1
|
Le AV, Hartman MCT. Improved synthesis of the unnatural base NaM, and evaluation of its orthogonality in in vitro transcription and translation. RSC Chem Biol 2024:d4cb00121d. [PMID: 39279876 PMCID: PMC11389374 DOI: 10.1039/d4cb00121d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2024] [Accepted: 09/04/2024] [Indexed: 09/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Unnatural base pairs (UBP) promise to diversify cellular function through expansion of the genetic code. Some of the most successful UBPs are the hydrophobic base pairs 5SICS:NaM and TPT3:NaM developed by Romesberg. Much of the research on these UBPs has emphasized strategies to enable their efficient replication, transcription and translation in living organisms. These experiments have achieved spectacular success in certain cases; however, the complexity of working in vivo places strong constraints on the types of experiments that can be done to optimize and improve the system. Testing UBPs in vitro, on the other hand, offers advantages including minimization of scale, the ability to precisely control the concentration of reagents, and simpler purification of products. Here we investigate the orthogonality of NaM-containing base pairs in transcription and translation, looking at background readthrough of NaM codons by the native machinery. We also describe an improved synthesis of NaM triphosphate (NaM-TP) and a new assay for testing the purity of UBP containing RNAs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anthony V Le
- Virginia Commonwealth University, Department of Chemistry 1001 W Main St. Richmond VA 23284 USA
- Virginia Commonwealth University, Massey Cancer Center 401 College St. Richmond VA 23219 USA
| | - Matthew C T Hartman
- Virginia Commonwealth University, Department of Chemistry 1001 W Main St. Richmond VA 23284 USA
- Virginia Commonwealth University, Massey Cancer Center 401 College St. Richmond VA 23219 USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Kerestesy GN, Dods KK, McFeely CAL, Hartman MCT. Continuous Fluorescence Assay for In Vitro Translation Compatible with Noncanonical Amino Acids. ACS Synth Biol 2024; 13:119-128. [PMID: 38194520 PMCID: PMC11165968 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.3c00353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
The tolerance of the translation apparatus toward noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) has enabled the creation of diverse natural-product-like peptide libraries using mRNA display for use in drug discovery. Typical experiments testing for ribosomal ncAA incorporation involve radioactive end point assays to measure yield alongside mass spectrometry experiments to validate incorporation. These end point assays require significant postexperimental manipulation for analysis and prevent higher throughput analysis and optimization experiments. Continuous assays for in vitro translation involve the synthesis of fluorescent proteins which require the full complement of canonical AAs for function and are therefore of limited utility for testing of ncAAs. Here, we describe a new, continuous fluorescence assay for in vitro translation based on detection of a short peptide tag using an affinity clamp protein, which exhibits changes in its fluorescent properties upon binding. Using this assay in a 384-well format, we were able to validate the incorporation of a variety of ncAAs and also quickly test for the codon reading specificities of a variety of Escherichia coli tRNAs. This assay enables rapid assessment of ncAAs and optimization of translation components and is therefore expected to advance the engineering of the translation apparatus for drug discovery and synthetic biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gianna N Kerestesy
- Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main Street, Richmond, 23220 Virginia, United States
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, 23298-0037 Virginia, United States
| | - Kara K Dods
- Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main Street, Richmond, 23220 Virginia, United States
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, 23298-0037 Virginia, United States
| | - Clinton A L McFeely
- Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main Street, Richmond, 23220 Virginia, United States
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, 23298-0037 Virginia, United States
| | - Matthew C T Hartman
- Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main Street, Richmond, 23220 Virginia, United States
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, 23298-0037 Virginia, United States
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
McFeely CAL, Shakya B, Makovsky CA, Haney AK, Ashton Cropp T, Hartman MCT. Extensive breaking of genetic code degeneracy with non-canonical amino acids. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5008. [PMID: 37591858 PMCID: PMC10435567 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40529-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Genetic code expansion (GCE) offers many exciting opportunities for the creation of synthetic organisms and for drug discovery methods that utilize in vitro translation. One type of GCE, sense codon reassignment (SCR), focuses on breaking the degeneracy of the 61 sense codons which encode for only 20 amino acids. SCR has great potential for genetic code expansion, but extensive SCR is limited by the post-transcriptional modifications on tRNAs and wobble reading of these tRNAs by the ribosome. To better understand codon-tRNA pairing, here we develop an assay to evaluate the ability of aminoacyl-tRNAs to compete with each other for a given codon. We then show that hyperaccurate ribosome mutants demonstrate reduced wobble reading, and when paired with unmodified tRNAs lead to extensive and predictable SCR. Together, we encode seven distinct amino acids across nine codons spanning just two codon boxes, thereby demonstrating that the genetic code hosts far more re-assignable space than previously expected, opening the door to extensive genetic code engineering.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Clinton A L McFeely
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College St., Richmond, VA, 23219, USA
| | - Bipasana Shakya
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College St., Richmond, VA, 23219, USA
| | - Chelsea A Makovsky
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College St., Richmond, VA, 23219, USA
| | - Aidan K Haney
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA
| | - T Ashton Cropp
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA
| | - Matthew C T Hartman
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1001 W Main St., Richmond, VA, 23284, USA.
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College St., Richmond, VA, 23219, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
De Capitani J, Mutschler H. The Long Road to a Synthetic Self-Replicating Central Dogma. Biochemistry 2023; 62:1221-1232. [PMID: 36944355 PMCID: PMC10077596 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.3c00023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2023]
Abstract
The construction of a biochemical system capable of self-replication is a key objective in bottom-up synthetic biology. Throughout the past two decades, a rapid progression in the design of in vitro cell-free systems has provided valuable insight into the requirements for the development of a minimal system capable of self-replication. The main limitations of current systems can be attributed to their macromolecular composition and how the individual macromolecules use the small molecules necessary to drive RNA and protein synthesis. In this Perspective, we discuss the recent steps that have been taken to generate a minimal cell-free system capable of regenerating its own macromolecular components and maintaining the homeostatic balance between macromolecular biogenesis and consumption of primary building blocks. By following the flow of biological information through the central dogma, we compare the current versions of these systems to date and propose potential alterations aimed at designing a model system for self-replicative synthetic cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jacopo De Capitani
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical
Biology, TU Dortmund University, Otto-Hahn-Strasse 4a, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Hannes Mutschler
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical
Biology, TU Dortmund University, Otto-Hahn-Strasse 4a, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
McFeely CAL, Dods KK, Patel SS, Hartman MCT. Expansion of the genetic code through reassignment of redundant sense codons using fully modified tRNA. Nucleic Acids Res 2022; 50:11374-11386. [PMID: 36300637 PMCID: PMC9638912 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkac846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Breaking codon degeneracy for the introduction of non-canonical amino acids offers many opportunities in synthetic biology. Yet, despite the existence of 64 codons, the code has only been expanded to 25 amino acids in vitro. A limiting factor could be the over-reliance on synthetic tRNAs which lack the post-transcriptional modifications that improve translational fidelity. To determine whether modified, wild-type tRNA could improve sense codon reassignment, we developed a new fluorous method for tRNA capture and applied it to the isolation of roughly half of the Escherichia coli tRNA isoacceptors. We then performed codon competition experiments between the five captured wild-type leucyl-tRNAs and their synthetic counterparts, revealing a strong preference for wild-type tRNA in an in vitro translation system. Finally, we compared the ability of wild-type and synthetic leucyl-tRNA to break the degeneracy of the leucine codon box, showing that only captured wild-type tRNAs are discriminated with enough fidelity to accurately split the leucine codon box for the encoding of three separate amino acids. Wild-type tRNAs are therefore enabling reagents for maximizing the reassignment potential of the genetic code.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Clinton A L McFeely
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
| | - Kara K Dods
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
| | - Shivam S Patel
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
| | - Matthew C T Hartman
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
- Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University , Richmond, VA 23220 , USA
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Wu Y, Tang M, Wang Z, Yang Y, Li Z, Liang S, Yin P, Qi H. Efficient In Vitro Full-Sense-Codons Protein Synthesis. Adv Biol (Weinh) 2022; 6:e2200023. [PMID: 35676219 DOI: 10.1002/adbi.202200023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2022] [Revised: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Termination of translation is essential but hinders applications of genetic code engineering, e.g., unnatural amino acids incorporation and codon randomization mediated saturation mutagenesis. Here, for the first time, it is demonstrated that E. coli Pth and ArfB together play an efficient translation termination without codon preference in the absence of class-I release factors. By degradation of the targeted protein, both essential and alternative termination types of machinery are completely removed to disable codon-dependent termination in cell extract. Moreover, a total of 153 engineered tRNAs are screened for efficient all stop-codons decoding to construct a codon-dependent termination defect in vitro protein synthesis with all 64 sense-codons, iPSSC. Finally, this full sense genetic code achieves significant improvement in the incorporation of distinct unnatural amino acids at up to 12 positions and synthesis of protein encoding consecutive NNN codons. By decoding all information in nucleotides to amino acids, iPSSC may hold great potential in building artificial protein synthesis beyond the cell.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang Wu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,College of Life Sciences, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, Hebei, China
| | - Mengtong Tang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhaoguan Wang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Youhui Yang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhong Li
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Shurui Liang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Peng Yin
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Hao Qi
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Zhejiang Institute of Tianjin University, Shaoxing, Zhejiang, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Ganesh RB, Maerkl SJ. Biochemistry of Aminoacyl tRNA Synthetase and tRNAs and Their Engineering for Cell-Free and Synthetic Cell Applications. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:918659. [PMID: 35845409 PMCID: PMC9283866 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.918659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 05/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell-free biology is increasingly utilized for engineering biological systems, incorporating novel functionality, and circumventing many of the complications associated with cells. The central dogma describes the information flow in biology consisting of transcription and translation steps to decode genetic information. Aminoacyl tRNA synthetases (AARSs) and tRNAs are key components involved in translation and thus protein synthesis. This review provides information on AARSs and tRNA biochemistry, their role in the translation process, summarizes progress in cell-free engineering of tRNAs and AARSs, and discusses prospects and challenges lying ahead in cell-free engineering.
Collapse
|
8
|
Li J, Tang M, Qi H. Codon-Reduced Protein Synthesis With Manipulating tRNA Components in Cell-Free System. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:891808. [PMID: 35646841 PMCID: PMC9136035 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.891808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Manipulating transfer RNAs (tRNAs) for emancipating sense codons to simplify genetic codons in a cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) system can offer more flexibility and controllability. Here, we provide an overview of the tRNA complement protein synthesis system construction in the tRNA-depleted Protein synthesis Using purified Recombinant Elements (PURE) system or S30 extract. These designed polypeptide coding sequences reduce the genetic codon and contain only a single tRNA corresponding to a single amino acid in this presented system. Strategies for removing tRNAs from cell lysates and synthesizing tRNAs in vivo/vitro are summarized and discussed in detail. Furthermore, we point out the trend toward a minimized genetic codon for reducing codon redundancy by manipulating tRNAs in the different proteins. It is hoped that the tRNA complement protein synthesis system can facilitate the construction of minimal cells and expand the biomedical application scope of synthetic biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jiaojiao Li
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Synthetic Biology (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Mengtong Tang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Synthetic Biology (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Hao Qi
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- Frontiers Science Center for Synthetic Biology (Ministry of Education), Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
- *Correspondence: Hao Qi,
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Towards a generic prototyping approach for therapeutically-relevant peptides and proteins in a cell-free translation system. Nat Commun 2022; 13:260. [PMID: 35017494 PMCID: PMC8752827 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27854-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Advances in peptide and protein therapeutics increased the need for rapid and cost-effective polypeptide prototyping. While in vitro translation systems are well suited for fast and multiplexed polypeptide prototyping, they suffer from misfolding, aggregation and disulfide-bond scrambling of the translated products. Here we propose that efficient folding of in vitro produced disulfide-rich peptides and proteins can be achieved if performed in an aggregation-free and thermodynamically controlled folding environment. To this end, we modify an E. coli-based in vitro translation system to allow co-translational capture of translated products by affinity matrix. This process reduces protein aggregation and enables productive oxidative folding and recycling of misfolded states under thermodynamic control. In this study we show that the developed approach is likely to be generally applicable for prototyping of a wide variety of disulfide-constrained peptides, macrocyclic peptides with non-native bonds and antibody fragments in amounts sufficient for interaction analysis and biological activity assessment. Generic approach for rapid prototyping is essential for the progress of synthetic biology. Here the authors modify the cell-free translation system to control protein aggregation and folding and validate the approach by using single conditions for prototyping of various disulfide-constrained polypeptides.
Collapse
|
10
|
|
11
|
Gaut NJ, Adamala KP. Reconstituting Natural Cell Elements in Synthetic Cells. Adv Biol (Weinh) 2021; 5:e2000188. [DOI: 10.1002/adbi.202000188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Nathaniel J. Gaut
- Department of Genetics Cell Biology and Development University of Minnesota 420 Washington Ave SE Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Katarzyna P. Adamala
- Department of Genetics Cell Biology and Development University of Minnesota 420 Washington Ave SE Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
In vitro synthesis of 32 translation-factor proteins from a single template reveals impaired ribosomal processivity. Sci Rep 2021; 11:1898. [PMID: 33479285 PMCID: PMC7820420 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-80827-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The Protein synthesis Using Recombinant Elements (PURE) system enables transcription and translation of a DNA template from purified components. Therefore, the PURE system-catalyzed generation of RNAs and proteins constituting the PURE system itself represents a major challenge toward a self-replicating minimal cell. In this work, we show that all translation factors (except elongation factor Tu) and 20 aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases can be expressed in the PURE system from a single plasmid encoding 32 proteins in 30 cistrons. Cell-free synthesis of all 32 proteins is confirmed by quantitative mass spectrometry-based proteomic analysis using isotopically labeled amino acids. We find that a significant fraction of the gene products consists of proteins missing their C-terminal ends. The per-codon processivity loss that we measure lies between 1.3 × 10-3 and 13.2 × 10-3, depending on the expression conditions, the version of the PURE system, and the coding sequence. These values are 5 to 50 times higher than those measured in vivo in E. coli. With such an impaired processivity, a considerable fraction of the biosynthesis capacity of the PURE system is wasted, posing an unforeseen challenge toward the development of a self-regenerating PURE system.
Collapse
|
13
|
Abstract
Preventing the escape of hazardous genes from genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into the environment is one of the most important issues in biotechnology research. Various strategies were developed to create "genetic firewalls" that prevent the leakage of GMOs; however, they were not specially designed to prevent the escape of genes. To address this issue, we developed amino acid (AA)-swapped genetic codes orthogonal to the standard genetic code, namely SL (Ser and Leu were swapped) and SLA genetic codes (Ser, Leu, and Ala were swapped). From mRNAs encoded by the AA-swapped genetic codes, functional proteins were only synthesized in translation systems featuring the corresponding genetic codes. These results clearly demonstrated the orthogonality of the AA-swapped genetic codes against the standard genetic code and their potential to function as "genetic firewalls for genes". Furthermore, we propose "a codon-bypass strategy" to develop a GMO with an AA-swapped genetic code.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tomoshige Fujino
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Nagoya, 464-8603, Japan
| | - Masahiro Tozaki
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Nagoya, 464-8603, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Murakami
- Department of Biomolecular Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Nagoya University, Nagoya, 464-8603, Japan
- Institute of Nano-Life-Systems, Institutes of Innovation for Future Society, Nagoya University, Nagoya, 464-8603, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Cui Z, Johnston WA, Alexandrov K. Cell-Free Approach for Non-canonical Amino Acids Incorporation Into Polypeptides. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:1031. [PMID: 33117774 PMCID: PMC7550873 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.01031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Synthetic biology holds promise to revolutionize the life sciences and biomedicine via expansion of macromolecular diversity outside the natural chemical space. Use of non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs) via codon reassignment has found diverse applications in protein structure and interaction analysis, introduction of post-translational modifications, production of constrained peptides, antibody-drug conjugates, and novel enzymes. However, simultaneously encoding multiple ncAAs in vivo requires complex engineering and is sometimes restricted by the cell's poor uptake of ncAAs. In contrast the open nature of cell-free protein synthesis systems offers much greater freedom for manipulation and repurposing of the biosynthetic machinery by controlling the level and identity of translational components and reagents, and allows simultaneous incorporation of multiple ncAAs with non-canonical side chains and even backbones (N-methyl, D-, β-amino acids, α-hydroxy acids etc.). This review focuses on the two most used Escherichia coli-based cell-free protein synthesis systems; cell extract- and PURE-based systems. The former is a biological mixture with >500 proteins, while the latter consists of 38 individually purified biomolecules. We delineate compositions of these two systems and discuss their respective advantages and applications. Also, we dissect the translational components required for ncAA incorporation and compile lists of ncAAs that can be incorporated into polypeptides via different acylation approaches. We highlight the recent progress in using unnatural nucleobase pairs to increase the repertoire of orthogonal codons, as well as using tRNA-specific ribozymes for in situ acylation. We summarize advances in engineering of translational machinery such as tRNAs, aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, elongation factors, and ribosomes to achieve efficient incorporation of structurally challenging ncAAs. We note that, many engineered components of biosynthetic machinery are developed for the use in vivo but are equally applicable to the in vitro systems. These are included in the review to provide a comprehensive overview for ncAA incorporation and offer new insights for the future development in cell-free systems. Finally, we highlight the exciting progress in the genomic engineering, resulting in E. coli strains free of amber and some redundant sense codons. These strains can be used for preparation of cell extracts offering multiple reassignment options.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhenling Cui
- Synthetic Biology Laboratory, School of Biology and Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Wayne A Johnston
- Synthetic Biology Laboratory, School of Biology and Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Kirill Alexandrov
- Synthetic Biology Laboratory, School of Biology and Environmental Science, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Wu Y, Wang Z, Qiao X, Li J, Shu X, Qi H. Emerging Methods for Efficient and Extensive Incorporation of Non-canonical Amino Acids Using Cell-Free Systems. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2020; 8:863. [PMID: 32793583 PMCID: PMC7387428 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2020.00863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) has emerged as a novel protein expression platform. Especially the incorporation of non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs) has led to the development of numerous flexible methods for efficient and extensive expression of artificial proteins. Approaches were developed to eliminate the endogenous competition for ncAAs and engineer translation factors, which significantly enhanced the incorporation efficiency. Furthermore, in vitro aminoacylation methods can be conveniently combined with cell-free systems, extensively expanding the available ncAAs with novel and unique moieties. In this review, we summarize the recent progresses on the efficient and extensive incorporation of ncAAs by different strategies based on the elimination of competition by endogenous factors, translation factors engineering and extensive incorporation of novel ncAAs coupled with in vitro aminoacylation methods in CFPS. We also aim to offer new ideas to researchers working on ncAA incorporation techniques in CFPS and applications in various emerging fields.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang Wu
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Zhaoguan Wang
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xin Qiao
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Jiaojiao Li
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiangrong Shu
- Department of Pharmacy, Tianjin Huanhu Hospital, Tianjin, China
| | - Hao Qi
- School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China.,Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Hibi K, Amikura K, Sugiura N, Masuda K, Ohno S, Yokogawa T, Ueda T, Shimizu Y. Reconstituted cell-free protein synthesis using in vitro transcribed tRNAs. Commun Biol 2020; 3:350. [PMID: 32620935 PMCID: PMC7334211 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-020-1074-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Entire reconstitution of tRNAs for active protein production in a cell-free system brings flexibility into the genetic code engineering. It can also contribute to the field of cell-free synthetic biology, which aims to construct self-replicable artificial cells. Herein, we developed a system equipped only with in vitro transcribed tRNA (iVTtRNA) based on a reconstituted cell-free protein synthesis (PURE) system. The developed system, consisting of 21 iVTtRNAs without nucleotide modifications, is able to synthesize active proteins according to the redesigned genetic code. Manipulation of iVTtRNA composition in the system enabled genetic code rewriting. Introduction of modified nucleotides into specific iVTtRNAs demonstrated to be effective for both protein yield and decoding fidelity, where the production yield of DHFR reached about 40% of the reaction with native tRNA at 30°C. The developed system will prove useful for studying decoding processes, and may be employed in genetic code and protein engineering applications. Keita Hibi et al. develop a system to reconstitute cell-free protein synthesis using only in vitro transcribed tRNA (iVTtRNAs). They use 21 iVTtRNAs with and without nucleotide modifications to successfully synthesize functional proteins with about 40% production yield. Their system will be useful to study gene and protein engineering.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Keita Hibi
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan
| | - Kazuaki Amikura
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan.,Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA
| | - Naoki Sugiura
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan
| | - Keiko Masuda
- Laboratory for Cell-Free Protein Synthesis, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR), Suita, Osaka, 565-0874, Japan
| | - Satoshi Ohno
- Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science, Faculty of Engineering, Gifu University, Gifu, 501-1193, Japan
| | - Takashi Yokogawa
- Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Science, Faculty of Engineering, Gifu University, Gifu, 501-1193, Japan
| | - Takuya Ueda
- Department of Computational Biology and Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8562, Japan.,Department of Integrative Bioscience and Biomedical Engineering, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, Tokyo, Shinjuku, 162-8480, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Shimizu
- Laboratory for Cell-Free Protein Synthesis, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (BDR), Suita, Osaka, 565-0874, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Hammerling MJ, Krüger A, Jewett MC. Strategies for in vitro engineering of the translation machinery. Nucleic Acids Res 2020; 48:1068-1083. [PMID: 31777928 PMCID: PMC7026604 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkz1011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 10/07/2019] [Accepted: 10/17/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Engineering the process of molecular translation, or protein biosynthesis, has emerged as a major opportunity in synthetic and chemical biology to generate novel biological insights and enable new applications (e.g. designer protein therapeutics). Here, we review methods for engineering the process of translation in vitro. We discuss the advantages and drawbacks of the two major strategies-purified and extract-based systems-and how they may be used to manipulate and study translation. Techniques to engineer each component of the translation machinery are covered in turn, including transfer RNAs, translation factors, and the ribosome. Finally, future directions and enabling technological advances for the field are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Hammerling
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Antje Krüger
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Michael C Jewett
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Cui Z, Wu Y, Mureev S, Alexandrov K. Oligonucleotide-mediated tRNA sequestration enables one-pot sense codon reassignment in vitro. Nucleic Acids Res 2019; 46:6387-6400. [PMID: 29846683 PMCID: PMC6158751 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gky365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2018] [Accepted: 04/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Sense codon reassignment to unnatural amino acids (uAAs) represents a powerful approach for introducing novel properties into polypeptides. The main obstacle to this approach is competition between the native isoacceptor tRNA(s) and orthogonal tRNA(s) for the reassigned codon. While several chromatographic and enzymatic procedures for selective deactivation of tRNA isoacceptors in cell-free translation systems exist, they are complex and not scalable. We designed a set of tRNA antisense oligonucleotides composed of either deoxy-, ribo- or 2′-O-methyl ribonucleotides and tested their ability to efficiently complex tRNAs of choice. Methylated oligonucleotides targeting sequence between the anticodon and variable loop of tRNASerGCU displayed subnanomolar binding affinity with slow dissociation kinetics. Such oligonucleotides efficiently and selectively sequestered native tRNASerGCU directly in translation-competent Escherichia coli S30 lysate, thereby, abrogating its translational activity and liberating the AGU/AGC codons. Expression of eGFP protein from the template harboring a single reassignable AGU codon in tRNASerGCU-depleted E. coli lysate allowed its homogeneous modification with n-propargyl-l-lysine or p-azido-l-phenylalanine. The strategy developed here is generic, as demonstrated by sequestration of tRNAArgCCU isoacceptor in E. coli translation system. Furthermore, this method is likely to be species-independent and was successfully applied to the eukaryotic Leishmania tarentolae in vitro translation system. This approach represents a new direction in genetic code reassignment with numerous practical applications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhenling Cui
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Yue Wu
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Sergey Mureev
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Kirill Alexandrov
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia.,Australian Institute for Bioengeneering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Richardson SL, Dods KK, Abrigo NA, Iqbal ES, Hartman MC. In vitro genetic code reprogramming and expansion to study protein function and discover macrocyclic peptide ligands. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2018; 46:172-179. [PMID: 30077877 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2018.07.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2018] [Revised: 05/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The ability to introduce non-canonical amino acids into peptides and proteins is facilitated by working within in vitro translation systems. Non-canonical amino acids can be introduced into these systems using sense codon reprogramming, stop codon suppression, and by breaking codon degeneracy. Here, we review how these techniques have been used to create proteins with novel properties and how they facilitate sophisticated studies of protein function. We also discuss how researchers are using in vitro translation experiments with non-canonical amino acids to explore the tolerance of the translation apparatus to artificial building blocks. Finally, we give several examples of how non-canonical amino acids can be combined with mRNA-displayed peptide libraries for the creation of protease-stable, macrocyclic peptide libraries for ligand discovery.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stacie L Richardson
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1001 West Main Street, P.O. Box 842006, Richmond, USA; Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, USA
| | - Kara K Dods
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1001 West Main Street, P.O. Box 842006, Richmond, USA; Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, USA
| | - Nicolas A Abrigo
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1001 West Main Street, P.O. Box 842006, Richmond, USA; Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, USA
| | - Emil S Iqbal
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1001 West Main Street, P.O. Box 842006, Richmond, USA; Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, USA
| | - Matthew Ct Hartman
- Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1001 West Main Street, P.O. Box 842006, Richmond, USA; Massey Cancer Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, 401 College Street, Richmond, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Arranz-Gibert P, Vanderschuren K, Isaacs FJ. Next-generation genetic code expansion. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2018; 46:203-211. [PMID: 30072242 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2018.07.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2018] [Revised: 06/07/2018] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Engineering of the translation apparatus has permitted the site-specific incorporation of nonstandard amino acids (nsAAs) into proteins, thereby expanding the genetic code of organisms. Conventional approaches have focused on porting tRNAs and aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRS) from archaea into bacterial and eukaryotic systems where they have been engineered to site-specifically encode nsAAs. More recent work in genome engineering has opened up the possibilities of whole genome recoding, in which organisms with alternative genetic codes have been constructed whereby codons removed from the genetic code can be repurposed as new sense codons dedicated for incorporation of nsAAs. These advances, together with the advent of engineered ribosomes and new molecular evolution methods, enable multisite incorporation of nsAAs and nonstandard monomers (nsM) paving the way for the template-directed production of functionalized proteins, new classes of polymers, and genetically encoded materials.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pol Arranz-Gibert
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA; Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA; Equal contribution
| | - Koen Vanderschuren
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA; Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA; Equal contribution
| | - Farren J Isaacs
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA; Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Salehi ASM, Smith MT, Schinn S, Hunt JM, Muhlestein C, Diray‐Arce J, Nielsen BL, Bundy BC. Efficient t
RNA
degradation and quantification in
Escherichia coli
cell extract using R
N
ase‐coated magnetic beads: A key step toward codon emancipation. Biotechnol Prog 2017; 33:1401-1407. [DOI: 10.1002/btpr.2511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2017] [Revised: 06/03/2017] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Amin S. M. Salehi
- Department of Chemical EngineeringBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | - Mark T. Smith
- Department of Chemical EngineeringBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | - Song‐Min Schinn
- Department of Chemical EngineeringBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | - Jeremy M. Hunt
- Department of Chemical EngineeringBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | | | - Joann Diray‐Arce
- Department of Microbiology & Molecular BiologyBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | - Brent L. Nielsen
- Department of Microbiology & Molecular BiologyBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| | - Bradley C. Bundy
- Department of Chemical EngineeringBrigham Young UniversityProvo UT84602
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Cui Z, Mureev S, Polinkovsky ME, Tnimov Z, Guo Z, Durek T, Jones A, Alexandrov K. Combining Sense and Nonsense Codon Reassignment for Site-Selective Protein Modification with Unnatural Amino Acids. ACS Synth Biol 2017; 6:535-544. [PMID: 27966891 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.6b00245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Incorporation of unnatural amino acids (uAAs) via codon reassignment is a powerful approach for introducing novel chemical and biological properties to synthesized polypeptides. However, the site-selective incorporation of multiple uAAs into polypeptides is hampered by the limited number of reassignable nonsense codons. This challenge is addressed in the current work by developing Escherichia coli in vitro translation system depleted of specific endogenous tRNAs. The translational activity in this system is dependent on the addition of synthetic tRNAs for the chosen sense codon. This allows site-selective uAA incorporation via addition of tRNAs pre- or cotranslationally charged with uAA. We demonstrate the utility of this system by incorporating the BODIPY fluorophore into the unique AGG codon of the calmodulin(CaM) open reading frame using in vitro precharged BODIPY-tRNACysCCU. The deacylated tRNACysCCU is a poor substrate for Cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase, which ensures low background incorporation of Cys into the chosen codon. Simultaneously, p-azidophenylalanine mediated amber-codon suppression and its post-translational conjugation to tetramethylrhodamine dibenzocyclooctyne (TAMRA-DIBO) were performed on the same polypeptide. This simple and robust approach takes advantage of the compatibility of BODIPY fluorophore with the translational machinery and thus requires only one post-translational derivatization step to introduce two fluorescent labels. Using this approach, we obtained CaM nearly homogeneously labeled with two FRET-forming fluorophores. Single molecule FRET analysis revealed dramatic changes in the conformation of the CaM probe upon its exposure to Ca2+ or a chelating agent. The presented approach is applicable to other sense codons and can be directly transferred to eukaryotic cell-free systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhenling Cui
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Sergey Mureev
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Mark E. Polinkovsky
- StemProtein, 6350 Nancy
Ridge Drive, San Diego, California 92121, United States
| | - Zakir Tnimov
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Francis Crick Avenue, Cambridge CB2 0QH, United Kingdom
| | - Zhong Guo
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Thomas Durek
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Alun Jones
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Kirill Alexandrov
- Institute
for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Iwane Y, Hitomi A, Murakami H, Katoh T, Goto Y, Suga H. Expanding the amino acid repertoire of ribosomal polypeptide synthesis via the artificial division of codon boxes. Nat Chem 2016; 8:317-25. [DOI: 10.1038/nchem.2446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2015] [Accepted: 12/18/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
|
24
|
Smith MT, Bennett AM, Hunt JM, Bundy BC. Creating a completely “cell-free” system for protein synthesis. Biotechnol Prog 2015; 31:1716-9. [DOI: 10.1002/btpr.2157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2015] [Revised: 06/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jeremy M. Hunt
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Brigham Young University; UT 84602
| | - Bradley C. Bundy
- Dept. of Chemical Engineering; Brigham Young University; UT 84602
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Soye BJD, Patel JR, Isaacs FJ, Jewett MC. Repurposing the translation apparatus for synthetic biology. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2015; 28:83-90. [PMID: 26186264 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2015.06.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2015] [Accepted: 06/08/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The translation system (the ribosome and associated factors) is the cell's factory for protein synthesis. The extraordinary catalytic capacity of the protein synthesis machinery has driven extensive efforts to harness it for novel functions. For example, pioneering efforts have demonstrated that it is possible to genetically encode more than the 20 natural amino acids and that this encoding can be a powerful tool to expand the chemical diversity of proteins. Here, we discuss recent advances in efforts to expand the chemistry of living systems, highlighting improvements to the molecular machinery and genomically recoded organisms, applications of cell-free systems, and extensions of these efforts to include eukaryotic systems. The transformative potential of repurposing the translation apparatus has emerged as one of the defining opportunities at the interface of chemical and synthetic biology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin J Des Soye
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.,Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.,Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, 303 East Superior Street, Suite 11-131, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.,Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Jaymin R Patel
- Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.,Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Farren J Isaacs
- Systems Biology Institute, Yale University, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.,Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Michael C Jewett
- Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences Program, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.,Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.,Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, 303 East Superior Street, Suite 11-131, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.,Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.,Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| |
Collapse
|