INDIGO FORMATION BY MICROORGANISMS EXPRESSING STYRENE MONOOXYGENASE ACTIVITY

The transformation of indole to indigo by microorganisms expressing st yrene monooxygenase (SMO) has been studied. Styrene and indole are str ucturally very similar, and thus we looked at a variety of styrene-deg rading strains for indole transformation to indigo. Two strains, Pseud omonas putida S12 and CA-3, gave a blue color on solid media when grow n in the presence of indole. Indole induces its own transformation on solid media but is a poor inducer in liquid media, Styrene is the best inducer of indole transformation in both strains. Arginine represses styrene consumption and indigo formation rates in P. putida S12 compar ed to phenylacetic acid-grown cells, while the opposite effect is seen for P, putida CA-3, Characterization of an SMO- and styrene oxide iso merase (SOI)-negative transposon mutant of P. putida CA-3 and an SOI-n egative N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine mutant of P, putida S12 r eveals the involvement of both SMO and SOI in indole transformation to indigo, Both strains stoichiometrically produce high-purity indigo fr om indole.