title: Carotenoid production in Bacillus subtilis achieved by metabolic engineering.
abstract: The carotenoid synthetic genes, crtM and crtN, derived from Staphylococcus aureus, were introduced into B. subtilis, resulting in yellow pigmentation. Absorption maxima of pigments and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry demonstrated that the pigmented strain accumulated two C(30) carotenoids, 4,4'-diapolycopene and 4,4'-diaponeurosporene. A survival test using H(2)O(2) revealed that the pigmented strain was more resistant to oxidative stress than the strain harboring an empty-vector. These findings indicate that B. subtilis can produce carotenoids, and the strain accumulating the carotenoids, CarotenoBacillus, will become a basal host for production of C(30) carotenoids and evaluation of their antioxidative effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioproductive Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Utsunomiya University, 350 Minemachi, Utsunomiya, Tochigi, 321-8505, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Shunsaku
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Isamu
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Maeda
mesh_terms: D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000494:pharmacology; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D050296:Microbial Viability / Q000187:drug effects; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D002338:Carotenoids; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide