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Liu Z, van Veen E, Sánchez H, Solano B, Palmero Moya FJ, McCluskey KA, Ramírez Montero D, van Laar T, Dekker NH. A Biophysics Toolbox for Reliable Data Acquisition and Processing in Integrated Force-Confocal Fluorescence Microscopy. ACS PHOTONICS 2024; 11:1592-1603. [PMID: 38645993 PMCID: PMC11027178 DOI: 10.1021/acsphotonics.3c01739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Revised: 03/01/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/23/2024]
Abstract
Integrated single-molecule force-fluorescence spectroscopy setups allow for simultaneous fluorescence imaging and mechanical force manipulation and measurements on individual molecules, providing comprehensive dynamic and spatiotemporal information. Dual-beam optical tweezers (OT) combined with a confocal scanning microscope form a force-fluorescence spectroscopy apparatus broadly used to investigate various biological processes, in particular, protein:DNA interactions. Such experiments typically involve imaging of fluorescently labeled proteins bound to DNA and force spectroscopy measurements of trapped individual DNA molecules. Here, we present a versatile state-of-the-art toolbox including the preparation of protein:DNA complex samples, design of a microfluidic flow cell incorporated with OT, automation of OT-confocal scanning measurements, and the development and implementation of a streamlined data analysis package for force and fluorescence spectroscopy data processing. Its components can be adapted to any commercialized or home-built dual-beam OT setup equipped with a confocal scanning microscope, which will facilitate single-molecule force-fluorescence spectroscopy studies on a large variety of biological systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhaowei Liu
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Edo van Veen
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Humberto Sánchez
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Belén Solano
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Francisco J. Palmero Moya
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Kaley A. McCluskey
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Daniel Ramírez Montero
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Theo van Laar
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Nynke H. Dekker
- Department
of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, 2629 HZ Delft, The Netherlands
- Clarendon
Laboratory, Department of Physics, University
of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PU, U.K.
- Kavli
Institute of Nanoscience Discovery, University
of Oxford, Dorothy Crowfoot
Hodgkin Building, Oxford OX1 3QU, U.K.
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Ramírez Montero D, Liu Z, Dekker NH. De novo fabrication of custom-sequence plasmids for the synthesis of long DNA constructs with extrahelical features. Biophys J 2024; 123:31-41. [PMID: 37968907 PMCID: PMC10808024 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2023.11.008] [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: 08/28/2023] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023] Open
Abstract
DNA constructs for single-molecule experiments often require specific sequences and/or extrahelical/noncanonical structures to study DNA-processing mechanisms. The precise introduction of such structures requires extensive control of the sequence of the initial DNA substrate. A commonly used substrate in the synthesis of DNA constructs is plasmid DNA. Nevertheless, the controlled introduction of specific sequences and extrahelical/noncanonical structures into plasmids often requires several rounds of cloning on pre-existing plasmids whose sequence one cannot fully control. Here, we describe a simple and efficient way to synthesize 10.1-kb plasmids de novo using synthetic gBlocks that provides full control of the sequence. Using these plasmids, we developed a 1.5-day protocol to assemble 10.1-kb linear DNA constructs with end and internal modifications. As a proof of principle, we synthesize two different DNA constructs with biotinylated ends and one or two internal 3' single-stranded DNA flaps, characterize them using single-molecule force and fluorescence spectroscopy, and functionally validate them by showing that the eukaryotic replicative helicase Cdc45/Mcm2-7/GINS (CMG) binds the 3' single-stranded DNA flap and translocates in the expected direction. We anticipate that our approach can be used to synthesize custom-sequence DNA constructs for a variety of force and fluorescence single-molecule spectroscopy experiments to interrogate DNA replication, DNA repair, and transcription.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Ramírez Montero
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands
| | - Zhaowei Liu
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands
| | - Nynke H Dekker
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands.
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Dulin D. An Introduction to Magnetic Tweezers. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2694:375-401. [PMID: 37824014 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3377-9_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: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic tweezers are a single-molecule force and torque spectroscopy technique that enable the mechanical interrogation in vitro of biomolecules, such as nucleic acids and proteins. They use a magnetic field originating from either permanent magnets or electromagnets to attract a magnetic particle, thus stretching the tethering biomolecule. They nicely complement other force spectroscopy techniques such as optical tweezers and atomic force microscopy (AFM) as they operate as a very stable force clamp, enabling long-duration experiments over a very broad range of forces spanning from 10 fN to 1 nN, with 1-10 milliseconds time and sub-nanometer spatial resolution. Their simplicity, robustness, and versatility have made magnetic tweezers a key technique within the field of single-molecule biophysics, being broadly applied to study the mechanical properties of, e.g., nucleic acids, genome processing molecular motors, protein folding, and nucleoprotein filaments. Furthermore, magnetic tweezers allow for high-throughput single-molecule measurements by tracking hundreds of biomolecules simultaneously both in real-time and at high spatiotemporal resolution. Magnetic tweezers naturally combine with surface-based fluorescence spectroscopy techniques, such as total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy, enabling correlative fluorescence and force/torque spectroscopy on biomolecules. This chapter presents an introduction to magnetic tweezers including a description of the hardware, the theory behind force calibration, its spatiotemporal resolution, combining it with other techniques, and a (non-exhaustive) overview of biological applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Dulin
- LaserLaB Amsterdam and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
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Lin J, Yin X, Zeng Y, Hong X, Zhang S, Cui B, Zhu Q, Liang Z, Xue Z, Yang D. Progress and prospect: Biosynthesis of plant natural products based on plant chassis. Biotechnol Adv 2023; 69:108266. [PMID: 37778531 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2023.108266] [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: 06/13/2023] [Revised: 09/24/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023]
Abstract
Plant-derived natural products are a specific class of active substances with numerous applications in the medical, energy, and industrial fields. Many of these substances are in high demand and have become the fundamental materials for various purposes. Recently, the use of synthetic biology to produce plant-derived natural products has become a significant trend. Plant chassis, in particular, offer unique advantages over microbial chassis in terms of cell structure, product affinity, safety, and storage. The development of the plant hairy root tissue culture system has accelerated the commercialization and industrialization of synthetic biology in the production of plant-derived natural products. This paper will present recent progress in the synthesis of various plant natural products using plant chassis, organized by the types of different structures. Additionally, we will summarize the four primary types of plant chassis used for synthesizing natural products from plant sources and review the enabling technologies that have contributed to the development of synthetic biology in recent years. Finally, we will present the role of isolated and combined use of different optimization strategies in breaking the upper limit of natural product production in plant chassis. This review aims to provide practical references for synthetic biologists and highlight the great commercial potential of plant chassis biosynthesis, such as hairy roots.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junjie Lin
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Key Laboratory of Plant Secondary Metabolism and Regulation in Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xue Yin
- Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Saline-alkali Vegetation Ecology Restoration, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China
| | - Youran Zeng
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Key Laboratory of Plant Secondary Metabolism and Regulation in Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xinyu Hong
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Key Laboratory of Plant Secondary Metabolism and Regulation in Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Shuncang Zhang
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
| | - Beimi Cui
- Institute of Molecular Plant Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, UK
| | - Qinlong Zhu
- College of Life Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Zongsuo Liang
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Key Laboratory of Plant Secondary Metabolism and Regulation in Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Zheyong Xue
- Ministry of Education, Key Laboratory of Saline-alkali Vegetation Ecology Restoration, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China..
| | - Dongfeng Yang
- College of Life Sciences and Medicine, Key Laboratory of Plant Secondary Metabolism and Regulation in Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China; Shaoxing Biomedical Research Institute of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University Co., Ltd, Zhejiang Engineering Research Center for the Development Technology of Medicinal and Edible Homologous Health Food, Shaoxing 312075, China.
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Du B, Sun M, Hui W, Xie C, Xu X. Recent Advances on Key Enzymes of Microbial Origin in the Lycopene Biosynthesis Pathway. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2023; 71:12927-12942. [PMID: 37609695 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.3c03942] [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: 08/24/2023]
Abstract
Lycopene is a common carotenoid found mainly in ripe red fruits and vegetables that is widely used in the food industry due to its characteristic color and health benefits. Microbial synthesis of lycopene is gradually replacing the traditional methods of plant extraction and chemical synthesis as a more economical and productive manufacturing strategy. The biosynthesis of lycopene is a typical multienzyme cascade reaction, and it is important to understand the characteristics of each key enzyme involved and how they are regulated. In this paper, the catalytic characteristics of the key enzymes involved in the lycopene biosynthesis pathway and related studies are first discussed in detail. Then, the strategies applied to the key enzymes of lycopene synthesis, including fusion proteins, enzyme screening, combinatorial engineering, CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing, DNA assembly, and scaffolding technologies are purposefully illustrated and compared in terms of both traditional and emerging multienzyme regulatory strategies. Finally, future developments and regulatory options for multienzyme synthesis of lycopene and similar secondary metabolites are also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bangmian Du
- School of Food Science and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Mengjuan Sun
- School of Food Science and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Wenyang Hui
- School of Food Science and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Chengjia Xie
- School of Chemical Engineering, Yangzhou Polytechnic Institute, Yangzhou 225127, Jiangsu Province, China
| | - Xian Xu
- School of Food Science and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210046, Jiangsu Province, China
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Guo L, Zhao W, Wang Y, Yang Y, Wei C, Guo J, Dai J, Hirai MY, Bao A, Yang Z, Chen H, Li Y. Heterologous biosynthesis of isobavachalcone in tobacco based on in planta screening of prenyltransferases. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:1034625. [PMID: 36275607 PMCID: PMC9582842 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.1034625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Isobavachalcone (IBC) is a prenylated chalcone mainly distributed in some Fabaceae and Moraceae species. IBC exhibits a wide range of pharmacological properties, including anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer activities. In this study, we attempted to construct the heterologous biosynthesis pathway of IBC in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). Four previously reported prenyltransferases, including GuILDT from Glycyrrhiza uralensis, HlPT1 from Humulus lupulus, and SfILDT and SfFPT from Sophora flavescens, were subjected to an in planta screening to verify their activities for the biosynthesis of IBC, by using tobacco transient expression with exogenous isoliquiritigenin as the substrate. Only SfFPT and HlPT1 could convert isoliquiritigenin to IBC, and the activity of SfFPT was higher than that of HlPT1. By co-expression of GmCHS8 and GmCHR5 from Glycine max, endogenous isoliquiritigenin was generated in tobacco leaves (21.0 μg/g dry weight). After transformation with a multigene vector carrying GmCHS8, GmCHR5, and SfFPT, de novo biosynthesis of IBC was achieved in transgenic tobacco T0 lines, in which the highest amount of IBC was 0.56 μg/g dry weight. The yield of IBC in transgenic plants was nearly equal to that in SfFPT transient expression experiments, in which substrate supplement was sufficient, indicating that low IBC yield was not attributed to the substrate supplement. Our research provided a prospect to produce valuable prenylflavonoids using plant-based metabolic engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lirong Guo
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Wei Zhao
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yan Wang
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Yu Yang
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Cuimei Wei
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Jian Guo
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Jianye Dai
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | | | - Aike Bao
- College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Zhigang Yang
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
| | - Haijuan Chen
- Key Laboratory of Medicinal Animal and Plant Resources of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Academy of Plateau Science and Sustainability, Qinghai Normal University, Xining, China
| | - Yimeng Li
- School of Pharmacy, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China
- RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Yokohama, Japan
- Key Laboratory of Medicinal Animal and Plant Resources of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, Academy of Plateau Science and Sustainability, Qinghai Normal University, Xining, China
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