Metabolic engineering of Pichia pastoris for malic acid production from methanol

The application of rational design in reallocating metabolic flux to accumulate desired chemicals is always restricted by the native regulatory network. In this study, recombinant Pichia pastoris was constructed for malic acid production from sole methanol through rational redistribution of metabolic flux. Different malic acid accumulation modules were systematically evaluated and optimized in P. pastoris. The recombinant PP‐CM301 could produce 8.55 g/L malic acid from glucose, which showed a 3.45‐fold increase compared to the parent strain. To improve the efficiency of site‐directed gene knockout, NHEJ‐related protein Ku70 was destroyed, whereas leading to the silencing of heterogenous genes. Hence, genes related to by‐product generation were deleted via a specially designed FRT/FLP system, which successfully reduced succinic acid and ethanol production. Furthermore, a key node in the methanol assimilation pathway, glucose‐6‐phosphate isomerase was knocked out to liberate metabolic fluxes trapped in the XuMP cycle, which finally enabled 2.79 g/L malic acid accumulation from sole methanol feeding with nitrogen source optimization. These results will provide guidance and reference for the metabolic engineering of P. pastoris to produce value‐added chemicals from methanol.     

A simple model-based control for Pichia pastoris allows a more efficient heterologous protein production bioprocess

A predictive control algorithm coupled with a PI feedback controller has been satisfactorily implemented in the heterologous Rhizopus oryzae lipase production by Pichia pastoris methanol utilization slow (Mut(s)) phenotype. This control algorithm has allowed the study of the effect of methanol concentration, ranging from 0.5 to 1.75 g/L, on heterologous protein production. The maximal lipolytic activity (490 UA/mL), specific yield (11,236 UA/g(biomass)), productivity (4,901 UA/L . h), and specific productivity (112 UA/g(biomass)h were reached for a methanol concentration of 1 g/L. These parameters are almost double than those obtained with a manual control at a similar methanol set-point. The study of the specific growth, consumption, and production rates showed different patterns for these rates depending on the methanol concentration set-point. Results obtained have shown the need of implementing a robust control scheme when reproducible quality and productivity are sought. It has been demonstrated that the model-based control proposed here is a very efficient, robust, and easy-to-implement strategy from an industrial application point of view.     

Pathway analysis of Pichia pastoris to elucidate methanol metabolism and its regulation for production of recombinant proteins

This research rationally analyzes metabolic pathways of Pichia pastoris to study the metabolic flux responses of this yeast under methanol metabolism. A metabolic model of P. pastoris was constructed and analyzed by elementary mode analysis (EMA). EMA was used to comprehensively identify the cell's metabolic flux profiles and its underlying regulation mechanisms for the production of recombinant proteins from methanol. Change in phenotypes and flux profiles during methanol adaptation with varying feed mixture of glycerol and methanol was examined. EMA identified increasing and decreasing fluxes during the glycerol–methanol metabolic shift, which well agreed with experimental observations supporting the validity of the metabolic network model. Analysis of all the identified pathways also led to the determination of the metabolic capacities as well as the optimum metabolic pathways for recombinant protein synthesis during methanol induction. The network sensitivity analysis revealed that the production of proteins can be improved by manipulating the flux ratios at the pyruvate branch point. In addition, EMA suggested that protein synthesis is optimum under hypoxic culture conditions. The metabolic modeling and analysis presented in this study could potentially form a valuable knowledge base for future research on rational design and optimization of P. pastoris by determining target genes, pathways, and culture conditions for enhanced recombinant protein synthesis. The metabolic pathway analysis is also of considerable value for production of therapeutic proteins by P. pastoris in biopharmaceutical applications. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 30:28–37, 2014     

Effect of methanol feeding strategies on production and yield of recombinant mouse endostatin from Pichia pastoris

Pichia pastoris, a methylotrophic yeast, is an efficient producer of recombinant proteins in which the heterologous gene is under the control of the methanol-induced AOX1 promoter. Hence, the accepted production procedure has two phases: In the first phase, the yeast utilizes glycerol and biomass is accumulated; in the second phase, the yeast utilizes methanol which is used both as an inducer for the expression of the recombinant protein and as a carbon source. Since the yeast is sensitive to methanol concentration, the methanol is supplied gradually to the growing culture. Three methanol addition strategies were evaluated for the purpose of optimizing recombinant endostatin production. Two strategies were based on the yeast metabolism; one responding to the methanol consumption using a methanol sensor, and the other responding to the oxygen consumption. In these two strategies, the methanol supply is unlimited. The third strategy was based on a predetermined exponential feeding rate, controling the growth rate at 0.02 h(-1), in this strategy the methanol supply is limited. Throughout the induction phase glycerol, in addition to methanol, was continuously added at a rate of 1 g L h(-1). Total endostatin production was similar in all three strategies, (400 mg was obtained from 3 L initial volume), but the amount of methanol added and the biomass produced were lower in the predetermined rate method. This caused the specific production of endostatin per biomass and per methanol to be 2 times higher in the predetermined rate than in the other two methods, making the growth control strategy not only more efficient but also more convenient for downstream processing.     

甲醇／山梨醇共混诱导改善重组毕赤酵母表达猪a干扰素发酵过程和NADH再生效率

在10L发酵罐中利用重组毕赤酵母诱导表达猪a干扰素（pIFN-a）,考察甲醇／山梨醇共混诱导策略对pIFN-a表达水平提高和能量（NADH）再生效率的影响。结果表明：在诱导稳定期,甲醇／山梨醇共混诱导可弱化细胞的甲醇代谢,有利于缓解毒副中间产物（过氧化氢、甲醛等）的生成积累;以0．785g／（L·h）的速率缓慢共混流加山梨醇时,pIFN-a抗病毒活性最大,最高活性可达1．8×107IU／mL,与30℃常温甲醇单独诱导（最高活性1．0X10。IU／mL）和20℃低温甲醇单独诱导（最高活性1．4×lO6IU／mL）相比,活性均大幅提高,且胞外pIFN-a的降解减缓;发酵体系的抗高甲醇浓度冲击能力有效提高,发酵生产的稳定性增强;能量利用效率大幅提高,NADH的再生利用效率提高了29％-84％。     

双碳源流加对重组毕赤酵母高效表达葡萄糖氧化酶的影响

葡萄糖氧化酶(GOD)是一种具有广泛应用前景的工业酶.为了实现葡萄糖氧化酶的高效生产,提高重组毕赤酵母生产GOD的产量和增强生产强度,对重组毕赤酵母诱导阶段的初始菌体浓度和甲醇浓度进行了优化.在此基础上,诱导期采用了双碳源(甘油、山梨醇和甘露醇)与甲醇混合流加的模式.研究发现,最佳诱导前初始菌体浓度和甲醇浓度分别为100 g/L和18 g/L,此时GOD产量为427.6 U/mL.在诱导阶段采用甘油、山梨醇和甘露醇与甲醇的混合添加均可以提高GOD产量,其中甘露醇与甲醇的混合流加效果最为显著.当甲醇与甘露醇混合流加的比例为20∶1(W/W)时,诱导156h GOD产量和生产强度分别可达711.3 U/mL和4.60 U/(mL·h),比甲醇单一流加策略结果分别提高了66.3％和67.9％.此外采用合适的甘露醇混合流加策略不但不会抑制AOX1启动子的表达,甚至有一定促进作用,AOX酶活性为8.8 U/g(对照为5.2 U/g).双碳源流加方式还能推广到毕赤酵母其他表型中,为该系统高效表达外源蛋白提供一种新策略.     

Impact of methanol concentration on secreted protein production in oxygen-limited cultures of recombinant Pichia pastoris

The methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris is a powerful system for production of recombinant proteins, showing high ability to secrete properly folded proteins. A major plus is the strong AOX1 promoter highly induced by methanol. During growth on methanol, however, oxygen readily becomes limiting. In oxygen-limited cultivations of recombinant Pichia pastoris, the methanol concentration had a strong impact on the production of a single-chain antibody fragment (scFv). High methanol concentrations were required to compensate the lack of oxygen and fully induce recombinant protein production, at the same time reducing gratuitous biomass formation due to a lower biomass yield. Product concentrations of 60, 150, and 350 mg/L were obtained with methanol concentrations of 0.3, 1, and 3% (v/v). Moreover, accumulation of a putative product fragment that cannot be removed during affinity purification was prevented at high methanol concentrations. Cell vitality after 100 h was maintained above 98% and 96% of the culture with 0.3% and 3% methanol, respectively. In cultivations supplemented with oxygen, in contrast, methanol concentration between 0.3% and 3% did not influence the product yield of 300-400 mg/L. Thus, efficient recombinant protein production under oxygen-limitation seems to require high methanol concentrations, enabling product concentration as high as otherwise obtained only with expensive supply of pure oxygen.     

甲醇/山梨醇共混流加控制溶氧改善毕赤酵母表达猪圆环病毒Cap蛋白的发酵性能

研究在重组毕赤酵母(GS115,Mut+)表达猪圆环病毒Cap蛋白的发酵过程中,甲醇毒害作用以及溶氧波动影响目的蛋白的正常表达。基于对甲醇和山梨醇代谢途径的分析,将C源流加的手动调节与反馈控制相结合,提出了1种新型的甲醇/山梨醇共混诱导策略,能够将溶氧稳定地控制于某一设定值,同时避免甲醇毒害作用。使用该策略将溶氧控制于20%的批次,C源(甲醇和山梨醇)添加过少,导致Cap蛋白表达量较低(54 mg/L);而将溶氧控制于10%的批次,C源流加速率适宜,Cap蛋白表达量达到198 mg/L,表达水平明显高于采用传统甲醇诱导策略(0 mg/L)和DO-stat诱导策略的批次(121 mg/L)。     

Influence of specific growth rate on specific productivity and glycosylation of a recombinant avidin produced by a Pichia pastoris Mut+ strain

A recombinant avidin-producing Mut+ Pichia pastoris strain was used as a model organism to study the influence of the methanol feeding strategy on the specific product productivity (q(p)) and protein glycosylation. Fed-batch cultivations performed at various specific growth rates (micro) and residual methanol concentrations showed that the specific avidin productivity is growth-dependent. The specific productivity increases strongly with the specific growth rate for micro ranging from 0 to 0.02 h(-1), and increases only slightly with the specific growth rate above this limit. N-terminal glycosylation was also found to be influenced by the specific growth rate, since 9-mannose glycans were the most abundant form at low growth rates, whereas 10-mannose carbohydrate chains were favored at higher micro. These results show that culture parameters, such as the specific growth rate, may significantly affect the activity of glycoproteins produced in Pichia pastoris. In terms of process optimization, this suggests that a compromise on the specific growth rate may have to be found, in certain cases, to work with an acceptable productivity while avoiding the addition of many mannoses.     

甲醇/山梨醇共混流加诱导改变毕赤酵母生产猪α干扰素过程的代谢产能途径强化发酵性能

旨在探讨毕赤酵母生产猪α干扰素过程的代谢产能规律及其对发酵性能的影响。在10 L罐下,开展了不同诱导条件下的毕赤酵母高效发酵生产猪α干扰素过程的代谢酶学和能量再生分析研究。结果表明:甲醇单独诱导条件下、将诱导温度从30℃降低到20℃,胞内醇氧化酶(AOX)、甲醛脱氢酶(FLD)和甲酸脱氢酶(FDH)的比活性增加显著,细胞的甲醇代谢和甲醛异化产能能力、猪α干扰素抗病毒活性大幅提高,最高抗病毒活性达到1.4×106IU/mL,约为30℃诱导条件下的10倍。30℃、甲醇/山梨醇共混流加下,主要供能途径由甲醇单独诱导时的甲醛异化代谢转向TCA循环,甲醛异化供能途径被弱化、毒副产物甲醛的生成积累得到抑制,走向目标蛋白合成途径的甲醇分配比例得到提高。此时,最高抗病毒活性达到1.8×107IU/mL,是30℃甲醇单独诱导下最高活性的100倍以上。更加重要的是,共混流加诱导可以在常温、使用空气供氧的条件下进行,发酵成本明显下降、整体发酵性能改善显著。     

Optimization of human serum albumin production in methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris by repeated fed-batch fermentation

An optimization method for repeated fed-batch fermentation was established with the aim of improving the recombinant human serum albumin (rHSA) production in Pichia pastoris. A simulation model for fed-batch fermentation was formulated and the optimal methanol-feeding policy calculated by dynamic programming method using five different methanol-feeding periods. The necessary state variables were collected from the calculated results and used for further optimization of repeated fed-batch fermentation. The optimal operation policy was investigated using the pre-collected state variables by estimating the overall profit per total methanol-feeding time. The calculated results indicated that the initial cell mass from the 2nd fed-batch fermentation on should be set at 35 or 40 g and methanol-feeding time at 264 h. In repeated fed-batch fermentation using the optimal operation policy, actual culture volume was in good agreement with the values simulated by model equations, but some discrepancy was observed in rHSA production. Minimum experiments were therefore carried out to re-evaluate rHSA production levels, which were then applied in re-calculations to determine the optimal operation policy. The optimal policy for repeated fed-batch fermentation established in the present study (i.e., 4-times-repeated fed-batch fermentation) achieved a 47% increase in annual rHSA production. Optimization of the culture period also brought about a 28% increase in annual rHSA production even in simple (not repeated) fed-batch fermentation.     

Cyclic fed-batch culture for production of human serum albumin in Pichia pastoris

Simple cyclic fed-batch culture (cfbc), consisting of a constant medium feed with periodic withdrawals of culture, resulted in a product yield (13.4 mg protein per gram biomass) similar to that obtained using the complex multiphase industrial production strategy (13.7 mg protein per gram biomass). In cfbc, productivity was ultimately limited by the rate at which the cells could assimilate methanol. Glycerol was inhibitory to growth at high concentrations. However, product yield continued to increase as the glycerol concentration was increased. In chemostat culture, dissolved oxygen concentration influenced product yield independently of any detectable influence on cell growth.     

发酵重组Pichia pastoris生产腺苷甲硫氨酸的研究

在5L发酵罐中对高产S腺苷甲硫氨酸的重组Pichia pastoris发酵进行了研究。重组菌在pH5．0生长,然后调为pH6．0积累腺苷甲硫氨酸,在30℃、溶氧5％及流加甲硫氨酸和尿素的条件下培养82h后,产量达4．3g／L。     

Control of recombinant human endostatin production in fed-batch cultures of Pichia pastoris using the methanol feeding rate

Endostatin is a 20 kDa carboxyl-terminal fragment of collagen XVIII that strongly inhibits angiogenesis and tumor growth. The methylotrophic yeast, Pichia pastoris, is a robust expression system that can be used to study methods to improve the yields of rhEndostatin. We expressed rhEndostatin in P. pastoris under the control of the alcohol oxidase 1 (aox 1) promoter (Mut⁺ phenotype) as a model, and used a cell biomass of about 50 g l^–1 dry cell wt as a starting point for the induction phase and varied the methanol feed rate at 8 ml l^–1 h^–1, 11 ml l^–1 h^–1 and 15 ml l^–1 h^–1. While the cell growth rate was proportional to the rate of methanol delivery, protein production rate was not. These findings could be used to guide parameters for large-scale production of recombinant proteins in the P. pastoris system.     

甘油相控制策略对重组毕赤酵母表达瑞替普酶(reteplase)的影响

研究了甘油补料策略对毕赤酵母表达reteplase(rPA)的发酵过程中细胞的生长和rPA表达的影响。通过将对甘油补料速率由10g/L.h-1增大到20g/L.h-1,细胞比生长速率,甘油的比消耗速率,甘油得率等都得到极大提高。而且,诱导期细胞生长,甲醇消耗和rPA的生成速率都增加,rPA的最大表达量从140.2mg/L增加到199.5mg/L。此另外,甘油补料时间也是影响rPA表达的重要因素,甘油补料时间短,细胞密度小,表达rPA少,甘油补料时间长,细胞密度增大,rPA的表达速率也增加,但是到诱导后期,细胞死亡率增大,蛋白酶释放增加,rPA的降解增强。     

Sorbitol as a non-repressing carbon source for fed-batch fermentation of recombinant Pichia pastoris

Glycerol/methanol and sorbitol/methanol mixed-feed fermentation strategies for the production of recombinant proteins by Pichia pastoris were compared in order to examine sorbitol's potential as a carbon source. Although P. pastoris does have a lower cell yield on sorbitol than on glycerol, the specific rate of product formation is higher (60 g protein g^–1 dry wth for sorbitol/methanol, vs 45 g protein g^–1 dry wth for glycerol/methanol), resulting in comparable final recombinant expression levels. Importantly, the presence of residual sorbitol in the growth medium appears to be less repressive to the alcohol oxidase promoter in this organism, providing a more forgiving means of operating mixed-feed fed-batch recombinant P. pastoris fermentations.     

混合碳源流加对重组毕赤酵母生产碱性果胶酶的影响

为提高重组毕赤酵母生产碱性果胶酶(PGL)的产量和生产强度,在诱导期采用多种碳源与甲醇混合添加的模式。实验结果发现:甘油、山梨醇、乳酸与甲醇的混合添加均可以提高PGL的产量,其中山梨醇与甲醇的混合流加效果最为显著。研究表明,通过双碳源混合流加可以提高细胞活力,增强醇氧化酶活力,提高毕赤酵母表达外源蛋白效率。当山梨醇的流速为3.6g/(h·L)时,PGL酶活可达1593U/mL,生产强度为16.7U/(mL·h),比对照分别提高了84.6%和45.2%,实现了碱性果胶酶的高效生产。     

Effects of temperature and glycerol and methanol‐feeding profiles on the production of recombinant galactose oxidase in Pichia pastoris

Optimization of protein production from methanol‐induced Pichia pastoris cultures is necessary to ensure high productivity rates and high yields of recombinant proteins. We investigated the effects of temperature and different linear or exponential methanol‐feeding rates on the production of recombinant Fusarium graminearum galactose oxidase (EC 1.1.3.9) in a P. pastoris Mut⁺ strain, under regulation of the AOX1 promoter. We found that low exponential methanol feeding led to 1.5‐fold higher volumetric productivity compared to high exponential feeding rates. The duration of glycerol feeding did not affect the subsequent product yield, but longer glycerol feeding led to higher initial biomass concentration, which would reduce the oxygen demand and generate less heat during induction. A linear and a low exponential feeding profile led to productivities in the same range, but the latter was characterized by intense fluctuations in the titers of galactose oxidase and total protein. An exponential feeding profile that has been adapted to the apparent biomass concentration results in more stable cultures, but the concentration of recombinant protein is in the same range as when constant methanol feeding is employed. © 2014 The Authors Biotechnology Progress published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 30:728–735, 2014     

Analysis of single-chain antibody production in Pichia pastoris using on-line methanol control in fed-batch and mixed-feed fermentations.

In the last few years the Pichia pastoris expression system has been gaining more and more interest for the expression of recombinant proteins. Many groups have employed fermentation technology in their investigations because the system is fairly easy to scale up and suitable for the production in the milligram to gram range. A large number of heterologous proteins from different sources has been expressed, but the fermentation process technology has been investigated to a lesser extent. A large number of fermentations are carried out in standard bioreactors that may be insufficiently equipped to meet the demands of high-cell-density fermentations of methylotrophic yeasts. In particular, the lack of on-line methanol analysis leads to fermentation protocols that may impair the optimal expression of the desired products. We have used a commercially available methanol sensor to investigate in detail the effects of supplementary glycerol feeding while maintaining a constant methanol concentration during the induction of a Mut(+) strain of Pichia pastoris. Specific glycerol feed rates in the range of 38-4.2 mg. g(-1). h(-1) (mg glycerol per gram fresh weight per hour) were investigated. Expression of the recombinant scFv antibody fragment was only observed at specific feed rates below 6 mg. g(-1). h(-1). At low specific feed rates, growth was even lower than with methanol as the sole carbon source and the harvest expression level of the scFv was only half of that found in the control fermentation. These results show that glycerol inhibits expression driven by the AOX1 promoter even at extremely limited availability and demonstrate the benefits of on-line methanol control in Pichia fermentation research.