Utilizing the CreA Gene to Better Understand Carbon Flux in Fungi
Carbon catabolite repression (CCR) is a system which represses the synthesis of enzymes required for certain carbon sources when more favored carbon sources are present. Fungal enzymes are useful in various industrial applications such as the degradation of bi-product biomass produced in many areas of manufacturing and production. For example, the basidiomycete, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, a filamentous fungus, produces a number of lignin peroxidases (LiPs) such as an extra-cellular lignin-modifying protein and manganese-dependent peroxidase (MnPs). The LiPs secreted by P. chrysosporium are able to break down lignin, one of the main substances of wood, while leaving the cellulose behind. These enzymes are capable of degrading toxic waste as well as biomass waste. Through polysaccharide hydrolysis and lignin utilization, biobased products and biofuels can be processed from biomass instead of petroleum, which is more environmentally sound than current fuel options. Previous research in the fungal phylum, Ascomyces has shown that the creA gene is an important gene that controls various enzymes which have key roles in controlling carbon utilization by fungi. We hypothesize that there are similarities across all fungi in the mechanism by which carbon flux is controlled and that orthologs of the creA gene exist in all fungal phyla. A COnsensus-DEgenerate Hybrid Oligonucleotide Primers (CODEHOP) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) strategy was used to isolate genomic fragments of the creA gene from a variety of fungi with the objective to design and utilize a method for isolation of the creA gene from a wide range of fungi.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 887024
- Report Number(s):
- PNNL-SA-42496; TRN: US200617%%439
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Undergraduate Research, Vol. V(2005)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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