Coryneform Bacterium Transformant and Process for Producing Aniline Using The Same

Abstract

Provided is an aniline-producing transformant constructed by introducing a gene which encodes an enzyme having aminobenzoate decarboxylase activity into a coryneform bacterium as a host. Also provided is a process for producing aniline, which comprises a step of allowing the transformant to react in a reaction mixture containing aminobenzoic acid, an ester thereof, and/or a salt thereof under reducing conditions, and a step of recovering aniline from the reaction mixture.

1 . An aniline-producing transformant constructed by introducing a gene which encodes an enzyme having aminobenzoate decarboxylase activity into a coryneform bacterium as a host. 
     
     
         2 . The transformant of  claim 1 , wherein the gene which encodes an enzyme having aminobenzoate decarboxylase activity is a gene derived from  Bacillus subtilis , a gene derived from  Lactobacillus rhamnosus , a gene derived from  Lactobacillus brevis , a gene derived from  Pseudomonas putida , a gene derived from  Escherichia coli , a gene derived from  Saccharomyces cerevisiae , or a gene derived from  Enterobacter cloacae.    
     
     
         3 . The transformant of  claim 1 , wherein the gene which encodes an enzyme having aminobenzoate decarboxylase activity is the DNA of the following (a) or (b):
 (a) a DNA consisting of the base sequence of SEQ ID NO: 16, SEQ ID NO: 19, SEQ ID NO: 22, SEQ ID NO: 25, SEQ ID NO: 28, SEQ ID NO: 31, or SEQ ID NO: 34   (b) a DNA which hybridizes to a DNA consisting of a complementary base sequence of any of the DNAs of (a) under stringent conditions and which encodes a polypeptide having aminobenzoate decarboxylase activity.   
     
     
         4 . The transformant of  claim 1 , wherein the coryneform bacterium as the host is  Corynebacterium glutamicum.    
     
     
         5 . The transformant of  claim 4 , wherein the coryneform bacterium as the host is  Corynebacterium glutamicum  R (FERM BP-18976), ATCC13032, or ATCC13869. 
     
     
         6 .  Corynebacterium glutamicum  ANI-1 (Accession Number: NITE BP-1001), which is a transformant of  Corynebacterium glutamicum.    
     
     
         7 . A process for producing aniline, which comprises a step of allowing the transformant of  claim 1  to react in a reaction mixture containing aminobenzoic acid, an ester thereof, and/or a salt thereof under reducing conditions, and a step of recovering aniline from the reaction mixture. 
     
     
         8 . The process of  claim 7 , wherein the transformant does not substantially grow in the reaction step. 
     
     
         9 . The process of  claim 7 , wherein the oxidation-reduction potential of the reaction mixture under reducing conditions is −200 mV to −500 mV.