Pathway and Mechanism for the Biodegradation of Inosine and Guanosine by Heyndrickxia coagulans NJ01

Hyperuricemia (HUA) and gout are primarily caused by excessive uric acid production resulting from the catabolism of purine nucleosides, notably inosine and guanosine. In this study, a candidate probiotic strain capable of biodegrading nucleosides (both inosine and guanosine) was successfully isolated from Jiaosu and identified as Heyndrickxia coagulans NJ01 by average nucleotide identity analysis. In vitro assays showed 100% biodegradation of 1.0 g/L of both inosine and guanosine by NJ01 cells and its cell-free extracts within 24 h. HPLC and genomic analyses confirmed that inosine and guanosine were biodegraded by purine-nucleoside phosphorylase into hypoxanthine and guanine, which are terminal metabolites not further degradable by the strain, and the key gene was confirmed by PCR. Furthermore, evaluation of the probiotic properties and safety of NJ01 at both genotypic and phenotypic levels confirmed that this strain is a promising probiotic candidate for further in vivo validation. This study provides a crucial foundation for the potential application of H. coagulans NJ01, a strain capable of biodegrading uric acid precursors, in the development of functional foods for HUA management.