[Identification and characterization of a novel polyamide hydrolase].

The widespread use of non-naturally degradable plastics is causing increasingly serious harm to the environment. Reducing plastic pollutants has become the core of ecological and environment management. Biological methods such as enzymes demonstrate advantages in depolymerizing plastics with mild reaction conditions and recycling of depolymerization products.

[Screening and engineering of a protocatechuic acid decarboxylase for efficient biosynthesis of catechol].

Catechol (CA) is an important chemical and pharmaceutical intermediate with wide applications. At present, CA is produced by phenol hydroxylation with non-renewable petrochemical resources, which causes serious environmental pollution. Hence, the biosynthesis of CA attracts much attention recently.

[Research progress of the multifunctional oxidase scopolamine 6β-hydroxylase].

2-ketoglutarate (2-KG)/Fe-dependent dioxygenases can catalyze the highly specific regio- and stereoselective functionalization of C(sp)-H bond of complex compounds under mild reaction conditions. Hyoscyamine 6β-hydroxylase (H6H), a member of these dioxygenases, catalyzes two consecutive oxidation reactions in the synthesis of scopolamine. The first reaction is the hydroxylation of hyoscyamine to 6β-hydroxyhyoscyamine and the second is epoxidation of 6β-hydroxyhyoscyamine.

[Construction of Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell factories for fermentation production of retinol].

Retinol is one of the main active forms of vitamin A, crucial for the organism's growth, development, and maintenance of eye and skin functions. It is widely used in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and feed additives. Although animals lack a complete pathway for synthesizing vitamin A internally, they can obtain vitamin A directly through diet or convert β-carotene acquired from the diet.

Redesigning glycolaldehyde synthase for the synthesis of biorefinery feedstock D-xylulose from C1 compounds.

Global climate deterioration intensifies the demand for exploiting efficient CO utilization approaches. Converting CO to biorefinery feedstock affords an alternative strategy for third-generation biorefineries. However, upcycling CO into complex chiral carbohydrates remains a major challenge.

Harnessing the power of artificial intelligence for human living organoid research.

As a powerful paradigm, artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly impacting every aspect of our day-to-day life and scientific research through interdisciplinary transformations. Living human organoids (LOs) have a great potential for reshaping many aspects of true human organs, including organ development, disease occurrence, and drug responses. To date, AI has driven the revolutionary advances of human organoids in life science, precision medicine and pharmaceutical science in an unprecedented way.

Substrate specificity of a branch of aromatic dioxygenases determined by three distinct motifs.

The inversion of substrate size specificity is an evolutionary roadblock for proteins. The Duf4243 dioxygenases GedK and BTG13 are known to catalyze the aromatic cleavage of bulky tricyclic hydroquinone. In this study, we discover a Duf4243 dioxygenase PaD that favors small monocyclic hydroquinones from the penicillic-acid biosynthetic pathway.

Metabolic engineering of Escherichia coli for high-level production of benzyl acetate from glucose.

Background: Benzyl acetate is an aromatic ester with a jasmine scent. It was discovered in plants and has broad applications in food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries. Its current production predominantly relies on chemical synthesis.

Rational enzyme design by reducing the number of hotspots and library size.

Biocatalysts that are eco-friendly, sustainable, and highly specific have great potential for applications in the production of fine chemicals, food, detergents, biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and more. However, due to factors such as low activity, narrow substrate scope, poor thermostability, or incorrect selectivity, most natural enzymes cannot be directly used for large-scale production of the desired products. To overcome these obstacles, protein engineering methods have been developed over decades and have become powerful and versatile tools for adapting enzymes with improved catalytic properties or new functions.

[Enzyme engineering in microbial biosynthesis of terpenoids: progress and perspectives].

Terpenoids, known for their structural and functional diversity, are highly valued, especially in food, cosmetics, and cleaning products. Microbial biosynthesis has emerged as a sustainable and environmentally friendly approach for the production of terpenoids. However, the natural enzymes involved in the synthesis of terpenoids have problems such as low activity, poor specificity, and insufficient stability, which limit the biosynthesis efficiency.

[Microbial production of 1, 3-propanediol: a transition of feedstocks from C6 to C3 and C1 carbon sources].

1, 3-propanediol (1, 3-PDO) is an important diol with wide applications in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetics industries. In addition, 1, 3-PDO serves as a crucial monomer in the synthesis of polytrimethylene terephthalate, an important synthetic fiber material. Microbial conversion of renewable resources such as glucose into 1, 3-PDO has been industrialized due to its environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, safe, and sustainable characteristics.

Integrated analyses of the intestinal microbiome and transcriptome in Ningxiang piglets.

Ningxiang (NX) pig has been recognized as one of the most famous Chinese indigenous breeds due to its characteristics in stress resistance. However, intestinal microbial feature and gene profiling in NX piglets have not been studied. Here, we compared the intestinal microbiome and transcriptome between NX and Duroc × Landrace × Large white (DLY) piglets and found the high enrichment of several colonic Bacteroides, Prevotella and Clostridium species in NX piglets.

BsuMI regulates DNA transformation in Bacillus subtilis besides the defense system and the constructed strain with BsuMI-absence is applicable as a universal transformation platform for wild-type Bacillus.

Background: To effectively introduce plasmids into Bacillus species and conduct genetic manipulations in Bacillus chassis strains, it is essential to optimize transformation methods. These methods aim to extend the period of competence and enhance the permeability of the cell membrane to facilitate the entry of exogenous DNA. Although various strategies have been explored, few studies have delved into identifying metabolites and pathways associated with enhanced competence.

Enhancement of astaxanthin accumulation via energy reassignment by removing the flagella of Haematococcus pluvialis.

Astaxanthin biosynthesis in Haematococcus pluvialis is driven by energy. However, the effect of the flagella-mediated energy-consuming movement process on astaxanthin accumulation has not been well studied. In this study, the profiles of astaxanthin and NADPH contents in combination with the photosynthetic parameters with or without flagella enabled by pH shock were characterized.

A Light-Powered Synthetic Enzymatic Biosystem for the Synthesis of 3-Hydroxypropionic Acid via CO Fixation.

3-Hydroxypropionic acid (3-HP) is a highly sought-after platform chemical serving as a precursor to a variety of high value-added chemical products. In this study, we designed and constructed a novel light-powered synthetic enzymatic biosystem comprising acetyl-CoA ligase, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, malonyl-CoA reductase, and phosphotransferase to efficiently produce 3-HP through CO fixation from acetate, a cost-effective and readily available substrate. The system employed natural thylakoid membranes (TMs) for the regeneration of adenosine triphosphate and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate.

N-Terminal Sequences of Signal Peptides Assuming Critical Roles in Expression of Heterologous Proteins in .

The N-terminal sequences of proteins and their corresponding encoding sequences may play crucial roles in the heterologous expression. In this study, the secretory expression of alkaline pectin lyase APL in was investigated to explore the effects of the N-terminal 5-7 amino acid sequences of different signal peptides on the protein expression and secretion. It was identified for the first time that the first five amino acid sequences of the N-terminal of the signal peptide (SPLipA) from lipase A play an important role in promoting the expression of APL.

Bacillus methanolicus: an emerging chassis for low-carbon biomanufacturing.

Bacillus methanolicus is a thermophilic methylotrophic bacterium that grows quickly on methanol in sea water-based media. It has been engineered for chemical bioproduction from methanol, but its efficiency needs improvement for industrialization. Synthetic biology approaches such as metabolic modeling and genome editing can reprogram B.

igRNA Prediction and Selection AI Models (igRNA-PS) for Bystander-less ABE Base Editing.

CRISPR derived base editing techniques tend to edit multiple bases in the targeted region, which impedes precise reversion of disease-associated single nucleotide variations (SNVs). We designed an imperfect gRNA (igRNA) editing strategy to achieve bystander-less single-base editing. To predict the performance and provide ready-to-use igRNAs, we employed a high-throughput method to edit 5000 loci, each with approximate 19 systematically designed ABE igRNAs.

Highly flexible cell membranes are the key to efficient production of lipophilic compounds.

Lipophilic compounds have a variety of positive effects on human physiological functions and exhibit good effects in the prevention and treatment of clinical diseases. This has led to significant interest in the technical applications of synthetic biology for the production of lipophilic compounds. However, the strict selective permeability of the cell membrane and the hydrophobic nature of lipophilic compounds pose significant challenges to their production.

EcCas6e-based antisense crRNA for gene repression and RNA editing in microorganisms.

Precise gene regulation and programmable RNA editing are vital RNA-level regulatory mechanisms. Gene repression tools grounded in small non-coding RNAs, microRNAs, and CRISPR-dCas proteins, along with RNA editing tools anchored in Adenosine Deaminases acting on RNA (ADARs), have found extensive application in molecular biology and cellular engineering. Here, we introduced a novel approach wherein we developed an EcCas6e mediated crRNA-mRNA annealing system for gene repression in Escherichia coli and RNA editing in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Inducible biosynthesis of bacterial cellulose in recombinant Enterobacter sp. FY-07.

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is an extracellular polysaccharide with myriad unique properties, such as high purity, water-holding capacity and biocompatibility, making it attractive in materials science. However, genetic engineering techniques for BC-producing microorganisms are rare. Herein, the electroporation-based gene transformation and the λ Red-mediated gene knockout method with a nearly 100 % recombination efficiency were established in the fast-growing and BC hyperproducer Enterobacter sp.