A growth selection system for the directed evolution of amine-forming or converting enzymes.
Wu, S., Xiang, C., Zhou, Y., Khan, M.S.H., Liu, W., Feiler, C.G., Wei, R., Weber, G., Hohne, M., Bornscheuer, U.T.(2022) Nat Commun 13: 7458-7458
- PubMed: 36460668 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-35228-y
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
7XG5, 7XG6 - PubMed Abstract: 
Fast screening of enzyme variants is crucial for tailoring biocatalysts for the asymmetric synthesis of non-natural chiral chemicals, such as amines. However, most existing screening methods either are limited by the throughput or require specialized equipment. Herein, we report a simple, high-throughput, low-equipment dependent, and generally applicable growth selection system for engineering amine-forming or converting enzymes and apply it to improve biocatalysts belonging to three different enzyme classes. This results in (i) an amine transaminase variant with 110-fold increased specific activity for the asymmetric synthesis of the chiral amine intermediate of Linagliptin; (ii) a 270-fold improved monoamine oxidase to prepare the chiral amine intermediate of Cinacalcet by deracemization; and (iii) an ammonia lyase variant with a 26-fold increased activity in the asymmetric synthesis of a non-natural amino acid. Our growth selection system is adaptable to different enzyme classes, varying levels of enzyme activities, and thus a flexible tool for various stages of an engineering campaign.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Department of Biotechnology and Enzyme Catalysis, Institute of Biochemistry, University of Greifswald, Felix Hausdorff-Str. 4, D-17489, Greifswald, Germany. shukewu@mail.hzau.edu.cn.