1
|
Photobiological production of high-value pigments via compartmentalized co-cultures using Ca-alginate hydrogels. Sci Rep 2022; 12:22163. [PMID: 36550285 PMCID: PMC9780300 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26437-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Engineered cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus can use light and CO2 to produce sucrose, making it a promising candidate for use in co-cultures with heterotrophic workhorses. However, this process is challenged by the mutual stresses generated from the multispecies microbial culture. Here we demonstrate an ecosystem where S. elongatus is freely grown in a photo-bioreactor (PBR) containing an engineered heterotrophic workhorse (either β-carotene-producing Yarrowia lipolytica or indigoidine-producing Pseudomonas putida) encapsulated in calcium-alginate hydrogel beads. The encapsulation prevents growth interference, allowing the cyanobacterial culture to produce high sucrose concentrations enabling the production of indigoidine and β-carotene in the heterotroph. Our experimental PBRs yielded an indigoidine titer of 7.5 g/L hydrogel and a β-carotene titer of 1.3 g/L hydrogel, amounts 15-22-fold higher than in a comparable co-culture without encapsulation. Moreover, 13C-metabolite analysis and protein overexpression tests indicated that the hydrogel beads provided a favorable microenvironment where the cell metabolism inside the hydrogel was comparable to that in a free culture. Finally, the heterotroph-containing hydrogels were easily harvested and dissolved by EDTA for product recovery, while the cyanobacterial culture itself could be reused for the next batch of immobilized heterotrophs. This co-cultivation and hydrogel encapsulation system is a successful demonstration of bioprocess optimization under photobioreactor conditions.
Collapse
|
2
|
Williams E, Bachvaroff T, Place A. A Comparison of Dinoflagellate Thiolation Domain Binding Proteins Using In Vitro and Molecular Methods. Mar Drugs 2022; 20:md20090581. [PMID: 36135770 PMCID: PMC9500876 DOI: 10.3390/md20090581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2022] [Revised: 09/03/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Dinoflagellates play important roles in ecosystems as primary producers and consumers making natural products that can benefit or harm environmental and human health but are also potential therapeutics with unique chemistries. Annotations of dinoflagellate genes have been hampered by large genomes with many gene copies that reduce the reliability of transcriptomics, quantitative PCR, and targeted knockouts. This study aimed to functionally characterize dinoflagellate proteins by testing their interactions through in vitro assays. Specifically, nine Amphidinium carterae thiolation domains that scaffold natural product synthesis were substituted into an indigoidine synthesizing gene from the bacterium Streptomyces lavendulae and exposed to three A. carterae phosphopantetheinyl transferases that activate synthesis. Unsurprisingly, several of the dinoflagellate versions inhibited the ability to synthesize indigoidine despite being successfully phosphopantetheinated. However, all the transferases were able to phosphopantetheinate all the thiolation domains nearly equally, defying the canon that transferases participate in segregated processes via binding specificity. Moreover, two of the transferases were expressed during growth in alternating patterns while the final transferase was only observed as a breakdown product common to all three. The broad substrate recognition and compensatory expression shown here help explain why phosphopantetheinyl transferases are lost throughout dinoflagellate evolution without a loss in a biochemical process.
Collapse
|
3
|
Zhang Z, Li P, Wang M, Zhang Y, Wu B, Tao Y, Pan G, Chen Y. ( S)-3-aminopiperidine-2,6-dione is a biosynthetic intermediate of microbial blue pigment indigoidine. MLIFE 2022; 1:146-155. [PMID: 38817675 PMCID: PMC10989907 DOI: 10.1002/mlf2.12023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 04/10/2022] [Accepted: 04/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
The biosynthetic investigations of microbial natural products continuously provide powerful biocatalysts for the preparation of valuable chemicals. Practical methods for preparing (S)-3-aminopiperidine-2,6-dione (2), the pharmacophore of thalidomide (1) and its analog drugs, are highly desired. To develop a biocatalyst for producing (S)-2, we dissected the domain functions of IdgS, which is responsible for the biosynthesis of indigoidine (3), a microbial blue pigment that consists of two 2-like moieties. Our data supported that the L-glutamine tethered to the indigoidine assembly line is first offloaded and cyclized by the thioesterase domain to form (S)-2, which is then dehydrogenated by the oxidation (Ox) domain and finally dimerized to yield 3. Based on this, we developed an IdgS-derived enzyme biocatalyst, IdgS-Ox* R539A, for preparing enantiomerically pure (S)-2. As a proof of concept, one-pot chemoenzymatic synthesis of 1 was achieved by combining the biocatalytic and chemical approaches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhilong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Pengwei Li
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Min Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Yan Zhang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Modern Drug Delivery and High‐Efficiency, School of Pharmaceutical Science and TechnologyTianjin UniversityTianjinChina
| | - Bian Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Yong Tao
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Guohui Pan
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| | - Yihua Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Microbial Resources, Institute of MicrobiologyChinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
- University of Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijingChina
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Dinoflagellate Phosphopantetheinyl Transferase (PPTase) and Thiolation Domain Interactions Characterized Using a Modified Indigoidine Synthesizing Reporter. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10040687. [PMID: 35456738 PMCID: PMC9027781 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10040687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Photosynthetic dinoflagellates synthesize many toxic but also potential therapeutic compounds therapeutics via polyketide/non-ribosomal peptide synthesis, a common means of producing natural products in bacteria and fungi. Although canonical genes are identifiable in dinoflagellate transcriptomes, the biosynthetic pathways are obfuscated by high copy numbers and fractured synteny. This study focuses on the carrier domains that scaffold natural product synthesis (thiolation domains) and the phosphopantetheinyl transferases (PPTases) that thiolate these carriers. We replaced the thiolation domain of the indigoidine producing BpsA gene from Streptomyces lavendulae with those of three multidomain dinoflagellate transcripts and coexpressed these constructs with each of three dinoflagellate PPTases looking for specific pairings that would identify distinct pathways. Surprisingly, all three PPTases were able to activate all the thiolation domains from one transcript, although with differing levels of indigoidine produced, demonstrating an unusual lack of specificity. Unfortunately, constructs with the remaining thiolation domains produced almost no indigoidine and the thiolation domain for lipid synthesis could not be expressed in E. coli. These results combined with inconsistent protein expression for different PPTase/thiolation domain pairings present technical hurdles for future work. Despite these challenges, expression of catalytically active dinoflagellate proteins in E. coli is a novel and useful tool going forward.
Collapse
|
5
|
Lv Q, Hu M, Tian L, Liu F, Wang Q, Xu M, Rao Z. Enhancing l-glutamine production in Corynebacterium glutamicum by rational metabolic engineering combined with a two-stage pH control strategy. BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY 2021; 341:125799. [PMID: 34425465 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2021] [Revised: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
l-glutamine is a semi-essential amino acid widely used in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The microbial synthesis of l-glutamine is limited by lack of effective strains with high titer and safety. First, ARTP mutagenesis combined with high-throughput screening generated an l-glutamine-producing strain of Corynebacterium glutamicum with titer of 25.7 ± 2.7 g/L. Subsequently, a series of rational metabolic approaches were used to further improve l-glutamine production, which included increasing the carbon flow to l-glutamine (proB and NCgl1221 knockout), enhancing the catalytic efficiency of the key enzyme (glnE knockout and glnA screening and overexpression) and reinforcement of ATP regeneration (ppk overexpression and RBS optimization). Finally, we proposed a two-stage pH control strategy to address the inconsistent effect of pH on cell growth and l-glutamine production. These combined strategies led to a 186.0% increase of l-glutamine titer compared to that of the initial strain, reaching 73.5 ± 3.1 g/L with a yield of 0.368 ± 0.034 g/g glucose.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Qinglan Lv
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Mengkai Hu
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Lingzhi Tian
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Fei Liu
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Qing Wang
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Meijuan Xu
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China
| | - Zhiming Rao
- The Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, Ministry of Education, School of Biotechnology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province 214122, PR China.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Devi P, Kukkar D, Kaur M, Thakur A, Kim KH, Kukkar P, Kaur K, Kaur H. Conjugate of graphene quantum dots and glutaminase for the sensing of L-glutamine: Electrochemical vs. fluorescent sensing approaches. INORG CHEM COMMUN 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.inoche.2021.108745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
|
7
|
Hui CY, Guo Y, Li LM, Liu L, Chen YT, Yi J, Zhang NX. Indigoidine biosynthesis triggered by the heavy metal-responsive transcription regulator: a visual whole-cell biosensor. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2021; 105:6087-6102. [PMID: 34291315 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-021-11441-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2021] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/03/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
During the last few decades, whole-cell biosensors have attracted increasing attention for their enormous potential in monitoring bioavailable heavy metal contaminations in the ecosystem. Visual and measurable output signals by employing natural pigments have been demonstrated to offer another potential choice to indicate the existence of bioavailable heavy metals in recent years. The biosynthesis of the blue pigment indigoidine has been achieved in E. coli following heterologous expression of both BpsA (a single-module non-ribosomal peptide synthetase) and PcpS (a PPTase to activate apo-BpsA). Moreover, we demonstrated herein the development of the indigoidine-based whole-cell biosensors to detect bioavailable Hg(II) and Pb(II) in water samples by employing metal-responsive transcriptional regulator MerR and PbrR as the sensory elements, and the indigoidine biosynthesis gene cluster as a reporter element. The resulting indigoidine-based biosensors presented a good selectivity and high sensitivity to target metal ions. High concentration of target metal exposure could be clearly recognized by the naked eye due to the color change by the secretion of indigoidine, and quantified by measuring the absorbance of the culture supernatants at 600 nm. Dose-response relationships existed between the exposure concentrations of target heavy metals and the production of indigoidine. Although fairly good linear relationships were obtained in a relatively limited concentration range of the concentrations of heavy metal ions, these findings suggest that genetically controlled indigoidine biosynthesis triggered by the MerR family transcriptional regulator can enable a sensitive, visual, and qualitative whole-cell biosensor for bioindicating the presence of bioaccessible heavy metal in environmental water samples. KEY POINTS: • Biosynthesis pathway of indigoidine reconstructed in a high copy number plasmid in E. coli. • Visual and colorimetric detection of Hg(II) and Pb(II) by manipulation of indigoidine biosynthesis through MerR family metalloregulator. •Enhanced detection sensitivity toward Hg(II) and Pb(II) achieved using novel pigment-based whole-cell biosensors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chang-Ye Hui
- Department of Pathology & Toxicology, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China.
| | - Yan Guo
- National Key Clinical Specialty of Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Li-Mei Li
- Department of Pathology & Toxicology, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Lisa Liu
- Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Yu-Ting Chen
- Department of Pathology & Toxicology, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Juan Yi
- Department of Pathology & Toxicology, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Nai-Xing Zhang
- National Key Clinical Specialty of Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Brown AS, Owen JG, Jung J, Baker EN, Ackerley DF. Inhibition of Indigoidine Synthesis as a High-Throughput Colourimetric Screen for Antibiotics Targeting the Essential Mycobacterium tuberculosis Phosphopantetheinyl Transferase PptT. Pharmaceutics 2021; 13:pharmaceutics13071066. [PMID: 34371757 PMCID: PMC8309046 DOI: 10.3390/pharmaceutics13071066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2021] [Revised: 07/07/2021] [Accepted: 07/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A recently-validated and underexplored drug target in Mycobacterium tuberculosis is PptT, an essential phosphopantetheinyl transferase (PPTase) that plays a critical role in activating enzymes for both primary and secondary metabolism. PptT possesses a deep binding pocket that does not readily accept labelled coenzyme A analogues that have previously been used to screen for PPTase inhibitors. Here we report on the development of a high throughput, colourimetric screen that monitors the PptT-mediated activation of the non-ribosomal peptide synthetase BpsA to a blue pigment (indigoidine) synthesising form in vitro. This screen uses unadulterated coenzyme A, avoiding analogues that may interfere with inhibitor binding, and requires only a single-endpoint measurement. We benchmark the screen using the well-characterised Library of Pharmaceutically Active Compounds (LOPAC1280) collection and show that it is both sensitive and able to distinguish weak from strong inhibitors. We further show that the BpsA assay can be applied to quantify the level of inhibition and generate consistent EC50 data. We anticipate these tools will facilitate both the screening of established chemical collections to identify new anti-mycobacterial drug leads and to guide the exploration of structure-activity landscapes to improve existing PPTase inhibitors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alistair S. Brown
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand; (A.S.B.); (J.G.O.)
- Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (J.J.); (E.N.B.)
| | - Jeremy G. Owen
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand; (A.S.B.); (J.G.O.)
- Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (J.J.); (E.N.B.)
| | - James Jung
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (J.J.); (E.N.B.)
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - Edward N. Baker
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (J.J.); (E.N.B.)
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
| | - David F. Ackerley
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand; (A.S.B.); (J.G.O.)
- Centre for Biodiscovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; (J.J.); (E.N.B.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +64-4-4635576
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Guo Y, Hui CY, Liu L, Chen MP, Huang HY. Development of a bioavailable Hg(II) sensing system based on MerR-regulated visual pigment biosynthesis. Sci Rep 2021; 11:13516. [PMID: 34188121 PMCID: PMC8242042 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-92878-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Engineered microorganisms have proven to be a highly effective and robust tool to specifically detect heavy metals in the environment. In this study, a highly specific pigment-based whole-cell biosensor has been investigated for the detection of bioavailable Hg(II) based on an artificial heavy metal resistance operon. The basic working principle of biosensors is based on the violacein biosynthesis under the control of mercury resistance (mer) promoter and mercury resistance regulator (MerR). Engineered biosensor cells have been demonstrated to selectively respond to Hg(II), and the specific response was not influenced by interfering metal ions. The response of violacein could be recognized by the naked eye, and the time required for the maximum response of violacein (5 h) was less than that of enhanced green fluorescence protein (eGFP) (8 h) in the single-signal output constructs. The response of violacein was almost unaffected by the eGFP in a double-promoter controlled dual-signals output construct. However, the response strength of eGFP was significantly decreased in this genetic construct. Exponentially growing violacein-based biosensor detected concentrations as low as 0.39 μM Hg(II) in a colorimetric method, and the linear relationship was observed in the concentration range of 0.78-12.5 μM. Non-growing biosensor cells responded to concentrations as low as 0.006 μM Hg(II) in a colorimetric method and in a Hg(II) containing plate sensitive assay, and the linear relationship was demonstrated in a very narrow concentration range. The developed biosensor was finally validated for the detection of spiked bioavailable Hg(II) in environmental water samples.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yan Guo
- National Key Clinical Specialty of Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chang-Ye Hui
- Department of Pathology and Toxicology, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China.
| | - Lisa Liu
- Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Min-Peng Chen
- National Key Clinical Specialty of Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| | - Hong-Ying Huang
- National Key Clinical Specialty of Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Diseases, Shenzhen, China
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Maggio F, Rossi C, Chaves-López C, Serio A, Valbonetti L, Pomilio F, Chiavaroli AP, Paparella A. Interactions between L. monocytogenes and P. fluorescens in Dual-Species Biofilms under Simulated Dairy Processing Conditions. Foods 2021; 10:foods10010176. [PMID: 33467189 PMCID: PMC7829993 DOI: 10.3390/foods10010176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Revised: 01/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In dairy processing environments, many bacterial species adhere and form biofilms on surfaces and equipment, leading to foodborne illness and food spoilage. Among them, Listeria monocytogenes and Pseudomonas spp. could be present in mixed-species biofilms. This study aimed to evaluate the interactions between L. monocytogenes and P. fluorescens in biofilms simulating dairy processing conditions, as well as the capability of P. fluorescens in co-culture to produce the blue pigment in a Ricotta-based model system. The biofilm-forming capability of single- and mixed-cultures was evaluated on polystyrene (PS) and stainless steel (SS) surfaces at 12 °C for 168 h. The biofilm biomass was measured, the planktonic and sessile cells and the carbohydrates in biofilms were quantified. The biofilms were also observed through Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy analysis. Results showed that only P. fluorescens was able to form biofilms on PS. Moreover, in dual-species biofilms at the end of the incubation time (168 h at 12 °C), a lower biomass compared to P. fluorescens mono-species was observed on PS. On SS, the biofilm cell population of L. monocytogenes was higher in the dual-species than in mono-species, particularly after 48 h. Carbohydrates quantity in the dual-species system was higher than in mono-species and was revealed also at 168 h. The production of blue pigment by P. fluorescens was revealed both in single- and co-culture after 72 h of incubation (12 °C). This work highlights the interactions between the two species, under the experimental conditions studied in the present research, which can influence biofilm formation (biomass and sessile cells) but not the capability of P. fluorescens to produce blue pigment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Maggio
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Chiara Rossi
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Clemencia Chaves-López
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Annalisa Serio
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Luca Valbonetti
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Francesco Pomilio
- Food Hygiene Unit, NRL for L. monocytogenes, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise “G. Caporale”, 64100 Teramo, Italy;
| | - Alessio Pio Chiavaroli
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
| | - Antonello Paparella
- Faculty of Bioscience and Technology for Food, Agriculture and Environment, University of Teramo, Via R. Balzarini 1, 64100 Teramo, Italy; (F.M.); (C.R.); (C.C.-L.); (A.S.); (L.V.); (A.P.C.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-0861-266944
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Brown AS, Sissons JA, Owen JG, Ackerley DF. Directed Evolution of the Nonribosomal Peptide Synthetase BpsA to Enable Recognition by the Human Phosphopantetheinyl Transferase for Counter-Screening Antibiotic Candidates. ACS Infect Dis 2020; 6:2879-2886. [PMID: 33118808 DOI: 10.1021/acsinfecdis.0c00606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Bacterial type II phosphopantetheinyl transferases (PPTases), required for the activation of many cellular mega-synthases, have been validated as promising drug targets in several pathogens. Activation of the blue-pigment-synthesizing nonribosomal peptide synthetase BpsA by a target PPTase can be used to screen in vitro for new antibiotic candidates from chemical libraries. For a complete screening platform, there is a need to also counter-screen inhibitors for cross-reactivity with the endogenous human Type II PPTase (hPPTase), as this is a likely source of toxicity. As hPPTase is unable to recognize the PCP-domain of native BpsA, we used a combination of directed evolution and rational engineering to generate a triple-substitution variant that is able to be efficiently activated by hPPTase. Our engineered BpsA variant was able to readily detect inhibition of both hPPTase and the equivalent rat PPTase by broad-spectrum PPTase inhibitors, demonstrating its potential for high-throughput counter-screening of novel antibiotic candidates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alistair S. Brown
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Centre for Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Jack A. Sissons
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
| | - Jeremy G. Owen
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Centre for Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - David F. Ackerley
- School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Centre for Biodiscovery, School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6012, New Zealand
- Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery, Auckland, New Zealand
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
The indigoidine synthetase BpsA provides a colorimetric ATP assay that can be adapted to quantify the substrate preferences of other NRPS enzymes. Biotechnol Lett 2020; 42:2665-2671. [PMID: 32681380 DOI: 10.1007/s10529-020-02972-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To develop a colorimetric assay for ATP based on the blue-pigment synthesising non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) BpsA, and to demonstrate its utility in defining the substrate specificity of other NRPS enzymes. RESULTS BpsA is able to convert two molecules of L-glutamine into the readily-detected blue pigment indigoidine, consuming two molecules of ATP in the process. We showed that the stoichiometry of this reaction is robust and that it can be performed in a microplate format to accurately quantify ATP concentrations to low micromolar levels in a variety of media, using a spectrophotometric plate-reader. We also demonstrated that the assay can be adapted to evaluate the amino acid substrate preferences of NRPS adenylation domains, by adding pyrophosphatase enzyme to drive consumption of ATP in the presence of the preferred substrate. CONCLUSIONS The robust nature and simplicity of the reaction protocol offers advantages over existing methods for ATP quantification and NRPS substrate analysis.
Collapse
|
13
|
Pang B, Chen Y, Gan F, Yan C, Jin L, Gin JW, Petzold CJ, Keasling JD. Investigation of Indigoidine Synthetase Reveals a Conserved Active-Site Base Residue of Nonribosomal Peptide Synthetase Oxidases. J Am Chem Soc 2020; 142:10931-10935. [PMID: 32510939 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.0c04328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) oxidase (Ox) domains oxidize protein-bound intermediates to install crucial structural motifs in bioactive natural products. The mechanism of this domain remains elusive. Here, by studying indigoidine synthetase, a single-module NRPS involved in the biosynthesis of indigoidine and several other bacterial secondary metabolites, we demonstrate that its Ox domain utilizes an active-site base residue, tyrosine 665, to deprotonate a protein-bound l-glutaminyl residue. We further validate the generality of this active-site residue among NRPS Ox domains. These findings not only resolve the biosynthetic pathway mediated by indigoidine synthetase but enable mechanistic insight into NRPS Ox domains.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bo Pang
- QB3 Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, United States.,Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Yan Chen
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Fei Gan
- QB3 Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, United States.,Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Chunsheng Yan
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States
| | - Liyuan Jin
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States
| | - Jennifer W Gin
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Christopher J Petzold
- Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States
| | - Jay D Keasling
- QB3 Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, United States.,Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, California 94608, United States.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California 94720, United States.,Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering and Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720, United States.,Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University Denmark, DK 2970 Horsholm, Denmark.,Center for Synthetic Biochemistry, Shenzhen Institutes for Advanced Technologies, Shenzhen 518055, P. R. China
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Vickery CR, McCulloch IP, Sonnenschein EC, Beld J, Noel JP, Burkart MD. Dissecting modular synthases through inhibition: A complementary chemical and genetic approach. Bioorg Med Chem Lett 2020; 30:126820. [PMID: 31812466 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2019.126820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2019] [Revised: 11/08/2019] [Accepted: 11/09/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Modular synthases, such as fatty acid, polyketide, and non-ribosomal peptide synthases (NRPSs), are sophisticated machineries essential in both primary and secondary metabolism. Various techniques have been developed to understand their genetic background and enzymatic abilities. However, uncovering the actual biosynthetic pathways remains challenging. Herein, we demonstrate a pipeline to study an assembly line synthase by interrogating the enzymatic function of each individual enzymatic domain of BpsA, a NRPS that produces the blue 3,3'-bipyridyl pigment indigoidine. Specific inhibitors for each biosynthetic domain of BpsA were obtained or synthesized, and the enzymatic performance of BpsA upon addition of each inhibitor was monitored by pigment development in vitro and in living bacteria. The results were verified using genetic mutants to inactivate each domain. Finally, the results complemented the currently proposed biosynthetic pathway of BpsA.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher R Vickery
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0358, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Jack H. Skirball Center for Chemical Biology and Proteomics, 10010 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Ian P McCulloch
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0358, USA
| | - Eva C Sonnenschein
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0358, USA
| | - Joris Beld
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0358, USA
| | - Joseph P Noel
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, Jack H. Skirball Center for Chemical Biology and Proteomics, 10010 N. Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Michael D Burkart
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California-San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0358, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Kong L, Xu G, Liu X, Wang J, Tang Z, Cai YS, Shen K, Tao W, Zheng Y, Deng Z, Price NPJ, Chen W. Divergent Biosynthesis of C-Nucleoside Minimycin and Indigoidine in Bacteria. iScience 2019; 22:430-440. [PMID: 31816530 PMCID: PMC6908994 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2019.11.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Minimycin (MIN) is a C-nucleoside antibiotic structurally related to pseudouridine, and indigoidine is a naturally occurring blue pigment produced by diverse bacteria. Although MIN and indigoidine have been known for decades, the logic underlying the divergent biosynthesis of these interesting molecules has been obscure. Here, we report the identification of a minimal 5-gene cluster (min) essential for MIN biosynthesis. We demonstrated that a non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (MinA) governs “the switch” for the divergent biosynthesis of MIN and the cryptic indigoidine. We also demonstrated that MinCN (the N-terminal phosphatase domain of MinC), MinD (uracil phosphoribosyltransferase), and MinT (transporter) function together as the safeguard enzymes, which collaboratively constitute an unusual self-resistance system. Finally, we provided evidence that MinD, utilizing an unprecedented substrate-competition strategy for self-resistance of the producer cell, maintains competition advantage over the active molecule MIN-5′-monophosphate by increasing the UMP pool in vivo. These findings greatly expand our knowledge regarding natural product biosynthesis. A minimal 5-gene cluster (min) is essential for minimycin biosynthesis Divergent biosynthesis of minimycin and indigoidine is mediated by an NRPS enzyme A cascade of three safeguard enzymes constitutes the unusual self-resistance system MinD functions as the key safeguard enzyme by increasing the UMP pool in vivo
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liyuan Kong
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Gudan Xu
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Xiaoqin Liu
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Jingwen Wang
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Zenglin Tang
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - You-Sheng Cai
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Kun Shen
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Weixin Tao
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Yu Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Food Nutrition and Safety, Tianjin Engineering Research Center of Microbial Metabolism and Fermentation Process Control, and College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin 300457, China
| | - Zixin Deng
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
| | - Neil P J Price
- Agricultural Research Service, US Department of Agriculture, National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Peoria, IL, USA
| | - Wenqing Chen
- Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug Discovery, Ministry of Education, and School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Ballinger E, Mosior J, Hartman T, Burns-Huang K, Gold B, Morris R, Goullieux L, Blanc I, Vaubourgeix J, Lagrange S, Fraisse L, Sans S, Couturier C, Bacqué E, Rhee K, Scarry SM, Aubé J, Yang G, Ouerfelli O, Schnappinger D, Ioerger TR, Engelhart CA, McConnell JA, McAulay K, Fay A, Roubert C, Sacchettini J, Nathan C. Opposing reactions in coenzyme A metabolism sensitize Mycobacterium tuberculosis to enzyme inhibition. Science 2019; 363:363/6426/eaau8959. [PMID: 30705156 DOI: 10.1126/science.aau8959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2018] [Accepted: 12/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is the leading infectious cause of death in humans. Synthesis of lipids critical for Mtb's cell wall and virulence depends on phosphopantetheinyl transferase (PptT), an enzyme that transfers 4'-phosphopantetheine (Ppt) from coenzyme A (CoA) to diverse acyl carrier proteins. We identified a compound that kills Mtb by binding and partially inhibiting PptT. Killing of Mtb by the compound is potentiated by another enzyme encoded in the same operon, Ppt hydrolase (PptH), that undoes the PptT reaction. Thus, loss-of-function mutants of PptH displayed antimicrobial resistance. Our PptT-inhibitor cocrystal structure may aid further development of antimycobacterial agents against this long-sought target. The opposing reactions of PptT and PptH uncover a regulatory pathway in CoA physiology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elaine Ballinger
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - John Mosior
- Departments of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, College Station, TX, USA
| | - Travis Hartman
- Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kristin Burns-Huang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ben Gold
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Roxanne Morris
- Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Laurent Goullieux
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Isabelle Blanc
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Julien Vaubourgeix
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sophie Lagrange
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Laurent Fraisse
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Stéphanie Sans
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Cedric Couturier
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Eric Bacqué
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - Kyu Rhee
- Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sarah M Scarry
- Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Jeffrey Aubé
- Division of Chemical Biology and Medicinal Chemistry, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Guangbin Yang
- Organic Synthesis Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ouathek Ouerfelli
- Organic Synthesis Core, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Dirk Schnappinger
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Thomas R Ioerger
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Curtis A Engelhart
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jennifer A McConnell
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kathrine McAulay
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Allison Fay
- Immunology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Christine Roubert
- Infectious Diseases Therapeutic Area, Sanofi, Marcy-l'Étoile, France
| | - James Sacchettini
- Departments of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, College Station, TX, USA.
| | - Carl Nathan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|