Fate of naturally occurring epoxy acids: a soluble epoxide hydrase, which catalyzes cis hydration, from Fusarium solani pisi

Secretome Analysis of Macrophomina phaseolina Identifies an Array of Putative Virulence Factors Responsible for Charcoal Rot Disease in Plants

Macrophomina phaseolina is a global devastating necrotrophic fungal pathogen. It causes charcoal rot disease in more than 500 host plants including major food crops, pulse crops, fiber crops, and oil crops. Despite having the whole-genome sequence of M. phaseolina, understanding the M. phaseolina genome-based plant–pathogen interactions is limited in the absence of direct experimental proof of secretion. Thus, it is essential to understand the host–microbe interaction and the disease pathogenesis, which can ensure global agricultural crop production and security. An in silico–predicted secretome of M. phaseolina is unable to represent the actual secretome. We could identify 117 proteins present in the secretome of M. phaseolina using liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD032749. An array of putative virulence factors of M. phaseolina were identified in the present study using solid-state culture. Similar virulence factors have been reported in other plant pathogenic fungi also. Among the secretory fungal proteins with positive economic impacts, lignocellulolytic enzymes are of prime importance. Further, we validated our results by detecting the cell wall–degrading enzymes xylanase, endoglucanase, and amylase in the secretome of M. phaseolina. The present study may provide a better understanding about the necrotrophic fungi M. phaseolina, which modulate the host plant defense barriers using secretory proteins.

Biodegradation of plastic polymers by fungi: a brief review

Plastic polymers are non-degradable solid wastes that have become a great threat to the whole world and degradation of these plastics would take a few decades. Compared with other degradation processes, the biodegradation process is the most effective and best way for plastic degradation due to its non-polluting mechanism, eco-friendly nature, and cost-effectiveness. Biodegradation of synthetic plastics is a very slow process that also involves environmental factors and the action of wild microbial species. In this plastic biodegradation, fungi play a pivotal role, it acts on plastics by secreting some degrading enzymes, i.e., cutinase`, lipase, and proteases, lignocellulolytic enzymes, and also the presence of some pro-oxidant ions can cause effective degradation. The oxidation or hydrolysis by the enzyme creates functional groups that improve the hydrophilicity of polymers, and consequently degrade the high molecular weight polymer into low molecular weight. This leads to the degradation of plastics within a few days. Some well-known species which show effective degradation on plastics are Aspergillus nidulans, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus glaucus, Aspergillus oryzae, Aspergillus nomius, Penicillium griseofulvum, Bjerkandera adusta, Phanerochaete chrysosporium, Cladosporium cladosporioides, etc., and some other saprotrophic fungi, such as Pleurotus abalones, Pleurotus ostreatus, Agaricus bisporus and Pleurotus eryngii which also helps in degradation of plastics by growing on them. Some studies say that the degradation of plastics was more effective when photodegradation and thermo-oxidative mechanisms involved with the biodegradation simultaneously can make the degradation faster and easier. This present review gives current knowledge regarding different species of fungi that are involved in the degradation of plastics by their different enzymatic mechanisms to degrade different forms of plastic polymers.

Biocatalytic conversion of epoxides

Epoxides are attractive intermediates for producing chiral compounds. Important biocatalytic reactions involving epoxides include epoxide hydrolase mediated kinetic resolution, leading to the formation of diols and enantiopure remaining substrates, and enantioconvergent enzymatic hydrolysis, which gives high yields of a single enantiomer from racemic mixtures. Epoxides can also be converted by non-hydrolytic enantioselective ring opening, using alternative anionic nucleophiles; these reactions can be catalysed by haloalcohol dehalogenases. The differences in scope of these enzymatic conversions is related to their different catalytic mechanisms, which involve, respectively, covalent catalysis with an aspartate carboxylate as the nucleophile and non-covalent catalysis with a tyrosine that acts as a general acid-base. The emerging new possibilities for enantioselective biocatalytic conversion of epoxides suggests that their importance in green chemistry will grow.

Triple hydroxylation of tetracenomycin A2 to tetracenomycin C involving two molecules of O(2) and one molecule of H(2)O

The TcmG or ElmG oxygenase-catalyzed triple hydroxylation of tetracenomycin (Tcm) A2 to Tcm C proceeds via a novel monooxygenase-dioxygenase mechanism, deriving the 4- and 12a-OH groups of Tcm C from two molecules of O(2) and the 4a-OH group of Tcm C from a molecule of H(2)O. These results suggest a mechanistic analogy among TcmG, ElmG, and the bacterial and fungal hydroquinone epoxidizing dioxygenases, as well as the mammalian vitamin K-dependent gamma-glutamyl carboxylase.

Multiple epoxide hydrolases in Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici and their relationship to medium composition and host-specific toxin production

The production of Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici host-specific toxins (AAL toxins) and epoxide hydrolase (EH) activity were studied during the growth of this plant-pathogenic fungus in stationary liquid cultures. Media containing pectin as the primary carbon source displayed peaks of EH activity at day 4 and at day 12. When pectin was replaced by glucose, there was a single peak of EH activity at day 6. Partial characterization of the EH activities suggests the presence of three biochemically distinguishable EH activities. Two of them have a molecular mass of 25 kDa and a pI of 4.9, while the other has a molecular mass of 20 kDa and a pI of 4.7. Each of the EH activities can be distinguished by substrate preference and sensitivity to inhibitors. The EH activities present at day 6 (glucose) or day 12 (pectin) are concomitant with AAL toxin production.

Epoxide hydrolases and their synthetic applications

Chiral epoxides and 1,2-diols, which are central building blocks for the asymmetric synthesis of bioactive compounds, can be obtained by using enzymes--i.e. epoxide hydrolases--which catalyse the enantioselective hydrolysis of epoxides. These biocatalysis have recently been found to be more widely distributed in fungi and bacteria than previously expected. Sufficient sources from bacteria, such as Rhodococcus and Nocardia spp., or fungi, as for instance Aspergillus and Beauveria spp., have now been identified. The reaction proceeds via an SN2-specific opening of the epoxide, leading to the formation of the corresponding trans-configured 1,2-diol. For the resolution of racemic monosubstituted and 2,2- or 2,3-disubstituted substrates, various fungi and bacteria have been shown to possess excellent enantioselectivities. Additionally, different methods, which lead to the formation of the optically pure product diol in a chemical yield far beyond the 50% mark (which is intrinsic to classic kinetic resolutions), are discussed. In addition, the use of non-natural nucleophiles such as azides or amines provides access to enantiomerically enriched vicinal azido- and amino-alcohols. The synthetic potential of these enzymes for asymmetric synthesis is illustrated with recent examples, describing the preparation of some biologically active molecules.

Characterization of epoxide hydrolase activity in Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici. Possible involvement in toxin production

Using trans-diphenylpropane oxide (tDPPO) as a substrate, we measured epoxide hydrolase (EH) activity in subcellular fractions of Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici (Aal), a fungus that produces host-specific toxins. The activity was mainly (> 99.5%) located in the soluble fraction (100,000 x g supernatant) with the optimum pH at 7.4. An increase of toxin production between days 3 and 9 found in a Aal liquid culture over a 15 days period was concomitant with a period of high EH activity. EH activity remained constant during the same period in an Alternaria alternata culture, a fungus which does not produce toxin. In vivo treatment of Aal culture with the peroxisome proliferator clofibrate stimulated EH activity by 83% and enhanced toxin production 6.3 fold. Both 4-fluorochalcone oxide (4-FCO) and (2S,3S)-(-)-3-(4-nitrophenyl)-glycidol (SS-NPG) inhibited EH activity in vitro with a I50 of 23 +/- 1 microM and 72 +/- 19 microM, respectively. The possible physiological substrate 9,10-epoxystearic acid was hydrolyzed more efficiently by Aal sEH than the model substrates trans- and cis-stilbene oxide (TSO and CSO) and trans- and cis-diphenylpropane oxide (tDPPO and cDPPO).

Synthesis of enantiopure epoxides through biocatalytic approaches

Enantiopure epoxides, as well as their corresponding vicinal diols, are valuable intermediates in fine organic synthesis, in particular for the preparation of biologically active compounds. The necessity of preparing such target molecules in an optically pure form has triggered much research, leading to the emergence of various new methods based on either conventional chemistry or enzymatically catalyzed reactions. In this review, we focus on the biocatalytic approaches, which include direct epoxidation of olefinic double bonds as well as indirect biocatalytic methods, and which allow for the synthesis of these important chiral building blocks in enantiomerically enriched or even enantiopure form.

Novel aliphatic epoxide hydrolase activities from dematiaceous fungi

Epoxide hydrolases were found to be constitutively expressed in dematiaceous fungi coincident with secondary metabolite pigment production in stationary or idiophase. Washed-cell preparations of two fungi, Ulocladium atrum CMC 3280 and Zopfiella karachiensis CMC 3284, exhibited affinity for 2,2-dialkylated oxiranes, for which contrasting enantioselectivities were observed, but not for aromatic styrene oxide or alicyclic cyclohexene oxide type substrates. Lyophilised preparations of soluble epoxide hydrolase activities proved to be effective catalysts for the mild hydrolysis of aliphatic epoxides.

Microbiological transformations--XXIX. Enantioselective hydrolysis of epoxides using microorganisms: a mechanistic study

The regio- and stereochemistry of the hydrolysis of styrene oxide 1 by two fungi: Aspergillus niger and Beauveria sulfurescens, were studied using H2(18)O labelling experiments. Also, the kinetic parameters of these hydrolyses were determined. We conclude that the epoxide hydrolases of these two fungi operate via different mechanisms.

Oxygenation of polyunsaturated fatty acids by cytochrome P450 monooxygenases

Polyunsaturated fatty acids can be oxygenated by P450 in different ways--by epoxidation, by hydroxylation of the omega-side chain, by allylic and bis-allylic hydroxylation and by hydroxylation with double bond migration. Major organs for these oxygenations are the liver and the kidney. P450 is an ubiquitous enzyme. It is therefore not surprising that some of these reactions have been found in other organs and tissues. Many observations indicate that P450 oxygenates arachidonic acid in vivo in man and in experimental animals. This is hardly surprising. omega-Oxidation was discovered in vivo 60 years ago. It was more unexpected that biological activities have been associated with many of the P450 metabolites of arachidonic acid, at least in pharmacological doses. Epoxygenase metabolites of arachidonic acid have attracted the largest interest. In their critical review on epoxygenase metabolism of arachidonic acid in 1989, Fitzpatrick and Murphy pointed out some major differences between the PGH synthase, the lipoxygenase and the P450 pathways of arachidonic acid metabolism. Their main points are still valid and have only to be modified slightly in the light of recent results. First, lipoxygenases show a marked regiospecificity and stereospecificity, while many P450 seem to lack this specificity. There are, however, P450 isozymes which catalyse stereospecific epoxidations or hydroxylations. Many hydroxylases and at least some epoxygenases also show regiospecificity, i.e. oxygenate only one double bond or one specific carbon of the fatty acid substrate. In addition, preference for arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid may occur in the sense that other fatty acids are oxygenated with less regiospecificity. A more important difference is that prostaglandins and leukotrienes affect specific and well characterised receptors in cell membranes, while receptors for epoxides of arachidonic acid or other P450 metabolites have not been characterised. Nevertheless, epoxides of arachidonic acid have been found to induce a large number of different pharmacological effects. In some systems, effects have been noted at pm concentrations which might conceivably be in the physiological concentration range of these epoxides, e.g. after release from phospholipids by phospholipase A2. An intriguing possibility is that the effects of [Ca]i on different ion channels might possibly explain their biological actions. In situations when pharmacological doses are used, metabolism to epoxyprostanoids or other interactions with PGH synthase could also be of importance. Finally, one report on a specific receptor for 14R,15S-EpETrE in mononuclear cell membranes has just been published.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Inhibition of epoxide hydrolase from human, monkey, bovine, rabbit and murine liver by trans-3-phenylglycidols

1. trans-3-Phenylglycidols were potent inhibitors of cytosolic epoxide hydrolases in all species tested. 2. The order of inhibitor potency varied from species to species but trans-3-(4-nitrophenyl)glycidols were always the most potent inhibitors tested for cytosolic epoxide hydrolase. 3. The S,S-enantiomer was a more potent cytosolic epoxide hydrolase inhibitor than the R,R-enantiomer when a free hydroxyl group was present. However, (2R,3R)-1-benzoyloxy-2,3-epoxy-3-(4-nitrophenyl)propane was always a better inhibitor than the (2S,3S)-enantiomer. 4. All microsomal epoxide hydrolases were poorly inhibited by the trans-3-phenylglycidols, and related compounds, tested. The best new microsomal epoxide hydrolase inhibitor tested was (1S,2S)-1-phenylpropylene oxide which gave 18-63% inhibition, at 2 mM, depending on the species tested.

Metabolism of 18:2(n - 6), 18:3(n - 3), 20:4(n - 6) and 20:5(n - 3) by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis: identification of metabolites formed by 8-hydroxylation and by w2 and w3 oxygenation

The present study was aimed at developing a cell-free preparation of Gaeumannomyces graminis to biosynthesize w2-hydroxy, w3-hydroxy and related metabolites of essential fatty acids. 14C-labelled linoleic acid (18:2(n - 6)), linolenic acid (18:3(n - 3)), arachidonic acid (20:4(n - 6)) and eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5(n - 3)) were incubated with the cytosolic and microsomal fractions and NADPH. Significant metabolism was only found in the cytosol. The main products were purified by high-performance liquid chromatography and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). 18:2(n - 6) was metabolized mainly to 8-hydroxy-9,12-octadecadienoic acid (8-HODE), while the w2 and the w3 alcohols were formed in relatively small amounts. The absolute configuration of the 8-hydroxyl was found to be R by ozonolysis of the diastereoisomeric (-)-menthoxycarbonyl derivative of 8-HODE and GC-MS analysis. In analogy, 18:3(n - 3) was converted to 8-hydroxy-9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid and to smaller amounts of the 15,16-diol (15,16-DiHODE). In contrast, 8-hydroxy metabolites of 20:4(n - 6) or 20:5(n - 3) could not be detected. 20:4(n - 6) was efficiently converted to 18(R)-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (18(R)-HETE) and 19(R)-HETE and to traces of 17-HETE, while 20:5(n - 3) was mainly metabolized to the 17,18-diol (17,18-DiHETE) and to smaller amounts of the w2 alcohol. In conclusion, the cytosol of G. graminis can be used for stereoselective biosynthesis of some hydroxy metabolites of essential fatty acids.

Catabolism of epoxy fatty esters by the purified epoxide hydrolase from mouse and human liver

Epoxymethylsterate, 9,10- and 12,13-epoxymethyloleates, and a mixture of isomers of epoxymethylarachidonate and diepoxymethylstearate were synthesized, and their metabolic rates were measured using crude and purified cytosolic epoxide hydrolase. Hepatic epoxide hydrolase was purified from human samples and clofibrate-fed mice by affinity chromatography. The major metabolites under these conditions of all the epoxy fatty esters were their vicinal diols whose structures were confirmed by GC-MS. 12,13-Epoxymethyloleate was metabolized faster than 9,10-epoxymethyloleate and other epoxy fatty esters, but all substrates were turned over rapidly. This rapid turnover suggests that epoxy fatty acids may be endogenous substrates for the cytosolic epoxide hydrolase.

Metabolism of benzo(a)pyrene by a dioxygenase enzyme system of the freshwater green alga Selenastrum capricornutum

The green alga Selenastrum capricornutum was incubated with benzo(a)-pyrene under an atmosphere of 20% (18)O2: 80% N2. The cis-11,12-dihydro-11,12-dihydroxybenzo(a)pyrene, cis-7,8-dihydro-7,8-dihydroxybenzo(a)pyrene and cis-4,5-dihydro-4,5-dihydroxybenzo(a)pyrene, were isolated by HPLC and analyzed by mass spectrometry. The metabolites produced molecular ions at m/z 290 and 286. Elemental analysis of the ion at m/z 290 gave an elemental composition of C20H14(18)O2 with 13% (18)O2 incorporation. The results indicate that S. capricornutum produces cis vicinal dihydrodiols from molecular oxygen via a dioxygenase enzyme pathway. The dioxygenase enzymes are characteristic of the bacterial metabolic pathway and unlike those of eukaryotic organisms which involve monooxygenase enzymes.

Cytosolic epoxide hydrolase

Epoxide hydrolase activity is recovered in the high-speed supernatant fraction from the liver of all mammals so far examined, including man. For some as yet unexplained reason, the rat has a very low level of this activity, so that cytosolic epoxide hydrolase is generally studied in mice. This enzyme selectively hydrolyzes trans epoxides, thereby complementing the activity of microsomal epoxide hydrolase, for which cis epoxides are better substrates. Cytosolic epoxide hydrolase has been purified to homogeneity from the livers of mice, rabbits and humans. Certain of the physicochemical and enzymatic properties of the mouse enzyme have been thoroughly characterized. Neither the primary amino acid, cDNA nor gene sequences for this protein are yet known, but such characterization is presently in progress. Unlike microsomal epoxide hydrolase and most other enzymes involved in xenobiotic metabolism, cytosolic epoxide hydrolase is not induced by treatment of rodents with substances such as phenobarbital, 2-acetylaminofluorene, trans-stilbene oxide, or butylated hydroxyanisole. The only xenobiotics presently known to induce cytosolic epoxide hydrolase are substances which also cause peroxisome proliferation, e.g., clofibrate, nafenopin and phthalate esters. These and other observations indicate that this enzyme may actually be localized in peroxisomes in vivo and is recovered in the high-speed supernatant because of fragmentation of these fragile organelles during homogenization, i.e., recovery of this enzyme in the cytosolic fraction is an artefact. The functional significance of cytosolic epoxide hydrolase is still largely unknown. In addition to deactivating xenobiotic epoxides to which the organism is exposed directly or which are produced during xenobiotic metabolism, primarily by the cytochrome P-450 system, this enzyme may be involved in cellular defenses against oxidative stress.