Difference between revisions of "Team:Technion Israel/Project/Cofactor"

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<p>To express the NADPH cofactor in order to create a better environment for the activity of the 3α-HSD enzyme.</p>
 
<p>To express the NADPH cofactor in order to create a better environment for the activity of the 3α-HSD enzyme.</p>
  
<h3>The Cofactor</i>?</h3>
+
<h3>The Cofactor</h3>
<p>Co-factors such as NADH and NADPH are essential for most enzymatic reactions, 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3α-HSD) among them. 3α-HSD enzyme catalyzes the reaction between 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and 3α-androstanediol (3α-Diol) using NADH and NADPH as co-factors; also studies show that this enzyme has higher affinity to NADPH  
+
<p>Co-factors such as NADH and NADPH are essential for most enzymatic reactions, 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3α-HSD) among them. 3α-HSD enzyme catalyzes the reaction between 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and 3α-androstanediol (3α-Diol) using NADH and NADPH as co-factors.  Studies show that this enzyme has higher affinity to NADPH<sup><a href="#fn2" id="ref1">2</a></sup>.</p>
</p>
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 +
<figure><img class="img_ctr" src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/e/e1/Technion_Israel_2015_overview-figure1.jpg"/><figcaption>Figure 1:Androgen metabolism in the human prostate<sup><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup></figcaption></figure>
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<p>While the reaction is reversible, and the oxidation direction isn’t preferable in our system, there is a necessity to ensure that the reaction only occurs in the desired direction in our system: the reduction of 5α-DHT into 3α-Diol. Additionally, studies have showed that in the presence of NADPH not only is the reduction reaction preferred, but the oxidation reaction is inhibited as well<sup><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup>.</p>
 +
<p>Therefore, we searched for a way to overproduce NADPH through synthetic biology and thereby provide the 3α-HSD enzyme with a cofactor, in excess.</p>
 +
 
 +
<h2>Genetic approach</h2>
 +
<p>NADPH, a molecule with major reducing power in organisms, is mostly generated in the pentose phosphate pathway<sup><a href="#fn3" id="ref1">3</a>,<a href="#fn4" id="ref1">4</a></sup>.</p>
 +
<p>We chose two ways to increase the flux to the pentose phosphate pathway and generate more NADPH:</br>
 +
<ol><li>We used <i>E.Coli</i> MG1655 with knockouts of the <i>pgi</i> and <i>UdhA</i> genes.  The deletion of <i>pgi</i> prevents the cells from using the glycolysis pathway and forces the metabolism into pentose phosphate pathway.
 +
The <i>UdhA</i> gene encodes a soluble transhydrogenase, which is believed to play a role in maintaining the balance between NADH and NADPH levels in the cell. Deletion of the <i>UdhA</i> gene inhibits the transformation of NADPH into NADH, thus enhancing the intracellular levels of NADPH. See Figure 2 for a schematic outline of the relevant metabolic pathways.
 +
As a result of these modifications, the <i>E.coli</i> MG1655 &#916;<i>pgi</i> &#916;<i>UdhA</i> strain is able to produce more NADPH than the <i>E.coli</i> MG1655 wild-type<sup><a href="#fn3" id="ref1">3</a></sup>.</br>
 +
We received the <i>E.coli</i> MG1655 knockout courtesy of Prof. Toby Fuhrer, Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, Switzerland. </li>
  
 +
<li>Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), encoded by the <i>zwf</i> gene, is a key enzyme in bacterial metabolism, as it is involved in both the glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathways. The G6PD enzyme catalyzes the oxidation of glucose-6-phosphate to 6-phosphoglucono-δ-lactone while generating NADPH <sup><a href="#fn4" id="ref1">4</a></sup>. Over-expressing <i>zwf</i> leads to over-production of the G6PD enzyme, which will yield higher concentrations of NADPH when compared to the wildtype. See Figure 2 for a schematic outline of the relevant metabolic pathways.</br>
 +
We cloned <i>zwf</i> from <i>E.coli</i> DH5α origin into a plasmid, and over-expressed it under the control of 2 different promoters.</br>
 +
The <i>zwf</i> gene was kindly contributed to us by Prof. Hanna Engleberg-Kulka’s lab, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.</li></ol></p>
  
<h2>Expression in <i>B. subtilis</i></h2>
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<p>The manipulations detailed above are, as stated, shown in Figure 2 below:</p>
<p> As stated above, our goal was to express  the 3α-HSD protein, originally from rat liver, and check whether it is able to fold properly and break down DHT.</p>
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  <figure><img class="img_ctr" src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/e/e1/Technion_Israel_2015_overview-figure1.jpg"/><figcaption>Figure 2:Androgen metabolism in the human prostate<sup><a href="#fn1" id="ref1">1</a></sup></figcaption></figure>
<p>For this purpose, we cloned 3α-HSD into <i>B.subtilis</i> under the inducible P<sub>hyper-spank</sub> promoter.</p>
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<p>pDR111 is a shuttle vector for <i>E.coli</i> and <i>B.subtilis</i>. When in <i>E.coli</i>, an ampicillin resistance gene is expressed and when in <i>B.subtilis</i>, a spectinomycin resistance is expressed. The plasmid contains homologous regions with the <i>B. subtilis</i> genome, enabling gene introduction by recombination into the nonessential amyE locus of the chromosomal DNA as a single copy.<sup><a href="#fn3" id="ref3">3</a></sup></p></p>
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<p>The plasmid also contains lacI gene for the inducible promoter P<sub>hyper-spank</sub>, making our inserted genes inducible with the addition of IPTG.</p>
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<p>In the lab, we inserted our gene in the multiple cloning site between the NheI and SalI restriction sites, which can be seen in the basic pDR111 plasmid below.</p>
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<img class="img_center" src= "https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/6/62/Technion_Israel_2015_project_bacillus_pdr111.png" alt="secretion plasmid"/>
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<p> In order to predict the target gene expression, we cloned mCherry into <i>B.subtilis</i>, since it is easier to track reporter genes. The simple, planned circuit of the gene in the shuttle vector is featured in the image below.</p>
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<img class= "img_center" src= "https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/e/ee/Technion_Israel_2015_project_bacillus_circuit-gene.png" alt="3a-HSD on pDR111"/>
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<h2>Secretion</h2>
 
<p>Secretion of the  3α-HSD enzyme was an extremely important component of our project.  The secretion would enable the bacteria to live on the consumer’s scalp, as opposed to being lysed in order to recover the enzyme.  This could reduce the production costs and improve product efficiency over time.</p>
 
<p>As mentioned previously, <i>B. subtilis</i>, as well as some other gram-positive bacteria, has protein secretion mechanisms and regularly secretes proteins such as various proteases.</p>
 
<p>In order to engineer the bacteria to meet our purposes, we fused our target gene coding for 3α-HSD to the signal peptide (SP) for the gene aprE, which encodes to extracellular alkaline-serine protease (subtilisin E), the most abundant protease secreted to the medium in wildtype <i>B. subtilis</i>. <sup><a href="#fn4" id="ref4">4</a></sup></p>
 
<p>By doing so, the  3α-HSD  enzyme could be recognized by the secretion system of the protease and could be excreted into the extracellular medium.</p>
 
<p> The circuit can be seen below.</p>
 
  
<img class="img_center" src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/9/90/Technion_Israel_2015_project_bacillus_circuit-gene-sp.png" alt="3a-HSD on pDR111 with SP" />
 
<p>Click here to see our results.</p>
 
  
 
<hr></hr>
 
<hr></hr>
  
<sup id="fn1">1. Roia, F. C.; Vanderwyk, R. W.:Resident Microbial Flora of the Human Scalp and its Relationship to Dandruff. Journal of The Society of Cosmetic Chemists. 1969, 20, 113-134.</sup></br>
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<sup id="fn1">1. Tea L. R.; Hsueh K. L.; Donna M. P.; Stephane S.; David R. B.; Trevor M. P.: Human type 3 3α-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase (aldo-keto reductase 1C2) and androgen metabolism in prostate cells. Endocrinology.  2003. 144(7). 2922-2932.</sup></br>
<sup id="fn2">2. Gonzales, D. J.; Haste, N. M.; Hollands, A.; Fleming, T. C.; Hamby, M.; Pogliano, K.; Nizet, V.; Dorrestein, P.C.: Microbial competition between Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus monitored by imaging mass spectrometry. Microbiology 2011, 157, 24985-2492.</sup></br>
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<sup id="fn2">2. Susan S. H.; John E. P.; Pedro M. A.; Trevor M. P.; Mitchell L.: Tree-dimensional structure of rat liver 3α-hydroxysteriod/dihydrodiol dehydrogenase: A member of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily. PNAS. 1994.91. 2517-2521.
<sup id="fn3">3. Härtle, B.; Wehrl, W.; Wiegert, T.; Homuth, G.; Schumann, W.: Development of a New Integration Site within the Bacillus subtilis Chromosome and Construction of Compatible Expression Cassettes. Journal of Bacteriology. 2001, 183, 2696-2699.  
+
 
</sup></br>
 
</sup></br>
<sup id="fn4">4. Antelmann, H.; Tjalsma, H.; Voigt, B.; Ohlmeier, S.; Bron, S.; Van Djil, Jan Maarten.; Hecker, M.: A Proteomic View on Genome-Based Signal Peptide Predictions. Genome Research. 2001, 11, 1484-1502.
+
<sup id="fn3">3. Fabrizio C.; Tracy A. H.; Sylvia H.; Taotao W.; Thomas S.; Uwe S.: Metabolic flux response to phosphoglucose isomerase knock-out in Escherichia coli and impact of overexpression of the soluble transhydrogenase UdhA. FEMS Microbiology Letters. 2001. 204. 247-252.
 
</sup></br>
 
</sup></br>
 +
<sup id="fn4">4. Sang-Jun L.; Young-Mi J.; Hyun-Dong S.; Yong-Hyun L.: Amplification of the NADPH-related genes zwf and gnd for the oddball biosynthesis of PHB in an E.coli transformant harboring a cloned phbCAB operon. Journal of bioscience and bioengineering. 2002. 93. 543-549. </sup></br>
 +
<sup id="fn5">5. Gerardo M.; Katy J.; Brenda V.; Gloria S.C.: Mechanism of Pseudomonas aeruginosa RhlR transcriptional regulation of the rhlAB promoter. Journal of bacteriology. 2003. 185(2). 5976-5983.</sup></br>
 
</div>
 
</div>
  

Revision as of 23:06, 17 September 2015

Team: Technion 2015

Cofactor

Introduction

Aim

To express the NADPH cofactor in order to create a better environment for the activity of the 3α-HSD enzyme.

The Cofactor

Co-factors such as NADH and NADPH are essential for most enzymatic reactions, 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3α-HSD) among them. 3α-HSD enzyme catalyzes the reaction between 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and 3α-androstanediol (3α-Diol) using NADH and NADPH as co-factors. Studies show that this enzyme has higher affinity to NADPH2.

Figure 1:Androgen metabolism in the human prostate1

While the reaction is reversible, and the oxidation direction isn’t preferable in our system, there is a necessity to ensure that the reaction only occurs in the desired direction in our system: the reduction of 5α-DHT into 3α-Diol. Additionally, studies have showed that in the presence of NADPH not only is the reduction reaction preferred, but the oxidation reaction is inhibited as well1.

Therefore, we searched for a way to overproduce NADPH through synthetic biology and thereby provide the 3α-HSD enzyme with a cofactor, in excess.

Genetic approach

NADPH, a molecule with major reducing power in organisms, is mostly generated in the pentose phosphate pathway3,4.

We chose two ways to increase the flux to the pentose phosphate pathway and generate more NADPH:

  1. We used E.Coli MG1655 with knockouts of the pgi and UdhA genes. The deletion of pgi prevents the cells from using the glycolysis pathway and forces the metabolism into pentose phosphate pathway. The UdhA gene encodes a soluble transhydrogenase, which is believed to play a role in maintaining the balance between NADH and NADPH levels in the cell. Deletion of the UdhA gene inhibits the transformation of NADPH into NADH, thus enhancing the intracellular levels of NADPH. See Figure 2 for a schematic outline of the relevant metabolic pathways. As a result of these modifications, the E.coli MG1655 Δpgi ΔUdhA strain is able to produce more NADPH than the E.coli MG1655 wild-type3.
    We received the E.coli MG1655 knockout courtesy of Prof. Toby Fuhrer, Institute of Molecular Systems Biology, Switzerland.
  2. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), encoded by the zwf gene, is a key enzyme in bacterial metabolism, as it is involved in both the glycolysis and pentose phosphate pathways. The G6PD enzyme catalyzes the oxidation of glucose-6-phosphate to 6-phosphoglucono-δ-lactone while generating NADPH 4. Over-expressing zwf leads to over-production of the G6PD enzyme, which will yield higher concentrations of NADPH when compared to the wildtype. See Figure 2 for a schematic outline of the relevant metabolic pathways.
    We cloned zwf from E.coli DH5α origin into a plasmid, and over-expressed it under the control of 2 different promoters.
    The zwf gene was kindly contributed to us by Prof. Hanna Engleberg-Kulka’s lab, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel.

The manipulations detailed above are, as stated, shown in Figure 2 below:

Figure 2:Androgen metabolism in the human prostate1

1. Tea L. R.; Hsueh K. L.; Donna M. P.; Stephane S.; David R. B.; Trevor M. P.: Human type 3 3α-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase (aldo-keto reductase 1C2) and androgen metabolism in prostate cells. Endocrinology. 2003. 144(7). 2922-2932.
2. Susan S. H.; John E. P.; Pedro M. A.; Trevor M. P.; Mitchell L.: Tree-dimensional structure of rat liver 3α-hydroxysteriod/dihydrodiol dehydrogenase: A member of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily. PNAS. 1994.91. 2517-2521.
3. Fabrizio C.; Tracy A. H.; Sylvia H.; Taotao W.; Thomas S.; Uwe S.: Metabolic flux response to phosphoglucose isomerase knock-out in Escherichia coli and impact of overexpression of the soluble transhydrogenase UdhA. FEMS Microbiology Letters. 2001. 204. 247-252.
4. Sang-Jun L.; Young-Mi J.; Hyun-Dong S.; Yong-Hyun L.: Amplification of the NADPH-related genes zwf and gnd for the oddball biosynthesis of PHB in an E.coli transformant harboring a cloned phbCAB operon. Journal of bioscience and bioengineering. 2002. 93. 543-549.
5. Gerardo M.; Katy J.; Brenda V.; Gloria S.C.: Mechanism of Pseudomonas aeruginosa RhlR transcriptional regulation of the rhlAB promoter. Journal of bacteriology. 2003. 185(2). 5976-5983.

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