United States Patent 1191 [11] Patent Number: 5,071,976 Stirling [45] Date of Patent: Dec
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United States Patent 1191 [11] Patent Number: 5,071,976 Stirling [45] Date of Patent: Dec. 10, 1991 [ 54 1 No VEL H ETEROPOLYSACCHARIDE FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS Inventor: David I. Stirling, Fanwood, 1589865 5/1981 United Kingdom _ [73] Assignee: Celgene Corporation, Warren, NJ. OTHER PUBLICATIONS [211 App}_ NOJ 270,404 Huq et al., Aust. J. BioL, 1978, vol. 31, pp. 311-316. Bergey’s Manual, 8th ed., 1979, Williams & Wilkins (p. [22] Filed: Nov. 7, 1988 268). Colby et al., Ann. Rev. Microbiol, 1979, vol. 33, pp. Related US. A lication Data 481-517 _ _ pp Byrom, D. in Microbial Growth on C1 Compounds, H. [63] Contmuauon o_f Ser. No. 820,535, Feb. 6, 1986, aban- Dalton ed.’ 1931’ pp. 278489. doned, wh1ch 1s a continuation of Ser. No. 700,564, Hackh’?’ 8 chemical Dictionary 4th Edition Feb. 11, 1985, abandoned. McGraw_Hin’ 1972. [51] Int. Cl.5 ..................... .. C08B 37/00; CllP 19/04; Prima'y Examiner__D_ w_ Robinson c1 1N 1/20 Assistant Examiner-Irene Marx [52] U5. Cl. .................................. .. 536/123; 435/ 101; Attorney, Agent, or Fl‘rm_-Mathews’ WOOdbI-idge’ & 435/2511 Collins [58] Field of Search ........................... .. 435/101, 252.1; 536/123 [57] ABSTRACT _ This invention provides a fermentation process which [56] References C'ted involves aerobically cultivating a strain of Methyle U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS philus viscogenes under growth conditions to produce an 3 346 463 10/1967 Goren ............................... .. 435/101 accumula‘ed quantity Ofa novel type of exopolysaccha' 3,932,218 1/1976 Finn et al. , 435/101 ride’ Such as hetempdysacchafide Poly 54 4,514,563 4/1985 Fujiyama .... .. .. 435/101 4,638,059 1/1987 Sutherland ........................ .. 536/121 3 Claims, 2 Drawing Sheets US. Patent Dec. 10, 1991 Sheet 1 of 2 5,071,976 #Em 80.9 nd US. Patent Dec. 10, 1991 Sheet 2 of 2 5,071,976 NaE :bmm.NEE.595 Q 00 ON adntmmmEhm<mIw 5,071,976 1 2 methanol substrate to an accumulated quantity of an NOVEL HETEROPOLYSACCHARIDE exopolysaccharide. It is another object of this invention to provide a CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED novel facultative methylotroph species. APPLICATIONS It is another object of this invention to provide me This is a continuation of Ser. No. 06/826,535, ?led thylotrophic microorganism strains having the identify ing characteristics of strain ATCC 39893 . Feb. 6, 1986 which is in turn a continuation-in-part of It is a further object of this invention to provide a Ser. No. 06/700,564, ?led Feb. 11, 1985, both now aban novel heteropolysaccharide which exhibits properties doned. suitable for imparting pseudoplastic and thixotropic BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION properties to aqueous solutions. Other objects and advantages of the present invention In the last decade the production of single-cell pro shall become apparent from the accompanying descrip tein(SCP) from Cycompounds has been studied exten tion and examples. sively both by academic and industrial laboratories. 5 Enterprises such as Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co., Ho DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION echst, and I.C.I. have implemented pilot plantstudies, One or more objects of the present invention are but to date only I.C.I. is operating a full scale SCP accomplished by the provision of novel strains of bac plant. “Pruteen” is the registered trademark of the I.C.I. teria having identifying characteristics comprising: product and is made by the fermentation of the obligate 20 (a) aerobic, gram-negative, rod-shaped, motile and po methylotrophic bacterium, Methylophilus methylotro larly ?agellated cells; phus, which is eventually separated and dried to a pow (b) methylotroph capable of assimilating methanol via der or granules Methylophilus methylotrophus is an obli the ribulose monophosphate pathway; gate methylotroph which uses the ribulose monophos (0) capable of growth on fructose; and phate pathway(RMP) cycle of formaldehyde ?xation. 25 (d) optimal growth rate at a cultivation medium temper Methylophilus methylotrophus kStrain AS~1 is a gram ature of 30°43“ C. negative, nonpigmented rod with a single polar ?agel Generally the novel bacterial strains of the present lum. invention exhibit glucose dehydrogenase activity. In SCP production, methanol feedstock constitutes In another embodiment this invention provides a the highest percentage of the operating costs, so that 30 bacterial culture having the identifying characteristics any increase in the microbial growth rate yield has a of strain ATCC 39893, said culture being capable of direct in?uence on the operating costs of the SCP pro aerobic bioconversion of methanol to an extracellular duction. For this reason I.C.I. has applied recombinant accumulation of heteropolysaccharide. DNA technology to increase the cell yield by altering Subcultures of accession Number ATCC 39893 strain the genome of the Methylophilus methylotrophus micro can be obtained upon request from the permanent mi organism. The genes for the more ef?cient glutamate croorganism collection of the American Type Culture dehydrogenase nitrogen assimilation system-from Esch Collection, 12301 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, Md. erichia coli were cloned and inserted into a Methyle 20852. The microorganism deposition is in accordance philus methylotrophus strain. This strain previously had with the requirements of the Budapest Treaty for the its less efficient glutamate synthase nitrogen assimilation purpose of patent procedure. system blocked by means of DNA mutation, as de The bacterial strains having the identifying character scribed by J. Windass et in Nature, 287 396(1980). istics of strain ATCC 39893 are not members of any of Although methanol generally is viewed as a substrate the known methylotrophic species such as Methylo for the production of single cell protein, the factors that phi/us methylotrophus. For purposes of taxonomic iden qualify it for SCP manufacture also recommend metha ti?cation herein, the name Methylophilus viscogenes is assigned to the.. new facultative methylotroph species nol as a potential feedstock for the production of accu which includes bacterial strains having the identifying mulated extracellular metabolites such as exopolysac characteristics of strain ATCC 39893. charides. A number of microbial processes for the con The term “methylotroph” as empolyed herein refers version of methanol to value-added products have been to a microorgansim which is capable of growing non described but generally these are low-volume/high autotrophically on carbon compounds having one or priced compounds such as aminoacids. Thus, J. Bolbot more carbon atoms but no carbon-carbon bonds. “Au and C. Anthony in Proc. Soc. Gen. Microbial, 5, totrophic" refers to growth on a carbon dioxide sub 43(1978) found that a pyruvate dehydrogenase lacking strate. mutant of Pseudomonas AMI could accumulate the The term “facultative methylotroph" as employed aminoacids alanine and valine during growth on metha herein refers to a methylotroph which is capable of nol Y. Tani et al in Agric. Biol Chem, 42, 2275( 1978) growth on one or more heterotrophic substrates, e.g., have described the production of up to 5.2 grams per fructose. liter of L-serine from methanol employing an Arthrobac The term “Cl-compounds” as employed herein refers ter globlformi's strain. Up to the present time there has 60 to organic compounds which do not contain any car not been any report of methanol bioconversion to a bon-carbon bonds, such as methanol, formaldehyde, commodity type of bulk chemical. formate, forrnamide, carbon monoxide, dimethyl ether, Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to pro methylamine, dimethylamine, trimethylamine and tri vide a fermentation process for the bioconversion of a methylamine N-oxide. Cl-compound to an accumulated quantity of extracellu 65 The term “exopolysaccharide” as employed herein lar metabolite. refers to a polysaccharide which accumulates as an It is another object of this invention to provide a extracellular metabolite in a fermentation medium, as rapid growth culture medium for bio-oxidation of a exempli?ed by xanthan gum. 5,071,976 3 4 The term “heteropolysaccharide“ as employed facultative methylotroph which utilizes the ribulose herein refers to a polysaccharide which is composed of monophosphate pathway of C1 assimilation, and which at least two different kinds of monosaccharidic units, typically has a growth rate doubling time of 1-3 hours such as mannose and galactose. at 35°~40° C. The term “ribulose monophosphate pathway“ Strain ATCC 39893 grows on methanol, fructose and (RMP) as employed herein refers to the biochemical glucose. In addition, it will grow on a wider variety of cycle in which three molecules of formaldehyde are heterotropic substrates (e.g., succinate and pyruvate) condensed to produce either one molecule of pyruvate when an exogenous energy supply in the form of for or one molecule of dihydroxyacetone phosphate. mate or methanol is present. This is a property not Biochemical literature relating to elucidation of the previously described for any known microorganism. ribulose monophosphate pathway and its variations For purposes of identi?cation, bacteria manifesting this include Biochem. J., 144, 465(1974) by J. Strom et al; phenomenon are herein termed “latent facultative me Sci. Prog., 62, 167 (1975) by C. Anthony; and Biochem. thylotrophs”. J., 148, 513(1975) by Colby et al. Bacteria having the characteristics comprising those The ribulose monophosphate pathway involves en of strain ATCC 39893 are further identi?ed by non zymes which include G-phosphogluconate dehydrase/— slimy growth of pale orange colonies on solid media. phospho-Z-keto-3-digluconate aldolase; fructose di Another identifying characteristic of a strain ATCC phosphate aldolase; glucose-é-phosphate dehydro 39893 type of methylotrophic bacterium is a hexulose genase; 3-hexulose phosphate synthase; phosphofructo phosphate synthase/hexulose phosphate isomerase ac kinase; phosphoglucoisomerase; phospho-3-hexulose tivity (J. P. Van Dijken et al; FEMS. Microbiol. Lett., isomerase; phosphoriboisomerase; ribulose-S-phosphate 4, 97, 1978) of at least about 400 nanomoles of NADH 3-epimerase; transaldolasei transketolase; sedoheptulose formed per minute per milligram of protein.