非核糖体肽合成酶基因腺苷酰化结构域序列克隆及分析

微生物许多非核糖体肽类次生代谢产物主要是由非核糖体肽合成酶(NRPS)催化合成。参考Gontang发布的非核糖体肽合成酶(NRPS)通用引物设计扩增NRPS腺苷酰化结构域基因序列的特异引物,从海洋链霉菌L1的基因组DNA中扩增获得一个715 bp的NRPS基因序列。测序结果及比对分析表明该片段属于NRPS腺苷酰化结构域部分序列。对其拟翻译的氨基酸序列组成成分、理化性质进行分析,显示其包含AFD class I超基因家族核心结合区,为NRPS腺苷酰化结构域(A结构域)所在区域。对氨基酸序列的二级结构预测和三级结构模拟,发现与数据库中肠菌素合酶F组分的结构相似。为后续研究A结构域的特异性及完整NRPS基因簇克隆提供了参考。     

Functional Analysis of A Pyoverdine Synthetase from Pseudomonas sp. MIS38

Fluorescent Pseudomonas sp. MIS38 produces a cyclic lipopeptide, arthrofactin. Arthrofactin is synthesized by a unique nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) with dual C/E-domains. In this study, another class of cyclic peptide, pyoverdine, was isolated from MIS38, viz., Pvd38. The main fraction of Pvd38 had an m/z value of 1,064.57 and contained Ala, Glu, Gly, (OHOrn), Ser, and Thr at a ratio of 2:1:1:(1):1:1 in the peptide part, suggesting a new structure compound. A gene encoding NRPS for the chromophore part of Pvd38 was identified, and we found that it contained a conventional E-domain. Gene disruption completely impaired the production of Pvd38, demonstrating that the synthetase is functional. This observation allows us to conclude that different NRPS systems with dual C/E-domains (in arthrofactin synthetase) and a conventional E-domain (in pyoverdine synthetase) are both functional in MIS38.     

芍药内生真菌的鉴定及产生活性次生代谢产物的评估

【目的】研究药用植物芍药(Paeonia lactiflora Pall.)内生真菌的种群多样性,同时对其可能存在的聚酮合酶(Polyketide synthase,PKS)和非核糖体多肽合成酶(Non-ribosomal peptide synthetase,NRPS)基因多样性进行评估,预测芍药内生真菌产生活性次生代谢产物的潜力。【方法】采用组织分离法获得芍药根部内生真菌菌株,结合形态学特征和ITS序列分析,进行鉴定;利用兼并性引物对内生真菌中存在的聚酮合酶(PKS)基因和非核糖体多肽合成酶(NRPS)基因进行PCR扩增及序列测定分析,构建系统发育树,明确芍药内真菌PKS基因序列和NRPS基因序列的系统进化地位。【结果】从芍药组织块中共分离得到105株内生分离物,去重复后获得52株内生真菌,菌株ITS基因序列信息显示,52株芍药内生真菌隶属于7目、13科、15属,其中小球腔菌属(Leptosphaeria)、土赤壳属(Ilyonectria)和镰孢属(Fusarium)为优势种群;从52株内生真菌中筛选获得13株含PKS基因片段的菌株,8株含NRPS基因片段的菌株,部分菌株功能基因的氨基酸序列与Gen Bank中已知化合物的合成序列具有一定的同源性,预示芍药根部内生真菌具有合成丰富多样的次生代谢产物的潜力。【结论】药用植物芍药根部具有丰富的内生真菌资源,且具有产生活性次生代谢产物的潜力,值得进一步开发研究和应用。     

Substrate specificity of nonribosomal peptide synthetase modules responsible for the biosynthesis of the oligopeptide moiety of cephabacin in Lysobacter lactamgenus

Lysobacter lactamgenus produces cephabacins, a class of beta-lactam antibiotics which have an oligopeptide moiety attached to the cephem ring at the C-3 position. The nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) system, which comprises four distinct modules, is required for the biosynthesis of this short oligopeptide, when one takes the chemical structure of these antibiotics into consideration. The cpbI gene, which has been identified in a region upstream of the pcbAB gene, encodes the NRPS - polyketide synthase hybrid complex, where NRPS is composed of three modules, while the cpbK gene -- which has been reported as being upstream of cpbI-- comprises a single NRPS module. An in silico protein analysis was able to partially reveal the specificity of each module. The four recombinant adenylation (A) domains from each NRPS module were heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. Biochemical data from ATP-PPi exchange assays indicated that L-arginine was an effective substrate for the A1 domain, while the A2, A3 and A4 domains activated L-alanine. These findings are in an agreement with the known chemical structure of cephabacins, as well as with the anticipated substrate specificity of the NRPS modules in CpbI and CpbK, which are involved in the assembly of the tetrapeptide at the C-3 position.     

非核糖体多肽Surugamides生物合成基因簇镶嵌式结构的解析

【目的】多肽化合物Surugamides(sgm)生物合成基因簇包含4个非核糖体多肽合酶(NRPS)基因surA–D,负责2个NRPS生物合成途径。已有报道确认surA基因与SurugamideA产物相关,而surB基因与sgm F产物相关,但对surC和surD基因功能的归属尚没有实验证据。本工作拟在之前研究的基础上进一步确认surA和surD负责Surugamide A产物生物合成,为基因工程改造Surugamides生物合成途径以及研究其NRPS蛋白之间的识别机制提供理论依据。【方法】从海绵中分离放线菌并通过16S rRNA基因序列比对分析其分类单元。通过在线数据库antiSMASH分析基因组序列,发现天然产物生物合成基因簇。通过UPLC-Q-TOF-MS和~(13)CNMR鉴定化合物结构。把构建完成的同源重组双交换质粒导入链霉菌宿主后筛选基因缺失或替换突变株。【结果】从胄甲海绵来源链霉菌S.albidoflavus LHW3101基因组中发现了Surugamides生物合成基因簇,确认了该菌株发酵产物中的化合物sgmA和sgm F。构建了surB和surC基因同时缺失的突变株RJ9,发现RJ9不再产sgm F而仍然产Surugamide A。在缺失突变surB和surC基因的同时在surD基因前引入了组成型强启动子ermEp*,结果发现RJ9产SurugamideA水平是野生型菌株的约2倍。【结论】确认了surB和surC基因与sgmA产物无关。在surD基因前引入强启动子后显著提高了SurugamideA的产量,提示surD基因与sgmA产物相关,结合已报到surA基因与Surugamide A产物相关的证据,进一步确认了surA和surD基因负责Surugamide A生物合成的推论。     

Genome-based cryptic gene discovery and functional identification of NRPS siderophore peptide in Streptomyces peucetius

Identification of secondary metabolites produced by cryptic gene in bacteria may be difficult, but in the case of nonribosomal peptide (NRP)-type secondary metabolites, this study can be facilitated by bioinformatic analysis of the biosynthetic gene cluster and tandem mass spectrometry analysis. To illustrate this concept, we used mass spectrometry-guided bioinformatic analysis of genomic sequences to identify an NRP-type secondary metabolite from Streptomyces peucetius ATCC 27952. Five putative NRPS biosynthetic gene clusters were identified in the S. peucetius genome by DNA sequence analysis. Of these, the sp970 gene cluster encoded a complete NRPS domain structure, viz., C-A-T-C-A-T-E-C-A-T-C-A-T-C domains. Tandem mass spectrometry revealed that the functional siderophore peptide produced by this cluster had a molecular weight of 644.4 Da. Further analysis demonstrated that the siderophore peptide has a cyclic structure and an amino acid composition of AchfOrn–Arg–hOrn–hfOrn. The discovery of functional cryptic genes by analysis of the secretome, especially of NRP-type secondary metabolites, using mass spectrometry together with genome mining may contribute significantly to the development of pharmaceuticals such as hybrid antibiotics.     

百部内生放线菌的分离、分类及次级代谢潜力

【目的】以对叶百部块根为材料分离内生放线菌,并对分离菌株进行分类、抗菌活性和次级代谢产物合成基因研究。【方法】样品经过严格的表面消毒,选用4种培养基分离百部内生放线菌;分离菌株通过形态观察和16S rRNA序列分析进行分类鉴定;采用琼脂移块法测试分离菌株的抗菌活性;通过PCR检测分离菌株的PKS/NPRS和卤化酶基因;使用HPLC-UV/VIS-ESI-MS/MS分析发酵产物。【结果】从6个样品中获得18株内生放线菌,分属链霉菌属(Streptomyces)、小单孢菌属(Micromonospora)、假诺卡氏菌属(Pseudonocardia)和甲基杆菌属(Methylobacterium)。分离菌株绝大部分具有抗菌活性和次级代谢产物合成基因,其中13株对耐药金黄色葡萄球菌和/或绿脓杆菌有拮抗活性,17株具有PKS/NRPS基因,8株菌具有卤化酶基因,且卤化酶阳性代表菌株的发酵产物具有抗细菌活性和卤代化合物特征。【结论】百部作为一种传统中药,其内生放线菌以链霉菌和小单孢菌为主,在次级代谢产物合成方面具有很好的潜力,可作为一类重要微生物资源进行活性产物开发。     

Multiple hybrid polyketide synthase/non-ribosomal peptide synthetase gene clusters in the myxobacterium Stigmatella aurantiaca

Many bacterial and fungal secondary metabolites are produced by polyketide synthases (PKS) and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS). Recently, it has been discovered that these modular enzymatic systems can also closely cooperate to form natural products. The analysis of the corresponding biosynthetic machineries, in the form of hybrid systems, is of special interest for combinatorial biosynthesis, because the combination of PKS and NRPS can lead to an immense variety of structures that might be produced. During our screening for hybrid PKS/NRPS systems from myxobacteria, we scanned the genome of Stigmatella aurantiaca DW4/3-1 for the presence of gene loci that encode both the PKS and NRPS genes. In addition to the previously characterized myxothiazol system, we identified three further hybrid loci, three additional PKS and one further NRPS gene locus. These were analyzed by hybridization, physical mapping, PCR with degenerate oligonucleotides and sequencing of fragments of the gene clusters. The function of these genes was not known but it had already been speculated that one compound produced by the strain and detected via HPLC was a secondary metabolite. This was based on the observation that its production is dependent on an active copy of the phosphopantetheinyl transferase gene mtaA. We show here that one of the identified hybrid gene loci is responsible for the formation of this secondary metabolite. In agreement with the genetic data, the chemical structure resembles a cyclic polypeptide with a PKS sidechain. Our data show that S. aurantiaca has a broader genetic capacity to produce natural products than the number of compounds isolated from the strain so far suggests.     

The small MbtH-like protein encoded by an internal gene of the balhimycin biosynthetic gene cluster is not required for glycopeptide production

The balhimycin biosynthetic gene cluster of the glycopeptide producer Amycolatopsis balhimycina includes a gene (orf1) with unknown function. orf1 shows high similarity to the mbtH gene from Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In almost all nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) biosynthetic gene clusters, we could identify a small mbtH-like gene whose function in peptide biosynthesis is not known. The mbtH-like gene is always colocalized with the NRPS genes; however, it does not have a specific position in the gene cluster. In all glycopeptide biosynthetic gene clusters the orf1-like gene is always located downstream of the gene encoding the last module of the NRPS. We inactivated the orf1 gene in A. balhimycina by generating a deletion mutant. The balhimycin production is not affected in the orf1-deletion mutant and is indistinguishable from that of the wild type. For the first time, we show that the inactivation of an mbtH-like gene does not impair the biosynthesis of a nonribosomal peptide.     

Culturable Endophytes of Medicinal Plants and the Genetic Basis for Their Bioactivity

The bioactive compounds of medicinal plants are products of the plant itself or of endophytes living inside the plant. Endophytes isolated from eight different anticancer plants collected in Yunnan, China, were characterized by diverse 16S and 18S rRNA gene phylogenies. A functional gene-based molecular screening strategy was used to target nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) and type I polyketide synthase (PKS) genes in endophytes. Bioinformatic analysis of these biosynthetic pathways facilitated inference of the potential bioactivity of endophyte natural products, suggesting that the isolated endophytes are capable of producing a plethora of secondary metabolites. All of the endophyte culture broth extracts demonstrated antiproliferative effects in at least one test assay, either cytotoxic, antibacterial or antifungal. From the perspective of natural product discovery, this study confirms the potential for endophytes from medicinal plants to produce anticancer, antibacterial and antifungal compounds. In addition, PKS and NRPS gene screening is a valuable method for screening isolates of biosynthetic potential.     

非核糖体肽合成酶缩合结构域基因片段克隆

从大连渤海海域筛选出1株放线菌L1,结合形态观察、生理生化实验和16S rDNA分子鉴定,确定L1属于链霉菌属球孢链霉菌(Streptomyces globisporus)。根据GenBank发布的非核糖体肽合成酶(NRPS)序列设计引物,从放线菌L1的基因组DNA中扩增获得NRPS基因片段。测序结果及比对分析表明该片段属于NRPS缩合结构域部分序列。三维建模显示其结构呈V型,包含缩合结构域核心序列,与数据库已知结构相一致,可以推断该克隆片段为NRPS缩合结构域基因片段,为后续深入研究缩合结构域特异性与相关NRPS功能提供基础。     

Diversity of type I polyketide synthase genes in the wood-decay fungus Xylaria sp. BCC 1067

Fungal type I polyketide (PK) compounds are highly valuable for medical treatment and extremely diverse in structure, partly because of the enzymatic activities of reducing domains in polyketide synthases (PKSs). We have cloned several PKS genes from the fungus Xylaria sp. BCC 1067, which produces two polyketides: depudecin (reduced PK) and 19,20-epoxycytochalasin Q (PK-nonribosomal peptide (NRP) hybrid). Two new degenerate primer sets, KA-series and XKS, were designed to amplify reducing PKS and PKS-NRP synthetase hybrid genes, respectively. Five putative PKS genes were amplified in Xylaria using KA-series primers and two more with the XKS primers. All seven are predicted to encode proteins homologous to highly reduced (HR)-type PKSs. Previously designed primers in LC-, KS-, and MT-series identified four additional PKS gene fragments. Selected PKS fragments were used as probes to identify PKS genes from the genomic library of this fungus. Full-length sequences for five PKS genes were obtained: pks12, pks3, pksKA1, pksMT, and pksX1. They are structurally diverse with 1-9 putative introns and products ranging from 2162 to 3654 amino acids in length. The finding of 11 distinct PKS genes solely by means of PCR cloning supports that PKS genes are highly diverse in fungi. It also indicates that our KA-series primers can serve as powerful tools to reveal the genetic potential of fungi in production of multiple types of HR PKs, which the conventional compound screening could underestimate.     

Isolation and characterization of chitinolytic Streptomyces sp. MT7 and its antagonism towards wood-rotting fungi

An actinomycetes isolate of Loktak Lake soil, designated as MT7, was characterized and identified as Streptomyces sp. based on fatty acid methyl ester and 16S ribosomal RNA gene analysis. Streptomyces sp. MT7 showed strong and broad spectrum antagonism towards seven out of eight tested wood-rotting fungi. Strain MT7 secretes three vital fungal cell wall lytic enzymes, i.e. chitinase, β-1,3-glucanase, and protease, and siderophores. Extracellularly produced mycolytic enzymes lost their antifungal activity completely after treatment with proteinase K and heat, indicating that the tested antifungal metabolites are heat-sensitive and proteinaceous in nature. Extracellular fluid (ECF) and its organic solvent extract also exhibited potential antagonism towards the tested wood-rotting fungi. Antifungal metabolites were characterized as polyene in nature. Biocontrol traits like co-production of cell wall lytic enzymes and antifungal secondary metabolites including siderophores by Streptomyces sp. MT7 suggests that it could be employed as a potential biocontrol agent against wood-rotting basidiomycetes.     

Non-ribosomal peptide synthetases: Identifying the cryptic gene clusters and decoding the natural product

Non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) and polyketide synthases (PKSs) present in bacteria and fungi are the major multi-modular enzyme complexes which synthesize secondary metabolites like the pharmacologically important antibiotics and siderophores. Each of the multiple modules of an NRPS activates a different amino or aryl acid, followed by their condensation to synthesize a linear or cyclic natural product. The studies on NRPS domains, the knowledge of their gene cluster architecture and tailoring enzymes have helped in the in silico genetic screening of the ever-expanding sequenced microbial genomic data for the identification of novel NRPS/PKS clusters and thus deciphering novel non-ribosomal peptides (NRPs). Adenylation domain is an integral part of the NRPSs and is the substrate selecting unit for the final assembled NRP. In some cases, it also requires a small protein, the MbtH homolog, for its optimum activity. The presence of putative adenylation domain and MbtH homologs in a sequenced genome can help identify the novel secondary metabolite producers. The role of the adenylation domain in the NRPS gene clusters and its characterization as a tool for the discovery of novel cryptic NRPS gene clusters are discussed.     

Stapled NRPS enhances the production of valinomycin in Escherichia coli

Nonribosomal peptides (NRPs) are a large family of secondary metabolites with notable bioactivities, which distribute widely in natural resources across microbes and plants. To obtain these molecules, heterologous production of NRPs in robust surrogate hosts like Escherichia coli represent a feasible approach. However, reconstitution of the full biosynthetic pathway in a host often leads to low productivity, which is at least in part due to the low efficiency of enzyme interaction in vivo except for the well-known reasons of metabolic burden (e.g., expression of large NRP synthetases—NRPSs with molecular weights of >100 kDa) and cellular toxicity on host cells. To enhance the catalytic efficiency of large NRPSs in vivo, here we propose to staple NRPS enzymes by using short peptide/protein pairs (e.g., SpyTag/SpyCatcher) for enhanced NRP production. We achieve this goal by introducing a stapled NRPS system for the biosynthesis of the antibiotic NRP valinomycin in E. coli. The results indicate that stapled valinomycin synthetase (Vlm1 and Vlm2) enables higher product accumulation than those two free enzymes (e.g., the maximum improvement is nearly fourfold). After further optimization by strain and bioprocess engineering, the final valinomycin titer maximally reaches about 2800 µg/L, which is 73 times higher than the initial titer of 38 µg/L. We expect that stapling NRPS enzymes will be a promising catalytic strategy for high-level biosynthesis of NRP natural products.     

Metabolites from the endophytic fungus Xylaria sp. PSU-D14

Glucoside derivatives, xylarosides A (1) and B (2), were isolated from the broth extract of the endophytic fungus Xylaria sp. PSU-D14 along with two known compounds, sordaricin (3) and 2,3-dihydro-5-hydroxy-2-methyl-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one (4). The structures were assigned by spectroscopic methods. Sordaricin (3), one of the known metabolites, exhibited moderate antifungal activity against Candida albicans ATCC90028 with a MIC value of 32 microg/ml.     

牛樟芝非核糖体多肽合成酶基因(ＡcNRPS)的克隆与鉴定

胶霉毒素属于真菌天然次生代谢产物epipolythiodioxopiperazine (ETP)家族,具有免疫抑制剂、抗真菌等多种生物活性,是由非核糖体多肽合成酶(NRPSs)催化合成。从牛樟芝(Antrodia camphorata)基因组中挖掘出非核糖体多肽合成酶基因(AcNRPS,NCBI登录号为KX430967),克隆获取其全长cDNA,并对其进行生物信息学分析和表达谱分析。结果显示AcNRPS基因cDNA全长6 687 bp;与其DNA序列比对发现AcNRPS基因含有12 个内含子;其开放阅读框编码2 229 个氨基酸残基,BLAST比对发现其含有2 个A-C-T结构域,底物需2个氨基酸;系统发育树结果显示AcNRPS与其他合成产物为胶霉毒素的NRPS基因聚为一类,其可合成胶霉毒素类化合物;表达谱分析显示,以葡萄糖和土豆蛋白胨作为碳、氮源的培养基能够有效促进牛樟芝NRPS基因的表达。     

Identification of phenylacetic acid produced by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis, the causal agent of bayoud, using GC-MS

These studies are concerned with the isolation and identification of secondary metabolites produced by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis (F. o. a.), the causal agent of bayoud, the wilt disease of the date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.). Fungal secondary metabolites are chemical compounds identified in a limited number of species. They consist of toxins, antibiotics and antifungal agents. Among the metabolites we could isolate from the pathogen grown in a liquid medium, and then identify by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS), phenylacetic acid has been distinguished. This compound is widely described in the literature as having antimicrobial, antifungal, phytotoxic properties and also endowed with hormonal activity similar to that of indole acetic acid (IAA). To date, this metabolite has never been reported in F. o. a.     

Distribution of NRPS gene families within the Neotyphodium/Epichloë complex

Neotyphodium and Epichloë spp are closely related asexual and sexual endophytic fungi, respectively, that form mutualistic associations with cool season grasses of the subfamily Pooideae. The endophytes confer a number of advantages to their hosts, but also can cause animal toxicoses and these effects are, in many cases, due to the production of fungal secondary metabolites. In filamentous fungi, secondary metabolite genes are commonly clustered and, for those pathways involved in non-ribosomal peptide synthesis, a non-ribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) gene is always found as a key component of the cluster. Members of this gene family encode large multifunctional enzymes that synthesize a diverse range of bioactive compounds and in numerous cases have been shown to serve as pathogenicity or virulence factors, in addition to suggested roles in niche adaptation. We have used a degenerate PCR approach to identify members of the NRPS gene family from symbiotic fungi of the Neotyphodium/Epichloë complex, and have shown that collectively, at least 12 NRPS genes exist within the genomes examined. This suggests that secondary metabolites are important during the life cycles of these fungi with their hosts. Indeed, both the ergovaline and peramine biosynthetic pathways, which confer competitive abilities to Neotyphodium and Epichloë symbioses, contain NRPS genes at their core. The distribution of these genes among different Neotyphodium/Epichloë lineages suggests that a common ancestor contributed most of the complement of NRPS genes, which have been either retained or lost during the evolution of these fungi.