Functional analyses of cellulase genes in multicellular microbe and application to a new technology

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Cellulose is a major component of the cell wall for cellular slime mould, Dictyostelium discoideum. It posses a cellulose synthetase gene and its function is important for normal morphogenesis. In this project, we focused on the cellulase genes catalyzing cellulose hydrolysis, cloned several of them and investigated the effects on morphogenesis as well as cellulose hydrolyzing activity. We showed inactivation of cellobiohydrolase(cbhA) gene, one of cellulase, by gene disruption affected morphogenesis. In addition, multiple Dictyostelium cellulases might act synergistically, possibly as a cellulosome, resulted in drastic increase of cellulose hydrolyzing activity. This implies Dictyostelium is a useful organism to produce bioethanol from cellulose.