Expanding acid resistance in bacteria using synthetic circuits

• Grant number: 18/07261-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: July 01, 2018
• End date: February 29, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Microbiology - Applied Microbiology
• Agreement: Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES)
• Principal Investigator: María Eugenia Guazzaroni
• Grantee: Guilherme Marcelino Viana de Siqueira
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto (FFCLRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 15/04309-1 - Novel approaches to improve functional screening of biocatalysts in metagenomic libraries, AP.JP

Abstract

Microbial fermentation has been successfully employed in the production of several industrially-relevant compounds in a sustainable and cheap manner. However, limitations of the own microbial hosts have so far hindered the ability for it to reach its full potential. A major current concern is the low resistance shown by industrial bacteria to acid conditions required for organic acid production, resulting in costly interventions that are harmful to the environment. In this project, we aim to combine synthetic biology approaches and recent metagenomic discoveries to propose an alternative to this situation in order to achieve sustainability in industrial processes without the loss of efficiency. To do so, we intend to combine different translation levels of three metagenomic genes related to acid resistance, in order to obtain an optimized gene cluster that confers bacteria the ability to thrive in low pH. The cluster library will be built on a broad host range vector, which will allow the transfer of our synthetic circuits to new bacteria of interest. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

RIBEIRO, LUCAS FERREIRA; AMARELLE, VANESA; ALVES, LUANA DE FATIMA; VIANA DE SIQUEIRA, GUILHERME MARCELINO; LOVATE, GABRIEL LENCIONI; BORELLI, TIAGO CABRAL; GUAZZARONI, MARIA-EUGENIA. Genetically Engineered Proteins to Improve Biomass Conversion: New Advances and Challenges for Tailoring Biocatalysts. Molecules, v. 24, n. 16, AUG 2019. (16/18827-7, 15/04309-1, 18/18158-3, 18/07261-8, 19/00390-0, 16/06323-4)

DE SIQUEIRA, V, GUILHERME M.; SILVA-ROCHA, RAFAEL; GUAZZARONI, MARIA-EUGENIA. Turning the Screw: Engineering Extreme pH Resistance in Escherichia coli through Combinatorial Synthetic Operons. ACS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY, v. 9, n. 6, p. 1254-1262, JUN 19 2020. (15/04309-1, 18/07261-8)