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Andrews J, Gan Q, Fan C. "Not-so-popular" orthogonal pairs in genetic code expansion. Protein Sci 2023; 32:e4559. [PMID: 36585833 PMCID: PMC9850438 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2022] [Revised: 12/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
During the past decade, genetic code expansion has been proved to be a powerful tool for protein studies and engineering. As the key part, a series of orthogonal pairs have been developed to site-specifically incorporate hundreds of noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) into proteins by using bacteria, yeast, mammalian cells, animals, or plants as hosts. Among them, the pair of tyrosyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNATyr from Methanococcus jannaschii and the pair of pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNAPyl from Methanosarcina species are the most popular ones. Recently, other "not-so-popular" orthogonal pairs have started to attract attentions, because they can provide more choices of ncAA candidates and are necessary for simultaneous incorporation of multiple ncAAs into a single protein. Here, we summarize the development and applications of those "not-so-popular" orthogonal pairs, providing guidance for studying and engineering proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Andrews
- Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleArkansasUSA
| | - Qinglei Gan
- Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleArkansasUSA
| | - Chenguang Fan
- Department of Chemistry and BiochemistryUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleArkansasUSA
- Cell and Molecular Biology ProgramUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleArkansasUSA
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2
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Hou J, Chen X, Jiang N, Wang Y, Cui Y, Ma L, Lin Y, Lu Y. Toward efficient multiple-site incorporation of unnatural amino acids using cell-free translation system. Synth Syst Biotechnol 2022; 7:522-532. [PMID: 35024479 PMCID: PMC8718814 DOI: 10.1016/j.synbio.2021.12.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Amber suppression has been widely used to incorporate unnatural amino acids (UNAAs) with unique structures or functional side-chain groups into specific sites of the target protein, which expands the scope of protein-coding chemistry. However, this traditional strategy does not allow multiple-site incorporation of different UNAAs into a single protein, which limits the development of unnatural proteins. To address this challenge, the suppression method using multiple termination codons (TAG, TAA or TGA) was proposed, and cell-free unnatural protein synthesis (CFUPS) system was employed. By the analysis of incorporating 3 different UNAAs (p-propargyloxy-l-phenylalanine, p-azyl-phenylalanine and L-4-Iodophenylalanine) and mass spectrometry, the simultaneous usage of the codons TAG and TAA were suggested for better multiple-site UNAA incorporation. The CFUPS conditions were further optimized for better UNAA incorporation efficiency, including the orthogonal translation system (OTS) components, magnesium ions, and the redox environment. This study established a CFUPS approach based on multiple termination codon suppression to achieve efficient and precise incorporation of different types of UNAAs, thereby synthesizing unnatural proteins with novel physicochemical functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaqi Hou
- College of Life Sciences, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, 110034, China.,Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Xinjie Chen
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Nan Jiang
- College of Life Sciences, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, 110034, China.,Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Yanan Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, 110034, China.,Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Yi Cui
- College of Life Sciences, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, 110034, China.,Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Lianju Ma
- College of Life Sciences, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, 110034, China
| | - Ying Lin
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Fermentation and Enzyme Engineering, School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510006, China
| | - Yuan Lu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Biocatalysis, Ministry of Education, Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
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3
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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.
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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
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Ding W, Zhao H, Chen Y, Zhang B, Yang Y, Zang J, Wu J, Lin S. Chimeric design of pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA pairs and canonical synthetase/tRNA pairs for genetic code expansion. Nat Commun 2020; 11:3154. [PMID: 32572025 PMCID: PMC7308279 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-16898-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 05/28/2020] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
An orthogonal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA pair is a crucial prerequisite for site-specific incorporation of unnatural amino acids. Due to its high codon suppression efficiency and full orthogonality, the pyrrolysyl-tRNA synthetase/pyrrolysyl-tRNA pair is currently the ideal system for genetic code expansion in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. There is a pressing need to discover or engineer other fully orthogonal translation systems. Here, through rational chimera design by transplanting the key orthogonal components from the pyrrolysine system, we create multiple chimeric tRNA synthetase/chimeric tRNA pairs, including chimera histidine, phenylalanine, and alanine systems. We further show that these engineered chimeric systems are orthogonal and highly efficient with comparable flexibility to the pyrrolysine system. Besides, the chimera phenylalanine system can incorporate a group of phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan analogues efficiently in both E. coli and mammalian cells. These aromatic amino acids analogous exhibit unique properties and characteristics, including fluorescence, post-translation modification. Orthogonal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA pairs are crucial for the incorporation of unnatural amino acids in a site-specific manner. Here the authors use rational chimera design to create multiple efficient pairs that function in bacterial and mammalian systems for genetic code expansion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenlong Ding
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Hongxia Zhao
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Yulin Chen
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Bin Zhang
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Yang Yang
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210046, China
| | - Jia Zang
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Jing Wu
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China
| | - Shixian Lin
- Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
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Biddle W, Schmitt MA, Fisk JD. Modification of orthogonal tRNAs: unexpected consequences for sense codon reassignment. Nucleic Acids Res 2016; 44:10042-10050. [PMID: 27915288 PMCID: PMC5137457 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkw948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2016] [Revised: 10/05/2016] [Accepted: 10/10/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Breaking the degeneracy of the genetic code via sense codon reassignment has emerged as a way to incorporate multiple copies of multiple non-canonical amino acids into a protein of interest. Here, we report the modification of a normally orthogonal tRNA by a host enzyme and show that this adventitious modification has a direct impact on the activity of the orthogonal tRNA in translation. We observed nearly equal decoding of both histidine codons, CAU and CAC, by an engineered orthogonal M. jannaschii tRNA with an AUG anticodon: tRNAOpt. We suspected a modification of the tRNAOptAUG anticodon was responsible for the anomalous lack of codon discrimination and demonstrate that adenosine 34 of tRNAOptAUG is converted to inosine. We identified tRNAOptAUG anticodon loop variants that increase reassignment of the histidine CAU codon, decrease incorporation in response to the histidine CAC codon, and improve cell health and growth profiles. Recognizing tRNA modification as both a potential pitfall and avenue of directed alteration will be important as the field of genetic code engineering continues to infiltrate the genetic codes of diverse organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wil Biddle
- Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - Margaret A Schmitt
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
| | - John D Fisk
- Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA .,Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.,School of Biomedical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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Wong HE, Pack SP, Kwon I. Positional effects of hydrophobic non-natural amino acid mutagenesis into the surface region of murine dihydrofolate reductase on enzyme properties. Biochem Eng J 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bej.2015.12.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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7
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Kwon I, Choi ES. Forced Ambiguity of the Leucine Codons for Multiple-Site-Specific Incorporation of a Noncanonical Amino Acid. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0152826. [PMID: 27028506 PMCID: PMC4814082 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0152826] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2015] [Accepted: 03/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Multiple-site-specific incorporation of a noncanonical amino acid into a recombinant protein would be a very useful technique to generate multiple chemical handles for bioconjugation and multivalent binding sites for the enhanced interaction. Previously combination of a mutant yeast phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase variant and the yeast phenylalanyl-tRNA containing the AAA anticodon was used to incorporate a noncanonical amino acid into multiple UUU phenylalanine (Phe) codons in a site-specific manner. However, due to the less selective codon recognition of the AAA anticodon, there was significant misincorporation of a noncanonical amino acid into unwanted UUC Phe codons. To enhance codon selectivity, we explored degenerate leucine (Leu) codons instead of Phe degenerate codons. Combined use of the mutant yeast phenylalanyl-tRNA containing the CAA anticodon and the yPheRS_naph variant allowed incorporation of a phenylalanine analog, 2-naphthylalanine, into murine dihydrofolate reductase in response to multiple UUG Leu codons, but not to other Leu codon sites. Despite the moderate UUG codon occupancy by 2-naphthylalaine, these results successfully demonstrated that the concept of forced ambiguity of the genetic code can be achieved for the Leu codons, available for multiple-site-specific incorporation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inchan Kwon
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju, Republic of Korea
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Eun Sil Choi
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju, Republic of Korea
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Chonnam National University, Gwangju, Republic of Korea
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8
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Jung S, Kwon I. Expansion of bioorthogonal chemistries towards site-specific polymer–protein conjugation. Polym Chem 2016. [DOI: 10.1039/c6py00856a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Bioorthogonal chemistries have been used to achieve polymer-protein conjugation with the retained critical properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Secheon Jung
- School of Materials Science and Engineering
- Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST)
- Gwangju 61005
- Republic of Korea
| | - Inchan Kwon
- School of Materials Science and Engineering
- Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST)
- Gwangju 61005
- Republic of Korea
- Department of Chemical Engineering
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10
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Biddle W, Schmitt MA, Fisk JD. Evaluating Sense Codon Reassignment with a Simple Fluorescence Screen. Biochemistry 2015; 54:7355-64. [PMID: 26536053 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.5b00870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the interactions that drive the fidelity of the genetic code and the limits to which modifications can be made without breaking the translational system has practical implications for understanding the molecular mechanisms of evolution as well as expanding the set of encodable amino acids, particularly those with chemistries not provided by Nature. Because 61 sense codons encode 20 amino acids, reassigning the meaning of sense codons provides an avenue for biosynthetic modification of proteins, furthering both fundamental and applied biochemical research. We developed a simple screen that exploits the absolute requirement for fluorescence of an active site tyrosine in green fluorescent protein (GFP) to probe the pliability of the degeneracy of the genetic code. Our screen monitors the restoration of the fluorophore of GFP by incorporation of a tyrosine in response to a sense codon typically assigned another meaning in the genetic code. We evaluated sense codon reassignment at four of the 21 sense codons read through wobble interactions in Escherichia coli using the Methanocaldococcus jannaschii orthogonal tRNA/aminoacyl tRNA synthetase pair originally developed and commonly used for amber stop codon suppression. By changing only the anticodon of the orthogonal tRNA, we achieved sense codon reassignment efficiencies between 1% (Phe UUU) and 6% (Lys AAG). Each of the orthogonal tRNAs preferentially decoded the codon traditionally read via a wobble interaction in E. coli with the exception of the orthogonal tRNA with an AUG anticodon, which incorporated tyrosine in response to both the His CAU and His CAC codons with approximately equal frequencies. We applied our screen in a high-throughput manner to evaluate a 10(9)-member combined tRNA/aminoacyl tRNA synthetase library to identify improved sense codon reassigning variants for the Lys AAG codon. A single rapid screen with the ability to broadly evaluate reassignable codons will facilitate identification and improvement of the combinations of sense codons and orthogonal pairs that display efficient reassignment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wil Biddle
- Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University , Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, United States
| | - Margaret A Schmitt
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado State University , Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, United States
| | - John D Fisk
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado State University , Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, United States.,Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University , Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, United States.,School of Biomedical Engineering, Colorado State University , Fort Collins, Colorado 80523, United States
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11
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Lim SI, Kwon I. Bioconjugation of therapeutic proteins and enzymes using the expanded set of genetically encoded amino acids. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2015; 36:803-15. [DOI: 10.3109/07388551.2015.1048504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sung In Lim
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA and
| | - Inchan Kwon
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA and
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju, Republic of Korea
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