Project description:Homocitrate synthase (HCS) catalyzes the aldol condensation of 2-oxoglutarate (2-OG) and acetyl coenzyme A (AcCoA) to form homocitrate, which is the first enzyme of the lysine biosynthetic pathway in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The HCS activity is tightly regulated via feedback inhibition by the end product lysine. Here, we designed a feedback inhibition-insensitive HCS of S. cerevisiae (ScLys20) for high-level production of lysine in yeast cells. In silico docking of the substrate 2-OG and the inhibitor lysine to ScLys20 predicted that the substitution of serine with glutamate at position 385 would be more suitable for desensitization of the lysine feedback inhibition than the substitution from serine to phenylalanine in the already known Ser385Phe variant. Enzymatic analysis revealed that the Ser385Glu variant is far more insensitive to feedback inhibition than the Ser385Phe variant. We also found that the lysine contents in yeast cells expressing the Ser385Glu variant were 4.62- and 1.47-fold higher than those of cells expressing the wild-type HCS and Ser385Phe variant, respectively, due to the extreme desensitization to feedback inhibition. In this study, we obtained highly feedback inhibition-insensitive HCS using in silico docking and enzymatic analysis. Our results indicate that the rational engineering of HCS for feedback inhibition desensitization by lysine could be useful for constructing new yeast strains with higher lysine productivity. IMPORTANCE A traditional method for screening toxic analogue-resistant mutants has been established for the breeding of microbes that produce high levels of amino acids, including lysine. However, another efficient strategy is required to further improve their productivity. Homocitrate synthase (HCS) catalyzes the first step of lysine biosynthesis in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and its activity is subject to feedback inhibition by lysine. Here, in silico design of a key enzyme that regulates the biosynthesis of lysine was utilized to increase the productivity of lysine. We designed HCS for the high-level production of lysine in yeast cells by in silico docking simulation. The engineered HCS exhibited much less sensitivity to lysine and conferred higher production of lysine than the already known variant obtained by traditional breeding. The combination of in silico design and experimental analysis of a key enzyme will contribute to advances in metabolic engineering for the construction of industrial microorganisms.
Project description:BackgroundIt remains a challenge for recombinant S. cerevisiae to convert xylose in lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysates to ethanol. Although industrial diploid strains are more robust compared to laboratory haploid strains, however, industrial diploid S. cerevisiae strains have been less pursued in previous studies. This work aims to construct fast xylose-fermenting yeast using an industrial ethanol-producing diploid S. cerevisiae strain as a host.ResultsFast xylose-fermenting yeast was constructed by genome integration of xylose-utilizing genes and adaptive evolution, including 1) Piromyces XYLA was introduced to enable the host strain to convert xylose to xylulose; 2) endogenous genes (XKS1, RKI1, RPE1, TKL1, and TAL1) were overexpressed to accelerate conversion of xylulose to ethanol; 3) Candida intermedia GXF1, which encodes a xylose transporter, was introduced at the GRE3 locus to improve xylose uptake; 4) aerobic evolution in rich xylose media was carried out to increase growth and xylose consumption rates. The best evolved strain CIBTS0735 consumed 80 g/l glucose and 40 g/l xylose in rich media within 24 hours at an initial OD600 of 1.0 (0.63 g DCW/l) and produced 53 g/l ethanol.ConclusionsBased on the above fermentation performance, we conclude that CIBTS0735 shows great potential for ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass.
Project description:Morphinan alkaloids are the most powerful narcotic analgesics currently used to treat moderate to severe and chronic pain. The feasibility of morphinan synthesis in recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae starting from the precursor (R,S)-norlaudanosoline was investigated. Chiral analysis of the reticuline produced by the expression of opium poppy methyltransferases showed strict enantioselectivity for (S)-reticuline starting from (R,S)-norlaudanosoline. In addition, the P. somniferum enzymes salutaridine synthase (PsSAS), salutaridine reductase (PsSAR) and salutaridinol acetyltransferase (PsSAT) were functionally co-expressed in S. cerevisiae and optimization of the pH conditions allowed for productive spontaneous rearrangement of salutaridinol-7-O-acetate and synthesis of thebaine from (R)-reticuline. Finally, we reconstituted a 7-gene pathway for the production of codeine and morphine from (R)-reticuline. Yeast cell feeding assays using (R)-reticuline, salutaridine or codeine as substrates showed that all enzymes were functionally co-expressed in yeast and that activity of salutaridine reductase and codeine-O-demethylase likely limit flux to morphine synthesis. The results of this study describe a significant advance for the synthesis of morphinans in S. cerevisiae and pave the way for their complete synthesis in recombinant microbes.
Project description:Saccharomyces cerevisiae is known to grow with thiosulfate as a sulfur source, and it produces more ethanol when using thiosulfate than using sulfate. Here, we report how it assimilates thiosulfate. S. cerevisiae absorbed thiosulfate into the cell through two sulfate permeases, Sul1 and Sul2. Two rhodaneses, Rdl1 and Rdl2, converted thiosulfate to a persulfide and sulfite. The persulfide was reduced by cellular thiols to H2S, and sulfite was reduced by sulfite reductase to H2S. Cysteine synthase incorporated H2S into O-acetyl-l-homoserine to produce l-homocysteine, which is the precursor for cysteine and methionine in S. cerevisiae Several other rhodaneses replaced Rdl1 and Rdl2 for thiosulfate utilization in the yeast. Thus, any organisms with the sulfate assimilation system potentially could use thiosulfate as a sulfur source, since rhodaneses are common in most organisms.IMPORTANCE The complete pathway of thiosulfate assimilation in baker's yeast is determined. The finding reveals the extensive overlap between sulfate and thiosulfate assimilation. Rhodanese is the only additional enzyme for thiosulfate utilization. The common presence of rhodanese in most organisms, including Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya, suggests that most organisms with the sulfate assimilation system also use thiosulfate. Since it takes less energy to reduce thiosulfate than sulfate for assimilation, thiosulfate has the potential to become a choice of sulfur in optimized media for industrial fermentation.
Project description:Acetylation of histones is a key post-translational modification that guides gene expression regulation. In yeast, the class I histone deacetylase containing Rpd3S complex plays a critical role in the suppression of spurious transcription by removing histone acetylation from actively transcribed genes. The S. cerevisiae Rpd3S complex has five subunits (Rpd3, Sin3, Rco1, Eaf3, and Ume1) but its subunit stoichiometry and how the complex engages nucleosomes to achieve substrate specificity remains elusive. Here we report the cryo-EM structure of the complete Rpd3S complex bound to a nucleosome. Sin3 and two copies of subunits Rco1 and Eaf3 encircle the deacetylase subunit Rpd3 and coordinate the positioning of Ume1. The Rpd3S complex binds both trimethylated H3 tails at position lysine 36 and makes multiple additional contacts with the nucleosomal DNA and the H2A-H2B acidic patch. Direct regulation via the Sin3 subunit coordinates binding of the acetylated histone substrate to achieve substrate specificity.
Project description:Ribosome biogenesis requires the concerted activities of three nuclear RNA polymerases, (Pols) I, II, and III, to produce 25S, 18S and 5.8S ribosomal RNA (rRNA), messenger RNA (mRNA) encoding ribosomal proteins, and the 5S rRNA, respectively. The rRNA is processed and modified before being assembled with ribosomal proteins to produce a ribosome. Ribosome biogenesis requires extensive energetic investment by the cell, so it is critical that this process is tightly regulated in accord with cellular growth potential. Previous work revealed that rRNA synthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is repressed prior to the cells shift from active growth (log phase) to limited/static growth (stationary phase). The mechanism(s) by which cells anticipate imminent stationary phase are unknown. In this study, we demonstrate that growing cells produce one or more compounds that accumulate in the growth medium, and that this compound induces repression of rRNA synthesis. When cells encounter this compound, rRNA synthesis is rapidly repressed. We further show that subunits of Pols I and II are degraded during the transition from log to stationary phase growth, but this degradation does not account for the observed repression of rRNA synthesis. Interestingly, repression of rRNA synthesis by spent media requires the nuclear exosome, implying that spent media stimulates rapid rRNA degradation. Together, these data suggest that yeast use quorum sensing to regulate rRNA synthesis in anticipation of high cell density in stationary phase.
Project description:Combinatorial design is an effective strategy to acquire the optimal solution in complex systems. In this study, the combined effects of pathway combination, promoters' strength fine-tuning, copy numbers and integration locus variations caused by δ-integration were explored in Saccharomyces cerevisiae using geranylgeraniol (GGOH) production as an example. Two GGOH biosynthetic pathway branches were constructed. In branch 1, GGOH was converted from isopentenyl pyrophosphate (IPP) and farnesyl diphosphate (FPP). In branch 2, GGOH was derived directly from IPP and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate (DMAPP). Regulated by 10 combinations of 11 diverse promoters, a fusion gene BTS1-ERG20, a heterologous geranylgeranyl diphosphate synthase from Sulfolobus acidocaldarius (GGPPSsa) and an endogenous N-terminal truncated gene 3-hydroxyl-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase isoenzyme 1 (tHMGR), were incorporated into yeast by δ-integration, leading to a series of GGOH producing strains with yields ranging from 18.45 mg/L to 161.82 mg/L. The yield was further increased to 437.52 mg/L by optimizing the fermentation medium. Consequently, the GGOH yield reached 1315.44 mg/L in a 5-L fermenter under carbon restriction strategy. Our study not only opens large opportunities for downstream diterpenes overproductions, but also demonstrates that pathway optimization based on combinatorial design is a promising strategy to engineer microbes for overproducing natural products with complex structure.
Project description:Tyrosol is an important component of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and cosmetics, and their biosynthetic pathways are currently a hot research topic. d-Erythrose 4-phosphate is a key precursor for the biosynthesis of tyrosol in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Hence, the flux of d-Erythrose 4-phosphate determined the yield of tyrosol synthesis. In this study, we first obtained an S. cerevisiae strain S19 with a tyrosol yield of 247.66 mg/L by metabolic engineering strategy. To increase the production of d-Erythrose 4-phosphate, highly active phosphoketolase BA-C was obtained by bioinformatics combined with tyrosol yield assay. The key residue sites 183, 217, and 320 were obtained by molecular docking, kinetic simulation, and tyrosol yield verification. After mutation, the highly efficient phosphoketolase BA-CHis320Met was obtained, with a 37.32 % increase in enzyme activity. The tyrosol production of strain S26 with BA-CHis320Arg increased by 43.05 % than strain S25 with BA-C and increased by 151.19 % compared with the strain S19 without phosphoketolase in a 20 L fermenter. The mining and modification of phosphoketolase will provide strong support for the de novo synthesis of aromatic compounds.
Project description:2-Phenylethanol (2-PE) is a valuable aromatic compound with favorable flavors and good properties, resulting in its widespread application in the cosmetic, food and medical industries. In this study, a mutant strain, AD032, was first obtained by adaptive evolution under 2-PE stress. Then, a fusion protein from the Ehrlich pathway, composed of tyrB from Escherichia coli, kdcA from Lactococcus lactis and ADH2 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, was constructed and expressed. As a result, 3.14 g/L 2-PE was achieved using L-phenylalanine as a precursor. To further increase 2-PE production, L-glutamate oxidase from Streptomyces overexpression was applied for the first time in our research to improve the supply of α-ketoglutarate in the transamination of 2-PE synthesis. Furthermore, we found that the disruption of the pyruvate decarboxylase encoding gene PDC5 caused an increase in 2-PE production, which has not yet been reported. Finally, assembly of the efficient metabolic modules and process optimization resulted in the strain RM27, which reached 4.02 g/L 2-PE production from 6.7 g/L L-phenylalanine without in situ product recovery. The strain RM27 produced 2-PE (0.8 mol/mol) with L-phenylalanine as a precursor, which was considerably high, and displayed manufacturing potential regarding food safety and process simplification aspects. This study suggests that innovative strategies regarding metabolic modularization provide improved prospects for 2-PE production in food exploitation.
Project description:BackgroundThe fermentation of lignocellulose hydrolysates to ethanol requires robust xylose-capable Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains able to operate in the presence of microbial inhibitory stresses. This study aimed at developing industrial S. cerevisiae strains with enhanced tolerance towards pretreatment-derived microbial inhibitors, by identifying novel gene combinations that confer resistance to multiple inhibitors (thus cumulative inhibitor resistance phenotype) with minimum impact on the xylose fermentation ability. The strategy consisted of multiple sequential delta-integrations of double-gene cassettes containing one gene conferring broad inhibitor tolerance (ARI1, PAD1 or TAL1) coupled with an inhibitor-specific gene (ADH6, FDH1 or ICT1). The performances of the transformants were compared with the parental strain in terms of biomass growth, ethanol yields and productivity, as well as detoxification capacities in a synthetic inhibitor cocktail, sugarcane bagasse hydrolysate as well as hardwood spent sulphite liquor.ResultsThe first and second round of delta-integrated transformants exhibited a trade-off between biomass and ethanol yield. Transformants showed increased inhibitor resistance phenotypes relative to parental controls specifically in fermentations with concentrated spent sulphite liquors at 40% and 80% v/v concentrations in 2% SC media. Unexpectedly, the xylose fermentation capacity of the transformants was reduced compared to the parental control, but certain combinations of genes had a minor impact (e.g. TAL1 + FDH1). The TAL1 + ICT1 combination negatively impacted on both biomass growth and ethanol yield, which could be linked to the ICT1 protein increasing transformant susceptibility to weak acids and temperature due to cell membrane changes.ConclusionsThe integration of the selected genes was proven to increase tolerance to pretreatment inhibitors in synthetic or industrial hydrolysates, but they were limited to the fermentation of glucose. However, some gene combination sequences had a reduced impact on xylose conversion.