Project description:Atrazine is an herbicide and a pollutant of great environmental concern that is naturally biodegraded by microbial communities. Paenarthrobacter aurescens TC1 is one of the most studied degraders of this herbicide. Here, we developed a genome scale metabolic model for P. aurescens TC1, iRZ1179, to study the atrazine degradation process at organism level. Constraint based flux balance analysis and time dependent simulations were used to explore the organism's phenotypic landscape. Simulations aimed at designing media optimized for supporting growth and enhancing degradation, by passing the need in strain design via genetic modifications. Growth and degradation simulations were carried with more than 100 compounds consumed by P. aurescens TC1. In vitro validation confirmed the predicted classification of different compounds as efficient, moderate or poor stimulators of growth. Simulations successfully captured previous reports on the use of glucose and phosphate as bio-stimulators of atrazine degradation, supported by in vitro validation. Model predictions can go beyond supplementing the medium with a single compound and can predict the growth outcomes for higher complexity combinations. Hence, the analysis demonstrates that the exhaustive power of the genome scale metabolic reconstruction allows capturing complexities that are beyond common biochemical expertise and knowledge and further support the importance of computational platforms for the educated design of complex media. The model presented here can potentially serve as a predictive tool towards achieving optimal biodegradation efficiencies and for the development of ecologically friendly solutions for pollutant degradation.
Project description:Here we present the assembled genome of the facultative methanotroph, Methylocystis strain SB2, along with assessment of its transcriptome when grown on methane vs. ethanol. As expected, transcriptomic analyses indicate methane is converted to carbon dioxide via the canonical methane oxidation pathway for energy generation, and that carbon is assimilated at the level of formaldehyde via the serine cycle. When grown on ethanol, it appears this strain converts ethanol to acetyl-CoA and then utilizes the TCA cycle for energy generation and the ethylmalonyl CoA pathway for the production of biomass.
Project description:Here we present the assembled genome of the facultative methanotroph, Methylocystis strain SB2, along with assessment of its transcriptome when grown on methane vs. ethanol. As expected, transcriptomic analyses indicate methane is converted to carbon dioxide via the canonical methane oxidation pathway for energy generation, and that carbon is assimilated at the level of formaldehyde via the serine cycle. When grown on ethanol, it appears this strain converts ethanol to acetyl-CoA and then utilizes the TCA cycle for energy generation and the ethylmalonyl CoA pathway for the production of biomass. All cultures were grown in triplicates for subsequent DNA and RNA extraction as well as for subsequent sequencing using Illumina. Transcriptomic analysis results presented in this Series.
Project description:The thermophilic filamentous fungi Myceliophthora thermophila (Sporotrichum thermophile) has an ability to decompose cellulolytic biomass. To identify the genes and proteins involved in this process, we explored the transcriptomes of M. thermophila grown at 45 °C on different agricultural straws (oat, triticale, canola, flax straws).
Project description:Salinity represses plant root growth, resulting in reduced biomass of agricultural plants. Little is known about how plants maintain root growth and development to counteract salt stress. SOS2-mediated PLT1/2 phosphorylation stabilizes PLT1/2, which is critical for root apical meristem maintenance under salt stress.
Project description:Clostridium phytofermentans was recently isolated from forest soil and is distinguished by its capacity to directly ferment plant cell wall polysaccharides into ethanol as the primary product, suggesting that it possesses unusual catabolic pathways. The objective of the present study was to understand the molecular mechanisms of biomass conversion to ethanol in a single organism, Clostridium phytofermentans, by analyzing its complete genome and transcriptome during growth on plant carbohydrates. The saccharolytic versatility of C. phytofermentans is reflected in a diversity of genes encoding ATP-binding cassette sugar transporters and glycoside hydrolases, many of which may have been acquired through horizontal gene transfer. These genes are frequently organized as operons that may be controlled individually by the many transcriptional regulators identified in the genome. Preferential ethanol production may be due to high levels of expression of multiple ethanol dehydrogenases and additional pathways maximizing ethanol yield. The genome also encodes three different proteinaceous bacterial microcompartments with the capacity to compartmentalize pathways that divert fermentation intermediates to various products. These characteristics make C. phytofermentans an attractive resource for improving the efficiency and speed of biomass conversion to biofuels.
Project description:Cellulose from plant biomass is the largest renewable energy resource of carbon fixed from the atmosphere, which can be converted into fermentable sugars for production into ethanol. However, the cellulose present as lignocellulosic biomass is embedded in a hemicellulose and lignin matrix from which it needs to be extracted for efficient processing. Here, we show that expression of an Arabidopsis transcription factor SHINE (SHN) in rice, a model for the grasses, causes a 34% increase in cellulose and a 45% reduction in lignin content.