Determining the Role of UTP-Glucose-1-Phosphate Uridylyltransferase (GalU) in Improving the Resistance of NCFM to Freeze-Drying

Overview

Journal Foods

Specialty Biotechnology

Date 2022 Jun 24

PMID 35741917

Authors

Zhidan Zeng

Xiaoqun Zeng

Yuxing Guo

Zhen Wu

Zhendong Cai

Daodong Pan

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

NCFM is widely used in the fermentation industry; using it as a freeze-dried powder can greatly reduce the costs associated with packaging and transportation, and even prolong the storage period. Previously published research has reported that the expression of (EC: 2.7.7.9) is significantly increased as a result of freezing and drying. Herein, we aimed to explore how plays an important role in improving the resistance of NCFM to freeze-drying. For this study, was first knocked out and then re-expressed in NCFM to functionally characterize its role in the pertinent metabolic pathways. The knockout strain Δ showed lactose/galactose deficiency and displayed irregular cell morphology, shortened cell length, thin and rough capsules, and abnormal cell division, and the progeny could not be separated. In the re-expression strain p, these inhibited pathways were restored; moreover, the p cells showed a strengthened cell wall and capsule, which enhanced their resistance to adverse environments. The p cells showed GalU activity that was 229% higher than that shown by the wild-type strain, and the freeze-drying survival rate was 84%, this being 4.7 times higher than that of the wild-type strain. To summarize, expression of the gene can significantly enhance gene expression in galactose metabolic pathway and make the strain form a stronger cell wall and cell capsule and enhance the resistance of the bacteria to an adverse external environment, to improve the freeze-drying survival rate of NCFM.

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