Engineering of Corynebacterium glutamicum for growth and production of L-ornithine, L-lysine, and lycopene from hexuronic acids

Hadiati A, Krahn I, Lindner S, Wendisch VF. Engineering of Corynebacterium glutamicum for growth and production of L-ornithine, L-lysine, and lycopene from hexuronic acids. Bioresources and Bioprocessing. 2014;1(1): 25

Measuring prostate-specific quality of life in prostate cancer patients scheduled for radiotherapy or radical prostatectomy and reference men in Germany and Canada using the Patient Oriented Prostate Utility Scale-Psychometric (PORPUS-P)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The PORPUS-P is a short questionnaire for measuring prostate-specific quality of life (QoL), which was designed in Canada for use in prostate cancer (PC) patients. We aimed to generate a German version and compare PORPUS-P scores of German reference men from the general population, and German and Canadian patients with newly diagnosed PC who were scheduled to receive radical prostatectomy (RP) or radiotherapy (RT).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The study sample consisted of 988 reference men, 121 German and 66 Canadian PC patients scheduled for RT, and 371 German and 68 Canadian PC patients scheduled for RP. All men completed the PORPUS-P (German postal questionnaire, Canada personal interview). Data were gathered from PC patients before the start of therapy.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Canadian patients were better educated than the German patients, and fewer were retired. Patients scheduled to receive RT were older and more were retired. German RT patients had lower D'Amico risk scores and pre-treatment Gleason scores than RP patients, and Canadian RT patients had higher pre-treatment PSA than RP patients. Urinary and sexual dysfunction were seen in PC patients (especially RT patients), but were also common in the German reference men. Crude mean PORPUS-P scores differed statistically significant between German RT and RP and Canadian RP and RT patients, with RT patients having higher QoL scores. The differences in age-adjusted mean PORPUS-P scores between reference men and RP patients were not clinically significant, while RT patients had (clinically) significantly lower scores than the reference men.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The German translation of the PORPUS-P appears to be a short and feasible tool for assessing prostate-specific QoL. Although we found a similar response pattern, Canadian and German PC patients scheduled to receive RT or RP rated their pre-treatment quality of life on different levels, which reveals the need for national reference data. Problems in several QoL domains exist before treatment, and differ between PC patients scheduled for RT and RP.</p

Bozzetti und Pseudo-Bozzetti aus Terrakotta in der Berliner Skulpturensammlung

In der Berliner Skulpturensammlung gibt es etliche Terrakotten aus der Renaissance, die als Modelle angesehen werden. Die genaue Bestimmung als Modell oder Nachahmung ist allerdings nicht immer eindeutig. Ein prominentes Beispiel hierfür ist das erst kürzlich restaurierte, nach einem Marmororiginal von Antonio Rossellino entstandene Tonrelief, dessen kunsthistorische Einordnung Ende des 19. Jahrhunderts heftige Diskussionen auslöste. Ausgehend von diesem Werk werden einige Terrakotten vorgestellt und ihr jeweiliger Status erläutert.The Sculpture Collection of the Berlin Museums contains a number of Renaissance terracottas which may be regarded as models. Their exact function as a model or copy is, however, not always explicit. One eloquent example is provided by a recently restored marble relief, executed after an original marble by Antonio Rossellino. Its classification gave rise to heated debate in the late 19th century. Following this example, other terracottas will be examined to determine their respective status.La collection des Sculptures des Musées de Berlin comprend quelques terres cuites de la Renaissance qui peuvent être considérées comme des modèles. Leur fonction exacte de modèle ou de copie n’est toutefois pas toujours explicite. Un exemple parlant nous est fourni par un relief de marbre récemment restauré, exécuté d’après un marbre original d’Antonio Rossellino, dont la classification a donné lieu à des discussions véhémentes à la fin du xixe siècle. À partir de cet exemple, d’autres terres cuites seront examinées et leur statut respectif déterminé

Improved plasmid-based inducible and constitutive gene expression in Corynebacterium glutamicum

Henke NA, Krahn I, Wendisch VF. Improved plasmid-based inducible and constitutive gene expression in Corynebacterium glutamicum. Microorganisms. 2021;9(1): 204.Corynebacterium glutamicum has been safely used in white biotechnology for the last 60 years and the portfolio of new pathways and products is increasing rapidly. Hence, expression vectors play a central role in discovering endogenous gene functions and in establishing heterologous gene expression. In this work, new expression vectors were designed based on two strategies: (i) a library screening of constitutive native and synthetic promoters and (ii) an increase of the plasmid copy number. Both strategies were combined and resulted in a very strong expression and overproduction of the fluorescence protein GfpUV. As a second test case, the improved vector for constitutive expression was used to overexpress the endogenous xylulokinase gene xylB in a synthetic operon with xylose isomerase gene xylA from Xanthomonas campestris. The xylose isomerase activity in crude extracts was increased by about three-fold as compared to that of the parental vector. In terms of application, the improved vector for constitutive xylA and xylB expression was used for production of the N-methylated amino acid sarcosine from monomethylamine, acetate, and xylose. As a consequence, the volumetric productivity of sarcosine production was 50% higher as compared to that of the strain carrying the parental vector

From aquaculture to aquaculture: Production of the fish feed additive astaxanthin by Corynebacterium glutamicum using aquaculture sidestream

Schmitt I, Meyer F, Krahn I, Henke NA, Peters-Wendisch P, Wendisch VF. From aquaculture to aquaculture: Production of the fish feed additive astaxanthin by Corynebacterium glutamicum using aquaculture sidestream. Molecules. 2023;28:1996

From Aquaculture to Aquaculture: Production of the Fish Feed Additive Astaxanthin by <i>Corynebacterium glutamicum</i> Using Aquaculture Sidestream

Circular economy holds great potential to minimize the use of finite resources, and reduce waste formation by the creation of closed-loop systems. This also pertains to the utilization of sidestreams in large-scale biotechnological processes. A flexible feedstock concept has been established for the industrially relevant Corynebacterium glutamicum, which naturally synthesizes the yellow C50 carotenoid decaprenoxanthin. In this study, we aimed to use a preprocessed aquaculture sidestream for production of carotenoids, including the fish feed ingredient astaxanthin by C. glutamicum. The addition of a preprocessed aquaculture sidestream to the culture medium did not inhibit growth, obviated the need for addition of several components of the mineral salt’s medium, and notably enhanced production of astaxanthin by an engineered C. glutamicum producer strain. Improved astaxanthin production was scaled to 2 L bioreactor fermentations. This strategy to improve astaxanthin production was shown to be transferable to production of several native and non-native carotenoids. Thus, this study provides a proof-of-principle for improving carotenoid production by C. glutamicum upon supplementation of a preprocessed aquaculture sidestream. Moreover, in the case of astaxanthin production it may be a potential component of a circular economy in aquaculture

Evolving a new efficient mode of fructose utilization for improved bioproduction in Corynebacterium glutamicum

Krahn I, Bonder D, Torregrosa L, et al. Evolving a new efficient mode of fructose utilization for improved bioproduction in Corynebacterium glutamicum. Frontiers in Biotechnology and Bioengineering. 2021;9: 669093