Evolutionary engineering

Tao, L., Jackson, R.E. and Cheng, Q. (2005) Directed evolution of copy number of a broad host range plasmid for metabolic engineering. Evolutionary Engineering, 7, 10-17. 

Baquero F (2004) From pieces to patterns evolutionary engineering in bacterial pathogens. Nat Rev Microbiol 2(6) 510-518... 

Today s tools of evolutionary engineering certainly fulfill these requirements, and directed evolution has in fact emerged as the method of choice for biocatalyst improvement. However, we are only beginning to explore the power of evolutionary design. 

Kuyper, M., Toirkens, M. J., Diderich, J. A., Winkler, A. A., Van Dijken, J. R, Pronk, J. T. (2005). Evolutionary Engineering of mixed-sugar utilization by a xylose-fermenting Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain. FEMS Yeast Research, 5, 925-934. 

Evolutionary Engineering of Industrially Important Microbial Phenotypes... 

Keywords. Adaptation, Directed evolution. Evolutionary engineering. Metabolic engineering. Selection... 

Evolutionary Engineering for Industrially Important Mktobial Phenotypes... 

Excluding classical mutagenesis and selection on solid media, there are several reports on evolutionary engineering of simple cellular subsystems with an applied background. For example, experiments were performed with an E. coli strain that produced an aromatic compound and carried a deletion of the phosphotransferase system (PTS) for glucose uptake. Spontaneous glucose revertants were selected that apparently utilized a non-PTS system for glucose uptake... 

This example illustrates the advantage of evolutionary engineering for optimally accommodating a metabolic component into the complex system of cellular metabolism. Selection procedures have also been used to improve more specialized desirable properties such as improved downstream processing characteristics or resistance to phage infection. Although usually undesired, adhesive phenotypes can be selected for the use in certain types of bioreactors that require attachment of cells [108]. 

Clearly, evolutionary engineering of simple cellular subsystems is complementary but also competing with directed in vitro evolution, provided sequence information on the involved components is available. 

Acknowledgements. I am most indebted to Jay Bailey for his continuous support and first introducing me to this field. Furthermore, I thank Dan Lasko for critical reading of the manuscript. Our research in evolutionary engineering was supported by the Swiss Priority Program in Biotechnology (SPP BioTech). 

In addition, new concepts for selection of strains with improved properties are discussed - here referred to as evolutionary engineering. Finally, Stephanopou-los and Gill discuss the status of Metabolic Engineering, and predicts an expanded role for this field in the future. 

Select th< GRG Nonlinear engine for Solver Problenis that ere smooth norrlinear Select the IP SimpieM engine for linear Solver Problems, and lelect the Evolutionary engine for SoNer problems that are non smooUL. 

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