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Biomedical subjects

J Nielsen

Publications and source records attributed to J Nielsen.

At least 721 records · Page 40Linked to original sources
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Metabolic engineering: techniques for analysis of targets for genetic manipulations.

Metabolic engineering has been defined as the purposeful modification of intermediary metabolism using recombinant DNA techniques. With this definition metabolic engineering includes: (1) inserting new pathways in microorganisms with the aim of producing novel metabolites, e.g., production of polyketides by Streptomyces; (2) production of heterologous peptides, e.g., production of human insulin, erythropoitin, and tPA; and (3) improvement of both new and existing processes, e.g., production of antibiotics and industrial enzymes. Metabolic engineering is a multidisciplinary approach, which involves input from chemical engineers, molecular biologists, biochemists, physiologists, and analytical chemists. Obviously, molecular biology is central in the production of novel products, as well as in the improvement of existing processes. However, in the latter case, input from other disciplines is pivotal in order to target the genetic modifications; with the rapid developments in molecular biology, progress in the field is likely to be limited by procedures to identify the optimal genetic changes. Identification of the optimal genetic changes often requires a meticulous mapping of the cellular metabolism at different operating conditions, and the application of metabolic engineering to process optimization is, therefore, expected mainly to have an impact on the improvement of processes where yield, productivity, and titer are important design factors, i.e., in the production of metabolites and industrial enzymes. Despite the prospect of obtaining major improvement through metabolic engineering, this approach is, however, not expected to completely replace the classical approach to strain improvement-random mutagenesis followed by screening. Identification of the optimal genetic changes for improvement of a given process requires analysis of the underlying mechanisms, at best, at the molecular level. To reveal these mechanisms a number of different techniques may be applied: (1) detailed physiological studies, (2) metabolic flux analysis (MFA), (3) metabolic control analysis (MCA), (4) thermodynamic analysis of pathways, and (5) kinetic modeling. In this article, these different techniques are discussed and their applications to the analysis of different processes are illustrated.

Animals↗
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Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) provokes vaginal lubrication in normal women.

The human vagina is known to be heavily innervated by vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) immunoreactive nerve fibres. In the present study we have examined the effect of VIP (900 pmol x kg-1 x h-1, IV during 30 min) on vaginal lubrication and blood flow in fourteen normal non-pregnant women. Vaginal blood flow was measured by the heat clearance technique and the vaginal lubrication quantified by the weight gain of preweighed filter papers placed on the surface of the vaginal wall for 30 min. Arterial blood pressure, pulse frequency and the concentration of VIP in peripheral blood were monitored. VIP (median concentrations of 200-300 pmol x l-1) induced a significant increase in vaginal blood flow accompanied by a 100% increase in vaginal lubrication (from 27 mg/cm2 to 53 mg/cm2). The VIP infusion lead to a significant increase in pulse frequency and a significant fall in diastolic arterial blood pressure. The findings suggest that VIP may participate in the control of the local physiological changes observed during sexual arousal: genital vasodilation and increase in vaginal lubrication.

Adult↗
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Pellet formation and fragmentation in submerged cultures of Penicillium chrysogenum and its relation to penicillin production.

The spores of Penicillium chrysogenum are of the noncoagulating type, and after spore germination a culture of disperse mycelia is obtained. In this study, it is shown that when the hyphal elements increase in size, they may agglomerate, and depending on the operating conditions, these agglomerates may develop into pellets with a dense core. The influence of initial spore concentration and agitation rate on agglomeration, leading to pellet formation, was studied. For a low concentration of spores in the inoculum, only a few hyphal elements agglomerate and pellets with a small diameter are obtained. At higher spore concentrations, many hyphal elements agglomerate and develop into large diameter pellets. Finally, at a very high spore concentration in the inoculum, the final hyphal element size is small and agglomerates therefore are not formed. With a high agitation rate, the agglomeration of hyphal elements is reduced. In a repeated fed-batch cultivation, where there was a shift from pellet morphology to disperse mycelia, it was found that there is no relation between macroscopic morphology and penicillin production by P. chrysogenum. The morphology was quantified throughout the repeated fed-batch cultivation, and both the pellet diameter and the concentration of pellets were affected by the agitation rate.

Culture Media↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Metabolic control analysis of the penicillin biosynthetic pathway in a high-yielding strain of Penicillium chrysogenum.

Metabolic control analysis is used to identify the rate-limiting step in the penicillin biosynthetic pathway in Penicillium chrysogenum. The analysis is carried out using a kinetic model for the first two steps in the pathway, i.e., the ACV synthetase (ACVS) and the isopenicillin N synthetase (IPNS). The kinetic model is based on Michaelis-Menten type kinetics, with noncompetitive inhibition of the ACVS by ACV and competitive inhibition of the IPNS by glutathione. From measurements of the enzyme activities and intracellular metabolites during a fed-batch cultivation, the kinetic model is used to predict the flux through the pathway. The model prediction corresponds well with the measured rate of penicillin biosynthesis. From measurement of the activity of the acyl-CoA:isopenicillin acyltransferase, which catalyzes the third and last reaction in the pathway, it is concluded that the rate-limiting step is either at the ACVS or at the IPNS. From the kinetic model, the elasticity coefficients and the flux control coefficients are calculated throughout the fed-batch cultivations, and it is found that there is a shift in the flux control from the ACVS to the IPNS during the cultivation.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
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Metabolic control analysis of xylose catabolism in Aspergillus.

A kinetic model for xylose catabolism in Aspergillus is proposed. From a thermodynamic analysis it was found that the intermediate xylitol will accumulate during xylose catabolism. Use of the kinetic model allowed metabolic control analysis (MCA) of the xylose catabolic pathway to be carried out, and flux control was shown to be dependent on the metabolite levels. Due to thermodynamic constraints, flux control may reside at the first step in the pathway, i.e., at the xylose reductase, even when the intracellular xylitol concentration is high. On the basis of the kinetic analysis, the general dogma specifying that flux control often resides at the step following an intermediate present at high concentrations was, therefore, shown not to hold. The intracellular xylitol concentration was measured in batch cultivations of two different strains of Aspergillus niger and two different strains of Aspergillus nidulans grown on media containing xylose, and a concentration up to 30 mM was found. Applying MCA showed that the first polyol dehydrogenase (XDH) in the catabolic pathway of xylose exerted the main flux control in the two strains of A. nidulans and A. niger NW324, but the flux control was exerted mainly at the first enzyme of the pathway (XR) of A. niger NW 296.

Aspergillus↗
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Combinatorial solid-phase synthesis of hapalosin mimetics.

The solid-phase synthesis of a small library of mimetics of the cyclic depsipeptide hapalosin is described. 3-Amino-4-hydroxy-5-nitrobenzoic acid was anchored through the anilino moiety to a backbone amide linker (BAL) handle support. Using chemoselective reactions and without the need for protecting group manipulations, the benzoic acid group was first amidated, then the aniline nitrogen was acylated, and finally the nitro group was reduced to an amine and acylated or reductively alkylated, to generate a 12-member library.

Alkylation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Metabolic control analysis of the penicillin biosynthetic pathway: the influence of the LLD-ACV:bisACV ratio on the flux control.

An extended kinetic model for the first two steps of the penicillin biosynthetic pathway in Penicillium chrysogenum is set up. It includes the formation and reduction of the dimer bis-delta-(L-alpha-aminoadipyl)-L-cysteinyl-D-valine (bisACV) from the first pathway intermediate LLD-ACV and their parallel inhibition of the enzyme ACV synthetase (ACVS). The kinetic model is based on Michaelis-Menten type kinetics, with non-competitive inhibition of the ACVS by both LLD-ACV and bisACV, and competitive inhibition of the isopenicillin N synthetase (IPNS) by glutathione. The inhibition constant of LLD-ACV, KACV is determined to be 0.54 mm. With the kinetic model metabolic control analysis is performed to identify the distribution of rate-control in the pathway at all ratios of LLD-ACV:bisACV. It is concluded that the flux control totally resides at the IPNS. This is a result of the regulation of the ACVS by both the LLD-ACV and bisACV demanding a higher flux through the IPNS enzyme to alleviate their inhibition. The measurement of an intracellular ratio of LLD-ACV:bisACV to be in the range of 1-2 moles per moles emphasises the importance of a fast conversion of LLD-ACV to IPN, and accumulation of LLD-ACV above the K(m)-value of the IPNS should therefore be avoided.

Acyltransferases↗