合成生物技术生产甾体激素中间体的研究展望

甾体类药物是销售额仅次于抗生素的世界第二大类药物,不同的甾体药物分子结构均由甾体激素中间体衍生而来。甾体激素中间体的传统生产方法包括植物提取皂素法和化学全合成法,其对环境有害,反应产物结构不唯一且成本较高,不利于工业化生产。目前主要的生产工艺是利用微生物对特殊原料进行转化的半合成法,但会遇到微生物酶转化率低、发酵周期长等问题。合成生物学的出现为构建利用糖为唯一碳源生产甾体激素中间体的人工细胞提供了理论上的可行性和可靠的技术支持。重点综述了合成生物技术在甾体激素中间体生产中的应用,以有利于工业发酵的酿酒酵母、分枝杆菌等为底盘细胞,通过引入外源合成功能模块,实现胆甾醇、雄烯二酮等甾体激素中间体的生物合成,并对合成生物技术在医药生产方式转变中的应用进行了展望,以期推动甾体类药物生物制造技术的进步。     

工业分枝杆菌植物甾醇转化途径及菌种改造研究进展

相比于传统的化学转化法,微生物转化法在甾体药物的生产中显示出了明显的优势.利用分枝杆菌降解植物甾醇可以生成一系列甾体药物的中间体,这极大地方便了甾体药物的生产.通过基因工程、分子生物学和结构生物学等学科的技术手段,人们对甾醇转化菌株进行了深入的探索和改造.本文对工业分枝杆菌植物甾醇转化途径及菌种改造的研究进展进行了综述...     

酿酒酵母中胆固醇生物合成与优化的研究进展

胆固醇是动物体内积累的主要甾醇化合物,在维持细胞膜功能、合成甾体激素、生产甾体药物中间体等方面具有重要的生物学意义和医学应用价值。传统动物组织提取胆固醇的方法费时费力并存在严重的环境污染问题,而甾醇分子结构的复杂程度也限制了其化学全合成。近些年,人们利用合成生物学方法构建的微生物细胞工厂已成功用于萜类、甾醇类等天然产物的开发与合成。文中综述了胆固醇微生物细胞工厂的研究进展,包括胆固醇生物合成途径的解析、底盘菌株的选择、异源基因元件的挖掘与优化、相关代谢通路的调控等方面,并讨论了当前研究面临的问题,以期为胆固醇的高效生物合成提供参考。     

3-甾酮-9α-羟基化酶基因在分枝杆菌中的异源表达与9α-羟基雄烯二酮的制备

9α-羟基雄烯二酮(9-OH-AD)是制备甾体类药物的重要中间产物。3-甾酮-9α-羟基化酶(KSH)能够转化雄烯二酮(AD)产生9α-羟基雄烯二酮(9-OH-AD),该酶由Ksh A和Ksh B两个亚基构成。为获得高效积累9-OH-AD的重组菌株,本研究选择耻垢分枝杆菌Mycobacterium smegmatis mc2155和戈登氏菌Gordonia neofelifaecis NRRL B-59395,对其在胆固醇为唯一碳源条件下表达明显上调的ksh A和ksh B候选基因进行克隆,插入到分枝杆菌表达载体p NIT中,构建共表达质粒,并将它们导入分枝杆菌Mycobacterium sp.NRRL B-3805中,获得重组菌株。利用重组菌株分别对植物甾醇、胆固醇和谷甾醇进行生物转化,分离纯化转化产物,采用光谱学方法鉴定其化学结构,确定该转化产物为9α-羟基雄烯二酮,说明分枝杆菌Mycobacterium sp.NRRL B-3805由积累雄烯二酮变为积累9α-羟基雄烯二酮(9-OH-AD),进而证明导入的候选基因ksh A和ksh B确实为有功能的基因。生物转化实验表明,与胆固醇、谷甾醇相比,植物甾醇作为底物更易于转化;而用来源于耻垢分枝杆菌的ksh A、ksh B构建的重组菌转化率更高,可达90%,具有较高的应用价值。本研究通过对KSH编码基因的异源表达,成功地进行了分枝杆菌生物转化特性的改造,为探索各种甾体药物中间体的工业生产奠定了基础。     

分枝杆菌Mycobacterium sp. NwIB-01 3-甾酮-9α-羟基化酶基因的克隆、异源表达及分离纯化

3-甾酮-9α-羟基化酶(KSH)是微生物甾体降解途径中的关键酶,在甾体药物制备中有重要价值。以本实验室从土壤中自行筛选的分枝杆菌Mycobacterium sp.NwIB-01为出发菌株,利用红平红球菌Rhodococcus erythropolis SQ1已报道的ksh序列与已全基因组测序的分枝杆菌序列数据库进行比对分析,根据同源基因设计简并引物获得部分ksh序列,通过染色体步移扩增出全长ksh(命名为M.S.-ksh),该基因与耻垢分枝杆菌M.smegmatis mc2155的ksh同源性为85%。构建pET32-ksh表达载体,转化大肠杆菌BL21(DE3),获得高表达重组转化子菌株,经IPTG低温诱导,SDS-PAGE电泳分析,目的蛋白主要为可溶性表达,表达量占菌体总蛋白的30%以上,用Ni2+亲和层析柱纯化,纯度达90%以上。本研究为利用基因工程菌进行工业化生产甾体药物奠定了基础。     

工业分枝杆菌甾醇代谢基因组学的研究进展

甾类化合物具有重要的生理医药作用,市场需求巨大。分枝杆菌对降解甾类中关键甾类药物中间体有很高的转化效率。为了更深入地了解甾体降解途径,本文从植物甾醇结构种类、分枝杆菌特点、不同分枝杆菌菌株基因组学、代谢组等方面的研究进展进行了归纳。     

分枝杆菌HGMS2中类固醇C20-羟基脱氢酶的鉴定

分枝杆菌常被用作甾体药物中间体生产菌种,然而当前人们对其具体的甾醇降解机制仍然不是很清楚。为了获得C20-羟基甾药中间体,文章直接以RS为底物进行了转化,并通过对转化产物进行TLC、HPLC、LS-MS和核磁分析,初步确定分枝杆菌中存在类固醇C20-羟基脱氢酶（1DHC）参与的代谢途径。同时,基于生物信息学和结构生物学,通过序列和结构比对分析,最终从分枝杆菌中鉴定出了一个与类固醇C20-羟基脱氢酶同源性很高的基因。将该基因在大肠杆菌中异源表达,并对其功能活性进行分析,证明该基因所编码的酶和类固醇C20-羟基脱氢酶具有相同的功能活性。文章首次从分枝杆菌中鉴定出一种类固醇C20-羟基脱氢酶,使研究者对分枝杆菌甾醇代谢机制有了更深入的理解,同时也为新型甾药中间体的制备以及分枝杆菌的改造奠定了理论基础。     

微生物发酵降解植物甾醇侧链生产17-酮甾体研究进展

微生物发酵降解植物甾醇侧链,生产雄甾-4-烯-3,17-二酮(AD),雄甾-1,4-二烯-3,17-二酮(ADD),和9α-羟基-AD甾体药物中间体的工业生物技术对改变制造甾体激素药物半合成原料薯蓣皂素短缺的现状,实现甾体激素药物半合成原料多元化,合理利用我国甾体植物资源具有重要意义。重点评述了近期微生物法断植物甾醇侧链制AD、ADD和9α-羟基-AD的研究现状,内容包括:1)微生物菌种选育;2)菌种相关的细胞生理,酶学性质和生物催化过程;3)相关酶的细胞定位及生物反应器;4)发酵工艺选择和甾醇原料的合理利用。     

工程化P450酶特异性氧化修饰甾体化合物

甾体药物是仅次于抗生素的全球第二大类药物,具有抗炎、抗过敏、调节内分泌等重要功效。对甾体母核特定位点进行有效的氧化修饰,是引入药效活性的关键。研究表明,P450酶是催化甾体特异性氧化的一类关键酶家族。目前,电子传递效率和催化特异性是限制P450酶催化功能的重要因素,会导致目标甾体产物产量低、副产物积累严重等问题。因此,将围绕提高P450酶的催化效率及特异性方面的研究工作,系统综述工程化P450催化甾体类物质的方法策略和相关研究进展,并对催化甾体化合物的P450酶的设计和优化的未来发展进行展望,为该方面工作的深入研究提供指导。     

链霉菌较小基因组研究进展及展望

微生物合成生物学的重要内容包括挖掘和解析生物合成系统的基本元件,设计和构建具有优良特性的底盘细胞,为微生物药物的高效生物合成奠定理论基础,为微生物药物产业化和新药创制提供强大的支撑。综述了链霉菌较小基因组细胞(底盘)的构建方法、评估、应用等相关研究,提出了链霉菌较小基因组细胞系统设计理念、高版本工业链霉菌底盘构建思路及其评估体系,并探讨了高版本工业链霉菌底盘高效生物合成重要植物源化合物(青蒿素、紫杉醇、番茄红素等)的产业应用前景。     

多聚磷酸盐及其在分枝杆菌中的生理功能

结核病仍然是全球性传染病。缩短疗程的新药和新疫苗是控制结核病的关键。研究分枝杆菌的生理功能有助于实现上述目的。多聚磷酸盐在细菌胁迫应答中发挥重要作用。结核分枝杆菌具有两类多聚磷酸盐代谢酶以控制细胞内多聚磷酸盐的动态平衡:多聚磷酸盐激酶和多聚磷酸酸盐水解酶。本文综述多聚磷酸盐在分枝杆菌中的代谢及其生理功能,以期为研究多聚磷酸盐在结核分枝杆菌中的生理功能提供参考。     

Comparison of the nucleotide sequences of the meta-cleavage pathway genes of TOL plasmid pWW0 from Pseudomonas putida with other meta-cleavage genes suggests that both single and multiple nucleotide substitutions contribute to enzyme evolution

TOL plasmid pWW0 from Pseudomonas putida mt-2 encodes catabolic enzymes required for the oxidation of toluene and xylenes. The structural genes for these catabolic enzymes are clustered into two operons, the xylCMABN operon, which encodes a set of enzymes required for the transformation of toluene/xylenes to benzoate/toluates, and the xylXYZLTEGFJQKIH operon, which encodes a set of enzymes required for the transformation of benzoate/toluates to Krebs cycle intermediates. The latter operon can be divided physically and functionally into two parts, the xylXYZL cluster, which is involved in the transformation of benzoate/toluates to (methyl)catechols, and the xylTEGFJQKIH cluster, which is involved in the transformation of (methyl)catechols to Krebs cycle intermediates. Genes isofunctional to xylXYZL are present in Acinetobacter calcoaceticus, and constitute a benzoate-degradative pathway, while xylTEGFJQKIH homologous encoding enzymes of a methylphenol-degradative pathway and a naphthalene-degradative pathway are present on plasmid pVI150 from P. putida CF600, and on plasmid NAH7 from P. putida PpG7, respectively. Comparison of the nucleotide sequences of the xylXYZLTEGFJQKIH genes with other isofunctional genes suggested that the xylTEGFJQKIH genes on the TOL plasmid diverged from these homologues 20 to 50 million years ago, while the xylXYZL genes diverged from the A. calcoaceticus homologues 100 to 200 million years ago. In codons where amino acids are not conserved, the substitution rate in the third base was higher than that in synonymous codons. This result was interpreted as indicating that both single and multiple nucleotide substitutions contributed to the amino acid-substituting mutations, and hence to enzyme evolution. This observation seems to be general because mammalian globin genes exhibit the same tendency.     

Recent advances in barley transformation

Barley, an important member of the cereals, has been successfully transformed through various methods such as particle bombardment, Agrobacterium tumefaciens, DNA uptake, and electroporation. Initially, the transformation in barley concentrated on developing protocols using marker genes such as gus, bar, and hpt. Immature embryos and callus derived from immature embryos were targeted for transformation. Subsequently, genes of agronomic and malting importance have been deployed in barley. Particle bombardment appears to be the preferred choice for barley transformation in the majority of the reports, although Agrobacterium-mediated transformation is being used more often. The current review focuses on the challenges encountered in barley transformation such as somaclonal variation, development of transformation systems for commercial cultivars, gene expression, stability and inheritance, and gene flow. Newer markers such as the green fluorescent protein (gfp), firefly luciferase, and phosphomannose isomerase were found to be useful in the selection of transgenic plants. Tissue-specific promoters such as those for B1-hordein and D-hordein genes, and spike-specific promoters, are increasingly used to drive gene expression. The review also describes recent research on gene-tagging through transformation, insertion of disease resistance, and abiotic stress resistance genes, transformation with genes for improved malting quality, nutrient content, feed quality, and the production of feed enzymes and pharmaceutical compounds.     

链霉菌底盘细胞的开发现状及其应用

天然产物及其衍生物在现代医疗中扮演着举足轻重的角色,其生物活性多样性以及化学结构的丰富性是新药研发的源泉和动力。利用纯化学方法合成天然产物在技术和成本上有很大的困难,加上许多天然产物的原始产生菌具有培养条件苛刻、产量低下等缺点,而且大量基因簇在原始菌株中是沉默的,这使得利用合成生物学思想来指导天然产物生物合成基因簇的异源表达具有重大意义。作为抗生素、抗肿瘤活性物质、免疫抑制剂等次级代谢产物主要来源的放线菌一直是研究者们关注的焦点,特别是随着基因测序技术的飞速发展,人们发现链霉菌基因组中包含着极为丰富的天然产物生物合成基因簇资源。这意味着开发链霉菌底盘细胞作为异源表达宿主有其得天独厚的优势。本综述从底盘细胞开发的意义入手,重点阐述链霉菌底盘细胞构建的策略及现状,随后通过实例阐述了各种底盘链霉菌的实际应用。     

Efficient transformation of the medicinal mushroomGanoderma lucidum

Ganoderma lucidum is a well-known and important medicinal mushroom, but its genetic modification has not been reported. We developed an efficient procedure for isolation and regeneration of protoplasts fromG. lucidum. To construct a vector for high-level expression of heterologous genes inG. lucidum, the 1.4-kb regulatory region of the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase gene (GPD) was isolated from the genomic DNA ofLentinus edodes, and theGPD promoter was fused to the β-glucuronidase (GUS) and bialaphos resistance (bar) genes. Using the resulting construct, p301-bG1, an efficient transformation system based on electroporation was established forG. lucidum. GUS expression was observed among transformants conferring bialaphos resistance, indicating that theL. edodes GPD promoter can be used for expression of exogenous genes inG. lucidum. We also studied green fluorescent protein (GFP) as another reporter for transformation ofG. lucidum. TheL. edodes GPD promoter was fused respectively to theGFP andbar genes, and the resulting construct, p301-bg, was introduced intoG. lucidum. StableGFP expression in transformants was detectable by fluorescence microscopy, suggesting the suitability ofGFP as a reporter system in transformation of this mushroom. This is the first report of an efficient transformation system forG. lucidum using different reporters, paving the way for genetic modification of this famous medicinal mushroom.     

Specification of Primary Pigment Cell and Outer Photoreceptor Fates byBarH1Homeobox Gene in the DevelopingDrosophilaEye

In the developingDrosophilaeye,BarH1andBarH2, paired homeobox genes expressed in R1/R6 outer photoreceptors and primary pigment cells, are essential for normal eye morphogenesis. Here, we show evidence thatBarH1ectopically expressed under the control of thesevenlessenhancer (sev-BarH1) causes two types of cone cell transformation: transformation of anterior/posterior cone cells into outer photoreceptors and transformation of equatorial/polar cone cells into primary pigment cells.sev-BarH1repressed the endogenous expression of theroughhomeobox gene in R3/R4 photoreceptors, while theBarH2homeobox gene was activated bysev-BarH1in an appreciable fraction of extra outer photoreceptors. In primary pigment cells generated by cone cell transformation, the expression ofcut,a homeobox gene specific to cone cells, was completely replaced with that ofBarhomeobox genes. Extra outer photoreceptor formation was suppressed and enhanced, respectively, by reducing the activity of Ras/MAPK signaling and by dosage reduction ofyan,a negative regulator of the pathway, suggesting interactions betweenBarhomeobox genes (cell fate determinants) and Ras/MAPK signaling in eye development.     

Molecular genetics of nucleotide sugar interconversion pathways in plants

Nucleotide sugar interconversion pathways represent a series of enzymatic reactions by which plants synthesize activated monosaccharides for the incorporation into cell wall material. Although biochemical aspects of these metabolic pathways are reasonably well understood, the identification and characterization of genes encoding nucleotide sugar interconversion enzymes is still in its infancy. Arabidopsis mutants defective in the activation and interconversion of specific monosaccharides have recently become available, and several genes in these pathways have been cloned and characterized. The sequence determination of the entire Arabidopsis genome offers a unique opportunity to identify candidate genes encoding nucleotide sugar interconversion enzymes via sequence comparisons to bacterial homologues. An evaluation of the Arabidopsis databases suggests that the majority of these enzymes are encoded by small gene families, and that most of these coding regions are transcribed. Although most of the putative proteins are predicted to be soluble, others contain N-terminal extensions encompassing a transmembrane domain. This suggests that some nucleotide sugar interconversion enzymes are targeted to an endomembrane system, such as the Golgi apparatus, where they may co-localize with glycosyltransferases in cell wall synthesis. The functions of the predicted coding regions can most likely be established via reverse genetic approaches and the expression of proteins in heterologous systems. The genetic characterization of nucleotide sugar interconversion enzymes has the potential to understand the regulation of these complex metabolic pathways and to permit the modification of cell wall material by changing the availability of monosaccharide precursors.     

提高肺炎克雷伯氏菌产1,3-丙二醇的分子生物学方法研究进展

1,3-丙二醇(1,3-propanediol,1,3-PD)可用于工业合成多种化合物,包括聚酯、聚醚和聚氨酯。发酵法生产1,3-PD具有巨大潜力。本文从代谢途径分析入手,梳理了肺炎克雷伯氏菌厌氧代谢途径的相关酶及催化作用,较详细地综述了其产1,3-PD关键酶的分子改造、基因工程菌株的构建和关键酶基因表达、副产物相关代谢酶基因敲除等方面的最新进展,并展望了其今后的发展前景。