宏基因组学研究进展

不可培养微生物占据微生物总数的99%以上, 这己成为微生物资源开发利用的一个限制性因素。宏基因组学是通过提取某一环境中的所有微生物基因组DNA、构建基因组文库及对文库进行筛选寻找和发现新的功能基因及活性代谢产物的一种方法。它避开了微生物分离培养的过程, 极大地扩展了微生物资源的利用空间, 是现代基因工程一个新的发展方向和研究热点。本文主要对宏基因组的DNA提取方法、文库的构建、筛选策略的选择及近年来宏基因组学在各领域中的应用研究现状进行了综述。     

高糖土壤微生物宏基因组文库的构建及β-葡萄糖苷酶基因鉴定

采用宏基因组技术构建了高糖土壤微生物的DNA文库,该文库约含9万个克隆,文库外源DNA总容量为3.1×10~9bp。利用活性筛选策略,对文库进行筛选,获得11个β-葡萄糖苷酶的阳性克隆,并对其中2个表达β-葡萄糖苷酶的克隆进行亚克隆和序列分析,获得两个编码新型β-葡萄糖苷酶的基因分别命名为:unbgl3A和unbgl3B。生物信息学分析表明:unbgl3A基因由2241个碱基对组成,unbgl3B基因由2292个碱基对组成。在核苷酸水平上,unbgl3A、unbgl3B与已知数据库中的β-葡萄糖苷酶基因没有任何相似性。在氨基酸水平上,与GenBank数据库中已知β-葡萄糖苷酶的相似性分别为73%和69%。     

宏基因组文库技术获得聚酮化合物

聚酮化合物是一类重要的具有生物活性的次级代谢物。由于运用传统方法从自然界中直接筛选新型天然聚酮化合物的重现率很高, 近年来出现了很多开发新型聚酮化合物的新方法, 文章主要介绍通过环境宏基因组文库获得新聚酮类化合物的方法。     

温室黄瓜根结线虫发生地土壤微生物宏基因组文库的构建及其一个杀线虫蛋白酶基因的筛选

【目的】本研究旨在通过非培养手段构建和筛选宏基因组文库,以求找到新型的杀线虫蛋白酶基因。【方法】采用密度梯度离心法提取和纯化温室土壤微生物总DNA,经平末端、连接、包装、转染后,构建宏基因组Fosmid文库,同时,以脱脂奶为底物,以根结线虫为靶标,对文库进行功能初筛。【结果】该文库库容31008个克隆,平均插入片段36.5kb,包含1.13Gbp的微生物基因组信息,适合大规模的微生物功能基因筛选,通过功能初筛,筛选到1个含杀线虫蛋白酶基因的Fosmid克隆(pro12)。进一步构建和筛选出亚克隆(espro124a5),通过对基因结构进行了初步分析发现:espro124a5是一种分泌型胞外蛋白酶,与来自于Maricaulis maris MCS10(accession no.YP_756822at NCBI)的丝氨酸蛋白酶S15仅有45%的同源性,是一种新型的丝氨酸蛋白酶,有其保守的催化三元组:Asp469、His541和Ser348。【结论】密度梯度离心法提取到的DNA纯度高、片段长,完全能满足构建宏基因组Fosmid文库的要求;同时,构建的宏基因组Fosmid文库库容大,有利于我们从中筛选其他的微生物基因资源。     

红树林土壤微生物宏基因组文库的构建及两种新颖的β-葡萄糖苷酶基因的鉴定

宏基因组技术是挖掘微生物新酶的重要途径。通过构建红树林土壤微生物Fosmid文库,共获得了约100 000个阳性克隆,该文库外源插入片段平均长度约为30 kb,文库容量达3 Gb。通过对文库中10 000个克隆进行功能筛选,获得了17个具有β-葡萄糖苷酶活性的克隆。对其中2个表达β-葡萄糖苷酶的克隆进行亚克隆,获得2个新颖的β-葡萄糖苷酶的基因,分别命名MhGH3和bgl66。生物信息学分析表明,MhGH3基因由1 992个碱基对组成,bgl66基因由2 025个碱基对组成。在氨基酸水平上,MhGH3和bgl66编码的蛋白质与GenBank数据库中已知β-葡萄糖苷酶的一致性分别为64%和55%。     

沼气池宏基因组文库中未培养微生物β-葡萄糖苷酶基因的克隆与鉴定

以间接提取法提取了沼气池样品的微生物宏基因组DNA,用柯斯质粒载体pWEB:TNC构建了一个含三万个克隆的沼气池宏基因组文库,对文库中的克隆随机分析表明,该文库的外源片段平均长度为40 kb,文库的总容量为1 .2×106kb。对其中的一个在七叶苷平板上显色的阳性克隆pGXN100进行进一步亚克隆、测序和序列分析。结果表明,pGXN100上有一个全长为1 863bp的ORF,编码621个氨基酸组成的蛋白质。将该基因命名为Unglu100。与产气克雷伯菌属的一个β-葡萄糖苷酶基因AN292在核苷酸和氨基酸水平上分别有76%和85%的同源性,利用SMART软件进行预测表明,Unglu100可能是PTS中β-葡萄糖苷酶特异性的转运蛋白组件。     

海绵宏基因组文库构建及抗菌肽功能基因的初步筛选

宏基因组文库技术是利用未培养微生物基因资源的有效途径。成功构建澳大利亚厚皮海绵的Fosmid宏基因组文库,插入片段平均大小为36.8kb。利用建立的宏基因组文库,采用PCR技术初步筛选到具有编码抗菌肽的功能基因。这是我国首次尝试构建海绵宏基因组文库,对于今后开发利用海绵丰富的基因资源具有重要的意义。     

宏基因组与宏基因组学

宏基因组学诞生于上世纪90年代,是指不经过微生物培养阶段,采用直接提取环境中总DNA的方法,对微生物基因总和进行研究的一门新学科.宏基因组技术的出现,使得人们对占微生物总体99%以上不可培养微生物的研究成为现实,微生物基因的可探测空间显著增大.总的来说,目前宏基因组技术的应用主要分为两个方面:一方面是筛选功能基因,开发具有所需功能的蛋白;另一方面是通过对宏基因组文库进行分析,探讨在各种环境下微生物间相互作用和微生物与周围环境间相互影响的规律,以便我们能更加客观、全面地认识微生物世界.在宏基因组技术的应用范围被不断扩展的同时,围绕着宏基因组文库的构建和筛选、测序和分析等方面的研究已成为宏基因组学发展的主要推动力,宏基因组技术的进步将不断提升其应用价值.     

宏基因组技术在开发极端环境未培养微生物中的应用

人类对自然环境中约99％的微生物不能用传统的方法进行纯培养,对于极端环境中的微生物更是知之甚少.随着宏基因组技术的出现,人们可对选一庞大的未知世界进行多方面研究.目前研究者利用这一技术已经对地球上的多种极端生境进行了研究,并取得了很多新的成就.简要概述这一技术在极端环境未培养微生物研究中的应用.     

Characterization of a gene encoding cellulase from uncultured soil bacteria

To detect cellulases encoded by uncultured microorganisms, we constructed metagenomic libraries from Korean soil DNAs. Screenings of the libraries revealed a clone pCM2 that uses carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) as a sole carbon source. Further analysis of the insert showed two consecutive ORFs (celM2 and xynM2) encoding proteins of 226 and 662 amino acids, respectively. A multiple sequence analysis with the deduced amino acid sequences of celM2 showed 36% sequence identity with cellulase from the Synechococcus sp., while xynM2 had 59% identity to endo-1,4-beta-xylanase A from Cellulomonas pachnodae. The highest enzymatic CMC hydrolysis was observable at pH 4.0 and 45 degrees C with recombinant CelM2 protein. Although the enzyme CelM2 additionally hydrolyzed avicel and xylan, no substrate hydrolysis was observed on oligosaccharides such as cellobiose, pNP-beta-cellobioside, pNP-beta-glucoside, and pNP-beta-xyloside. These results showed that CelM2 is a novel endo-type cellulase.     

Identification of a novel 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase from the soil metagenome

4-Hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD) is a Fe(II)-dependent, non-heme oxygenase that converts 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate to homogentisate. Essential cofactors, such as plastoquinone and tocopherol, are produced by HPPD-dependent anabolic pathways in plants. To isolate a novel hppd using culture-independent method, a cosmid metagenomic library was constructed from soil in Korea. Screening of Escherichia coli metagenomic libraries led to the identification of a positive clone, YS103B, producing dark brown pigment in Luria-Bertani medium supplemented with l-tyrosine. In vitro transposon mutagenesis of YS103B showed that the 1.3 kb insert was sufficient to produce the hemolytic brown pigment. Sequence analysis of YS103B disclosed one open reading frame encoding a 41.4 kDa protein with the well-conserved prokaryotic oxygenase motif of the HPPD family of enzymes. The HPPD-specific β-triketone herbicide, sulcotrione, inhibited YS103B pigmentation. The recombinant protein expressed in E. coli generated homogentisic acid. Thus, we present the successful heterologous expression of a previously uncharacterized hppd gene from an uncultured soil bacterium.     

Characterization of a new Acidobacteria-derived moderately thermostable lipase from a Brazilian Atlantic Forest soil metagenome

A clone (LP001) expressing a new lipase gene was isolated from a metagenomic library of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest soil. The DNA insert of LP001 was fully sequenced, and 38 ORFs were identified. Comparison of ORFs, %G + C content and gene organization with sequenced bacterial genomes suggested that the fosmid DNA insert belongs to an organism of the Acidobacteria phylum. Protein domain analysis and inactivation by transposon insertion showed that the protein encoded by ORF29 was responsible for the lipase activity and was named LipAAc. The purified LipAAc lipase was capable of hydrolyzing a broad range of substrates, showing the highest activity against p-nitrophenol (pNP) decanoate. The lipase was active over a pH range of 5.0-10.0 and was insensitive to divalent cations. LipAAc is moderately thermostable with optimum temperature between 50 and 60 °C and was thermally activated (80% activity increase) after 1 h incubation at 50 °C. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that the LipAAc is a member of family I of bacterial lipases and clusters with other moderately thermostable lipases of this group. Comparisons of the DNA insert of fosmid LP001 with other acidobacterial genomes and sequence database suggest that lipAAc gene has a fungal origin and was acquired by horizontal transfer.     

Cloning and enzymatic characterization of a xylanase gene from a soil-derived metagenomic library with an efficient approach

Screening interesting biocatalysts directly from soil samples is a more convenient and applicable approach than conventional cultivation-dependent ones. In our present work, a soil-derived metagenomic library containing 24,000 transformants was constructed with an efficient strategy for cloning xylanase genes. A gene encoding the enzyme (XynH) able to hydrolyze xylan was obtained. Similarity analysis revealed that this enzyme is a new member in the family 10 of xylanases. The molecular mass of XynH purified from Escherichia coli was estimated to be 39 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis. It was found to display the maximal activity at lower temperature, under weakly alkaline conditions, different from most of xylanases. The K _m and V_max values of XynH with birchwood xylan as substrate are 7.5 mg/ml and 190 μmol min⁻¹ mg⁻¹, respectively. It is greatly interesting to note that the activity of XynH was not reduced significantly by Mn²⁺, Zn²⁺, Co²⁺, Ag⁺, and Cu²⁺, even at the concentration of 5 mM, which strongly inhibits most of the other xylanases studied previously. Yong Hu and Guimin Zhang contributed equally to this work.     

Strategies for accessing soil metagenome for desired applications

Most of the microorganisms in nature are inaccessible as they are uncultivable in the laboratory. Metagenomic approaches promise the accessibility of the genetic resources and their potential applications. Genetic resources from terrestrial environments can be accessed by exploring the soil metagenome. Soil metagenomic analyses are usually initiated by the isolation of environmental DNAs. Several methods have been described for the direct isolation of environmental DNAs from soil and sediments. Application of metagenomics largely depends on the construction of genomic DNA libraries and subsequent high-throughput sequencing or library screening. Thus, obtaining large quantities of pure cloneable DNA from the environment is a prerequisite. This review discusses the recent developments related to efficient extraction and purification of soil metagenome highlighting the considerations for various metagenomic applications.     

Characterization of a thermoactive endoglucanase isolated from a biogas plant metagenome

A metagenomic library from DNA isolated from a biogas plant was constructed and screened for thermoactive endoglucanases to gain insight into the enzymatic diversity involved in plant biomass breakdown at elevated temperatures. Two cellulase-encoding genes were identified and the corresponding proteins showed sequence similarities of 59% for Cel5A to a putative cellulase from Anaerolinea thermolimosa and 99% for Cel5B to a characterized endoglucanase isolated from a biogas plant reactor. The cellulase Cel5A consists of one catalytical domain showing sequence similarities to glycoside hydrolase family 5 and comprises 358 amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 41.2 kDa. The gene coding for cel5A was successfully cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli C43(DE3). The recombinant protein was purified to homogeneity using affinity chromatography with a specific activity of 182 U/mg, and a yield of 74%. Enzymatic activity was detectable towards cellulose and mannan containing substrates and over a broad temperature range from 40 °C to 70 °C and a pH range from 4.0 to 7.0 with maximal activity at 55 °C and pH 5.0. Cel5A showed high thermostability at 60 °C without loss of activity after 24 h. Due to the enzymatic characteristics, Cel5A is an attractive candidate for the degradation of lignocellulosic material.

     

Isolation and characterization of cold-active family VIII esterases from an arctic soil metagenome

Functional screening for lipolytic enzymes at low temperatures resulted in the isolation of the novel cold-active esterases, EstM-N1 and EstM-N2, from a metagenomic DNA library of arctic soil samples. EstM-N1 and EstM-N2 were 395 and 407 amino acids in length, respectively, and showed the highest similarity to class C β-lactamases. However, they shared a relatively low level of sequence similarity (30%) with each other. Phylogenetic analysis of bacterial lipolytic enzymes confirmed that EstM-N1 and EstM-N2 belonged to family VIII of bacterial esterases/lipases. The (His)₆-tagged esterases were purified to about 99% homogeneity from the soluble fraction of recombinant Escherichia coli cultures. The purified EstM-N1 and EstM-N2 retained more than 50% of maximal activity in the temperature range of 0–35°C, with optimal temperatures of 20°C and 30°C, respectively. Both enzymes preferred the short acyl chains of p-nitrophenyl esters and exhibited very narrow substrate specificity, indicating that they are typical esterases. The β-lactamase activity of EstM-N1 and EstM-N2 was also detected and reached about 31% and 13% of the positive control enzyme, Bacillus cereus β-lactamase, respectively. These first cold-active esterases belonging to family VIII are expected to be useful for potential biotechnological applications as interesting biocatalysts.     

Characterization of a novel cold-active esterase isolated from swamp sediment metagenome

A functional screen of a metagenomic library from “Upo” swamp sediment in Korea identified a gene EstL28, the product of which displayed lipolytic properties on a tributyrin-supplemented medium. The EstL28 sequence encodes a 290 amino acid protein (designated as EstL28), with a predicted molecular weight of 31.3 kDa. The encoded EstL28 protein exhibited the highest sequence similarity (45 %) to a hydrolase found in Streptococcus sanguinis. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that EstL28 belongs to a currently uncharacterized family of esterases. Within the conserved α/β-hydrolase 6 domain, the EstL28 retains the catalytic triad Ser₁₀₃–Asp₂₄₈–His₂₆₈ that is typical of esterases. The Ser₁₀₃ residue in the catalytic triad is located in the consensus pentapeptide motif GXSXG. The purified EstL28 enzyme worked optimally at 35 °C and pH 8.5 and remained stable at temperatures lower than 20 °C. The catalytic activity of EstL28 was maximal with p-nitrophenyl butyrate, indicating that it was an esterase. This enzyme also exhibited stable activity in the presence of methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, and dimethyl sulfoxide. Therefore, the level of stability in organic solvents and cold temperature suggests that EstL28 has potential for many biotechnological applications.     

Chitinase genes revealed and compared in bacterial isolates, DNA extracts and a metagenomic library from a phytopathogen-suppressive soil

Soil that is suppressive to disease caused by fungal pathogens is an interesting source to target for novel chitinases that might be contributing towards disease suppression. In this study, we screened for chitinase genes, in a phytopathogen-suppressive soil in three ways: (1) from a metagenomic library constructed from microbial cells extracted from soil, (2) from directly extracted DNA and (3) from bacterial isolates with antifungal and chitinase activities. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) of chitinase genes revealed differences in amplified chitinase genes from the metagenomic library and the directly extracted DNA, but approximately 40% of the identified chitinase terminal restriction fragments (TRFs) were found in both sources. All of the chitinase TRFs from the isolates were matched to TRFs in the directly extracted DNA and the metagenomic library. The most abundant chitinase TRF in the soil DNA and the metagenomic library corresponded to the TRF¹⁰³ of the isolate Streptomyces mutomycini and/or Streptomyces clavifer . There were good matches between T-RFLP profiles of chitinase gene fragments obtained from different sources of DNA. However, there were also differences in both the chitinase and the 16S rRNA gene T-RFLP patterns depending on the source of DNA, emphasizing the lack of complete coverage of the gene diversity by any of the approaches used.     

宏基因组学挖掘新型生物催化剂的研究进展

微生物蕴藏着大量具有工业应用潜力的生物催化剂。然而,传统培养方法只能从环境中获得不到1%的微生物。宏基因组学是通过提取某一特定环境中的所有微生物基因组DNA、构建基因组文库并对文库进行筛选,寻找和发现新的功能基因的一种方法。它绕过了微生物分离培养过程,成为研究环境样品中不可培养微生物的有力手段。因此,从宏基因组中挖掘新型生物催化剂一直倍受生物学家的关注。以下主要对宏基因组文库的样品来源、DNA提取方法、文库的构建和筛选策略的选择这4个方面的研究状况进行了综述,列举了近年来利用宏基因组技术所获得的新型生物催化剂,并对其今后的研究方向提出了展望。