Isolation of mak1 from Actinoplanes missouriensis and evidence that Pep2 from Streptomyces coelicolor is a maltokinase

The gene makl(1) coding for maltokinase from Actinoplanes missouriensis is located in a cluster similar to glycogen metabolism clusters identified in Streptomyces coelicolor. Sequence comparisons demonstrate that mak1-related genes coding for homologous proteins are present in many bacterial genomes including taxonomic distantly related groups such as Rhodospirillales or green sulfur bacteria. More than 50% of the aligned sequences are longer than the mak1 gene from A. missouriensis, and the N-terminal portion of these putative maltokinases exhibit high sequence homologies with trehalose synthases. A more detailed sequence comparison indicates a relationship of maltokinases to aminoglycoside phospho-transferases and protein kinases. Transformation of S. lividans with plasmid vectors containing either the mak1 gene from A. missouriensis or the pep2 gene from S. coelicolor resulted in recombinant strains, which produced measurable amounts of maltokinase activity. The proteins Pep2 and Mak1 were over expressed with Streptomyces lividans 66 as a heterologous host and further characterized. The possible physiological function of maltokinases is discussed.