Zaslavskaia L A, Lippmeier J C, Shih C, Ehrhardt D, Grossman A R, Apt K E
Martek Biosciences Corp., 6480 Dobbin Road, Columbia, MD 21045, USA.
Science. 2001 Jun 15;292(5524):2073-5. doi: 10.1126/science.160015.
Most microalgae are obligate photoautotrophs and their growth is strictly dependent on the generation of photosynthetically derived energy. We show that the microalga Phaeodactylum tricornutum can be genetically engineered to thrive on exogenous glucose in the absence of light through the introduction of a gene encoding a glucose transporter (glut1 or hup1). This demonstrates that a fundamental change in the metabolism of an organism can be accomplished through the introduction of a single gene. This also represents progress toward the use of fermentation technology for large-scale commercial exploitation of algae by reducing limitations associated with light-dependent growth.
大多数微藻是专性光合自养生物，它们的生长严格依赖于光合作用产生的能量。我们发现，通过导入编码葡萄糖转运蛋白（glut1或hup1）的基因，三角褐指藻这种微藻能够在无光条件下利用外源葡萄糖实现基因工程改造后的茁壮成长。这表明，通过导入单个基因就可以实现生物体新陈代谢的根本改变。这也代表着在利用发酵技术大规模商业开发藻类方面取得了进展，减少了与光依赖生长相关的限制。
