"

From 2010.igem.org

Home	Team	Project	Submitted Parts	Modeling	Protocols	Notebook	Safety

Poly-gamma-glutamic acid

Poly-gamma-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) is an interesting biopolymer. It can be found in "natto", a Japanese traditional food made of soybeans. Bacillus subtilis ferments soybeans and create sticky-ness product, PGA, to protect itself from other microrganizms. It is a promising polymer, because it has many fanctions.(For instance, highly water-absorbent, eatable, biodegradable...)

Poly glutamate synthetase(PGS) is necessary to product PGA in Escherichia coli. PGS gene includes three ORF (open reading flame), pgsB, pgsC, and pgsA. These ORFs code three essential enzymes to create PGA.

PGA contains both D and L glutamate.

To increase the amount of PGA production, co-expression of glutamate racemase and PGS is need.

PGS is originally localized in cell membrane, and proposed to produce PGA from D,L-Glutamic acid. Bacillus subtilis has enzymes to biodegrade PGA; however, E. coli does not. Therefore, we want E. coli to produce PGA for greening of the desert.