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US 2014/0227749 A1Published application
Method for enhancing the fermentative potential and growth rate of microorganisms under anaerobiosis
AssigneesUniversite D'Avignon Et Des Pays De Vaucluse, Commissariat A L'energie Atomique Et Aux Ene Alt
InventorsJean Armengaud, Geremy Clair, Catherine Duport
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Abstract
The present invention concerns a method for enhancing the growth rate, the biomass production and/or the fermentative potential of an anaerobic microorganism, comprising the steps consisting in: (a) modifying said anaerobic microorganism by inactivating the ohrR gene, the ohrR gene product or homolog thereof; (b) culturing the modified anaerobic microorganism obtained in step (a) under low-ORP anaerobic conditions.
Claims17
1:
- A method for enhancing growth rate, biomass production, fermentative potential, or any combination thereof, of an anaerobic microorganism, the method comprising:
- modifying the anaerobic microorganism by inactivating an ohrR gene, an ohrR gene product or homolog thereof, to obtain a modified anaerobic microorganism,
- wherein a homolog to the ohrR gene or to the ohrR gene product is a gene or a RNA coding for an amino acid sequence or an amino acid sequence, and the amino acid sequence is detected with an OhrR amino acid sequence from Bacillus cereus by two iterations of Position Specific Iterated-BLAST in which p value <1e-10;
- and
- culturing the modified anaerobic microorganism under low-ORP anaerobic conditions with a ORP less than or equal to −100 mV;
- thereby which the growth rate, the biomass production, the fermentative potential, or any combination thereof, of the modified microorganism is enhanced when compared with the growth rate, the biomass production, the fermentative potential, or any combination thereof, of a corresponding non modified microorganism cultured under the same conditions.
3 more elements
2:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein a homolog of the ohrR gene or of the ohrR gene product is a negative regulator belonging to MarR family and is related to organic peroxide sensing.
3:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the anaerobic microorganism is a facultative anaerobic microorganism or an obligate anaerobic microorganism.
4:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the anaerobic microorganism is a natural, genetically-modified or synthetic, eukaryotic or prokaryotic, anaerobic microorganism.
5:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein a homolog of the ohrR gene is a gene or a nucleic acid presenting an identity in the nucleotide sequence of at least 20% with the ohrR gene nucleotide sequence of Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579.
6:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein a homolog of the ohrR gene product is a ribonucleic acid or a polypeptide presenting an identity in the ribonucleotide or in the amino acid sequence of at least 20% with the ohrR gene product ribonucleotide or amino acid sequence of Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579.
7:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene comprises a structural alteration in the ohrR gene or locus that reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene product.
8:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene comprises a structural alteration in a part of the microorganism genome different from the ohrR gene or locus that directly or indirectly reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene product.
9:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene product is obtained by introducing an exogenous agent into the microorganism to yield a modified microorganism, wherein the exogenous agent reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene product.
10:
- The method according to claim 9, wherein the exogenous agent is selected from the group consisting of an interfering RNA (iRNA), an antisense DNA (asDNA), an antisense RNA (asRNA), double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), a ribozyme, a riboswitch, a DNA aptamer, a RNA aptamer, a peptide aptamer, a molecular inhibitor, a nucleic acid coding thereof or a vector, and a plasmid comprising or operably encoding thereof.
11:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the ORP is less than or equal to −200 mV.
12:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the modified microorganism is suitable in low-ORP anaerobic culture conditions with a ORP less than or equal to −100 mV, in an industrial process related to human and animal health, agronomy, farming, agro-industries, marine and aquatic processes, chemical industry, energy industry and environmental processes.
13:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the modified microorganism is suitable in low-ORP anaerobic culture conditions with a ORP less than or equal to −100 mV, in the production of food products, in the production of biofuels, in the pharmaceutical field to produce active ingredients, in the production of valuable chemicals or in the destruction of hazardous chemicals, polluting chemicals, or any combination thereof.
14:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene homolog comprises a structural alteration in the ohrR gene homolog or locus that reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene homolog product.
15:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene homolog comprises a structural alteration in a part of the microorganism genome different from the ohrR gene homolog or locus that directly or indirectly reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene homolog product.
16:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the inactivation of the ohrR gene homolog product is obtained by introducing an exogenous agent into the microorganism to yield a modified microorganism, wherein the exogenous agent reduces or eliminates the production or activity of the ohrR gene homolog product.
17:
- The method according to claim 1, wherein the ORP is less than or equal to −300 mV.