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Improving lysine production by Corynebacterium glutamicum through DNA microarray-based identification of novel target genes

  • Genomics and Proteomics
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Abstract

For the biotechnological production of l-lysine, mainly strains of Corynebacterium glutamicum are used, which have been obtained by classical mutagenesis and screening or selection or by metabolic engineering. Gene targets for the amplification and deregulation of the lysine biosynthesis pathway, for the improvement of carbon precursor supply and of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (reduced form) (NADPH) regeneration, are known. To identify novel target genes to improve lysine production, the transcriptomes of the classically obtained lysine producing strain MH20-22B and several other C. glutamicum strains were compared. As lysine production by the classically obtained strain, which possesses feedback-resistant aspartokinase and is leucine auxotrophic, exceeds that of a genetically defined leucine auxotrophic wild-type derivative possessing feedback-resistant aspartokinase, additional traits beneficial for lysine production are present. NCgl0855, putatively encoding a methyltransferase, and the amtA-ocd-soxA operon, encoding an ammonium uptake system, a putative ornithine cyclodeaminase and an uncharacterized enzyme, were among the genes showing increased expression in the classically obtained strain irrespective of the presence of feedback-resistant aspartokinase. Lysine production could be improved by about 40% through overexpression of NCgl0855 or the amtA-ocd-soxA operon. Thus, novel target genes for the improvement of lysine production could be identified in a discovery-driven approach based on global gene expression analysis.

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Acknowledgments

Financial support of R&D Feed Additives of Degussa AG, Halle-Künsebeck, Germany is gratefully acknowledged. We thank Hermann Sahm for his support throughout the project and Doris Rittmann for excellent technical assistance.

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  1. Georg Sindelar

    Present address: DSM Biologics, Zuiderweg 72/2, P.O. Box 454, 9700, Groningen, The Netherlands

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  1. Institute of Biotechnology I, Research Center Jülich, Julich, Germany

    Georg Sindelar

  2. Institute of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, Westfalian Wilhelms University Muenster, Corrensstr. 3, 48149, Muenster, Germany

    Volker F. Wendisch

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Correspondence to Volker F. Wendisch.

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Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Hermann Sahm on the occasion of his 65th birthday.

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Sindelar, G., Wendisch, V.F. Improving lysine production by Corynebacterium glutamicum through DNA microarray-based identification of novel target genes. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 76, 677–689 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-007-0916-x

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