Reversible bacterial immobilization based on the salt-dependent adhesion of the bacterionanofiber protein AtaA

Immobilization of microbial cells is an important strategy for the efficient use of whole-cell catalysts because it simplifies product separation, enables the cell concentration to be increased, stabilizes enzymatic activity, and permits repeated or continuous biocatalyst use. However, conventional immobilization methods have practical limitations, such as limited mass transfer in the inner part of a gel, gel fragility, cell leakage from the support matrix, and adverse effects on cell viability and catalytic activity. We previously showed a new method for bacterial cell immobilization using AtaA, a member of the trimeric autotransporter adhesin family found in Acinetobacter sp. Tol 5. This approach is expected to solve the drawbacks of conventional immobilization methods. However, similar to all other immobilization methods, the use of support materials increases the cost of bioprocesses and subsequent waste materials.

We found that the stickiness of the AtaA molecule isolated from Tol 5 cells is drastically diminished at ionic strengths lower than 10 mM and that it cannot adhere in deionized water, which also inhibits cell adhesion mediated by AtaA. Cells immobilized on well plates and polyurethane foam in a salt solution were detached in deionized water by rinsing and shaking, respectively. The detached cells regained their adhesiveness in a salt solution and could rapidly be re-immobilized. The cells expressing the ataA gene maintained their adhesiveness throughout four repeated immobilization and detachment cycles and could be repeatedly immobilized to polyurethane foam by a 10-min shake in a flask. We also demonstrated that both bacterial cells and a support used in a reaction could be reused for a different type of reaction after detachment of the initially immobilized cells from the support and a subsequent immobilization step.

We invented a unique reversible immobilization method based on the salt-dependent adhesion of the AtaA molecule that allows us to reuse bacterial cells and supports by a simple manipulation involving a deionized water wash. This mitigates problems caused by the use of support materials and greatly helps to enhance the efficiency and productivity of microbial production processes.