Objective
ZYMOMONAS BACTERIA COULD OFFER CONSIDERABLE POTENTIAL FOR IMPROVED ALCOHOL FERMENTATION IN COMPARISON WITH YEASTS. AN EFFICIENT EXPRESSION VECTOR IS, HOWEVER, AN ABSOLUTE REQUISITE TO OPEN THE POSSIBILITY OF GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ZYMOMONAS. THE BACTERIA COULD THEN BE MADE ABLE TO USE FOR EXAMPLE RENEWABLE CARBON SUBSTRATES ABUNDANT IN AGRICULTURE WASTES.
Zymomonas mobilis is a Gram negative anaerobe producing ethanol 5 to 6 times faster than yeast. It can use only glucose, fructose and sucrose as carbon sources. Therefore, applications of Z mobilis at the industrial level require extention of its spectrum of usable carbohydrates. Genetic improvement was approached through formal genetics and genetic engineering. Chemical mutagenesis, transposon mutagenesis, gene transfer by aided conjugation, construction of recombinant expression vectors and transfer into Z mobilis genes responsible for xylose metabolism were established and can now be applied to increase the substrate range of Z mobilis.
Recombinant plasmids were constructed by subcloning fragments of native Z mobilis plasmids in known vectors. These were transferred into Z mobilis by aided conjugation and were stably inherited, especially after the loss of native plasmids. Subcloned Z mobilis plasmid sequences were used to construct new expression vectors, which could be transferred into Z mobilis and induce expression of the xylose catabolism genes xylA and xylB. However, the engineered strains could not ferment xylose. Transformation of Z mobilis by plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) occurred at low frequencies only when sequences of incoming plasmid were integrated into the host's genome. Transposon mutagenesis was accomplished by conjugal transfer of transposon bearing plasmids from Pseudomonas, as well as Escherichia coli donors to Z mobilis. All Z mobilis strains tested were able to ferment extracts of various fruits, such as apples, oranges, peaches, watermelons, etc.
AN EFFICIENT EXPRESSION VECTOR SHALL BE CONSTRUCTED FOR ZYMOMONAS MOBILIS. FOR THIS, THE PROMOTOR OF THE PYRUVATE DECARBOXYLASE GENE WILL BE ISOLATED, SEQUENCED AND BUILT INTO A BROAD HOST RANGE PLASMID. GENES FOR THE DEGRADATION OF AMYLOSE (FROM ASPERGILLUS AWAMORII) OR XYLOSE (FROM KLEBSIELLA) SHALL BE PLACED UNDER CONTROL OF THIS STRONG PROMOTER AND EXPRESSION WILL BE TESTED IN SUITABLE ESCHERICHIA COLI STRAINS. AFTERWARDS, THESE RECOMBINANT PLASMIDS SHALL BE INTRODUCED INTO ZYMOMONAS MOBILIS CELLS AND THEIR EXPRESSION AND STABILITY WILL BE ASSAYED. THE LONG RANGE AIM IS TO STUDY THE RECOMBINANT STRAINS FOR CONTINUOUS ETHANOL PRODUCTION FROM AGRICULTURAL WASTE SUBSTRATES AS STARCH AND HEMICELLULOSE (XYLOSE).
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology genetic engineering gene therapy
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology bacteriology
- natural sciences biological sciences genetics DNA
- natural sciences chemical sciences organic chemistry alcohols
- engineering and technology industrial biotechnology bioprocessing technologies fermentation
You need to log in or register to use this function
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Data not available
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Data not available
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Coordinator
52425 JUELICH
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.