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Kong D, Zhou Y, Wei Y, Wang X, Huang Q, Gao X, Wan H, Liu M, Kang L, Yu G, Yin J, Guan N, Ye H. Exploring plant-derived phytochrome chaperone proteins for light-switchable transcriptional regulation in mammals. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4894. [PMID: 38849338 PMCID: PMC11161646 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49254-5] [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: 01/04/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Synthetic biology applications require finely tuned gene expression, often mediated by synthetic transcription factors (sTFs) compatible with the human genome and transcriptional regulation mechanisms. While various DNA-binding and activation domains have been developed for different applications, advanced artificially controllable sTFs with improved regulatory capabilities are required for increasingly sophisticated applications. Here, in mammalian cells and mice, we validate the transactivator function and homo-/heterodimerization activity of the plant-derived phytochrome chaperone proteins, FHY1 and FHL. Our results demonstrate that FHY1/FHL form a photosensing transcriptional regulation complex (PTRC) through interaction with the phytochrome, ΔPhyA, that can toggle between active and inactive states through exposure to red or far-red light, respectively. Exploiting this capability, we develop a light-switchable platform that allows for orthogonal, modular, and tunable control of gene transcription, and incorporate it into a PTRC-controlled CRISPRa system (PTRCdcas) to modulate endogenous gene expression. We then integrate the PTRC with small molecule- or blue light-inducible regulatory modules to construct a variety of highly tunable systems that allow rapid and reversible control of transcriptional regulation in vitro and in vivo. Validation and deployment of these plant-derived phytochrome chaperone proteins in a PTRC platform have produced a versatile, powerful tool for advanced research and biomedical engineering applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deqiang Kong
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Yang Zhou
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
- Wuhu Hospital, Health Science Center, East China Normal University, Middle Jiuhua Road 263, Wuhu City, China
| | - Yu Wei
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Xinyi Wang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Qin Huang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Xianyun Gao
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Hang Wan
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Mengyao Liu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Liping Kang
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Guiling Yu
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Jianli Yin
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Precision Optics, Chongqing Institute of East China Normal University, Chongqing, 401120, China
| | - Ningzi Guan
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China.
| | - Haifeng Ye
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Genome Editing and Cell Therapy, Biomedical Synthetic Biology Research Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, Institute of Biomedical Sciences and School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Dongchuan Road 500, Shanghai, 200241, China.
- Wuhu Hospital, Health Science Center, East China Normal University, Middle Jiuhua Road 263, Wuhu City, China.
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Tague N, Coriano-Ortiz C, Sheets MB, Dunlop MJ. Light-inducible protein degradation in E. coli with the LOVdeg tag. eLife 2024; 12:RP87303. [PMID: 38270583 PMCID: PMC10945698 DOI: 10.7554/elife.87303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Molecular tools for optogenetic control allow for spatial and temporal regulation of cell behavior. In particular, light-controlled protein degradation is a valuable mechanism of regulation because it can be highly modular, used in tandem with other control mechanisms, and maintain functionality throughout growth phases. Here, we engineered LOVdeg, a tag that can be appended to a protein of interest for inducible degradation in Escherichia coli using blue light. We demonstrate the modularity of LOVdeg by using it to tag a range of proteins, including the LacI repressor, CRISPRa activator, and the AcrB efflux pump. Additionally, we demonstrate the utility of pairing the LOVdeg tag with existing optogenetic tools to enhance performance by developing a combined EL222 and LOVdeg system. Finally, we use the LOVdeg tag in a metabolic engineering application to demonstrate post-translational control of metabolism. Together, our results highlight the modularity and functionality of the LOVdeg tag system and introduce a powerful new tool for bacterial optogenetics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan Tague
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
- Biological Design Center, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
| | - Cristian Coriano-Ortiz
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
- Biological Design Center, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
| | - Michael B Sheets
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
- Biological Design Center, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
| | - Mary J Dunlop
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
- Biological Design Center, Boston UniversityBostonUnited States
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Gligorovski V, Rahi SJ. Construction and Characterization of Light-Responsive Transcriptional Systems. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2844:261-275. [PMID: 39068346 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-4063-0_18] [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] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
Optogenetic tools provide a means for controlling cellular processes that is rapid, noninvasive, and spatially and temporally precise. With the increase in available optogenetic systems, quantitative comparisons of their performances become important to guide experiments. In this chapter, we first discuss how photoreceptors can be repurposed for light-mediated control of transcription. Then, we provide a detailed protocol for characterizing light-regulated transcriptional systems in budding yeast using fluorescence time-lapse microscopy and mathematical modeling, expanding on our recent publication (Gligorovski et al., Nat Commun 14:3810, 2023).
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Affiliation(s)
- Vojislav Gligorovski
- Laboratory of the Physics of Biological Systems, Institute of Physics, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Sahand Jamal Rahi
- Laboratory of the Physics of Biological Systems, Institute of Physics, École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Tague N, Andreani V, Fan Y, Timp W, Dunlop MJ. Comprehensive Screening of a Light-Inducible Split Cre Recombinase with Domain Insertion Profiling. ACS Synth Biol 2023; 12:2834-2842. [PMID: 37788288 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.3c00328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/05/2023]
Abstract
Splitting proteins with light- or chemically inducible dimers provides a mechanism for post-translational control of protein function. However, current methods for engineering stimulus-responsive split proteins often require significant protein engineering expertise and the laborious screening of individual constructs. To address this challenge, we use a pooled library approach that enables rapid generation and screening of nearly all possible split protein constructs in parallel, where results can be read out by using sequencing. We perform our method on Cre recombinase with optogenetic dimers as a proof of concept, resulting in comprehensive data on the split sites throughout the protein. To improve the accuracy in predicting split protein behavior, we develop a Bayesian computational approach to contextualize errors inherent to experimental procedures. Overall, our method provides a streamlined approach for achieving inducible post-translational control of a protein of interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan Tague
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
| | - Virgile Andreani
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
| | - Yunfan Fan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, United States
| | - Winston Timp
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, United States
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, United States
| | - Mary J Dunlop
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
- Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
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