Functional identification of p-cumate operons in the terpene-degrading Rhodococcus sp. strain T104.

Hyun Won Bae, Dockyu Kim, Ki Young Choi, Na Ra Kwon, Jong Chan Chae, Gerben J Zylstra, Sung-Cheol Koh, Choong-Hwan Lee, Eungbin Kim

Index: FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 266(1) , 54-9, (2007)

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Abstract

We identified a p-cumate degrading gene cluster (designated cmt) with a novel organization in our genomic studies of the terpene-degrading Rhodococcus sp. strain T104. The mutant strain SN140, isolated for the inability to grow on p-cumate, accumulates 2,3-dihydroxy-p-cumate as identified by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and 300 MHz proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction experiments showed that the cmt genes are operonic and induced specifically by growth on p-cumate. This report is the first example of identifying the genes for p-cumate degradation in a gram-positive organism based on functional data.