Endophytic Bacteria as Contributors to Theanine Production in Camellia sinensis

Theanine is the most abundant non-protein amino acid in Camellia sinensis, but it is not known how a tea plant accumulates such high levels of theanine. The endophyte isolated from in vitro grown plantlets of C. sinensis cultivars was identified as Luteibacter spp., showing strong biocatalytic activity for converting both glutamine and ethylamine to theanine. Theanine was secreted outside of the bacteria. The endophyte isolated from in vitro plantlets of Camellia oleifera cultivar was identified as Bacillus safensis and did not convert glutamine and ethylamine to theanine. Enzymatic assays in vitro indicated that γ-glutamyltranspeptidases rCsEGGTs from the endophyte Luteibacter strains converted glutamine and ethylamine to theanine at higher rates than rCsGGTs from C. sinensis. This is the first report on theanine biosynthesis by an endophyte from C. sinensis, which provides a new pathway to explore the mechanism of theanine biosynthesis in C. sinensis and the interactions between an endophyte and tea plants.