Identification of the ornithine decarboxylase gene in the putrescine-producer Oenococcus oeni BIFI-83.

We report here the identification of an ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) gene in the putrescine-producer Oenococcus oeni BIFI-83 strain. The gene contains a 2,235-nucleotide open reading frame encoding a 745-amino acid residues protein with a deduced molecular mass of 81 kDa. The primary structure of the ODC deduced from the nucleotide sequence has a consensus sequence containing the pyridoxal-5-phosphate (PLP) binding domain, and the critical amino acids residues involved in enzymatic activity are also conserved. As determined by BLAST analysis, the deduced amino acid sequence of the odc gene shares a 67% identity with the ODC protein from Lactobacillus 30a. The odc gene appears to be rarely present in the genome of O. oeni, since in a screening for the presence of this gene in 42 oenococcal strains none of the strains possessed an odc gene copy.