1
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Wardman JF, Withers SG. Carbohydrate-active enzyme (CAZyme) discovery and engineering via (Ultra)high-throughput screening. RSC Chem Biol 2024; 5:595-616. [PMID: 38966674 PMCID: PMC11221537 DOI: 10.1039/d4cb00024b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes) constitute a diverse set of enzymes that catalyze the assembly, degradation, and modification of carbohydrates. These enzymes have been fashioned into potent, selective catalysts by millennia of evolution, and yet are also highly adaptable and readily evolved in the laboratory. To identify and engineer CAZymes for different purposes, (ultra)high-throughput screening campaigns have been frequently utilized with great success. This review provides an overview of the different approaches taken in screening for CAZymes and how mechanistic understandings of CAZymes can enable new approaches to screening. Within, we also cover how cutting-edge techniques such as microfluidics, advances in computational approaches and synthetic biology, as well as novel assay designs are leading the field towards more informative and effective screening approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob F Wardman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3 Canada
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - Stephen G Withers
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia Vancouver BC V6T 1Z3 Canada
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4 Canada
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia Vancouver BC V6T 1Z1 Canada
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2
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Ribeiro ALJL, Pérez-Arnaiz P, Sánchez-Costa M, Pérez L, Almendros M, van Vliet L, Gielen F, Lim J, Charnock S, Hollfelder F, González-Pastor JE, Berenguer J, Hidalgo A. Thermostable in vitro transcription-translation compatible with microfluidic droplets. Microb Cell Fact 2024; 23:169. [PMID: 38858677 PMCID: PMC11165818 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-024-02440-y] [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] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/12/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In vitro expression involves the utilization of the cellular transcription and translation machinery in an acellular context to produce one or more proteins of interest and has found widespread application in synthetic biology and in pharmaceutical biomanufacturing. Most in vitro expression systems available are active at moderate temperatures, but to screen large libraries of natural or artificial genetic diversity for highly thermostable enzymes or enzyme variants, it is instrumental to enable protein synthesis at high temperatures. OBJECTIVES Develop an in vitro expression system operating at high temperatures compatible with enzymatic assays and with technologies that enable ultrahigh-throughput protein expression in reduced volumes, such as microfluidic water-in-oil (w/o) droplets. RESULTS We produced cell-free extracts from Thermus thermophilus for in vitro translation including thermostable enzymatic cascades for energy regeneration and a moderately thermostable RNA polymerase for transcription, which ultimately limited the temperature of protein synthesis. The yield was comparable or superior to other thermostable in vitro expression systems, while the preparation procedure is much simpler and can be suited to different Thermus thermophilus strains. Furthermore, these extracts have enabled in vitro expression in microfluidic droplets at high temperatures for the first time. CONCLUSIONS Cell-free extracts from Thermus thermophilus represent a simpler alternative to heavily optimized or pure component thermostable in vitro expression systems. Moreover, due to their compatibility with droplet microfluidics and enzyme assays at high temperatures, the reported system represents a convenient gateway for enzyme screening at higher temperatures with ultrahigh-throughput.
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Grants
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- 324439, 635595, 685474, 695669 and 10100560 European Commission
- BIO-2013-44963-R, RED2022-134755-T, CEX2021-001154-S Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
- BIO-2013-44963-R, RED2022-134755-T, CEX2021-001154-S Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana L J L Ribeiro
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Instituto de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Patricia Pérez-Arnaiz
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Instituto de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Mercedes Sánchez-Costa
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Lara Pérez
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Marcos Almendros
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Liisa van Vliet
- Departament of Biochemistry, Cambridge University, 80 Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1GA, UK
- DropTech Ltd, 91 Canterbury Court, Cambridge, CB4 3QU, UK
| | - Fabrice Gielen
- DropTech Ltd, 91 Canterbury Court, Cambridge, CB4 3QU, UK
- Living Systems Institute, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Stocker Road, Exeter, EX4 4QL, UK
| | - Jesmine Lim
- Prozomix Ltd, Building 4, West End Ind. Estate, Haltwhistle, Northumberland, NE49 9HA, UK
| | - Simon Charnock
- Prozomix Ltd, Building 4, West End Ind. Estate, Haltwhistle, Northumberland, NE49 9HA, UK
| | - Florian Hollfelder
- Departament of Biochemistry, Cambridge University, 80 Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1GA, UK
| | - J Eduardo González-Pastor
- Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, Ctra de Torrejón a Ajalvir, Km 4, 28850, Torrejón de Ardoz, Spain
| | - José Berenguer
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Instituto de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Aurelio Hidalgo
- Centro de Biología Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (UAM-CSIC), Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
- Instituto de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Nicolás Cabrera 1, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
- Departamento de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
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3
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Jain A, Stavrakis S, deMello A. Droplet-based microfluidics and enzyme evolution. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2024; 87:103097. [PMID: 38430713 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2024.103097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2024] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Enzymes are widely used as catalysts in the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. While successful in many situations, they must usually be adapted to operate efficiently under nonnatural conditions. Enzyme engineering allows the creation of novel enzymes that are stable at elevated temperatures or have higher activities and selectivities. Current enzyme engineering techniques require the production and testing of enzyme variant libraries to identify members with desired attributes. Unfortunately, traditional screening methods cannot screen such large mutagenesis libraries in a robust and timely manner. Droplet-based microfluidic systems can produce, process, and sort picoliter droplets at kilohertz rates and have emerged as powerful tools for library screening and thus enzyme engineering. We describe how droplet-based microfluidics has been used to advance directed evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankit Jain
- Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zürich, Vladimir Prelog Weg 1, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Stavros Stavrakis
- Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zürich, Vladimir Prelog Weg 1, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Andrew deMello
- Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, ETH Zürich, Vladimir Prelog Weg 1, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland.
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4
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Yuan X, Li R, He W, Xu W, Xu W, Yan G, Xu S, Chen L, Feng Y, Li H. Progress in Identification of UDP-Glycosyltransferases for Ginsenoside Biosynthesis. JOURNAL OF NATURAL PRODUCTS 2024; 87:1246-1267. [PMID: 38449105 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.3c00630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Ginsenosides, the primary pharmacologically active constituents of the Panax genus, have demonstrated a variety of medicinal properties, including anticardiovascular disease, cytotoxic, antiaging, and antidiabetes effects. However, the low concentration of ginsenosides in plants and the challenges associated with their extraction impede the advancement and application of ginsenosides. Heterologous biosynthesis represents a promising strategy for the targeted production of these natural active compounds. As representative triterpenoids, the biosynthetic pathway of the aglycone skeletons of ginsenosides has been successfully decoded. While the sugar moiety is vital for the structural diversity and pharmacological activity of ginsenosides, the mining of uridine diphosphate-dependent glycosyltransferases (UGTs) involved in ginsenoside biosynthesis has attracted a lot of attention and made great progress in recent years. In this paper, we summarize the identification and functional study of UGTs responsible for ginsenoside synthesis in both plants, such as Panax ginseng and Gynostemma pentaphyllum, and microorganisms including Bacillus subtilis and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The UGT-related microbial cell factories for large-scale ginsenoside production are also mentioned. Additionally, we delve into strategies for UGT mining, particularly potential rapid screening or identification methods, providing insights and prospects. This review provides insights into the study of other unknown glycosyltransferases as candidate genetic elements for the heterologous biosynthesis of rare ginsenosides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxuan Yuan
- Institute of Structural Pharmacology & TCM Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
| | - Ruiqiong Li
- College of Integrative Medicine, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
| | - Weishen He
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, United States
| | - Wei Xu
- Institute of Structural Pharmacology & TCM Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
| | - Wen Xu
- Innovation and Transformation Center, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
| | - Guohong Yan
- Pharmacy Department, People's Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350004, China
| | - Shaohua Xu
- Institute of Structural Pharmacology & TCM Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
- State Key Laboratory of Dao-di Herbs, Beijing 100700, China
| | - Lixia Chen
- Institute of Structural Pharmacology & TCM Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
- Wuya College of Innovation, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110016, China
| | - Yaqian Feng
- Innovation and Transformation Center, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
| | - Hua Li
- Institute of Structural Pharmacology & TCM Chemical Biology, College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian 350122, China
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5
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Zhang C, Cai Y, Zhang Z, Zheng N, Zhou H, Su Y, Du S, Hussain A, Xia X. Directed Evolution of the UDP-Glycosyltransferase UGT BL1 for Highly Regioselective and Efficient Biosynthesis of Natural Phenolic Glycosides. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2024; 72:1640-1650. [PMID: 38213280 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.3c07850] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2024]
Abstract
The O-glycosylation of polyphenols for the synthesis of glycosides has garnered substantial attention in food research applications. However, the practical utility of UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) is significantly hindered by their low catalytic efficiency and suboptimal regioselectivity. The concurrent optimization of the regioselectivity and activity during the glycosylation of polyphenols presents a formidable challenge. Here, we addressed the long-standing activity-regioselectivity tradeoff in glycosyltransferase UGTBL1 through systematic enzyme engineering. The optimal combination of mutants, N61S/I62M/D63W/A208R/P218W/R282W (SMWRW1W2), yielded a 6.1-fold improvement in relative activity and a 17.3-fold increase in the ratio of gastrodin to para-hydroxybenzyl alcohol-4'-O-β-glucoside (with 89.5% regioselectivity for gastrodin) compared to those of the wild-type enzyme and ultimately allowed gram-scale production of gastrodin (1,066.2 mg/L) using whole-cell biocatalysis. In addition, variant SMWRW1W2 exhibited a preference for producing phenolic glycosides from several substrates. This study lays the foundation for the engineering of additional UGTs and the practical applications of UGTs in regioselective retrofitting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenhao Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Yongchao Cai
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Zehua Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Nan Zheng
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Huimin Zhou
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Yumeng Su
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Shuang Du
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Asif Hussain
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
| | - Xiaole Xia
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
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6
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Wang M, Ji Q, Lai B, Liu Y, Mei K. Structure-function and engineering of plant UDP-glycosyltransferase. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2023; 21:5358-5371. [PMID: 37965058 PMCID: PMC10641439 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2023.10.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Natural products synthesized by plants have substantial industrial and medicinal values and are therefore attracting increasing interest in various related industries. Among the key enzyme families involved in the biosynthesis of natural products, uridine diphosphate-dependent glycosyltransferases (UGTs) play a crucial role in plants. In recent years, significant efforts have been made to elucidate the catalytic mechanisms and substrate recognition of plant UGTs and to improve them for desired functions. In this review, we presented a comprehensive overview of all currently published structures of plant UGTs, along with in-depth analyses of the corresponding catalytic and substrate recognition mechanisms. In addition, we summarized and evaluated the protein engineering strategies applied to improve the catalytic activities of plant UGTs, with a particular focus on high-throughput screening methods. The primary objective of this review is to provide readers with a comprehensive understanding of plant UGTs and to serve as a valuable reference for the latest techniques used to improve their activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengya Wang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Modern Drug Delivery and High Efficiency, School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Qiushuang Ji
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Modern Drug Delivery and High Efficiency, School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Bin Lai
- BMBF junior research group Biophotovoltaics, Department of Environmental Microbiology, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ, Leipzig 04318, Germany
| | - Yirong Liu
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Modern Drug Delivery and High Efficiency, School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
| | - Kunrong Mei
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Modern Drug Delivery and High Efficiency, School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering, Ministry of Education, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China
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7
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Wardman JF, Sim L, Liu J, Howard TA, Geissner A, Danby PM, Boraston AB, Wakarchuk WW, Withers SG. A high-throughput screening platform for enzymes active on mucin-type O-glycoproteins. Nat Chem Biol 2023; 19:1246-1255. [PMID: 37592157 DOI: 10.1038/s41589-023-01405-3] [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: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023]
Abstract
Mucin-type O-glycosylation is a post-translational modification present at the interface between cells where it has important roles in cellular communication. However, deciphering the function of O-glycoproteins and O-glycans can be challenging, especially as few enzymes are available for their assembly or selective degradation. Here, to address this deficiency, we developed a genetically encoded screening methodology for the discovery and engineering of the diverse classes of enzymes that act on O-glycoproteins. The method uses Escherichia coli that have been engineered to produce an O-glycosylated fluorescence resonance energy transfer probe that can be used to screen for O-glycopeptidase activity. Subsequent cleavage of the substrate by O-glycopeptidases provides a read-out of the glycosylation state of the probe, allowing the method to also be used to assay glycosidases and glycosyltransferases. We further show the potential of this methodology in the first ultrahigh-throughput-directed evolution of an O-glycopeptidase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob F Wardman
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
| | - Lyann Sim
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Jennifer Liu
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Teresa A Howard
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Andreas Geissner
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Phillip M Danby
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Alisdair B Boraston
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Warren W Wakarchuk
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Stephen G Withers
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
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8
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David L, Shpigel E, Levin I, Moshe S, Zimmerman L, Dadon-Simanowitz S, Shemer B, Levkovich SA, Larush L, Magdassi S, Belkin S. Performance upgrade of a microbial explosives' sensor strain by screening a high throughput saturation library of a transcriptional regulator. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2023; 21:4252-4260. [PMID: 37701016 PMCID: PMC10493890 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2023.08.017] [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: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 08/15/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
We present a methodology for a high-throughput screening (HTS) of transcription factor libraries, based on bacterial cells and GFP fluorescence. The method is demonstrated on the Escherichia coli LysR-type transcriptional regulator YhaJ, a key element in 2,4-dinitrotuluene (DNT) detection by bacterial explosives' sensor strains. Enhancing the performance characteristics of the YhaJ transcription factor is essential for future standoff detection of buried landmines. However, conventional directed evolution methods for modifying YhaJ are limited in scope, due to the vast sequence space and the absence of efficient screening methods to select optimal transcription factor mutants. To overcome this limitation, we have constructed a focused saturation library of ca. 6.4 × 107 yhaJ variants, and have screened over 70 % of its sequence space using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS). Through this screening process, we have identified YhaJ mutants exhibiting superior fluorescence responses to DNT, which were then effectively transformed into a bioluminescence-based DNT detection system. The best modified DNT reporter strain demonstrated a 7-fold lower DNT detection threshold, a 45-fold increased signal intensity, and a 40 % shorter response time compared to the parental bioreporter. The FACS-based HTS approach presented here may hold a potential for future molecular enhancement of other sensing and catalytic bioreactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lidor David
- Enzymit Ltd. 3 Pinhas Sapir St., Ness Ziona 7403626, Israel
| | - Etai Shpigel
- Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Itay Levin
- Enzymit Ltd. 3 Pinhas Sapir St., Ness Ziona 7403626, Israel
| | - Shaked Moshe
- Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Lior Zimmerman
- Enzymit Ltd. 3 Pinhas Sapir St., Ness Ziona 7403626, Israel
| | | | - Benjamin Shemer
- Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Shon A. Levkovich
- George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Liraz Larush
- Institute of Chemistry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Shlomo Magdassi
- Institute of Chemistry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
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9
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Zhang XE, Liu C, Dai J, Yuan Y, Gao C, Feng Y, Wu B, Wei P, You C, Wang X, Si T. Enabling technology and core theory of synthetic biology. SCIENCE CHINA. LIFE SCIENCES 2023; 66:1742-1785. [PMID: 36753021 PMCID: PMC9907219 DOI: 10.1007/s11427-022-2214-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/09/2023]
Abstract
Synthetic biology provides a new paradigm for life science research ("build to learn") and opens the future journey of biotechnology ("build to use"). Here, we discuss advances of various principles and technologies in the mainstream of the enabling technology of synthetic biology, including synthesis and assembly of a genome, DNA storage, gene editing, molecular evolution and de novo design of function proteins, cell and gene circuit engineering, cell-free synthetic biology, artificial intelligence (AI)-aided synthetic biology, as well as biofoundries. We also introduce the concept of quantitative synthetic biology, which is guiding synthetic biology towards increased accuracy and predictability or the real rational design. We conclude that synthetic biology will establish its disciplinary system with the iterative development of enabling technologies and the maturity of the core theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xian-En Zhang
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- National Laboratory of Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.
| | - Chenli Liu
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
| | - Junbiao Dai
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
| | - Yingjin Yuan
- Frontiers Science Center for Synthetic Biology and Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
| | - Caixia Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Plant Cell and Chromosome Engineering, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.
| | - Yan Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
| | - Bian Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China.
| | - Ping Wei
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
| | - Chun You
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, 300308, China.
| | - Xiaowo Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Bioinformatics; Center for Synthetic and Systems Biology; Bioinformatics Division, Beijing National Research Center for Information Science and Technology; Department of Automation, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China.
| | - Tong Si
- Faculty of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
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10
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Robinson JP, Ostafe R, Iyengar SN, Rajwa B, Fischer R. Flow Cytometry: The Next Revolution. Cells 2023; 12:1875. [PMID: 37508539 PMCID: PMC10378642 DOI: 10.3390/cells12141875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2023] [Revised: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Unmasking the subtleties of the immune system requires both a comprehensive knowledge base and the ability to interrogate that system with intimate sensitivity. That task, to a considerable extent, has been handled by an iterative expansion in flow cytometry methods, both in technological capability and also in accompanying advances in informatics. As the field of fluorescence-based cytomics matured, it reached a technological barrier at around 30 parameter analyses, which stalled the field until spectral flow cytometry created a fundamental transformation that will likely lead to the potential of 100 simultaneous parameter analyses within a few years. The simultaneous advance in informatics has now become a watershed moment for the field as it competes with mature systematic approaches such as genomics and proteomics, allowing cytomics to take a seat at the multi-omics table. In addition, recent technological advances try to combine the speed of flow systems with other detection methods, in addition to fluorescence alone, which will make flow-based instruments even more indispensable in any biological laboratory. This paper outlines current approaches in cell analysis and detection methods, discusses traditional and microfluidic sorting approaches as well as next-generation instruments, and provides an early look at future opportunities that are likely to arise.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Paul Robinson
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
- Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Raluca Ostafe
- Molecular Evolution, Protein Engineering and Production Facility (PI4D), Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | | | - Bartek Rajwa
- Bindley Bioscience Center, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Rainer Fischer
- Department of Comparative Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
- Purdue Institute of Inflammation, Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
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11
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Nielsen JR, Weusthuis RA, Huang WE. Growth-coupled enzyme engineering through manipulation of redox cofactor regeneration. Biotechnol Adv 2023; 63:108102. [PMID: 36681133 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2023.108102] [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: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Enzymes need to be efficient, robust, and highly specific for their effective use in commercial bioproduction. These properties can be introduced using various enzyme engineering techniques, with random mutagenesis and directed evolution (DE) often being chosen when there is a lack of structural information -or mechanistic understanding- of the enzyme. The screening or selection step of DE is the limiting part of this process, since it must ideally be (ultra)-high throughput, specifically target the catalytic activity of the enzyme and have an accurately quantifiable metric for said activity. Growth-coupling selection strategies involve coupling a desired enzyme activity to cellular metabolism and therefore growth, where growth (rate) becomes the output metric. Redox cofactors (NAD+/NADH and NADP+/NADPH) have recently been identified as promising target molecules for growth coupling, owing to their essentiality for cellular metabolism and ubiquitous nature. Redox cofactor oxidation or reduction can be disrupted through metabolic engineering and the use of specific culturing conditions, rendering the cell inviable unless a 'rescue' reaction complements the imposed metabolic deficiency. Using this principle, enzyme variants displaying improved cofactor oxidation or reduction rates can be selected for through an increased growth rate of the cell. In recent years, several E. coli strains have been developed that are deficient in the oxidation or reduction of NAD+/NADH and NADP+/NADPH pairs, and of non-canonical redox cofactor pairs NMN+/NMNH and NCD+/NCDH, which provides researchers with a versatile toolbox of enzyme engineering platforms. A range of redox cofactor dependent enzymes have since been engineered using a variety of these strains, demonstrating the power of using this growth-coupling technique for enzyme engineering. This review aims to summarize the metabolic engineering involved in creating strains auxotrophic for the reduced or oxidized state of redox cofactors, and the resulting successes in using them for enzyme engineering. Perspectives on the unique features and potential future applications of this technique are also presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jochem R Nielsen
- Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PJ, United Kingdom.
| | - Ruud A Weusthuis
- Department of Bioprocess Engineering, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen 6700AA, the Netherlands.
| | - Wei E Huang
- Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PJ, United Kingdom.
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12
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Ouadhi S, López DMV, Mohideen FI, Kwan DH. Engineering the enzyme toolbox to tailor glycosylation in small molecule natural products and protein biologics. Protein Eng Des Sel 2023; 36:gzac010. [PMID: 36444941 DOI: 10.1093/protein/gzac010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2022] [Revised: 07/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Many glycosylated small molecule natural products and glycoprotein biologics are important in a broad range of therapeutic and industrial applications. The sugar moieties that decorate these compounds often show a profound impact on their biological functions, thus biocatalytic methods for controlling their glycosylation are valuable. Enzymes from nature are useful tools to tailor bioproduct glycosylation but these sometimes have limitations in their catalytic efficiency, substrate specificity, regiospecificity, stereospecificity, or stability. Enzyme engineering strategies such as directed evolution or semi-rational and rational design have addressed some of the challenges presented by these limitations. In this review, we highlight some of the recent research on engineering enzymes to tailor the glycosylation of small molecule natural products (including alkaloids, terpenoids, polyketides, and peptides), as well as the glycosylation of protein biologics (including hormones, enzyme-replacement therapies, enzyme inhibitors, vaccines, and antibodies).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Ouadhi
- Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC H4B 2A6, Canada
- PROTEO, Quebec Network for Research on Protein Function, Structure, and Engineering, Quebec City, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Dulce María Valdez López
- Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC H4B 2A6, Canada
- PROTEO, Quebec Network for Research on Protein Function, Structure, and Engineering, Quebec City, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - F Ifthiha Mohideen
- Department of Chemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G2, Canada
| | - David H Kwan
- Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, QC H4B 2A6, Canada
- PROTEO, Quebec Network for Research on Protein Function, Structure, and Engineering, Quebec City, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
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13
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Mohideen FI, Kwan DH. A "biphasic glycosyltransferase high-throughput screen" identifies novel anthraquinone glycosides in the diversification of phenolic natural products. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:102931. [PMID: 36682498 PMCID: PMC9950524 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.102931] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2022] [Revised: 01/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
The sugar moieties of many glycosylated small molecule natural products are essential for their biological activity. Glycosyltransferases (GTs) are enzymes responsible for installing these sugar moieties on a variety of biomolecules. Many GTs active on natural products are inherently substrate promiscuous and thus serve as useful tools in manipulating natural product glycosylation to generate new combinations of sugar units (glycones) and scaffold molecules (aglycones) in a process called glycodiversification. It is important to have an effective screening tool to detect the activity of promiscuous enzymes and their resulting glycoside products. Toward this aim, we developed a strategy for screening natural product GTs in a high-throughput fashion enabled by rapid isolation and detection of chromophoric or fluorescent glycosylated natural products. This involves a solvent extraction step to isolate the resulting polar glycoside product from the unreacted aglycone acceptor substrate and the detection of the formed glycoside by the innate absorbance or fluorescence of the aglycone moiety. Using our approach, we screened a collection of natural product GTs against a panel of precursors to therapeutically important molecules. Three GTs showed previously unreported promiscuity toward anthraquinones resulting in novel ε-rhodomycinone glycosides. Considering the pharmaceutical value of clinically used anthraquinone glycosides that are biosynthesized from an ε-rhodomycinone precursor, and the significance that the sugar moiety has on the biological activity of these drugs, our results are of particular importance toward the glycodiversification of therapeutics in this class. The GTs identified and the novel compounds they produce show promise toward new biocatalytic tools and therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Ifthiha Mohideen
- Department of Biology, Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, and Centre for Structural and Functional Genomics, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - David H Kwan
- Department of Biology, Centre for Applied Synthetic Biology, and Centre for Structural and Functional Genomics, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; PROTEO, Quebec Network for Research on Protein Function, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
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14
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Metabolic Engineering and Regulation of Diol Biosynthesis from Renewable Biomass in Escherichia coli. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12050715. [PMID: 35625642 PMCID: PMC9138338 DOI: 10.3390/biom12050715] [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: 04/27/2022] [Revised: 05/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
As bulk chemicals, diols have wide applications in many fields, such as clothing, biofuels, food, surfactant and cosmetics. The traditional chemical synthesis of diols consumes numerous non-renewable energy resources and leads to environmental pollution. Green biosynthesis has emerged as an alternative method to produce diols. Escherichia coli as an ideal microbial factory has been engineered to biosynthesize diols from carbon sources. Here, we comprehensively summarized the biosynthetic pathways of diols from renewable biomass in E. coli and discussed the metabolic-engineering strategies that could enhance the production of diols, including the optimization of biosynthetic pathways, improvement of cofactor supplementation, and reprogramming of the metabolic network. We then investigated the dynamic regulation by multiple control modules to balance the growth and production, so as to direct carbon sources for diol production. Finally, we proposed the challenges in the diol-biosynthesis process and suggested some potential methods to improve the diol-producing ability of the host.
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15
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Abstract
Flow cytometry is a single-cell technology that measures scatter and fluorescence to establish a set of unique cellular properties. Flow cytometry is used in many areas of science, in particular biotechnology and medicine, but also in industrial applications. Flow cytometry can identify multiple phenotypic subsets from a mixture, select a single cell and even isolate that cell by a process called cell sorting. The field is currently undergoing dramatic changes. We are moving rapidly from the polychromic flow cytometry that has been the go-to technology for 45 years to spectral flow cytometry, which is now the most significant change in nearly half a century of flow cytometry. With change comes opportunity. Even spectral flow cytometry will morph into second-generation spectral flow cytometry within 5 years. New, exciting features will open up molecular diagnostics and physiology to flow cytometry.
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16
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Vanella R, Kovacevic G, Doffini V, Fernández de Santaella J, Nash MA. High-throughput screening, next generation sequencing and machine learning: advanced methods in enzyme engineering. Chem Commun (Camb) 2022; 58:2455-2467. [PMID: 35107442 PMCID: PMC8851469 DOI: 10.1039/d1cc04635g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2021] [Accepted: 01/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Enzyme engineering is an important biotechnological process capable of generating tailored biocatalysts for applications in industrial chemical conversion and biopharma. Typical enhancements sought in enzyme engineering and in vitro evolution campaigns include improved folding stability, catalytic activity, and/or substrate specificity. Despite significant progress in recent years in the areas of high-throughput screening and DNA sequencing, our ability to explore the vast space of functional enzyme sequences remains severely limited. Here, we review the currently available suite of modern methods for enzyme engineering, with a focus on novel readout systems based on enzyme cascades, and new approaches to reaction compartmentalization including single-cell hydrogel encapsulation techniques to achieve a genotype-phenotype link. We further summarize systematic scanning mutagenesis approaches and their merger with deep mutational scanning and massively parallel next-generation DNA sequencing technologies to generate mutability landscapes. Finally, we discuss the implementation of machine learning models for computational prediction of enzyme phenotypic fitness from sequence. This broad overview of current state-of-the-art approaches for enzyme engineering and evolution will aid newcomers and experienced researchers alike in identifying the important challenges that should be addressed to move the field forward.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosario Vanella
- Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Gordana Kovacevic
- Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Vanni Doffini
- Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Jaime Fernández de Santaella
- Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Michael A Nash
- Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
- Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, ETH Zurich, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
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17
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Cui T, Man Y, Wang F, Bi S, Lin L, Xie R. Glycoenzyme Tool Development: Principles, Screening Methods, and Recent Advances
†. CHINESE J CHEM 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/cjoc.202100770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tongxiao Cui
- State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC) Nanjing University Nanjing, Jiagsu 210023 China
| | - Yi Man
- State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC) Nanjing University Nanjing, Jiagsu 210023 China
| | - Feifei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC) Nanjing University Nanjing, Jiagsu 210023 China
| | - Shuyang Bi
- State Key Laboratory of Bio‐organic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry Shanghai 200032 China
| | - Liang Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Bio‐organic and Natural Products Chemistry, Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry Shanghai 200032 China
| | - Ran Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Chemistry and Biomedicine Innovation Center (ChemBIC) Nanjing University Nanjing, Jiagsu 210023 China
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18
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Directed Evolution of Glycosyltransferases by a Single-Cell Ultrahigh-Throughput FACS-Based Screening Method. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2461:211-224. [PMID: 35727453 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2152-3_14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Engineering of glycosyltransferases (GTs) with desired substrate specificity for the synthesis of complex oligosaccharides has been of great scientific and industrial interest. Here we describe an ultra-high-throughput fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) method for the directed evolution of GTs, at the single cell level. This assay relies on the exquisite substrate specificity of lactose permeases (LacY) that are located in the cell membrane, which distinguish selectively the fluorescent glycosylated products from the unreacted substrates. The method described here allows facile screening 106-107 mutants per hour. We demonstrate the application of this technique in the screening of libraries of α1,3-fucosyltransferase.
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19
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Agrawal A, Bandi CK, Burgin T, Woo Y, Mayes HB, Chundawat SPS. Click-Chemistry-Based Free Azide versus Azido Sugar Detection Enables Rapid In Vivo Screening of Glycosynthase Activity. ACS Chem Biol 2021; 16:2490-2501. [PMID: 34499469 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.1c00585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Engineering of carbohydrate-active enzymes such as glycosynthases to enable chemoenzymatic synthesis of bespoke oligosaccharides has been limited by the lack of suitable ultrahigh-throughput screening methods capable of robustly detecting either starting substrates or end-products of the glycosidic bond formation reaction. Currently, there are limited screening methods available for rapid and highly sensitive single-cell-based screening of glycosynthase enzymes employing azido sugars as activated donor glycosyl substrates. Here, we report a fluorescence-based approach employing click-chemistry for the selective detection of glycosyl azides as substrates versus free inorganic azides as reaction products that facilitated an ultrahigh-throughput in vivo single-cell-based assay of glycosynthase activity. This assay was developed based on the distinct differences observed in relative fluorescence intensity of the triazole-containing fluorophore product formed during the click-chemistry reaction of organic glycosyl azides versus inorganic azides. This discovery formed the basis for proof of concept validation of a directed evolution methodology for screening and sorting glycosynthase mutants capable of synthesis of targeted fucosylated oligosaccharides. Our screening approach facilitated fluorescence-activated cell sorting of an error-prone polymerase chain reaction-based mutant library of fucosynthases expressed in Escherichia coli to identify several novel mutants that showed increased activity for β-fucosyl azide-activated donor sugars toward desired acceptor sugars (e.g., pNP-xylose and lactose). Finally, we discuss avenues for improving this proof of concept in vivo assay method to identify better glycosynthase mutants and further demonstrate the broader applicability of this screening methodology for synthesis of bespoke glycans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayushi Agrawal
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, United States
| | - Chandra Kanth Bandi
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, United States
| | - Tucker Burgin
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, 2800 Plymouth Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105, United States
| | - Youngwoo Woo
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, 2800 Plymouth Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105, United States
| | - Heather B. Mayes
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan Ann Arbor, 2800 Plymouth Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105, United States
- National Bioenergy Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 15013 Denver West Parkway, Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Shishir P. S. Chundawat
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, United States
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20
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Directed Evolution Methods for Enzyme Engineering. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26185599. [PMID: 34577070 PMCID: PMC8470892 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26185599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Revised: 08/17/2021] [Accepted: 08/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Enzymes underpin the processes required for most biotransformations. However, natural enzymes are often not optimal for biotechnological uses and must be engineered for improved activity, specificity and stability. A rich and growing variety of wet-lab methods have been developed by researchers over decades to accomplish this goal. In this review such methods and their specific attributes are examined.
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21
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Adegbite A, McCarthy PC. Recent and Future Advances in the Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Homogeneous Glycans for Bacterial Glycoconjugate Vaccine Development. Vaccines (Basel) 2021; 9:1021. [PMID: 34579258 PMCID: PMC8473158 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9091021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Vaccines are important in preventing disease outbreaks and controlling the spread of disease in a population. A variety of vaccines exist, including subunit, recombinant, and conjugate vaccines. Glycoconjugate vaccines have been an important tool to fight against diseases caused by a number of bacteria. Glycoconjugate vaccines are often heterogeneous. Vaccines of the future are becoming more rationally designed to have a defined oligosaccharide chain length and position of conjugation. Homogenous vaccines could play an important role in assessing the relationship between vaccine structure and immune response. This review focuses on recent advances in the chemoenzymatic production of defined bacterial oligosaccharides for vaccine development with a focus on Neisseria meningitidis and selected WHO-prioritized antibacterial resistant-pathogens. We also provide some perspective on future advances in the chemoenzymatic synthesis of well-defined oligosaccharides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayobami Adegbite
- Bioenvironmental Sciences Program, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD 21251, USA;
- Department of Chemistry, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD 21251, USA
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22
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Pote AR, Pascual S, Planas A, Peczuh MW. Indolyl Septanoside Synthesis for In Vivo Screening of Bacterial Septanoside Hydrolases. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:4497. [PMID: 33925857 PMCID: PMC8123396 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22094497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Building-up and breaking-down of carbohydrates are processes common to all forms of life. Glycoside hydrolases are a broad class of enzymes that play a central role in the cleavage of glycosidic bonds, which is fundamental to carbohydrate degradation. The large majority of substrates are five- and six-membered ring glycosides. Our interest in seven-membered ring septanose sugars has inspired the development of a way to search for septanoside hydrolase activity. Described here is a strategy for the discovery of septanoside hydrolases that uses synthetic indolyl septanosides as chromogenic substrates. Access to these tool compounds was enabled by a route where septanosyl halides act as glycosyl donors for the synthesis of the indolyl septanosides. The screening strategy leverages the known dimerization of 3-hydroxy-indoles to make colored dyes, as occurs when the β-galactosidase substrate X-Gal is hydrolyzed. Because screens in bacterial cells would enable searches in organisms that utilize heptoses or from metagenomics libraries, we also demonstrate that septanosides are capable of entering E. coli cells through the use of a BODIPY-labeled septanoside. The modularity of the indolyl septanoside synthesis should allow the screening of a variety of substrates that mimic natural structures via this general approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aditya R. Pote
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, 55 N. Eagleville Road U3060, Storrs, CT 06269, USA;
| | - Sergi Pascual
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Institute Químic de Sarrià, University Ramon Llull, 08017 Barcelona, Spain;
| | - Antoni Planas
- Laboratory of Biochemistry, Institute Químic de Sarrià, University Ramon Llull, 08017 Barcelona, Spain;
| | - Mark W. Peczuh
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, 55 N. Eagleville Road U3060, Storrs, CT 06269, USA;
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23
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Wang J, Tan Y, Ling J, Zhang M, Li L, Liu W, Huang M, Song J, Li A, Song Y, Yang C, Zhu Z. Highly paralleled emulsion droplets for efficient isolation, amplification, and screening of cancer biomarker binding phages. LAB ON A CHIP 2021; 21:1175-1184. [PMID: 33554995 DOI: 10.1039/d0lc01146k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Based on the linkage of genotype and phenotype, display technology has been widely used to generate specific ligands for profiling, imaging, diagnosis and therapy applications. However, due to the lack of effective monoclonal manipulation and affinity evaluation methods, traditional display technology has to undergo tedious steps of selection, clone isolation, amplification, sequencing, synthesis and characterization to obtain the binding sequences. To directly acquire high-affinity clones, we propose a double monoclonal display approach (dm-Display) for peptide screening based on highly paralleled monoclonal manipulation in emulsion droplets. dm-Display can monoclonally link the genotype, phenotype and affinity to realize integrated monoclonal separation, amplification, recognition and staining in one droplet so that discrete high-affinity clones can be quickly extracted. Monoclonal manipulations highly-parallelly occur in millions of droplets so that molecular screening of a highly diverse phage library is achieved. We have screened specific peptide ligands against CD71 and GPC1, proving the feasibility and generality of dm-Display. As a highly efficient ligand screening platform, dm-Display will promote the further development of molecular screening.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junxia Wang
- The MOE Key Laboratory of Spectrochemical Analysis & Instrumentation, The Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology of Fujian Province, State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials, Department of Chemical Biology, Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China.
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24
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Yang J, Tu R, Yuan H, Wang Q, Zhu L. Recent advances in droplet microfluidics for enzyme and cell factory engineering. Crit Rev Biotechnol 2021; 41:1023-1045. [PMID: 33730939 DOI: 10.1080/07388551.2021.1898326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Enzymes and cell factories play essential roles in industrial biotechnology for the production of chemicals and fuels. The properties of natural enzymes and cells often cannot meet the requirements of different industrial processes in terms of cost-effectiveness and high durability. To rapidly improve their properties and performances, laboratory evolution equipped with high-throughput screening methods and facilities is commonly used to tailor the desired properties of enzymes and cell factories, addressing the challenges of achieving high titer and the yield of the target products at high/low temperatures or extreme pH, in unnatural environments or in the presence of unconventional media. Droplet microfluidic screening (DMFS) systems have demonstrated great potential for exploring vast genetic diversity in a high-throughput manner (>106/h) for laboratory evolution and have been increasingly used in recent years, contributing to the identification of extraordinary mutants. This review highlights the recent advances in concepts and methods of DMFS for library screening, including the key factors in droplet generation and manipulation, signal sources for sensitive detection and sorting, and a comprehensive summary of success stories of DMFS implementation for engineering enzymes and cell factories during the past decade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianhua Yang
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China.,National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Ran Tu
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China.,National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Huiling Yuan
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China.,National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Qinhong Wang
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China.,National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Leilei Zhu
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China.,National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
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25
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Liu ZX, Huang SL, Hou J, Guo XP, Wang FS, Sheng JZ. Cell-based high-throughput screening of polysaccharide biosynthesis hosts. Microb Cell Fact 2021; 20:62. [PMID: 33663495 PMCID: PMC7934428 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-021-01555-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2020] [Accepted: 02/26/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Valuable polysaccharides are usually produced using wild-type or metabolically-engineered host microbial strains through fermentation. These hosts act as cell factories that convert carbohydrates, such as monosaccharides or starch, into bioactive polysaccharides. It is desirable to develop effective in vivo high-throughput approaches to screen cells that display high-level synthesis of the desired polysaccharides. Uses of single or dual fluorophore labeling, fluorescence quenching, or biosensors are effective strategies for cell sorting of a library that can be applied during the domestication of industrial engineered strains and metabolic pathway optimization of polysaccharide synthesis in engineered cells. Meanwhile, high-throughput screening strategies using each individual whole cell as a sorting section are playing growing roles in the discovery and directed evolution of enzymes involved in polysaccharide biosynthesis, such as glycosyltransferases. These enzymes and their mutants are in high demand as tool catalysts for synthesis of saccharides in vitro and in vivo. This review provides an introduction to the methodologies of using cell-based high-throughput screening for desired polysaccharide-biosynthesizing cells, followed by a brief discussion of potential applications of these approaches in glycoengineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zi-Xu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology of Natural Products (Ministry of Education), Institute of Biochemical and Biotechnological Drug, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China
| | - Si-Ling Huang
- Bloomage BioTechnology Corp., Ltd., Jinan, 250010, China
| | - Jin Hou
- The State Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, Shandong University, Jinan, 250100, China
| | - Xue-Ping Guo
- Bloomage BioTechnology Corp., Ltd., Jinan, 250010, China
| | - Feng-Shan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology of Natural Products (Ministry of Education), Institute of Biochemical and Biotechnological Drug, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China. .,National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China.
| | - Ju-Zheng Sheng
- Key Laboratory of Chemical Biology of Natural Products (Ministry of Education), Institute of Biochemical and Biotechnological Drug, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China. .,National Glycoengineering Research Center, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China.
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Huang YT, Su YC, Wu HR, Huang HH, Lin EC, Tsai TW, Tseng HW, Fang JL, Yu CC. Sulfo-Fluorous Tagging Strategy for Site-Selective Enzymatic Glycosylation of para-Human Milk Oligosaccharides. ACS Catal 2021. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.0c04934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Ting Huang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Chia Su
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Ru Wu
- Instrumentation Center at National Tsing Hua University, 101, Section 2, Kuang-Fu Road, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Hui Huang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Eugene C. Lin
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Teng-Wei Tsai
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Hsien-Wei Tseng
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Jia-Lin Fang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
| | - Ching-Ching Yu
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, National Chung Cheng University, 168 University Road, Min-Hsiung, Chiayi 62102, Taiwan
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Reetz MT. A breakthrough in protein engineering of a glycosyltransferase. GREEN SYNTHESIS AND CATALYSIS 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gresc.2021.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
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Yin X, Li J, Chen S, Wu Y, She Z, Liu L, Wang Y, Gao Z. An Economical High-Throughput "FP-Tag" Assay for Screening Glycosyltransferase Inhibitors*. Chembiochem 2021; 22:1391-1395. [PMID: 33259119 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202000746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Revised: 11/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) is involved in many cellular processes, and selective OGT inhibitors are valuable tools to investigate O-GlcNAcylation functions, and could potentially lead to therapeutics. However, high-throughput OGT assays that are suitable for large-scale HTS and can identify inhibitors targeting both acceptor, donor sites, and allosteric binding-sites are still lacking. Here, we report the development of a high-throughput "FP-Tag" OGT assay with bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a low-cost and superior "FP-Tag". With this assay, 2-methyleurotinone was identified as a low-micromolar OGT inhibitor. This type of assay with BSA as "FP-Tag" would find more applications with other glycosyltransferases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinjian Yin
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
| | - Jiaxin Li
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
| | - Senhua Chen
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
| | - Yuping Wu
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
| | - Zhigang She
- School of Chemistry, Sun Yat-sen University, 519275, Guangzhou, P. R. China
| | - Lan Liu
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
| | - Yue Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, Xue Yuan Rd No. 38, 100191, Beijing, P. R. China
| | - Zhizeng Gao
- School of Marine Science, Sun Yat-sen University, 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), 519080, Zhuhai, P. R. China
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Bandi CK, Agrawal A, Chundawat SP. Carbohydrate-Active enZyme (CAZyme) enabled glycoengineering for a sweeter future. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2020; 66:283-291. [PMID: 33176229 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2020.09.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Revised: 09/06/2020] [Accepted: 09/14/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
One of the stumbling blocks to advance the field of glycobiology has been the difficulty in synthesis of bespoke carbohydrate-based molecules like glycopolymers (e.g. human milk oligosaccharides) and glycoconjugates (e.g. glycosylated monoclonal antibodies). Recent strides towards using engineered Carbohydrate-Active enZymes (CAZymes) like glycosyl transferases, transglycosidases, and glycosynthases for glycans synthesis has allowed production of diverse glycans. Here, we discuss enzymatic routes for glycans biosynthesis and recent advances in protein engineering strategies that enable improvement of CAZyme specificity and catalytic turnover. We focus on rational and directed evolution methods that have been developed to engineer CAZymes. Finally, we discuss how improved CAZymes have been used in recent years to remodel and synthesize glycans for biotherapeutics and biotechnology related applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chandra Kanth Bandi
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Ayushi Agrawal
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA
| | - Shishir Ps Chundawat
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 98 Brett Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA.
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Zhang M, Li Q, Lan X, Li X, Zhang Y, Wang Z, Zheng J. Directed evolution of Aspergillus oryzae lipase for the efficient resolution of (R,S)-ethyl-2-(4-hydroxyphenoxy) propanoate. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 2020; 43:2131-2141. [PMID: 32959146 DOI: 10.1007/s00449-020-02393-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Accepted: 06/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Aspergillus oryzae lipase (AOL) is a potential biocatalyst for industrial application. In this study, a mutant lipase AOL-3F38N/V230R was screened through two rounds of directed evolution, resulting in a fourfold increase in lipase activity, and threefold in catalytic efficiency (kcat/Km), while maintaining its excellent stereoselectivity. AOL-3F38N/V230R enzyme activity was maximum at pH 7.5 and also at 40 °C. And compared with wild-type AOL-3, AOL-3F38N/V230R preferentially hydrolyzed the fatty acid ethyl ester carbon chain length from C4 to C6-C10. In the same catalytic reaction conditions, the conversion of (R,S)-ethyl-2-(4-hydroxyphenoxy) propanoate ((R,S)-EHPP) by AOL-3F38N/V230R can be increased 169.7% compared to the original enzyme. The e.e.s of (R,S)-EHPP achieved 99.4% and conversion about 50.2% with E value being 829.0. Therefore, AOL-3F38N/V230R was a potential biocatalyst for obtaining key chiral compounds for aryloxyphenoxy propionate (APP) herbicides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengjie Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Qi Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Xing Lan
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaojun Li
- School of Medicine and Life Sciences, Xinyu University, Xinyu, Jiangxi, People's Republic of China
| | - Yinjun Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhao Wang
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China
| | - Jianyong Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Synthesis of Zhejiang Province, College of Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Zhejiang University of Technology, Hangzhou, 310014, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
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Jaroentomeechai T, Taw MN, Li M, Aquino A, Agashe N, Chung S, Jewett MC, DeLisa MP. Cell-Free Synthetic Glycobiology: Designing and Engineering Glycomolecules Outside of Living Cells. Front Chem 2020; 8:645. [PMID: 32850660 PMCID: PMC7403607 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2020.00645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2020] [Accepted: 06/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Glycans and glycosylated biomolecules are directly involved in almost every biological process as well as the etiology of most major diseases. Hence, glycoscience knowledge is essential to efforts aimed at addressing fundamental challenges in understanding and improving human health, protecting the environment and enhancing energy security, and developing renewable and sustainable resources that can serve as the source of next-generation materials. While much progress has been made, there remains an urgent need for new tools that can overexpress structurally uniform glycans and glycoconjugates in the quantities needed for characterization and that can be used to mechanistically dissect the enzymatic reactions and multi-enzyme assembly lines that promote their construction. To address this technology gap, cell-free synthetic glycobiology has emerged as a simplified and highly modular framework to investigate, prototype, and engineer pathways for glycan biosynthesis and biomolecule glycosylation outside the confines of living cells. From nucleotide sugars to complex glycoproteins, we summarize here recent efforts that harness the power of cell-free approaches to design, build, test, and utilize glyco-enzyme reaction networks that produce desired glycomolecules in a predictable and controllable manner. We also highlight novel cell-free methods for shedding light on poorly understood aspects of diverse glycosylation processes and engineering these processes toward desired outcomes. Taken together, cell-free synthetic glycobiology represents a promising set of tools and techniques for accelerating basic glycoscience research (e.g., deciphering the "glycan code") and its application (e.g., biomanufacturing high-value glycomolecules on demand).
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Affiliation(s)
- Thapakorn Jaroentomeechai
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - May N. Taw
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Mingji Li
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Alicia Aquino
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Ninad Agashe
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Sean Chung
- Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Michael C. Jewett
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, United States
- Center for Synthetic Biology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, United States
- Chemistry of Life Processes Institute, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, United States
| | - Matthew P. DeLisa
- Robert Frederick Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
- Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States
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Yun J, Zheng X, Xu P, Zheng X, Xu J, Cao C, Fu Y, Xu B, Dai X, Wang Y, Liu H, Yi Q, Zhu Y, Wang J, Wang L, Dong Z, Huang L, Huang Y, Du W. Interfacial Nanoinjection-Based Nanoliter Single-Cell Analysis. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2020; 16:e1903739. [PMID: 31565845 DOI: 10.1002/smll.201903739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2019] [Revised: 09/08/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Single-cell analysis offers unprecedented resolution for the investigation of cellular heterogeneity and the capture of rare cells from large populations. Here, described is a simple method named interfacial nanoinjection (INJ), which can miniaturize various single-cell assays to be performed in nanoliter water-in-oil droplets on standard microwell plates. The INJ droplet handler can adjust droplet volumes for multistep reactions on demand with high precision and excellent monodispersity, and consequently enables a wide range of single-cell assays. Importantly, INJ can be coupled with fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), which is currently the most effective and accurate single-cell sorting and isolation method. FACS-INJ pipelines for high-throughput plate well-based single-cell analyses, including single-cell proliferation, drug-resistance testing, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), reverse-transcription PCR, and whole-genome sequencing are introduced. This FACS-INJ pipeline is compatible with a wide range of samples and can be extended to various single-cell analysis applications in microbiology, cell biology, and biomedical diagnostics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juanli Yun
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Xiaowei Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Peng Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Xu Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Nonlinear Mechanics, Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Jingyue Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Chen Cao
- Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center (BIOPIC), Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics (ICG), College of Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Yusi Fu
- Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center (BIOPIC), Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics (ICG), College of Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Bingxue Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xin Dai
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Yi Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Hongtao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Qiaolian Yi
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yaxin Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Jian Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Li Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Zhiyang Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Li Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yanyi Huang
- Biomedical Pioneering Innovation Center (BIOPIC), Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Genomics (ICG), College of Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Wenbin Du
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Savaid Medical School, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
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33
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Biewenga L, Crotti M, Saifuddin M, Poelarends GJ. Selective Colorimetric "Turn-On" Probe for Efficient Engineering of Iminium Biocatalysis. ACS OMEGA 2020; 5:2397-2405. [PMID: 32064400 PMCID: PMC7017405 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.9b03849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The efficient engineering of iminium biocatalysis has drawn considerable attention, with many applications in pharmaceutical synthesis. Here, we report a tailor-made iminium-activated colorimetric "turn-on" probe, specifically designed as a prescreening tool to facilitate engineering of iminium biocatalysis. Upon complexation of the probe with the catalytic Pro-1 residue of the model enzyme 4-oxalocrotonate tautomerase (4-OT), a brightly colored merocyanine-dye-type structure is formed. 4-OT mutants that formed this brightly colored species upon incubation with the probe proved to have a substantial activity for the iminium-based Michael-type addition of nitromethane to cinnamaldehyde, whereas mutants that showed no staining by the probe exhibited no or very low-level "Michaelase" activity. This system was exploited in a solid-phase prescreening assay termed as activated iminium colony staining (AICS) to enrich libraries for active mutants. AICS prescreening reduced the screening effort up to 20-fold. After two rounds of directed evolution, two artificial Michaelases were identified with up to 39-fold improvement in the activity for the addition of nitromethane to cinnamaldehyde, yielding the target γ-nitroaldehyde product with excellent isolated yield (up to 95%) and enantiopurity (up to >99% ee). The colorimetric activation of the turn-on probe could be extended to the class I aldolase 2-deoxy-d-ribose 5-phosphate aldolase, implicating a broader application of AICS in engineering iminium biocatalysis.
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Janesch B, Baumann L, Mark A, Thompson N, Rahmani S, Sim L, Withers SG, Wakarchuk WW. Directed evolution of bacterial polysialyltransferases. Glycobiology 2020; 29:588-598. [PMID: 30976781 DOI: 10.1093/glycob/cwz021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2018] [Revised: 02/15/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Polysialyltransferases (polySTs) are glycosyltransferases that synthesize polymers of sialic acid found in vertebrates and some bacterial pathogens. Bacterial polySTs have utility in the modification of therapeutic proteins to improve serum half-life, and the potential for tissue engineering. PolySTs are membrane-associated proteins and as recombinant proteins suffer from inherently low solubility, low expression levels and poor thermal stability. To improve their physicochemical and biochemical properties, we applied a directed evolution approach using a FACS-based ultrahigh-throughput assay as a simple, robust and reliable screening method. We were able to enrich a large mutant library and, in combination with plate-based high-throughput secondary screening, we discovered mutants with increased enzymatic activity and improved stability compared to the wildtype enzyme. This work presents a powerful strategy for the screening of directed evolution libraries of bacterial polySTs to identify better catalysts for in vitro polysialylation of therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bettina Janesch
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Lars Baumann
- Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Michael Smith Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Alison Mark
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Nicole Thompson
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sadia Rahmani
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Lyann Sim
- Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Michael Smith Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Stephen G Withers
- Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Michael Smith Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Warren W Wakarchuk
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Ryerson University, Toronto, ON, Canada
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Markel U, Essani KD, Besirlioglu V, Schiffels J, Streit WR, Schwaneberg U. Advances in ultrahigh-throughput screening for directed enzyme evolution. Chem Soc Rev 2020; 49:233-262. [PMID: 31815263 DOI: 10.1039/c8cs00981c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 145] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Enzymes are versatile catalysts and their synthetic potential has been recognized for a long time. In order to exploit their full potential, enzymes often need to be re-engineered or optimized for a given application. (Semi-) rational design has emerged as a powerful means to engineer proteins, but requires detailed knowledge about structure function relationships. In turn, directed evolution methodologies, which consist of iterative rounds of diversity generation and screening, can improve an enzyme's properties with virtually no structural knowledge. Current diversity generation methods grant us access to a vast sequence space (libraries of >1012 enzyme variants) that may hide yet unexplored catalytic activities and selectivity. However, the time investment for conventional agar plate or microtiter plate-based screening assays represents a major bottleneck in directed evolution and limits the improvements that are obtainable in reasonable time. Ultrahigh-throughput screening (uHTS) methods dramatically increase the number of screening events per time, which is crucial to speed up biocatalyst design, and to widen our knowledge about sequence function relationships. In this review, we summarize recent advances in uHTS for directed enzyme evolution. We shed light on the importance of compartmentalization to preserve the essential link between genotype and phenotype and discuss how cells and biomimetic compartments can be applied to serve this function. Finally, we discuss how uHTS can inspire novel functional metagenomics approaches to identify natural biocatalysts for novel chemical transformations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrich Markel
- Institute of Biotechnology, RWTH Aachen University, Worringer Weg 3, 52074 Aachen, Germany.
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Droplet Microfluidics-Enabled High-Throughput Screening for Protein Engineering. MICROMACHINES 2019; 10:mi10110734. [PMID: 31671786 PMCID: PMC6915371 DOI: 10.3390/mi10110734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2019] [Revised: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 10/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Protein engineering—the process of developing useful or valuable proteins—has successfully created a wide range of proteins tailored to specific agricultural, industrial, and biomedical applications. Protein engineering may rely on rational techniques informed by structural models, phylogenic information, or computational methods or it may rely upon random techniques such as chemical mutation, DNA shuffling, error prone polymerase chain reaction (PCR), etc. The increasing capabilities of rational protein design coupled to the rapid production of large variant libraries have seriously challenged the capacity of traditional screening and selection techniques. Similarly, random approaches based on directed evolution, which relies on the Darwinian principles of mutation and selection to steer proteins toward desired traits, also requires the screening of very large libraries of mutants to be truly effective. For either rational or random approaches, the highest possible screening throughput facilitates efficient protein engineering strategies. In the last decade, high-throughput screening (HTS) for protein engineering has been leveraging the emerging technologies of droplet microfluidics. Droplet microfluidics, featuring controlled formation and manipulation of nano- to femtoliter droplets of one fluid phase in another, has presented a new paradigm for screening, providing increased throughput, reduced reagent volume, and scalability. We review here the recent droplet microfluidics-based HTS systems developed for protein engineering, particularly directed evolution. The current review can also serve as a tutorial guide for protein engineers and molecular biologists who need a droplet microfluidics-based HTS system for their specific applications but may not have prior knowledge about microfluidics. In the end, several challenges and opportunities are identified to motivate the continued innovation of microfluidics with implications for protein engineering.
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Tan Y, Zhang Y, Han Y, Liu H, Chen H, Ma F, Withers SG, Feng Y, Yang G. Directed evolution of an α1,3-fucosyltransferase using a single-cell ultrahigh-throughput screening method. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2019; 5:eaaw8451. [PMID: 31633018 PMCID: PMC6785251 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaw8451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2019] [Accepted: 09/17/2019] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Fucosylated glycoconjugates are involved in a variety of physiological and pathological processes. However, economical production of fucosylated drugs and prebiotic supplements has been hampered by the poor catalytic efficiency of fucosyltransferases. Here, we developed a fluorescence-activated cell sorting system that enables the ultrahigh-throughput screening (>107 mutants/hour) of such enzymes and designed a companion strategy to assess the screening performance of the system. After three rounds of directed evolution, a mutant M32 of the α1,3-FucT from Helicobacter pylori was identified with 6- and 14-fold increases in catalytic efficiency (k cat/K m) for the synthesis of Lewis x and 3'-fucosyllactose, respectively. The structure of the M32 mutant revealed that the S45F mutation generates a clamp-like structure that appears to improve binding of the galactopyranose ring of the acceptor substrate. Moreover, molecular dynamic simulations reveal that helix α5, is more mobile in the M32 mutant, possibly explaining its high fucosylation activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumeng Tan
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Yunbin Han
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
- State Key Laboratory Cultivation Base for TCM Quality and Efficacy, College of Pharmacy, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Hao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Haifeng Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Fuqiang Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
- CAS Key Laboratory of Biomedical Diagnostics, Suzhou Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China
| | - Stephen G. Withers
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, 2036 Main Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z1, Canada
| | - Yan Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
| | - Guangyu Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic & Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China
- Corresponding author.
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Chao L, Jongkees S. High-Throughput Approaches in Carbohydrate-Active Enzymology: Glycosidase and Glycosyl Transferase Inhibitors, Evolution, and Discovery. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019; 58:12750-12760. [PMID: 30913359 PMCID: PMC6771893 DOI: 10.1002/anie.201900055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2019] [Revised: 03/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Carbohydrates are attached and removed in living systems through the action of carbohydrate-active enzymes such as glycosyl transferases and glycoside hydrolases. The molecules resulting from these enzymes have many important roles in organisms, such as cellular communication, structural support, and energy metabolism. In general, each carbohydrate transformation requires a separate catalyst, and so these enzyme families are extremely diverse. To make this diversity manageable, high-throughput approaches look at many enzymes at once. Similarly, high-throughput approaches can be a powerful way of finding inhibitors that can be used to tune the reactivity of these enzymes, either in an industrial, a laboratory, or a medicinal setting. In this review, we provide an overview of how these enzymes and inhibitors can be sought using techniques such as high-throughput natural product and combinatorial library screening, phage and mRNA display of (glyco)peptides, fluorescence-activated cell sorting, and metagenomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lemeng Chao
- Department of Chemical Biology and Drug DiscoveryUtrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical SciencesUtrecht UniversityUniversiteitsweg 993581AGUtrechtThe Netherlands
| | - Seino Jongkees
- Department of Chemical Biology and Drug DiscoveryUtrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical SciencesUtrecht UniversityUniversiteitsweg 993581AGUtrechtThe Netherlands
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Chiu FWY, Stavrakis S. High-throughput droplet-based microfluidics for directed evolution of enzymes. Electrophoresis 2019; 40:2860-2872. [PMID: 31433062 PMCID: PMC6899980 DOI: 10.1002/elps.201900222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2019] [Revised: 08/10/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Natural enzymes have evolved over millions of years to allow for their effective operation within specific environments. However, it is significant to note that despite their wide structural and chemical diversity, relatively few natural enzymes have been successfully applied to industrial processes. To address this limitation, directed evolution (DE) (a method that mimics the process of natural selection to evolve proteins toward a user‐defined goal) coupled with droplet‐based microfluidics allows the detailed analysis of millions of enzyme variants on ultra‐short timescales, and thus the design of novel enzymes with bespoke properties. In this review, we aim at presenting the development of DE over the last years and highlighting the most important advancements in droplet‐based microfluidics, made in this context towards the high‐throughput demands of enzyme optimization. Specifically, an overview of the range of microfluidic unit operations available for the construction of DE platforms is provided, focusing on their suitability and benefits for cell‐based assays, as in the case of directed evolution experimentations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flora W Y Chiu
- Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Stavros Stavrakis
- Institute for Chemical and Bioengineering, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
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40
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Chao L, Jongkees S. High‐Throughput Approaches in Carbohydrate‐Active Enzymology: Glycosidase and Glycosyl Transferase Inhibitors, Evolution, and Discovery. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201900055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Lemeng Chao
- Department of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences Utrecht University Universiteitsweg 99 3581AG Utrecht The Netherlands
| | - Seino Jongkees
- Department of Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences Utrecht University Universiteitsweg 99 3581AG Utrecht The Netherlands
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Genetics behind the Biosynthesis of Nonulosonic Acid-Containing Lipooligosaccharides in Campylobacter coli. J Bacteriol 2019; 201:JB.00759-18. [PMID: 30692173 DOI: 10.1128/jb.00759-18] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 01/24/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli are the most common causes of bacterial gastroenteritis in the world. Ganglioside mimicry by C. jejuni lipooligosaccharide (LOS) is the triggering factor of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), an acute polyneuropathy. Sialyltransferases from glycosyltransferase family 42 (GT-42) are essential for the expression of ganglioside mimics in C. jejuni Recently, two novel GT-42 genes, cstIV and cstV, have been identified in C. coli Despite being present in ∼11% of currently available C. coli genomes, the biological role of cstIV and cstV is unknown. In the present investigation, mutation studies with two strains expressing either cstIV or cstV were performed and mass spectrometry was used to investigate differences in the chemical composition of LOS. Attempts were made to identify donor and acceptor molecules using in vitro activity tests with recombinant GT-42 enzymes. Here we show that CstIV and CstV are involved in C. coli LOS biosynthesis. In particular, cstV is associated with LOS sialylation, while cstIV is linked to the addition of a diacetylated nonulosonic acid residue.IMPORTANCE Despite the fact that Campylobacter coli a major foodborne pathogen, its glycobiology has been largely neglected. The genetic makeup of the C. coli lipooligosaccharide biosynthesis locus was largely unknown until recently. C. coli harbors a large set of genes associated with lipooligosaccharide biosynthesis, including genes for several putative glycosyltransferases involved in the synthesis of sialylated lipooligosaccharide in Campylobacter jejuni In the present study, C. coli was found to express lipooligosaccharide structures containing sialic acid and other nonulosonate acids. These findings have a strong impact on our understanding of C. coli ecology, host-pathogen interaction, and pathogenesis.
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Kim JY, Yoo HW, Lee PG, Lee SG, Seo JH, Kim BG. In vivo Protein Evolution, Next Generation Protein Engineering Strategy: from Random Approach to Target-specific Approach. BIOTECHNOL BIOPROC E 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s12257-018-0394-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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Armstrong Z, Liu F, Chen HM, Hallam SJ, Withers SG. Systematic Screening of Synthetic Gene-Encoded Enzymes for Synthesis of Modified Glycosides. ACS Catal 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.8b05179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary Armstrong
- Genome Science and Technology Program, University of British Columbia, 2329 West Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z4
| | - Feng Liu
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, 2036 Main Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z1
| | - Hong-Ming Chen
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, 2036 Main Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z1
| | - Steven J. Hallam
- Genome Science and Technology Program, University of British Columbia, 2329 West Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z4
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z1
- Graduate Program in Bioinformatics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z4
| | - Stephen G. Withers
- Genome Science and Technology Program, University of British Columbia, 2329 West Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z4
- Department of Chemistry, University of British Columbia, 2036 Main Mall, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6T 1Z1
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Benkoulouche M, Fauré R, Remaud-Siméon M, Moulis C, André I. Harnessing glycoenzyme engineering for synthesis of bioactive oligosaccharides. Interface Focus 2019; 9:20180069. [PMID: 30842872 DOI: 10.1098/rsfs.2018.0069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Combined with chemical synthesis, the use of glycoenzyme biocatalysts has shown great synthetic potential over recent decades owing to their remarkable versatility in terms of substrates and regio- and stereoselectivity that allow structurally controlled synthesis of carbohydrates and glycoconjugates. Nonetheless, the lack of appropriate enzymatic tools with requisite properties in the natural diversity has hampered extensive exploration of enzyme-based synthetic routes to access relevant bioactive oligosaccharides, such as cell-surface glycans or prebiotics. With the remarkable progress in enzyme engineering, it has become possible to improve catalytic efficiency and physico-chemical properties of enzymes but also considerably extend the repertoire of accessible catalytic reactions and tailor novel substrate specificities. In this review, we intend to give a brief overview of the advantageous use of engineered glycoenzymes, sometimes in combination with chemical steps, for the synthesis of natural bioactive oligosaccharides or their precursors. The focus will be on examples resulting from the three main classes of glycoenzymes specialized in carbohydrate synthesis: glycosyltransferases, glycoside hydrolases and glycoside phosphorylases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mounir Benkoulouche
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Biologiques et Procédés, LISBP, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INRA, INSA, 135, avenue de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse cedex 04, France
| | - Régis Fauré
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Biologiques et Procédés, LISBP, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INRA, INSA, 135, avenue de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse cedex 04, France
| | - Magali Remaud-Siméon
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Biologiques et Procédés, LISBP, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INRA, INSA, 135, avenue de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse cedex 04, France
| | - Claire Moulis
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Biologiques et Procédés, LISBP, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INRA, INSA, 135, avenue de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse cedex 04, France
| | - Isabelle André
- Laboratoire d'Ingénierie des Systèmes Biologiques et Procédés, LISBP, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, INRA, INSA, 135, avenue de Rangueil, 31077 Toulouse cedex 04, France
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45
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Development of GFP-based high-throughput screening system for directed evolution of glucose oxidase. J Biosci Bioeng 2019; 127:30-37. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiosc.2018.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2018] [Revised: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 07/01/2018] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
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46
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Li M, van Zee M, Riche CT, Tofig B, Gallaher SD, Merchant SS, Damoiseaux R, Goda K, Di Carlo D. A Gelatin Microdroplet Platform for High-Throughput Sorting of Hyperproducing Single-Cell-Derived Microalgal Clones. SMALL (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2018; 14:e1803315. [PMID: 30369052 DOI: 10.1002/smll.201803315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2018] [Revised: 09/06/2018] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Microalgae are an attractive feedstock organism for sustainable production of biofuels, chemicals, and biomaterials, but the ability to rationally engineer microalgae to enhance production has been limited. To enable the evolution-based selection of new hyperproducing variants of microalgae, a method is developed that combines phase-transitioning monodisperse gelatin hydrogel droplets with commercial flow cytometric instruments for high-throughput screening and selection of clonal populations of cells with desirable properties, such as high lipid productivity per time traced over multiple cell cycles. It is found that gelatin microgels enable i) the growth and metabolite (e.g., chlorophyll and lipids) production of single microalgal cells within the compartments, ii) infusion of fluorescent reporter molecules into the hydrogel matrices following a sol-gel transition, iii) selection of high-producing clonal populations of cells using flow cytometry, and iv) cell recovery under mild conditions, enabling regrowth after sorting. This user-friendly method is easily integratable into directed cellular evolution pipelines for strain improvement and can be adopted for other applications that require high-throughput processing, e.g., cellular secretion phenotypes and intercellular interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Li
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2122, Australia
| | - Mark van Zee
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Carson T Riche
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Bobby Tofig
- California NanoSystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Sean D Gallaher
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Sabeeha S Merchant
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Robert Damoiseaux
- California NanoSystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- Department of Molecular and Medicinal Pharmacology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Keisuke Goda
- Department of Chemistry, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-8655, Japan
- Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, 332-0012, Japan
- Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - Dino Di Carlo
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- California NanoSystems Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- California NanoSystems Institute, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Centre, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
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47
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Metabolic engineering of glycoprotein biosynthesis in bacteria. Emerg Top Life Sci 2018; 2:419-432. [PMID: 33525794 DOI: 10.1042/etls20180004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2018] [Revised: 07/12/2018] [Accepted: 08/06/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The demonstration more than a decade ago that glycoproteins could be produced in Escherichia coli cells equipped with the N-linked protein glycosylation machinery from Campylobacter jejuni opened the door to using simple bacteria for the expression and engineering of complex glycoproteins. Since that time, metabolic engineering has played an increasingly important role in developing and optimizing microbial cell glyco-factories for the production of diverse glycoproteins and other glycoconjugates. It is becoming clear that future progress in creating efficient glycoprotein expression platforms in bacteria will depend on the adoption of advanced strain engineering strategies such as rational design and assembly of orthogonal glycosylation pathways, genome-wide identification of metabolic engineering targets, and evolutionary engineering of pathway performance. Here, we highlight recent advances in the deployment of metabolic engineering tools and strategies to develop microbial cell glyco-factories for the production of high-value glycoprotein targets with applications in research and medicine.
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48
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McArthur JB, Yu H, Tasnima N, Lee CM, Fisher AJ, Chen X. α2-6-Neosialidase: A Sialyltransferase Mutant as a Sialyl Linkage-Specific Sialidase. ACS Chem Biol 2018. [PMID: 29543427 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.8b00002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The lack of α2-6-linkage specific sialidases limits the structural and functional studies of sialic-acid-containing molecules. Photobacterium damselae α2-6-sialyltransferase (Pd2,6ST) was shown previously to have α2-6-specific, but weak, sialidase activity. Here, we develop a high-throughput blue-white colony screening method to identify Pd2,6ST mutants with improved α2-6-sialidase activity from mutant libraries generated by sequential saturation mutagenesis. A triple mutant (Pd2,6ST S232L/T356S/W361F) has been identified with 100-fold improved activity, high α2-6-sialyl linkage selectivity, and ability to cleave two common sialic acid forms, N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) and N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc). It is a valuable tool for sialoglycan structural analysis and functional characterization. The sequential saturation mutagenesis and screening strategy developed here can be explored to evolve other linkage-specific neoglycosidases from the corresponding glycosyltransferases.
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Affiliation(s)
- John B. McArthur
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Hai Yu
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Nova Tasnima
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Christie M. Lee
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Andrew J. Fisher
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Xi Chen
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, California 95616, United States
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49
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Nidetzky B, Gutmann A, Zhong C. Leloir Glycosyltransferases as Biocatalysts for Chemical Production. ACS Catal 2018. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.8b00710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Bernd Nidetzky
- Institute of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, NAWI Graz, Petersgasse 12, A-8010 Graz, Austria
- Austrian Centre of Industrial Biotechnology (acib), Petersgasse 14, A-8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Alexander Gutmann
- Institute of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, NAWI Graz, Petersgasse 12, A-8010 Graz, Austria
| | - Chao Zhong
- Institute of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering, Graz University of Technology, NAWI Graz, Petersgasse 12, A-8010 Graz, Austria
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50
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Ma F, Chung MT, Yao Y, Nidetz R, Lee LM, Liu AP, Feng Y, Kurabayashi K, Yang GY. Efficient molecular evolution to generate enantioselective enzymes using a dual-channel microfluidic droplet screening platform. Nat Commun 2018; 9:1030. [PMID: 29531246 PMCID: PMC5847605 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-03492-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2017] [Accepted: 02/19/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Directed evolution has long been a key strategy to generate enzymes with desired properties like high selectivity, but experimental barriers and analytical costs of screening enormous mutant libraries have limited such efforts. Here, we describe an ultrahigh-throughput dual-channel microfluidic droplet screening system that can be used to screen up to ~107 enzyme variants per day. As an example case, we use the system to engineer the enantioselectivity of an esterase to preferentially produce desired enantiomers of profens, an important class of anti-inflammatory drugs. Using two types of screening working modes over the course of five rounds of directed evolution, we identify (from among 5 million mutants) a variant with 700-fold improved enantioselectivity for the desired (S)-profens. We thus demonstrate that this screening platform can be used to rapidly generate enzymes with desired enzymatic properties like enantiospecificity, chemospecificity, and regiospecificity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fuqiang Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Meng Ting Chung
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Yuan Yao
- MIIT Key Laboratory of Critical Materials Technology for New Energy Conversion and Storage, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150001, China
| | - Robert Nidetz
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Lap Man Lee
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Allen P Liu
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA
| | - Yan Feng
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Katsuo Kurabayashi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA.
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109, USA.
| | - Guang-Yu Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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