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Construction of Metabolic Operons Catalyzing the De Novo Biosynthesis of Indigo in Escherichia coli

Bio/Technology volume 11, pages 381–386 (1993)Cite this article

Abstract

The efficient production of the textile dye indigo by fermentation has been a goal since the early 1980's when the first bacterial strains capable of this synthesis were constructed. We report here the development of a recombinant microorganism that directly synthesizes indigo from glucose. This construction involved the cloning and genetic manipulation of at least 9 genes and modifications of the fermentation medium to help stabilize the biosynthetic activity. Directed genetic changes in two operons caused significant increases in reaction rates and in the stability of the catalytic enzymes. This example of whole cell catalysis by a recombinant Escherichia coli represents a novel and environmentally sound approach to the synthesis of a high value specialty chemical.

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Author notes

  1. Burt D. Ensley: Corresponding author.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Amgen, Inc., 1840 Dehavilland Dr., Thousand Oaks, CA, 93120

    Douglas Murdock & Cuneyt Serdar

  2. Envirogen, Inc., 4100 Quakerbridge Rd., Lawrenceville, NJ, 08648

    Burt D. Ensley

  3. RiVM, PO Box 1, 3720 BA, Bilthoven, The Netherlands

    Marcel Thalen

Authors
  1. Douglas Murdock
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  2. Burt D. Ensley
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  3. Cuneyt Serdar
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  4. Marcel Thalen
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Murdock, D., Ensley, B., Serdar, C. et al. Construction of Metabolic Operons Catalyzing the De Novo Biosynthesis of Indigo in Escherichia coli. Nat Biotechnol 11, 381–386 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0393-381

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