino acid dehydrogenase DauA and the physiological functions of the dauBAR operon were further characterized with other d-amino acids. These results establish DauA as a d-amino acid dehydrogenase of broad substrate specificity, with d-Arg and d-Lys as the two most effective substrates, based on the kinetic parameters. In addition, expression of dauBAR is specifically induced by exogenous d-Arg and d-Lys, and mutations in the dauBAR operon affect utilization of these two amino acids alone. The function of DauR as a repressor in the control of the dauBAR operon was demonstrated by dauB promoter activity measurements in vivo and mobility shift assays with purified His-tagged protein in vitro. The potential effect of 2-ketoarginine (2-KA) derived from d-Arg deamination by DauA as a signal molecule in dauBAR induction was first revealed by mutation analysis and further supported by its in vitro effect on alleviation of DauR–DNA interactions. Through sequence analysis, putative DauR operators were identified and confirmed by mutation analysis. Induction of the dauBAR operon to the maximal level was found to require the l-arginine-responsive regulator ArgR, as supported by the loss of inductive effect by l-Arg on dauBAR expression in the argR mutant and binding of purified ArgR to the dauB regulatory region in vitro. In summary, this study establishes that optimal induction of the dauBAR operon requires relief of DauR repression by 2-KA and activation of ArgR by l-Arg as a result of d-Arg racemization by the encoded DauA and DauB.
最近的一项研究报道了由耦合的精氨酸脱氢酶DauA和DauB编码的dauBAR操纵子所引起的独特的D-精氨酸到L-精氨酸的旋光异构化,作为在P. aeruginosa中通过L-精氨酸分解途径利用D-精氨酸作为唯一的碳和氮源的先决条件。在这项研究中,进一步表征了这个分解FAD依赖性的D-氨基酸脱氢酶DauA的酶学性质和dauBAR操纵子的生理功能。这些结果确定了DauA作为广泛底物特异性的D-氨基酸脱氢酶,基于动力学参数,D-精氨酸和D-赖氨酸是最有效的两种底物。此外,dauBAR的表达受外源D-精氨酸和D-赖氨酸的特异性诱导,dauBAR操纵子的突变影响了这两种氨基酸的利用。通过in vivo的dauB启动子活性测量和in vitro的纯化His-标记蛋白的迁移移位实验,证明了DauR作为抑制子在dauBAR操纵子的控制中的功能。通过突变分析首次揭示了DauA脱氨基反应产生的2-酮基精氨酸(2-KA)作为信号分子在dauBAR诱导中的潜在作用,并通过其在in vitro中缓解DauR-DNA相互作用的效应予以进一步支持。通过序列分析,鉴定了推测的DauR操作员,并通过突变分析进行了确认。总之,这项研究确定了dauBAR操纵子的最佳诱导需要通过2-KA缓解DauR的抑制作用并通过由编码的DauA和DauB引起的D-精氨酸旋光异构化激活ArgR。