Lu Junpeng, Chen Zhenhua, Zhu Huiming, Tang Qinghai, Yang Zhili
Systems Biology Laboratory, School of Marine Science and Technology, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan 316022, China.
Genes (Basel). 2025 Apr 28;16(5):515. doi: 10.3390/genes16050515.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Rhamnolipids (RLs) are biosurfactants with significant industrial and environmental potential, which physicochemical properties depend greatly on their fatty acyl chain composition. This study investigated the impact of genetically modulating the fatty acid synthesis genes and on RL composition and functionality in PAO1.
Using temperature-sensitive mutants and suppressor strains for these essential genes, we successfully engineered RLs with altered fatty acyl chain lengths and saturation levels. LC-MS/MS analyses showed that deletion and overexpression of and significantly shifted RL fatty acid profiles. Functional analyses indicated that these structural changes markedly influenced RL emulsification activity and critical micelle concentration (CMC).
These findings demonstrate the feasibility of optimizing RL properties through targeted genetic manipulation, offering valuable insights for designing customized biosurfactants for diverse industrial and environmental applications.
背景/目的：鼠李糖脂（RLs）是具有巨大工业和环境潜力的生物表面活性剂，其物理化学性质在很大程度上取决于其脂肪酰链组成。本研究调查了基因调控脂肪酸合成基因和对PAO1中RL组成和功能的影响。
利用这些必需基因的温度敏感突变体和抑制菌株，我们成功构建了脂肪酰链长度和饱和度改变的RLs。液相色谱-串联质谱（LC-MS/MS）分析表明，和的缺失与过表达显著改变了RL脂肪酸谱。功能分析表明，这些结构变化显著影响了RL的乳化活性和临界胶束浓度（CMC）。
这些发现证明了通过靶向基因操作优化RL特性的可行性，为设计用于各种工业和环境应用的定制生物表面活性剂提供了有价值的见解。
