Engineering phosphorus metabolic pathway for biological containment of genetically modified microorganisms

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K14889
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Applied microbiology
• Research Institution: Hiroshima University
• Principal Investigator: Hirota Ryuichi 広島大学, 先端物質科学研究科, 准教授 (90452614)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): ARAKAWA Kenji 広島大学, 大学院先端物質科学研究科, 准教授 (80346527)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 生物学的封じ込め / 亜リン酸 / リン代謝 / 遺伝子組換え微生物

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Owing to the rapid evolution of biotechnology, genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs) hold great promise for the use in various application fields. However, the scientific community still needs to resolve a number of biosafety and biosecurity issues. A possible way to prevent the uncontrolled proliferation of GMMs is through biocontainment, which involves modifying the essential genes to make the growth and survival of cells dependent on specific chemicals. Here, we developed a novel strategy by engineering phosphorus metabolic pathway of bacteria. This approach combines the deletion of endogenous phosphate (H3PO4, Pi) transporters with the expression of the genes for metabolizing phosphite (H3PO3, Pt), yielding an Escherichia coli strain strictly dependent on Pt which is an ecologically rare but inexpensive chemical. Considering the high containment efficacy and the simplicity, this strategy can contribute to the development of a reliable and cost-effective biocontainment system.

Free Research Field

応用微生物工学