To meet the needs of our increasing energy demands, the production of fuels from renewable resources must be made more efficient. For example, the production of ethanol from biomass has been limited by the costs associated with raw materials and the two-step production using either biological or chemical methods. Recently, the Chen lab has demonstrated a one-step approach that utilizes a synthetic yeast consortium to hydrolyze cellulose for low cost bioethanol production. However, the key to maintaining functionality of the complex system lies in cell-cell communication. Consequently, optimized production of bioethanol would be facilitated by the implementation of a cellular detection system. To accomplish this goal, we utilize G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), the largest family of integral membrane receptors, which respond to external ligand binding with a signaling cascade that transmits a variety of cellular responses. For screening and detection purposes, a hybrid GPCR strain coupling ligand binding to GFP production (PFus2-GFP) has been developed. By directed evolution, we will demonstrate the ability to modify a GPCR with altered ligand specificity as a synthetic sugar sensing system, enabling regulation of a consortium in the production of bioethanol.

Engineering a synthetic sugar sensing yeast strain

251st National Meeting (2016)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.