Algal neurotoxin biosynthesis repurposes the terpene cyclase structural fold into an N-prenyltransferase

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

Biosynthesis of l-4-Chlorokynurenine, an antidepressant prodrug and a non-proteinogenic amino acid found in lipopeptide antibiotics

l-4-Chlorokynurenine (l-4-Cl-Kyn) is a neuropharmaceutical drug candidate that is in development for the treatment of major depressive disorder. Recently, this amino acid was naturally found as a residue in the lipopeptide antibiotic taromycin. Herein, we report the unprecedented conversion of l-tryptophan into l-4-Cl-Kyn catalyzed by four enzymes in the taromycin biosynthetic pathway from the marine bacterium Saccharomonospora sp. CNQ-490. We used genetic, biochemical, structural, and analytical techniques to establish l-4-Cl-Kyn biosynthesis, which is initiated by the flavin-dependent tryptophan chlorinase Tar14 and its flavin reductase partner Tar15. This work revealed the first tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase (Tar13) and kynurenine formamidase (Tar16) enzymes that are selective for chlorinated substrates. The substrate scope of Tar13, Tar14, and Tar16 was examined and revealed intriguing promiscuity, thereby opening doors for the targeted engineering of these enzymes as useful biocatalysts582583948399FAPESP – Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa Do Estado De São Paulo2016/25735-

Bacterial Tetrabromopyrrole Debrominase Shares a Reductive Dehalogenation Strategy with Human Thyroid Deiodinase

Enzymatic dehalogenation is an important and well-studied biological process in both the detoxification and catabolism of small molecules, many of which are anthropogenic in origin. However, dedicated dehalogenation reactions that replace a halogen atom with a hydrogen are rare in the biosynthesis of natural products. In fact, the debrominase Bmp8 is the only known example. It catalyzes the reductive debromination of the coral settlement cue and the potential human toxin 2,3,4,5-tetrabromopyrrole as part of the biosynthesis of the antibiotic pentabromopseudilin. Using a combination of protein crystallography, mutagenesis, and computational modeling, we propose a catalytic mechanism for Bmp8 that is reminiscent of that catalyzed by human deiodinases in the maintenance of thyroid hormones. The identification of the key catalytic residues enabled us to recognize divergent functional homologues of Bmp8. Characterization of one of these homologues demonstrated its debromination activity even though it is found in a completely distinct genomic context. This observation suggests that additional enzymes outside those associated with the tetrabromopyrrole biosynthetic pathway may be able to alter the lifetime of this compound in the environment

Scalable Biosynthesis of the Seaweed Neurochemical, Kainic Acid

Kainic acid, the flagship member of the kainoid family of natural neurochemicals, is a widely used neuropharmacological agent that helped unravel the key role of ionotropic glutamate receptors, including the kainate receptor, in the central nervous system. Worldwide shortages of this seaweed natural product in the year 2000 prompted numerous chemical syntheses, including scalable preparations with as few as six-steps. Herein we report the discovery and characterization of the concise two-enzyme biosynthetic pathway to kainic acid from l-glutamic acid and dimethylallyl pyrophosphate in red macroalgae and show that the biosynthetic genes are co-clustered in genomes of Digenea simplex and Palmaria palmata. Moreover, we applied a key biosynthetic α-ketoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase enzyme in a biotransformation methodology to efficiently construct kainic acid on the gram scale. This study establishes both the feasibility of mining seaweed genomes for their biotechnological prowess

Domoic acid biosynthesis in the red alga Chondria armata suggests a complex evolutionary history for toxin production.

Domoic acid (DA), the causative agent of amnesic shellfish poisoning, is produced by select organisms within two distantly related algal clades: planktonic diatoms and red macroalgae. The biosynthetic pathway to isodomoic acid A was recently solved in the harmful algal bloom-forming diatom Pseudonitzschia multiseries, establishing the genetic basis for the global production of this potent neurotoxin. Herein, we sequenced the 507-Mb genome of Chondria armata, the red macroalgal seaweed from which DA was first isolated in the 1950s, identifying several copies of the red algal DA (rad) biosynthetic gene cluster. The rad genes are organized similarly to the diatom DA biosynthesis cluster in terms of gene synteny, including a cytochrome P450 (CYP450) enzyme critical to DA production that is notably absent in red algae that produce the simpler kainoid neurochemical, kainic acid. The biochemical characterization of the N-prenyltransferase (RadA) and kainoid synthase (RadC) enzymes support a slightly altered DA biosynthetic model in C. armata via the congener isodomoic acid B, with RadC behaving more like the homologous diatom enzyme despite higher amino acid similarity to red algal kainic acid synthesis enzymes. A phylogenetic analysis of the rad genes suggests unique origins for the red macroalgal and diatom genes in their respective hosts, with native eukaryotic CYP450 neofunctionalization combining with the horizontal gene transfer of N-prenyltransferases and kainoid synthases to establish DA production within the algal lineages