Impact of the Core Components of the Phosphoenolpyruvate-Carbohydrate Phosphotransferase System, HPr and EI, on Differential Protein Expression in <i>Ralstonia eutropha</i> H16

In <i>Ralstonia eutropha</i> H16, seven genes encoding proteins being involved in the phosphoenolpyruvate-carbohydrate phosphotransferase system (PEP-PTS) were identified. In order to provide more insights into the poly­(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)-leaky phenotype of the HPr/EI deletion mutants H16Δ<i>ptsH</i>, H16Δ<i>ptsI</i>, and H16Δ<i>ptsHI</i> when grown on the non-PTS substrate gluconate, parallel fermentations for comparison of their growth behavior were performed. Samples from the exponential, the early stationary, and late stationary growth phases were investigated by microscopy, gas chromatography and (phospho-) proteome analysis. A total of 71 differentially expressed proteins were identified using 2D-PAGE, Pro-Q Diamond and Coomassie staining, and MALDI-TOF analysis. Detected proteins were classified into five major functional groups: carbon metabolism, energy metabolism, amino acid metabolism, translation, and membrane transport/outer membrane proteins. Proteome analyses revealed enhanced expression of proteins involved in the Entner–Doudoroff pathway and in subsequent reactions in cells of strain H16 compared to the mutant H16Δ<i>ptsHI</i>. Furthermore, proteins involved in PHB accumulation showed increased abundance in the wild-type. This expression pattern allowed us to identify proteins affecting carbon metabolism/PHB biosynthesis in strain H16 and translation/amino acid metabolism in strain H16Δ<i>ptsHI</i>, and to gain insight into the molecular response of <i>R. eutropha</i> to the deletion of HPr/EI