Microbial Biotechnology

1
Microbial Biotechnology

• Chapter 5

2
The Structure of Microbes

• Prokaryotes
• Archaebacteria
• Includes halophiles, thermophiles,
  extremophiles
• Eubacteria
• On skin, soil, water, can be pathogenic

3
The Structure of Microbes

• Characteristics of Prokaryotes
• Generally smaller than Eukaryotes
• No nucleus
• Cell wall composed of peptidoglycan
• Conjugation (transfer of DNA by cytoplasmic
  bridge)
• Transduction (DNA is packaged in a virus and
  infects recipient bacterial cells)
• 20 minute growth rate (binary fission

4
Yeast are Important Too!

• Single celled eukaryote
• Kingdom Fungi
• Over 1.5 million species
• Source of antibiotics, blood cholesterol lowering
  drugs
• Able to do post translational modifications
• Grow anaerobic or aerobic
• Examples Pichia pastoris (grows to a higher
  density than most laboratory strains), has a no.
  of strong promoters, can be used in batch
  processes

5
Microorganisms as Tools

• Microbial Enzymes
• Taq (DNA polymerase), cellulases, proteases,
  amylases

6
Microorganisms as Tools

• Bacterial Transformation
• The ability of bacteria to take in DNA from their
  surrounding environment
• Bacteria must be made competent to take up DNA

7
Microorganisms as Tools

• Cloning and Expression Techniques
• Fusion Proteins

8
Microorganisms as Tools

• Microbial Proteins as Reporters
• Examples the lux gene which produces luciferase
• Used to develop a fluorescent bioassay to test
  for TB

9
Microorganisms as Tools

• Yeast Two-Hybrid System
• Used to study protein interactions

10
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Food Products
• Rennin used to make curds (solid) and whey in
  production of cheese
• Recombinant rennin is known as chymosin (first
  recombinant food product approved by FDA)

11
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Food Products
• Energy production in bacteria
• Aerobic or anaerobic

12
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Food Products
• Fermentation
• (anaerobic respiration)
• Lactic acid fermentation
• Used to make cheese, yogurt, etc.
• Ethanol fermentation
• Used to make beer and wine

13
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Therapeutic proteins
• Recombinant insulin in bacteria

14
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Field Applications of Recombinant Microorganisms
• Ice-minus bacteria (remove ice protein producing
  genes from P. syringae)
• P. fluorescens containing the gene that codes for
  the bacterial toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis
  (kills insects) Bt toxin!

15
Using Microbes for a Variety of Everyday
Applications

• Using Microbes Against Other Microbes
• Antibiotics
• Act in a few key ways
• Prevent replication
• Kill directly
• Damage cell wall or prevent its synthesis

16
Vaccines

• First was a vaccine against smallpox (cowpox
  provides immunity)
• DPT-diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus
• MMR measles, mumps, and rubella
• OPV- oral polio vaccine (Sabin)

17
Vaccines

• A Primer on Antibodies
• Antigen- foreign substances that stimulate an
  immune response
• Types of leukocytes or white blood cells
• B-lymphocytes antibody-mediated immunity
• T-lymphocytes cellular immunity
• Macrophages cell eating (phagocytosis)

18
Vaccines

• Antigens stimulate antibody production in the
  immune system

Light chain
Heavy chain
IgA first line of defense IgG and IgM
activates macrophages
19
Vaccines

• Mechanism of Antibody Action

20
Vaccines

• How are vaccines made?
• They can be part of a pathogen (e.g. a toxin) or
  whole organism that is dead or alive but
  attenuated (doesnt cause disease)
• Subunit (toxin) or another part of the pathogen
• Attenuated (doesnt cause disease)
• Inactivated (killed)
• What about flu vaccines (why do we have to get a
  shot every year?)

21
Bacterial and Viral Targets for Vaccines

• Immune Therapy
• Used to enhance natural immune responses
• Ex Interferon is a protein that triggers
  production of protective proteins (or antibodies)
  that inhibit viral replication.

22
Bacterial and Viral Targets for Vaccines

• HIV

23
Microbial Genomes

• Microbial Genome Program (MGP) the goal is to
  sequence the entire genomes of microorganisms
  that have potential applications in environmental
  biology, research, industry, and health
• Sequencing Strategies?

24
Microbial Genomes

• Why study viral genomes?
• Decipher genes and their products so that agents
  that block attachment, block replication can be
  made

25
Microbial Diagnostics

• Using Molecular Techniques to Identify Bacteria
• RFLP
• PCR and Real time PCR
• Sequencing

26
Microbial Diagnostics

• Microarrays for tracking contagious disease
• PulseNet used to identify outbreaks

27
Microbial Diagnostics

• Combating Bioterrorism
• The use of biological materials as weapons to
  harm humans or animals and plants we depend on
  for food
• Examples in History
• Throwing plague infected dead bodies over the
  walls of their enemies

28
Microbial Diagnostics

• Using Biotech Against Bioweapons
• Postal service x-raying packages
• Antibody tests in the field
• PCR tests in the field
• Protein Microarrays for detecting bioweapon
  pathogens