Utilizing the Ethylene-releasing Compound, 2-Chloroethylphosphonic Acid, as a Tool to Study Ethylene Response in Bacteria

Summary

The protocols outlined herein facilitate the convenient investigation of bacterial ethylene responses by utilizing 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid (CEPA). Ethylene is produced in situ through the decomposition of CEPA in an aqueous bacterial growth medium, circumventing the requirement for pure ethylene gas.

Abstract

Ethylene (C₂H₄) is a gaseous phytohormone that is involved in numerous aspects of plant development, playing a dominant role in senescence and fruit ripening. Exogenous ethylene applied during early plant development triggers the triple response phenotype; a shorter and thicker hypocotyl with an exaggerated apical hook. Despite the intimate relationship between plants and bacteria, the effect of exogenous ethylene on bacteria has been greatly overlooked. This is partly due to the difficulty of controlling gaseous ethylene within the laboratory without specialized equipment. 2-Chloroethylphosphonic acid (CEPA) is a compound that decomposes into ethylene, chlorine, and phosphate in a 1:1:1:1 molar ratio when dissolved in an aqueous medium of pH 3.5 or greater. Here we describe the use of CEPA to produce in situ ethylene for the investigation of ethylene response in bacteria using the fruit-associated, cellulose-producing bacterium Komagataeibacter xylinus as a model organism. The protocols described herein include both the verification of ethylene production from CEPA via the Arabidopsis thaliana triple response assay and the effects of exogenous ethylene on K. xylinus cellulose production, pellicle properties and colonial morphology. These protocols can be adapted to examine the effect of ethylene on other microbes using appropriate growth media and phenotype analyses. The use of CEPA provides researchers with a simple and efficient alternative to pure ethylene gas for the routine determination of bacterial ethylene response.

Introduction

The olefin ethylene (C₂H₄) was first discovered as a plant hormone in 1901 when it was observed that pea seedlings, grown in a laboratory that used coal gas lamps, exhibited an abnormal morphology in which stems (hypocotyls) were shorter, thicker and bent sideways compared to normal pea seedlings; a phenotype later termed the triple response^1,2. Subsequent studies demonstrated that ethylene is a vital phytohormone that regulates numerous developmental processes such as growth, stress response, fruit ripening and senescence³. Arabidopsis thaliana, a model organism for plant biology research, has been well studied in ....

Protocol

1. Chemicals

1. Prepare a solution of 500 mM CEPA (144.49 g/mol), and a solution consisting of both 500 mM NaCl (58.44 g/mol) and 500 mM NaH₂PO₄·H₂O (137.99 g/mol) in acidified (pH 2.5) ultra-pure water or 0.1 N HCl. Mix using a vortex until the solutions are clear.
2. Serially dilute (10x) the 500 mM solutions in the same solvent to obtain 5 mM and 50 mM stocks.
3. Prepare a 10 mM solution of 1-aminocyclopropane carboxylic acid (ACC; 101.1 g/mol) in ultra-pure water.
4. Filter-sterilize stock solutions and store aliquots at -20 °C.
5. Filter-sterilize cellulase. Store aliquots at 4 °C.

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Results

A schematic plate setup for verification of ethylene liberation from CEPA in SH medium (pH 7) by the triple response assay is shown in Figure 1A-C. A flow-chart illustrating the pellicle protocol is shown in Figure 2. Dark-grown A. thaliana seedlings exhibit the triple response phenotype (shorter and thicker hypocotyl with an exaggerated apical hook) in the presence of ACC and in the presence of ethylene produced through the dec.......

Discussion

The methods described here outline the in situ production of ethylene from CEPA for the study of bacterial ethylene response using the model organism, K. xylinus. This method is very useful as ethylene can be produced by supplementing any aqueous medium that has a pH greater than 3.5^10,11 with CEPA negating the need for pure ethylene gas or specialized laboratory equipment. This method is not limited to studying the effects of CEPA-derived ethylene on bacteria but can be also be adapted to st.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
1-aminocyclopropane carboxylic acid (ACC)	Sigma	A3903	Biosynthetic precursor of ethylene in plants
4-sector Petri dish	Phoenix Biomedical	CA73370-022	For testing triple response
Agar	BioShop	AGR001.1	To solidify medium
Canon Rebel T1i DLSR camera	Canon	3818B004	For pictures of pellicles
Cellulase from Trichoderma reesei ATCC 26921	Sigma	C2730	Aqueous solution
Citric acid	BioShop	CIT002.500	For SH medium
Commercial bleach	Life Brand	57800861874	Bleach for seed sterilization
Concentrated HCl	BioShop	HCL666.500	Hydrochloric acid for pH adjustment
Digital USB microscope	Plugable	N/A	For pictures of colonies
Ethephon (≥96%; 2-chloroethylphosphonic acid)	Sigma	C0143	Ethylene-releasing compound
Glucose	BioBasic	GB0219	For SH medium
Komagataeibacter xylinus ATCC 53582	ATCC	53582	Bacterial cellulose-producing alphaproteobacterium
Microcentrifuge tube	LifeGene	LMCT1.7B	1.7 ml microcentrifuge tube
Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium	Sigma	M5519	Arabidopsis thaliana growth medium
Na2HPO4·7H2O	BioShop	SPD579.500	Sodium phosphate, dibasic heptahydrate for SH medium
NaCl	BioBasic	SOD001.1	Sodium chloride for saline and control solution
NaH2PO4·H2O	BioShop	SPM306.500	Sodium phosphate, monobasic monohydrate for control solution
NaOH	BioShop	SHY700.500	Sodium hydroxide for pH adjustment
Paraffin film	Parafilm	PM996	For sealing plates and flasks
Peptone (bacteriological)	BioShop	PEP403.1	For SH medium
Petroff-Hausser counting chamber	Hausser scientific	3900	Bacterial cell counting chamber
Polyethersulfone sterilization filter 0.2 µm	VWR	28145-501	For sterilizing cellulase
Sucrose	BioShop	SUC600.1	Sucrose for MS medium
Yeast extract	BioBasic	G0961	For SH medium