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Schindler D, Walker RSK, Jiang S, Brooks AN, Wang Y, Müller CA, Cockram C, Luo Y, García A, Schraivogel D, Mozziconacci J, Pena N, Assari M, Sánchez Olmos MDC, Zhao Y, Ballerini A, Blount BA, Cai J, Ogunlana L, Liu W, Jönsson K, Abramczyk D, Garcia-Ruiz E, Turowski TW, Swidah R, Ellis T, Pan T, Antequera F, Shen Y, Nieduszynski CA, Koszul R, Dai J, Steinmetz LM, Boeke JD, Cai Y. Design, construction, and functional characterization of a tRNA neochromosome in yeast. Cell 2023; 186:5237-5253.e22. [PMID: 37944512 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.10.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Revised: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Here, we report the design, construction, and characterization of a tRNA neochromosome, a designer chromosome that functions as an additional, de novo counterpart to the native complement of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Intending to address one of the central design principles of the Sc2.0 project, the ∼190-kb tRNA neochromosome houses all 275 relocated nuclear tRNA genes. To maximize stability, the design incorporates orthogonal genetic elements from non-S. cerevisiae yeast species. Furthermore, the presence of 283 rox recombination sites enables an orthogonal tRNA SCRaMbLE system. Following construction in yeast, we obtained evidence of a potent selective force, manifesting as a spontaneous doubling in cell ploidy. Furthermore, tRNA sequencing, transcriptomics, proteomics, nucleosome mapping, replication profiling, FISH, and Hi-C were undertaken to investigate questions of tRNA neochromosome behavior and function. Its construction demonstrates the remarkable tractability of the yeast model and opens up opportunities to directly test hypotheses surrounding these essential non-coding RNAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Schindler
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK; Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, 35043 Marburg, Germany; Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Philipps-University Marburg, 35032 Marburg, Germany
| | - Roy S K Walker
- School of Engineering, Institute for Bioengineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, Scotland; School of Natural Sciences and ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
| | - Shuangying Jiang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics and Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Aaron N Brooks
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology Unit, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Yun Wang
- BGI-Shenzhen, Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen 518083, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Genome Read and Write, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518120, China
| | - Carolin A Müller
- Earlham Institute, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UZ, UK; School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
| | - Charlotte Cockram
- Institut Pasteur, CNRS UMR 3525, Université Paris Cité, Unité Régulation Spatiale des Génomes, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Yisha Luo
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
| | - Alicia García
- Instituto de Biología Funcional y Genómica (IBFG), CSIC, Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
| | - Daniel Schraivogel
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology Unit, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Julien Mozziconacci
- Institut Pasteur, CNRS UMR 3525, Université Paris Cité, Unité Régulation Spatiale des Génomes, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Noah Pena
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Mahdi Assari
- Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | | | - Yu Zhao
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Alba Ballerini
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
| | - Benjamin A Blount
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK; Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Jitong Cai
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Lois Ogunlana
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, Scotland
| | - Wei Liu
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, Scotland
| | - Katarina Jönsson
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, Scotland
| | - Dariusz Abramczyk
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3BF, Scotland
| | - Eva Garcia-Ruiz
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
| | - Tomasz W Turowski
- Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics PAS, Pawińskiego 5a, 02-106 Warszawa, Poland
| | - Reem Swidah
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK
| | - Tom Ellis
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK; Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Tao Pan
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Francisco Antequera
- Instituto de Biología Funcional y Genómica (IBFG), CSIC, Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
| | - Yue Shen
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK; BGI-Shenzhen, Beishan Industrial Zone, Shenzhen 518083, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Genome Read and Write, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518120, China
| | - Conrad A Nieduszynski
- Earlham Institute, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UZ, UK; School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TU, UK
| | - Romain Koszul
- Institut Pasteur, CNRS UMR 3525, Université Paris Cité, Unité Régulation Spatiale des Génomes, 75015 Paris, France
| | - Junbiao Dai
- CAS Key Laboratory of Quantitative Engineering Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics and Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Synthetic Genomics, Shenzhen Institute of Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Lars M Steinmetz
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Genome Biology Unit, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany; Department of Genetics and Stanford Genome Technology Center, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA
| | - Jef D Boeke
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY 10016, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, NY 11201, USA
| | - Yizhi Cai
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester M1 7DN, UK.
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Blount BA, Lu X, Driessen MR, Jovicevic D, Sanchez MI, Ciurkot K, Zhao Y, Lauer S, McKiernan RM, Gowers GOF, Sweeney F, Fanfani V, Lobzaev E, Palacios-Flores K, Walker RS, Hesketh A, Cai J, Oliver SG, Cai Y, Stracquadanio G, Mitchell LA, Bader JS, Boeke JD, Ellis T. Synthetic yeast chromosome XI design provides a testbed for the study of extrachromosomal circular DNA dynamics. Cell Genom 2023; 3:100418. [PMID: 38020971 PMCID: PMC10667340 DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100418] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023]
Abstract
We describe construction of the synthetic yeast chromosome XI (synXI) and reveal the effects of redesign at non-coding DNA elements. The 660-kb synthetic yeast genome project (Sc2.0) chromosome was assembled from synthesized DNA fragments before CRISPR-based methods were used in a process of bug discovery, redesign, and chromosome repair, including precise compaction of 200 kb of repeat sequence. Repaired defects were related to poor centromere function and mitochondrial health and were associated with modifications to non-coding regions. As part of the Sc2.0 design, loxPsym sequences for Cre-mediated recombination are inserted between most genes. Using the GAP1 locus from chromosome XI, we show that these sites can facilitate induced extrachromosomal circular DNA (eccDNA) formation, allowing direct study of the effects and propagation of these important molecules. Construction and characterization of synXI contributes to our understanding of non-coding DNA elements, provides a useful tool for eccDNA study, and will inform future synthetic genome design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin A. Blount
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
| | - Xinyu Lu
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Maureen R.M. Driessen
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Dejana Jovicevic
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Mateo I. Sanchez
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Klaudia Ciurkot
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Yu Zhao
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Stephanie Lauer
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Robert M. McKiernan
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Glen-Oliver F. Gowers
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Fiachra Sweeney
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Viola Fanfani
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Evgenii Lobzaev
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- School of Informatics, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Kim Palacios-Flores
- Laboratorio Internacional de Investigación sobre el Genoma Humano, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Querétaro, México
| | - Roy S.K. Walker
- School of Engineering, Institute for Bioengineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Andy Hesketh
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Jitong Cai
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Yizhi Cai
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | | | - Leslie A. Mitchell
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Joel S. Bader
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Whiting School of Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jef D. Boeke
- Institute for Systems Genetics and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, NY, USA
| | - Tom Ellis
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
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Xu X, Meier F, Blount BA, Pretorius IS, Ellis T, Paulsen IT, Williams TC. Trimming the genomic fat: minimising and re-functionalising genomes using synthetic biology. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1984. [PMID: 37031253 PMCID: PMC10082837 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37748-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 04/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Naturally evolved organisms typically have large genomes that enable their survival and growth under various conditions. However, the complexity of genomes often precludes our complete understanding of them, and limits the success of biotechnological designs. In contrast, minimal genomes have reduced complexity and therefore improved engineerability, increased biosynthetic capacity through the removal of unnecessary genetic elements, and less recalcitrance to complete characterisation. Here, we review the past and current genome minimisation and re-functionalisation efforts, with an emphasis on the latest advances facilitated by synthetic genomics, and provide a critical appraisal of their potential for industrial applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Xu
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia.
| | - Felix Meier
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Benjamin A Blount
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, UK
| | - Isak S Pretorius
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Tom Ellis
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
- Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridgeshire, CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Ian T Paulsen
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia
| | - Thomas C Williams
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, 2109, Australia.
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4
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Blount BA. Synthetic bacterial genome upgraded for viral defence and biocontainment. Nature 2023; 615:592-594. [PMID: 36922657 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-00702-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
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6
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Blount BA, Ellis T. The Synthetic Genome Summer Course. Synth Biol (Oxf) 2018; 3:ysy020. [PMID: 32995526 PMCID: PMC7445779 DOI: 10.1093/synbio/ysy020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2018] [Revised: 11/02/2018] [Accepted: 11/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The Synthetic Genome Summer Course was convened with the aim of teaching a wide range of researchers the theory and practical skills behind recent advances in synthetic biology and synthetic genome science, with a focus on Sc2.0, the synthetic yeast genome project. Through software workshops, tutorials and research talks from leading members of the field, the 30 attendees learnt about relevant principles and techniques that they were then able to implement first-hand in laboratory-based practical sessions. Participants SCRaMbLEd semi-synthetic yeast strains to diversify heterologous pathways, used automation to build combinatorial pathway libraries and used CRISPR to debug fitness defects caused by synthetic chromosome design changes. Societal implications of synthetic chromosomes were explored and industrial stakeholders discussed synthetic biology from a commercial standpoint. Over the 5 days, participants gained valuable insight and acquired skills to aid them in future synthetic genome research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin A Blount
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Tom Ellis
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Corresponding author: E-mail:
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7
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Blount BA, Gowers GOF, Ho JCH, Ledesma-Amaro R, Jovicevic D, McKiernan RM, Xie ZX, Li BZ, Yuan YJ, Ellis T. Rapid host strain improvement by in vivo rearrangement of a synthetic yeast chromosome. Nat Commun 2018; 9:1932. [PMID: 29789540 PMCID: PMC5964169 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-03143-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2017] [Accepted: 01/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Synthetic biology tools, such as modular parts and combinatorial DNA assembly, are routinely used to optimise the productivity of heterologous metabolic pathways for biosynthesis or substrate utilisation, yet it is well established that host strain background is just as important for determining productivity. Here we report that in vivo combinatorial genomic rearrangement of Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast with a synthetic chromosome V can rapidly generate new, improved host strains with genetic backgrounds favourable to diverse heterologous pathways, including those for violacein and penicillin biosynthesis and for xylose utilisation. We show how the modular rearrangement of synthetic chromosomes by SCRaMbLE can be easily determined using long-read nanopore sequencing and we explore experimental conditions that optimise diversification and screening. This synthetic genome approach to metabolic engineering provides productivity improvements in a fast, simple and accessible way, making it a valuable addition to existing strain improvement techniques. The Sc2.0 project has built the Synthetic Chromosome Rearrangement and Modification by LoxP-mediated Evolution (SCRaMbLE) system into their synthetic chromosomes. Here the authors use SCRaMbLE to rapidly develop, diversify and screen strains for diverse production and growth characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- B A Blount
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - G-O F Gowers
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - J C H Ho
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - R Ledesma-Amaro
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - D Jovicevic
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - R M McKiernan
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.,Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Z X Xie
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China.,SynBio Research Platform, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China
| | - B Z Li
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China.,SynBio Research Platform, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China
| | - Y J Yuan
- Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering (Ministry of Education), School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China.,SynBio Research Platform, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering (Tianjin), Tianjin University, 300072, Tianjin, PR China
| | - T Ellis
- Imperial College Centre for Synthetic Biology, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK. .,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.
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9
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Abstract
Existing yeast genomic DNA extraction methods are not ideally suited to extensive screening of colonies by PCR, due to being too lengthy, too laborious or yielding poor quality DNA and inconsistent results. We developed the GC prep method as a solution to this problem. Yeast cells from colonies or liquid cultures are lysed by vortex mixing with glass beads and then boiled in the presence of a metal chelating resin. In around 12 minutes, multiple samples can be processed to extract high yields of genomic DNA. These preparations perform as effectively in PCR screening as DNA purified by organic solvent methods, are stable for up to 1 year at room temperature and can be used as the template for PCR amplification of fragments of at least 8 kb.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin A Blount
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Maureen R M Driessen
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Tom Ellis
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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10
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Abstract
A team of US researchers recently reported the design, assembly and in vivo functionality of a synthetic chromosome III (SynIII) for the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The synthetic chromosome was assembled bottom-up from DNA oligomers by teams of students working over several years with researchers as the first part of an international synthetic yeast genome project. Embedded into the sequence of the synthetic chromosome are multiple design changes that include a novel in-built recombination scheme that can be induced to catalyse intra-chromosomal rearrangements in a variety of different conditions. This system, along with the other synthetic sequence changes, is intended to aid researchers develop a deeper understanding of how genomes function and find new ways to exploit yeast in future biotechnologies. The landmark of the first synthesised designer eukaryote chromosome, and the power of its massively parallel recombination system, provide new perspectives on the future of synthetic biology and genome research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dejana Jovicevic
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, UK; Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
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Blount BA, Weenink T, Vasylechko S, Ellis T. Rational diversification of a promoter providing fine-tuned expression and orthogonal regulation for synthetic biology. PLoS One 2012; 7:e33279. [PMID: 22442681 PMCID: PMC3307721 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0033279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 129] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2011] [Accepted: 02/13/2012] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Yeast is an ideal organism for the development and application of synthetic biology, yet there remain relatively few well-characterised biological parts suitable for precise engineering of this chassis. In order to address this current need, we present here a strategy that takes a single biological part, a promoter, and re-engineers it to produce a fine-graded output range promoter library and new regulated promoters desirable for orthogonal synthetic biology applications. A highly constitutive Saccharomyces cerevisiae promoter, PFY1p, was identified by bioinformatic approaches, characterised in vivo and diversified at its core sequence to create a 36-member promoter library. TetR regulation was introduced into PFY1p to create a synthetic inducible promoter (iPFY1p) that functions in an inverter device. Orthogonal and scalable regulation of synthetic promoters was then demonstrated for the first time using customisable Transcription Activator-Like Effectors (TALEs) modified and designed to act as orthogonal repressors for specific PFY1-based promoters. The ability to diversify a promoter at its core sequences and then independently target Transcription Activator-Like Orthogonal Repressors (TALORs) to virtually any of these sequences shows great promise toward the design and construction of future synthetic gene networks that encode complex "multi-wire" logic functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin A. Blount
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Tim Weenink
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Serge Vasylechko
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Tom Ellis
- Centre for Synthetic Biology and Innovation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
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Blount BA, Weenink T, Ellis T. Construction of synthetic regulatory networks in yeast. FEBS Lett 2012; 586:2112-21. [DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2012.01.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2011] [Revised: 01/25/2012] [Accepted: 01/26/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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