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Chen TH, Lin HC. Terpene Synthases in the Biosynthesis of Drimane-Type Sesquiterpenes across Diverse Organisms. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202300518. [PMID: 37605310 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300518] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 08/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
Drimane-type sesquiterpenes (DTSs) are significant terpenoid natural products characterized by their unique C15 bicyclic skeleton. They are produced by various organisms including plants, fungi, bacteria and marine organisms, and exhibit a diverse array of bioactivities. These bioactivities encompass antifeedant, anti-insecticidal, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral and anti-proliferative properties. Some DTSs contribute to the pungent flavor found in herb plants like water pepper, while others serve as active components responsible for the anti-cancer activities observed in medicinal mushrooms such as (-)-antrocin from Antrodia cinnamomea. Recently, DTS synthases have been identified in various organisms, biosynthesizing drimenol, drim-8-ene-11-ol and (+)-albicanol, which all possess the characteristic drimane skeleton. Interestingly, despite these enzymes producing chemical molecules with a drimane scaffold, they exhibit minimal amino acid sequence identity across different organisms. This Concept article focuses on the discovery of DTS synthases and the tailoring enzymes generating the chemical diversity of drimane natural products. We summarize and discuss their key features, including the chemical mechanisms, catalytic motifs and functional domains employed by these terpene synthases to generate DTS scaffolds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tzu-Ho Chen
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan R.O.C
| | - Hsiao-Ching Lin
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan R.O.C
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2
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Shelake RM, Jadhav AM, Bhosale PB, Kim JY. Unlocking secrets of nature's chemists: Potential of CRISPR/Cas-based tools in plant metabolic engineering for customized nutraceutical and medicinal profiles. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY : PPB 2023; 203:108070. [PMID: 37816270 DOI: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2023.108070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/28/2023] [Indexed: 10/12/2023]
Abstract
Plant species have evolved diverse metabolic pathways to effectively respond to internal and external signals throughout their life cycle, allowing adaptation to their sessile and phototropic nature. These pathways selectively activate specific metabolic processes, producing plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) governed by genetic and environmental factors. Humans have utilized PSM-enriched plant sources for millennia in medicine and nutraceuticals. Recent technological advances have significantly contributed to discovering metabolic pathways and related genes involved in the biosynthesis of specific PSM in different food crops and medicinal plants. Consequently, there is a growing demand for plant materials rich in nutrients and bioactive compounds, marketed as "superfoods". To meet the industrial demand for superfoods and therapeutic PSMs, modern methods such as system biology, omics, synthetic biology, and genome editing (GE) play a crucial role in identifying the molecular players, limiting steps, and regulatory circuitry involved in PSM production. Among these methods, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats-CRISPR associated protein (CRISPR/Cas) is the most widely used system for plant GE due to its simple design, flexibility, precision, and multiplexing capabilities. Utilizing the CRISPR-based toolbox for metabolic engineering (ME) offers an ideal solution for developing plants with tailored preventive (nutraceuticals) and curative (therapeutic) metabolic profiles in an ecofriendly way. This review discusses recent advances in understanding the multifactorial regulation of metabolic pathways, the application of CRISPR-based tools for plant ME, and the potential research areas for enhancing plant metabolic profiles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rahul Mahadev Shelake
- Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Four Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea.
| | - Amol Maruti Jadhav
- Research Institute of Green Energy Convergence Technology (RIGET), Gyeongsang National University, 501 Jinju-daero, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea
| | - Pritam Bhagwan Bhosale
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Research Institute of Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, 501 Jinju-daero, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea
| | - Jae-Yean Kim
- Division of Applied Life Science (BK21 Four Program), Plant Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Research Center, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea; Division of Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, 501 Jinju-daero, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea; Nulla Bio Inc, 501 Jinju-daero, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea.
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3
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Rassbach J, Hilsberg N, Haensch VG, Dörner S, Gressler J, Sonnabend R, Semm C, Voigt K, Hertweck C, Gressler M. Non-canonical two-step biosynthesis of anti-oomycete indole alkaloids in Kickxellales. Fungal Biol Biotechnol 2023; 10:19. [PMID: 37670394 PMCID: PMC10478498 DOI: 10.1186/s40694-023-00166-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Fungi are prolific producers of bioactive small molecules of pharmaceutical or agricultural interest. The secondary metabolism of higher fungi (Dikarya) has been well-investigated which led to > 39,000 described compounds. However, natural product researchers scarcely drew attention to early-diverging fungi (Mucoro- and Zoopagomycota) as they are considered to rarely produce secondary metabolites. Indeed, only 15 compounds have as yet been isolated from the entire phylum of the Zoopagomycota. RESULTS Here, we showcase eight species of the order Kickxellales (phylum Zoopagomycota) as potent producers of the indole-3-acetic acid (IAA)-derived compounds lindolins A and B. The compounds are produced both under laboratory conditions and in the natural soil habitat suggesting a specialized ecological function. Indeed, lindolin A is a selective agent against plant-pathogenic oomycetes such as Phytophthora sp. Lindolin biosynthesis was reconstituted in vitro and relies on the activity of two enzymes of dissimilar evolutionary origin: Whilst the IAA-CoA ligase LinA has evolved from fungal 4-coumaryl-CoA synthetases, the subsequently acting IAA-CoA:anthranilate N-indole-3-acetyltransferase LinB is a unique enzyme across all kingdoms of life. CONCLUSIONS This is the first report on bioactive secondary metabolites in the subphylum Kickxellomycotina and the first evidence for a non-clustered, two-step biosynthetic route of secondary metabolites in early-diverging fungi. Thus, the generally accepted "gene cluster hypothesis" for natural products needs to be reconsidered for early diverging fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Rassbach
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Nathalie Hilsberg
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Veit G Haensch
- Biomolecular Chemistry, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Adolf-Reichwein-Strasse 23, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Sebastian Dörner
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Julia Gressler
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Robin Sonnabend
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Caroline Semm
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Institute of Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Neugasse 25, 07743, Jena, Germany
- Jena Microbial Resource Collection (JMRC), Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans Knöll Institute, Adolf-Reichwein-Strasse 23, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Kerstin Voigt
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Institute of Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Neugasse 25, 07743, Jena, Germany
- Jena Microbial Resource Collection (JMRC), Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans Knöll Institute, Adolf-Reichwein-Strasse 23, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Christian Hertweck
- Biomolecular Chemistry, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Adolf-Reichwein-Strasse 23, 07745, Jena, Germany
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Institute of Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Neugasse 25, 07743, Jena, Germany
| | - Markus Gressler
- Faculty of Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany.
- Pharmaceutical Microbiology, Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology-Hans-Knöll-Institute, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany.
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Hu J, Qiu S, Wang F, Li Q, Xiang CL, Di P, Wu Z, Jiang R, Li J, Zeng Z, Wang J, Wang X, Zhang Y, Fang S, Qiao Y, Ding J, Jiang Y, Xu Z, Chen J, Chen W. Functional divergence of CYP76AKs shapes the chemodiversity of abietane-type diterpenoids in genus Salvia. Nat Commun 2023; 14:4696. [PMID: 37542034 PMCID: PMC10403556 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40401-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The genus Salvia L. (Lamiaceae) comprises myriad distinct medicinal herbs, with terpenoids as one of their major active chemical groups. Abietane-type diterpenoids (ATDs), such as tanshinones and carnosic acids, are specific to Salvia and exhibit taxonomic chemical diversity among lineages. To elucidate how ATD chemical diversity evolved, we carried out large-scale metabolic and phylogenetic analyses of 71 Salvia species, combined with enzyme function, ancestral sequence and chemical trait reconstruction, and comparative genomics experiments. This integrated approach showed that the lineage-wide ATD diversities in Salvia were induced by differences in the oxidation of the terpenoid skeleton at C-20, which was caused by the functional divergence of the cytochrome P450 subfamily CYP76AK. These findings present a unique pattern of chemical diversity in plants that was shaped by the loss of enzyme activity and associated catalytic pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiadong Hu
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
- Department of Pharmacy, Second Affiliated Hospital of Navy Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, China
| | - Shi Qiu
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China.
| | - Feiyan Wang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Qing Li
- Department of Pharmacy, Second Affiliated Hospital of Navy Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, China
| | - Chun-Lei Xiang
- CAS Key Laboratory for Plant Diversity and Biogeography of East Asia, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650201, China
| | - Peng Di
- State Local Joint Engineering Research Center of Ginseng Breeding and Application, College of Chinese Medicinal Materials, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, China
| | - Ziding Wu
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Rui Jiang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jinxing Li
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Zhen Zeng
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jing Wang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Xingxing Wang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Yuchen Zhang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Shiyuan Fang
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Yuqi Qiao
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jie Ding
- Urban Horticulture Research and Extension Center, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Yun Jiang
- Urban Horticulture Research and Extension Center, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Zhichao Xu
- College of Life Sciences, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China.
| | - Junfeng Chen
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China.
| | - Wansheng Chen
- The SATCM Key Laboratory for New Resources & Quality Evaluation of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, 201203, China.
- Department of Pharmacy, Second Affiliated Hospital of Navy Medical University, Shanghai, 200003, China.
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5
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Qassadi FI, Zhu Z, Monaghan TM. Plant-Derived Products with Therapeutic Potential against Gastrointestinal Bacteria. Pathogens 2023; 12:pathogens12020333. [PMID: 36839605 PMCID: PMC9967904 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12020333] [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: 01/23/2023] [Revised: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The rising burden of antimicrobial resistance and increasing infectious disease outbreaks, including the recent COVID-19 pandemic, has led to a growing demand for the development of natural products as a valuable source of leading medicinal compounds. There is a wide variety of active constituents found in plants, making them an excellent source of antimicrobial agents with therapeutic potential as alternatives or potentiators of antibiotics. The structural diversity of phytochemicals enables them to act through a variety of mechanisms, targeting multiple biochemical pathways, in contrast to traditional antimicrobials. Moreover, the bioactivity of the herbal extracts can be explained by various metabolites working in synergism, where hundreds to thousands of metabolites make up the extract. Although a vast amount of literature is available regarding the use of these herbal extracts against bacterial and viral infections, critical assessments of their quality are lacking. This review aims to explore the efficacy and antimicrobial effects of herbal extracts against clinically relevant gastrointestinal infections including pathogenic Escherichia coli, toxigenic Clostridioides difficile, Campylobacter and Salmonella species. The review will discuss research gaps and propose future approaches to the translational development of plant-derived products for drug discovery purposes for the treatment and prevention of gastrointestinal infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatimah I. Qassadi
- School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
- Department of Pharmacognosy, College of Pharmacy, Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 11942, Saudi Arabia
| | - Zheying Zhu
- School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
| | - Tanya M. Monaghan
- NIHR Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
- Nottingham Digestive Diseases Centre, School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
- Correspondence:
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6
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Wu Y, Gong FL, Li S. Leveraging yeast to characterize plant biosynthetic gene clusters. CURRENT OPINION IN PLANT BIOLOGY 2023; 71:102314. [PMID: 36463029 PMCID: PMC10664738 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbi.2022.102314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Plant biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) contain multiple physically clustered non-homologous genes that encode enzymes catalyzing diverse reactions in one plant natural product biosynthetic pathway. A growing number of plant BGCs have emerged as an underlying resource for understanding plant specialized metabolism and evolution, but the characterization remains challenging. Recent studies have demonstrated that baker's yeast can serve as a versatile platform for the characterization of plant BGCs, from single-gene characterization to multiple genes and hitherto unknown putative BGC validation and elucidation. In this review, we will summarize the strategies and examples of the applications of yeast in plant BGC characterization and share our perspective on the development of a systematic pipeline to fully leverage yeast to advance the understanding of plant BGCs and plant natural product biomanufacturing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yinan Wu
- Robert F. Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Franklin L Gong
- Robert F. Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Sijin Li
- Robert F. Smith School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
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7
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Whole genome sequence characterization of Aspergillus terreus ATCC 20541 and genome comparison of the fungi A. terreus. Sci Rep 2023; 13:194. [PMID: 36604572 PMCID: PMC9814666 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-27311-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Aspergillus terreus is well-known for lovastatin and itaconic acid production with biomedical and commercial importance. The mechanisms of metabolite formation have been extensively studied to improve their yield through genetic engineering. However, the combined repertoire of carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes), cytochrome P450s (CYP) enzymes, and secondary metabolites (SMs) in the different A. terreus strains has not been well studied yet, especially with respect to the presence of biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). Here we present a 30 Mb whole genome sequence of A. terreus ATCC 20541 in which we predicted 10,410 protein-coding genes. We compared the CAZymes, CYPs enzyme, and SMs across eleven A. terreus strains, and the results indicate that all strains have rich pectin degradation enzyme and CYP52 families. The lovastatin BGC of lovI was linked with lovF in A. terreus ATCC 20541, and the phenomenon was not found in the other strains. A. terreus ATCC 20541 lacked a non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (AnaPS) participating in acetylaszonalenin production, which was a conserved protein in the ten other strains. Our results present a comprehensive analysis of CAZymes, CYPs enzyme, and SM diversities in A. terreus strains and will facilitate further research in the function of BGCs associated with valuable SMs.
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8
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Abdullah-Zawawi MR, Govender N, Harun S, Muhammad NAN, Zainal Z, Mohamed-Hussein ZA. Multi-Omics Approaches and Resources for Systems-Level Gene Function Prediction in the Plant Kingdom. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 11:2614. [PMID: 36235479 PMCID: PMC9573505 DOI: 10.3390/plants11192614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Revised: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
In higher plants, the complexity of a system and the components within and among species are rapidly dissected by omics technologies. Multi-omics datasets are integrated to infer and enable a comprehensive understanding of the life processes of organisms of interest. Further, growing open-source datasets coupled with the emergence of high-performance computing and development of computational tools for biological sciences have assisted in silico functional prediction of unknown genes, proteins and metabolites, otherwise known as uncharacterized. The systems biology approach includes data collection and filtration, system modelling, experimentation and the establishment of new hypotheses for experimental validation. Informatics technologies add meaningful sense to the output generated by complex bioinformatics algorithms, which are now freely available in a user-friendly graphical user interface. These resources accentuate gene function prediction at a relatively minimal cost and effort. Herein, we present a comprehensive view of relevant approaches available for system-level gene function prediction in the plant kingdom. Together, the most recent applications and sought-after principles for gene mining are discussed to benefit the plant research community. A realistic tabulation of plant genomic resources is included for a less laborious and accurate candidate gene discovery in basic plant research and improvement strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad-Redha Abdullah-Zawawi
- UKM Medical Molecular Biology Institute (UMBI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 56000, Malaysia
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
| | - Nisha Govender
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
| | - Sarahani Harun
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
| | - Nor Azlan Nor Muhammad
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
| | - Zamri Zainal
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
| | - Zeti-Azura Mohamed-Hussein
- Institute of System Biology (INBIOSIS), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
- Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi 43600, Malaysia
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9
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Singh KS, van der Hooft JJJ, van Wees SCM, Medema MH. Integrative omics approaches for biosynthetic pathway discovery in plants. Nat Prod Rep 2022; 39:1876-1896. [PMID: 35997060 PMCID: PMC9491492 DOI: 10.1039/d2np00032f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Covering: up to 2022With the emergence of large amounts of omics data, computational approaches for the identification of plant natural product biosynthetic pathways and their genetic regulation have become increasingly important. While genomes provide clues regarding functional associations between genes based on gene clustering, metabolome mining provides a foundational technology to chart natural product structural diversity in plants, and transcriptomics has been successfully used to identify new members of their biosynthetic pathways based on coexpression. Thus far, most approaches utilizing transcriptomics and metabolomics have been targeted towards specific pathways and use one type of omics data at a time. Recent technological advances now provide new opportunities for integration of multiple omics types and untargeted pathway discovery. Here, we review advances in plant biosynthetic pathway discovery using genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics, as well as recent efforts towards omics integration. We highlight how transcriptomics and metabolomics provide complementary information to link genes to metabolites, by associating temporal and spatial gene expression levels with metabolite abundance levels across samples, and by matching mass-spectral features to enzyme families. Furthermore, we suggest that elucidation of gene regulatory networks using time-series data may prove useful for efforts to unwire the complexities of biosynthetic pathway components based on regulatory interactions and events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kumar Saurabh Singh
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
- Plant-Microbe Interactions, Institute of Environmental Biology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands.
| | - Justin J J van der Hooft
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa
| | - Saskia C M van Wees
- Plant-Microbe Interactions, Institute of Environmental Biology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands.
| | - Marnix H Medema
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
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10
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Rivera-Chávez J, Ceapă CD, Figueroa M. Biological Dark Matter Exploration using Data Mining for the Discovery of Antimicrobial Natural Products. PLANTA MEDICA 2022; 88:702-720. [PMID: 35697058 DOI: 10.1055/a-1795-0562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The discovery of novel antimicrobials has significantly slowed down over the last three decades. At the same time, humans rely increasingly on antimicrobials because of the progressive antimicrobial resistance in medical practices, human communities, and the environment. Data mining is currently considered a promising option in the discovery of new antibiotics. Some of the advantages of data mining are the ability to predict chemical structures from sequence data, anticipation of the presence of novel metabolites, the understanding of gene evolution, and the corroboration of data from multiple omics technologies. This review analyzes the state-of-the-art for data mining in the fields of bacteria, fungi, and plant genomic data, as well as metabologenomics. It also summarizes some of the most recent research accomplishments in the field, all pinpointing to innovation through uncovering and implementing the next generation of antimicrobials.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Rivera-Chávez
- Instituto de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Corina-Diana Ceapă
- Instituto de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
| | - Mario Figueroa
- Facultad de Química, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad de México, México
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11
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Sirirungruang S, Markel K, Shih PM. Plant-based engineering for production of high-valued natural products. Nat Prod Rep 2022; 39:1492-1509. [PMID: 35674317 DOI: 10.1039/d2np00017b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Covering: up to March 2022Plants are a unique source of complex specialized metabolites, many of which play significant roles in human society. In many cases, however, the availability of these metabolites from naturally occurring sources fails to meet current demands. Thus, there is much interest in expanding the production capacity of target plant molecules. Traditionally, plant breeding, chemical synthesis, and microbial fermentation are considered the primary routes towards large scale production of natural products. Here, we explore the advances, challenges, and future of plant engineering as a complementary path. Although plants are an integral part of our food and agricultural systems and sustain an extensive array of chemical constituents, their complex genetics and physiology have prevented the optimal exploitation of plants as a production chassis. We highlight emerging engineering tools and scientific advances developed in recent years that have improved the prospects of using plants as a sustainable and scalable production platform. We also discuss technological limitations and overall economic outlook of plant-based production of natural products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sasilada Sirirungruang
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Feedstocks Division, Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, USA.,Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Center for Biomolecular Structure, Function and Application, Suranaree University of Technology, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
| | - Kasey Markel
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Feedstocks Division, Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, USA.,Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Patrick M Shih
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. .,Feedstocks Division, Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, USA.,Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Innovative Genomics Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
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12
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Isogai S, Tominaga M, Kondo A, Ishii J. Plant Flavonoid Production in Bacteria and Yeasts. FRONTIERS IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fceng.2022.880694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Flavonoids, a major group of secondary metabolites in plants, are promising for use as pharmaceuticals and food supplements due to their health-promoting biological activities. Industrial flavonoid production primarily depends on isolation from plants or organic synthesis, but neither is a cost-effective or sustainable process. In contrast, recombinant microorganisms have significant potential for the cost-effective, sustainable, environmentally friendly, and selective industrial production of flavonoids, making this an attractive alternative to plant-based production or chemical synthesis. Structurally and functionally diverse flavonoids are derived from flavanones such as naringenin, pinocembrin and eriodictyol, the major basic skeletons for flavonoids, by various modifications. The establishment of flavanone-producing microorganisms can therefore be used as a platform for producing various flavonoids. This review summarizes metabolic engineering and synthetic biology strategies for the microbial production of flavanones. In addition, we describe directed evolution strategies based on recently-developed high-throughput screening technologies for the further improvement of flavanone production. We also describe recent progress in the microbial production of structurally and functionally complicated flavonoids via the flavanone modifications. Strategies based on synthetic biology will aid more sophisticated and controlled microbial production of various flavonoids.
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13
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Wu S, Malaco Morotti AL, Wang S, Wang Y, Xu X, Chen J, Wang G, Tatsis EC. Convergent gene clusters underpin hyperforin biosynthesis in St John's wort. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 235:646-661. [PMID: 35377483 DOI: 10.1111/nph.18138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The meroterpenoid hyperforin is responsible for the antidepressant activity of St John's wort extracts, but the genes controlling its biosynthesis are unknown. Using genome mining and biochemical work, we characterize two biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) that encode the first three steps in the biosynthesis of hyperforin precursors. The findings of syntenic and phylogenetic analyses reveal the parallel assembly of the two BGCs. The syntenous BGC in Mesua ferrea indicates that the first cluster was assembled before the divergence of the Hypericaceae and Calophyllaceae families. The assembly of the second cluster is the result of a coalescence of genomic fragments after a major duplication event. The differences between the two BGCs - in terms of gene expression, response to methyl jasmonate, substrate specificity and subcellular localization of key enzymes - suggest that the presence of the two clusters could serve to generate separate pools of precursors. The parallel assembly of two BGCs with similar compositions in a single plant species is uncommon, and our work provides insights into how and when these gene clusters form. Our discovery helps to advance our understanding of the evolution of plant specialized metabolism and its genomic organization. Additionally, our results offer a foundation from which hyperforin biosynthesis can be more fully understood, and which can be used in future metabolic engineering applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Song Wu
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Ana Luisa Malaco Morotti
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
| | - Shanshan Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
| | - Ya Wang
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xiaoyan Xu
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
| | - Jianghua Chen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Mengla County, 666303, China
| | - Guodong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Evangelos C Tatsis
- National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Shanghai Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 300 Feng Lin Road, 200032, China
- CEPAMS - Centre of Excellence for Plant and Microbial Science, Shanghai, 200032, China
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14
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Maithani D, Sharma A, Gangola S, Choudhary P, Bhatt P. Insights into applications and strategies for discovery of microbial bioactive metabolites. Microbiol Res 2022; 261:127053. [DOI: 10.1016/j.micres.2022.127053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2021] [Revised: 03/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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15
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Lyu X, Lyu Y, Yu H, Chen W, Ye L, Yang R. Biotechnological advances for improving natural pigment production: a state-of-the-art review. BIORESOUR BIOPROCESS 2022; 9:8. [PMID: 38647847 PMCID: PMC10992905 DOI: 10.1186/s40643-022-00497-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2021] [Accepted: 01/17/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In current years, natural pigments are facing a fast-growing global market due to the increase of people's awareness of health and the discovery of novel pharmacological effects of various natural pigments, e.g., carotenoids, flavonoids, and curcuminoids. However, the traditional production approaches are source-dependent and generally subject to the low contents of target pigment compounds. In order to scale-up industrial production, many efforts have been devoted to increasing pigment production from natural producers, via development of both in vitro plant cell/tissue culture systems, as well as optimization of microbial cultivation approaches. Moreover, synthetic biology has opened the door for heterologous biosynthesis of pigments via design and re-construction of novel biological modules as well as biological systems in bio-platforms. In this review, the innovative methods and strategies for optimization and engineering of both native and heterologous producers of natural pigments are comprehensively summarized. Current progress in the production of several representative high-value natural pigments is also presented; and the remaining challenges and future perspectives are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaomei Lyu
- School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People's Republic of China
| | - Yan Lyu
- School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People's Republic of China
| | - Hongwei Yu
- Institute of Bioengineering, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, People's Republic of China
| | - WeiNing Chen
- School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, 637459, Singapore
| | - Lidan Ye
- Institute of Bioengineering, College of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, People's Republic of China.
| | - Ruijin Yang
- School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, People's Republic of China.
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16
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Chigumba DN, Mydy LS, de Waal F, Li W, Shafiq K, Wotring JW, Mohamed OG, Mladenovic T, Tripathi A, Sexton JZ, Kautsar S, Medema MH, Kersten RD. Discovery and biosynthesis of cyclic plant peptides via autocatalytic cyclases. Nat Chem Biol 2022; 18:18-28. [PMID: 34811516 DOI: 10.1038/s41589-021-00892-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Many bioactive plant cyclic peptides form side-chain-derived macrocycles. Lyciumins, cyclic plant peptides with tryptophan macrocyclizations, are ribosomal peptides (RiPPs) originating from repetitive core peptide motifs in precursor peptides with plant-specific BURP (BNM2, USP, RD22 and PG1beta) domains, but the biosynthetic mechanism for their formation has remained unknown. Here, we characterize precursor-peptide BURP domains as copper-dependent autocatalytic peptide cyclases and use a combination of tandem mass spectrometry-based metabolomics and plant genomics to systematically discover five BURP-domain-derived plant RiPP classes, with mono- and bicyclic structures formed via tryptophans and tyrosines, from botanical collections. As BURP-domain cyclases are scaffold-generating enzymes in plant specialized metabolism that are physically connected to their substrates in the same polypeptide, we introduce a bioinformatic method to mine plant genomes for precursor-peptide-encoding genes by detection of repetitive substrate domains and known core peptide features. Our study sets the stage for chemical, biosynthetic and biological exploration of plant RiPP natural products from BURP-domain cyclases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Desnor N Chigumba
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Lisa S Mydy
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Floris de Waal
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Wenjie Li
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Khadija Shafiq
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Jesse W Wotring
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Osama G Mohamed
- Natural Products Discovery Core, Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.,Pharmacognosy Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | - Tim Mladenovic
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Ashootosh Tripathi
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.,Natural Products Discovery Core, Life Sciences Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Jonathan Z Sexton
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.,Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Satria Kautsar
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Marnix H Medema
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, Netherlands.
| | - Roland D Kersten
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
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17
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Papon N, Copp BR, Courdavault V. Marine drugs: Biology, pipelines, current and future prospects for production. Biotechnol Adv 2021; 54:107871. [PMID: 34801661 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2021.107871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
The marine environment is a huge reservoir of biodiversity and represents an excellent source of chemical compounds, some of which have large economical values. In the urgent quest for new pharmaceuticals, marine-based drug discovery has progressed significantly over the past several decades and we now benefit from a series of approved marine natural products (MNPs) to treat cancer and pain while an additional collection of promising leads are in clinical trials. However, the discovery and supply of MNPs has always been challenging given their low bioavailability and structural complexity. Their manufacture for pre-clinical and clinical development but also commercialization mainly relies upon marine source extraction and chemical synthesis, which are associated with high costs, unsustainability and severe environmental problems. In this review, we discuss how metabolic engineering now raises reasonable expectations for the implementation of microbial cell factories, which may provide a sustainable approach for MNP-based drug supply in the near future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Papon
- Univ. Angers, Univ. Brest, GEIHP, SFR ICAT, F-49000 Angers, France.
| | - Brent R Copp
- School of Chemical Sciences, The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland 1142, New Zealand.
| | - Vincent Courdavault
- Université de Tours, EA2106 Biomolécules et Biotechnologies Végétales, Tours, France.
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18
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Caesar LK, Montaser R, Keller NP, Kelleher NL. Metabolomics and genomics in natural products research: complementary tools for targeting new chemical entities. Nat Prod Rep 2021; 38:2041-2065. [PMID: 34787623 PMCID: PMC8691422 DOI: 10.1039/d1np00036e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Covering: 2010 to 2021Organisms in nature have evolved into proficient synthetic chemists, utilizing specialized enzymatic machinery to biosynthesize an inspiring diversity of secondary metabolites. Often serving to boost competitive advantage for their producers, these secondary metabolites have widespread human impacts as antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, and antifungal drugs. The natural products discovery field has begun a shift away from traditional activity-guided approaches and is beginning to take advantage of increasingly available metabolomics and genomics datasets to explore undiscovered chemical space. Major strides have been made and now enable -omics-informed prioritization of chemical structures for discovery, including the prospect of confidently linking metabolites to their biosynthetic pathways. Over the last decade, more integrated strategies now provide researchers with pipelines for simultaneous identification of expressed secondary metabolites and their biosynthetic machinery. However, continuous collaboration by the natural products community will be required to optimize strategies for effective evaluation of natural product biosynthetic gene clusters to accelerate discovery efforts. Here, we provide an evaluative guide to scientific literature as it relates to studying natural product biosynthesis using genomics, metabolomics, and their integrated datasets. Particular emphasis is placed on the unique insights that can be gained from large-scale integrated strategies, and we provide source organism-specific considerations to evaluate the gaps in our current knowledge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay K Caesar
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
| | - Rana Montaser
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
| | - Nancy P Keller
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology and Bacteriology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Neil L Kelleher
- Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
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19
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Zhu X, Liu X, Liu T, Wang Y, Ahmed N, Li Z, Jiang H. Synthetic biology of plant natural products: From pathway elucidation to engineered biosynthesis in plant cells. PLANT COMMUNICATIONS 2021; 2:100229. [PMID: 34746761 PMCID: PMC8553972 DOI: 10.1016/j.xplc.2021.100229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2020] [Revised: 04/11/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Plant natural products (PNPs) are the main sources of drugs, food additives, and new biofuels and have become a hotspot in synthetic biology. In the past two decades, the engineered biosynthesis of many PNPs has been achieved through the construction of microbial cell factories. Alongside the rapid development of plant physiology, genetics, and plant genetic modification techniques, hosts have now expanded from single-celled microbes to complex plant systems. Plant synthetic biology is an emerging field that combines engineering principles with plant biology. In this review, we introduce recent advances in the biosynthetic pathway elucidation of PNPs and summarize the progress of engineered PNP biosynthesis in plant cells. Furthermore, a future vision of plant synthetic biology is proposed. Although we are still a long way from overcoming all the bottlenecks in plant synthetic biology, the ascent of this field is expected to provide a huge opportunity for future agriculture and industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxi Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
| | - Xiaonan Liu
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
| | - Tian Liu
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- Life Science and Technology College, Guangxi University, Nanning, Guangxi 530004, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
| | - Yina Wang
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
- Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming, Yunnan 650201, China
| | - Nida Ahmed
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
| | - Zhichao Li
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
| | - Huifeng Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin 300308, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin 300308, China
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20
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Medema MH, de Rond T, Moore BS. Mining genomes to illuminate the specialized chemistry of life. Nat Rev Genet 2021; 22:553-571. [PMID: 34083778 PMCID: PMC8364890 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-021-00363-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
All organisms produce specialized organic molecules, ranging from small volatile chemicals to large gene-encoded peptides, that have evolved to provide them with diverse cellular and ecological functions. As natural products, they are broadly applied in medicine, agriculture and nutrition. The rapid accumulation of genomic information has revealed that the metabolic capacity of virtually all organisms is vastly underappreciated. Pioneered mainly in bacteria and fungi, genome mining technologies are accelerating metabolite discovery. Recent efforts are now being expanded to all life forms, including protists, plants and animals, and new integrative omics technologies are enabling the increasingly effective mining of this molecular diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marnix H Medema
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Tristan de Rond
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Bradley S Moore
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
- Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
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21
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Polturak G, Osbourn A. The emerging role of biosynthetic gene clusters in plant defense and plant interactions. PLoS Pathog 2021; 17:e1009698. [PMID: 34214143 PMCID: PMC8253395 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1009698] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Guy Polturak
- Department of Biochemistry and Metabolism, John Innes Centre, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Biochemistry and Metabolism, John Innes Centre, Norwich, United Kingdom
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22
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Liu Y, Wang B, Shu S, Li Z, Song C, Liu D, Niu Y, Liu J, Zhang J, Liu H, Hu Z, Huang B, Liu X, Liu W, Jiang L, Alami MM, Zhou Y, Ma Y, He X, Yang Y, Zhang T, Hu H, Barker MS, Chen S, Wang X, Nie J. Analysis of the Coptis chinensis genome reveals the diversification of protoberberine-type alkaloids. Nat Commun 2021; 12:3276. [PMID: 34078898 PMCID: PMC8172641 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23611-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Chinese goldthread (Coptis chinensis Franch.), a member of the Ranunculales, represents an important early-diverging eudicot lineage with diverse medicinal applications. Here, we present a high-quality chromosome-scale genome assembly and annotation of C. chinensis. Phylogenetic and comparative genomic analyses reveal the phylogenetic placement of this species and identify a single round of ancient whole-genome duplication (WGD) shared by the Ranunculaceae. We characterize genes involved in the biosynthesis of protoberberine-type alkaloids in C. chinensis. In particular, local genomic tandem duplications contribute to member amplification of a Ranunculales clade-specific gene family of the cytochrome P450 (CYP) 719. The functional versatility of a key CYP719 gene that encodes the (S)-canadine synthase enzyme involved in the berberine biosynthesis pathway may play critical roles in the diversification of other berberine-related alkaloids in C. chinensis. Our study provides insights into the genomic landscape of early-diverging eudicots and provides a valuable model genome for genetic and applied studies of Ranunculales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Liu
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China.
| | - Bo Wang
- Hubei Institute for Drug Control, Wuhan, China
| | - Shaohua Shu
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zheng Li
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Chi Song
- Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, China
| | - Di Liu
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | - Yan Niu
- Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, China
| | - Jinxin Liu
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Jingjing Zhang
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | - Heping Liu
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Zhigang Hu
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | - Bisheng Huang
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiuyu Liu
- National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Liu
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | - Liping Jiang
- College of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Chinese Medicine, Wuhan, China
| | | | - Yuxin Zhou
- Hubei Institute for Drug Control, Wuhan, China
| | - Yutao Ma
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiangxiang He
- Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, China
| | - Yicheng Yang
- Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, China
| | - Tianyuan Zhang
- Wuhan Benagen Tech Solutions Company Limited, Wuhan, China
| | - Hui Hu
- Jing Brand Chizhengtang Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Huangshi, China
| | - Michael S Barker
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Shilin Chen
- Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Xuekui Wang
- College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
| | - Jing Nie
- Hubei Institute for Drug Control, Wuhan, China.
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23
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Courdavault V, O'Connor SE, Jensen MK, Papon N. Metabolic engineering for plant natural products biosynthesis: new procedures, concrete achievements and remaining limits. Nat Prod Rep 2021; 38:2145-2153. [PMID: 33969366 DOI: 10.1039/d0np00092b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Microorganisms and plants represent major sources of natural compounds with a plethora of bioactive properties. Among these, plant natural products (PNPs) remain indispensable to human health. With few exceptions, PNP-based pharmaceuticals come from plant specialized metabolisms and display a structure far too complex for a profitable production by total chemical synthesis. Accordingly, their industrial processes of supply are still mostly based on the extraction of final products or precursors directly from plant materials. This implies that particular contexts (e.g. pandemics, climate changes) and natural resource overexploitation are main drivers for the high production cost and recurrent supply shortages. Recently, biotechnological manufacturing alternatives gave rise to a multitude of benchmark studies implementing the production of important PNPs in various heterologous hosts. Here, we spotlight unprecedented advancements in the field of metabolic engineering dedicated to the heterologous production of a prominent series of PNPs that were achieved during the year 2020. We also discuss how the knowledge accumulated in recent years could pave the way for a broader manufacturing palette of natural products from a wide range of natural resources.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah E O'Connor
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, 07745 Jena, Germany
| | - Michael K Jensen
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Nicolas Papon
- Groupe d'Etude des Interactions Hôte-Pathogène, GEIHP, EA3142, UNIV Angers, SFR 4208 ICAT, Angers, France
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24
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Buitimea-Cantúa GV, Marsch-Martinez N, Ríos-Chavez P, Méndez-Bravo A, Molina-Torres J. Global gene expression analyses of the alkamide-producing plant Heliopsis longipes supports a polyketide synthase-mediated biosynthesis pathway. PeerJ 2020; 8:e10074. [PMID: 33033663 PMCID: PMC7521342 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.10074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alkamides are plant-specific bioactive molecules. They are low molecular weight N-substituted α-unsaturated acyl amides that display biological explicit activities in different organisms from bacteria, fungi, insects to mammals and plants. The acyl chain has been proposed to be biosynthesized from a fatty acid; however, this has not been demonstrated yet. Heliopsis longipes (Asteraceae) accumulates in root a C10 alkamide called affinin in its roots, but not in leaves. The closely related species Heliopsis annua does not produce alkamides. To elucidate the biosynthetic pathway of the alkamides acyl chain, a comparative global gene expression analysis contrasting roots and leaves of both species was performed. METHODS Transcriptomics analysis allowed to identify genes highly expressed in H. longipes roots, but not in tissues and species that do not accumulate alkamides. The first domain searched was the Ketosynthase (KS) domain. The phylogenetic analysis using sequences of the KS domain of FAS and PKS from different organisms, revealed that KS domains of the differentially expressed transcripts in H. longipes roots and the KS domain found in transcripts of Echinacea purpurea, another alkamides producer species, were grouped together with a high bootstrap value of 100%, sharing great similarity. Among the annotated transcripts, we found some coding for the enzymatic domains KS, AT, ACP, DH, OR and TE, which presented higher expression in H. longipes roots than in leaves. The expression level of these genes was further evaluated by qRT-PCR. All unigenes tested showed higher expression in H. longipes roots than in any the other samples. Based on this and considering that the acyl chain of affinin presents unsaturated bonds at even C numbers, we propose a new putative biosynthesis pathway mediated by a four modules polyketide synthase (PKS). RESULTS The global gene expression analysis led to the selection of a set of candidate genes involved in the biosynthesis of the acyl chain of affinin, suggesting that it may be performed by a non-iterative, partially reductive, four module type I PKS complex (PKS alk) previously thought to be absent from the plant kingdom.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Nayelli Marsch-Martinez
- Department of Biotecnologia y Bioquímica, CINVESTAV Unidad Irapuato, Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
| | - Patricia Ríos-Chavez
- Instituto de Investigaciones Químico-Biológicas, Universidad de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico
| | - Alfonso Méndez-Bravo
- Laboratorio Nacional de Análisis y Síntesis Ecológica, CONACYT – Escuela Nacional de Estudios Superiores, Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico
| | - Jorge Molina-Torres
- Department of Biotecnologia y Bioquímica, CINVESTAV Unidad Irapuato, Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico
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25
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Wong NK, Zhong S, Li W, Zhou F, Deng Z, Zhou Y. Selective profiling of steviol-catalyzing UDP-glycosyltransferases with a metabolically synthesized probe. Chem Commun (Camb) 2020; 56:12387-12390. [PMID: 32931537 DOI: 10.1039/d0cc04948d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Selective profiling of steviol-catalyzing UDP-glycosyltransferases in plants was accomplished with a probe metabolically synthesized from two substrate-derived components comprising an alkynylated sugar receptor (steviol) module and a diazirine-modified sugar donor (UDP-glucose) module, thereby illustrating a facile approach for harnessing biosynthetic enzymes of natural glycosides in plants for synthetic biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nai-Kei Wong
- School of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Changshu Institute of Technology, Changshu 215500, China.
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26
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Liu Z, Suarez Duran HG, Harnvanichvech Y, Stephenson MJ, Schranz ME, Nelson D, Medema MH, Osbourn A. Drivers of metabolic diversification: how dynamic genomic neighbourhoods generate new biosynthetic pathways in the Brassicaceae. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2020; 227:1109-1123. [PMID: 31769874 PMCID: PMC7383575 DOI: 10.1111/nph.16338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2019] [Accepted: 11/17/2019] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Plants produce an array of specialized metabolites with important ecological functions. The mechanisms underpinning the evolution of new biosynthetic pathways are not well-understood. Here, we exploit available genome sequence resources to investigate triterpene biosynthesis across the Brassicaceae. Oxidosqualene cyclases (OSCs) catalyze the first committed step in triterpene biosynthesis. Systematic analysis of 13 sequenced Brassicaceae genomes was performed to identify all OSC genes. The genome neighbourhoods (GNs) around a total of 163 OSC genes were investigated to identify Pfam domains significantly enriched in these regions. All-vs-all comparisons of OSC neighbourhoods and phylogenomic analysis were used to investigate the sequence similarity and evolutionary relationships of the numerous candidate triterpene biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) observed. Functional analysis of three representative BGCs was carried out and their triterpene pathway products were elucidated. Our results indicate that plant genomes are remarkably plastic, and that dynamic GNs generate new biosynthetic pathways in different Brassicaceae lineages by shuffling the genes encoding a core palette of triterpene-diversifying enzymes, presumably in response to strong environmental selection pressure. These results illuminate a genomic basis for diversification of plant-specialized metabolism through natural combinatorics of enzyme families, which can be mimicked using synthetic biology to engineer diverse bioactive molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenhua Liu
- Department of Metabolic BiologyJohn Innes CentreNorwich Research Park, Colney LaneNorwichNR4 7UHUK
| | | | - Yosapol Harnvanichvech
- Bioinformatics GroupWageningen UniversityDroevendaalsesteeg 16708PBWageningenthe Netherlands
| | - Michael J. Stephenson
- Department of Metabolic BiologyJohn Innes CentreNorwich Research Park, Colney LaneNorwichNR4 7UHUK
| | - M. Eric Schranz
- Biosystematics GroupWageningen UniversityDroevendaalsesteeg 16708PBWageningenthe Netherlands
| | - David Nelson
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology and BiochemistryUniversity of Tennessee858 Madison Avenue, Suite G01MemphisTN38163USA
| | - Marnix H. Medema
- Bioinformatics GroupWageningen UniversityDroevendaalsesteeg 16708PBWageningenthe Netherlands
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Metabolic BiologyJohn Innes CentreNorwich Research Park, Colney LaneNorwichNR4 7UHUK
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27
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Microbial Chassis Development for Natural Product Biosynthesis. Trends Biotechnol 2020; 38:779-796. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2020.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2019] [Revised: 12/18/2019] [Accepted: 01/03/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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28
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Gao L, Su C, Du X, Wang R, Chen S, Zhou Y, Liu C, Liu X, Tian R, Zhang L, Xie K, Chen S, Guo Q, Guo L, Hano Y, Shimazaki M, Minami A, Oikawa H, Huang N, Houk KN, Huang L, Dai J, Lei X. FAD-dependent enzyme-catalysed intermolecular [4+2] cycloaddition in natural product biosynthesis. Nat Chem 2020; 12:620-628. [DOI: 10.1038/s41557-020-0467-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2019] [Accepted: 04/14/2020] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
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29
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Tohge T, Fernie AR. Co-Regulation of Clustered and Neo-Functionalized Genes in Plant-Specialized Metabolism. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2020; 9:E622. [PMID: 32414181 PMCID: PMC7285293 DOI: 10.3390/plants9050622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2020] [Revised: 05/03/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Current findings of neighboring genes involved in plant specialized metabolism provide the genomic signatures of metabolic evolution. Two such genomic features, namely, (i) metabolic gene cluster and (ii) neo-functionalization of tandem gene duplications, represent key factors corresponding to the creation of metabolic diversity of plant specialized metabolism. So far, several terpenoid and alkaloid biosynthetic genes have been characterized with gene clusters in some plants. On the other hand, some modification genes involved in flavonoid and glucosinolate biosynthesis were found to arise via gene neo-functionalization. Although the occurrence of both types of metabolic evolution are different, the neighboring genes are generally regulated by the same or related regulation factors. Therefore, the translation-based approaches associated with genomics, and transcriptomics are able to be employed for functional genomics focusing on plant secondary metabolism. Here, we present a survey of the current understanding of neighboring genes involved in plant secondary metabolism. Additionally, a genomic overview of neighboring genes of four model plants and transcriptional co-expression network neighboring genes to detect metabolic gene clusters in Arabidopsis is provided. Finally, the insights functional genomics have provided concerning the evolution and mechanistic regulation of both the formation and operation of metabolic neighboring clusters is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takayuki Tohge
- Graduate School of Biological Science, Nara Institute of Science and Technology (NAIST), Ikoma 630-0192, Japan
| | - Alisdair R. Fernie
- Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, 14476 Potsdam-Golm, Germany
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30
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Blin K, Kim HU, Medema MH, Weber T. Recent development of antiSMASH and other computational approaches to mine secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters. Brief Bioinform 2020; 20:1103-1113. [PMID: 29112695 PMCID: PMC6781578 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbx146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2017] [Revised: 10/10/2017] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Many drugs are derived from small molecules produced by microorganisms and plants, so-called natural products. Natural products have diverse chemical structures, but the biosynthetic pathways producing those compounds are often organized as biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) and follow a highly conserved biosynthetic logic. This allows for the identification of core biosynthetic enzymes using genome mining strategies that are based on the sequence similarity of the involved enzymes/genes. However, mining for a variety of BGCs quickly approaches a complexity level where manual analyses are no longer possible and require the use of automated genome mining pipelines, such as the antiSMASH software. In this review, we discuss the principles underlying the predictions of antiSMASH and other tools and provide practical advice for their application. Furthermore, we discuss important caveats such as rule-based BGC detection, sequence and annotation quality and cluster boundary prediction, which all have to be considered while planning for, performing and analyzing the results of genome mining studies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tilmann Weber
- Corresponding author: Tilmann Weber, The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark. Tel.: +45 24 89 61 32; E-mail:
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31
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Li Q, Ramasamy S, Singh P, Hagel JM, Dunemann SM, Chen X, Chen R, Yu L, Tucker JE, Facchini PJ, Yeaman S. Gene clustering and copy number variation in alkaloid metabolic pathways of opium poppy. Nat Commun 2020; 11:1190. [PMID: 32132540 PMCID: PMC7055283 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15040-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2018] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Genes in plant secondary metabolic pathways enable biosynthesis of a range of medically and industrially important compounds, and are often clustered on chromosomes. Here, we study genomic clustering in the benzylisoquinoline alkaloid (BIA) pathway in opium poppy (Papaver somniferum), exploring relationships between gene expression, copy number variation, and metabolite production. We use Hi-C to improve the existing draft genome assembly, yielding chromosome-scale scaffolds that include 35 previously unanchored BIA genes. We find that co-expression of BIA genes increases within clusters and identify candidates with unknown function based on clustering and covariation in expression and alkaloid production. Copy number variation in critical BIA genes correlates with stark differences in alkaloid production, linking noscapine production with an 11-gene deletion, and increased thebaine/decreased morphine production with deletion of a T6ODM cluster. Our results show that the opium poppy genome is still dynamically evolving in ways that contribute to medically and industrially important phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiushi Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
- Institute of Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Sukanya Ramasamy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Pooja Singh
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Jillian M Hagel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
- Willow Biosciences Inc., 3655 36 Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta, T2L 1Y8, Canada
| | - Sonja M Dunemann
- Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Xue Chen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
- Willow Biosciences Inc., 3655 36 Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta, T2L 1Y8, Canada
| | - Rongji Chen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Lisa Yu
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Joseph E Tucker
- Willow Biosciences Inc., 3655 36 Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta, T2L 1Y8, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Peter J Facchini
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
- Willow Biosciences Inc., 3655 36 Street N.W., Calgary, Alberta, T2L 1Y8, Canada
| | - Sam Yeaman
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada.
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32
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Ganley JG, Derbyshire ER. Linking Genes to Molecules in Eukaryotic Sources: An Endeavor to Expand Our Biosynthetic Repertoire. Molecules 2020; 25:E625. [PMID: 32023950 PMCID: PMC7036892 DOI: 10.3390/molecules25030625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2020] [Revised: 01/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/30/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The discovery of natural products continues to interest chemists and biologists for their utility in medicine as well as facilitating our understanding of signaling, pathogenesis, and evolution. Despite an attenuation in the discovery rate of new molecules, the current genomics and transcriptomics revolution has illuminated the untapped biosynthetic potential of many diverse organisms. Today, natural product discovery can be driven by biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) analysis, which is capable of predicting enzymes that catalyze novel reactions and organisms that synthesize new chemical structures. This approach has been particularly effective in mining bacterial and fungal genomes where it has facilitated the discovery of new molecules, increased the understanding of metabolite assembly, and in some instances uncovered enzymes with intriguing synthetic utility. While relatively less is known about the biosynthetic potential of non-fungal eukaryotes, there is compelling evidence to suggest many encode biosynthetic enzymes that produce molecules with unique bioactivities. In this review, we highlight how the advances in genomics and transcriptomics have aided natural product discovery in sources from eukaryotic lineages. We summarize work that has successfully connected genes to previously identified molecules and how advancing these techniques can lead to genetics-guided discovery of novel chemical structures and reactions distributed throughout the tree of life. Ultimately, we discuss the advantage of increasing the known biosynthetic space to ease access to complex natural and non-natural small molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack G Ganley
- Department of Chemistry, Duke University, 124 Science Drive, Durham, NC 27708-0346, USA
| | - Emily R Derbyshire
- Department of Chemistry, Duke University, 124 Science Drive, Durham, NC 27708-0346, USA
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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33
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Selective isolation of large segments from individual microbial genomes and environmental DNA samples using transformation-associated recombination cloning in yeast. Nat Protoc 2020; 15:734-749. [PMID: 32005981 DOI: 10.1038/s41596-019-0280-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Accepted: 12/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Here, we describe an extension of our original transformation-associated recombination (TAR) cloning protocol, enabling selective isolation of DNA segments from microbial genomes. The technique is based on the previously described TAR cloning procedure developed for isolation of a desirable region from mammalian genomes that are enriched in autonomously replicating sequence (ARS)-like sequences, elements that function as the origin of replication in yeast. Such sequences are not common in microbial genomes. In this Protocol Extension, an ARS is inserted into the TAR vector along with a counter-selectable marker, allowing for selection of cloning events against vector circularization. Pre-treatment of microbial DNA with CRISPR-Cas9 to generate double-stranded breaks near the targeted sequences greatly increases the yield of region-positive colonies. In comparison to other available methods, this Protocol Extension allows selective isolation of any region from microbial genomes as well as from environmental DNA samples. The entire procedure can be completed in 10 d.
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34
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Wang M, Gao L, Li G, Zhou C, Jian J, Xing Z, Wang Y, Zhang W, Song Z, Hu Y, Yang J. Interspecific Variation in the Unsaturation Level of Seed Oils Were Associated With the Expression Pattern Shifts of Duplicated Desaturase Genes and the Potential Role of Other Regulatory Genes. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2020; 11:616338. [PMID: 33519875 PMCID: PMC7838364 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.616338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/22/2020] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Seed oils are of great economic importance both for human consumption and industrial applications. The nutritional quality and industrial value of seed oils are mostly determined by their fatty acid profiles, especially the relative proportions of unsaturated fatty acids. Tree peony seed oils have recently been recognized as novel edible oils enriched in α-linolenic acid (ALA). However, congeneric species, such as Paeonia ostii and P. ludlowii, showed marked variation in the relative proportions of different unsaturated fatty acids. By comparing the dynamics of fatty acid accumulation and the time-course gene expression patterns between P. ostii and P. ludlowii, we identified genes that were differentially expressed between two species in developing seeds, and showed congruent patterns of variation between expression levels and phenotypes. In addition to the well-known desaturase and acyltransferase genes associated with fatty acid desaturation, among them were some genes that were conservatively co-expressed with the desaturation pathway genes across phylogenetically distant ALA-rich species, including Camelina sativa and Perilla frutescens. Go enrichment analysis revealed that these genes were mainly involved in transcriptional regulation, protein post-translational modification and hormone biosynthesis and response, suggesting that the fatty acid synthesis and desaturation pathway might be subject to multiple levels of regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengli Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Lexuan Gao
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Gengyun Li
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chengchuan Zhou
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jinjing Jian
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhen Xing
- Tibet Agricultural and Animal Husbandry University, Linzhi, China
| | - Yuguo Wang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenju Zhang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhiping Song
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yonghong Hu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Plant Functional Genomics and Resources, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Yonghong Hu,
| | - Ji Yang
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, Institute of Eco-Chongming (IEC), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Plant Functional Genomics and Resources, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Yonghong Hu,
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35
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Madhavan A, Arun KB, Sindhu R, Binod P, Kim SH, Pandey A. Tailoring of microbes for the production of high value plant-derived compounds: From pathway engineering to fermentative production. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-PROTEINS AND PROTEOMICS 2019; 1867:140262. [PMID: 31404685 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2019.140262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2019] [Revised: 08/03/2019] [Accepted: 08/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Plant natural products have been an attracting platform for the isolation of various active drugs and other bioactives. However large-scale extraction of these compounds is affected by the difficulty in mass cultivation of these plants and absence of strategies for successful extraction. Even though, synthesis by chemical method is an alternative method; it is less efficient as their chemical structure is highly complex which involve enantio-selectivity. Thus an alternate bio-system for heterologous production of plant natural products using microbes has emerged. Advent of various omics, synthetic and metabolic engineering strategies revolutionised the field of heterologous plant metabolite production. In this context, various engineering methods taken to synthesise plant natural products are described with an additional focus to fermentation strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aravind Madhavan
- Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Trivandrum 695 014, India
| | | | - Raveendran Sindhu
- Microbial Processes and Technology Division, CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR- NIIST), Trivandrum 695 019, India
| | - Parameswaran Binod
- Microbial Processes and Technology Division, CSIR-National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR- NIIST), Trivandrum 695 019, India
| | - Sang Hyoun Kim
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Ashok Pandey
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea; Center for Innovation and Translational Research, CSIR- Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (CSIR-IITR), Lucknow 226 001, India.
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Kautsar SA, Suarez Duran HG, Blin K, Osbourn A, Medema MH. plantiSMASH: automated identification, annotation and expression analysis of plant biosynthetic gene clusters. Nucleic Acids Res 2019; 45:W55-W63. [PMID: 28453650 PMCID: PMC5570173 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkx305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 162] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2017] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Plant specialized metabolites are chemically highly diverse, play key roles in host-microbe interactions, have important nutritional value in crops and are frequently applied as medicines. It has recently become clear that plant biosynthetic pathway-encoding genes are sometimes densely clustered in specific genomic loci: biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). Here, we introduce plantiSMASH, a versatile online analysis platform that automates the identification of candidate plant BGCs. Moreover, it allows integration of transcriptomic data to prioritize candidate BGCs based on the coexpression patterns of predicted biosynthetic enzyme-coding genes, and facilitates comparative genomic analysis to study the evolutionary conservation of each cluster. Applied on 48 high-quality plant genomes, plantiSMASH identifies a rich diversity of candidate plant BGCs. These results will guide further experimental exploration of the nature and dynamics of gene clustering in plant metabolism. Moreover, spurred by the continuing decrease in costs of plant genome sequencing, they will allow genome mining technologies to be applied to plant natural product discovery. The plantiSMASH web server, precalculated results and source code are freely available from http://plantismash.secondarymetabolites.org.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satria A Kautsar
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Teknik Informatika, Universitas Lampung, Jln. Sumantri Brojonegoro No. 01, Lampung 35141, Indonesia
| | | | - Kai Blin
- The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Metabolic Biology, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich NR4 7UH, UK
| | - Marnix H Medema
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands
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Production of the cyanogenic glycoside dhurrin in yeast. Metab Eng Commun 2019; 9:e00092. [PMID: 31110942 PMCID: PMC6512747 DOI: 10.1016/j.mec.2019.e00092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2019] [Revised: 04/27/2019] [Accepted: 04/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Cyanogenic glycosides are defense compounds found in a wide range of plant species, including many crops. We demonstrate that the cyanogenic glucoside dhurrin, naturally found in sorghum, can be produced at high titers in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, constituting the first report of cyanogenic glycoside production in a microbe. Genetic modifications to increase the supply of the dhurrin precursor tyrosine enabled dhurrin production in excess of 80 mg/L. The dhurrin-producing yeast strain was used as a chassis to investigate previously uncharacterized enzymes identified close to the biosynthetic gene cluster containing the dhurrin pathway enzymes. This work shows the potential of heterologous expression in yeast to facilitate investigations of plant cyanogenic glycoside pathways. First production of cyanogenic glycosides in a microbe. Strategies for optimizing production of cyanogenic glycosides. Platform for rapidly characterizing the enzymes which constitute cyanogenic glycoside biosynthetic pathways.
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38
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Witjes L, Kooke R, van der Hooft JJJ, de Vos RCH, Keurentjes JJB, Medema MH, Nijveen H. A genetical metabolomics approach for bioprospecting plant biosynthetic gene clusters. BMC Res Notes 2019; 12:194. [PMID: 30940198 PMCID: PMC6444639 DOI: 10.1186/s13104-019-4222-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2018] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Plants produce a plethora of specialized metabolites to defend themselves against pathogens and insects, to attract pollinators and to communicate with other organisms. Many of these are also applied in the clinic and in agriculture. Genes encoding the enzymes that drive the biosynthesis of these metabolites are sometimes physically grouped on the chromosome, in regions called biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs). Several algorithms have been developed to identify plant BGCs, but a large percentage of predicted gene clusters upon further inspection do not show coexpression or do not encode a single functional biosynthetic pathway. Hence, further prioritization is needed. RESULTS Here, we introduce a strategy to systematically evaluate potential functions of predicted BGCs by superimposing their locations on metabolite quantitative trait loci (mQTLs). We show the feasibility of such an approach by integrating automated BGC prediction with mQTL datasets originating from a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population of Oryza sativa and a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of Arabidopsis thaliana. In these data, we identified several links for which the enzyme content of the BGCs matches well with the chemical features observed in the metabolite structure, suggesting that this method can effectively guide bioprospecting of plant BGCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lotte Witjes
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rik Kooke
- Laboratory of Genetics, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Centre for BioSystems Genomics, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Ric C H de Vos
- Business Unit Bioscience, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Centre for BioSystems Genomics, Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Netherlands Metabolomics Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Joost J B Keurentjes
- Laboratory of Genetics, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Centre for BioSystems Genomics, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Marnix H Medema
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
| | - Harm Nijveen
- Bioinformatics Group, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands.
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39
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Fu T, Houël E, Amusant N, Touboul D, Genta-Jouve G, Della-Negra S, Fisher GL, Brunelle A, Duplais C. Biosynthetic investigation of γ-lactones in Sextonia rubra wood using in situ TOF-SIMS MS/MS imaging to localize and characterize biosynthetic intermediates. Sci Rep 2019; 9:1928. [PMID: 30760744 PMCID: PMC6374367 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37577-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2018] [Accepted: 12/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular analysis by parallel tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) imaging contributes to the in situ characterization of biosynthetic intermediates which is crucial for deciphering the metabolic pathways in living organisms. We report the first use of TOF-SIMS MS/MS imaging for the cellular localization and characterization of biosynthetic intermediates of bioactive γ-lactones rubrynolide and rubrenolide in the Amazonian tree Sextonia rubra (Lauraceae). Five γ-lactones, including previously reported rubrynolide and rubrenolide, were isolated using a conventional approach and their structural characterization and localization at a lateral resolution of ~400 nm was later achieved using TOF-SIMS MS/MS imaging analysis. 2D/3D MS imaging at subcellular level reveals that putative biosynthetic γ-lactones intermediates are localized in the same cell types (ray parenchyma cells and oil cells) as rubrynolide and rubrenolide. Consequently, a revised metabolic pathway of rubrynolide was proposed, which involves the reaction between 2-hydroxysuccinic acid and 3-oxotetradecanoic acid, contrary to previous studies suggesting a single polyketide precursor. Our results provide insights into plant metabolite production in wood tissues and, overall, demonstrate that combining high spatial resolution TOF-SIMS imaging and MS/MS structural characterization offers new opportunities for studying molecular and cellular biochemistry in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Fu
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS UPR 2301, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198, Gif-sur-Yvette, France.,Institut de Physique Nucléaire, UMR8608, IN2P3-CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91406, Orsay, France
| | - Emeline Houël
- CNRS UMR8172 EcoFoG, AgroParisTech, CIRAD, INRA, Université des Antilles, Université de Guyane, 97300, Cayenne, France
| | - Nadine Amusant
- CIRAD UMR93 EcoFoG, AgroParisTech, CNRS, INRA, Université des Antilles, Université de Guyane, 97310, Kourou, France
| | - David Touboul
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS UPR 2301, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Grégory Genta-Jouve
- Université Paris Descartes, UMR CNRS 8638 COMETE, 4 avenue de l'observatoire, 75006, Paris, France
| | - Serge Della-Negra
- Institut de Physique Nucléaire, UMR8608, IN2P3-CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91406, Orsay, France
| | | | - Alain Brunelle
- Institut de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, CNRS UPR 2301, Université Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, Avenue de la Terrasse, 91198, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Christophe Duplais
- CNRS UMR8172 EcoFoG, AgroParisTech, CIRAD, INRA, Université des Antilles, Université de Guyane, 97300, Cayenne, France.
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40
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Ng SB, Kanagasundaram Y, Fan H, Arumugam P, Eisenhaber B, Eisenhaber F. The 160K Natural Organism Library, a unique resource for natural products research. Nat Biotechnol 2018; 36:570-573. [PMID: 29979661 DOI: 10.1038/nbt.4187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Siew Bee Ng
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Yoganathan Kanagasundaram
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Hao Fan
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Prakash Arumugam
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Birgit Eisenhaber
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
| | - Frank Eisenhaber
- Bioinformatics Institute, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Republic of Singapore.,School of Computer Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore, Republic of Singapore
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41
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Basso V, De Freitas Pereira M, Maillard F, Mallerman J, Mangeot-Peter L, Zhang F, Bonnot C. Facing global change: the millennium challenge for plant scientists: 41 st New Phytologist Symposium 'Plant sciences for the future', Nancy, France, April 2018. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2018; 220:25-29. [PMID: 30156020 DOI: 10.1111/nph.15376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Basso
- Laboratoire d'excellence Recherches Avancées sur la Biologie de l'Arbre et les Ecosystemes Forestiers (LabEx ARBRE), UMR Interactions Arbres/Microorganismes (IAM) 1136, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Centre INRA Grand-Est, Champenoux, 54280, France
| | | | - François Maillard
- Laboratoire d'excellence Recherches Avancées sur la Biologie de l'Arbre et les Ecosystemes Forestiers (LabEx ARBRE), UMR Interactions Arbres/Microorganismes (IAM) 1136, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Centre INRA Grand-Est, Champenoux, 54280, France
| | - Julieta Mallerman
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisiológicas y Ecológicas Vinculadas a la Agricultura (IFEVA) and Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Av. San Martín 4453, Buenos Aires, C1417DSE, Argentina
| | - Lauralie Mangeot-Peter
- Laboratoire d'excellence Recherches Avancées sur la Biologie de l'Arbre et les Ecosystemes Forestiers (LabEx ARBRE), UMR Interactions Arbres/Microorganismes (IAM) 1136, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Centre INRA Grand-Est, Champenoux, 54280, France
| | - Feng Zhang
- Laboratoire d'excellence Recherches Avancées sur la Biologie de l'Arbre et les Ecosystemes Forestiers (LabEx ARBRE), UMR Interactions Arbres/Microorganismes (IAM) 1136, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Centre INRA Grand-Est, Champenoux, 54280, France
| | - Clémence Bonnot
- Laboratoire d'excellence Recherches Avancées sur la Biologie de l'Arbre et les Ecosystemes Forestiers (LabEx ARBRE), UMR Interactions Arbres/Microorganismes (IAM) 1136, INRA, Université de Lorraine, Centre INRA Grand-Est, Champenoux, 54280, France
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42
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Reed J, Osbourn A. Engineering terpenoid production through transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana. PLANT CELL REPORTS 2018; 37:1431-1441. [PMID: 29786761 PMCID: PMC6153650 DOI: 10.1007/s00299-018-2296-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2018] [Accepted: 05/12/2018] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Terpenoids are the most structurally diverse class of plant natural products with a huge range of commercial and medical applications. Exploiting this enormous potential has historically been hindered due to low levels of these compounds in their natural sources, making isolation difficult, while their structural complexity frequently makes synthetic chemistry approaches uneconomical. Engineering terpenoid biosynthesis in heterologous host production platforms provides a means to overcome these obstacles. In particular, plant-based production systems are attractive as they provide the compartmentalisation and cofactors necessary for the transfer of functional pathways from other plants. Nicotiana benthamiana, a wild relative of tobacco, has become increasingly popular as a heterologous expression platform for reconstituting plant natural product pathways, because it is amenable to Agrobacterium-mediated transient expression, a scalable and highly flexible process that enables rapid expression of genes and enzymes from other plant species. Here, we review recent work describing terpene production in N. benthamiana. We examine various strategies taken to engineer this host for increased production of the target metabolite. We also look at how transient expression can be utilised for rapid generation of molecular diversity, including new-to-nature products. Finally, we highlight current issues surrounding this expression platform and discuss the future directions and developments which will be needed to fully realise the potential of this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Reed
- Department of Metabolic Biology, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7UH, UK
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Metabolic Biology, John Innes Centre, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7UH, UK.
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43
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Chavali AK, Rhee SY. Bioinformatics tools for the identification of gene clusters that biosynthesize specialized metabolites. Brief Bioinform 2018; 19:1022-1034. [PMID: 28398567 PMCID: PMC6171489 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbx020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2016] [Revised: 01/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Specialized metabolites (also called natural products or secondary metabolites) derived from bacteria, fungi, marine organisms and plants constitute an important source of antibiotics, anti-cancer agents, insecticides, immunosuppressants and herbicides. Many specialized metabolites in bacteria and fungi are biosynthesized via metabolic pathways whose enzymes are encoded by clustered genes on a chromosome. Metabolic gene clusters comprise a group of physically co-localized genes that together encode enzymes for the biosynthesis of a specific metabolite. Although metabolic gene clusters are generally not known to occur outside of microbes, several plant metabolic gene clusters have been discovered in recent years. The discovery of novel metabolic pathways is being enabled by the increasing availability of high-quality genome sequencing coupled with the development of powerful computational toolkits to identify metabolic gene clusters. To provide a comprehensive overview of various bioinformatics methods for detecting gene clusters, we compare and contrast key aspects of algorithmic logic behind several computational tools, including 'NP.searcher', 'ClustScan', 'CLUSEAN', 'antiSMASH', 'SMURF', 'MIDDAS-M', 'ClusterFinder', 'CASSIS/SMIPS' and 'C-Hunter' among others. We also review additional tools such as 'NRPSpredictor' and 'SBSPKS' that can infer substrate specificity for previously identified gene clusters. The continual development of bioinformatics methods to predict gene clusters will help shed light on how organisms assemble multi-step metabolic pathways for adaptation to various ecological niches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arvind K Chavali
- Department of Plant Biology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Seung Y Rhee
- Department of Plant Biology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA, USA
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44
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Abstract
In bacteria, more than half of the genes in the genome are organized in operons. In contrast, in eukaryotes, functionally related genes are usually dispersed across the genome. There are, however, numerous examples of functional clusters of nonhomologous genes for metabolic pathways in fungi and plants. Despite superficial similarities with operons (physical clustering, coordinate regulation), these clusters have not usually originated by horizontal gene transfer from bacteria, and (unlike operons) the genes are typically transcribed separately rather than as a single polycistronic message. This clustering phenomenon raises intriguing questions about the origins of clustered metabolic pathways in eukaryotes and the significance of clustering for pathway function. Here we review metabolic gene clusters from fungi and plants, highlight commonalities and differences, and consider how these clusters form and are regulated. We also identify opportunities for future research in the areas of large-scale genomics, synthetic biology, and experimental evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans-Wilhelm Nützmann
- Department of Metabolic Biology, John Innes Centre, Norwich NR4 7UH, United Kingdom; .,Current affiliation: Milner Centre for Evolution, Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom;
| | - Claudio Scazzocchio
- Department of Microbiology, Imperial College, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom; .,Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Metabolic Biology, John Innes Centre, Norwich NR4 7UH, United Kingdom;
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45
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Li W, Zhou Y, You W, Yang M, Ma Y, Wang M, Wang Y, Yuan S, Xiao Y. Development of Photoaffinity Probe for the Discovery of Steviol Glycosides Biosynthesis Pathway in Stevia rebuadiana and Rapid Substrate Screening. ACS Chem Biol 2018; 13:1944-1949. [PMID: 29863335 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.8b00285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Functional discovery and characterization of the target enzymes responsible for the biosynthesis pathway coded for the genes is ongoing, and the unknown functional diversity of this class of enzymes has been revealed by genome sequencing. Commonly, it is feasible in annotating of biosynthetic genes of prokaryotes due to the existence of gene clusters of secondary metabolites. However, in eukaryotes, the biosynthetic genes are not compactly clustered in the way of prokaryotes. Hence, it remains challenging to identify the biosynthetic pathways of newly discovered natural products in plants. Steviol glycosides are one class of natural sweeteners found in high abundance in the herb Stevia rebaudiana. Here, we applied the chemoproteomic strategy for the proteomic profiling of the biosynthetic enzymes of steviol glycosides in Stevia rebaudiana. We not only identified a steviol-catalyzing UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT) UGT73E1 involved in steviol glycoside biosynthesis but also built up a probe-based platform for the screening of potential substrates of functional uncharacterized UGT rapidly. This approach would be a complementary tool in mining novel synthetic parts for assembling of synthetic biological systems for the biosynthesis of other complex natural products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weichao Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Yiqing Zhou
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Wenjing You
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China
| | - Mengquan Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China
| | - Yanrong Ma
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Mingli Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Yong Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Shuguang Yuan
- Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Polymers and Membranes, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH B3 495 (Bâtiment CH) Station 6, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Youli Xiao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, China
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46
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Plant Protection by Benzoxazinoids—Recent Insights into Biosynthesis and Function. AGRONOMY-BASEL 2018. [DOI: 10.3390/agronomy8080143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Benzoxazinoids (BXs) are secondary metabolites present in many Poaceae including the major crops maize, wheat, and rye. In contrast to other potentially toxic secondary metabolites, BXs have not been targets of counter selection during breeding and the effect of BXs on insects, microbes, and neighbouring plants has been recognised. A broad knowledge about the mode of action and metabolisation in target organisms including herbivorous insects, aphids, and plants has been gathered in the last decades. BX biosynthesis has been elucidated on a molecular level in crop cereals. Recent advances, mainly made by investigations in maize, uncovered a significant diversity in the composition of BXs within one species. The pattern can be specific for single plant lines and dynamic changes triggered by biotic and abiotic stresses were observed. Single BXs might be toxic, repelling, attractive, and even growth-promoting for insects, depending on the particular species. BXs delivered into the soil influence plant and microbial communities. Furthermore, BXs can possibly be used as signalling molecules within the plant. In this review we intend to give an overview of the current data on the biosynthesis, structure, and function of BXs, beyond their characterisation as mere phytotoxins.
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47
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Multigenome analysis implicates miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements (MITEs) in metabolic diversification in eudicots. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:E6650-E6658. [PMID: 29941591 PMCID: PMC6048515 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1721318115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently discovered biosynthetic gene clusters in plants are a striking example of the nonrandom complex structure of eukaryotic genomes. The mechanisms underpinning the formation of these clustered pathways are not understood. Here we carry out a systematic analysis of transposable elements associated with clustered terpene biosynthetic genes in plant genomes, and find evidence to suggest a role for miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements in cluster formation in eudicots. Our analyses provide insights into potential mechanisms of cluster assembly. They also shed light on the emergence of a “block” mechanism for the foundation of new terpene clusters in the eudicots in which microsyntenic blocks of terpene synthase and cytochrome P450 gene pairs duplicate, providing templates for the evolution of new pathways. Plants produce a plethora of natural products, including many drugs. It has recently emerged that the genes encoding different natural product pathways may be organized as biosynthetic gene clusters in plant genomes, with >30 examples reported so far. Despite superficial similarities with microbes, these clusters have not arisen by horizontal gene transfer, but rather by gene duplication, neofunctionalization, and relocation via unknown mechanisms. Previously we reported that two Arabidopsis thaliana biosynthetic gene clusters are located in regions of the genome that are significantly enriched in transposable elements (TEs). Other plant biosynthetic gene clusters also harbor abundant TEs. TEs can mediate genomic rearrangement by providing homologous sequences that enable illegitimate recombination and gene relocation. Thus, TE-mediated recombination may contribute to plant biosynthetic gene cluster formation. TEs may also facilitate establishment of regulons. However, a systematic analysis of the TEs associated with plant biosynthetic gene clusters has not been carried out. Here we investigate the TEs associated with clustered terpene biosynthetic genes in multiple plant genomes and find evidence to suggest a role for miniature inverted-repeat transposable elements in cluster formation in eudicots. Through investigation of the newly sequenced Amborella trichopoda, Aquilegia coerulea, and Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi genomes, we further show that the “block” mechanism of founding of biosynthetic gene clusters through duplication and diversification of pairs of terpene synthase and cytochrome P450 genes that is prevalent in the eudicots arose around 90–130 million years ago, after the appearance of the basal eudicots and before the emergence of the superrosid clade.
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48
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Pluskal T, Weng JK. Natural product modulators of human sensations and mood: molecular mechanisms and therapeutic potential. Chem Soc Rev 2018; 47:1592-1637. [PMID: 28933478 DOI: 10.1039/c7cs00411g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Humans perceive physical information about the surrounding environment through their senses. This physical information is registered by a collection of highly evolved and finely tuned molecular sensory receptors. A multitude of bioactive, structurally diverse ligands have evolved in nature that bind these molecular receptors. The complex, dynamic interactions between the ligands and the receptors lead to changes in our sensory perception or mood. Here, we review our current knowledge of natural products and their derived analogues that interact specifically with human G protein-coupled receptors, ion channels, and nuclear hormone receptors to modulate the sensations of taste, smell, temperature, pain, and itch, as well as mood and its associated behaviour. We discuss the molecular and structural mechanisms underlying such interactions and highlight cases where subtle differences in natural product chemistry produce drastic changes in functional outcome. We also discuss cases where a single compound triggers complex sensory or behavioural changes in humans through multiple mechanistic targets. Finally, we comment on the therapeutic potential of the reviewed area of research and draw attention to recent technological developments in genomics, metabolomics, and metabolic engineering that allow us to tap the medicinal properties of natural product chemistry without taxing nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomáš Pluskal
- Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, 455 Main Street, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA.
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49
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Computational Genomics of Specialized Metabolism: from Natural Product Discovery to Microbiome Ecology. mSystems 2018; 3:mSystems00182-17. [PMID: 29556550 PMCID: PMC5853187 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00182-17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbial and plant specialized metabolites, also known as natural products, are key mediators of microbe-microbe and host-microbe interactions and constitute a rich resource for drug development. In the past decade, genome mining has emerged as a prominent strategy for natural product discovery. Microbial and plant specialized metabolites, also known as natural products, are key mediators of microbe-microbe and host-microbe interactions and constitute a rich resource for drug development. In the past decade, genome mining has emerged as a prominent strategy for natural product discovery. Initially, such mining was performed on the basis of individual microbial genome sequences. Now, these efforts are being scaled up to fully genome-sequenced strain collections, pangenomes of bacterial genera, and large sets of metagenome-assembled genomes from microbial communities. The Medema research group aims to play a leading role in these developments by developing and applying computational approaches to identify, classify, and prioritize specialized metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters and pathways and to connect them to specific molecules and microbiome-associated phenotypes. Moreover, we are extending the scope of genome mining from microbes to plants, which will allow more comprehensive interpretation of the chemical language between hosts and microbes in a microbiome setting.
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50
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Huang AC, Hong YJ, Bond AD, Tantillo DJ, Osbourn A. Diverged Plant Terpene Synthases Reroute the Carbocation Cyclization Path towards the Formation of Unprecedented 6/11/5 and 6/6/7/5 Sesterterpene Scaffolds. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2018; 57:1291-1295. [PMID: 29194888 PMCID: PMC5814883 DOI: 10.1002/anie.201711444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Sesterterpenoids are a relatively rare class of plant terpenes. Sesterterpene synthase (STS)-mediated cyclization of the linear C25 isoprenoid precursor geranylfarnesyl diphosphate (GFPP) defines sesterterpene scaffolds. So far only a very limited number of STSs have been characterized. The discovery of three new plant STSs is reported that produce a suite of sesterterpenes with unprecedented 6/11/5 and 6/6/7/5 fused ring systems when transiently co-expressed with a GFPP synthase in Nicotiana benthamiana. Structural elucidation, feeding experiments, and quantum chemical calculations suggest that these STSs catalyze an unusual cyclization path involving reprotonation, intramolecular 1,6 proton transfer, and concerted but asynchronous bicyclization events. The cyclization is diverted from those catalyzed by the characterized plant STSs by forming unified 15/5 bicyclic sesterterpene intermediates. Mutagenesis further revealed a conserved amino acid residue implicated in reprotonation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ancheng C. Huang
- Department of Metabolic BiologyJohn Innes CentreColney Lane, Norwich Research ParkNorwichNR4 7UHUK
| | - Young J. Hong
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of California, DavisDavisCA95616USA
| | - Andrew D. Bond
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of CambridgeLensfield RdCambridgeCB2 1EWUK
| | - Dean J. Tantillo
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of California, DavisDavisCA95616USA
| | - Anne Osbourn
- Department of Metabolic BiologyJohn Innes CentreColney Lane, Norwich Research ParkNorwichNR4 7UHUK
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