Identification and characterization of the Vibrio anguillarum prtV gene encoding a new metalloprotease

We cloned and sequenced a prtV-like gene from Vibrio anguillarum M3 strain.This prtV gene encodes a putative protein of 918 amino acids,and is highly homologous to the V.cholerae prtV gene.We found that a prtV insertion mutant strain displayed lower gelatinase activity on gelatin agar,lower protease activity against azocasein,and lower activity for four glycosidases.This prtV mutant strain also had increased activity for two esterases in its extracellular products,as analyzed by the API ZYM system.In additi...