Engineered microbial biosensors based on bacterial two-component systems as synthetic biotechnology platforms in bioremediation and biorefinery

• Published in: Microbial cell factories Vol. 16; no. 1; pp. 62 - 10
• Main Authors: Ravikumar, Sambandam, Baylon, Mary Grace, Park, Si Jae, Choi, Jong-il
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BioMed Central 14.04.2017; BioMed Central Ltd; BMC
• Subjects: Adsorption; Analysis; Applied Microbiology; Bacteria; Biodegradation, Environmental; Biomass; Biorefineries; Biorefinery; Bioremediation; Biosensing Techniques; Biosensor; Biosensors; Biotechnology; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Contamination; E coli; Enzymes; Enzymology; Gene expression; Gene Expression Regulation; Genetic circuit; Genetic Engineering; Histidine; Histidine kinase; Histidine Kinase - genetics; Histidine Kinase - metabolism; Kinases; Metabolic Engineering; Microbial Genetics and Genomics; Microbiology; Microorganisms; Proteins; Refining; Regulatory mechanisms (biology); Review; Signal Transduction; Transcription Factors - genetics; Transcription Factors - metabolism; Transmitters; Two-component regulatory system; Biorefinery; Two-component regulatory system; Bioremediation; Biosensor; Genetic circuit
• ISSN: 1475-2859; 1475-2859
• DOI: 10.1186/s12934-017-0675-z

Two-component regulatory systems (TCRSs) mediate cellular response by coupling sensing and regulatory mechanisms. TCRSs are comprised of a histidine kinase (HK), which serves as a sensor, and a response regulator, which regulates expression of the effector gene after being phosphorylated by HK. Using these attributes, bacterial TCRSs can be engineered to design microbial systems for different applications. This review focuses on the current advances in TCRS-based biosensors and on the design of microbial systems for bioremediation and their potential application in biorefinery.