This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Svitil, A. L. Articles by Kirchman, D. L. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Svitil, A. L. Articles by Kirchman, D. L. Agricola Articles by Svitil, A. L. Articles by Kirchman, D. L.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Appl. Environ. Microbiol., Feb 1997, 408-413, Vol 63, No. 2
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology

Chitin Degradation Proteins Produced by the Marine Bacterium Vibrio harveyi Growing on Different Forms of Chitin

AL Svitil, SMN Chadhain, JA Moore and DL Kirchman
College of Marine Studies, University of Delaware, Lewes, Delaware 19958

Relatively little is known about the number, diversity, and function of chitinases produced by bacteria, even though chitin is one of the most abundant polymers in nature. Because of the importance of chitin, especially in marine environments, we examined chitin-degrading proteins in the marine bacterium Vibrio harveyi. This bacterium had a higher growth rate and more chitinase activity when grown on (beta)-chitin (isolated from squid pen) than on (alpha)-chitin (isolated from snow crab), probably because of the more open structure of (beta)-chitin. When exposed to different types of chitin, V. harveyi excreted several chitin-degrading proteins into the culture media. Some chitinases were present with all of the tested chitins, while others were unique to a particular chitin. We cloned and identified six separate chitinase genes from V. harveyi. These chitinases appear to be unique based on DNA restriction patterns, immunological data, and enzyme activity. This marine bacterium and probably others appear to synthesize separate chitinases for efficient utilization of different forms of chitin and chitin by-products.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Hunt, D. E., Gevers, D., Vahora, N. M., Polz, M. F. (2008). Conservation of the Chitin Utilization Pathway in the Vibrionaceae. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 74: 44-51 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Eilenberg, H., Pnini-Cohen, S., Schuster, S., Movtchan, A., Zilberstein, A. (2006). Isolation and characterization of chitinase genes from pitchers of the carnivorous plant Nepenthes khasiana. J Exp Bot 57: 2775-2784 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• LeCleir, G. R., Buchan, A., Hollibaugh, J. T. (2004). Chitinase Gene Sequences Retrieved from Diverse Aquatic Habitats Reveal Environment-Specific Distributions. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 6977-6983 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Thompson, F. L., Iida, T., Swings, J. (2004). Biodiversity of Vibrios. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 68: 403-431 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Baty, A. M. III, Eastburn, C. C., Diwu, Z., Techkarnjanaruk, S., Goodman, A. E., Geesey, G. G. (2000). Differentiation of Chitinase-Active and Non-Chitinase-Active Subpopulations of a Marine Bacterium during Chitin Degradation. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 66: 3566-3573 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Tsujibo, H., Kondo, N., Tanaka, K., Miyamoto, K., Baba, N., Inamori, Y. (1999). Molecular Analysis of the Gene Encoding a Novel Transglycosylative Enzyme from Alteromonas sp. Strain O-7 and Its Physiological Role in the Chitinolytic System. J. Bacteriol. 181: 5461-5466 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Cottrell, M. T., Moore, J. A., Kirchman, D. L. (1999). Chitinases from Uncultured Marine Microorganisms. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 65: 2553-2557 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Chernin, L. S., Winson, M. K., Thompson, J. M., Haran, S., Bycroft, B. W., Chet, I., Williams, P., Stewart, G. S. A. B. (1998). Chitinolytic Activity in Chromobacterium violaceum: Substrate Analysis and Regulation by Quorum Sensing. J. Bacteriol. 180: 4435-4441 [Abstract] [Full Text]