Directed evolution and bioprocesses with industrial importance

Learn from nature, go beyond nature

1. Directed evolution of proteins for industrial/diagnostic applications

Directed evolution is a methodology used in protein engineering, in which proteins or microbes are randomly diversified and subjected to functional screening to "breed" mutant strains with desirable properties. Novel methods for efficient mutagenesis and screening have also been developed in our lab.

2. Disease (or aging)-related protein-protein interactions

Interactions between proteins play crucial roles in every biological process including disease development and aging. Our original quantitative screening platform, qY2H, allows us to search a huge cDNA library for proteins that specifically bind to the target (bait)

protein. The reporter gene used in the qY2H is fungal extracellular galactosidase, which is also engineered in the above research project.

3. Fungal gene expression control that is corresponding to nutritional changes in fermentation

We are analyzing industrially useful fungi including yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Aspergillus oryzae. Yeast is inevitable organism in brewing and alcohol production, whereas A. oryzae is the domestic mold which has been traditionally used in Japanese sake- as well as miso- and soysauce-fermentation. Gene expression in those organisms change drastically in the course of fermentation and affect the quality of the fermentation products. The genes and their promoters found in this research project provide a novel bioengineering toolbox and some has been engineered in our research project 1 (see above).