Dataset Information

Development of a plasmid-based expression system in Clostridium thermocellum and its use to screen heterologous expression of bifunctional alcohol dehydrogenases (adhEs).

ABSTRACT: Clostridium thermocellum is a promising candidate for ethanol production from cellulosic biomass, but requires metabolic engineering to improve ethanol yield. A key gene in the ethanol production pathway is the bifunctional aldehyde and alcohol dehydrogenase, adhE. To explore the effects of overexpressing wild-type, mutant, and exogenous adhEs, we developed a new expression plasmid, pDGO144, that exhibited improved transformation efficiency and better gene expression than its predecessor, pDGO-66. This new expression plasmid will allow for many other metabolic engineering and basic research efforts in C. thermocellum. As proof of concept, we used this plasmid to express 12 different adhE genes (both wild type and mutant) from several organisms. Ethanol production varied between clones immediately after transformation, but tended to converge to a single value after several rounds of serial transfer. The previously described mutant C. thermocellum D494G adhE gave the best ethanol production, which is consistent with previously published results.

SUBMITTER: Hon S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5678826 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Development of a plasmid-based expression system in Clostridium thermocellum and its use to screen heterologous expression of bifunctional alcohol dehydrogenases (adhEs).

Hon Shuen S Lanahan Anthony A AA Tian Liang L Giannone Richard J RJ Hettich Robert L RL Olson Daniel G DG Lynd Lee R LR

Metabolic engineering communications 20160422

Clostridium thermocellum is a promising candidate for ethanol production from cellulosic biomass, but requires metabolic engineering to improve ethanol yield. A key gene in the ethanol production pathway is the bifunctional aldehyde and alcohol dehydrogenase, adhE. To explore the effects of overexpressing wild-type, mutant, and exogenous adhEs, we developed a new expression plasmid, pDGO144, that exhibited improved transformation efficiency and better gene expression than it ...[more]

PMID: 29142822

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Project description:UnlabelledThermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum and Clostridium thermocellum are anaerobic thermophilic bacteria being investigated for their ability to produce biofuels from plant biomass. The bifunctional alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenase gene, adhE, is present in these bacteria and has been known to be important for ethanol formation in other anaerobic alcohol producers. This study explores the inactivation of the adhE gene in C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum. Deletion of adhE reduced ethanol production by >95% in both T. saccharolyticum and C. thermocellum, confirming that adhE is necessary for ethanol formation in both organisms. In both adhE deletion strains, fermentation products shifted from ethanol to lactate production and resulted in lower cell density and longer time to reach maximal cell density. In T. saccharolyticum, the adhE deletion strain lost >85% of alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity. Aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) activity did not appear to be affected, although ALDH activity was low in cell extracts. Adding ubiquinone-0 to the ALDH assay increased activity in the T. saccharolyticum parent strain but did not increase activity in the adhE deletion strain, suggesting that ALDH activity was inhibited. In C. thermocellum, the adhE deletion strain lost >90% of ALDH and ADH activity in cell extracts. The C. thermocellum adhE deletion strain contained a point mutation in the lactate dehydrogenase gene, which appears to deregulate its activation by fructose 1,6-bisphosphate, leading to constitutive activation of lactate dehydrogenase.ImportanceThermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum and Clostridium thermocellum are bacteria that have been investigated for their ability to produce biofuels from plant biomass. They have been engineered to produce higher yields of ethanol, yet questions remain about the enzymes responsible for ethanol formation in these bacteria. The genomes of these bacteria encode multiple predicted aldehyde and alcohol dehydrogenases which could be responsible for alcohol formation. This study explores the inactivation of adhE, a gene encoding a bifunctional alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenase. Deletion of adhE reduced ethanol production by >95% in both T. saccharolyticum and C. thermocellum, confirming that adhE is necessary for ethanol formation in both organisms. In strains without adhE, we note changes in biochemical activity, product formation, and growth.

Project description:UnlabelledClostridium thermocellum and Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum are thermophilic bacteria that have been engineered to produce ethanol from the cellulose and hemicellulose fractions of biomass, respectively. Although engineered strains of T. saccharolyticum produce ethanol with a yield of 90% of the theoretical maximum, engineered strains of C. thermocellum produce ethanol at lower yields (∼50% of the theoretical maximum). In the course of engineering these strains, a number of mutations have been discovered in their adhE genes, which encode both alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) enzymes. To understand the effects of these mutations, the adhE genes from six strains of C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum were cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli, the enzymes produced were purified by affinity chromatography, and enzyme activity was measured. In wild-type strains of both organisms, NADH was the preferred cofactor for both ALDH and ADH activities. In high-ethanol-producing (ethanologen) strains of T. saccharolyticum, both ALDH and ADH activities showed increased NADPH-linked activity. Interestingly, the AdhE protein of the ethanologenic strain of C. thermocellum has acquired high NADPH-linked ADH activity while maintaining NADH-linked ALDH and ADH activities at wild-type levels. When single amino acid mutations in AdhE that caused increased NADPH-linked ADH activity were introduced into C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum, ethanol production increased in both organisms. Structural analysis of the wild-type and mutant AdhE proteins was performed to provide explanations for the cofactor specificity change on a molecular level.ImportanceThis work describes the characterization of the AdhE enzyme from different strains of C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum. C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum are thermophilic anaerobes that have been engineered to make high yields of ethanol and can solubilize components of plant biomass and ferment the sugars to ethanol. In the course of engineering these strains, several mutations arose in the bifunctional ADH/ALDH protein AdhE, changing both enzyme activity and cofactor specificity. We show that changing AdhE cofactor specificity from mostly NADH linked to mostly NADPH linked resulted in higher ethanol production by C. thermocellum and T. saccharolyticum.

Project description:BACKGROUND: Kluyveromyces marxianus has recently become a species of interest for ethanol production since it can produce ethanol at high temperature and on a wide variety of substrates. However, the reason why this yeast can produce ethanol at high temperature is largely unknown. RESULTS: The ethanol fermentation capability of K. marxianus GX-UN120 at 40°? was found to be the same as that of Saccharomyces cerevisiae at 34°?. Zymogram analysis showed that alcohol dehydrogenase 1 (KmAdh1) was largely induced during ethanol production, KmAdh4 was constitutively expressed at a lower level and KmAdh2 and KmAdh3 were almost undetectable. The genes encoding the four alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs) were cloned from strain GX-UN120. Each KmADH was expressed in Escherichia coli and each recombinant protein was digested with enterokinase to remove the fusion protein. The optimum pH of the purified recombinant KmAdh1 was 8.0 and that of KmAdh2, KmAdh3 and KmAdh4 was 7.0. The optimum temperatures of KmAdh1, KmAdh2, KmAdh3 and KmAdh4 were 50, 45, 55 and 45°C, respectively. The K(m) values of the recombinant KmAdh1 and KmAdh2 were 4.0 and 1.2 mM for acetaldehyde and 39.7 and 49.5 mM for ethanol, respectively. The V(max) values of the recombinant KmAdh1 and KmAdh2 were 114.9 and 21.6 ?mol min?¹ mg?¹ for acetaldehyde and 57.5 and 1.8 ?mol min?¹ mg?¹ for ethanol, respectively. KmAdh3 and KmAdh4 catalyze the oxidation reaction of ethanol to acetaldehyde but not the reduction reaction of acetaldehyde to ethanol, and the K(m) values of the recombinant KmAdh3 and KmAdh4 were 26.0 and 17.0 mM for ethanol, respectively. The V(max) values of the recombinant KmAdh3 and KmAdh4 were 12.8 and 56.2 ?mol min?¹ mg?¹ for ethanol, respectively. CONCLUSION: These data in this study collectively indicate that KmAdh1 is the primary ADH responsible for the production of ethanol from the reduction of acetaldehyde in K. marxianus. The relatively high optimum temperature of KmAdh1 may partially explain the ability of K. marxianus to produce ethanol at high temperature. Understanding the biochemical characteristics of KmAdhs will enhance our fundamental knowledge of the metabolism of ethanol fermentation in K. marxianus.

Dataset Information

Development of a plasmid-based expression system in Clostridium thermocellum and its use to screen heterologous expression of bifunctional alcohol dehydrogenases (adhEs).

Publications

Development of a plasmid-based expression system in <i>Clostridium thermocellum</i> and its use to screen heterologous expression of bifunctional alcohol dehydrogenases (<i>adhE</i>s).

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