Regulation of ammonia assimilation in ammonia-limited chemostat cultures of Escherichia coli ML 30: evidence of bistability.

Abstract

In a preceding paper evidence of two stationary stable states (bistability) in the specific activity of glutamine synthetase (GS) in ammonia-limited steady-state cultures of Escherichia coli ML 30 at dilution rates (D) about 0.15 h-1 was described (Müller et al. 1977). For better understanding of the regulation mechanisms leading to GS bistability chemostat experiments were performed over a wide range of dilution rates up to D = 0.8 h-1. For each steady state the specific activities of GS and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH)--the other key enzyme of the two NH3 assimilation routes in E. coli--and in addition the remaining NH3 concentration in the culture liquid were determined. Parallel to GS bistability two states of GDH activity and NH3 concentration are found. The higher state of GS is connected with a lower GDH activity and NH3 concentration. With rising D the GS activities decrease whereas GDH activities and NH3 concentrations increase. Since no adenylation of the GS is detectable GS bistability seems to be regulated on the level of enzyme synthesis like GDH bistability. From the experimental findings a mathematical model is derived based on the bottle neck enzyme theory of growth. It describes the dependence between the specific growth rates on the one hand and the specific enzyme activities and NH3 concentration on the other. It is shown that the specific uptake rate of the limiting NH3 and the specific growth rates, respectively, depend on the simultaneous action of two bottle neck enzymes which are connected by a regulative link.