1
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D'Auria JC, Fernie AR. The BAHD and the bold: the mitochondria's role in alkaloid artistry. TRENDS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2024:S1360-1385(24)00204-8. [PMID: 39089907 DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2024.07.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2024] [Revised: 07/24/2024] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 08/04/2024]
Abstract
In a recent study, Zeng et al. uncovered 3β-tigloyloxytropane synthase (TS) in Atropa belladonna, characterizing its mitochondrial localization and substrate specificity. The discovery of this enzyme opens up new bioengineering possibilities for tropane alkaloids (TAs), enhancing the potential for sustainable agriculture and expanding our knowledge of TA biosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- John C D'Auria
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK), Corrensstr. 3, 06466 Seeland, OT Gatersleben, Germany.
| | - Alisdair R Fernie
- Department of Root Biology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Am Mühlenberg 1, 14476 Potsdam, OT Golm, Germany
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2
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Chavez BG, Leite Dias S, D'Auria JC. The evolution of tropane alkaloids: Coca does it differently. CURRENT OPINION IN PLANT BIOLOGY 2024; 81:102606. [PMID: 39067083 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbi.2024.102606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2024] [Revised: 07/01/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
It is undeniable that tropane alkaloids (TAs) have been both beneficial and detrimental to human health in the modern era. Understanding their biosynthesis is vital for using synthetic biology to engineer organisms for pharmaceutical production. The most parsimonious approaches to pathway elucidation are traditionally homology-based methods. However, this approach has largely failed for TA biosynthesis in angiosperms. In the recent decade, significant progress has been made in elucidating the TA synthesis pathway in Erythroxylum coca, highlighting the parallel development of TAs in both the Solanaceae and Erythroxylaceae families. This separate evolutionary path has uncovered substantial divergence in the TAs formed by E. coca and distinct enzymatic reactions that differ from the traditional TA biosynthetic pathway found in TA-producing nightshade plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Gabriel Chavez
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK Gatersleben), Seeland 06466, Germany
| | - Sara Leite Dias
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK Gatersleben), Seeland 06466, Germany
| | - John Charles D'Auria
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK Gatersleben), Seeland 06466, Germany.
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3
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Bai Y, Liu X, Baldwin IT. Using Synthetic Biology to Understand the Function of Plant Specialized Metabolites. ANNUAL REVIEW OF PLANT BIOLOGY 2024; 75:629-653. [PMID: 38424065 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-arplant-060223-013842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
Plant specialized metabolites (PSMs) are variably distributed across taxa, tissues, and ecological contexts; this variability has inspired many theories about PSM function, which, to date, remain poorly tested because predictions have outpaced the available data. Advances in mass spectrometry-based metabolomics have enabled unbiased PSM profiling, and molecular biology techniques have produced PSM-free plants; the combination of these methods has accelerated our understanding of the complex ecological roles that PSMs play in plants. Synthetic biology techniques and workflows are producing high-value, structurally complex PSMs in quantities and purities sufficient for both medicinal and functional studies. These workflows enable the reengineering of PSM transport, externalization, structural diversity, and production in novel taxa, facilitating rigorous tests of long-standing theoretical predictions about why plants produce so many different PSMs in particular tissues and ecological contexts. Plants use their chemical prowess to solve ecological challenges, and synthetic biology workflows are accelerating our understanding of these evolved functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuechen Bai
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Industrial Microorganisms, Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China; ,
| | - Xinyu Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Industrial Microorganisms, Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China; ,
| | - Ian T Baldwin
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena, Germany;
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4
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Holtz M, Acevedo-Rocha CG, Jensen MK. Combining enzyme and metabolic engineering for microbial supply of therapeutic phytochemicals. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2024; 87:103110. [PMID: 38503222 DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2024.103110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 02/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
The history of pharmacology is deeply intertwined with plant-derived compounds, which continue to be crucial in drug development. However, their complex structures and limited availability in plants challenge drug discovery, optimization, development, and industrial production via chemical synthesis or natural extraction. This review delves into the integration of metabolic and enzyme engineering to leverage micro-organisms as platforms for the sustainable and reliable production of therapeutic phytochemicals. We argue that engineered microbes can serve a triple role in this paradigm: facilitating pathway discovery, acting as cell factories for scalable manufacturing, and functioning as platforms for chemical derivatization. Analyzing recent progress and outlining future directions, the review highlights microbial biotechnology's transformative potential in expanding plant-derived human therapeutics' discovery and supply chains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxence Holtz
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Carlos G Acevedo-Rocha
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Michael K Jensen
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark.
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5
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Zeng J, Liu X, Dong Z, Zhang F, Qiu F, Zhong M, Zhao T, Yang C, Zeng L, Lan X, Zhang H, Zhou J, Chen M, Tang K, Liao Z. Discovering a mitochondrion-localized BAHD acyltransferase involved in calystegine biosynthesis and engineering the production of 3β-tigloyloxytropane. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3623. [PMID: 38684703 PMCID: PMC11058270 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47968-0] [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: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Solanaceous plants produce tropane alkaloids (TAs) via esterification of 3α- and 3β-tropanol. Although littorine synthase is revealed to be responsible for 3α-tropanol esterification that leads to hyoscyamine biosynthesis, the genes associated with 3β-tropanol esterification are unknown. Here, we report that a BAHD acyltransferase from Atropa belladonna, 3β-tigloyloxytropane synthase (TS), catalyzes 3β-tropanol and tigloyl-CoA to form 3β-tigloyloxytropane, the key intermediate in calystegine biosynthesis and a potential drug for treating neurodegenerative disease. Unlike other cytosolic-localized BAHD acyltransferases, TS is localized to mitochondria. The catalytic mechanism of TS is revealed through molecular docking and site-directed mutagenesis. Subsequently, 3β-tigloyloxytropane is synthesized in tobacco. A bacterial CoA ligase (PcICS) is found to synthesize tigloyl-CoA, an acyl donor for 3β-tigloyloxytropane biosynthesis. By expressing TS mutant and PcICS, engineered Escherichia coli synthesizes 3β-tigloyloxytropane from tiglic acid and 3β-tropanol. This study helps to characterize the enzymology and chemodiversity of TAs and provides an approach for producing 3β-tigloyloxytropane.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junlan Zeng
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Xiaoqiang Liu
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Zhaoyue Dong
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Fangyuan Zhang
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Fei Qiu
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Mingyu Zhong
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Tengfei Zhao
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Chunxian Yang
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Lingjiang Zeng
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Xiaozhong Lan
- TAAHC-SWU Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, The Provincial and Ministerial Co-founded Collaborative Innovation Center for R&D in Xizang Characteristic Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Resources, Xizang Agricultural and Animal Husbandry College, Nyingchi, 860000, China
| | - Hongbo Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tobacco Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Qingdao, 266101, China
| | - Junhui Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Dao-di Herbs, National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100700, China
| | - Min Chen
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Kexuan Tang
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China
- Fudan-SJTU-Nottingham Plant Biotechnology R&D Center, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Zhihua Liao
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, State Key Laboratory of Resource Insects, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China.
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6
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Liu X, Yang M, Zhu J, Zeng J, Qiu F, Zeng L, Yang C, Zhang H, Lan X, Chen M, Liao Z, Zhao T. Functional divergence of two arginine decarboxylase genes in tropane alkaloid biosynthesis and root growth in Atropa belladonna. PLANT PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOCHEMISTRY : PPB 2024; 208:108439. [PMID: 38408396 DOI: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2024.108439] [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: 08/10/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
Putrescine, produced via the arginine decarboxylase (ADC)/ornithine decarboxylase (ODC)-mediated pathway, is an initial precursor for polyamines metabolism and the root-specific biosynthesis of medicinal tropane alkaloids (TAs). These alkaloids are widely used as muscarinic acetylcholine antagonists in clinics. Although the functions of ODC in biosynthesis of polyamines and TAs have been well investigated, the role of ADC is still poorly understood. In this study, enzyme inhibitor treatment showed that ADC was involved in the biosynthesis of putrescine-derived metabolites and root growth in Atropa belladonna. Further analysis found that there were six ADC unigenes in the A. belladonna transcriptome, with two of them, AbADC1 and AbADC2, exhibiting high expression in the roots. To investigate their roles in TAs/polyamines metabolism and root growth, RNA interference (RNAi) was used to suppress either AbADC1 or AbADC2 expression in A. belladonna hairy roots. Suppression of the AbADC1 expression resulted in a significant reduction in the putrescine content and hairy root biomass. However, it had no noticeable effect on the levels of N-methylputrescine and the TAs hyoscyamine, anisodamine, and scopolamine. On the other hand, suppression of AbADC2 expression markedly reduced the levels of putrescine, N-methylputrescine, and TAs, but had no significant effect on hairy root biomass. According to β-glucuronidase (GUS) staining assays, AbADC1 was mainly expressed in the root elongation and division region while AbADC2 was mainly expressed in the cylinder of the root maturation region. These differences in expression led to functional divergence, with AbADC1 primarily regulating root growth and AbADC2 contributing to TA biosynthesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoqiang Liu
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Mei Yang
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Jiahui Zhu
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Junlan Zeng
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Fei Qiu
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Lingjiang Zeng
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Chunxian Yang
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Hongbo Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tobacco Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Qingdao 266101, China
| | - Xiaozhong Lan
- The Provincial and Ministerial Co-founded Collaborative Innovation Center for R & D in Tibet Characteristic Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Resources, The Center for Xizang Chinese (Tibetan) Medicine Resource, TAAHC-SWU Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, Tibet Agriculture and Animal Husbandry University, Nyingchi, Tibet 860000, China
| | - Min Chen
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Zhihua Liao
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
| | - Tengfei Zhao
- Integrative Science Center of Germplasm Creation in Western China (CHONGQING) Science City, SWU-TAAHC Medicinal Plant Joint R&D Centre, School of Life Sciences, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
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7
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Davis CC, Choisy P. Medicinal plants meet modern biodiversity science. Curr Biol 2024; 34:R158-R173. [PMID: 38412829 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.12.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
Plants have been an essential source of human medicine for millennia. In this review, we argue that a holistic, interdisciplinary approach to the study of medicinal plants that combines methods and insights from three key disciplines - evolutionary ecology, molecular biology/biochemistry, and ethnopharmacology - is poised to facilitate new breakthroughs in science, including pharmacological discoveries and rapid advancements in human health and well-being. Such interdisciplinary research leverages data and methods spanning space, time, and species associated with medicinal plant species evolution, ecology, genomics, and metabolomic trait diversity, all of which build heavily on traditional Indigenous knowledge. Such an interdisciplinary approach contrasts sharply with most well-funded and successful medicinal plant research during the last half-century, which, despite notable advancements, has greatly oversimplified the dynamic relationships between plants and humans, kept hidden the larger human narratives about these relationships, and overlooked potentially important research and discoveries into life-saving medicines. We suggest that medicinal plants and people should be viewed as partners whose relationship involves a complicated and poorly explored set of (socio-)ecological interactions including not only domestication but also commensalisms and mutualisms. In short, medicinal plant species are not just chemical factories for extraction and exploitation. Rather, they may be symbiotic partners that have shaped modern societies, improved human health, and extended human lifespans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles C Davis
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University Herbaria, 22 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
| | - Patrick Choisy
- LVMH Research, 185 Avenue de Verdun, 45804 Saint Jean de Braye CEDEX, France
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8
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Watkins JL, Li Q, Yeaman S, Facchini PJ. Elucidation of the mescaline biosynthetic pathway in peyote (Lophophora williamsii). THE PLANT JOURNAL : FOR CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2023; 116:635-649. [PMID: 37675639 DOI: 10.1111/tpj.16447] [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: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023]
Abstract
Peyote (Lophophora williamsii) is an entheogenic and medicinal cactus native to the Chihuahuan desert. The psychoactive and hallucinogenic properties of peyote are principally attributed to the phenethylamine derivative mescaline. Despite the isolation of mescaline from peyote over 120 years ago, the biosynthetic pathway in the plant has remained undiscovered. Here, we use a transcriptomics and homology-guided gene discovery strategy to elucidate a near-complete biosynthetic pathway from l-tyrosine to mescaline. We identified a cytochrome P450 that catalyzes the 3-hydroxylation of l-tyrosine to l-DOPA, a tyrosine/DOPA decarboxylase yielding dopamine, and four substrate-specific and regiospecific substituted phenethylamine O-methyltransferases. Biochemical assays with recombinant enzymes or functional analyses performed by feeding putative precursors to engineered yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) strains expressing candidate peyote biosynthetic genes were used to determine substrate specificity, which served as the basis for pathway elucidation. Additionally, an N-methyltransferase displaying broad substrate specificity and leading to the production of N-methylated phenethylamine derivatives was identified, which could also function as an early step in the biosynthesis of tetrahydroisoquinoline alkaloids in peyote.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacinta L Watkins
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Qiushi Li
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Sam Yeaman
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
| | - Peter J Facchini
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4, Canada
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9
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Florean M, Luck K, Hong B, Nakamura Y, O’Connor SE, Köllner TG. Reinventing metabolic pathways: Independent evolution of benzoxazinoids in flowering plants. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2307981120. [PMID: 37812727 PMCID: PMC10589660 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2307981120] [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: 05/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Benzoxazinoids (BXDs) form a class of indole-derived specialized plant metabolites with broad antimicrobial and antifeedant properties. Unlike most specialized metabolites, which are typically lineage-specific, BXDs occur sporadically in a number of distantly related plant orders. This observation suggests that BXD biosynthesis arose independently numerous times in the plant kingdom. However, although decades of research in the grasses have led to the elucidation of the BXD pathway in the monocots, the biosynthesis of BXDs in eudicots is unknown. Here, we used a metabolomic and transcriptomic-guided approach, in combination with pathway reconstitution in Nicotiana benthamiana, to identify and characterize the BXD biosynthetic pathways from both Aphelandra squarrosa and Lamium galeobdolon, two phylogenetically distant eudicot species. We show that BXD biosynthesis in A. squarrosa and L. galeobdolon utilize a dual-function flavin-containing monooxygenase in place of two distinct cytochrome P450s, as is the case in the grasses. In addition, we identified evolutionarily unrelated cytochrome P450s, a 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase, a UDP-glucosyltransferase, and a methyltransferase that were also recruited into these BXD biosynthetic pathways. Our findings constitute the discovery of BXD pathways in eudicots. Moreover, the biosynthetic enzymes of these pathways clearly demonstrate that BXDs independently arose in the plant kingdom at least three times. The heterogeneous pool of identified BXD enzymes represents a remarkable example of metabolic plasticity, in which BXDs are synthesized according to a similar chemical logic, but with an entirely different set of metabolic enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matilde Florean
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
| | - Katrin Luck
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
| | - Benke Hong
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
| | - Yoko Nakamura
- Research Group Biosynthesis/NMR, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
| | - Sarah E. O’Connor
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
| | - Tobias G. Köllner
- Department of Natural Product Biosynthesis, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, Jena07745, Germany
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10
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Zamar DL, Papon N, Courdavault V. The Evolutionary Pattern of Cocaine and Hyoscyamine Biosynthesis Provides Strategies To Produce Tropane Alkaloids. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202300234. [PMID: 37249120 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Revised: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Cocaine and hyoscyamine are two tropane alkaloids (TA) from Erythroxylaceae and Solanaceae, respectively. These famous compounds possess anticholinergic properties that can be used to treat neuromuscular disorders. While the hyoscyamine biosynthetic pathway has been fully elucidated allowing its de novo synthesis in yeast, the cocaine pathway remained only partially elucidated. Recently, the Huang research group has completed the cocaine biosynthetic route by characterizing its two missing enzymes. This allowed the whole pathway to be transferring into Nicotiana benthamiana to achieve cocaine production. Here, besides highlighting the impact of this discovery, we discuss how TA biosynthesis evolved via the recruitment of two distinct and convergent pathways in Erythroxylaceae and Solanaceae. Finally, while enriching our knowledge on TA biosynthesis, this diversification of the molecular actors involved in cocaine and hyoscyamine biosynthesis opens perspectives in metabolic engineering by exploring enzyme biochemical plasticity that can ease and shorten TA pathway reconstitution in heterologous organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Duchesse-Lacours Zamar
- Université de Tours, Faculté de Pharmacie, EA2106 Biomolécules et Biotechnologies Végétales, 31, Avenue Monge, 37200, Tours, France
| | - Nicolas Papon
- Université d'Angers, Fungal Respiratory Infections Research Unit, University Hospital of Angers, 4 rue de Larrey, 49933, Angers Cedex 09, France
| | - Vincent Courdavault
- Université de Tours, Faculté de Pharmacie, EA2106 Biomolécules et Biotechnologies Végétales, 31, Avenue Monge, 37200, Tours, France
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11
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Wang YJ, Tain T, Yu JY, Li J, Xu B, Chen J, D’Auria J, Huang JP, Huang SX. Genomic and structural basis for evolution of tropane alkaloid biosynthesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2302448120. [PMID: 37068250 PMCID: PMC10151470 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2302448120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 04/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The tropane alkaloids (TAs) cocaine and hyoscyamine have been used medicinally for thousands of years. To understand the evolutionary origins and trajectories of serial biosynthetic enzymes of TAs and especially the characteristic tropane skeletons, we generated the chromosome-level genome assemblies of cocaine-producing Erythroxylum novogranatense (Erythroxylaceae, rosids clade) and hyoscyamine-producing Anisodus acutangulus (Solanaceae, asterids clade). Comparative genomic and phylogenetic analysis suggested that the lack of spermidine synthase/N-methyltransferase (EnSPMT1) in ancestral asterids species contributed to the divergence of polyamine (spermidine or putrescine) methylation in cocaine and hyoscyamine biosynthesis. Molecular docking analysis and key site mutation experiments suggested that ecgonone synthases CYP81AN15 and CYP82M3 adopt different active-site architectures to biosynthesize the same product ecgonone from the same substrate in Erythroxylaceae and Solanaceae. Further synteny analysis showed different evolutionary origins and trajectories of CYP81AN15 and CYP82M3, particularly the emergence of CYP81AN15 through the neofunctionalization of ancient tandem duplication genes. The combination of structural biology and comparative genomic analysis revealed that ecgonone methyltransferase, which is responsible for the biosynthesis of characteristic 2-substituted carboxymethyl group in cocaine, evolved from the tandem copies of salicylic acid methyltransferase by the mutations of critical E216 and S153 residues. Overall, we provided strong evidence for the independent origins of serial TA biosynthetic enzymes on the genomic and structural level, underlying the chemotypic convergence of TAs in phylogenetically distant species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yong-Jiang Wang
- 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, Kunming650201, China
| | - Tian Tain
- 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, Kunming650201, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China
| | - Jia-Yi Yu
- 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, Kunming650201, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China
| | - Jie 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, Kunming650201, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China
| | - Bingyan Xu
- 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, Kunming650201, China
- University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing100049, China
| | - Jianghua Chen
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming650223, China
| | - John C. D’Auria
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Leibniz Institute for Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research Ortsteil Gatersleben, SeelandD-06466, Germany
| | - Jian-Ping Huang
- 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, Kunming650201, China
| | - Sheng-Xiong Huang
- 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, Kunming650201, China
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Understanding how plants produce cocaine. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2218838120. [PMID: 36574687 PMCID: PMC9910477 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2218838120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
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