One-step biosynthesis of α-ketoisocaproate from l-leucine by an Escherichia coli whole-cell biocatalyst expressing an l-amino acid deaminase from Proteus vulgaris.

Song, Yang; Li, Jianghua; Shin, Hyun-dong; Du, Guocheng; Liu, Long; Chen, Jian

This work aimed to develop a whole-cell biotransformation process for the production of α-ketoisocaproate from L-leucine. A recombinant Escherichia coli strain was constructed by expressing an L-amino acid deaminase from Proteus vulgaris. To enhance α-ketoisocaproate production, the reaction conditions were optimized as follows: whole-cell biocatalyst 0.8 g/L, leucine concentration 13.1 g/L, temperature 35 °C, pH 7.5, and reaction time 20 h. Under the above conditions, the α-ketoisocaproate titer reached 12.7 g/L with a leucine conversion rate of 97.8%. In addition, different leucine feeding strategies were examined to increase the α-ketoisocaproate titer. When 13.1 g/L leucine was added at 2-h intervals (from 0 to 22 h, 12 addition times), the α-ketoisocaproate titer reached 69.1 g/L, while the leucine conversion rate decreased to 50.3%. We have developed an effective process for the biotechnological production of α-ketoisocaproate that is more environmentally friendly than the traditional petrochemical synthesis approach.

BIOSYNTHESIS; ESCHERICHIA coli; ENZYMES; AMINO acids; DEAMINASES

Scientific Reports, 2015, p12614

2045-2322

Academic Journal

10.1038/srep12614