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Bacterial microcompartments as metabolic modules for plant synthetic biology
Author(s) -
GonzalezEsquer C. Raul,
Newnham Sarah E.,
Kerfeld Cheryl A.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
the plant journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.058
H-Index - 269
eISSN - 1365-313X
pISSN - 0960-7412
DOI - 10.1111/tpj.13166
Subject(s) - rubisco , synthetic biology , pyruvate carboxylase , carbon fixation , biochemistry , cyanobacteria , biology , enzyme , photosynthesis , metabolic engineering , cytosol , ribulose , nitrogenase , metabolic pathway , chemistry , computational biology , bacteria , genetics , nitrogen fixation
Summary Bacterial microcompartments ( BMC s) are megadalton‐sized protein assemblies that enclose segments of metabolic pathways within cells. They increase the catalytic efficiency of the encapsulated enzymes while sequestering volatile or toxic intermediates from the bulk cytosol. The first BMC s discovered were the carboxysomes of cyanobacteria. Carboxysomes compartmentalize the enzyme ribulose‐1,5‐bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBis CO ) with carbonic anhydrase. They enhance the carboxylase activity of RuBis CO by increasing the local concentration of CO 2 in the vicinity of the enzyme's active site. As a metabolic module for carbon fixation, carboxysomes could be transferred to eukaryotic organisms (e.g. plants) to increase photosynthetic efficiency. Within the scope of synthetic biology, carboxysomes and other BMC s hold even greater potential when considered a source of building blocks for the development of nanoreactors or three‐dimensional scaffolds to increase the efficiency of either native or heterologously expressed enzymes. The carboxysome serves as an ideal model system for testing approaches to engineering BMC s because their expression in cyanobacteria provides a sensitive screen for form (appearance of polyhedral bodies) and function (ability to grow on air). We recount recent progress in the re‐engineering of the carboxysome shell and core to offer a conceptual framework for the development of BMC ‐based architectures for applications in plant synthetic biology.