Rebelo Bárbara A, Ventura M Rita, Abranches Rita
Plant Cell Biology Laboratory, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier (ITQB NOVA), Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, 2780-157, Portugal.
Bioorganic Chemistry Laboratory, Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier (ITQB NOVA), Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Oeiras, 2780-157, Portugal.
Sci Rep. 2025 Aug 6;15(1):28695. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-11916-9.
Astaxanthin and canthaxanthin are high-value carotenoids with growing demand due to their antioxidant properties and applications in food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical sectors. However, natural sources are limited and current production methods are often costly or unsustainable. In this study, we developed a plant-based platform for ketocarotenoid biosynthesis using metabolically engineered Nicotiana tabacum BY-2 cell suspension cultures. Specifically, we expressed a marine bacterial crtW gene (β-carotene ketolase) alone or in combination with overexpressed plant psy (phytoene synthase) and crtI (phytoene desaturase) genes. The resulting cell lines displayed visually distinct pigmentation and accumulated different ketocarotenoid profiles based on their genetic modifications. Single-gene transformants expressing crtW produced up to 50 µg g⁻¹ DW of canthaxanthin and 127 µg g⁻¹ DW of astaxanthin. Co-expression of all three genes significantly increased canthaxanthin accumulation to 788 µg g⁻¹ DW. Our results establish suspended undifferentiated plant cells as a scalable and sustainable system for ketocarotenoid production, offering a biological alternative to natural producers and chemical synthesis.
虾青素和角黄素是具有高价值的类胡萝卜素，由于其抗氧化特性以及在食品、化妆品和制药领域的应用，其需求不断增长。然而，天然来源有限，目前的生产方法往往成本高昂或不可持续。在本研究中，我们利用代谢工程改造的烟草BY-2细胞悬浮培养物开发了一个用于酮类胡萝卜素生物合成的植物平台。具体而言，我们单独表达了一种海洋细菌的crtW基因（β-胡萝卜素酮酶），或与过表达的植物psy（八氢番茄红素合酶）和crtI（八氢番茄红素去饱和酶）基因联合表达。所得细胞系根据其基因改造呈现出视觉上不同的色素沉着，并积累了不同的酮类胡萝卜素谱。表达crtW的单基因转化体产生了高达50 μg g⁻¹ DW的角黄素和127 μg g⁻¹ DW的虾青素。这三个基因的共表达显著提高了角黄素的积累量，达到788 μg g⁻¹ DW。我们的结果确立了悬浮的未分化植物细胞作为酮类胡萝卜素生产的可扩展且可持续的系统，为天然生产者和化学合成提供了一种生物学替代方案。
