Evaluation of theSaccharomyces cerevisiae ADH2 promoter for protein synthesis

Analysis of intact and dissected fungal polyketide synthase-nonribosomal peptide synthetase in vitro and in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The widely found fungal iterative PKS-NRPS hybrid megasynthetases are highly programmed biosynthetic machines involved in the synthesis of 3-acyltetramic acids and related natural products. In vitro analysis of iterative PKS-NRPS has been hampered by the difficulties associated with obtaining pure and functional forms of these large enzymes (>400 kDa). We successfully expressed Aspergillus nidulans aspyridone synthetase (ApdA) from an engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain. The complete functions of ApdA and its enoylreductase partner ApdC are reconstituted in vitro and in S. cerevisiae with the production of preaspyridone 7. The programming rules of both the PKS and NRPS modules were then examined in vitro. The key interaction between the PKS and the NRPS was dissected and reconstituted in trans by using stand-alone modules. Analogs of 7 were synthesized through heterologous combinations of PKS and NRPS modules from different sources. Our results represent one of the largest, multidomain enzyme reconstituted to date and offer new opportunities for engineered biosynthesis of fungal natural products.

Recombinant human collagen and biomimetic variants using a de novo gene optimized for modular assembly

A collagen-mimetic polymer that can be easily engineered with specific cell-responsive and mechanical properties would be of significant interest for fundamental cell-matrix studies and applications in regenerative medicine. However, oligonucleotide-based synthesis of full-length collagen has been encumbered by the characteristic glycine-X-Y sequence repetition, which promotes mismatched oligonucleotide hybridizations during de novo gene assembly. In this work, we report a novel, modular synthesis strategy that yields full-length human collagen III and specifically defined variants. We used a computational algorithm that applies codon degeneracy to design oligonucleotides that favor correct hybridizations while disrupting incorrect ones for gene synthesis. The resulting recombinant polymers were expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae engineered with prolyl-4-hydroxylase. Our modular approach enabled mixing-and-matching domains to fabricate different combinations of collagen variants that contained different secretion signals at the N-terminus and cysteine residues imbedded within the triple-helical domain at precisely defined locations. This work shows the flexibility of our strategy for designing and assembling specifically tailored biomimetic collagen polymers with re-engineered properties.

Purification of transmembrane proteins from Saccharomyces cerevisiae for X-ray crystallography

To enhance the quantity and quality of eukaryotic transmembrane proteins (TMPs) available for structure determination by X-ray crystallography, we have optimized protocols for purification of TMPs expressed in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We focused on a set of the highest-expressing endogenous yeast TMPs for which there are established biochemical assays. Genes encoding the target TMPs are transferred via ligation-independent cloning to a series of vectors that allow expression of reading frames fused to C-terminal His10 and ZZ (IgG-binding) domains that are separated from the reading frame by a cleavage site for rhinovirus 3C protease. Several TMP targets expressed from these vectors have been purified via affinity chromatography and gel filtration chromatography at levels and purities sufficient for ongoing crystallization trials. Initial purifications were based on expression of the genes under control of a galactose-inducible promoter, but higher cell densities and improved expression have been obtained through use of the yeast ADH2 promoter. Wide variations have been observed in the behavior of different TMP targets during purification; some can be readily purified, while others do not bind efficiently to affinity matrices, are not efficiently cleaved from the matrices, or remain tightly associated with the matrices even after cleavage of the affinity tags. The size, oligomeric state, and composition of purified protein-detergent complexes purified under different conditions were analyzed using a colorimetric assay of detergent concentrations and by analytical size-exclusion chromatography using static light scattering, refractive index, and UV absorption detection to monitor the elution profiles. Effective procedures were developed for obtaining high concentrations of purified TMPs without excessively concentrating detergents.

Complete reconstitution of a highly reducing iterative polyketide synthase

Highly reducing iterative polyketide synthases are large, multifunctional enzymes that make important metabolites in fungi, such as lovastatin, a cholesterol-lowering drug from Aspergillus terreus. We report efficient expression of the lovastatin nonaketide synthase (LovB) from an engineered strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, as well as complete reconstitution of its catalytic function in the presence and absence of cofactors (the reduced form of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate and S-adenosylmethionine) and its partner enzyme, the enoyl reductase LovC. Our results demonstrate that LovB retains correct intermediates until completion of synthesis of dihydromonacolin L, but off-loads incorrectly processed compounds as pyrones or hydrolytic products. Experiments replacing LovC with analogous MlcG from compactin biosynthesis demonstrate a gate-keeping function for this partner enzyme. This study represents a key step in the understanding of the functions and structures of this family of enzymes.

Acyltransferase mediated polyketide release from a fungal megasynthase

LovF is a highly reducing polyketide synthase (HR-PKS) from the filamentous fungus Aspergillus terreus. LovF synthesizes the alpha-S-methylbutyrate side chain that is subsequently transferred to monacolin J to yield the cholesterol-lowering natural product lovastatin. In the report, we expressed the full length LovF and reconstituted the megasynthase activities in vitro. We confirmed the diketide product of LovF is offloaded from the LovF ACP domain by the dissociated acyltransferase LovD. This represents the first example of acyltransferase-mediated release of polyketide products from fungal PKSs. We determined LovD primarily interacts with the ACP domain of LovF and the protein-protein interactions lead to highly efficient transfer of the diketide product. The catalytic efficiency is enhanced nearly 1 x 10(6)-fold when LovF was used as the acyl carrier instead of N-acetylcysteamine. Reconstitution and characterization of the LovF offloading mechanism provide new insights into the functions of fungal HR-PKS.

Controlled expression of the dominant flocculation genes FLO1, FLO5, and FLO11 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

In many industrial fermentation processes, the Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast should ideally meet two partially conflicting demands. During fermentation, a high suspended yeast count is required to maintain a satisfactory rate of fermentation, while at completion, efficient settling is desired to enhance product clarification and recovery. In most fermentation industries, currently used starter cultures do not satisfy this ideal, probably because nonflocculent yeast strains were selected to avoid fermentation problems. In this paper, we assess molecular strategies to optimize the flocculation behavior of S. cerevisiae. For this purpose, the chromosomal copies of three dominant flocculation genes, FLO1, FLO5, and FLO11, of the haploid nonflocculent, noninvasive, and non-flor-forming S. cerevisiae FY23 strain were placed under the transcriptional control of the promoters of the ADH2 and HSP30 genes. All six promoter-gene combinations resulted in specific flocculation behaviors in terms of timing and intensity. The strategy resulted in stable expression patterns providing a platform for the direct comparison and assessment of the specific impact of the expression of individual dominant FLO genes with regard to cell wall characteristics, such as hydrophobicity, biofilm formation, and substrate adhesion properties. The data also clearly demonstrate that the flocculation behavior of yeast strains can be tightly controlled and fine-tuned to satisfy specific industrial requirements.

A conserved Hsp10-like domain in Mcm10 is required to stabilize the catalytic subunit of DNA polymerase-alpha in budding yeast

Mcm10 is a conserved eukaryotic DNA replication factor that is required for S phase progression. Recently, Mcm10 has been shown to interact physically with the DNA polymerase-alpha (pol-alpha).primase complex. We show now that Mcm10 is in a complex with pol-alpha throughout the cell cycle. In temperature-sensitive mcm10-1 mutants, depletion of Mcm10 results in degradation of the catalytic subunit of pol-alpha, Cdc17/Pol1, regardless of whether cells are in G(1), S, or G(2) phase. Importantly, Cdc17 protein levels can be restored upon overexpression of exogenous Mcm10 in mcm10-1 mutants that are grown at the nonpermissive temperature. Moreover, overexpressed Cdc17 that is normally subject to rapid degradation is stabilized by Mcm10 co-overexpression but not by co-overexpression of the B-subunit of pol-alpha, Pol12. These results are consistent with Mcm10 having a role as a nuclear chaperone for Cdc17. Mutational analysis indicates that a conserved heat-shock protein 10 (Hsp10)-like domain in Mcm10 is required to prevent the degradation of Cdc17. Substitution of a single residue in the Hsp10-like domain of endogenous Mcm10 results in a dramatic reduction of steady-state Cdc17 levels. The high degree of evolutionary conservation of this domain implies that stabilizing Cdc17 may be a conserved function of Mcm10.

A 5-hydroxymethyl furfural reducing enzyme encoded by theSaccharomyces cerevisiae ADH6 gene conveys HMF tolerance

The fermentation of lignocellulose hydrolysates by Saccharomyces cerevisiae for fuel ethanol production is inhibited by 5-hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF), a furan derivative which is formed during the hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials. The inhibition can be avoided if the yeast strain used in the fermentation has the ability to reduce HMF to 5-hydroxymethylfurfuryl alcohol. To enable the identification of enzyme(s) responsible for HMF conversion in S. cerevisiae, microarray analyses of two strains with different abilities to convert HMF were performed. Based on the expression data, a subset of 15 reductase genes was chosen to be further examined using an overexpression strain collection. Three candidate genes were cloned from two different strains, TMB3000 and the laboratory strain CEN.PK 113-5D, and overexpressed using a strong promoter in the strain CEN.PK 113-5D. Strains overexpressing ADH6 had increased HMF conversion activity in cell-free crude extracts with both NADPH and NADH as co-factors. In vitro activities were recorded of 8 mU/mg with NADH as co-factor and as high as 1200 mU/mg for the NADPH-coupled reduction. Yeast strains overexpressing ADH6 also had a substantially higher in vivo conversion rate of HMF in both aerobic and anaerobic cultures, showing that the overexpression indeed conveyed the desired increased reduction capacity.