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Novel biotechnological approaches to produce biological compounds: challenges and opportunities for science communication.
Pei, L, Schmidt, M
Current opinion in biotechnology. 2019;:43-47
Abstract
Novel biotechnological approaches such as Metabolic Engineering (ME) and New Plant Breeding Techniques (NPBTs) are currently being developed to produce biological compounds for food and non-food products. NPBTs span a range of methods for in vivo production in crops, some of which are classified as GMOs while others aren't. Deploying such techniques will not only provide new opportunities for industry, but also challenges with respect to the regulatory environment. Similarly, the process of communicating these new techniques and their products to stakeholders and consumers will not be without its own challenges. We argue that scientists should engage more with non-scientists, either directly or through collaborators. These engagements should not only be about the science, we suggest, but also explicitly deal with real world ramifications, such as economic, environmental and social issues.
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2.
Engineering Translation Components Improve Incorporation of Exotic Amino Acids.
Katoh, T, Suga, H
International journal of molecular sciences. 2019;(3)
Abstract
Methods of genetic code manipulation, such as nonsense codon suppression and genetic code reprogramming, have enabled the incorporation of various nonproteinogenic amino acids into the peptide nascent chain. However, the incorporation efficiency of such amino acids largely varies depending on their structural characteristics. For instance, l-α-amino acids with artificial, bulky side chains are poorer substrates for ribosomal incorporation into the nascent peptide chain, mainly owing to the lower affinity of their aminoacyl-tRNA toward elongation factor-thermo unstable (EF-Tu). Phosphorylated Ser and Tyr are also poorer substrates for the same reason; engineering EF-Tu has turned out to be effective in improving their incorporation efficiencies. On the other hand, exotic amino acids such as d-amino acids and β-amino acids are even poorer substrates owing to their low affinity to EF-Tu and poor compatibility to the ribosome active site. Moreover, their consecutive incorporation is extremely difficult. To solve these problems, the engineering of ribosomes and tRNAs has been executed, leading to successful but limited improvement of their incorporation efficiency. In this review, we comprehensively summarize recent attempts to engineer the translation systems, resulting in a significant improvement of the incorporation of exotic amino acids.
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3.
Harnessing CRISPR-Cas systems for precision engineering of designer probiotic lactobacilli.
Goh, YJ, Barrangou, R
Current opinion in biotechnology. 2019;:163-171
Abstract
Our evolving understanding on the mechanisms underlying the health-promoting attributes of probiotic lactobacilli, together with an expanding genome editing toolbox have made this genus an ideal chassis for the development of living therapeutics. The rising adoption of CRISPR-based technologies for prokaryotic engineering has demonstrated precise, efficient and scalable genome editing and tunable transcriptional regulation that can be translated into next-generation development of probiotic lactobacilli with enhanced robustness and designer functionalities. Here, we discuss how these tools in conjunction with the naturally abundant and diverse native CRISPR-Cas systems can be harnessed for Lactobacillus cell surface engineering and the delivery of biotherapeutics.
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4.
Report on the SCRA Nuts and Bolts Workshop II: case studies of citrus greening, Ultra-low Gossypol Cotton, and blight tolerant, low-acrylamide potato.
Hood, EE, Eversole, KA, Leach, L, Hogan, M, McHughen, A, Cordts, J, Rathore, K, Rood, T, Collinge, S, Irey, M
GM crops & food. 2019;(3):139-158
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Abstract
To be commercialized and grown in the US, genetically engineered (GE) crops typically go through an extensive food, feed, and environmental safety assessment process which, in certain instances, requires complex consultations with three different US regulatory agencies. Many small market, niche, and specialty crops have been genetically engineered using the modern tools of recombinant DNA but few have been commercialized due to real or perceived regulatory constraints. This workshop discussed the practical aspects of developing dossiers on GE specialty, niche, or small-market crops/products for submission to US regulatory agencies. This workshop focused on actual case studies, and provided an opportunity for public or private sector scientists and crop developers to spend time with regulatory officials to learn the specifics of compiling a dossier for regulatory approval. The objective of the workshop was to explain and demystify data requirements and regulatory dossier compilation by small companies, academics, and other developers.
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5.
Genetic Engineering for Disease Resistance in Plants: Recent Progress and Future Perspectives.
Dong, OX, Ronald, PC
Plant physiology. 2019;(1):26-38
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Abstract
A review of the recent progress in plant genetic engineering for disease resistance highlights future challenges and opportunities in the field.
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6.
Breeding crops to feed 10 billion.
Hickey, LT, N Hafeez, A, Robinson, H, Jackson, SA, Leal-Bertioli, SCM, Tester, M, Gao, C, Godwin, ID, Hayes, BJ, Wulff, BBH
Nature biotechnology. 2019;(7):744-754
Abstract
Crop improvements can help us to meet the challenge of feeding a population of 10 billion, but can we breed better varieties fast enough? Technologies such as genotyping, marker-assisted selection, high-throughput phenotyping, genome editing, genomic selection and de novo domestication could be galvanized by using speed breeding to enable plant breeders to keep pace with a changing environment and ever-increasing human population.
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The application of the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing machinery in food and agricultural science: Current status, future perspectives, and associated challenges.
Eş, I, Gavahian, M, Marti-Quijal, FJ, Lorenzo, JM, Mousavi Khaneghah, A, Tsatsanis, C, Kampranis, SC, Barba, FJ
Biotechnology advances. 2019;(3):410-421
Abstract
The recent progress in genetic engineering has brought multiple benefits to the food and agricultural industry by enhancing the essential characteristics of agronomic traits. Powerful tools in the field of genome editing, such as siRNA-mediated RNA interference for targeted suppression of gene expression and transcription activator-like effector nucleases (TALENs) and zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs) for DNA repair have been widely used for commercial purposes. However, in the last few years, the discovery of the CRISPR-Cas9 system has revolutionized genome editing and has attracted attention as a powerful tool for several industrial applications. Herein, we review current progresses in the utilization of the CRISPR-Cas9 system in the food and agricultural industry, particularly in the development of resistant crops with improved quality and productivity. We compare the CRISPR system with the TALEN and ZFN nucleases-based methods and highlight potential advantages and shortcomings. In addition, we explore the state of the global market and discuss the safety and ethical concerns associated with the application of this technology in the food and agricultural industry.
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tRNA engineering for manipulating genetic code.
Katoh, T, Iwane, Y, Suga, H
RNA biology. 2018;(4-5):453-460
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Abstract
In ribosomal translation, only 20 kinds of proteinogenic amino acids (pAAs), namely 19 l-amino acids and glycine, are exclusively incorporated into polypeptide chain. To overcome this limitation, various methods to introduce non-proteinogenic amino acids (npAAs) other than the 20 pAAs have been developed to date. However, the repertoire of amino acids that can be simultaneously introduced is still limited. Moreover, the efficiency of npAA incorporation is not always sufficient depending on their structures. Fidelity of translation is sometimes low due to misincorporation of competing pAAs and/or undesired translation termination. Here, we provide an overview of efforts to solve these issues, focusing on the engineering of tRNAs.
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9.
Investigating Potassium Channels in Budding Yeast: A Genetic Sandbox.
Mackie, TD, Brodsky, JL
Genetics. 2018;(3):637-650
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Abstract
Like all species, the model eukaryote Saccharomyces cerevisiae, or Bakers' yeast, concentrates potassium in the cytosol as an electrogenic osmolyte and enzyme cofactor. Yeast are capable of robust growth on a wide variety of potassium concentrations, ranging from 10 µM to 2.5 M, due to the presence of a high-affinity potassium uptake system and a battery of cation exchange transporters. Genetic perturbation of either of these systems retards yeast growth on low or high potassium, respectively. However, these potassium-sensitized yeast are a powerful genetic tool, which has been leveraged for diverse studies. Notably, the potassium-sensitive cells can be transformed with plasmids encoding potassium channels from bacteria, plants, or mammals, and subsequent changes in growth rate have been found to correlate with the activity of the introduced potassium channel. Discoveries arising from the use of this assay over the past three decades have increased our understanding of the structure-function relationships of various potassium channels, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of potassium channel function and trafficking, and the chemical basis of potassium channel modulation. In this article, we provide an overview of the major genetic tools used to study potassium channels in S. cerevisiae, a survey of seminal studies utilizing these tools, and a prospective for the future use of this elegant genetic approach.
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Nanoparticle-Mediated Delivery towards Advancing Plant Genetic Engineering.
Cunningham, FJ, Goh, NS, Demirer, GS, Matos, JL, Landry, MP
Trends in biotechnology. 2018;(9):882-897
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Abstract
Genetic engineering of plants has enhanced crop productivity in the face of climate change and a growing global population by conferring desirable genetic traits to agricultural crops. Efficient genetic transformation in plants remains a challenge due to the cell wall, a barrier to exogenous biomolecule delivery. Conventional delivery methods are inefficient, damaging to tissue, or are only effective in a limited number of plant species. Nanoparticles are promising materials for biomolecule delivery, owing to their ability to traverse plant cell walls without external force and highly tunable physicochemical properties for diverse cargo conjugation and broad host range applicability. With the advent of engineered nuclease biotechnologies, we discuss the potential of nanoparticles as an optimal platform to deliver biomolecules to plants for genetic engineering.