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Ducker C, Baines C, Guy J, Euzébio Goulart Santana A, Pickett JA, Oldham NJ. A diterpene synthase from the sandfly Lutzomyia longipalpis produces the pheromone sobralene. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2322453121. [PMID: 38470919 PMCID: PMC10962984 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2322453121] [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: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024] Open
Abstract
The phlebotomine sandfly, Lutzomyia longipalpis, a major vector of the Leishmania parasite, uses terpene pheromones to attract conspecifics for mating. Examination of the L. longipalpis genome revealed a putative terpene synthase (TPS), which-upon heterologous expression in, and purification from, Escherichia coli-yielded a functional enzyme. The TPS, termed LlTPS, converted geranyl diphosphate (GPP) into a mixture of monoterpenes with low efficiency, of which β-ocimene was the major product. (E,E)-farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) principally produced small amounts of (E)-β-farnesene, while (Z,E)- and (Z,Z)-FPP yielded a mixture of bisabolene isomers. None of these mono- and sesquiterpenes are known volatiles of L. longipalpis. Notably, however, when provided with (E,E,E)-geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP), LlTPS gave sobralene as its major product. This diterpene pheromone is released by certain chemotypes of L. longipalpis, in particular those found in the Ceará state of Brazil. Minor diterpene components were also seen as products of the enzyme that matched those seen in a sandfly pheromone extract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles Ducker
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, NottinghamNG7 2RD, United Kingdom
| | - Cameron Baines
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, NottinghamNG7 2RD, United Kingdom
| | - Jennifer Guy
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, NottinghamNG7 2RD, United Kingdom
| | | | - John A. Pickett
- School of Chemistry, Cardiff University, CardiffCF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Neil J. Oldham
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, NottinghamNG7 2RD, United Kingdom
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2
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He S, Abdallah II, van Merkerk R, Quax WJ. Insights into taxadiene synthase catalysis and promiscuity facilitated by mutability landscape and molecular dynamics. PLANTA 2024; 259:87. [PMID: 38460012 PMCID: PMC10924717 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-024-04363-9] [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: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/11/2024]
Abstract
MAIN CONCLUSION Protein modeling, carbocation docking, and molecular dynamics along with structure-based mutability landscapes provided insight into taxadiene synthase catalysis (first step of the anticancer Taxol biosynthesis), protein structure-function correlations, and promiscuity. Plant terpenes belong to one of the largest and most diverse classes of natural products. This diversity is driven by the terpene synthase enzyme family which comprises numerous different synthases, several of which are promiscuous. Taxadiene synthase (TXS) is a class I diterpene synthase that catalyzes the first step in the biosynthesis pathway of the diterpene Taxol, an anticancer natural product produced by the Taxus plant. Exploring the molecular basis of TXS catalysis and its promiscuous potential garnered interest as a necessary means for understanding enzyme evolution and engineering possibilities to improve Taxol biosynthesis. A catalytically active closed conformation TXS model was designed using the artificial intelligence system, AlphaFold, accompanied by docking and molecular dynamics simulations. In addition, a mutability landscape of TXS including 14 residues was created to probe for structure-function relations. The mutability landscape revealed no mutants with improved catalytic activity compared to wild-type TXS. However, mutations of residues V584, Q609, V610, and Y688 showed high degree of promiscuity producing cembranoid-type and/or verticillene-type major products instead of taxanes. Mechanistic insights into V610F, V584M, Q609A, and Y688C mutants compared to the wild type revealed the trigger(s) for product profile change. Several mutants spanning residues V584, Q609, Y688, Y762, Q770, and F834 increased production of taxa-4(20),11(12)-diene which is a more favorable substrate for Taxol production compared to taxa-4(5),11(12)-diene. Finally, molecular dynamics simulations of the TXS reaction cascade revealed residues involved in ionization, carbocation stabilization, and cyclization ushering deeper understanding of the enzyme catalysis mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siqi He
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Biology, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ingy I Abdallah
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Biology, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt
| | - Ronald van Merkerk
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Biology, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Wim J Quax
- Department of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Biology, Groningen Research Institute of Pharmacy, University of Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 1, 9713 AV, Groningen, The Netherlands.
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3
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Whitehead J, Leferink NGH, Johannissen LO, Hay S, Scrutton NS. Decoding Catalysis by Terpene Synthases. ACS Catal 2023; 13:12774-12802. [PMID: 37822860 PMCID: PMC10563020 DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.3c03047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
The review by Christianson, published in 2017 on the twentieth anniversary of the emergence of the field, summarizes the foundational discoveries and key advances in terpene synthase/cyclase (TS) biocatalysis (Christianson, D. W. Chem Rev2017, 117 (17), 11570-11648. DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.7b00287). Here, we review the TS literature published since then, bringing the field up to date and looking forward to what could be the near future of TS rational design. Many revealing discoveries have been made in recent years, building on the knowledge and fundamental principles uncovered during those initial two decades of study. We use these to explore TS reaction chemistry and see how a combined experimental and computational approach helps to decipher the complexities of TS catalysis. Revealed are a suite of catalytic motifs which control product outcome in TSs, some obvious, some more subtle. We examine each in detail, using the most recent papers and insights to illustrate how exactly this fascinating class of enzymes takes a single acyclic substrate and turns it into the many thousands of complex terpenoids found in Nature. We then explore some of the recent strategies for TS engineering, including machine learning and other data-driven approaches. From this, rational and predictive engineering of TSs, "designer terpene synthases", will begin to emerge as a realistic goal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua
N. Whitehead
- Manchester
Institute of Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Nicole G. H. Leferink
- Future
Biomanufacturing Research Hub (FBRH), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology,
Department of Chemistry, The University
of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United
Kingdom
| | - Linus O. Johannissen
- Manchester
Institute of Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Sam Hay
- Manchester
Institute of Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United Kingdom
| | - Nigel S. Scrutton
- Manchester
Institute of Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, The University of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United Kingdom
- Future
Biomanufacturing Research Hub (FBRH), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology,
Department of Chemistry, The University
of Manchester, Manchester, M1 7DN, United
Kingdom
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4
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Li C, Wang S, Yin X, Guo A, Xie K, Chen D, Sui S, Han Y, Liu J, Chen R, Dai J. Functional Characterization and Cyclization Mechanism of a Diterpene Synthase Catalyzing the Skeleton Formation of Cephalotane-Type Diterpenoids. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202306020. [PMID: 37326357 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202306020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2023] [Revised: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
CsCTS, a new diterpene synthase from Cephalotaxus sinensis responsible for forming cephalotene, the core skeleton of cephalotane-type diterpenoids with a highly rigid 6/6/5/7 tetracyclic ring system, was functionally characterized. The stepwise cyclization mechanism is proposed mainly based on structural investigation of its derailment products, and further demonstrated through isotopic labeling experiments and density functional theory calculations. Homology modeling and molecular dynamics simulation combined with site-directed mutagenesis revealed the critical amino acid residues for the unique carbocation-driven cascade cyclization mechanism of CsCTS. Altogether, this study reports the discovery of the diterpene synthase that catalyzes the first committed step of cephalotane-type diterpenoid biosynthesis and delineates its cyclization mechanism, laying the foundation to decipher and artificially construct the complete biosynthetic pathway of this type diterpenoids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Changkang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Shuai Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, 252000, Shandong, China
| | - Xinxin Yin
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Aobo Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Kebo Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Dawei Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Songyang Sui
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Yaotian Han
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Jimei Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Ridao Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
| | - Jungui Dai
- State Key Laboratory of Bioactive Substance and Function of Natural Medicines, CAMS Key Laboratory of Enzyme and Biocatalysis of Natural Drugs, NHC Key Laboratory of Biosynthesis of Natural Products, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Non-Clinical Drug Metabolism and PK/PD Study, Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100050, China
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5
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T R, Sharma D, Lin F, Choong YK, Lim C, Jobichen C, Zhang C. Structural Understanding of Fungal Terpene Synthases for the Formation of Linear or Cyclic Terpene Products. ACS Catal 2023; 13:4949-4959. [PMID: 37066048 PMCID: PMC10088877 DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.2c05598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
Terpene synthases (TPSs), known gatekeepers of terpenoid diversity, are the main targets for enzyme engineering attempts. To this end, we have determined the crystal structure of Agrocybe pediades linalool synthase (Ap.LS), which has been recently reported to be 44-fold and 287-fold more efficient than bacterial and plant counterparts, respectively. Structure-based molecular modeling followed by in vivo as well as in vitro tests confirmed that the region of 60-69aa and Tyr299 (adjacent to the motif "WxxxxxRY") are essential for maintaining Ap.LS specificity toward a short-chain (C10) acyclic product. Ap.LS Y299 mutants (Y299A, Y299C, Y299G, Y299Q, and Y299S) yielded long-chain (C15) linear or cyclic products. Molecular modeling based on the Ap.LS crystal structure indicated that farnesyl pyrophosphate in the binding pocket of Ap.LS Y299A has less torsion strain energy compared to the wild-type Ap.LS, which can be partially attributed to the larger space in Ap.LS Y299A for better accommodation of the longer chain (C15). Linalool/nerolidol synthase Y298 and humulene synthase Y302 mutations also produced C15 cyclic products similar to Ap.LS Y299 mutants. Beyond the three enzymes, our analysis confirmed that most microbial TPSs have asparagine at the position and produce mainly cyclized products (δ-cadinene, 1,8-cineole, epi-cubebol, germacrene D, β-barbatene, etc.). In contrast, those producing linear products (linalool and nerolidol) typically have a bulky tyrosine. The structural and functional analysis of an exceptionally selective linalool synthase, Ap.LS, presented in this work provides insights into factors that govern chain length (C10 or C15), water incorporation, and cyclization (cyclic vs acyclic) of terpenoid biosynthesis.
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6
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Awakawa T, Mori T, Ushimaru R, Abe I. Structure-based engineering of α-ketoglutarate dependent oxygenases in fungal meroterpenoid biosynthesis. Nat Prod Rep 2023; 40:46-61. [PMID: 35642933 DOI: 10.1039/d2np00014h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Non-heme iron- and α-ketoglutarate-dependent oxygenases (αKG OXs) are key enzymes that play a major role in diversifying the structure of fungal meroterpenoids. They activate a specific C-H bond of the substrate to first generate radical species, which is usually followed by oxygen rebound to produce cannonical hydroxylated products. However, in some cases remarkable chemistry induces dramatic structural changes in the molecular scaffolds, depending on the stereoelectronic characters of the substrate/intermediates and the resulting conformational changes/movements of the active site of the enzyme. Their molecular bases have been extensively investigated by crystallographic structural analyses and structure-based mutagenesis, which revealed intimate structural details of the enzyme reactions. This information facilitates the manipulation of the enzyme reactions to create unnatural, novel molecules for drug discovery. This review summarizes recent progress in the structure-based engineering of αKG OX enzymes, involved in the biosynthesis of polyketide-derived fungal meroterpenoids. The literature published from 2016 through February 2022 is reviewed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takayoshi Awakawa
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. .,Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, the University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
| | - Takahiro Mori
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. .,Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, the University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.,PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan
| | - Richiro Ushimaru
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. .,Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, the University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.,ACT-X, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan
| | - Ikuro Abe
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan. .,Collaborative Research Institute for Innovative Microbiology, the University of Tokyo, Yayoi 1-1-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan
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7
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Sarkar A, Foderaro T, Kramer L, Markley AL, Lee J, Traylor MJ, Fox JM. Evolution-Guided Biosynthesis of Terpenoid Inhibitors. ACS Synth Biol 2022; 11:3015-3027. [PMID: 35984356 DOI: 10.1021/acssynbio.2c00188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Terpenoids, the largest and most structurally diverse group of natural products, include a striking variety of biologically active compounds, from flavors to medicines. Despite their well-documented biochemical versatility, the evolutionary processes that generate new functional terpenoids are poorly understood and difficult to recapitulate in engineered systems. This study uses a synthetic biochemical objective─a transcriptional system that links the inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), a human drug target, to the expression of a gene for antibiotic resistance in Escherichia coli (E. coli)─to evolve a terpene synthase to produce enzyme inhibitors. Site saturation mutagenesis of poorly conserved residues on γ-humulene synthase (GHS), a promicuous enzyme, yielded mutants that improved fitness (i.e., the antibiotic resistance of E. coli) by reducing GHS toxicity and/or by increasing inhibitor production. Intriguingly, a combination of two mutations enhanced the titer of a minority product─a terpene alcohol that inhibits PTP1B─by over 50-fold, and a comparison of similar mutants enabled the identification of a site where mutations permit efficient hydroxylation. Findings suggest that the plasticity of terpene synthases enables an efficient sampling of structurally distinct starting points for building new functional molecules and provide an experimental framework for exploiting this plasticity in activity-guided screens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankur Sarkar
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
| | - Tom Foderaro
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Levi Kramer
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
| | - Andrew L Markley
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Jessica Lee
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Matthew J Traylor
- Think Bioscience, Inc., A1B43 MCDB, 1945 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Jerome M Fox
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, 3415 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80303, United States
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8
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Facile Biosynthesis of Taxadiene by a Newly Constructed Escherichia coli Strain Fusing Enzymes Taxadiene Synthase and Geranylgeranyl Pyrophosphate Synthase. Process Biochem 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.procbio.2022.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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9
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Zev S, Ringel M, Driller R, Loll B, Brück T, Major DT. Understanding the competing pathways leading to hydropyrene and isoelisabethatriene. Beilstein J Org Chem 2022; 18:972-978. [PMID: 35965858 PMCID: PMC9359192 DOI: 10.3762/bjoc.18.97] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Terpene synthases are responsible for the biosynthesis of terpenes, the largest family of natural products. Hydropyrene synthase generates hydropyrene and hydropyrenol as its main products along with two byproducts, isoelisabethatrienes A and B. Fascinatingly, a single active site mutation (M75L) diverts the product distribution towards isoelisabethatrienes A and B. In the current work, we study the competing pathways leading to these products using quantum chemical calculations in the gas phase. We show that there is a great thermodynamic preference for hydropyrene and hydropyrenol formation, and hence most likely in the synthesis of the isoelisabethatriene products kinetic control is at play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shani Zev
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Marion Ringel
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Ronja Driller
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Structural Biochemistry Laboratory, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195 Berlin, Germany,
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Aarhus University, Danish Research Institute of Translational Neuroscience – DANDRITE, Universitetsbyen 81, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Bernhard Loll
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Structural Biochemistry Laboratory, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195 Berlin, Germany,
| | - Thomas Brück
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Dan T Major
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
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10
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Ringel M, Dimos N, Himpich S, Haack M, Huber C, Eisenreich W, Schenk G, Loll B, Brück T. Biotechnological potential and initial characterization of two novel sesquiterpene synthases from Basidiomycota Coniophora puteana for heterologous production of δ-cadinol. Microb Cell Fact 2022; 21:64. [PMID: 35440053 PMCID: PMC9018054 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-022-01791-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Terpene synthases are versatile catalysts in all domains of life, catalyzing the formation of an enormous variety of different terpenoid secondary metabolites. Due to their diverse bioactive properties, terpenoids are of great interest as innovative ingredients in pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications. Recent advances in genome sequencing have led to the discovery of numerous terpene synthases, in particular in Basidiomycota like the wood rotting fungus Coniophora puteana, which further enhances the scope for the manufacture of terpenes for industrial purposes. Results In this study we describe the identification of two novel (+)-δ-cadinol synthases from C. puteana, Copu5 and Copu9. The sesquiterpene (+)-δ-cadinol was previously shown to exhibit cytotoxic activity therefore having an application as possible, new, and sustainably sourced anti-tumor agent. In an Escherichia coli strain, optimized for sesquiterpene production, titers of 225 mg l−1 and 395 mg l−1, respectively, could be achieved. Remarkably, both enzymes share the same product profile thereby representing the first two terpene synthases from Basidiomycota with identical product profiles. We solved the crystal structure of Copu9 in its closed conformation, for the first time providing molecular details of sesquiterpene synthase from Basidiomycota. Based on the Copu9 structure, we conducted structure-based mutagenesis of amino acid residues lining the active site, thereby altering the product profile. Interestingly, the mutagenesis study also revealed that despite the conserved product profiles of Copu5 and Copu9 different conformational changes may accompany the catalytic cycle of the two enzymes. This observation suggests that the involvement of tertiary structure elements in the reaction mechanism(s) employed by terpene synthases may be more complex than commonly expected. Conclusion The presented product selectivity and titers of Copu5 and Copu9 may pave the way towards a sustainable, biotechnological production of the potentially new bioactive (+)-δ-cadinol. Furthermore, Copu5 and Copu9 may serve as model systems for further mechanistic studies of terpenoid catalysis. Graphical Abstract ![]()
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12934-022-01791-8.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marion Ringel
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Nicole Dimos
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Structural Biochemistry Laboratory, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Stephanie Himpich
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Structural Biochemistry Laboratory, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martina Haack
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Claudia Huber
- Bavarian NMR Center - Structural Membrane Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Eisenreich
- Bavarian NMR Center - Structural Membrane Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Gerhard Schenk
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, 68 Cooper Rd, Brisbane, 4702, Australia
| | - Bernhard Loll
- Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, Structural Biochemistry Laboratory, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Thomas Brück
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748, Garching, Germany.
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11
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Leferink NGH, Escorcia AM, Ouwersloot BR, Johanissen LO, Hay S, van der Kamp MW, Scrutton NS. Molecular Determinants of Carbocation Cyclisation in Bacterial Monoterpene Synthases. Chembiochem 2022; 23:e202100688. [PMID: 35005823 PMCID: PMC9303655 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202100688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2021] [Revised: 01/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Monoterpene synthases are often promiscuous enzymes, yielding product mixtures rather than pure compounds due to the nature of the branched reaction mechanism involving reactive carbocations. Two previously identified bacterial monoterpene synthases, a linalool synthase (bLinS) and a cineole synthase (bCinS), produce nearly pure linalool and cineole from geranyl diphosphate, respectively. We used a combined experimental and computational approach to identify critical residues involved in bacterial monoterpenoid synthesis. Phe77 is essential for bCinS activity, guiding the linear carbocation intermediate towards the formation of the cyclic α-terpinyl intermediate; removal of the aromatic ring results in variants that produce acyclic products only. Computational chemistry confirmed the importance of Phe77 in carbocation stabilisation. Phe74, Phe78 and Phe179 are involved in maintaining the active site shape in bCinS without a specific role for the aromatic ring. Phe295 in bLinS, and the equivalent Ala301 in bCinS, are essential for linalool and cineole formation, respectively. Where Phe295 places steric constraints on the carbocation intermediates, Ala301 is essential for bCinS initial cyclisation and activity. Our multidisciplinary approach gives unique insights into how carefully placed amino acid residues in the active site can direct carbocations down specific paths, by placing steric constraints or offering stabilisation via cation-π interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole G H Leferink
- Future Biomanufacturing Research Hub, Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
| | - Andrés M Escorcia
- School of Biochemistry, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK
| | - Bodi R Ouwersloot
- Future Biomanufacturing Research Hub, Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
| | - Linus O Johanissen
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
| | - Sam Hay
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
| | - Marc W van der Kamp
- School of Biochemistry, University of Bristol, University Walk, Bristol, BS8 1TD, UK
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock's Close, Bristol, BS8 1TS, UK
| | - Nigel S Scrutton
- Future Biomanufacturing Research Hub, Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
- Manchester Institute of Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 7DN, UK
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12
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Abstract
Valerena-1,10-diene synthase (VDS) catalyzes the conversion of the universal precursor farnesyl diphosphate into the unusual sesquiterpene valerena-1,10-diene (VLD), which possesses a unique isobutenyl substituent group. In planta, one of VLD's isobutenyl terminal methyl groups becomes oxidized to a carboxylic acid forming valerenic acid (VA), an allosteric modulator of the GABAA receptor. Because a structure-activity relationship study of VA for its modulatory activity is desired, we sought to manipulate the VDS enzyme for the biosynthesis of structurally diverse scaffolds that could ultimately lead to the generation of VA analogues. Using three-dimensional structural homology models, phylogenetic sequence comparisons to well-characterized sesquiterpene synthases, and a substrate-active site contact mapping approach, the contributions of specific amino acid residues within or near the VDS active site to possible catalytic cascades for VLD and other sesquiterpene products were assessed. An essential role of Tyr535 in a germacrenyl route to VLD was demonstrated, while its contribution to a family of other sesquiterpenes derived from a humulyl route was not. No role for Cys415 or Cys452 serving as a proton donor to reaction intermediates in VLD biosynthesis was observed. However, a gatekeeper role for Asn455 in directing farnesyl carbocations down all-trans catalytic cascades (humulyl and germacrenyl routes) versus a cisoid cascade (nerolidyl route) was demonstrated. Altogether, these results have mapped residues that establish a context for the catalytic cascades operating in VDS and future manipulations for generating more structurally constrained scaffolds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Garrett E Zinck
- Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40536-0596, United States
| | - Joe Chappell
- Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40536-0596, United States
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13
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Xu B, Tantillo DJ, Rudolf JD. Mechanistic Insights into the Formation of the 6,10‐Bicyclic Eunicellane Skeleton by the Bacterial Diterpene Synthase Bnd4. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.202109641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Baofu Xu
- Department of Chemistry University of Florida Gainesville FL 32611 USA
| | - Dean J. Tantillo
- Department of Chemistry University of California-Davis Davis CA 95616 USA
| | - Jeffrey D. Rudolf
- Department of Chemistry University of Florida Gainesville FL 32611 USA
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14
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Xu B, Tantillo DJ, Rudolf JD. Mechanistic Insights into the Formation of the 6,10-Bicyclic Eunicellane Skeleton by the Bacterial Diterpene Synthase Bnd4. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2021; 60:23159-23163. [PMID: 34378291 PMCID: PMC8511055 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202109641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
The eunicellane diterpenoids are a unique family of natural products seen in marine organisms, plants, and bacteria. We used a series of biochemical, bioinformatics, and theoretical experiments to investigate the mechanism of the first diterpene synthase known to form the eunicellane skeleton. Deuterium labeling studies and quantum chemical calculations support that Bnd4, from Streptomyces sp. (CL12-4), forms the 6,10-bicyclic skeleton through a 1,10-cyclization, 1,3-hydride shift, and 1,14-cyclization cascade. Bnd4 also demonstrated sesquiterpene cyclase activity and the ability to prenylate small molecules. Bnd4 possesses a unique D94 NxxxD motif and mutation experiments confirmed an absolute requirement for D94 as well as E169.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baofu Xu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Dean J Tantillo
- Department of Chemistry, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Jeffrey D Rudolf
- Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
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15
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Li DS, Hua J, Luo SH, Liu YC, Chen YG, Ling Y, Guo K, Liu Y, Li SH. An extremely promiscuous terpenoid synthase from the Lamiaceae plant Colquhounia coccinea var. mollis catalyzes the formation of sester-/di-/sesqui-/mono-terpenoids. PLANT COMMUNICATIONS 2021; 2:100233. [PMID: 34746763 PMCID: PMC8554039 DOI: 10.1016/j.xplc.2021.100233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Terpenoids are the largest class of natural products with complex structures and extensive bioactivities; their scaffolds are generated by diverse terpenoid synthases (TPSs) from a limited number of isoprenoid diphosphate precursors. Promiscuous TPSs play important roles in the evolution of terpenoid chemodiversity, but they remain largely unappreciated. Here, an extremely promiscuous terpenoid synthase (CcTPS1) of the TPS-b subfamily was cloned and functionally characterized from a leaf-specific transcriptome of the Lamiaceae plant Colquhounia coccinea var. mollis. CcTPS1 is the first sester-/di-/sesqui-/mono-TPS identified from the plant kingdom, accepting C25/C20/C15/C10 diphosphate substrates to generate a panel of sester-/di-/sesqui-/mono-terpenoids. Engineered Escherichia coli expressing CcTPS1 produced three previously unreported terpenoids (two sesterterpenoids and a diterpenoid) with rare cyclohexane-containing skeletons, along with four sesquiterpenoids and one monoterpenoid. Their structures were elucidated by extensive nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Nicotiana benthamiana transiently expressing CcTPS1 also produced the diterpenoid and sesquiterpenoids, demonstrating the enzyme's promiscuity in planta. Its highly leaf-specific expression pattern combined with detectable terpenoid products in leaves of C. coccinea var. mollis and N. benthamiana expressing CcTPS1 suggested that CcTPS1 was mainly responsible for diterpenoid and sesquiterpenoid biosynthesis in plants. CcTPS1 expression and the terpenoid products could be induced by methyl jasmonate, suggesting their possible role in plant-environment interaction. CcTPS1 was localized to the cytosol and may differ from mono-TPSs in subcellular compartmentalization and substrate tolerance. These findings will greatly aid our understanding of plant TPS evolution and terpenoid chemodiversity; they also highlight the enormous potential of transcriptome mining and heterologous expression for the exploration of unique enzymes and natural products hidden in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- De-Sen Li
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
| | - Juan Hua
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shengyang 110866, P. R. China
| | - Shi-Hong Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shengyang 110866, P. R. China
| | - Yan-Chun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
| | - Yue-Gui Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
| | - Yi Ling
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
| | - Kai Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources and Innovative Institute of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 611137, P. R. China
| | - Yan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources and Innovative Institute of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 611137, P. R. China
| | - Sheng-Hong Li
- State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China and Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory of Southwestern Chinese Medicine Resources and Innovative Institute of Chinese Medicine and Pharmacy, Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 611137, P. R. China
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16
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Huang ZY, Ye RY, Yu HL, Li AT, Xu JH. Mining methods and typical structural mechanisms of terpene cyclases. BIORESOUR BIOPROCESS 2021; 8:66. [PMID: 38650244 PMCID: PMC10992375 DOI: 10.1186/s40643-021-00421-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 07/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Terpenoids, formed by cyclization and/or permutation of isoprenes, are the most diverse and abundant class of natural products with a broad range of significant functions. One family of the critical enzymes involved in terpenoid biosynthesis is terpene cyclases (TCs), also known as terpene synthases (TSs), which are responsible for forming the ring structure as a backbone of functionally diverse terpenoids. With the recent advances in biotechnology, the researches on terpene cyclases have gradually shifted from the genomic mining of novel enzyme resources to the analysis of their structures and mechanisms. In this review, we summarize both the new methods for genomic mining and the structural mechanisms of some typical terpene cyclases, which are helpful for the discovery, engineering and application of more and new TCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng-Yu Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Centre for Biomanufacturing, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Ru-Yi Ye
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Centre for Biomanufacturing, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Hui-Lei Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Centre for Biomanufacturing, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Ai-Tao Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering, Hubei Collaborative Innovation Center for Green Transformation of Bio-Resources, Hubei Key Laboratory of Industrial Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Hubei University, Wuhan, 430062, China
| | - Jian-He Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Bioreactor Engineering, Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Centre for Biomanufacturing, Frontiers Science Center for Materiobiology and Dynamic Chemistry, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200237, China.
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17
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Mutanda I, Li J, Xu F, Wang Y. Recent Advances in Metabolic Engineering, Protein Engineering, and Transcriptome-Guided Insights Toward Synthetic Production of Taxol. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2021; 9:632269. [PMID: 33614616 PMCID: PMC7892896 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2021.632269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2020] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The diterpenoid paclitaxel (Taxol®) is a blockbuster anticancer agent that was originally isolated from the Pacific yew (Taxus brevifolia) five decades ago. Despite the wealth of information gained over the years on Taxol research, there still remains supply issues to meet increasing clinical demand. Although alternative Taxol production methods have been developed, they still face several drawbacks that cause supply shortages and high production costs. It is highly desired to develop biotechnological production platforms for Taxol, however, there are still gaps in our understanding of the biosynthetic pathway, catalytic enzymes, regulatory and control mechanisms that hamper production of this critical drug by synthetic biology approaches. Over the past 5 years, significant advances were made in metabolic engineering and optimization of the Taxol pathway in different hosts, leading to accumulation of taxane intermediates. Computational and experimental approaches were leveraged to gain mechanistic insights into the catalytic cycle of pathway enzymes and guide rational protein engineering efforts to improve catalytic fitness and substrate/product specificity, especially of the cytochrome P450s (CYP450s). Notable breakthroughs were also realized in engineering the pathway in plant hosts that are more promising in addressing the challenging CYP450 chemistry. Here, we review these recent advances and in addition, we summarize recent transcriptomic data sets of Taxus species and elicited culture cells, and give a bird's-eye view of the information that can be gleaned from these publicly available resources. Recent mining of transcriptome data sets led to discovery of two putative pathway enzymes, provided many lead candidates for the missing steps and provided new insights on the regulatory mechanisms governing Taxol biosynthesis. All these inferences are relevant to future biotechnological production of Taxol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ishmael Mutanda
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Jianhua Li
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Fanglin Xu
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Plant Stress Biology, State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, School of Life Sciences, He’nan University, Kaifeng, China
| | - Yong Wang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
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18
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Nowrouzi B, Li RA, Walls LE, d'Espaux L, Malcı K, Liang L, Jonguitud-Borrego N, Lerma-Escalera AI, Morones-Ramirez JR, Keasling JD, Rios-Solis L. Enhanced production of taxadiene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Microb Cell Fact 2020; 19:200. [PMID: 33138820 PMCID: PMC7607689 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-020-01458-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 10/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Cost-effective production of the highly effective anti-cancer drug, paclitaxel (Taxol®), remains limited despite growing global demands. Low yields of the critical taxadiene precursor remains a key bottleneck in microbial production. In this study, the key challenge of poor taxadiene synthase (TASY) solubility in S. cerevisiae was revealed, and the strains were strategically engineered to relieve this bottleneck. Results Multi-copy chromosomal integration of TASY harbouring a selection of fusion solubility tags improved taxadiene titres 22-fold, up to 57 ± 3 mg/L at 30 °C at microscale, compared to expressing a single episomal copy of TASY. The scalability of the process was highlighted through achieving similar titres during scale up to 25 mL and 250 mL in shake flask and bioreactor cultivations, respectively at 20 and 30 °C. Maximum taxadiene titres of 129 ± 15 mg/L and 127 mg/L were achieved through shake flask and bioreactor cultivations, respectively, of the optimal strain at a reduced temperature of 20 °C. Conclusions The results of this study highlight the benefit of employing a combination of molecular biology and bioprocess tools during synthetic pathway development, with which TASY activity was successfully improved by 6.5-fold compared to the highest literature titre in S. cerevisiae cell factories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Behnaz Nowrouzi
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom.,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom
| | - Rachel A Li
- DOE Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Laura E Walls
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom.,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom
| | - Leo d'Espaux
- DOE Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Koray Malcı
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom.,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom
| | - Lungang Liang
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom.,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom
| | - Nestor Jonguitud-Borrego
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom.,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom
| | - Albert I Lerma-Escalera
- Centro de Investigación en Biotecnología y Nanotecnología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Apodaca, Mexico
| | - Jose R Morones-Ramirez
- Centro de Investigación en Biotecnología y Nanotecnología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Apodaca, Mexico
| | - Jay D Keasling
- DOE Joint BioEnergy Institute, Emeryville, CA, 94608, USA.,Biological Systems and Engineering Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.,Departments of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering and of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.,Center for Biosustainability, Danish Technical University, Lyngby, Denmark.,Center for Synthetic Biochemistry, Institute for Synthetic Biology, Shenzhen Institutes for Advanced Technologies, Shenzhen, China
| | - Leonardo Rios-Solis
- Institute for Bioengineering, School of Engineering, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BF, United Kingdom. .,Centre for Synthetic and Systems Biology (SynthSys), The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3BD, United Kingdom.
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19
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Raz K, Levi S, Gupta PK, Major DT. Enzymatic control of product distribution in terpene synthases: insights from multiscale simulations. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2020; 65:248-258. [PMID: 32679412 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2020.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2020] [Revised: 06/03/2020] [Accepted: 06/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
In this opinion, we review some recent work on terpene biosynthesis using multiscale simulation approaches, with special focus on contributions from our group. Terpene synthases generate terpenes employing rich carbocation chemistry, including highly specific ring formations, proton, hydride, methyl, and methylene migrations, followed by reaction quenching. In these enzymes, the main catalytic challenge is not rate enhancement, but rather control of intrinsically reactive carbocations and the resulting product distribution. Herein, we review multiscale simulations of selected mono-, sesqui-, and diterpene synthases. We point to the many tools adopted by terpene synthases to achieve correct substrate fold, carbocation formation, carbocation reaction environment, and reaction quenching. A better understanding of the toolbox employed by terpene synthases is expected to aid in the search for new enzymatic and biomimetic synthetic routes to natural and unnatural terpenes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keren Raz
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Shani Levi
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Prashant Kumar Gupta
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Dan Thomas Major
- Department of Chemistry and Institute for Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel.
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20
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Exploring the catalytic cascade of cembranoid biosynthesis by combination of genetic engineering and molecular simulations. Comput Struct Biotechnol J 2020; 18:1819-1829. [PMID: 32695274 PMCID: PMC7365961 DOI: 10.1016/j.csbj.2020.06.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2020] [Revised: 06/17/2020] [Accepted: 06/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
While chemical steps involved in bioactive cembranoid biosynthesis have been examined, the corresponding enzymatic mechanisms leading to their formation remain elusive. In the tobacco plant, Nicotiana tabacum, a putative cembratriene-ol synthase (CBTS) initiates the catalytic cascade that lead to the biosynthesis of cembratriene-4,6-diols, which displays antibacterial- and anti-proliferative activities. We report here on structural homology models, functional studies, and mechanistic explorations of this enzyme using a combination of biosynthetic and computational methods. This approach guided us to develop an efficient de novo production of five bioactive non- and monohydroxylated cembranoids. Our homology models in combination with quantum and classical simulations suggested putative principles of the CBTS catalytic cycle, and provided a possible rationale for the formation of premature olefinic side products. Moreover, the functional reconstruction of a N. tabacum-derived class II P450 with a cognate CPR, obtained by transcriptome mining provided for production of bioactive cembratriene-4,6-diols. Our combined findings provide mechanistic insights into cembranoid biosynthesis, and a basis for the sustainable industrial production of highly valuable bioactive cembranoids.
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21
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Algal neurotoxin biosynthesis repurposes the terpene cyclase structural fold into an N-prenyltransferase. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:12799-12805. [PMID: 32457155 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2001325117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Prenylation is a common biological reaction in all domains of life wherein prenyl diphosphate donors transfer prenyl groups onto small molecules as well as large proteins. The enzymes that catalyze these reactions are structurally distinct from ubiquitous terpene cyclases that, instead, assemble terpenes via intramolecular rearrangements of a single substrate. Herein, we report the structure and molecular details of a new family of prenyltransferases from marine algae that repurposes the terpene cyclase structural fold for the N-prenylation of glutamic acid during the biosynthesis of the potent neurochemicals domoic acid and kainic acid. We solved the X-ray crystal structure of the prenyltransferase found in domoic acid biosynthesis, DabA, and show distinct active site binding modifications that remodel the canonical magnesium (Mg2+)-binding motif found in terpene cyclases. We then applied our structural knowledge of DabA and a homologous enzyme from the kainic acid biosynthetic pathway, KabA, to reengineer their isoprene donor specificities (geranyl diphosphate [GPP] versus dimethylallyl diphosphate [DMAPP]) with a single amino acid change. While diatom DabA and seaweed KabA enzymes share a common evolutionary lineage, they are distinct from all other terpene cyclases, suggesting a very distant ancestor to the larger terpene synthase family.
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22
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Tantillo DJ. Interrogating chemical mechanisms in natural products biosynthesis using quantum chemical calculations. WIRES COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR SCIENCE 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/wcms.1453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dean J. Tantillo
- Department of Chemistry University of California–Davis Davis California
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23
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Hayes CJ, Palframan MJ, Pattenden G. The Impact of Macrocycle Conformation on the Taxadiene-Forming Carbocation Cascade: Insight Gained from Sobralene, a Recently Discovered Verticillene Isomer. J Org Chem 2020; 85:4507-4514. [PMID: 32101002 DOI: 10.1021/acs.joc.0c00369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
DFT calculations on the carbocation intermediates that connect the biosynthetic pathways leading to the sand fly pheromone sobralene and taxadiene have been made. Establishment of the conformation of the macrocyclic carbocation intermediate required to produce the (Z)-C8,C9 alkene bond in sobralene has identified new conformations of the verticillyl carbocation intermediates on the taxadiene biosynthetic pathway. These "sobralene-like" carbocation conformations provide an exothermic pathway to taxadiene and are validated by comparison to closely related structures (X-ray and NMR).
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J Hayes
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, U.K
| | - Matthew J Palframan
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, U.K
| | - Gerald Pattenden
- School of Chemistry, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, U.K
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24
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Gericke O, Hansen NL, Pedersen GB, Kjaerulff L, Luo D, Staerk D, Møller BL, Pateraki I, Heskes AM. Nerylneryl diphosphate is the precursor of serrulatane, viscidane and cembrane-type diterpenoids in Eremophila species. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2020; 20:91. [PMID: 32111159 PMCID: PMC7049213 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-020-2293-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2019] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Eremophila R.Br. (Scrophulariaceae) is a diverse genus of plants with species distributed across semi-arid and arid Australia. It is an ecologically important genus that also holds cultural significance for many Indigenous Australians who traditionally use several species as sources of medicines. Structurally unusual diterpenoids, particularly serrulatane and viscidane-types, feature prominently in the chemical profile of many species and recent studies indicate that these compounds are responsible for much of the reported bioactivity. We have investigated the biosynthesis of diterpenoids in three species: Eremophila lucida, Eremophila drummondii and Eremophila denticulata subsp. trisulcata. RESULTS In all studied species diterpenoids were localised to the leaf surface and associated with the occurrence of glandular trichomes. Trichome-enriched transcriptome databases were generated and mined for candidate terpene synthases (TPS). Four TPSs with diterpene biosynthesis activity were identified: ElTPS31 and ElTPS3 from E. lucida were found to produce (3Z,7Z,11Z)-cembratrien-15-ol and 5-hydroxyviscidane, respectively, and EdTPS22 and EdtTPS4, from E. drummondii and E. denticulata subsp. trisulcata, respectively, were found to produce 8,9-dihydroserrulat-14-ene which readily aromatized to serrulat-14-ene. In all cases, the identified TPSs used the cisoid substrate, nerylneryl diphosphate (NNPP), to form the observed products. Subsequently, cis-prenyl transferases (CPTs) capable of making NNPP were identified in each species. CONCLUSIONS We have elucidated two biosynthetic steps towards three of the major diterpene backbones found in this genus. Serrulatane and viscidane-type diterpenoids are promising candidates for new drug leads. The identification of an enzymatic route to their synthesis opens up the possibility of biotechnological production, making accessible a ready source of scaffolds for further modification and bioactivity testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Gericke
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Nikolaj Lervad Hansen
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Gustav Blichfeldt Pedersen
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Louise Kjaerulff
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dan Luo
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Dan Staerk
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Birger Lindberg Møller
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Irini Pateraki
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark
| | - Allison Maree Heskes
- Plant Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
- Center for Synthetic Biology "bioSYNergy", Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej 40, DK-1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark.
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25
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An automated pipeline for the screening of diverse monoterpene synthase libraries. Sci Rep 2019; 9:11936. [PMID: 31417136 PMCID: PMC6695433 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-48452-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2019] [Accepted: 07/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Monoterpenoids are a structurally diverse group of natural products with applications as pharmaceuticals, flavourings, fragrances, pesticides, and biofuels. Recent advances in synthetic biology offer new routes to this chemical diversity through the introduction of heterologous isoprenoid production pathways into engineered microorganisms. Due to the nature of the branched reaction mechanism, monoterpene synthases often produce multiple products when expressed in monoterpenoid production platforms. Rational engineering of terpene synthases is challenging due to a lack of correlation between protein sequence and cyclisation reaction catalysed. Directed evolution offers an attractive alternative protein engineering strategy as limited prior sequence-function knowledge is required. However, directed evolution of terpene synthases is hampered by the lack of a convenient high-throughput screening assay for the detection of multiple volatile terpene products. Here we applied an automated pipeline for the screening of diverse monoterpene synthase libraries, employing robotic liquid handling platforms coupled to GC-MS, and automated data extraction. We used the pipeline to screen pinene synthase variant libraries, with mutations in three areas of plasticity, capable of producing multiple monoterpene products. We successfully identified variants with altered product profiles and demonstrated good agreement between the results of the automated screen and traditional shake-flask cultures. In addition, useful insights into the cyclisation reaction catalysed by pinene synthase were obtained, including the identification of positions with the highest level of plasticity, and the significance of region 2 in carbocation cyclisation. The results obtained will aid the prediction and design of novel terpene synthase activities towards clean monoterpenoid products.
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26
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Leferink NGH, Ranaghan KE, Karuppiah V, Currin A, van der Kamp MW, Mulholland AJ, Scrutton NS. Experiment and Simulation Reveal How Mutations in Functional Plasticity Regions Guide Plant Monoterpene Synthase Product Outcome. ACS Catal 2019; 8:3780-3791. [PMID: 31157124 PMCID: PMC6542672 DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.8b00692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Monoterpenes (C10 isoprenoids) are a structurally diverse group of natural compounds that are attractive to industry as flavours and fragrances. Monoterpenes are produced from a single linear substrate, geranyl diphosphate, by a group of enzymes called the monoterpene cyclases/synthases (mTC/Ss) that catalyse high-energy cyclisation reactions involving unstable carbocation intermediates. Efforts towards producing monoterpenes via biocatalysis or metabolic engineering often result in the formation of multiple products due to the nature of the highly branched reaction mechanism of mTC/Ss. Rational engineering of mTC/Ss is hampered by the lack of correlation between the active site sequence and cyclisation type. We used available mutagenesis data to show that amino acids involved in product outcome are clustered and spatially conserved within the mTC/S family. Consensus sequences for three such plasticity regions were introduced in different mTC/S with increasingly complex cyclisation cascades, including the model enzyme limonene synthase (LimS). In all three mTC/S studied, mutations in the first two regions mostly give rise to products that result from premature quenching of the linalyl or α-terpinyl cations, suggesting that both plasticity regions are involved in the formation and stabilisation of cations early in the reaction cascade. A LimS variant with mutations in the second region (S454G, C457V, M458I), produced mainly more complex bicyclic products. QM/MM MD simulations reveal that the second cyclisation is not due to compression of the C2-C7 distance in the α-terpinyl cation, but is the result of an increased distance between C8 of the α-terpinyl cation and two putative bases (W324, H579) located on the other side of the active site, preventing early termination by deprotonation. Such insights into the impact of mutations can only be obtained using integrated experimental and computational approaches, and will aid the design of altered mTC/S activities towards clean monoterpenoid products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole G. H. Leferink
- Manchester Synthetic Biology Research Centre for Fine and Speciality Chemicals (SYNBIOCHEM), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, School of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, U.K
| | - Kara E. Ranaghan
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock’s Close, Bristol BS8 1TS, U.K
| | - Vijaykumar Karuppiah
- Manchester Synthetic Biology Research Centre for Fine and Speciality Chemicals (SYNBIOCHEM), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, School of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, U.K
| | - Andrew Currin
- Manchester Synthetic Biology Research Centre for Fine and Speciality Chemicals (SYNBIOCHEM), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, School of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, U.K
| | - Marc W. van der Kamp
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock’s Close, Bristol BS8 1TS, U.K
- School of Biochemistry, University of Bristol, Biomedical Sciences Building, University Walk, Bristol BS8 1TD, U.K
| | - Adrian J. Mulholland
- Centre for Computational Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock’s Close, Bristol BS8 1TS, U.K
| | - Nigel S. Scrutton
- Manchester Synthetic Biology Research Centre for Fine and Speciality Chemicals (SYNBIOCHEM), Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, School of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Manchester, 131 Princess Street, Manchester M1 7DN, U.K
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27
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van Rijn JPM, Escorcia AM, Thiel W. QM/MM study of the taxadiene synthase mechanism. J Comput Chem 2019; 40:1902-1910. [DOI: 10.1002/jcc.25846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2019] [Revised: 04/05/2019] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrés M. Escorcia
- Max‐Planck‐Institut für Kohlenforschung Kaiser‐Wilhelm‐Platz 1, 45470 Mülheim Germany
| | - Walter Thiel
- Max‐Planck‐Institut für Kohlenforschung Kaiser‐Wilhelm‐Platz 1, 45470 Mülheim Germany
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28
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Palframan MJ, Pattenden G. The verticillenes. Pivotal intermediates in the biosynthesis of the taxanes and the phomactins. Nat Prod Rep 2019; 36:108-121. [DOI: 10.1039/c8np00034d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Recent enzymatic studies, quantum chemical calculations and biomimetic conversions consolidate the role of verticillenes in the biosynthesis of taxanes and phomactins.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gerald Pattenden
- School of Chemistry
- The University of Nottingham
- University Park
- Nottingham
- UK
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29
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Karunanithi PS, Zerbe P. Terpene Synthases as Metabolic Gatekeepers in the Evolution of Plant Terpenoid Chemical Diversity. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2019; 10:1166. [PMID: 31632418 PMCID: PMC6779861 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2019.01166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 08/26/2019] [Indexed: 05/18/2023]
Abstract
Terpenoids comprise tens of thousands of small molecule natural products that are widely distributed across all domains of life. Plants produce by far the largest array of terpenoids with various roles in development and chemical ecology. Driven by selective pressure to adapt to their specific ecological niche, individual species form only a fraction of the myriad plant terpenoids, typically representing unique metabolite blends. Terpene synthase (TPS) enzymes are the gatekeepers in generating terpenoid diversity by catalyzing complex carbocation-driven cyclization, rearrangement, and elimination reactions that enable the transformation of a few acyclic prenyl diphosphate substrates into a vast chemical library of hydrocarbon and, for a few enzymes, oxygenated terpene scaffolds. The seven currently defined clades (a-h) forming the plant TPS family evolved from ancestral triterpene synthase- and prenyl transferase-type enzymes through repeated events of gene duplication and subsequent loss, gain, or fusion of protein domains and further functional diversification. Lineage-specific expansion of these TPS clades led to variable family sizes that may range from a single TPS gene to families of more than 100 members that may further function as part of modular metabolic networks to maximize the number of possible products. Accompanying gene family expansion, the TPS family shows a profound functional plasticity, where minor active site alterations can dramatically impact product outcome, thus enabling the emergence of new functions with minimal investment in evolving new enzymes. This article reviews current knowledge on the functional diversity and molecular evolution of the plant TPS family that underlies the chemical diversity of bioactive terpenoids across the plant kingdom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Prema S Karunanithi
- Department of Plant Biology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Philipp Zerbe
- Department of Plant Biology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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30
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Driller R, Janke S, Fuchs M, Warner E, Mhashal AR, Major DT, Christmann M, Brück T, Loll B. Towards a comprehensive understanding of the structural dynamics of a bacterial diterpene synthase during catalysis. Nat Commun 2018; 9:3971. [PMID: 30266969 PMCID: PMC6162201 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06325-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2018] [Accepted: 08/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Terpenes constitute the largest and structurally most diverse natural product family. Most terpenoids exhibit a stereochemically complex macrocyclic core, which is generated by C–C bond forming of aliphatic oligo-prenyl precursors. This reaction is catalysed by terpene synthases (TPSs), which are capable of chaperoning highly reactive carbocation intermediates through an enzyme-specific reaction. Due to the instability of carbocation intermediates, the proteins’ structural dynamics and enzyme:substrate interactions during TPS catalysis remain elusive. Here, we present the structure of the diterpene synthase CotB2, in complex with an in crystallo cyclised abrupt reaction product and a substrate-derived diphosphate. We captured additional snapshots of the reaction to gain an overview of CotB2’s catalytic mechanism. To enhance insights into catalysis, structural information is augmented with multiscale molecular dynamic simulations. Our data represent fundamental TPS structure dynamics during catalysis, which ultimately enable rational engineering towards tailored terpene macrocycles that are inaccessible by conventional chemical synthesis. The bacterial diterpene synthase CotB2 catalyses the cyclisation of geranylgeranyl diphosphate to cyclooctat-9-en7-ol. Here the authors present various CotB2 structures including a trapped abrupt reaction product that were used for molecular dynamic simulations and allowed them to model all intermediates along the reaction cascade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ronja Driller
- Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Strukturbiochemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sophie Janke
- Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Organische Chemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Monika Fuchs
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich (TUM), Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Evelyn Warner
- Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Organische Chemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Anil R Mhashal
- Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, 52900, Israel
| | - Dan Thomas Major
- Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, 52900, Israel
| | - Mathias Christmann
- Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Organische Chemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 3, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Thomas Brück
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich (TUM), Lichtenbergstr. 4, 85748, Garching, Germany
| | - Bernhard Loll
- Institut für Chemie und Biochemie, Strukturbiochemie, Freie Universität Berlin, Takustr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany.
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31
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Vögeli B, Erb TJ. 'Negative' and 'positive catalysis': complementary principles that shape the catalytic landscape of enzymes. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2018; 47:94-100. [PMID: 30268906 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2018.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2018] [Revised: 08/23/2018] [Accepted: 09/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Our understanding of enzyme catalysis is dominated by transition state theory. According to this concept, an enzymatic reaction is guided along a desired reaction coordinate through the stabilization of favorable transition state. But how much is the outcome of an enzyme reaction controlled by the destabilization of unwanted transition states? Here, we revive and critically review the hypothesis that the active site of enzymes also features elements of 'negative catalysis'. We provide examples that show that enzyme catalysis can be achieved by the combined action of positive and negative constraints at the active site of an enzyme. This integrated view of enzyme catalysis has direct consequences for our studies on the catalytic landscape of enzymes, as well as current efforts in enzyme engineering and the de novo-design of enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bastian Vögeli
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Department of Biochemistry and Synthetic Metabolism, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 10, D-35043 Marburg, Germany
| | - Tobias J Erb
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Department of Biochemistry and Synthetic Metabolism, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 10, D-35043 Marburg, Germany; LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology (SYNMIKRO), Marburg, Germany.
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32
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Ansbacher T, Freud Y, Major DT. Slow-Starter Enzymes: Role of Active-Site Architecture in the Catalytic Control of the Biosynthesis of Taxadiene by Taxadiene Synthase. Biochemistry 2018; 57:3773-3779. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tamar Ansbacher
- Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
- Hadassah Academic College, 7 Hanevi’im Street, Jerusalem 9101001, Israel
| | - Yehoshua Freud
- Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Dan Thomas Major
- Department of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
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33
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Palframan MJ, Bandi KK, Hamilton JG, Pattenden G. Sobralene, a new sex-aggregation pheromone and likely shunt metabolite of the taxadiene synthase cascade, produced by a member of the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis species complex. Tetrahedron Lett 2018; 59:1921-1923. [PMID: 29780183 PMCID: PMC5937913 DOI: 10.1016/j.tetlet.2018.03.088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2018] [Revised: 03/21/2018] [Accepted: 03/29/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
A new sex-aggregation pheromone, sobralene, produced by the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis from Sobral (Ceará State, Brazil) is shown to have the novel 6,12-membered ring-fused diterpene structure 3. It is proposed that sobralene is a likely shunt metabolite of the taxadiene synthase-catalysed cyclisation of geranygeranyl diphosphate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J. Palframan
- School of Chemistry, The University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
| | - Krishna K. Bandi
- Division of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YG, UK
| | - James G.C. Hamilton
- Division of Biomedical and Life Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medicine, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YG, UK
| | - Gerald Pattenden
- School of Chemistry, The University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK
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34
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Sagwan-Barkdoll L, Anterola AM. Taxadiene-5α-ol is a minor product of CYP725A4 when expressed in Escherichia coli. Biotechnol Appl Biochem 2018; 65:294-305. [PMID: 28876471 PMCID: PMC5839926 DOI: 10.1002/bab.1606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Accepted: 09/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
CYP725A4 is a P450 enzyme from Taxus cuspidata that catalyzes the formation of taxadiene-5α-ol (T5α-ol) from taxadiene in paclitaxel biosynthesis. Past attempts expressing CYP725A4 in heterologous hosts reported the formation of 5(12)-oxa-3(11)-cyclotaxane (OCT) and/or 5(11)-oxa-3(11)-cyclotaxane (iso-OCT) instead of, or in addition to, T5α-ol. Here, we report that T5α-ol is produced as a minor product by Escherichia coli expressing both taxadiene synthase and CYP725A4. The major products were OCT and iso-OCT, while trace amounts of unidentified monooxygenated taxanes were also detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Since OCT and iso-OCT had not been found in nature, we tested the hypothesis that protein-protein interaction of CYP725A4 with redox partners, such as cytochrome P450 reductase (CPR) and cytochrome b5, may affect the products formed by CYP725A4, possibly favoring the formation of T5α-ol over OCT and iso-OCT. Our results show that coexpression of CYP725A4 with CPR from different organisms did not change the relative ratios of OCT, iso-OCT, and T5α-ol, while cytochrome b5 decreased overall levels of the products formed. Although unsuccessful in finding conditions that promote T5α-ol formation over other products, we used our results to clarify conflicting claims in the literature and discuss other possible approaches to produce paclitaxel via metabolic and enzyme engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laxmi Sagwan-Barkdoll
- Department of Plant Biology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 62901, USA
| | - Aldwin M. Anterola
- Department of Plant Biology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 62901, USA
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35
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Mitsuhashi T, Abe I. Chimeric Terpene Synthases Possessing both Terpene Cyclization and Prenyltransfer Activities. Chembiochem 2018; 19:1106-1114. [PMID: 29675947 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201800120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Prenyltransferase (PT) and terpene synthase (TPS) are key enzymes in the formation of the basic carbon skeletons of terpenoids. The PTs determine the prenyl carbon chain length, whereas TPSs generate the structural complexity of the molecular scaffolds, forming various ring structures. Normally, PTs and TPSs are separate, independent enzymes. However, in 2007, a chimeric enzyme, in which the PT was fused with the TPS, was found in a fungus. Recent studies have revealed that such chimeric TPSs are widely distributed in fungi and function in the biosyntheses of various terpene natural products, including sesterterpenes, which are a relatively rare group of terpenoids. This review summarizes the accumulated knowledge of these recently discovered, unique, chimeric TPSs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takaaki Mitsuhashi
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - Ikuro Abe
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
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36
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Hirte M, Meese N, Mertz M, Fuchs M, Brück TB. Insights Into the Bifunctional Aphidicolan-16-ß-ol Synthase Through Rapid Biomolecular Modeling Approaches. Front Chem 2018; 6:101. [PMID: 29692986 PMCID: PMC5902962 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2018.00101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 03/20/2018] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Diterpene synthases catalyze complex, multi-step C-C coupling reactions thereby converting the universal, aliphatic precursor geranylgeranyl diphosphate into diverse olefinic macrocylces that form the basis for the structural diversity of the diterpene natural product family. Since catalytically relevant crystal structures of diterpene synthases are scarce, homology based biomolecular modeling techniques offer an alternative route to study the enzyme's reaction mechanism. However, precise identification of catalytically relevant amino acids is challenging since these models require careful preparation and refinement techniques prior to substrate docking studies. Targeted amino acid substitutions in this protein class can initiate premature quenching of the carbocation centered reaction cascade. The structural characterization of those alternative cyclization products allows for elucidation of the cyclization reaction cascade and provides a new source for complex macrocyclic synthons. In this study, new insights into structure and function of the fungal, bifunctional Aphidicolan-16-ß-ol synthase were achieved using a simplified biomolecular modeling strategy. The applied refinement methodologies could rapidly generate a reliable protein-ligand complex, which provides for an accurate in silico identification of catalytically relevant amino acids. Guided by our modeling data, ACS mutations lead to the identification of the catalytically relevant ACS amino acid network I626, T657, Y658, A786, F789, and Y923. Moreover, the ACS amino acid substitutions Y658L and D661A resulted in a premature termination of the cyclization reaction cascade en-route from syn-copalyl diphosphate to Aphidicolan-16-ß-ol. Both ACS mutants generated the diterpene macrocycle syn-copalol and a minor, non-hydroxylated labdane related diterpene, respectively. Our biomolecular modeling and mutational studies suggest that the ACS substrate cyclization occurs in a spatially restricted location of the enzyme's active site and that the geranylgeranyl diphosphate derived pyrophosphate moiety remains in the ACS active site thereby directing the cyclization process. Our cumulative data confirm that amino acids constituting the G-loop of diterpene synthases are involved in the open to the closed, catalytically active enzyme conformation. This study demonstrates that a simple and rapid biomolecular modeling procedure can predict catalytically relevant amino acids. The approach reduces computational and experimental screening efforts for diterpene synthase structure-function analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max Hirte
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Nicolas Meese
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Michael Mertz
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Monika Fuchs
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Thomas B Brück
- Werner Siemens Chair of Synthetic Biotechnology, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
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37
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Escorcia AM, van Rijn JPM, Cheng GJ, Schrepfer P, Brück TB, Thiel W. Molecular dynamics study of taxadiene synthase catalysis. J Comput Chem 2018; 39:1215-1225. [PMID: 29450907 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.25184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2017] [Revised: 01/25/2018] [Accepted: 01/26/2018] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been performed to study the dynamic behavior of noncovalent enzyme carbocation complexes involved in the cyclization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate to taxadiene catalyzed by taxadiene synthase (TXS). Taxadiene and the observed four side products originate from the deprotonation of carbocation intermediates. The MD simulations of the TXS carbocation complexes provide insights into potential deprotonation mechanisms of such carbocations. The MD results do not support a previous hypothesis that carbocation tumbling is a key factor in the deprotonation of the carbocations by pyrophosphate. Instead water bridges are identified which may allow the formation of side products via multiple proton transfer reactions. A novel reaction path for taxadiene formation is proposed on the basis of the simulations. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrés M Escorcia
- Max-Planck-Institut fu¨r Kohlenforschung, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz 1, Mu¨lheim, 45470, Germany
| | | | - Gui-Juan Cheng
- Max-Planck-Institut fu¨r Kohlenforschung, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz 1, Mu¨lheim, 45470, Germany
| | - Patrick Schrepfer
- Professorship of Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Munich, Lichtenberg Str. 4, Garching, 85748, Germany
| | - Thomas B Brück
- Professorship of Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University Munich, Lichtenberg Str. 4, Garching, 85748, Germany
| | - Walter Thiel
- Max-Planck-Institut fu¨r Kohlenforschung, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz 1, Mu¨lheim, 45470, Germany
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38
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Burkhardt I, Dickschat JS. The absolute configuration of isochamigrene: new insights into the cyclisation mechanism of trichodiene synthase. Chem Commun (Camb) 2018; 54:3540-3542. [DOI: 10.1039/c8cc01744a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The enantioselective synthesis of isochamigrene clarified its absolute configuration and biosynthetic relation to trichodiene.
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Affiliation(s)
- Immo Burkhardt
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
- 53121 Bonn
- Germany
| | - Jeroen S. Dickschat
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
- 53121 Bonn
- Germany
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39
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Freud Y, Ansbacher T, Major DT. Catalytic Control in the Facile Proton Transfer in Taxadiene Synthase. ACS Catal 2017. [DOI: 10.1021/acscatal.7b02824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yehoshua Freud
- Department
of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
| | - Tamar Ansbacher
- Department
of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
- Hadassah Academic College, 7 Hanevi’im
Street, Jerusalem 9101001, Israel
| | - Dan Thomas Major
- Department
of Chemistry, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel
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40
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Li M, Xu J, Algarra Alarcon A, Carlin S, Barbaro E, Cappellin L, Velikova V, Vrhovsek U, Loreto F, Varotto C. In Planta Recapitulation of Isoprene Synthase Evolution from Ocimene Synthases. Mol Biol Evol 2017; 34:2583-2599. [PMID: 28637270 PMCID: PMC5850473 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msx178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Isoprene is the most abundant biogenic volatile hydrocarbon compound naturally emitted by plants and plays a major role in atmospheric chemistry. It has been proposed that isoprene synthases (IspS) may readily evolve from other terpene synthases, but this hypothesis has not been experimentally investigated. We isolated and functionally validated in Arabidopsis the first isoprene synthase gene, AdoIspS, from a monocotyledonous species (Arundo donax L., Poaceae). Phylogenetic reconstruction indicates that AdoIspS and dicots isoprene synthases most likely originated by parallel evolution from TPS-b monoterpene synthases. Site-directed mutagenesis demonstrated invivo the functional and evolutionary relevance of the residues considered diagnostic for IspS function. One of these positions was identified by saturating mutagenesis as a major determinant of substrate specificity in AdoIspS able to cause invivo a dramatic change in total volatile emission from hemi- to monoterpenes and supporting evolution of isoprene synthases from ocimene synthases. The mechanism responsible for IspS neofunctionalization by active site size modulation by a single amino acid mutation demonstrated in this study might be general, as the very same amino acidic position is implicated in the parallel evolution of different short-chain terpene synthases from both angiosperms and gymnosperms. Based on these results, we present a model reconciling in a unified conceptual framework the apparently contrasting patterns previously observed for isoprene synthase evolution in plants. These results indicate that parallel evolution may be driven by relatively simple biophysical constraints, and illustrate the intimate molecular evolutionary links between the structural and functional bases of traits with global relevance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingai Li
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
| | - Jia Xu
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Università di Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Alberto Algarra Alarcon
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation Centre, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
- Institute of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Silvia Carlin
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation Centre, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
| | - Enrico Barbaro
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
| | - Luca Cappellin
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation Centre, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
| | - Violeta Velikova
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Genetics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Urska Vrhovsek
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation Centre, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
| | - Francesco Loreto
- Department of Biology, Agriculture and Food Sciences, The National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Varotto
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige (TN), Italy
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Abstract
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The
year 2017 marks the twentieth anniversary of terpenoid cyclase
structural biology: a trio of terpenoid cyclase structures reported
together in 1997 were the first to set the foundation for understanding
the enzymes largely responsible for the exquisite chemodiversity of
more than 80000 terpenoid natural products. Terpenoid cyclases catalyze
the most complex chemical reactions in biology, in that more than
half of the substrate carbon atoms undergo changes in bonding and
hybridization during a single enzyme-catalyzed cyclization reaction.
The past two decades have witnessed structural, functional, and computational
studies illuminating the modes of substrate activation that initiate
the cyclization cascade, the management and manipulation of high-energy
carbocation intermediates that propagate the cyclization cascade,
and the chemical strategies that terminate the cyclization cascade.
The role of the terpenoid cyclase as a template for catalysis is paramount
to its function, and protein engineering can be used to reprogram
the cyclization cascade to generate alternative and commercially important
products. Here, I review key advances in terpenoid cyclase structural
and chemical biology, focusing mainly on terpenoid cyclases and related
prenyltransferases for which X-ray crystal structures have informed
and advanced our understanding of enzyme structure and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- David W Christianson
- Roy and Diana Vagelos Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania , 231 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6323, United States
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42
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Rinkel J, Rabe P, Chen X, Köllner TG, Chen F, Dickschat JS. Mechanisms of the Diterpene Cyclases β-Pinacene Synthase fromDictyostelium discoideumand Hydropyrene Synthase fromStreptomyces clavuligerus. Chemistry 2017; 23:10501-10505. [DOI: 10.1002/chem.201702704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jan Rinkel
- Kekulé-Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; University of Bonn; Gerhard-Domagk-Straße 1 53121 Bonn Germany
| | - Patrick Rabe
- Kekulé-Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; University of Bonn; Gerhard-Domagk-Straße 1 53121 Bonn Germany
| | - Xinlu Chen
- Department of Plant Sciences; University of Tennessee; 2431 Joe Johnson Drive Knoxville TN 37996-4561 USA
| | - Tobias G. Köllner
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology; Hans-Knöll-Straße 8 07745 Jena Germany
| | - Feng Chen
- Department of Plant Sciences; University of Tennessee; 2431 Joe Johnson Drive Knoxville TN 37996-4561 USA
| | - Jeroen S. Dickschat
- Kekulé-Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry; University of Bonn; Gerhard-Domagk-Straße 1 53121 Bonn Germany
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43
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Kemper K, Hirte M, Reinbold M, Fuchs M, Brück T. Opportunities and challenges for the sustainable production of structurally complex diterpenoids in recombinant microbial systems. Beilstein J Org Chem 2017; 13:845-854. [PMID: 28546842 PMCID: PMC5433224 DOI: 10.3762/bjoc.13.85] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
With over 50.000 identified compounds terpenes are the largest and most structurally diverse group of natural products. They are ubiquitous in bacteria, plants, animals and fungi, conducting several biological functions such as cell wall components or defense mechanisms. Industrial applications entail among others pharmaceuticals, food additives, vitamins, fragrances, fuels and fuel additives. Central building blocks of all terpenes are the isoprenoid compounds isopentenyl diphosphate and dimethylallyl diphosphate. Bacteria like Escherichia coli harbor a native metabolic pathway for these isoprenoids that is quite amenable for genetic engineering. Together with recombinant terpene biosynthesis modules, they are very suitable hosts for heterologous production of high value terpenes. Yet, in contrast to the number of extracted and characterized terpenes, little is known about the specific biosynthetic enzymes that are involved especially in the formation of highly functionalized compounds. Novel approaches discussed in this review include metabolic engineering as well as site-directed mutagenesis to expand the natural terpene landscape. Focusing mainly on the validation of successful integration of engineered biosynthetic pathways into optimized terpene producing Escherichia coli, this review shall give an insight in recent progresses regarding manipulation of mostly diterpene synthases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarina Kemper
- Professorship for Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Max Hirte
- Professorship for Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Markus Reinbold
- Professorship for Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Monika Fuchs
- Professorship for Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Thomas Brück
- Professorship for Industrial Biocatalysis, Department of Chemistry, Technical University of Munich, Lichtenbergstraße 4, 85748 Garching, Germany
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44
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Rabe P, Samborskyy M, Leadlay PF, Dickschat JS. Isoafricanol synthase from Streptomyces malaysiensis. Org Biomol Chem 2017; 15:2353-2358. [DOI: 10.1039/c7ob00234c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
A terpene cyclases from Streptomyces malaysiensis was characterised as (+)-isoafricanol synthase and its mechanism was investigated using isotopically labelled substrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Rabe
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie
- Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
- 53121 Bonn
- Germany
| | | | | | - Jeroen S. Dickschat
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie
- Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
- 53121 Bonn
- Germany
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45
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Rabe P, Klapschinski TA, Dickschat JS. Position-Specific Mass Shift Analysis: A Systematic Method for Investigating the EI-MS Fragmentation Mechanism of epi-Isozizaene. Chembiochem 2016; 17:1333-7. [PMID: 27123899 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201600237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The EI-MS fragmentation mechanism of the bacterial sesquiterpene epi-isozizaene was investigated through enzymatic conversion of all 15 synthetic ((13) C1 )FPP isotopomers with the epi-isozizaene synthase from Streptomyces albus and GC-MS and GC-QTOF analysis including MS-MS. A systematic method, which we wish to call position-specific mass shift analysis, for the identification of the full set of fragmentation reactions was developed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Rabe
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Gerhard-Domagk-Strasse 1, 53121, Bonn, Germany
| | - Tim A Klapschinski
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Gerhard-Domagk-Strasse 1, 53121, Bonn, Germany
| | - Jeroen S Dickschat
- Kekulé-Institut für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn, Gerhard-Domagk-Strasse 1, 53121, Bonn, Germany.
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46
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O'Brien TE, Bertolani SJ, Tantillo DJ, Siegel JB. Mechanistically informed predictions of binding modes for carbocation intermediates of a sesquiterpene synthase reaction. Chem Sci 2016; 7:4009-4015. [PMID: 30155043 PMCID: PMC6013805 DOI: 10.1039/c6sc00635c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/18/2016] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Sesquiterpenoids comprise a class of terpenoid natural products with thousands of compounds that are highly diverse in structure, generally containing a polycyclic carbon backbone that is constructed by a sesquiterpene synthase. Decades of experimental and computational studies have demonstrated that these enzymes generate a carbocation in the active site, which undergoes a series of structural rearrangements until a product is formed via deprotonation or nucleophile attack. However, for the vast majority of these enzymes the productive binding orientation of the intermediate carbocations has remained unclear. In this work, a method that combines quantum mechanics and computational docking is used to generate an all-atom model of every putative intermediate formed in the context of the enzyme active site for tobacco epi-aristolochene synthase (TEAS). This method identifies a single pathway that links the first intermediate to the last, enabling us to propose the first high-resolution model for the reaction intermediates in the active site of TEAS, and providing testable predictions.
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Affiliation(s)
- T E O'Brien
- Department of Chemistry , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA . ;
| | - S J Bertolani
- Department of Chemistry , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA . ;
| | - D J Tantillo
- Department of Chemistry , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA . ;
| | - J B Siegel
- Department of Chemistry , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA . ; .,Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA.,Genome Center , University of California Davis , Davis , California , USA
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47
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Dixit M, Das S, Mhashal A, Eitan R, Major D. Practical Aspects of Multiscale Classical and Quantum Simulations of Enzyme Reactions. Methods Enzymol 2016; 577:251-86. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2016.05.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
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