Heterologous expression and characterisation of microcystinase

The first enzyme in the microcystin (MC) degradation pathway identified in bacterial strains is coded by mlrA gene and is referred to as microcystinase. To date, there has been no biochemical characterisation of this enzyme. The results presented herein show a successful heterologous expression of MlrA as well as mutational studies, partial purification and biochemical characterisation of the enzyme. The mutation and inhibition study confirmed previous ideas that MlrA is a metalloprotease and allowed to calculate the inhibition parameters. Moreover, the kinetic parameters of MC-LR linearization were measured showing that MlrA exhibits a positive cooperativity towards MC-LR. Furthermore, in vitro experiments with Escherichia coli cells expressing MlrA indicated the potency of the heterologous host to eliminate MCs with very high efficiency. This study reports a new approach to the analysis of a microcystin degrading enzyme, extends the knowledge about MC biodegradation and opens broad scope for future study.