应用基因敲除快速构建大肠杆菌突变体改造脂肪酸代谢途径

【目的】基因敲除技术是研究基因功能的重要手段。我们试图建立一种快速、高效的大肠杆菌基因敲除方法。【方法】利用大肠杆菌(Escherichia coli)BW25113单基因缺失体Keio文库,将经典的Red同源重组技术与P1噬菌体转导技术相结合,对E.coli MG1655脂肪酸代谢基因进行快速敲除。【结果】获得了大肠杆菌β-氧化途径的缺失菌株△fadD、△fadE和△fadD-△fadE;脂肪酸合成途径缺失菌株△fabH、△fabF和△fabH-△fabF。敲除fadD和fadE对生长情况没有影响;敲除fabH后,生长速度明显减慢;敲除fabF对生长几乎没有影响。FadD、FadE及双敲缺失体的脂肪酸含量18.2 mg/L、20.0mg/L和19.2 mg/L,略高于野生型17.5 mg/L;FabH、FabF及双敲缺失体的含量分别为12.6 mg/L、15.2 mg/L和11.2 mg/L,明显低于野生型。【结论】在单基因突变体文库基础上,利用P1噬菌体转导、Red同源重组和抗性基因消除进行基因敲除,简化了构建大肠杆菌单基因和多重突变体的方法。     

基因敲除在工业微生物育种方面的应用

微生物育种技术的发展先后经历了自然选育、诱变育种、杂交育种、代谢控制育种和基因工程育种5个阶段,其中基因工程育种技术中的基因敲除技术具有定位性强、经修饰和改造的基因能够随染色体DNA的复制而稳定地复制的特点,使人们可以有目的地去改造生物的遗传物质,从而达到微生物育种的目的,受到人们的广泛关注。就基因敲除技术的几种主要方法及其在改良工业生产菌株中的应用作简要介绍。     

大肠杆菌pqqL基因敲除与功能分析

【目的】通过构建大肠杆菌pqqL基因缺陷突变株,研究大肠杆菌pqqL基因的功能。【方法】首先通过PCR扩增得到pqqL基因和kan抗性基因,在体外构建线性打靶片段pqqL-kan-pqqL。然后通过Red同源重组敲除大肠杆菌的pqqL基因,构建大肠杆菌缺失突变体DH5αΔpqqL。在此基础上通过DCIP法检测山梨糖脱氢酶活性来比较大肠杆菌突变株与亲本株中PQQ合成的情况。【结果】成功敲除了大肠杆菌的pqqL基因,DCIP法检测结果显示大肠杆菌pBCP162/DH5αΔpqqL和pMD19T Simple-pqqABCDE/DH5α能够合成PQQ,而大肠杆菌pMD19T Simple-pqqABCDE/DH5αΔpqqL不能合成PQQ。【结论】大肠杆菌pqqL基因和pqqF基因具有同样的功能。     

利用Red系统快速敲除家蚕核型多角体病毒orf60基因

用Red重组系统和最近构建的家蚕核型多角体病毒(BmNPV)bacmid在大肠杆菌BW25113中快速地敲除BmNPVorf60基因。从大肠杆菌BmDH10Bac中提取BmNPVbacmid,将其电转化到含有质粒pKD46(能表达Red重组酶)的大肠杆菌菌株BW25113中,获得了可用于BmNPV基因打靶的菌株BW25113-Bac。设计一对长63bp的引物(5′端为orf60基因的左右同源臂,长45bp;3′端长18bp,为氯霉素抗性基因(cat)的首尾序列),以pKD3质粒(含cat)为模板,PCR扩增携带orf60左右同源臂的cat,即打靶线性化片段。将该线性化片段电转入BW25113-Bac菌株,在Red重组酶的作用下,线性化片段与BmNPVbacmid中的orf60基因发生同源重组。设计3对特异引物,用PCR方法证明cat成功地替换了BmNPVorf60基因。重组bacmid DNA转染BmN细胞后,Western blot分析未检测到orf60基因的表达。     

大肠杆菌基因无痕敲除技术及策略

基因敲除技术是大肠杆菌基因组减小和代谢途径改造的有效手段,其中基于同源重组原理的基因无痕敲除技术显现出其他技术所不具备的应用优势和发展潜力。该技术可以快速敲除大肠杆菌基因组中的目标基因,并且在基因组中不残留任何外源片段,所以不会干扰后续的基因操作。我们分类介绍了无痕敲除技术中所涉及载体的结构、功能及其相应的敲除策略,着重介绍了无痕敲除技术的原理及载体构建方法。     

大肠杆菌ptsG基因敲除及其缺陷株生长特性研究

在大肠杆菌磷酸转移酶系统中,葡萄糖主要由ptsG基因编码的酶ⅡCB^Glc转运入细胞。利用代谢工程技术构建ptsG基因缺陷株,有望降低葡萄糖的摄取速率,减少乙酸累积,促进菌体生长。运用PCR技术,扩增出两翼与ptsG基因上下游序列同源,中间为氯霉素抗性基因的DNA片段。经电转化,将外源DNA片段分别转入Escherichia coli DH5α、JM109中。在Red重组酶的作用下,外源DNA片段与染色体上同源区域重组,将基因ptsG敲除,构建ptsG基因缺陷株DH5αP、JM109P。在LB培养基中,ptsG基因缺陷株的生长状况与亲株无明显差异。在含有葡萄糖的LB培养基中,DH5αP、JM109P的最高菌密度分别是对照菌株DH5α、JM109的3.47倍和4.25倍,ptsG基因缺陷株对葡萄糖的摄入量也明显高于对照菌株。重组蛋白肿瘤坏死因子（TNF）在DH5αP、JM109P中的表达量分别占全菌蛋白的24.3%、20.8%,A600分别为8.28、7.62,TNF在缺陷株中单位体积的表达量明显高于对照菌株。以上结果说明,大肠杆菌ptsG基因缺陷株具有良好的生长能力和表达外源蛋白的能力,在大肠杆菌高密度发酵研究方面具有良好的应用前景。     

基因敲除技术及其在微生物代谢工程方面的应用

应用基因工程技术对微生物细胞内的代谢通量进行重新设计,是获得高产高效的工业菌株的重要手段之一。基因敲除是20世纪80年代发展起来的一项重要的分子生物学技术,利用基因敲除技术可阻断细胞的代谢旁路。或通过引入突变位点改变目的产物的产量或质量而达到调节代谢流,优化代谢途径的目的。简单介绍了基因敲除技术的操作过程,重点讨论基因敲除技术的敲除策略及在微生物代谢工程方面的应用,并展望了相关技术在诸多领域的发展趋势。     

Red重组系统及在微生物基因敲除中的应用

在完成了对各种微生物基因组的测序以后,功能基因学的研究变得尤为重要。研究基因功能最直接的方法便是将待研究的基因失活。最初构建基因突变体是采用大肠杆菌的RecA系统,但是RecA重组系统操作复杂,重组效率低。最近建立了Red重组系统,该系统由3个蛋白组成：α蛋白(即λ核酸外切酶),β蛋白,Gam蛋白。应用Red系统进行基因敲除,可以直接利用线性打靶DNA,两侧同源臂长度在35~60 bp即可发生同源重组,且重组效率高。 Abstract:Since many DNA-sequencing projects of varied microorganisms have been completed,studies on their functional genomics become more important.Inactivation of an interesting gene is a direct method to characterize its function.Though the Esherichia coli RecA recombination system can be used to produce gene mutants,it needs a complex manipulation process.Furthermore,its efficiency is very low.Recently a Red recombination system was developed.This recombination system consists of three proteins:α protein（λ exonuclease）,β protein and Gam protein.In this system,the linear targeting DNA which contains a selectable marker flanked with a homologous region as short as only 35~60 bp can be directly targeted for gene knock-out with a higher efficiency.     

利用λRed重组系统敲除鼠伤寒沙门氏菌sopB基因

利用λRed重组系统敲除鼠伤寒沙门氏菌LT2的(Salmonella enterica serovar typhimurium LT2,S.typhimurium LT2)sopB基因。以pKD4质粒为模板,扩增得到中间带有卡那霉素抗性基因且两端各带有59 bp分别与sopB基因上下游序列同源的同源打靶片段,将其转化至表达Red重组酶的S.typhimurium LT2感受态细胞中;在抗生素压力和λRed重组系统帮助下,同源片段和菌体sopB基因发生同源重组,通过卡那霉素筛选得到带有抗性标记的阳性重组菌;转入重组酶表达质粒pCP20以除去抗性标记,得到保留单一FRT位点的突变菌株;利用PCR技术鉴定重组菌,并通过检测沙门氏菌效应蛋白SopB的分泌以及沙门氏菌感染HeLa细胞后pAKT的激活反应来鉴定sopB基因是否被敲除。构建的ΔsopB突变菌株失去了分泌SopB蛋白的能力,且不能够像野生型菌株那样在感染HeLa细胞的过程中激活pAkt。本研究获得了S.typhimurium LT2的sopB基因缺失突变株,为沙门氏菌感染宿主过程中SopB的功能研究提供工具,同时也为进一步探索其他类型细菌的基因敲除提供了线索。     

大肠杆菌基因组基因无痕敲除的优化方法

目的：优化大肠杆菌基因组基因无痕敲除的方法,提高无痕敲除的效率。方法：以无痕敲除大肠杆菌nanKETA基因簇为模型,利用Red同源重组系统和核酸内切酶I-SceI的筛选作用,通过两步连续同源重组无痕敲除大肠杆菌CLM37基因组中的nanKETA基因,优化无痕敲除时同源DNA长度与诱导用于筛选阳性克隆I-SceI表达的诱导剂浓度。通过比较敲除nanKETA基因前后菌株的生长曲线,研究大肠杆菌CLM37缺失nanKETA基因后的生长状态。结果：成功无痕敲除大肠杆菌CLM37基因组中的nanKETA基因,并在无痕化处理时,通过延长与基因组同源DNA的长度,由通常使用的80碱基对延长到684碱基对;并通过提高诱导筛选基因表达的四环素的浓度,由500 μg/ml提高到1000 μg/ml后,使无痕敲除效率高达90%以上。生长曲线研究表明,缺失nanKETA基因后的菌株生长状态与原菌株基本一致。结论：通过延长与基因组同源的双链核苷酸的长度和诱导筛选基因表达的四环素的浓度可显著提高无痕敲除的效率。     

Control and regulation of metabolic fluxes in microbes by substrates and enzymes

The control of enzymes and substrates on the flux through microbial metabolic pathways can be quantified in terms of flux control coefficients. In pathways involving group transfer, the summation theorem for flux control by the enzymes has to be modified: the sum of control by all enzymes is between 1 and 2. The phosphoenolpyruvate:glucose phosphotransferase system is such a pathway. Experimental determination of the control by the enzymes in this pathway is under way. The control of the enzymes on the glycolytic flux in yeast is low, with the possible exception of the uptake step. InKlebsiella pneumoniae potassium and ammonium ions can simultaneously be limiting, (i.e. have significant control on growth) at pH 6, but not at pH 8. This may be due to the fact that at pH 8 the high-affinity potassium uptake system is absent.     

Establishment of a xylose metabolic pathway in an industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

To produce an industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that metabolizes xylose, we constructed a rDNA integration vector and YIp integration vector, containing the xylose-utilizing genes, XYL1 and XYL2, which encode xylose reductase (XR) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XDH) from Pichia stipitis, and XKS1, which encodes xylulokinase (XK) from S. cerevisiae, with the G418 resistance gene KanMX as a dominant selectable marker. The rDNA results in integration of multiple copies of the target genes. The industrial stain of S. cerevisiae NAN-27 was transformed with the two integration vectors to produce two recombinant strains, S. cerevisiae NAN-127 and NAN-123. Upon transformation, multiple copies of the xylose-utilizing genes were integrated into the genome rDNA locus of S. cerevisiae. Strain NAN-127 consumed twice as much xylose and produced 39% more ethanol than the parent strain, while NAN-123 consumed 10% more xylose and produced 10% more ethanol than the parent strain over 94 h.     

Effect of a single-gene knockout on the metabolic regulation in Escherichia coli for D-lactate production under microaerobic condition

The effects of several single-gene knockout mutants (pykF, ppc, pflA, pta, and adhE mutants) on the metabolic flux distribution in Escherichia coli were investigated under microaerobic condition. The intracellular metabolite concentrations and enzyme activities were measured, and the metabolic flux distribution was computed to study the metabolic regulation in the cell. The pflA, pta and ppc mutants produced large amount of lactate when using glucose as a carbon source under microaerobic condition. Comparing the flux distribution and the enzyme activities in the mutants, it was shown that the lactate production was promoted by the inactivation of pyruvate formate lyase and the resulting overexpression of lactate dehydrogenase. The flux through Pta-Ack pathways and the ethanol production were limited by the available acetyl coenzyme A. It was shown that the glycolysis was activated in pykF mutant in microaerobic culture. The glycolytic flux was related with Pyk activity except for pykF mutant. The cell growth rate was shown to be affected by the flux through phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase. The quantitative regulation analysis was made based on the deviation indexes.     

A quantitative model for metabolic intervention using gut microbes

As medicine shifts toward precision-based and personalized therapeutics, utilizing more complex biomolecules to treat increasingly difficult and rare conditions, microorganisms provide an avenue for realizing the production and processing necessary for novel drug pipelines. More so, probiotic microbes can be co-opted to deliver therapeutics by oral administration as living drugs, able to survive and safely transit the digestive tract. As living therapeutics are in their nascency, traditional pharmacokinetic–pharmacodynamic (PK–PD) models for evaluating drug candidates are not appropriate for this novel platform. Using a living therapeutic in late-stage clinical development for phenylketonuria (PKU) as a case study, we adapt traditional oral drug delivery models to properly evaluate and inform the engineering of living therapeutics. We develop the adapted for living therapeutics compartmental absorption and transit (ALT-CAT) model to provide metrics for drug efficacy across nine age groups of PKU patients and evaluate model parameters that are influenced by patient physiology, microbe selection and therapeutic production, and dosing formulations. In particular, the ALT-CAT model describes the mathematical framework to model the behavior of orally delivered engineered bacteria that act as living therapeutics by adapting similar methods that have been developed and widely-used for small molecular drug delivery and absorption.