PCR-targeted Streptomyces gene replacement identifies a protein domain needed for biosynthesis of the sesquiterpene soil odor geosmin

Exploration of geosmin synthase from Streptomyces peucetius ATCC 27952 by deletion of doxorubicin biosynthetic gene cluster

Thorough investigation of Streptomyces peucetius ATCC 27952 genome revealed a sesquiterpene synthase, named spterp13, which encodes a putative protein of 732 amino acids with significant similarity to S. avermitilis MA-4680 (SAV2163, GeoA) and S. coelicolor A3(2) (SCO6073). The proteins encoded by SAV2163 and SCO6073 produce geosmin in the respective strains. However, the spterp13 gene seemed to be silent in S. peucetius. Deletion of the doxorubicin gene cluster from S. peucetius resulted in increased cell growth rate along with detectable production of geosmin. When we over expressed the spterp13 gene in S. peucetius DM07 under the control of an ermE* promoter, 2.4 +/- 0.4-fold enhanced production of geosmin was observed.

Functional dissection of a multimodular polypeptide of the pikromycin polyketide synthase into monomodules by using a matched pair of heterologous docking domains

The pikromyin polyketide synthase (PKS) in Streptomyces venezulae is comprised of a loading module and six extension modules, which generate the corresponding 14-membered macrolactone product. PikAI is a multimodular component of this PKS and houses both the loading domain and the first two extension modules, joined by short intraprotein linkers. We have shown that PikAI can be separated into two proteins at either of these linkers, only when matched pairs of docking domains (DDs) from a heterologous modular phoslactomycin PKS are used in place of the intraprotein linker. In both cases the yields of pikromycin produced by the S. venezuelae mutant were 50% of that of a S. venezuelae strain expressing the native trimodular PikAI. This observation provides the first demonstration that such separations do not dramatically impact the efficiency of the entire in vivo biosynthetic process. Expression of module 2 as a monomodular protein fused to a heterologous N-terminal docking domain was also observed to give almost a tenfold improvement in the in vivo generation of pikromycin from a synthetic diketide intermediate. These results demonstrate the utility of DDs to manipulate biosynthetic processes catalyzed by modular PKSs and the quest to generate novel polyketide products.

PimT, an amino acid exporter controls polyene production via secretion of the quorum sensing pimaricin-inducer PI-factor in Streptomyces natalensis

BACKGROUND

Polyenes represent a major class of antifungal agents characterised by the presence of a series of conjugated double bonds in their planar hydroxylated macrolide ring structure. Despite their general interest, very little is known about the factors that modulate their biosynthesis. Among these factors, we have recently discovered a new inducing compound (PI-factor) in the pimaricin producer Streptomyces natalensis, which elicits polyene production in a manner characteristic of quorum sensing. Here, we describe the involvement of an amino-acid exporter from S. natalensis in modulating the expression of pimaricin biosynthetic genes via secretion of the quorum-sensing pimaricin-inducer PI-factor.

RESULTS

Adjacent to the pimaricin gene cluster lies a member of the RhtB family of amino-acid exporters. Gene deletion and complementation experiments provided evidence for a role for PimT in the export of L-homoserine, L-serine, and L-homoserine lactone. Expression of the gene was shown to be induced by homoserine and by the quorum-sensing pimaricin-inducer PI-factor. Interestingly, the mutant displayed 65% loss of pimaricin production, and also 50% decrease in the production of PI, indicating that PimT is used as PI-factor exporter, and suggesting that the effect in antifungal production might be due to limited secretion of the inducer.

CONCLUSION

This report describes the involvement of an amino acid exporter (encoded by pimT in the vicinity of the pimaricin cluster) in modulating the expression of antibiotic biosynthetic genes via secretion of the quorum-sensing pimaricin-inducer PI-factor. The discovery of the participation of amino acid exporters in a signal transduction cascade for the production of polyene macrolides is unexpected, and represents an important step forward towards understanding the regulatory network for polyene regulation. Additionally, this finding constitutes the first detailed characterization of an amino-acid exporter in an Actinomycete, and to our knowledge, the first evidence for the implication of this type of exporters in quorum sensing.

Hopanoids are not essential for growth of Streptomyces scabies 87-22

Hopanoids are triterpenoic, pentacyclic compounds that are structurally similar to sterols, which are required for normal cell function in eukaryotes. Hopanoids are thought to be an important component of bacterial cell membranes because they control membrane fluidity and diminish passive diffusion of ions, and a few taxons modulate their hopanoid content in response to environmental stimuli. However, to our knowledge, mutational studies to assess the importance of hopanoids in bacterial physiology have never been performed. Genome sequencing of the potato scab pathogen, Streptomyces scabies 87-22, revealed a hopanoid biosynthetic gene cluster (HBGC) that is predicted to synthesize hopene and aminotrihydroxybacteriohopane products. Hopene was produced by fully sporulated cultures of S. scabies on solid ISP4 (International Streptomyces Project 4) medium as well as by submerged mycelia grown in liquid minimal medium. The elongated hopanoid aminotrihydroxybacteriohopane was not detected under either growth condition. Transcription of the S. scabies HBGC was upregulated during aerial growth, which suggests a link between hopanoid production and morphological development. Functional analysis of the S. scabies Delta hop615-1 and Delta hop615-7 mutant strains, the first hopanoid mutants created in any bacterial taxon, revealed that hopanoids are not required for normal growth or for tolerance of ethanol, osmotic and oxidative stress, high temperature, or low pH. This suggests that hopanoids are not essential for normal streptomycete physiology.

In vivo Tn5-based transposon mutagenesis of Streptomycetes

This paper reports the in vivo expression of the synthetic transposase gene tnp(a) from a hyperactive Tn5 tnp gene mutant in Streptomyces coelicolor. Using the synthetic tnp(a) gene adapted for Streptomyces codon usage, we showed random insertion of the transposon into the Streptomycetes genome. The insertion frequency for the hyperactive Tn5 derivative is 98% of transformed S. coelicolor cells. The random transposition has been confirmed by the recovery of ~1.1% of auxotrophs. The Tn5 insertions are stably inherited in the absence of apramycin selection. The transposon contains an apramycin resistance selection marker and an R6Kgamma origin of replication for transposon rescue. We identified the transposon insertion loci by random sequencing of 14 rescue plasmids. The majority of insertions (12 of 14) were mapped to putative open-reading frames on the S. coelicolor chromosome. These included two new regulatory genes affecting S. coelicolor growth and actinorhodin biosynthesis.

Mass spectrometric screening of transcriptional regulators involved in antibiotic biosynthesis in Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

DNA-affinity capture assay (DACA) coupled with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analysis was applied to identify the transcriptional regulators involved in the biosynthesis of actinorhodin (Act) and undecylprodigiosin (Red) in Streptomyces coelicolor. The aim of this analysis was to determine the specific transcriptional regulators binding to the promoter region of actII-ORF4 or redD. The results of the DACA, as the first screening tool, identified eight proteins, including AdpA, as candidate regulators binding to those promoter regions. To show the direct physical relationship between the regulators and promoters, we purified four regulators over-expressed in soluble form in Escherichia coli and subjected these to an electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA). The results of the EMSA appeared to be compatible with the DACA results for those regulators. A null mutant was also constructed for one of these regulators, SCO6008, which showed early Red production and quite delayed Act production in R5(-) medium. These observations suggest that DACA can be widely used to find new regulators and that the regulator SCO6008 may be involved in antibiotic production through its binding to the redD promoter.

Strategies for the discovery of new natural products by genome mining

Natural products have a very broad spectrum of applications. Many natural products are used clinically as antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, anticancer and immunosuppressive agents and are therefore of utmost importance for our society. When in the 1940s the golden age of antibiotics was ushered in, a "gold rush fever" of natural product discovery in the pharmaceutical industry ensued for many decades. However, the traditional process of discovering new bioactive natural products is generally long and laborious, and known natural products are frequently rediscovered. A mass-withdrawal of pharmaceutical companies from new natural product discovery and natural products research has thus occurred in recent years. In this article, the concept of genome mining for novel natural product discovery, which promises to provide a myriad of new bioactive natural compounds, is summarized and discussed. Genome mining for new natural product discovery exploits the huge and constantly increasing quantity of DNA sequence data from a wide variety of organisms that is accumulating in publicly accessible databases. Genes encoding enzymes likely to be involved in natural product biosynthesis can be readily located in sequenced genomes by use of computational sequence comparison tools. This information can be exploited in a variety of ways in the search for new bioactive natural products.

Genetic engineering of antibiotic biosynthesis for the generation of new aminocoumarins

The aminocoumarin antibiotics novobiocin, clorobiocin and coumermycin A(1) are inhibitors of gyrase and highly effective antibacterial agents. Their biosynthetic gene clusters have been cloned from the respective Streptomyces producer strains, and the function of nearly all genes contained therein has been elucidated by genetic and biochemical methods. Efficient methods have been developed for the genetic manipulation and the heterologous expression of the clusters, and more than 100 new derivatives of these antibiotics have been generated by metabolic engineering, mutasynthesis and chemoenzymatic synthesis, providing a model for the power of genetic and genomic methods for the generation of new bioactive compounds.

A plasmid collection for PCR-based gene targeting in the filamentous ascomycete Ashbya gossypii

PCR-based gene targeting with heterologous markers is an efficient method to delete genes, generate gene fusions, and modulate gene expression. For the yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe, several plasmid collections are available covering a wide range of tags and markers. For several reasons, many of these cassettes cannot be used in the filamentous ascomycete Ashbya gossypii. This article describes the construction of 93 heterologous modules for C- and N-terminal tagging and promoter replacements in A. gossypii. The performance of 12 different fluorescent tags was evaluated by monitoring their brightness, detectability, and photostability when fused to the myosin light-chain protein Mlc2. Furthermore, the thiamine-repressible S. cerevisiae THI13 promoter was established to regulate gene expression in A. gossypii. This collection will help accelerate analysis of gene function in A. gossypii and in other ascomycetes where S. cerevisiae promoter elements are functional.

Role of nsdA in negative regulation of antibiotic production and morphological differentiation in Streptomyces bingchengensis

To investigate the function of nsdA in Streptomyces bingchengensis, it was cloned and sequenced, which presented an 89.89% identity with that of S. coelicolor. The lambdaRED-mediated PCR-targeting technique was used to create nsdA replacement in the S. bingchengensis_226541 chromosome. The nsdA disruption mutant, BC29, was obtained, which produced more pigment and spores than did the ancestral strain. HPLC analysis revealed that the disruption of nsdA efficiently increased milbemycin A(4) production and nanchangmycin production by 1.5-fold and 9-fold, respectively. Complementation of the nsdA mutation restored the phenotype and antibiotic production. These results showed that nsdA negatively affected sporulation and antibiotic production in S. bingchengensis.

Use of the native flp gene to generate in-frame unmarked mutations in Streptomyces spp

The generation of unmarked deletion mutants free from polar effects on downstream genes is typically a lengthy and arduous process in Streptomyces spp. The use of FLP recombinase can greatly facilitate this process when combined with established polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-targeting techniques. In vivo production of FLP within Streptomyces cells would streamline the process further, but expression of flp in Streptomyces spp. has proven difficult to achieve. Two Escherichia coli-Streptomyces shuttle plasmids that constitutively express native flp within Streptomyces cells were constructed and tested within Streptomyces clavuligerus and Streptomyces coelicolor to produce in-frame mutations in genes associated with antibiotic production. Only one of the flp-expressing plasmids was functional in S. clavuligerus, but both functioned in S. coelicolor and both were easily lost from cells. Although a separate study has recently shown successful expression of a synthetic flp gene in Streptomyces, this is the first report of expression of the native flp gene within Streptomyces spp. Through the use of these plasmids to generate unmarked deletion mutants, C7p was shown to be essential for production of 5S clavams in S. clavuligerus, and RedJ was demonstrated to be important for optimal undecylprodigiosin biosynthesis in S. coelicolor but traces of the antibiotic were still produced in a DeltaredJ mutant.

Biosynthesis of sibiromycin, a potent antitumor antibiotic

Pyrrolobenzodiazepines, a class of natural products produced by actinomycetes, are sequence selective DNA alkylating compounds with significant antitumor properties. Among the pyrrolo[1,4]benzodiazepines (PBDs) sibiromycin, one of two identified glycosylated PBDs, displays the highest affinity for DNA and the most potent antitumor properties. Despite the promising antitumor properties clinical trials of sibiromycin were precluded by the cardiotoxicity effect in animals attributed to the presence of the C-9 hydroxyl group. As a first step toward the development of sibiromycin analogs, we have cloned and localized the sibiromycin gene cluster to a 32.7-kb contiguous DNA region. Cluster boundaries tentatively assigned by comparative genomics were verified by gene replacement experiments. The sibiromycin gene cluster consisting of 26 open reading frames reveals a "modular" strategy in which the synthesis of the anthranilic and dihydropyrrole moieties is completed before assembly by the nonribosomal peptide synthetase enzymes. In addition, the gene cluster identified includes open reading frames encoding enzymes involved in sibirosamine biosynthesis, as well as regulatory and resistance proteins. Gene replacement and chemical complementation studies are reported to support the proposed biosynthetic pathway.

Diversity of sesquiterpene synthases in the basidiomycete Coprinus cinereus

Fungi are a rich source of bioactive secondary metabolites, and mushroom-forming fungi (Agaricomycetes) are especially known for the synthesis of numerous bioactive and often cytotoxic sesquiterpenoid secondary metabolites. Compared with the large number of sesquiterpene synthases identified in plants, less than a handful of unique sesquiterpene synthases have been described from fungi. Here we describe the functional characterization of six sesquiterpene synthases (Cop1 to Cop6) and two terpene-oxidizing cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (Cox1 and Cox2) from Coprinus cinereus. The genes were cloned and, except for cop5, functionally expressed in Escherichia coli and/or Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Cop1 and Cop2 each synthesize germacrene A as the major product. Cop3 was identified as an alpha-muurolene synthase, an enzyme that has not been described previously, while Cop4 synthesizes delta-cadinene as its major product. Cop6 was originally annotated as a trichodiene synthase homologue but instead was found to catalyse the highly specific synthesis of alpha-cuprenene. Coexpression of cop6 and the two monooxygenase genes next to it yields oxygenated alpha-cuprenene derivatives, including cuparophenol, suggesting that these genes encode the enzymes for the biosynthesis of antimicrobial quinone sesquiterpenoids (known as lagopodins) that were previously isolated from C. cinereus and other Coprinus species.

Functional characterization of the first two actinomycete 4-amino-4-deoxychorismate lyase genes

In some antibiotic producers, p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) or its immediate precursor, 4-amino-4-deoxychorismate (ADC), is involved in primary metabolism and antibiotic biosynthesis. In Streptomyces sp. FR-008, a gene pabC-1 putatively encoding a fold-type IV pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP)-dependent enzyme was found within the antibiotic FR-008/candicidin biosynthetic gene cluster, whose inactivation significantly reduced the productivity of antibiotic FR-008 to about 20% of the wild-type level. Its specific role in PABA formation was further demonstrated by the successful complementation of an Escherichia coli pabC mutant. Moreover, a free-standing gene pabC-2, probably encoding another fold-type IV PLP-dependent enzyme, was cloned from the same strain. Inactivation of pabC-2 reduced antibiotic FR-008 yield to about 57% of the wild-type level in the mutant, and the complementation of the E. coli pabC mutant established its involvement in PABA biosynthesis. Furthermore, a pabC-1/pabC-2 double mutant only retained about 4% of the wild-type antibiotic FR-008 productivity, clearly indicating that pabC-2 also contributed to biosynthesis of this antibiotic. Surprisingly, apparently retarded growth of the double mutant was observed on minimal medium, which suggested that both pabC-1 and pabC-2 are involved in PABA biosynthesis for primary metabolism. Finally, both PabC-1 and PabC-2 were shown to be functional ADC lyases by in vitro enzymic lysis with the release of pyruvate. pabC-1 and pabC-2 appear to represent the first two functional ADC lyase genes identified in actinomycetes. The involvement of these two ADC lyase genes in both cell growth and antibiotic FR-008 biosynthesis sets an example for the interplay between primary and secondary metabolisms in bacteria.

Conserved network of proteins essential for bacterial viability

The yjeE, yeaZ, and ygjD genes are highly conserved in the genomes of eubacteria, and ygjD orthologs are also found throughout the Archaea and eukaryotes. In this study, we have constructed conditional expression strains for each of these genes in the model organism Escherichia coli K12. We show that each gene is essential for the viability of E. coli under laboratory growth conditions. Growth of the conditional strains under nonpermissive conditions results in dramatic changes in cell ultrastructure. Deliberate repression of the expression of yeaZ results in cells with highly condensed nucleoids, while repression of yjeE and ygjD expression results in at least a proportion of very enlarged cells with an unusual peripheral distribution of DNA. Each of the three conditional expression strains can be complemented by multicopy clones harboring the rstA gene, which encodes a two-component-system response regulator, strongly suggesting that these proteins are involved in the same essential cellular pathway. The results of bacterial two-hybrid experiments show that YeaZ can interact with both YjeE and YgjD but that YgjD is the preferred interaction partner. The results of in vitro experiments indicate that YeaZ mediates the proteolysis of YgjD, suggesting that YeaZ and YjeE act as regulators to control the activity of this protein. Our results are consistent with these proteins forming a link between DNA metabolism and cell division.

Identification and manipulation of the caprazamycin gene cluster lead to new simplified liponucleoside antibiotics and give insights into the biosynthetic pathway

Caprazamycins are potent anti-mycobacterial liponucleoside antibiotics isolated from Streptomyces sp. MK730-62F2 and belong to the translocase I inhibitor family. Their complex structure is derived from 5'-(beta-O-aminoribosyl)-glycyluridine and comprises a unique N-methyldiazepanone ring. The biosynthetic gene cluster has been identified, cloned, and sequenced, representing the first gene cluster of a translocase I inhibitor. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of 23 open reading frames putatively involved in export, resistance, regulation, and biosynthesis of the caprazamycins. Heterologous expression of the gene cluster in Streptomyces coelicolor M512 led to the production of non-glycosylated bioactive caprazamycin derivatives. A set of gene deletions validated the boundaries of the cluster and inactivation of cpz21 resulted in the accumulation of novel simplified liponucleoside antibiotics that lack the 3-methylglutaryl moiety. Therefore, Cpz21 is assigned to act as an acyltransferase in caprazamycin biosynthesis. In vivo and in silico analysis of the caprazamycin biosynthetic gene cluster allows a first proposal of the biosynthetic pathway and provides insights into the biosynthesis of related uridyl-antibiotics.

Cross-talk between an orphan response regulator and a noncognate histidine kinase in Streptomyces coelicolor

Two-component systems (TCSs), typically consisting of a histidine kinase (HK) and a cognate response regulator (RR), are the most common signaling systems in bacteria. Besides paired genes encoding TCSs, there also exists unpaired HKs and orphan RRs. In Streptomyces coelicolor, 13 orphan RRs have been annotated. Because of lack of cognate HKs, little is known as yet about the regulation of orphan RRs. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that several orphan RRs had high amino acid sequence identities with RRs from typical TCSs in S. coelicolor. Among them, the orphan RR SCO3818 and RR SCO0204, which paired with HK SCO0203, showed the highest identity (65%), suggesting that the two RRs might both be under the regulation of SCO0203. Following studies showed that SCO0203 could phosphorylate not only SCO0204 but also SCO3818. Deletion of either sco0203 or sco3818 led to enhanced production of blue-pigmented antibiotic actinorhodin, which indicated a functional correlation between SCO0203 and SCO3818. These results suggested that SCO3818 might be regulated by SCO0203. This is the first report describing the regulation of an orphan RR by an HK. Moreover, this is also the first identification of cross-talk between different TCS components in S. coelicolor.

Aromatic prenylation in phenazine biosynthesis: dihydrophenazine-1-carboxylate dimethylallyltransferase from Streptomyces anulatus

The bacterium Streptomyces anulatus 9663, isolated from the intestine of different arthropods, produces prenylated derivatives of phenazine 1-carboxylic acid. From this organism, we have identified the prenyltransferase gene ppzP. ppzP resides in a gene cluster containing orthologs of all genes known to be involved in phenazine 1-carboxylic acid biosynthesis in Pseudomonas strains as well as genes for the six enzymes required to generate dimethylallyl diphosphate via the mevalonate pathway. This is the first complete gene cluster of a phenazine natural compound from streptomycetes. Heterologous expression of this cluster in Streptomyces coelicolor M512 resulted in the formation of prenylated derivatives of phenazine 1-carboxylic acid. After inactivation of ppzP, only nonprenylated phenazine 1-carboxylic acid was formed. Cloning, overexpression, and purification of PpzP resulted in a 37-kDa soluble protein, which was identified as a 5,10-dihydrophenazine 1-carboxylate dimethylallyltransferase, forming a C-C bond between C-1 of the isoprenoid substrate and C-9 of the aromatic substrate. In contrast to many other prenyltransferases, the reaction of PpzP is independent of the presence of magnesium or other divalent cations. The K(m) value for dimethylallyl diphosphate was determined as 116 microm. For dihydro-PCA, half-maximal velocity was observed at 35 microm. K(cat) was calculated as 0.435 s(-1). PpzP shows obvious sequence similarity to a recently discovered family of prenyltransferases with aromatic substrates, the ABBA prenyltransferases. The present finding extends the substrate range of this family, previously limited to phenolic compounds, to include also phenazine derivatives.

Characterization of the tautomycetin biosynthetic gene cluster from Streptomyces griseochromogenes provides new insight into dialkylmaleic anhydride biosynthesis

Tautomycetin (TTN) is a highly potent and specific protein phosphatase inhibitor isolated from Streptomyces griseochromogenes. The biological activity of TTN makes it an important lead for drug discovery, whereas its rare dialkylmaleic anhydride moiety and structural similarity to tautomycin (TTM), another potent phosphatase inhibitor with tremendous medicinal potential, draws attention to novel biosynthetic chemistries responsible for its production. To elucidate the biosynthetic machinery associated with TTN production, the ttn biosynthetic gene cluster from S. griseochromogenes was isolated and characterized, and its involvement in TTN biosynthesis confirmed by gene inactivation and complementation experiments. The ttn cluster was localized to a 79 kb DNA region, consisting of 19 open reading frames that encode two modular type I polyketide synthases (TtnAB), one type II thioesterase (TtnH), eight proteins for dialkylmaleic anhydride biosynthesis (TtnKLMNOPRS), four tailoring enzymes (TtnCDFI), two regulatory proteins (TtnGQ), and one resistance protein (TtnJ). A model for TTN biosynthesis is proposed on the basis of functional assignments from sequence analysis, which agrees well with previous feeding experiments, has been supported by in vivo gene inactivation experiments, and is supported by analogy to the recently reported ttm cluster. These findings set the stage to fully investigate TTN biosynthesis and to biosynthetically engineer new TTN analogues.

Functional characterization of tlmK unveiling unstable carbinolamide intermediates in the tallysomycin biosynthetic pathway

Tallysomycins (TLMs) belong to the bleomycin family of anticancer antibiotics. TLMs differ from bleomycins primarily by the presence of a 4-amino-4,6-dideoxy-l-talose sugar attached to C-41 as part of a glycosylcarbinolamide. We previously proposed, on the basis of bioinformatics analysis of the tlm biosynthetic gene cluster from Streptoalloteichus hindustanus E465-94 ATCC 31158, that the tlmK gene is responsible for the attachment of this sugar moiety. We now report that inactivation of tlmK in S. hindustanus abolished TLM A and TLM B production, the resultant DeltatlmK mutant instead accumulated five new metabolites, and introduction of a functional copy of tlmK to the DeltatlmK mutant restored TLM A and TLM B production. Two major metabolites, TLM K-1 and TLM K-2, together with three minor metabolites, TLM K-3, TLM K-4, and TLM K-5, were isolated from the DeltatlmK mutant, and their structures were elucidated. These findings provide experimental evidence supporting the previous functional assignment of tlmK to encode a glycosyltransferase and unveil two carbinolamide pseudoaglycones as key intermediates in the TLM biosynthetic pathway. TlmK stabilizes the carbinolamide intermediates by glycosylating their hemiaminal hydroxyl groups, thereby protecting them from hydrolysis during TLM biosynthesis. In the absence of TlmK, the carbinolamide intermediates fragment to produce an amide TLM K-1 and aldehyde intermediates, which undergo further oxidative fragmentation to afford carboxylic acids TLM K-2, TLM K-3, TLM K-4, and TLM K-5.

Engineered production of iso-migrastatin in heterologous Streptomyces hosts

Glutarimide-containing polyketides such as migrastatin (MGS) are well known for their ability to inhibit tumor cell migration. We have previously shown that MGS is derived from iso-migrastatin (iso-MGS) via a H(2)O-mediated ring-expansion rearrangement. A bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library of Streptomyces platensis NRRL18993, an iso-MGS producer, was constructed. From this library, pBS11001, a BAC clone harboring the intact iso-MGS biosynthetic gene cluster, was identified. Mobilization of pBS11001 into five heterologous Streptomyces hosts afforded recombinant strains, SB11001, SB11002, SB11003, SB11004, and SB11005, respectively. Under a standard set of media and fermentation conditions, the recombinant strains all produced the same profile of iso-MGS as that of S. platensis NRRL18993. These findings highlight the strength and flexibility of the BAC-based technology for natural product production and engineering in heterologous Streptomyces model hosts.

Cloning and characterization of the biosynthetic gene cluster for tomaymycin, an SJG-136 monomeric analog

Tomaymycin produced by Streptomyces achromogenes is a naturally produced pyrrolobenzodiazepine (PBD). The biosynthetic gene cluster for tomaymycin was identified and sequenced. The gene cluster analysis reveals a novel biosynthetic pathway for the anthranilate moiety of PBDs. Gene replacement and chemical complementation studies were used to confirm the proposed biosynthetic pathway.

Inactivation of the ketoreductase gilU gene of the gilvocarcin biosynthetic gene cluster yields new analogues with partly improved biological activity

Four new analogues of the gilvocarcin-type aryl-C-glycoside antitumor compounds, namely 4'-hydroxy gilvocarcin V (4'-OH-GV), 4'-hydroxy gilvocarcin M, 4'-hydroxy gilvocarcin E and 12-demethyl-defucogilvocarcin V, were produced through inactivation of the gilU gene. The 4'-OH-analogues showed improved activity against lung cancer cell lines as compared to their parent compounds without 4'-OH group (gilvocarcins V and E). The structures of the sugar-containing new mutant products indicate that the enzyme GilU acts as an unusual ketoreductase involved in the biosynthesis of the C-glycosidically linked deoxysugar moiety of the gilvocarcins. The structures of the new gilvocarcins indicate substrate flexibility of the post-polyketide synthase modifying enzymes, particularly the C-glycosyltransferase and the enzyme responsible for the sugar ring contraction. The results also shed light into biosynthetic sequence of events in the late steps of biosynthetic pathway of gilvocarcin V.

Investigations into viomycin biosynthesis by using heterologous production in Streptomyces lividans

Viomycin and capreomycin are members of the tuberactinomycin family of antituberculosis drugs. As with many antibacterial drugs, resistance to the tuberactinomycins is problematic in treating tuberculosis; this makes the development of new derivatives of these antibiotics to combat this resistance of utmost importance. To take steps towards developing new derivatives of this family of antibiotics, we have focused our efforts on understanding how these antibiotics are biosynthesized by the producing bacteria so that metabolic engineering of these pathways can be used to generate desired derivatives. Here we present the heterologous production of viomycin in Streptomyces lividans 1326 and the use of targeted-gene deletion as a mechanism for investigating viomycin biosynthesis as well as the generation of viomycin derivatives. Deletion of vioQ resulted in nonhydroxylated derivatives of viomycin, while strains lacking vioP failed to acylate the cyclic pentapeptide core of viomycin with beta-lysine. Surprisingly, strains lacking vioL produced derivatives that had the carbamoyl group of viomycin replaced by an acetyl group. Additionally, the acetylated viomycin derivatives were produced at very low levels. These two observations suggested that the carbamoyl group of the cyclic pentapeptide core of viomycin was introduced at an earlier step in the biosynthetic pathway than previously proposed. We present biochemical evidence that the carbamoyl group is added to the beta-amino group of L-2,3-diaminopropionate prior to incorporation of this amino acid by the nonribosomal peptide synthetases that form the cyclic pentapeptide cores of both viomycin and capreomycin.

Characterization of the polyoxin biosynthetic gene cluster from Streptomyces cacaoi and engineered production of polyoxin H

A gene cluster (pol) essential for the biosynthesis of polyoxin, a nucleoside antibiotic widely used for the control of phytopathogenic fungi, was cloned from Streptomyces cacaoi. A 46,066-bp region was sequenced, and 20 of 39 of the putative open reading frames were defined as necessary for polyoxin biosynthesis as evidenced by its production in a heterologous host, Streptomyces lividans TK24. The role of PolO and PolA in polyoxin synthesis was demonstrated by in vivo experiments, and their functions were unambiguously characterized as O-carbamoyltransferase and UMP-enolpyruvyltransferase, respectively, by in vitro experiments, which enabled the production of a modified compound differing slightly from that proposed earlier. These studies should provide a solid foundation for the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms for polyoxin biosynthesis, and set the stage for combinatorial biosynthesis using genes encoding different pathways for nucleoside antibiotics.

The SmpB-tmRNA tagging system plays important roles in Streptomyces coelicolor growth and development

The ssrA gene encodes tmRNA that, together with a specialized tmRNA-binding protein, SmpB, forms part of a ribonucleoprotein complex, provides a template for the resumption of translation elongation, subsequent termination and recycling of stalled ribosomes. In addition, the mRNA-like domain of tmRNA encodes a peptide that tags polypeptides derived from stalled ribosomes for degradation. Streptomyces are unique bacteria that undergo a developmental cycle culminating at sporulation that is at least partly controlled at the level of translation elongation by the abundance of a rare tRNA that decodes UUA codons found in a relatively small number of open reading frames prompting us to examine the role of tmRNA in S. coelicolor. Using a temperature sensitive replicon, we found that the ssrA gene could be disrupted only in cells with an extra-copy wild type gene but not in wild type cells or cells with an extra-copy mutant tmRNA (tmRNA(DD)) encoding a degradation-resistant tag. A cosmid-based gene replacement method that does not include a high temperature step enabled us to disrupt both the ssrA and smpB genes separately and at the same time suggesting that the tmRNA tagging system may be required for cell survival under high temperature. Indeed, mutant cells show growth and sporulation defects at high temperature and under optimal culture conditions. Interestingly, even though these defects can be completely restored by wild type genes, the DeltassrA strain was only partially corrected by tmRNA(DD). In addition, wildtype tmRNA can restore the hygromycin-resistance to DeltassrA cells while tmRNA(DD) failed to do so suggesting that degradation of aberrant peptides is important for antibiotic resistance. Overall, these results suggest that the tmRNA tagging system plays important roles during Streptomyces growth and sporulation under both normal and stress conditions.

Engineered Streptomyces platensis strains that overproduce antibiotics platensimycin and platencin

Platensimycin, which is isolated from Streptomyces platensis MA7327, and platencin, which is isolated from S. platensis MA7339, are two recently discovered natural products that serve as important antibiotic leads. Here we report on the identification of S. platensis MA7327 as a dual producer of both platensimycin and platencin. A PCR-based approach was used to locate and clone the locus involved in platensimycin and platencin production, including ptmR1, which encodes a putative GntR-like transcriptional regulator. Deletion of this gene from the producing organism allowed us to isolate strains that overproduce platensimycin and platencin with yields of 323 +/- 29 mg/liter and 255 +/- 30 mg/liter, respectively. These results illustrate the effectiveness of genetic manipulation for the rational engineering of improvements in titers.

Osmoregulation in Streptomyces coelicolor: modulation of SigB activity by OsaC

As free-living non-motile saprophytes, Streptomyces need to adapt to a wide range of environmental conditions and this is reflected by an enormous diversity of regulatory proteins encoded by, for example, the genome of the model streptomycete Streptomyces coelicolor. In this organism, we have identified a new osmoregulation gene, osaC, encoding a member of a novel family of regulatory proteins. Members of the family have a predicted domain composition consisting of an N-terminal kinase domain related to anti-sigma factors, sensory Pas and Gaf domains, and a C-terminal phosphatase domain. osaC is linked to the response regulator gene osaB; expression analysis of the latter revealed that it is induced after osmotic stress in a sigma(B)-dependent manner. OsaC is required to return osaB and sigB expression back to constitutive levels after osmotic stress. From analysis of the activities of OsaC(DeltaPho), lacking the C-terminal phosphatase domain, and OsaC(N92A), with a substitution of a critical asparagine residue in the kinase domain, we infer that this N-terminal domain functions as a sigma(B) anti-sigma factor. Indeed, co-purification experiments indicate association of OsaC and sigma(B). These results support a model for post-osmotic stress modulation of sigma(B) activity by OsaC.

Chapter 23. Cyanobactin ribosomally synthesized peptides--a case of deep metagenome mining

Deep metagenome mining is a new method for engineering natural product pathways, focusing on examining symbiotic organisms. The method has been applied to a family of compounds known as cyanobactins, which are ribosomally synthesized peptides produced by cyanobacteria. Often, these cyanobacteria live symbiotically with marine animals, leading to production of natural products in whole animal samples. Here, we focus on methods to identify, clone, and study cyanobactin natural product genes from axenic organisms and metagenomic environments. The application to deep metagenome mining is described, along with other potential targets of this methodology.

Chapter 7. Cloning and analysis of natural product pathways

The identification of gene clusters of natural products has lead to an enormous wealth of information about their biosynthesis and its regulation, and about self-resistance mechanisms. Well-established routine techniques are now available for the cloning and sequencing of gene clusters. The subsequent functional analysis of the complex biosynthetic machinery requires efficient genetic tools for manipulation. Until recently, techniques for the introduction of defined changes into Streptomyces chromosomes were very time-consuming. In particular, manipulation of large DNA fragments has been challenging due to the absence of suitable restriction sites for restriction- and ligation-based techniques. The homologous recombination approach called recombineering (referred to as Red/ET-mediated recombination in this chapter) has greatly facilitated targeted genetic modifications of complex biosynthetic pathways from actinomycetes by eliminating many of the time-consuming and labor-intensive steps. This chapter describes techniques for the cloning and identification of biosynthetic gene clusters, for the generation of gene replacements within such clusters, for the construction of integrative library clones and their expression in heterologous hosts, and for the assembly of entire biosynthetic gene clusters from the inserts of individual library clones. A systematic approach toward insertional mutation of a complete Streptomyces genome is shown by the use of an in vitro transposon mutagenesis procedure.

The enzymology of polyether biosynthesis

Polyether ionophore antibiotics are a special class of polyketides widely used in veterinary medicine, and as food additives in animal husbandry. In this article, we review current knowledge about the mechanism of polyether biosynthesis, and the genetic and biochemical strategies used for its study. Several clear differences distinguish it from traditional type I modular polyketide biosynthesis: polyether backbones are assembled by modular polyketide synthases but are modified by two key enzymes, epoxidase and epoxide hydrolase, to generate the product. All double bonds involved in the oxidative cyclization in the polyketide backbone are of E geometry. Chain release in the polyether biosynthetic pathway requires a special type II thioesterase which specifically hydrolyzes the polyether thioester. All these discoveries should be very helpful for a deep understanding of the biosynthetic mechanism of this class of important natural compounds, and for the targeted engineering of polyether derivatives.

Aminocoumarins mutasynthesis, chemoenzymatic synthesis, and metabolic engineering

The aminocoumarin antibiotics novobiocin, clorobiocin and coumermycin A(1) are formed by different Streptomyces strains and are potent inhibitors of bacterial gyrase. Their biosynthetic gene clusters have been analyzed in detail by genetic and biochemical investigations. Heterologous expression of these gene clusters by site-specific integration into the genome of the fully sequenced host Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) readily results in an accumulation of the antibiotics in yields similar to the wildtype strains. In recent years, the aminocoumarins have developed into a model system for the generation of new antibiotics by genetic methods. Prior to heterologous expression in S. coelicolor, cosmids containing the complete biosynthetic clusters can be manipulated in Escherichia coli by lambda RED-mediated recombination, creating single or multiple gene replacements or gene deletions. Thereby, mutant strains are generated which are blocked in the synthesis of certain intermediates or in specific tailoring reactions. For instance, mutasynthetic experiments can subsequently be carried out to generate aminocoumarin antibiotics that contain modified acyl moieties attached to the aminocoumarin core, and chemoenzymatic synthesis can be employed for the acylation of the deoxysugar moiety of structural analogues of the aminocoumarin antibiotics. Metabolic engineering-the combination of gene deletions and foreign gene expression via replicative expression vectors-can be used to generate further structural variants of these antibiotics. These methods can be combined, allowing the generation of a wide variety of new compounds. This chapter may provide general pointers for the use of genetic methods in the generation of new antibiotics.

The endonuclease activity of RNase III is required for the regulation of antibiotic production by Streptomyces coelicolor

The double strand-specific endoRNase RNase III globally regulates the production of antibiotics by Streptomyces coelicolor. We have undertaken studies to determine whether the endoRNase activity of S. coelicolor RNase III or its RNA binding activity is responsible for its regulatory function. We show that an rnc null mutant of S. coelicolor M145 does not produce actinorhodin or undecylprodigiosin. Restoring a wild-type copy of rnc to that mutant also restored antibiotic production. We constructed an rnc point mutant, D70A, in which an aspartic acid residue which is essential for the catalytic activity of RNase III was changed to alanine. The D70A mutation abolished the catalytic activity of the protein but not its ability to bind to RNA substrates. Introduction of a copy of the D70A gene into the rnc null mutant did not restore antibiotic production. This result suggests that the endoRNase activity of RNase III is required for the regulation of antibiotic production in S. coelicolor. We also reconstructed the C120 point mutation that was originally described in 1992. Although that mutation diminished antibiotic production by S. coelicolor, we confirm here that the C120 protein retains some RNase III activity.

Cytosine deaminase as a negative selection marker for gene disruption and replacement in the genus Streptomyces and other actinobacteria

We developed a novel negative selection system for actinobacteria based on cytosine deaminase (CodA). We constructed vectors that include a synthetic gene encoding the CodA protein from Escherichia coli optimized for expression in Streptomyces species. Gene disruption and the introduction of an unmarked in-frame deletion were successfully achieved with these vectors.

NdgR, an IclR-like regulator involved in amino-acid-dependent growth, quorum sensing, and antibiotic production in Streptomyces coelicolor

NdgR (regulator for nitrogen source-dependent growth and antibiotic production), an IclR-like regulator, has been initially identified as a binding protein to the promoters of doxorubicin biosynthetic genes in Streptomyces peucetius by DNA affinity capture assay method. NdgR is well conserved throughout the Streptomyces species and many other bacteria such as Mycobacteria and Corynebacteria. In Streptomyces coelicolor, ndgR deletion mutant showed slow cell growth and defects in differentiation and enhances the production of actinorhodin (ACT) in minimal media containing certain amino acids where wild-type strain could not produce ACT. Although deletion mutant of ndgR showed different antibiotic production in minimal media containing Leu or Gln, it only showed reduced mRNA expression levels of the genes involved in leucine metabolism. Neither NdgR-dependent expression of glnA nor direct binding of NdgR protein to glnA, glnII, and glnR promoters was observed. However, ScbR, which is governed by NdgR shown by gel mobility shift assay, binds to promoter of glnR, suggesting indirect regulation of glutamine metabolism by NdgR. NdgR protein binds to intergenic region of ndgR-leuC, and scbR-scbA involved in gamma-butyrolactone. Two-dimensional gel analysis has shown a global effect of ndgR deletion in protein expression, including up-regulated proteins involved in ACT synthesis and down-regulation of chaperones such as GroEL, GroES, and DnaK. These results suggest a global regulatory role for NdgR in amino acid metabolisms, quorum sensing, morphological changes, antibiotic production, and expression of chaperonines in S. coelicolor.

Identification of sas, a conserved gene cluster involved in the regulation of aerial mycelium formation in Streptomyces griseus

We cloned a DNA fragment that suppressed the aerial-mycelium-deficient phenotype in an amfS mutant of Streptomyces griseus when it was introduced into the cells via a high-copy-number plasmid. The sasABCDR gene cluster was identified as being responsible for this suppressive activity. The proteins encoded by sasABCD were of unknown function, but the operon structure was found to be conserved in all the strains of Streptomyces spp. and related organisms whose genomes have been sequenced. sasR, the flanking opposite coding sequence, encoded a putative DNA-binding protein. Subcloning revealed that the presence of all five coding sequences was essential for complete suppression. Scanning electron microscopy of Streptomyces griseus strains carrying the sas gene cluster at a high copy-number revealed that bundle-like structures consisting of several aerial hyphae were often formed. S1 nuclease protection analyses were performed to identify the transcriptional start site in the promoters preceding sasA and sasR. The promoter preceding sasA was highly active during vegetative growth. Null mutants for sasABCD among the S. griseus and S. coelicolor A3(2) cells exhibited bald phenotypes; this suggested a positive regulatory role of this gene cluster in the onset of morphogenesis in these two phylogenetically distinct Streptomyces species.

Streptomyces scabies 87-22 possesses a functional tomatinase

The actinomycete Streptomyces scabies 87-22 is the causal agent of common scab, an economically important disease of potato and taproot crops. Sequencing of the S. scabies 87-22 genome revealed the presence of a gene with high homology to the gene encoding the alpha-tomatine-detoxifying enzyme tomatinase found in fungal tomato pathogens. The tomA gene from S. scabies 87-22 was cotranscribed with a putative family 1 glycosyl hydrolase gene, and purified TomA protein was active only on alpha-tomatine and not potato glycoalkaloids or xylans. Tomatinase-null mutants were more sensitive to alpha-tomatine than the wild-type strain in a disk diffusion assay. Interestingly, tomatine affected only aerial mycelium and not vegetative mycelium, suggesting that the target(s) of alpha-tomatine is not present during vegetative growth. Severities of disease for tomato seedlings affected by S. scabies 87-22 wild-type and DeltatomA1 strains were indistinguishable, suggesting that tomatinase is not important in pathogenicity on tomato plants. However, conservation of tomA on a pathogenicity island in S. acidiscabies and S. turgidiscabies suggests a role in plant-microbe interaction.

Extracellular signalling, translational control, two repressors and an activator all contribute to the regulation of methylenomycin production in Streptomyces coelicolor

Bioinformatic analysis of the plasmid-linked gene cluster associated with biosynthesis of methylenomycin (Mm) suggested that part of the cluster directs synthesis of a gamma-butyrolactone-like autoregulator. Autoregulator activity could be extracted from culture fluids, but differed from gamma-butyrolactones in being alkali resistant. The activity has recently been shown to comprise a series of novel autoregulator molecules, the methylenomycin furans (termed MMF). MMF autoregulator activity is shown to account for the ability of certain Mm non-producing mutants to act as 'secretors' in cosynthesis with other 'convertor' mutants. Three genes implicated in MMF biosynthesis are flanked by two regulatory genes, which are related to genes for gamma-butyrolactone-binding proteins. Genetic evidence suggests that these two genes encode components of a hetero-oligomeric repressor of MMF and Mm biosynthesis. The Mm biosynthetic genes themselves depend on the activator gene mmyB, which appears to be repressed by the putative MmyR/MmfR complex until enough MMF accumulates to release repression. The presence of TTA codons in mmyB and the main MMF biosynthetic gene causes Mm production to be dependent on the pleiotropically acting bldA gene, which encodes the tRNA for the rarely used UUA codon.