Ch. Chou et al., GENETIC MANIPULATION OF STATIONARY-PHASE GENES TO ENHANCE RECOMBINANTPROTEIN-PRODUCTION IN ESCHERICHIA-COLI, Biotechnology and bioengineering, 50(6), 1996, pp. 636-642
Genetic manipulation of the host strain, by which cell physiology coul
d be modulated, was exploited to enhance recombinant protein productio
n in Escherichia coli. The effects of an inactivated stationary-phase
gene (rmf or katF) on recombinant protein production in strains with t
wo different expression systems (the pH-inducible and the lac promoter
s) were investigated. An improvement of recombinant protein production
in the katf muta nt at low growth rates was observed for both express
ion systems. A fourfold and a 30% increase in the volumetric recombina
nt protein activity were observed for the pH-inducible and the lac pro
moter system, respectively. The effect of the rmf mutation, on the oth
er hand, depends on the expression system. A twofold increase in the v
olumetric recombinant protein activity was found for the pH-inducible
promoter system, but there was no improvement for the lac promoter sys
tem. Improvement in culture performance for slow-growing cultures may
have an impact on the design strategy of the host/vector system used i
n fed-batch cultures, where the specific growth rate is usually slow.
The information may also be useful for developing optimal host/vector
gene expression systems for recombinant protein production. (C) 1996 J
ohn Wiley & Sons, Inc.