植物基因启动子研究进展

综述了植物基因启动子的核心结构与功能、植物基因启动子的种类：异源组成型启动子(CaMV35S、MMV)和从植物自身克隆的组成型启动子(PTSB1和PPHYB),以及植物中通过按物理因素(温、光、旱、热等)、化学因素(离子、有机物、激素等)和生物因素(病菌、组织器官、发育阶段等)诱导表达的一些启动子,发育时期特异的启动子、器官特异的启动子(根、茎、叶等)和植物中应用的人工双向启动子的研究进展和应用前景。     

植物抗病相关启动子及其研究进展

启动子是调控基因表达的重要顺式元件。植物抗病相关启动子的调控特性研究、分离及其应用对于提高植物抗病性极其关键。本文综述了植物基因启动子的基本结构、克隆方法,着重介绍了组成型、组织特异型、天然与人工合成的病原诱导型启动子的研究进展,及其在植物抗病基因工程中的应用现状和存在问题,并展望了植物抗病相关启动子的应用前景。     

Screening of promoters from metagenomic DNA and their use for the construction of expression vectors

This study was focused on the screening of valuable genetic resources, such as promoters from metagenome, and describes a promoter trapping system with a bidirectional probe concept, which can select promoters or operons from various biological resources including metagenomic DNA. A pair of reporters, GFP and DsRed, facing the opposite direction without promoters, is an effective system that can function regardless of the direction of inserted promoters. The feasibility of this system was tested for the isolation of constitutively expressed promoters in E. coli from a soil metagenome, resulting in a potential pool of various promoters for practical application. The analyses of structural organization of the trapped genes demonstrated that constitutively expressible promoters in E. coli were broadly distributed within the metagenome, and suggested that some promoters were useful for the construction of expression vectors. Based on these observations, three constitutive promoters were employed in the expression vector system and their potentials for practical application were evaluated in terms of expression level, protein solubility, and effects on host growth.     

Libraries of synthetic stationary-phase and stress promoters as a tool for fine-tuning of expression of recombinant proteins in Escherichia coli

Due to their induction characteristics stationary-phase promoters have a great potential in biotechnological processes for the production of heterologous proteins on a large-scale. In order to broaden the utility of stationary-phase promoters in bacterial expression systems and to create novel promoters induced by metabolic conditions, a library of synthetic stationary-phase/stress promoters for Escherichia coli was constructed. For designing the promoters the known -10 consensus sequence as well as the extended -10 region and an A/T-rich region downstream of the -10 region were kept constant, while sequences from -37 to -14 were partially or completely randomized. For detection and selection of stationary-phase promoters GFP with enhanced fluorescence was used. The expression pattern of the GFP reporter system was compared with that of the LacZ reporter system. To screen and characterize colonies containing stationary-phase/stress promoters a bioinformatic approach was developed. In total, 33 promoters were selected which cover a broad range of promoter activities and induction times indicating that the strength of promoters can be modulated by partially randomizing the sequence upstream of the -10 region. The induction ratio of synthetic promoters at the transition from exponential to stationary-phase was from 4 to over 6000 and the induction time relative to the entrance into stationary-phase from -1.4 to 2.7 h. Ninety-one percentage of the promoters had no or only low background activity during exponential growth. The broad variability of the promoters offers good possibilities for fine-tuning of gene expression and for applications in industrial bioprocesses.     

Modulating ectopic gene expression levels by using retroviral vectors equipped with synthetic promoters

The human cytomegalovirus and elongation factor 1?? promoters are constitutive promoters commonly employed by mammalian expression vectors. These promoters generally produce high levels of expression in many types of cells and tissues. To generate a library of synthetic promoters capable of generating a range of low, intermediate, and high expression levels, the TATA and CAAT box elements of these promoters were mutated. Other promoter variants were also generated by random mutagenesis. Evaluation using plasmid vectors integrated at a single site in the genome revealed that these various synthetic promoters were capable of expression levels spanning a 40-fold range. Retroviral vectors were equipped with the synthetic promoters and evaluated for their ability to reproduce the graded expression demonstrated by plasmid integration. A vector with a self-inactivating long terminal repeat could neither reproduce the full range of expression levels nor produce stable expression. Using a second vector design, the different synthetic promoters enabled stable expression over a broad range of expression levels in different cell lines.     

CHO细胞表达系统启动子

中国仓鼠卵巢（Chinese hamsters ovary,CHO）细胞是目前重组蛋白质生产的首选宿主细胞。利用CHO细胞生产重组蛋白质,启动子是启动转基因转录的关键。核心启动子是RNA聚合酶与转录起始复合物集合的部位,分为集中型和分散型两种类型。目前,CHO细胞常用的启动子为病毒启动子、异源启动子、内源性和诱导性启动子等。也可以利用合成生物学及相关的数据库,人工设计合成启动子及鉴定新型启动子。本文综述了CHO细胞常用的启动子以及人工设计的合成启动子在CHO细胞中重组蛋白质表达方面的进展,为哺乳动物细胞选择合适的启动子,保证蛋白质表达量最大化,并确保长时间表达稳定性提供参考。     

高等植物胁迫诱导型启动子的研究进展

逆境胁迫严重影响植物生长发育,降低作物产量。目前在植物抗逆基因工程中,大多使用组成型启动子驱动目的基因表达,组成型启动子的表达虽然能提高转基因植株的抗逆性,但持续过量地表达转化的外源基因有时会阻碍植物的生长且降低其产量。因此,诱导型启动子的研究具有重要的应用价值。该文对近年来植物在逆境胁迫处理下,一些诱导型启动子的种类和功能,可能具有的顺式作用元件,反式作用因子及其研究方法进行了综述。     

CHO细胞表达系统启动子

中国仓鼠卵巢（Chinese hamsters ovary,CHO）细胞是目前重组蛋白质生产的首选宿主细胞。利用CHO细胞生产重组蛋白质,启动子是启动转基因转录的关键。核心启动子是RNA聚合酶与转录起始复合物集合的部位,分为集中型和分散型两种类型。目前,CHO细胞常用的启动子为病毒启动子、异源启动子、内源性和诱导性启动子等。也可以利用合成生物学及相关的数据库,人工设计合成启动子及鉴定新型启动子。本文综述了CHO细胞常用的启动子以及人工设计的合成启动子在CHO细胞中重组蛋白质表达方面的进展,为哺乳动物细胞选择合适的启动子,保证蛋白质表达量最大化,并确保长时间表达稳定性提供参考。     

Kinetic measurements of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase association with bacteriophage T7 early promoters

During infection of Escherichia coli by bacteriophage T7, E. coli RNA polymerase utilizes only three promoters (A1, A2, and A3). In vitro, the A promoters predominate at very low polymerase concentration, but at higher polymerase concentration the minor B, C, D, and E promoters are used with equal efficiency. The binding constant for the initial association of polymerase with promoters and the forward rate of isomerization to an "open" complex capable of initiation have been measured for the A1, A3, C, and D promoters using the abortive initiation reaction. At 80 mM KCl, 37 degrees C, both major and minor promoters isomerize rapidly (t1/2 = 10 to 30 s). In contrast, initial binding to the minor promoters (KI = 10(7) ) is at least 10-fold weaker than binding to major promoters KI greater than or equal to 10(8) ), suggesting promoter selectivity in the T7 system occurs at the point of initial binding. Association kinetics of the A1 and C promoters on intact T7 were the same as measured on restriction fragments of length greater than or equal to 500 base pairs. All open complexes dissociated with half-lives longer than 1 h. Overall equilibrium binding constants estimated from kinetic measurements ranged from 10(10) to greater than or equal to 10(11) M-1 for minor and major promoters, respectively. Data on heparin attack and abortive initiation turnover rates indicate open complex polymerase conformation may be different at the A1 and A3 promoters.