Department of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1 Ohkubo, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 169-8555, Japan.
Department of Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University, 3-4-1 Ohkubo, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 169-8555, Japan.
J Biosci Bioeng. 2021 Jun;131(6):579-588. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiosc.2021.01.011. Epub 2021 Feb 19.
Strains belonging to Aspergillus section Nigri, including Aspergillus niger, are used for industrial production of citric acid from carbohydrates such as molasses and starch. The objective of this study was to construct the genome editing system that could enable rapid and efficient gene replacement in citric acid-producing fungi for genetic breeding. Using the citric acid-hyperproducer A. tubingensis (formerly A. niger) WU-2223L as a model strain, we developed a CRISPR/Cas9 system-based genome editing technique involving co-transformation of Cas9 and the DNA fragment encoding single guide RNA (sgRNA). Using this system, ATP-sulfurylase gene (sC) knock-out strain derived from WU-2223L was generated; the knock-out efficiency was 29 transformants when 5 μg Cas9 was added to 5 × 10 protoplasts. In the gene replacement method based on this system, a DNA fragment encoding sgRNAs that target both the gene of interest and marker gene was used, and replacement of nitrate reductase gene (niaD) using sC gene as a marker gene was attempted. More than 90% of the sC-knock-out transformants exhibited replaced niaD, indicating efficient gene replacement. Moreover, one-step marker rescue of the sC marker gene was accomplished by excising the knock-in donor via intramolecular homologous recombination, enabling marker-free genome editing and drastically shortening the gene replacement period by circumventing the transformation procedure to recover the sC gene. Thus, we succeeded in constructing a CRISPR/Cas9 system-based rapid and marker-free gene replacement system for the citric acid-hyperproducer strain WU-2223L.
属于黑曲霉节的菌株,包括黑曲霉,用于从糖蜜和淀粉等碳水化合物中工业生产柠檬酸。本研究的目的是构建基因组编辑系统,使柠檬酸生产真菌能够快速有效地进行基因替换,进行遗传育种。我们以柠檬酸高产菌 A. tubingensis(原黑曲霉)WU-2223L 为模型菌株,开发了一种基于 CRISPR/Cas9 系统的基因组编辑技术,涉及 Cas9 和编码单指导 RNA(sgRNA)的 DNA 片段的共转化。使用该系统,从 WU-2223L 衍生出 ATP-硫酸化酶基因(sC)敲除株;当向 5×10 个原生质体中添加 5μg Cas9 时,敲除效率为 29 个转化体。在基于该系统的基因替换方法中,使用了编码靶向目的基因和标记基因的 sgRNA 的 DNA 片段,并尝试使用 sC 基因作为标记基因替换硝酸还原酶基因(niaD)。超过 90%的 sC 敲除转化体表现出取代的 niaD,表明基因替换效率高。此外,通过分子内同源重组切除敲入供体,实现了 sC 标记基因的一步标记拯救,从而无需进行转化过程来恢复 sC 基因,实现无标记的基因组编辑,并大大缩短基因替换周期。因此,我们成功构建了用于柠檬酸高产菌株 WU-2223L 的基于 CRISPR/Cas9 系统的快速无标记基因替换系统。