Heterologous expression and characterization of recombinant glycerol dehydratase from Klebsiella pneumoniae in Escherichia coli

Glycerol dehydratase (EC 4.2.1.30), as one of the key enzymes in converting glycerol to the valuable intermediate 1,3-propanediol, is important for biochemical industry. The dhaB genes encoding coenzyme B(12)-dependent glycerol dehydratase in Klebsiella pneumoniae were cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. An effective co-expression system of multiple subunits protein was constructed. Heterologous expression vectors were constructed using the splicing by overlap extension-PCR technique to co-express the three subunits of the glycerol dehydratase. After induction by isopropyl-beta-D-thiogalactopyranoside, SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that: (i) only the alpha subunit of glycerol dehydratase was expressed in direct expression system, (ii) the three subunits of glycerol dehydratase with predicted molecular massess of 64 (agr;), 22 (beta), and 16 kDa (gamma) were expressed simultaneously in co-expression system, and (iii) the fusion expression system expressed the fusion protein of 99 kDa. Enzyme assay showed that the activities of three heterologous expression products were 27.4, 2.3, and 0.2 U/mg. The highest enzyme activity was almost 17 times of that in K. pneumoniae. The recombinant enzyme was purified and biochemically characterized. The apparent Km values of the enzyme for coenzyme B(12) and 1, 2-propanediol were 8.5 nM and 1.2 mM, respectively. The enzyme showed maximum activity at pH 8.5 and 37 degrees C.     

罗伊乳酸杆菌甘油脱水酶基因的克隆及其在大肠杆菌中的表达

迅速升温的生物柴油投资热导致了其副产物甘油的大量积累,这一现状使得开发和利用甘油生产各种精细化工产品备受关注。本实验通过构建基因工程菌来生物转化甘油生产3-羟基丙醛,为甘油下游产品的开发开辟了一条新途径。3-羟基丙醛是一种重要的化学中间体,同时也是一种有效的抗菌剂和生物组织的固定剂,在化学工业中具有广泛的应用前景。实验主要利用甘油脱水酶N末端序列,并根据NCBI中公布的甘油脱水酶的氨基酸序列设计了一对克隆引物,并以菌株罗伊乳酸杆菌Lactobacillus reuteri的基因组DNA为模板进行PCR扩增,获得约为1.6kb的片段,将其克隆到T载体上进行测序,对测序结果进行分析,重新设计两端含有EcoRI和HindIII酶切位点的表达引物,利用PCR扩增得到了甘油脱水酶基因,该基因片段长度为1674bp,编码558个氨基酸。将所得片段定向克隆到pET28b载体中,并转化至大肠杆菌BL21感受态细胞中。经IPTG诱导后,进行SDS-PAGE电泳,在约65kD处检测出一蛋白表达条带,另外还对该重组菌进行比活力测定,最高比活力可达1.14U/mg,比野生型菌株提高了86.88%。     

Butanol production from glycerol by recombinant Escherichia coli

Escherichia coli MG1655 (DE3) with the ability to synthesize butanol from glycerol was constructed by metabolic engineering. The genes thil, adhe2, bcs operon (crt, bcd, etfB, etfA, and hbd) were cloned into the plasmid vectors, pETDuet-1 and pACYCDuet-1, then the two resulting plasmids, pACYC-thl-bcs and pET-adhe2, were transferred to E. coli, and the recombinant strain was able to synthesize up to 18.5 mg/L butanol on a glycerol-containing medium. After the glycerol transport protein gene GlpF was expressed, the butanol production was improved to 22.7 mg/L. The competing pathway of byproducts, such as ethanol, succinate, and lactate, was subsequently deleted to improve the 1-butanol production to 97.9 mg/L. Moreover, a NADH regeneration system was introduced into the E. coli, and finally a 154.0 mg/L butanol titer was achieved in a laboratory-scale shake-flask experiment.     

克雷伯氏菌甘油脱水酶基因在大肠杆菌中的克隆与表达

利用PCR技术从克雷伯氏菌(Klebsiella pneumoniae ATCC49790)总DNA中扩增得到甘油脱水酶(glycerol dehydratase,DHAB)基因的DNA片段,并将其连接到表达质粒pSE380,携带有重组质粒pSE-dhaB的大肠杆菌JM109实现了dhaB基因的表达;对含有dhaB工程菌进行表达研究,表明工程菌在37℃,以1．0mmol／L IPTG诱导5h酶活力即达到1164．14u／L,比野生菌酶活力(168．69U／L)提高了6．9倍。     

弗氏柠檬酸菌甘油脱水酶基因在大肠杆菌中的克隆和表达

以弗氏柠檬酸菌（Citrobacter freundii）基因组DNA为模板,通过PCR得到甘油脱水酶（glycerol dehydratase）基因dhaB、dhaC、dhaE,克隆到表达载体pSE380上,得到重组质粒pSn-dhaBCE。将此重组质粒转化到E．coli JM109中,重组菌株SDS-PAGE结果显示有明显的61kD、22kD、16kD三条特异性蛋白条带出现。重组菌株经诱导表达,酶活力为11．59U／mL。     

Activity of recombinant GST in Escherichia coli grown on glucose and glycerol

We have investigated production, solubility and activity of recombinant glutathione-S-transferase (GST) expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 grown in defined media with glucose or glycerol as carbon source. GST was predominantly expressed as a soluble protein on both carbon sources, and 83–84% was found in the supernatant after cell lysis. In cultures grown on glucose, only 32 ± 9% of the GST was active, while 76 ± 13% of the GST was active in cultures grown on glycerol. This shows that glycerol has the potential to increase the activity of soluble GST in E. coli cultures in vivo.     

Design of a recombinant Escherichia coli for producing l-phenylalanine from glycerol

A recombinant Escherichia coli was engineered to produce the commercially important amino acid L: -phenylalanine (L: -Phe) using glycerol as the carbon source. Compared to the conventionally used glucose and sucrose, glycerol is a less expensive carbon source. As phenylalanine dehydrogenase (PheDH) activity is involved in the last step of L: -Phe synthesis in E. coli, a phenylalanine dehydrogenase gene (phedh) from the thermotolerant Bacillus lentus was cloned into pRSFDuet-1 (pPheDH) and expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3). The resulting clone had a limited ability to produce L: -Phe from glycerol, possibly because of a poor glycerol uptake by the cell, or an inability to excrete L: -Phe, or both. Therefore, yddG gene encoding an aromatic amino acid exporter and glpF gene encoding a glycerol transport facilitator were coexpressed with the phedh in a reengineered E. coli. In a glycerol medium, the maximum L: -Phe production rates of the clones pPY (phedh and yddG genes) and pPYF (phedh, yddG and glpF genes) were 1.4- and 1.8-fold higher than the maximum production rate of the pPheDH clone. The better producing pPYF clone was further evaluated in a 5?l stirred-tank fermenter (37?°C, an aeration rate of 1 vvm, an agitation speed of 400?rpm). In the fermenter, the maximum concentration of L: -Phe (366?mg/l) was achieved in a much shorter period compared to in the shake flasks. In the latter, the highest titer of L: -Phe was only 76?% of the maximum value attained in the fermenter.     

Optimum melanin production using recombinant Escherichia coli

AIMS: A parametric study was conducted to define optimum conditions to achieve high yields in the conversion of tyrosine to eumelanin (EuMel) using recombinant Escherichia coli. METHODS AND RESULTS: Escherichia coli W3110 (pTrcMutmelA) expressing the tyrosinase coding gene from Rhizobium etli and glucose-mineral media were used to transform tyrosine into EuMel. Batch aerobic fermentor cultures were performed to study the effect of temperature, pH and inducer concentration (isopropyl-D-thio-galactopyranoside) on melanin production. Under optimum conditions, 0.1 mmol l(-1) of isopropyl-D-thio-galactopyranoside, temperature of 30 degrees C, and changing pH from 7.0 to 7.5 during the production phase, a 100% conversion of tyrosine into EuMel is obtained. Furthermore, tyrosine feeding allowed us to obtain the highest level (6 g l(-1)) of EuMel produced by recombinant E. coli reported until now. CONCLUSIONS: The most important factors affecting melanin formation and hence influencing the rate and efficiency in the conversion of tyrosine into EuMel in this system, are the temperature and pH. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Maximum theoretical yield was obtained using a simple culture process and mineral media to convert tyrosine (a medium value compound) into melanin, a high value compound. The process reported here avoids the use of purified tyrosinase, expensive chemical methods or the cumbersome extraction of this polymer from animal or plant tissues.     

Crystal structure of D-serine dehydratase from Escherichia coli

D-Serine dehydratase from Escherichia coli is a member of the β-family (fold-type II) of the pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes, catalyzing the conversion of D-serine to pyruvate and ammonia. The crystal structure of monomeric D-serine dehydratase has been solved to 1.97?-resolution for an orthorhombic data set by molecular replacement. In addition, the structure was refined in a monoclinic data set to 1.55? resolution. The structure of DSD reveals a larger pyridoxal 5'-phosphate-binding domain and a smaller domain. The active site of DSD is very similar to those of the other members of the β-family. Lys118 forms the Schiff base to PLP, the cofactor phosphate group is liganded to a tetraglycine cluster Gly279-Gly283, and the 3-hydroxyl group of PLP is liganded to Asn170 and N1 to Thr424, respectively. In the closed conformation the movement of the small domain blocks the entrance to active site of DSD. The domain movement plays an important role in the formation of the substrate recognition site and the catalysis of the enzyme. Modeling of D-serine into the active site of DSD suggests that the hydroxyl group of D-serine is coordinated to the carboxyl group of Asp238. The carboxyl oxygen of D-serine is coordinated to the hydroxyl group of Ser167 and the amide group of Leu171 (O1), whereas the O2 of the carboxyl group of D-serine is hydrogen-bonded to the hydroxyl group of Ser167 and the amide group of Thr168. A catalytic mechanism very similar to that proposed for L-serine dehydratase is discussed.     

Overproduction of alkaline polygalacturonate lyase in recombinant Escherichia coli by a two-stage glycerol feeding approach

This work aims to achieve the overproduction of alkaline polygalacturonate lyase (PGL) with recombinant Escherichia coli by a two-stage glycerol feeding approach. First, the PGL coding gene from Bacillus subtilis WSHB04-02 was expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) under the strong inducible T7 promoter of the pET20b (+) vector. And then the influence of media composition, induction temperature, and inducer isopropyl β-D-1-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) concentration on cell growth and PGL production was investigated. Finally, a two-stage glycerol feeding strategy was proposed and applied in a 3-L fermenter, where cultivation was conducted at a controlled specific growth rate (μset=0.2) during pre-induction phase, followed by a constant glycerol feeding rate of 12 ml h(-1) at post-induction phase. The total PGL yield reached 371.86 U mL(-1), which is the highest PGL production by recombinant E. coli expression system.     

Engineering the productivity of recombinant Escherichia coli for limonene formation from glycerol in minimal media

The efficiency and productivity of cellular biocatalysts play a key role in the industrial synthesis of fine and bulk chemicals. This study focuses on optimizing the synthesis of (S)‐limonene from glycerol and glucose as carbon sources using recombinant Escherichia coli. The cyclic monoterpene limonene is extensively used in the fragrance, food, and cosmetic industries. Recently, limonene also gained interest as alternative jet fuel of biological origin. Key parameters that limit the (S)‐limonene yield, related to genetics, physiology, and reaction engineering, were identified. The growth‐dependent production of (S)‐limonene was shown for the first time in minimal media. E. coli BL21 (DE3) was chosen as the preferred host strain, as it showed low acetate formation, fast growth, and high productivity. A two‐liquid phase fed‐batch fermentation with glucose as the sole carbon and energy source resulted in the formation of 700 mg L_org^–1 (S)‐limonene. Specific activities of 75 mU g_cdw^–1 were reached, but decreased relatively quickly. The use of glycerol as a carbon source resulted in a prolonged growth and production phase (specific activities of ≥50 mU g_cdw^–1) leading to a final (S)‐limonene concentration of 2,700 mg L_org^–1. Although geranyl diphosphate (GPP) synthase had a low solubility, its availability appeared not to limit (S)‐limonene formation in vivo under the conditions investigated. GPP rerouting towards endogenous farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) formation also did not limit (S)‐limonene production. The two‐liquid phase fed‐batch setup led to the highest monoterpene concentration obtained with a recombinant microbial biocatalyst to date.     

以甘油为底物利用重组大肠杆菌生产聚3-羟基丙酸

【目的】解决前期研究中所构建的以甘油为底物合成聚3-羟基丙酸(P3HP)的代谢途径中存在两个主要的问题——细胞内还原力不平衡和质粒丢失,以提高P3HP的产量。【方法】克隆来源于肺炎克雷伯氏菌的1,3-丙二醇(1,3-PDO)氧化还原酶基因,构建P3HP和1,3-PDO联产的菌株,解决细胞内还原力不平衡的问题。利用自杀性载体系统介导的同源重组技术,将甘油脱水酶及其激活因子的基因整合到大肠杆菌基因组中,提高质粒的稳定性。同时,对发酵条件进行优化。【结果】菌种改造和发酵条件优化显著提高了P3HP产量,在摇瓶条件下到达2.7 g/L,比以前的报道提高2倍,并可同时得到2.4 g/L 1,3-PDO。【结论】该重组大肠杆菌合成P3HP的产量得到提高,具有较好的工业化生产前景。     

Monitoring biomass and glycerol in an Escherichia coli fermentation using near-infrared spectroscopy

Summary Near-infrared spectroscopy was used to determine biomass and glycerol concentrations in E.coli whole broth fermentation samples. For dry cell weight, a standard error of prediction (SEP) of 0.2 g/L and correlation coefficient (r) of 0.991 were obtained. The SEP and r for glycerol, carbon nutrient, were 0.3 g/L and 0.979. respectively. Off-line analysis was accomplished within 2 minutes of sampling and therefore provides the opportunity to monitor fermentations quickly enough to permit in-process development and troubleshooting.