Improving E. coli organic solvent tolerance by 1,4-dihydroxy-2-naphthoic acid

Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2022 Jul 22;86(8):1128-1135. doi: 10.1093/bbb/zbac083.

Abstract

Improving the organic solvent tolerance of bacteria is beneficial for the bioproduction of various valuable chemicals. In this study, we found that 1,4-dihydroxy-2-naphthoic acid (DHNA), known as a prebiotic, increased organic solvent tolerance in Escherichia coli. The AcrAB-TolC multidrug efflux pump contributes to the intrinsic organic solvent tolerance of E. coli. The addition of DHNA increased this pump's expression level. Transcriptional activators MarA, SoxS, and Rob proteins are known to control the expression of marA/soxS/rob regulon genes, including acrAB and tolC. Evaluation of the organic solvent tolerances of ΔmarA mutant, ΔsoxS mutant, and Δrob mutant showed that ΔmarA mutant and ΔsoxS mutant did not improve organic solvent tolerance by the addition of DHNA. In addition, DHNA increased the promoter activities of both marA and soxS. These results indicated that DHNA induces the AcrAB-TolC pump through both the marRAB system and the soxRS system.

Keywords: Escherichia coli; 1,4-dihydroxy-2-naphthoic acid; AcrAB-TolC; DHNA; organic solvent.

MeSH terms

  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism
  • Escherichia coli Proteins* / genetics
  • Escherichia coli Proteins* / metabolism
  • Escherichia coli* / genetics
  • Escherichia coli* / metabolism
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Bacterial
  • Naphthols
  • Solvents / metabolism
  • Trans-Activators / genetics

Substances

  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Escherichia coli Proteins
  • Naphthols
  • Solvents
  • Trans-Activators
  • 1,4-dihydroxy-2-naphthoic acid