Haloalkane dehalogenases (HLDs) have recently been discovered in a number of bacteria, including symbionts and pathogens of both plants and humans. However, the biological roles of HLDs in these organisms are unclear. The development of efficient HLD inhibitors serving as molecular probes to explore their function would represent an important step toward a better understanding of these interest...

Haloalkane dehalogenases are microbial enzymes that catalyze cleavage of the carbon-halogen bond by a hydrolytic mechanism. Until recently, these enzymes have been isolated only from bacteria living in contaminated environments. In this report we describe cloning of the dehalogenase gene dhmA from Mycobacterium avium subsp. avium N85 isolated from swine mesenteric lymph nodes. The dhmA gene has...

The sequences of the 16S rRNA and haloalkane dehalogenase (dhaA) genes of five gram-positive haloalkane-utilizing bacteria isolated from contaminated sites in Europe, Japan, and the United States and of the archetypal haloalkane-degrading bacterium Rhodococcus sp. strain NCIMB13064 were compared. The 16S rRNA gene sequences showed less than 1% sequence divergence, and all haloalkane degraders c...

We report the biochemical characterization of a novel haloalkane dehalogenase, DatA, isolated from the plant pathogen Agrobacterium tumefaciens C58. DatA possesses a peculiar pair of halide-stabilizing residues, Asn-Tyr, which have not been reported to play this role in other known haloalkane dehalogenases. DatA has a number of other unique characteristics, including substrate-dependent and coo...

Using a combined strategy of random mutagenesis of haloalkane dehalogenase and genetic engineering of a chloropropanol-utilizing bacterium, we constructed an organism that is capable of growth on 1,2,3-trichloropropane (TCP). This highly toxic and recalcitrant compound is a waste product generated from the manufacture of the industrial chemical epichlorohydrin. Attempts to select and enrich bac...

Tuberculosis, an epidemic disease, affects one third of world population. The causative agent Mycobacterium tuberculosis is targeted in various approaches for the control of tuberculosis. The major factor of bacterial survival in the host depends on the proteins expressed in macrophages to overcome the host immunity. In this study, we carried out computational analysis on weak interactions to s...

Haloalkane dehalogenase DhmA from Mycobacterium avium N85 showed poor expression and low stability when produced in Escherichia coli. Here, we present expression DhmA in newly constructed pK4RP rhodococcal expression system in a soluble and stable form. Site-directed mutagenesis was used for the identification of a catalytic pentad, which makes up the reaction machinery of all currently known h...

Fluoroacetate dehalogenase (EC 3.8.1.3) catalyzes the dehalogenation of fluoroacetate and other haloacetates. The amino acid sequence of fluoroacetate dehalogenase from Moraxella sp. B is similar to that of haloalkane dehalogenase (EC 3.8.1.5) from Xanthobacter autotrophicus GJ10 in the regions around Asp-105 and His-272, which correspond to the active site nucleophile Asp-124 and the base cata...