Lanthanides in Enzymology and Microbiology

Dr. Akio Tani is an Associate Professor (2014 - current) at the Institute of Plant Science and Resources, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan. Dr. Tani was educated at Kyoto University (Ph.D 2001), and from there became an Assistant Professor at IPSR Okayama University (2001-2013). He was a Visiting Researcher at ETH Zurich (2012-2013). Dr. Tani’s research focuses on lanthanide-dependent switching of methanol metabolism and taxonomy of Methylobacterium species, and the structure and function of the microbiome in barley-rice cropping. Dr. Mitsui is a Professor (2016-current) within the Faculty of Life Science, Department of Biochemistry, at Okayama University of Science, Okayama, Japan. He was educated at Kyoto University (Ph. D, 1998), and from there became an Assistant Professor at Okayama University of Science (1998-2008), as well as an Associate Professor at Okayama University of Science (2008-2016). He was also a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Dr. Mary E. Lidstrom Laboratory, at the University of Washington (2005-2006). His research interests include lanthanide-dependent chemical communication between plants and C1 bacteria. Dr. Nakagawa is a Professor (2012-) within the Faculty of Applied Biological Sciences at Gifu University, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. He was educated at Kyoto University (Ph.D, 1999), and following this became an Assistant Professor at the Tokyo University of Agriculture (1999-2007), and an Associate Professor at Gifu University (2007-2012). Dr. Nakagawa’s research focuses on regulation of methanol metabolism in C1 yeasts and lanthanide-dependent C1 bacteria, as well as molecular mechanisms of alcohol fermentation in budding yeast.

Part I: Introduction
1. Lanthanide utilization by organisms: An Overview
2. Distribution and diversity of lanthanide-dependent methanol dehydrogenase, XoxF, in natural environments.

Part II: Lanthanide-dependent methanol dehydrogenases in methylotrophs
3. Discovery of the Xox system in Methylorubrum (Methylobacterium) extorquens, AM1: a historical perspective
4. XoxF5-type methanol dehydrogenase and lanthanide-dependent methylotrophy in Methylorubrum extorquens, AM1
5. Lanthanide uptake and gene regulation of the xox1 operon in Methylobacterium extorquens, AM1
6. Lanthanide utilization in Methylobacterium aquaticum strain, 22A

Part III: Lanthanide-dependent methanol dehydrogenases and methanol metabolisms in methanotrophs
7. Genetic regulation by lanthanides in the Type I methanotroph Methylotuvimicrobium buryatense, 5GB1C.
8. XoxF4, represented by two enzymes from Methylotenera mobilis, JLW8

Part IV: Lanthanide dependent methanol/alcohol dehydrogenases in non-methylotrophs and newly found methylotrophs
9. Lanthanide-dependent methanol dehydrogenases, XoxFs, in Rhizobia of α-Proteobacteria
10. Lanthanide utilization in the family Beijerinckiaceae
11. Lanthanide utilization in newly found methylotrophs

Part V: Application of lanthanide-dependent biological processes
12. Recovery of rare earth elements using lanmodulin
13. Development of lanthanide ion binding peptide
14. Switching Between Methanol Accumulation and Cell Growth by Expression Control of Methanol Dehydrogenase in Methylosinus trichosporium, OB3b