Modular synthetic biology toolkit for filamentous fungi
Journal article, 2021

Filamentous fungi are highly productive cell factories, often used in industry for the production of enzymes and small bioactive compounds. Recent years have seen an increasing number of synthetic-biology-based applications in fungi, emphasizing the need for a synthetic biology toolkit for these organisms. Here we present a collection of 96 genetic parts, characterized in Penicillium or Aspergillus species, that are compatible and interchangeable with the Modular Cloning system. The toolkit contains natural and synthetic promoters (constitutive and inducible), terminators, fluorescent reporters, and selection markers. Furthermore, there are regulatory and DNA-binding domains of transcriptional regulators and components for implementing different CRISPR-based technologies. Genetic parts can be assembled into complex multipartite assemblies and delivered through genomic integration or expressed from an AMA1-sequence-based, fungal-replicating shuttle vector. With this toolkit, synthetic transcription units with established promoters, fusion proteins, or synthetic transcriptional regulation devices can be more rapidly assembled in a standardized and modular manner for novel fungal cell factories.

Hybrid transcription factor

Filamentous fungi

Inducible promoter

Synthetic biology toolkit

Modular cloning

Transcriptional regulation

Author

László Mózsik

University of Groningen

Carsten Pohl

Technische Universität Berlin

Vera Meyer

Technische Universität Berlin

R. A. L. Bovenberg

DSM Biotechnology Centre

University of Groningen

Yvonne Nygård

Chalmers, Biology and Biological Engineering, Industrial Biotechnology

Arnold J.M. Driessen

University of Groningen

ACS Synthetic Biology

2161-5063 (eISSN)

Vol. 10 11 2850-2861

Subject Categories

Cell Biology

Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Medical Biotechnology (with a focus on Cell Biology (including Stem Cell Biology), Molecular Biology, Microbiology, Biochemistry or Biopharmacy)

DOI

10.1021/acssynbio.1c00260

PubMed

34726388

More information

Latest update

11/24/2021