title: Production of recombinant miraculin using transgenic tomatoes in a closed cultivation system.
abstract: We constructed a cultivation system with a controlled light period, light intensity, temperature, and CO(2) concentration for mass production of the taste-modifying protein miraculin from transgenic tomatoes. The tomato plants exhibited normal growth and produced over 270 g of fresh weight (FW) fruit per plant, with the recombinant miraculin concentration reaching up to 90 microg per g FW of tomatoes. The recombinant miraculin content of transgenic tomatoes was compared to that of plants grown in a netted greenhouse. The recombinant miraculin content of transgenic tomatoes grown in a closed cultivation system was more stable than that of tomatoes grown in a netted greenhouse, suggesting that the closed cultivation system is suitable for the production of recombinant miraculin. We estimate that 45 tFW of tomatoes and 4 kg of recombinant miraculin per 1,000 m(2) of cultivation area can be harvested per year.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba Tennodai 1-1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan.
authors.forename: Tadayoshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirai
authors.forename: Go
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fukukawa
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kakuta
authors.forename: Naoya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ezura
mesh_terms: D000383:Agriculture / Q000379:methods; D004780:Environment, Controlled; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D018551:Solanum lycopersicum / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000378:metabolism*; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D006023:Glycoproteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C008533:miraculin protein, Synsepalum dulcificum