Deciphering the Roles of Interspace and Controlled Disorder in the Bactericidal Properties of Nanopatterns against Staphylococcus aureus

Recent progress in nano-/micro-fabrication techniques has paved the way for the emergence of synthetic bactericidal patterned surfaces that are capable of killing the bacteria via mechanical mechanisms. Different design parameters are known to affect the bactericidal activity of nanopatterns. Evaluating the effects of each parameter, isolated...

The complete genome sequence of the nitrile biocatalyst Rhodocccus rhodochrous ATCC BAA-870

BACKGROUND: Rhodococci are industrially important soil-dwelling Gram-positive bacteria that are well known for both nitrile hydrolysis and oxidative metabolism of aromatics. Rhodococcus rhodochrous ATCC BAA-870 is capable of metabolising a wide range of aliphatic and aromatic nitriles and amides. The genome of the organism was sequenced and...

Towards osteogenic and bactericidal nanopatterns?

Recent discoveries have shown that nanopatterns with feature sizes ≤100 nm could direct stem cell fate or kill bacteria. These effects could be used to develop orthopedic implants with improved osseointegration and decreased chance of implant-associated infections. The quest for osteogenic and bactericidal nanopatterns is ongoing but no...

Nature helps: Toward bioinspired bactericidal nanopatterns

Development of synthetic bactericidal surfaces is a drug-free route to the prevention of implant-associated infections. Surface nanotopographies with specific dimensions have been shown to kill various types of bacterial strains through a mechanical mechanism, while regulating stem cell differentiation and tissue regeneration. The effective...

Rhodococcus strains as source for ene-reductase activity

Rhodococcus strains are ubiquitous in nature and known to metabolise a wide variety of compounds. At the same time, asymmetric reduction of C=C bonds is important in the production of high-valued chiral building blocks. In order to evaluate if Rhodococci can be used for this task, we have probed several Rhodococcus rhodochrous and R....

Assessing the stereoselectivity of Serratia marcescens CECT 977 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase

α-Hydroxy ketones and vicinal diols constitute well-known building blocks in organic synthesis. Here we describe one enzyme that enables the enantioselective synthesis of both building blocks starting from diketones. The enzyme 2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase (BudC) from S. marcescens CECT 977 belongs to the NADH-dependent metal-independent short...

Identification of catalytically important residues of the carotenoid 1,2-hydratases from Rubrivivax gelatinosus and Thiocapsa roseopersicina

Carotenoid 1,2-hydratases (CrtC) catalyze the selective addition of water to an isolated carbon–carbon double bond. Although their involvement in the carotenoid biosynthetic pathway is well understood, little is known about the mechanism by which these hydratases transform carotenoids such as lycopene into the corresponding hydroxyl compounds....

Enantioselective Michael Addition of Water

The enantioselective Michael addition using water as both nucleophile and solvent has to date proved beyond the ability of synthetic chemists. Herein, the direct, enantioselective Michael addition of water in water to prepare important ?-hydroxy carbonyl compounds using whole cells of Rhodococcus strains is described. Good yields and excellent...

Draft genome sequence of Rhodococcus rhodochrous strain ATCC 17895

Rhodococcus rhodochrous ATCC 17895 possesses an array of mono- and dioxygenases, as well as hydratases, which makes it an interesting organism for biocatalysis. R. rhodochrous is a Gram-positive aerobic bacterium with a rod-like morphology. Here we describe the features of this organism, together with the complete genome sequence and annotation....

Biochemical characterization of the carotenoid 1,2-hydratases (CrtC) from Rubrivivax gelatinosus and Thiocapsa roseopersicina

Two carotenoid 1,2-hydratase (CrtC) genes from the photosynthetic bacteria Rubrivivax gelatinosus and Thiocapsa roseopersicina were cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli in an active form and purified by affinity chromatography. The biochemical properties of the recombinant enzymes and their substrate specificities were studied. The purified...