Technology Summary

Glycans are complex structurally diverse macromolecules abundant in the mammalian intestine. The gut microbiota composition is largely governed by the available glycans derived from the host diet, intestinal mucosa, and co-resident microbes. Gut microbes possess a vast repertoire of glycan-specific sensor proteins that facilitate rapid and dramatic changes in target gene transcription in response to target glycan availability, enabling their utilization as growth substrates. Penn State inventors have developed a reporter-based approach that specifically and sensitively harnesses these proteins to indicate the presence of structurally distinct glycans by reflecting PUL polysaccharide utilization loci (PUL) transcription.

The invention comprises a luciferase reporter optimized for Bacteroides species that can accurately reflect dose-dependent PUL transcription when coupled with PUL-regulatory elements. Thus, target glycans are readily detected in complex mixtures by quantifiable changes in bioluminescence.