Polyketide synthesis in vitro on a modular polyketide synthase

N-to-S Acyl Transfer as an Enabling Strategy in Asymmetric and Chemoenzymatic Synthesis

The observation of thioester-mediated acyl transfer processes in nature has inspired the development of novel protein synthesis and functionalization methodologies. The chemoselective transfer of an acyl group from S-to-N is the basis of several powerful ligation strategies. In this work, we sought to apply the reverse process, the transfer of an acyl group from N-to-S, as a method to convert stable chiral amides into more reactive thioesters. To this end, we developed a novel cysteine-derived oxazolidinone that serves as both a chiral imide auxiliary and an acyl transfer agent. This auxiliary combines the desirable features of rigid chiral imides as templates for asymmetric transformations with the synthetic applicability of thioesters. We demonstrate that the auxiliary can be applied in a range of highly selective asymmetric transformations. Subsequent intramolecular N-to-S acyl transfer of the chiral product and in situ trapping of the resulting thioester provides access to diverse carboxylic acid derivatives under mild conditions. The oxazolidinone thioester products can also be isolated and used in Pd-mediated transformations to furnish highly valuable chiral scaffolds, such as noncanonical amino acids, cyclic ketones, tetrahydropyrones, and dihydroquinolinones. Finally, we demonstrate that the oxazolidinone thioesters can also serve as a surrogate for SNAC-thioesters, enabling their seamless use as non-native substrates in biocatalytic transformations.

Polyketide stereocontrol: a study in chemical biology

The biosynthesis of reduced polyketides in bacteria by modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) proceeds with exquisite stereocontrol. As the stereochemistry is intimately linked to the strong bioactivity of these molecules, the origins of stereochemical control are of significant interest in attempts to create derivatives of these compounds by genetic engineering. In this review, we discuss the current state of knowledge regarding this key aspect of the biosynthetic pathways. Given that much of this information has been obtained using chemical biology tools, work in this area serves as a showcase for the power of this approach to provide answers to fundamental biological questions.

The Assembly Line Enzymology of Polyketide Biosynthesis

Polyketides are a structurally and functionally diverse family of bioactive natural products that have found widespread application as pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, and veterinary medicines. In bacteria complex polyketides are biosynthesized by giant multifunctional megaenzymes, termed modular polyketide synthases (PKSs), which construct their products in a highly coordinated assembly line-like fashion from a pool of simple precursor substrates. Not only is the multifaceted enzymology of PKSs a fascinating target for study, but it also presents considerable opportunities for the reengineering of these systems affording access to functionally optimized unnatural natural products. Here we provide an introductory primer to modular polyketide synthase structure and function, and highlight recent advances in the characterization and exploitation of these systems.

Generalized bacterial genome editing using mobile group II introns and Cre-lox

Efficient bacterial genetic engineering approaches with broad-host applicability are rare. We combine two systems, mobile group II introns ('targetrons') and Cre/lox, which function efficiently in many different organisms, into a versatile platform we call GETR (Genome Editing via Targetrons and Recombinases). The introns deliver lox sites to specific genomic loci, enabling genomic manipulations. Efficiency is enhanced by adding flexibility to the RNA hairpins formed by the lox sites. We use the system for insertions, deletions, inversions, and one-step cut-and-paste operations. We demonstrate insertion of a 12-kb polyketide synthase operon into the lacZ gene of Escherichia coli, multiple simultaneous and sequential deletions of up to 120 kb in E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus, inversions of up to 1.2 Mb in E. coli and Bacillus subtilis, and one-step cut-and-pastes for translocating 120 kb of genomic sequence to a site 1.5 Mb away. We also demonstrate the simultaneous delivery of lox sites into multiple loci in the Shewanella oneidensis genome. No selectable markers need to be placed in the genome, and the efficiency of Cre-mediated manipulations typically approaches 100%.

Functional modular dissection of DEBS1-TE changes triketide lactone ratios and provides insight into Acyl group loading, hydrolysis, and ACP transfer

The DEBS1-TE fusion protein is comprised of the loading module, the first two extension modules, and the terminal TE domain of the Saccharopolyspora erythraea 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase. DEBS1-TE produces triketide lactones that differ on the basis of the starter unit selected by the loading module. Typical fermentations with plasmid-based expression of DEBS1-TE produce a 6:1 ratio of propionate to isobutyrate-derived triketide lactones. Functional dissection of the loading module from the remainder of DEBS1-TE results in 50% lower titers of triketide lactone and a dramatic shift in the production to a 1:4 ratio of propionate to isobutyrate-derived products. A series of radiolabeling studies of the loading module has shown that transfer from the AT to the ACP occurs much faster for propionate than for isobutyrate. However, the equilibrium occupancy of the AT favors isobutyrate such that propionate is outcompeted for ACP occupancy. Thus, propionyl-ACP is the kinetic product, while isobutyryl-ACP is the thermodynamic product. A slowed transfer from the loading domain ACP to first-extension module KS due to functional dissection of DEBS1-TE allows this isobutyryl-ACP-favored equilibrium to be realized and likely accounts for the observed shift in triketide lactone products.

A resource for the in silico identification of fungal polyketide synthases from predicted fungal proteomes

The goal of this study was to develop a tool specifically designed to identify iterative polyketide synthases (iPKSs) from predicted fungal proteomes. A fungi-based PKS prediction model, specifically for fungal iPKSs, was developed using profile hidden Markov models (pHMMs) based on two essential iPKS domains, the β-ketoacyl synthase (KS) domain and acyltransferase (AT) domain, derived from fungal iPKSs. This fungi-based PKS prediction model was initially tested on the well-annotated proteome of Fusarium graminearum, identifying 15 iPKSs that matched previous predictions and gene disruption studies. These fungi-based pHMMs were subsequently applied to the predicted fungal proteomes of Alternaria brassicicola, Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, Verticillium albo-atrum and Verticillium dahliae. The iPKSs predicted were compared against those predicted by the currently available mixed-kingdom PKS models that include both bacterial and fungal sequences. These mixed-kingdom models have been proven previously by others to be better in predicting true iPKSs from non-iPKSs compared with other available models (e.g. Pfam and TIGRFAM). The fungi-based model was found to perform significantly better on fungal proteomes than the mixed-kingdom PKS model in accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and precision. In addition, the model was capable of predicting the reducing nature of fungal iPKSs by comparison of the bit scores obtained from two separate reducing and nonreducing pHMMs for each domain, which was confirmed by phylogenetic analysis of the KS domain. Biological confirmation of the predictions was obtained by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the KS and AT domains of predicted iPKSs from V. dahliae using domain-specific primers and genomic DNA, followed by sequencing of the PCR products. It is expected that the fungi-based PKS model will prove to be a useful tool for the identification and annotation of fungal PKSs from predicted proteomes.

The biochemical basis for stereochemical control in polyketide biosynthesis

One of the most striking features of complex polyketides is the presence of numerous methyl- and hydroxyl-bearing stereogenic centers. To investigate the biochemical basis for the control of polyketide stereochemistry and to establish the timing and mechanism of the epimerization at methyl-bearing centers, a series of incubations was carried out using reconstituted components from a variety of modular polyketide synthases. In all cases the stereochemistry of the product was directly correlated with the intrinsic stereospecificity of the ketoreductase domain, independent of the particular chain elongation domains that were used, thereby establishing that methyl group epimerization, when it does occur, takes place after ketosynthase-catalyzed chain elongation. The finding that there were only minor differences in the rates of product formation observed for parallel incubations using an epimerizing ketoreductase domain and the nonepimerizing ketoreductase domain supports the proposal that the epimerization is catalyzed by the ketoreductase domain itself.

MapsiDB: an integrated web database for type I polyketide synthases

Polyketides have diverse biological activities, including pharmacological functions such as antibiotic, antitumor and agrochemical properties. They are biosynthesized from short carboxylic acid precursors by polyketide synthases (PKSs). As natural polyketide products include many clinically important drugs and the volume of data on polyketides is rapidly increasing, the development of a database system to manage polyketide data is essential. MapsiDB is an integrated web database formulated to contain data on type I polyketides and their PKSs, including domain and module composition and related genome information. Data on polyketides were collected from journals and online resources and processed with analysis programs. Web interfaces were utilized to construct and to access this database, allowing polyketide researchers to add their data to this database and to use it easily.

A polylinker approach to reductive loop swaps in modular polyketide synthases

Multiple versions of the DEBS 1-TE gene, which encodes a truncated bimodular polyketide synthase (PKS) derived from the erythromycin-producing PKS, were created by replacing the DNA encoding the ketoreductase (KR) domain in the second extension module by either of two synthetic oligonucleotide linkers. This made available a total of nine unique restriction sites for engineering. The DNA for donor "reductive loops," which are sets of contiguous domains comprising either KR or KR and dehydratase (DH), or KR, DH and enoylreductase (ER) domains, was cloned from selected modules of five natural PKS multienzymes and spliced into module 2 of DEBS 1-TE using alternative polylinker sites. The resulting hybrid PKSs were tested for triketide production in vivo. Most of the hybrid multienzymes were active, vindicating the treatment of the reductive loop as a single structural unit, but yields were dependent on the restriction sites used. Further, different donor reductive loops worked optimally with different splice sites. For those reductive loops comprising DH, ER and KR domains, premature TE-catalysed release of partially reduced intermediates was sometimes seen, which provided further insight into the overall stereochemistry of reduction in those modules. Analysis of loops containing KR only, which should generate stereocentres at both C-2 and C-3, revealed that the 3-hydroxy configuration (but not the 2-methyl configuration) could be altered by appropriate choice of a donor loop. The successful swapping of reductive loops provides an interesting parallel to a recently suggested pathway for the natural evolution of modular PKSs by recombination.

Stereospecificity of ketoreductase domains of the 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase

6-Deoxyerythronolide B synthase (DEBS) is a modular polyketide synthase (PKS) responsible for the biosynthesis of 6-dEB (1), the parent aglycone of the broad spectrum macrolide antibiotic erythromycin. Individual DEBS modules, which contain the catalytic domains necessary for each step of polyketide chain elongation and chemical modification, can be deconstructed into constituent domains. To better understand the intrinsic stereospecificity of the ketoreductase (KR) domains, an in vitro reconstituted system has been developed involving combinations of ketosynthase (KS)-acyl transferase (AT) didomains with acyl-carrier protein (ACP) and KR domains from different DEBS modules. Incubations with (2S,3R)-2-methyl-3-hydroxypentanoic acid N-acetylcysteamine thioester (2) and methylmalonyl-CoA plus NADPH result in formation of a reduced, ACP-bound triketide that is converted to the corresponding triketide lactone 4 by either base- or enzyme-catalyzed hydrolysis/cyclization. A sensitive and robust GC-MS technique has been developed to assign the stereochemistry of the resulting triketide lactones, on the basis of direct comparison with synthetic standards of each of the four possible diasteromers 4a-4d. Using the [KS][AT] didomains from either DEBS module 3 or module 6 in combination with KR domains from modules 2 or 6 gave in all cases exclusively (2R,3S,4R,5R)-3,5-dihydroxy-2,4-dimethyl-n-heptanoic acid-delta-lactone (4a). The same product was also generated by a chimeric module in which [KS3][AT3] was fused to [KR5][ACP5] and the DEBS thioesterase [TE] domain. Reductive quenching of the ACP-bound 2-methyl-3-ketoacyl triketide intermediate with sodium borohydride confirmed that in each case the triketide intermediate carried only an unepimerized d-2-methyl group. The results confirm the predicted stereospecificity of the individual KR domains, while revealing an unexpected configurational stability of the ACP-bound 2-methyl-3-ketoacyl thioester intermediate. The methodology should be applicable to the study of any combination of heterologous [KS][AT] and [KR] domains.

ASMPKS: an analysis system for modular polyketide synthases

BACKGROUND

Polyketides are secondary metabolites of microorganisms with diverse biological activities, including pharmacological functions such as antibiotic, antitumor and agrochemical properties. Polyketides are synthesized by serialized reactions of a set of enzymes called polyketide synthase(PKS)s, which coordinate the elongation of carbon skeletons by the stepwise condensation of short carbon precursors. Due to their importance as drugs, the volume of data on polyketides is rapidly increasing and creating a need for computational analysis methods for efficient polyketide research. Moreover, the increasing use of genetic engineering to research new kinds of polyketides requires genome wide analysis.

RESULTS

We describe a system named ASMPKS (Analysis System for Modular Polyketide Synthesis) for computational analysis of PKSs against genome sequences. It also provides overall management of information on modular PKS, including polyketide database construction, new PKS assembly, and chain visualization. ASMPKS operates on a web interface to construct the database and to analyze PKSs, allowing polyketide researchers to add their data to this database and to use it easily. In addition, the ASMPKS can predict functional modules for a protein sequence submitted by users, estimate the chemical composition of a polyketide synthesized from the modules, and display the carbon chain structure on the web interface.

CONCLUSION

ASMPKS has powerful computation features to aid modular PKS research. As various factors, such as starter units and post-processing, are related to polyketide biosynthesis, ASMPKS will be improved through further development for study of the factors.

Structure and Mechanism of the 6-Deoxyerythronolide B Synthase

6-Deoxyerythronolide B, the macrocyclic aglycone of the antibiotic erythromycin, is synthesized by a polyketide synthase (PKS) that has emerged as the prototypical modular megasynthase. A variety of molecular biological, protein chemical, and biosynthetic experiments over the past two decades have yielded insights into its mechanistic features. More recently, high-resolution structural images of portions of the 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase have provided a platform for interpreting this wealth of biochemical data, while at the same time presenting a fundamentally new basis for the design of more detailed investigations into this remarkable enzyme. For example, the critical roles of domain-domain interactions and nonconserved linkers, as well as large interdomain movements in the structure and function of modular PKSs, have been highlighted. In turn, these insights point the way forward for more sophisticated and efficient biosynthetic engineering of complex polyketide natural products.

Directed Mutagenesis Alters the Stereochemistry of Catalysis by Isolated Ketoreductase Domains from the Erythromycin Polyketide Synthase

The ketoreductase (KR) domains eryKR(1) and eryKR(2) from the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase (PKS) reduce 3-ketoacyl-thioester intermediates with opposite stereospecificity. Modeling of eryKR(1) and eryKR(2) showed that conserved amino acids previously correlated with production of alternative alcohol configurations lie in the active site. eryKR(1) domains mutated at these positions showed an altered stereochemical outcome in reduction of (2R, S)-2-methyl-3-oxopentanoic acid N-acetylcysteamine thioester. The wild-type eryKR(1) domain exclusively gave the (2S, 3R)-3-hydroxy-2-methylpentanoic acid N-acetylcysteamine thioester, while the double mutant (F141W, P144G) gave only the (2S, 3S) isomer, a switch of the alcohol stereochemistry. Mutation of the eryKR(2) domain, in contrast, greatly increased the proportion of the wild-type (2R, 3S)-alcohol product. These data confirm the role of key residues in stereocontrol and suggest an additional way to make rational alterations in polyketide antibiotic structure.

High-Throughput Mutagenesis to Evaluate Models of Stereochemical Control in Ketoreductase Domains from the Erythromycin Polyketide Synthase

Ketoreductase (KR) activities help determine the stereochemistry of the products of modular polyketide synthases (PKSs). For example, domains eryKR(1) and eryKR(2), contained, respectively, in the first and second extension modules of the erythromycin-producing PKS, reduce 3-ketoacyl-thioester intermediates with opposite stereospecificity. Amino acid motifs that correlate with stereochemical outcome have been identified in KRs. We have used saturation mutagenesis of these motifs in eryKR(1) and eryKR(2), and a microplate-based screen of such mutants for activity against (9R, S)-trans-1-decalone, to identify candidate enzymes potentially altered in stereocontrol. Active mutants were reassayed with (2R, S)-2-methyl-3-oxopentanoic acid N-acetylcysteamine thioester, and the alcohol products were analyzed by chiral HPLC. Variant enzymes were found with either altered substrate selectivity for the (2R) or (2S) substrate or altered stereospecificity of reduction, or both, further highlighting the importance of these motifs in stereochemical control.

Molecular Basis of Celmer's Rules: Stereochemistry of Catalysis by Isolated Ketoreductase Domains from Modular Polyketide Synthases

A system is reported for the recombinant expression of individual ketoreductase (KR) domains from modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) and scrutiny of their intrinsic specificity and stereospecificity toward surrogate diketide substrates. The eryKR(1) and the tylKR(1) domains, derived from the first extension module of the erythromycin PKS and the tylosin PKS, respectively, both catalyzed reduction of (2R, S)-2-methyl-3-oxopentanoic acid N-acetylcysteamine thioester, with complete stereoselectivity and stereospecificity, even though the substrate is not tethered to an acyl carrier protein or an intact PKS multienzyme. In contrast, and to varying degrees, the isolated enzymes eryKR(2), eryKR(5), and eryKR(6) exercised poorer control over substrate selection and the stereochemical course of ketoreduction. These data, together with modeling of diketide binding to KR(1) and KR(2), demonstrate the fine energetic balance between alternative modes of presentation of ketoacylthioester substrates to KR active sites.

Chain initiation on type I modular polyketide synthases revealed by limited proteolysis and ion-trap mass spectrometry

Limited proteolysis in combination with liquid chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was used to analyze engineered or natural proteins derived from a type I modular polyketide synthase (PKS), the 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase (DEBS), and comprising either the first two extension modules linked to the chain-terminating thioesterase (TE) (DEBS1-TE); or the last two extension modules (DEBS3) or the first extension module linked to TE (diketide synthase, DKS). Functional domains were released by controlled proteolysis, and the exact boundaries of released domains were obtained through mass spectrometry and N-terminal sequencing analysis. The acyltransferase-acyl carrier protein required for chain initiation (AT(L)-ACP(L)), was released as a didomain from both DEBS1-TE and DKS, as well as the off-loading TE as a didomain with the adjacent ACP. Mass spectrometry was used successfully to monitor in detail both the release of individual domains, and the patterns of acylation of both intact and digested DKS when either propionyl-CoA or n-butyryl-CoA were used as initiation substrates. In particular, both loading domains and the ketosynthase domain of the first extension module (KS1) were directly observed to be simultaneously primed. The widely available and simple MS methodology used here offers a convenient approach to the proteolytic mapping of PKS multienzymes and to the direct monitoring of enzyme-bound intermediates.

Connection of propionyl-CoA metabolism to polyketide biosynthesis in Aspergillus nidulans

Propionyl-CoA is an intermediate metabolite produced through a variety of pathways including thioesterification of propionate and catabolism of odd chain fatty acids and select amino acids. Previously, we found that disruption of the methylcitrate synthase gene, mcsA, which blocks propionyl-CoA utilization, as well as growth on propionate impaired production of several polyketides-molecules typically derived from acetyl-CoA and malonyl-CoA-including sterigmatocystin (ST), a potent carcinogen, and the conidiospore pigment. Here we describe three lines of evidence that demonstrate that excessive propionyl-CoA levels in the cell can inhibit polyketide synthesis. First, inactivation of a putative propionyl-CoA synthase, PcsA, which converts propionate to propionyl-CoA, restored polyketide production and reduced cellular propionyl-CoA content in a DeltamcsA background. Second, inactivation of the acetyl-CoA synthase, FacA, which is also involved in propionate utilization, restored polyketide production in the DeltamcsA background. Third, fungal growth on several compounds (e.g., heptadecanoic acid, isoleucine, and methionine) whose catabolism includes the formation of propionyl-CoA, were found to inhibit ST and conidiospore pigment production. These results demonstrate that excessive propionyl-CoA levels in the cell can inhibit polyketide synthesis.

A specific role of the Saccharopolyspora erythraea thioesterase II gene in the function of modular polyketide synthases

Bacterial modular polyketide synthase (PKS) genes are commonly associated with another gene that encodes a thioesterase II (TEII) believed to remove aberrantly loaded substrates from the PKS. Co-expression of the Saccharopolyspora erythraea ery-ORF5 TEII and eryA genes encoding 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase (DEBS) in Streptomyces hosts eliminated or significantly lowered production of 8,8'-deoxyoleandolide [15-nor-6-deoxyerythronolide B (15-nor-6dEB)], which arises from an acetate instead of a propionate starter unit. Disruption of the TEII gene in an industrial Sac. erythraea strain caused a notable amount of 15-norerythromycins to be produced by utilization of an acetate instead of a propionate starter unit and also resulted in moderately lowered production of erythromycin compared with the amount produced by the parental strain. A similar behaviour of the TEII gene was observed in Escherichia coli strains that produce 6dEB and 15-methyl-6dEB. Direct biochemical analysis showed that the ery-ORF5 TEII enzyme favours hydrolysis of acetyl groups bound to the loading acyl carrier protein domain (ACP(L)) of DEBS. These results point to a clear role of the TEII enzyme, i.e. removal of a specific type of acyl group from the ACP(L) domain of the DEBS1 loading module.

Engineering specificity of starter unit selection by the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase

Chain initiation on many modular polyketide synthases is mediated by acyl transfer from the CoA ester of a dicarboxylic acid, followed by decarboxylation in situ by KSQ, a ketosynthase-like decarboxylase domain. Consistent with this, the acyltransferase (AT) domains of all KSQ-containing loading modules are shown here to contain a key arginine residue at their active site. Site-specific replacement of this arginine residue in the oleandomycin (ole) loading AT domain effectively abolished AT activity, consistent with its importance for catalysis. Substitution of the ole PKS loading module, or of the tylosin PKS loading module, for the erythromycin (ery) loading module gave polyketide products almost wholly either acetate derived or propionate derived, respectively, instead of the mixture found normally. An authentic extension module AT domain, rap AT2 from the rapamycin PKS, functioned appropriately when engineered in the place of the ole loading AT domain, and gave rise to substantial amounts of C13-methylerythromycins, as predicted. The role of direct acylation of the ketosynthase domain of ex-tension module 1 in chain initiation was confirmed by demonstrating that a mutant of the triketide synthase DEBS1-TE, in which the 4'-phosphopante-theine attachment site for starter acyl groups was specifically removed, produced triketide lactone pro-ducts in detectable amounts.

Chain initiation on the soraphen-producing modular polyketide synthase from Sorangium cellulosum

BACKGROUND

Polyketides are structurally diverse natural products with a wide range of useful activities. Bacterial modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) catalyse the production of non-aromatic polyketides using a different set of enzymes for each successive cycle of chain extension. The choice of starter unit is governed by the substrate specificity of a distinct loading module. The unusual loading module of the soraphen modular PKS, from the myxobacterium Sorangium cellulosum, specifies a benzoic acid starter unit. Attempts to design functional hybrid PKSs using this loading module provide a stringent test of our understanding of PKS structure and function, since the order of the domains in the loading and first extension module is non-canonical in the soraphen PKS, and the producing strain is not an actinomycete.

RESULTS

We have constructed bimodular PKSs based on DEBS1-TE, a derivative of the erythromycin PKS that contains only extension modules 1 and 2 and a thioesterase (TE) domain, by substituting one or more domains from the soraphen PKS. A hybrid PKS containing the soraphen acyltransferase domain AT1b instead of extension acyltransferase domain AT1 produced triketide lactones lacking a methyl group at C-4, as expected if AT1b catalyses the addition of malonyl-CoA during the first extension cycle on the soraphen PKS. Substitution of the DEBS1-TE loading module AT domain by the soraphen AT1a domain led to the production of 5-phenyl-substituted triketide lactone, as well as the normal products of DEBS1-TE. This 5-phenyl triketide lactone was also the product of a hybrid PKS containing the entire soraphen PKS loading module as well as part of its first extension module. Phenyl-substituted lactone was only produced when measures were simultaneously taken to increase the intracellular supply of benzoyl-CoA in the host strain of Saccharopolyspora erythraea.

CONCLUSIONS

These results demonstrate that the ability to recruit a benzoate starter unit can be conferred on a modular PKS by the transfer either of a single AT domain, or of multiple domains to produce a chimaeric first extension module, from the soraphen PKS. However, benzoyl-CoA needs to be provided within the cell as a specific precursor. The data also support the respective roles previously assigned to the adjacent AT domains of the soraphen loading/first extension module. Construction of such hybrid actinomycete-myxobacterial enzymes should significantly extend the synthetic repertoire of modular PKSs.

Molecular basis of Celmer's rules: role of the ketosynthase domain in epimerisation and demonstration that ketoreductase domains can have altered product specificity with unnatural substrates

BACKGROUND

Polyketides are structurally diverse natural products with a range of medically useful activities. Non-aromatic bacterial polyketides are synthesised on modular polyketide synthase multienzymes (PKSs) in which each cycle of chain extension requires a different 'module' of enzymatic activities. Attempts to design and construct modular PKSs that synthesise specified novel polyketides provide a particularly stringent test of our understanding of PKS structure and function.

RESULTS

We show that the ketoreductase (KR) domains of modules 5 and 6 of the erythromycin PKS, housed in the multienzyme subunit DEBS3, exert an unexpectedly low level of stereochemical control in reducing the keto group of a synthetic analogue of the diketide intermediate. This led us to construct a hybrid triketide synthase based on DEBS3 with ketosynthase domain ketosynthase (KS)5 replaced by the loading module and KS1. The construct in vivo produced two major triketide stereoisomers, one expected and one surprising. The latter was of opposite configuration at three out of the four chiral centres: the branching alkyl centre was that produced by KS1 and, surprisingly, both hydroxyl centres produced by the reduction steps carried out by KR5 and KR6 respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

These results demonstrate that the epimerising activity associated with module 1 of the erythromycin PKS can be conferred on module 5 merely by transfer of the KS1 domain. Moreover, the normally precise stereochemical control observed in modular PKSs is lost when KR5 and KR6 are challenged by an unfamiliar substrate, which is much smaller than their natural substrates. This observation demonstrates that the stereochemistry of ketoreduction is not necessarily invariant for a given KR domain and underlines the need for mechanistic understanding in designing genetically engineered PKSs to produce novel products.

Biochemical engineering of natural product biosynthesis pathways

Metabolic engineering of natural products is a science that has been built on the goals of traditional strain improvement with the availability of modern molecular biological technologies. In the past 15 years, the state of the art in metabolic engineering of natural products has advanced from the first proof-of-principle experiment based on minimal known genetics to a commonplace event using highly specific and sophisticated gene manipulation methods. With the availability of genes, host organisms, vector systems, and standard molecular biological tools, it is expected that metabolic engineering will be translated into industrial reality.

Tolerance and specificity of polyketide synthases

Polyketide synthases catalyze the assembly of complex natural products from simple precursors such as propionyl-CoA and methylmalonyl-CoA in a biosynthetic process that closely parallels fatty acid biosynthesis. Like fatty acids, polyketides are assembled by successive decarboxylative condensations of simple precursors. But whereas the intermediates in fatty acid biosynthesis are fully reduced to generate unfunctionalized alkyl chains, the intermediates in polyketide biosynthesis may be only partially processed, giving rise to complex patterns of functional groups. Additional complexity arises from the use of different starter and chain extension substrates, the generation of chiral centers, and further functional group modifications, such as cyclizations. The structural and functional modularity of these multienzyme systems has raised the possibility that polyketide biosynthetic pathways might be rationally reprogrammed by combinatorial manipulation. An essential prerequisite for harnessing this biosynthetic potential is a better understanding of the molecular recognition features of polyketide synthases. Within this decade, a variety of genetic, biochemical, and chemical investigations have yielded insights into the tolerance and specificity of several architecturally different polyketide synthases. The results of these studies, together with their implications for biosynthetic engineering, are summarized in this review.

Novel octaketide macrolides related to 6-deoxyerythronolide B provide evidence for iterative operation of the erythromycin polyketide synthase

BACKGROUND

The macrolide antibiotic erythromycin A, like other complex aliphatic polyketides, is synthesised by a bacterial modular polyketide synthase (PKS). Such PKSs, in contrast to other fatty acid and polyketide synthases which work iteratively, contain a separate set or module of enzyme activities for each successive cycle of polyketide chain extension, and the number and type of modules together determine the structure of the polyketide product. Thus, the six extension modules of the erythromycin PKS (DEBS) together catalyse the production of the specific heptaketide 6-deoxyerythronolide B.

RESULTS

A mutant strain of the erythromycin producer Saccharopolyspora erythraea, which accumulates the aglycone intermediate erythronolide B, was found unexpectedly to produce two novel octaketides, both 16-membered macrolides. These compounds were detectable in fermentation broths of wild-type S. erythraea, but not in a strain from which the DEBS genes had been specifically deleted. From their structures, both of these octaketides appear to be aberrant products of DEBS in which module 4 has 'stuttered', that is, has catalysed two successive cycles of chain extension.

CONCLUSIONS

The isolation of novel DEBS-derived octaketides provides the first evidence that an extension module in a modular PKS has the potential to catalyse iterative rounds of chain elongation like other type I FAS and PKS systems. The factors governing the extent of such 'stuttering' remain to be determined.

Efficient purification and kinetic characterization of a bimodular derivative of the erythromycin polyketide synthase

Modular polyketide synthases (PKSs), such as the 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase (DEBS), are giant multienzymes that biosynthesize a number of clinically important natural products. The modular nature of PKSs suggests the possibility of a combinatorial approach to the synthesis of novel bioactive polyketides, but the efficacy of such a strategy depends critically on gaining fundamental insight into PKS structure and function, most directly through experiments with purified PKS proteins. Several recent investigations into important aspects of the activity of these enzymes have used only partially purified proteins (often 3-4% of total protein), reflecting how difficult it is to purify these multienzymes in amounts adequate for kinetic and structural analysis. We report here the steady-state kinetic analysis of a typical bimodular PKS, 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase 1-thioesterase (DEBS 1-TE), purified from recombinant Saccharopolyspora erythraea JCB101 by a new, high-yielding procedure consisting of three steps: ammonium sulfate precipitation, hydrophobic interaction chromatography and size-exclusion chromatography. The method provides 13-fold purification with a recovery of 11% of the applied PKS activity. The essentially homogeneous synthase exhibits an intrinsic methylmalonyl-CoA hydrolase activity, which competes with polyketide chain extension. The most reliable value for the kcat for synthesis of (3S,5R)-dihydroxy-(2R,4R)-dimethyl-n-heptanoic acid-delta-lactone is 0.84 min-1, and the apparent Km for (2RS)-methylmalonyl-CoA is 17 microM. This kcat is approximately 10-fold lower than the value reported previously for a differently engineered version of the truncated PKS, DEBS 1+TE. The difference likely reflects the fact that the DEBS 1-TE contains a hybrid acyl carrier protein (ACP) domain in its second module, which lowers its catalytic efficiency.

Constructing polyketides: from collie to combinatorial biosynthesis

In a new golden age, polyketides are investigated and manipulated with the tools of molecular biology and genetics; hybrid polyketides can be produced. Pharmaceutical companies hope to find new and useful polyketide products, including antibiotics, anthelminthics, and immunosuppressants. This review describes the past developments (largely chemical) on which the present investigations are based, attempts to make sense of the expanding scope of polyketides, looks at the shifting research focus around polyketides, presents a working definition in biosynthetic terms, and takes note of recent work in combinatorial biosynthesis. Also discussed is the failure of the classical enzymological approach to polyketide biosynthesis.

A chain initiation factor common to both modular and aromatic polyketide synthases

Antibiotic-producing polyketide synthases (PKSs) are enzymes responsible for the biosynthesis in Streptomyces and related filamentous bacteria of a remarkably broad range of bioactive metabolites, including antitumour aromatic compounds such as mithramycin and macrolide antibiotics such as erythromycin. The molecular basis for the selection of the starter unit on aromatic PKSs is unknown. Here we show that a component of aromatic PKS, previously named 'chain-length factor', is a factor required for polyketide chain initiation and that this factor has decarboxylase activity towards malonyl-ACP (acyl carrier protein). We have re-examined the mechanism of initiation on modular PKSs and have identified as a specific initiation factor a domain of previously unknown function named KSQ, which operates like chain-length factor. Both KSQ and chain-length factor are similar to the ketosynthase domains that catalyse polyketide chain extension in modular multifunctional PKSs and in aromatic PKSs, respectively, except that the ketosynthase domain active-site cysteine residue is replaced by a highly conserved glutamine in KSQ and in chain-length factor. The glutamine residue is important both for decarboxylase activity and for polyketide synthesis.

Molecular basis of Celmer's rules: the role of two ketoreductase domains in the control of chirality by the erythromycin modular polyketide synthase

BACKGROUND

Polyketides are compounds that possess medically significant activities. The modular nature of the polyketide synthase (PKS) multienzymes has generated interest in bioengineering new PKSs. Rational design of novel PKSs, however, requires a greater understanding of the stereocontrol mechanisms that operate in natural PKS modules.

RESULTS

The N-acetyl cysteamine (NAC) thioester derivative of the natural beta-keto diketide intermediate was incubated with DEBS1-TE, a derivative of the erythromycin PKS that contains only modules 1 and 2. The reduction products of the two ketoreductase (KR) domains of DEBS1-TE were a mixture of the (2S, 3R) and (2R,3S) isomers of the corresponding beta-hydroxy diketide NAC thioesters. Repeating the incubation using a DEBS1-TE mutant that only contains KR1 produced only the (2S,3R) isomer.

CONCLUSIONS

In contrast with earlier results, KR1 selects only the (2S) isomer and reduces it stereospecifically to the (2S, 3R)-3-hydroxy-2-methyl acyl product. The KR domain of module 1 controls the stereochemical outcome at both methyl-and hydroxyl-bearing chiral centres in the hydroxy diketide intermediate. Earlier work showed that the normal enzyme-bound ketoester generated in module 2 is not epimerised, however. The stereochemistry at C-2 is therefore established by a condensation reaction that exclusively gives the (2R)-ketoester, and the stereo-chemistry at C-3 by reduction of the keto group. Two different mechanisms of stereochemical control, therefore, operate in modules 1 and 2 of the erythromycin PKS. These results should provide a more rational basis for designing hybrid PKSs to generate altered stereochemistry in polyketide products.

Structural elucidation studies of polyketide tetrasubstituted delta-lactones by gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry and electrospray mass spectrometry

A series of tetrasubstituted polyketide delta-lactones were used to evaluate whether gas chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (GC/MS/MS) and electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) are useful techniques for probing the structure and stereochemistry of such highly functionalised molecules. Analyses were performed with two commercially available mass spectrometers: a Finnigan/MAT GCQ instrument (CI source) and a Q-TOF Hybrid quadrupole time-of-flight instrument (ESI source). The analyses revealed that a range of variation in the structure and stereochemistry of the lactones did not affect the fragmentation pathway common to these molecules. By accurate mass determination (ESI-MS), the first two fragmentations were assigned to losses of water. Although it was anticipated that the initial dehydration would include the hydroxyl group at the 3-position of the lactones, evidence from deuterium- and (18)O-labelling studies suggests that the losses of water instead involve the oxygen atoms in the ester bond. Attempts to identify further the structures of daughter ions by GC/MS/MS were complicated by extensive rearrangements and non-specific hydrogen/deuterium migrations within the lactones. Together, these results illustrate the limitations of mass spectrometry in the structural elucidation of complex molecules. Copyright 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Evaluating precursor-directed biosynthesis towards novel erythromycins through in vitro studies on a bimodular polyketide synthase

BACKGROUND

Modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) catalyse the biosynthesis of complex polyketides using a different set of enzymes for each successive cycle of chain extension. Directed biosynthesis starting from synthetic diketides is a potentially valuable route to novel polyketides. We have used a purified bimodular derivative of the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase (DEBS 1-TE) to study chain extension starting from a variety of diketide analogues and, in some cases, from the alternative acyl-CoA thioester substrates.

RESULTS

Chain initiation in vitro by DEBS 1-TE module 2 using a synthetic diketide analogue as a substrate was tolerant of significant structural variation in the starter unit of the synthetic diketide, but other changes completely abolished activity. Interestingly, a racemic beta-keto diketide was found to be reduced in situ on the PKS and utilised in place of its more complex hydroxy analogue as a substrate for chain extension. The presence of a diketide analogue strongly inhibited chain initiation via the loading module. Significantly higher concentrations of diketide N-acetylcysteamine analogues than their corresponding acyl-CoA thioesters are required to achieve comparable yields of triketide lactones.

CONCLUSIONS

Although a broad range of variation in the starter residue is acceptable, the substrate specificity of module 2 of a typical modular PKS in vitro is relatively intolerant of changes at C-2 and C-3. This will restrict the usefulness of approaches to synthesise novel erythromycins using synthetic diketides in vivo. The use of synthetic beta-keto diketides in vivo deserves to be explored.

Acylation of Streptomyces type II polyketide synthase acyl carrier proteins

Acyl derivatives of type II PKS ACPs are required for in vitro studies of polyketide biosynthesis. The presence of an exposed cysteine residue prevented specific chemical acylation of the phosphopantetheine thiol of the actinorhodin PKS holo ACP. Acylation studies were further complicated by intramolecular disulphide formation between cysteine 17 and the phosphopantetheine. The presence of this intramolecular disulphide was confirmed by tryptic digestion of the ACP followed by ESMS analysis of the fragments. An act Cys17Ser ACP was engineered by site-directed mutagenesis. S-Acyl adducts of act C17S, oxytetracycline and griseusin holo ACPs were rapidly formed by reaction with hexanoyl, 5-ketohexanoyl and protected acetoacetyl imidazolides. Comparisons with type 11 FAS ACPs were made.

Engineering of modular polyketide synthases to produce novel polyketides

Polyketides are important natural products produced by Actinomycetes and other organisms via the polymerization of coenzyme A-activated carboxylic acids. Modular polyketide synthases are large multifunctional enzymes that direct the biosynthetic process using a dedicated 'module' for each polymerization reaction, which specifies the unit to be polymerized, its oxidation state and stereochemistry. Over the past two years proof-of-principle has been demonstrated for technologies that modify or exchange modules to create hybrid enzymes that catalyze the biosynthesis of novel polyketides.

Engineering of a minimal modular polyketide synthase, and targeted alteration of the stereospecificity of polyketide chain extension

BACKGROUND

Polyketides are a large and structurally diverse group of natural products that include antibiotics, antifungal agents and immunosuppressant compounds. Polyketides are biosynthesised in filamentous bacteria on modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) in which each cycle of chain extension requires a different 'module' of enzymatic activities. The recently proposed dimeric model for modular PKSs predicts that even a single-module PKS should be catalytically active in the absence of other PKS components. Researchers are also interested in manipulating the stereochemical outcome of polyketide chain extension using genetic engineering of domains within each module.

RESULTS

We have constructed a minimal modular PKS from the erythromycin-producing PKS (DEBS) of Saccharopolyspora erythraea. The diketide synthase (DKS1-2) consists of a single chimaeric extension module, derived from the DEBS module 1 ketoacyl-ACP synthase (KS), sandwiched between a loading module and a chain-terminating thioesterase. When DKS1-2 was expressed in S. erythraea, the strain preferentially6 accumulated the diketide (2R, 3S)-2-methyl-3-hydroxy pentanoic acid.

CONCLUSIONS

These results demonstrate that, as predicted, even a single-module PKS is catalytically active in the absence of other DEBS proteins. In its normal context, the ketosynthase domain KS1 is thought to generate a (2S)-2methyl-3-hydroxy intermediate by epimerising the initial product of carbon-carbon chain formation, the (2R)-2-methyl-3-ketoester. The observed formation of the alternative (2R)-methyl-3-hydroxy product catalysed by DKS1-2 provides strong support for this proposal, and indicates how targeted alteration of stereospecificity can be achieved on a modular PKS.

Combinatorial biosynthesis of erythromycin and complex polyketides

Modular polyketide synthases that produce many clinically important natural products such as erythromycins and lovastatins have been engineered in many ways to produce novel natural products. The structural variations have included alterations to the substituents on the macrolide ring, including the starter acid residue, using either semi-synthetic methodology or genetic engineering. It is now also possible to produce shorter polyketide chains that are released either as lactone rings (6-, 8-, 12- and 14-membered rings) or linear products. The strategies for engineering polyketide synthases to produce specific natural products are now well established. Several of the macrolides produced recently have been elaborated to produce novel antibiotics.

Engineering broader specificity into an antibiotic-producing polyketide synthase

The wide-specificity loading module for the avermectin-producing polyketide synthase was grafted onto the first multienzyme component (DEBS1) of the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase in place of the normal loading module. Expression of this hybrid enzyme in the erythromycin producer Saccharopolyspora erythraea produced several novel antibiotic erythromycins derived from endogenous branched-chain acid starter units typical of natural avermectins. Because the avermectin polyketide synthase is known to accept more than 40 alternative carboxylic acids as starter units, this approach opens the way to facile production of novel analogs of antibiotic macrolides.

Molecular recognition of diketide substrates by a beta-ketoacyl-acyl carrier protein synthase domain within a bimodular polyketide synthase

BACKGROUND

Modular polyketide synthases (PKSs) are large multifunctional proteins that catalyze the biosynthesis of structurally complex bioactive products. The modular organization of PKSs has allowed the application of a combinatorial approach to the synthesis of novel polyketides via the manipulation of these biocatalysts at the genetic level. The inherent specificity of PKSs for their natural substrates, however, may place limits on the spectrum of molecular diversity that can be achieved in polyketide products. With the aim of further understanding PKS specificity, as a route to exploiting PKSs in combinatorial synthesis, we chose to examine the substrate specificity of a single intact domain within a bimodular PKS to investigate its capacity to utilize unnatural substrates.

RESULTS

We used a blocked mutant of a bimodular PKS in which formation of the triketide product could occur only via uptake and processing of a synthetic diketide intermediate. By introducing systematic changes in the native diketide structure, by means of the synthesis of unnatural diketide analogs, we have shown that the ketosynthase domain of module 2 (KS2 domain) in 6-deoxyerythronolide B synthase (DEBS) tolerates a broad range of variations in substrate structure, but it strongly discriminates against some others.

CONCLUSIONS

Defining the boundaries of substrate recognition within PKS domains is crucial to the rationally engineered biosynthesis of novel polyketide products, many of which could be prepared only with great difficulty, if at all, by direct chemical synthesis or semi-synthesis. Our results suggest that the KS2 domain of DEBS1 has a relatively relaxed specificity that can be exploited for the design and synthesis of medicinally important polyketide products.