Regulatory citrate lyase mutants of Salmonella typhimurium

Eliminating side products and increasing succinate yields in engineered strains of Escherichia coli C

Derivatives of Escherichia coli C were previously described for succinate production by combining the deletion of genes that disrupt fermentation pathways for alternative products (ldhA::FRT, adhE::FRT, ackA::FRT, focA-pflB::FRT, mgsA, poxB) with growth-based selection for increased ATP production. The resulting strain, KJ073, produced 1.2 mol of succinate per mol glucose in mineral salts medium with acetate, malate, and pyruvate as significant co-products. KJ073 has been further improved by removing residual recombinase sites (FRT sites) from the chromosomal regions of gene deletion to create a strain devoid of foreign DNA, strain KJ091(DeltaldhA DeltaadhE DeltaackA DeltafocA-pflB DeltamgsA DeltapoxB). KJ091 was further engineered for improvements in succinate production. Deletion of the threonine decarboxylase (tdcD; acetate kinase homologue) and 2-ketobutyrate formate-lyase (tdcE; pyruvate formate-lyase homologue) reduced the acetate level by 50% and increased succinate yield (1.3 mol mol(-1) glucose) by almost 10% as compared to KJ091 and KJ073. Deletion of two genes involved in oxaloacetate metabolism, aspartate aminotransferase (aspC) and the NAD(+)-linked malic enzyme (sfcA) (KJ122) significantly increased succinate yield (1.5 mol mol(-1) glucose), succinate titer (700 mM), and average volumetric productivity (0.9 g L(-1) h(-1)). Residual pyruvate and acetate were substantially reduced by further deletion of pta encoding phosphotransacetylase to produce KJ134 (DeltaldhA DeltaadhE DeltafocA-pflB DeltamgsA DeltapoxB DeltatdcDE DeltacitF DeltaaspC DeltasfcA Deltapta-ackA). Strains KJ122 and KJ134 produced near theoretical yields of succinate during simple, anaerobic, batch fermentations using mineral salts medium. Both may be useful as biocatalysts for the commercial production of succinate.

Cloning and DNA sequence of a plasmid-determined citrate utilization system in Escherichia coli

The citrate utilization determinant from a large 200-kilobase (kb) naturally occurring plasmid was previously cloned into the PstI site of plasmid vector pBR325 creating the Cit+ tetracycline resistance plasmid pWR61 (15 kb). Tn5 insertion mutagenesis analysis of plasmid pWR61 limited the segment responsible for citrate utilization to a 4.8-kb region bordered by EcoRI and PstI restriction nuclease sites. The 4.8-kb fragment was cloned into phage M13, and the DNA sequence was determined by the dideoxyribonucleotide method. Within this sequence was a 1,296-base-pair open reading frame with a preceding ribosomal binding site. The 431-amino-acid polypeptide that could be translated from this open reading frame would be highly hydrophobic. A second long open reading frame with the potential of encoding a 379-amino-acid polypeptide preceded the larger open reading frame. Portions of the 4.8-kb fragment were further subcloned with restriction endonucleases BglII and BamHI, reducing the minimum size needed for a citrate-positive phenotype to a 1.9-kb BamHI-BglII fragment (which includes the coding region for the 431-amino-acid polypeptide, but only the distal 2/3 of the reading frame for the 379-amino-acid polypeptide). Citrate utilization results from a citrate transport activity encoded by the plasmid. With the 4.8-kb fragment (as with larger fragments) the citrate transport activity was inducible by growth on citrate. On transfer from glucose, succinate, malate, or glycerol medium to citrate medium, the Cit+ Escherichia coli strains showed a delay of 36 to 48 h before growth.