Isolation and Functional Characterization of New Terpene Synthase Genes from Traditional Edible Plants.

Terpene synthase (TPS) genes were isolated and functionally characterized from three traditional edible plants, Acanthopanax sciadophylloides ("Koshiabura") and Acanthopanax sieboldianus ("Himeukogi"), belonging to the family Araliaceae, and Curcuma zedoaria (zedoary, "Gajutsu"), belonging to the family Zingiberaceae. These plants emit characteristic fragrances and are used for traditional foods and folk medicines. From their fragrant tissues, i.e., sprouts of Araliaceae plants and developing rhizomes of zedoary, total RNAs were extracted and reverse transcribed. The resultant cDNAs were used for degenerate PCR followed by rapid amplification of cDNA ends. From the contig sequences obtained, full-length Tps genes were amplified by PCR with newly synthesized primer sets. The isolated full-length genes were introduced into engineered Escherichia coli cells, which can utilize acetoacetate to synthesize farnesyl diphosphate, the substrate for TPSs, through the mevalonate pathway. TPS products synthesized in the transformed E. coli cells were analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and optical rotation. Consequently, the isolated Tps genes were found to encode ß-caryophyllene synthase, germacrene D synthase, linalool/(3S)-(+)-nerolidol synthase, ß-eudesmol synthase, and germacrene B synthase. These results lead us to expect that some of the effective ingredients in folk medicines are volatile terpenes and that intake of traditional foods including these edible plants would have some positive effects on our health.

Sesquiterpene Synthase-Catalysed Formation of a New Medium-Sized Cyclic Terpenoid Ether from Farnesyl Diphosphate Analogues.

Terpene synthases catalyse the first step in the conversion of prenyl diphosphates to terpenoids. They act as templates for their substrates to generate a reactive conformation, from which a Mg2+ -dependent reaction creates a carbocation-PPi ion pair that undergoes a series of rearrangements and (de)protonations to give the final terpene product. This tight conformational control was exploited for the (R)-germacrene A synthase- and germacradien-4-ol synthase-catalysed formation of a medium-sized cyclic terpenoid ether from substrates containing nucleophilic functional groups. Farnesyl diphosphate analogues with a 10,11-epoxide or an allylic alcohol were efficiently converted to a 11-membered cyclic terpenoid ether that was characterised by HRMS and NMR spectroscopic analyses. Further experiments showed that other sesquiterpene synthases, including aristolochene synthase, δ-cadinene synthase and amorphadiene synthase, yielded this novel terpenoid from the same substrate analogues. This work illustrates the potential of terpene synthases for the efficient generation of structurally and functionally novel medium-sized terpene ethers.

Molecular cloning, expression, purification, and functional characterization of dammarenediol synthase from Panax ginseng.

The objective of this study is to clone and charecterize the expression of dammarenediol synthase gene and then to determine the relationship between the expression of dammarenediol synthase gene that is involved in the ginsenoside biosynthetic pathway and the ginsenoside content. A cDNA phage library was constructed from a five-year-old ginseng root. The cDNA library was screened for the dammarenediol synthase gene by using its specific primers. It was further cloned and expressed in pET-30a vector. The recombinant plasmid pET-30a-DS was expressed in Rosetta E. coli. The recombinant DS protein was purified by affinity chromatography. The production of dammarenediol was detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Results showed that dammarenediol synthase gene was cloned from the cDNA library and was expressed in Rosetta E. coli and the SDS-PAGE analysis showed the presence of purified DS protein. LS-MS showed the activity of DS protein, as the protein content increases the dammarenediol increases. Our results indicate that the recombinant dammarenediol synthase protein could increase the production of dammarenediol and the expression of DS played a vital role in the biosynthesis of ginsenosides in P. ginseng.

IeCPS2 is potentially involved in the biosynthesis of pharmacologically active Isodon diterpenoids rather than gibberellin.

The traditional Chinese medicinal plant, Isodon L., is remarkably rich in pharmacologically active ent-kaurane diterpenoids of diverse carbon skeletons. In an effort to create a resource for gene discovery and elucidate the biosynthesis of Isodonent-kaurane diterpenoids, three cDNAs (named IeCPS1, IeCPS2 and IeCPS2a) were isolated putatively encoding copalyl diphosphate synthases from Isodoneriocalyx leaves. Recombinant proteins of IeCPS1 and IeCPS2 were expressed, respectively, in Escherichia coli, and were shown to specifically convert geranylgeranyl diphosphate to copalyl diphosphate as demonstrated by GC-MS analyses. Based on tissue-specific expression and metabolic localization studies, the IeCPS2 transcripts were detected in young and mature leaves where the dominant ent-kaurane diterpenoid maoecrystal B accumulates, whereas no detectable expression of IeCPS2 was observed in germinating seeds where the gibberellin biosynthetic pathway is usually active. In addition, no evidence for maoecrystal B was found in germinating seeds. On the other hand, IeCPS1 transcripts significantly accumulated in germinating seeds as well as in leaves. The biochemical and molecular genetic evidence thus indicated that IeCPS2 is a copalyl diphosphate synthase potentially involved in the biosynthesis of Isodon diterpenoids in leaves, while IeCPS1 is more probably relevant to gibberellin formation and may, in addition, participate in Isodonent-kaurane diterpenoid production.

Nonradioactive assay for detecting isoprenyl diphosphate synthase activity in crude plant extracts using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry.

Terpenoids form the largest class of plant metabolites involved in primary and secondary metabolism. Isoprenyl diphosphate synthases (IDSs) catalyze the condensation of the C(5) terpenoid building blocks, isopentenyl diphosphate and dimethylallyl diphosphate, to form geranyl diphosphate (C(10)), farnesyl diphosphate (C(15)), and geranylgeranyl diphosphate (C(20)). These branch point reactions control the flow of metabolites that act as precursors to each of the major terpene classes-monoterpenes, sequiterpenes, and diterpenes, respectively. Thus accurate and easily performed assays of IDS enzyme activity are critical to increase our knowledge about the regulation of terpene biosynthesis. Here we describe a new and sensitive nonradioactive method for carrying out IDS assays using liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) to detect the short-chain prenyl diphosphate products directly without dephosphorylation. Furthermore, we were able to separate cisoid and transoid isomers of both C(10) enzyme products (geranyl diphosphate and neryl diphosphate) and three C(15) products [(E,E)-, (Z,E)-, and (Z,Z)-farnesyl diphosphate]. By applying the method to crude protein extracts from various organs of Arabidopsis thaliana, Nicotiana attenuata, Populus trichocarpa, and Picea abies, we could determine their IDS activity in a reproducible fashion.

NMR for direct determination of K(m) and V(max) of enzyme reactions based on the Lambert W function-analysis of progress curves.

(1)H NMR spectroscopy was used to follow the cleavage of sucrose by invertase. The parameters of the enzyme's kinetics, K(m) and V(max), were directly determined from progress curves at only one concentration of the substrate. For comparison with the classical Michaelis-Menten analysis, the reaction progress was also monitored at various initial concentrations of 3.5 to 41.8mM. Using the Lambert W function the parameters K(m) and V(max) were fitted to obtain the experimental progress curve and resulted in K(m)=28mM and V(max)=13µM/s. The result is almost identical to an initial rate analysis that, however, costs much more time and experimental effort. The effect of product inhibition was also investigated. Furthermore, we analyzed a much more complex reaction, the conversion of farnesyl diphosphate into (+)-germacrene D by the enzyme germacrene D synthase, yielding K(m)=379µM and k(cat)=0.04s(-1). The reaction involves an amphiphilic substrate forming micelles and a water insoluble product; using proper controls, the conversion can well be analyzed by the progress curve approach using the Lambert W function.

[Optimizing expression and purification of recombinant Salvia miltiorrhiza copalyl diphosphate synthase protein in E. coli and preparation of rabbit antiserum against SmCPS].

The expression plasmid pET32CPS harboring SmCPS gene was transformed into E. coli BL21 trxB (DE3) resulting in recombinant strain E. coli [pET32CPS]. The induction of E. coli [pET32CPS] in different temperatures, induction time, IPTG concentrations and A600 values of E. coli were performed. The optimal expression conditions of SmCPS were characterized according to the orthogonal analysis, and the ratio of the interest protein to total proteins reached to 35.6%. The recombinant SmCPS protein purified by Ni2+ affinity chromatography column was identified by SDS-PAGE and Western blotting, and then used for rabbit immunization. The titer of the rabbit antiserum against SmCPS was about 1:24 300 after the third immunization, and could specifically recognize the antigen of SmCPS protein by Western blotting analysis. The successful preparation of polyclonal antibody against SmCPS laid a foundation for further correlative study between expression of SmCPS and the production of tanshinones in protein level.

Isolation and functional characterization of a beta-eudesmol synthase, a new sesquiterpene synthase from Zingiber zerumbet Smith.

In this paper, we have identified a new sesquiterpene synthase gene (ZSS2) from Zingiber zerumbet Smith. Functional expression of ZSS2 in Escherichia coli and in vitro enzyme assay showed that the encoded enzyme catalyzed the formation of beta-eudesmol and five additional by-products. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that ZSS2 transcript accumulation in rhizomes has strong seasonal variations. To further confirm the enzyme activity of ZSS2 and to assess the potential for metabolic engineering of beta-eudesmol production, we introduced a gene cluster encoding six enzymes of the mevalonate pathway into E. coli and coexpressed it with ZSS2. When supplemented with mevalonate, the engineered E. coli produced a similar sesquiterpene profile to that produced in the in vitro enzyme assay, and the yield of beta-eudesmol reached 100 mg/L.

Cloning, expression, purification and characterization of recombinant (+)-germacrene D synthase from Zingiber officinale.

A cDNA clone encoding a sesquiterpene synthase, (+)-germacrene D synthase, has been isolated from ginger (Zingiber officinale). The full-length cDNA (AY860846) contains a 1650-bp open reading frame coding for 550 amino acids (63.8kDa) with a theoretical pI=5.59. The deduced amino acid sequence is 30-46% identical with sequences of other sesquiterpene synthases from angiosperms. The recombinant enzyme, produced in Escherichia coli, catalyzed the formation of a major product, (+)-germacrene D (50.2% of total sesquiterpenoids produced) and a co-product, germacrene B (17.1%) and a number of minor by-products. The optimal pH for the recombinant enzyme is around 7.5. Substantial (+)-germacrene D synthase activity is observed in the presence of Mg2+, Mn2+, Ni2+ or Co2+, while the enzyme is inactive when Cu2+ or Zn2+ is used. The Km- and kcat-values are 0.88 microM and 3.34 x 10(-3) s(-1), respectively. A reaction mechanism involving a double 1,2-hydride shift has been established using deuterium labeled substrates in combination with GC-MS analysis.

Expression, purification, and characterization of recombinant amorpha-4,11-diene synthase from Artemisia annua L.

A cDNA clone encoding amorpha-4,11-diene synthase from Artemisia annua was subcloned into a bacterial expression vector in frame with a His6-tag. Recombinant amorpha-4,11-diene synthase was produced in Escherichia coli and purified to apparent homogeneity. The enzyme showed pH optimum at pH 6.5, and a minimum at pH 7.5. Substantial activity was observed in the presence of Mg2+, Mn2+ or Co2+ as cofactor. The enzyme exhibits a low activity in the presence of Ni2+ and essentially no activity with Cu2+ or Zn2+. The sesquiterpenoids produced from farnesyl diphosphate in the presence of Mg2+ were analyzed by GC-MS. In addition to amorpha-4,11-diene, 15 sesquiterpenoids were produced. Only small quantitative differences in product pattern were observed at pH 6.5, 7.5, or 9.5. Amorpha-4,11-diene synthase showed significant increased product selectivity in the presence of Mn2+ or Co2+. Km for farnesyl diphosphate was 3.3, 8.0, and 0.7 microM in the presence of Mg2+, Mn2+ or Co2+, respectively. The corresponding kcat-values were 6.8, 15.0, and 1.3 x 10(-3) s(-1), respectively. Km and kcat for geranyl diphosphate were 16.9 microM and 7.0 x 10(-4) s(-1), respectively, at pH 6.5, in the presence of Mn2+.

Identification and subcellular localization of two solanesyl diphosphate synthases from Arabidopsis thaliana.

Two solanesyl diphosphate synthases, designated SPS1 and SPS2, which are responsible for the synthesis of the isoprenoid side chain of either plastoquinone or ubiquinone in Arabidopsis thaliana, were identified. Heterologous expression of either SPS1 or SPS2 allowed the generation of UQ-9 in a decaprenyl diphosphate synthase-defective strain of fission yeast and also in wild-type Escherichia coli. SPS1-GFP was found to localize in the ER while SPS2-GFP localized in the plastid of tobacco BY-2 cells. These two different subcellular localizations are thought to be the reflection of their roles in solanesyl diphosphate synthesis in two different parts: presumably SPS1 and SPS2 for the side chains of ubiquinone and plastoquinone, respectively.

Combinatorial enzymatic assay for the screening of a new class of bacterial cell wall inhibitors.

We have developed a screening assay by thin-layer chromatography (TLC) to identify inhibitors for the bacterial essential enzymes MurA, -B, and -C. Libraries of compounds were synthesized using the mix-and-split combinatorial chemistry approach. Screening of the pooled compounds using the developed assay revealed the presence of many pools active in vitro. Pools of interest were tested for antibacterial activity. Individual molecules in the active pools were synthesized and retested with the TLC assay and with bacteria. We focused on the best five compounds for further analysis. They were tested for inhibition on each of the three enzymes separately, and showed no inhibition of MurA or MurB activity but were all inhibitors of MurC enzyme. This approach yielded interesting lead compounds for the development of novel antibacterial agents.

(+)-(10R)-Germacrene A synthase from goldenrod, Solidago canadensis; cDNA isolation, bacterial expression and functional analysis.

Profiling of sesquiterpene hydrocarbons in extracts of goldenrod, Solidago canadensis, by GC-MS revealed the presence of both enantiomers of germacrene D and lesser amounts of germacrene A, alpha-humulene, and beta-caryophyllene. A similarity-based cloning strategy using degenerate oligonucleotide primers, based on conserved amino acid sequences in known plant sesquiterpene synthases and RT-PCR, resulted in the isolation of a full length sesquiterpene synthase cDNA. Functional expression of the cDNA in E. coli, as an N-terminal thioredoxin fusion protein using the pET32b vector yielded an enzyme that was readily purified by nickel-chelate affinity chromatography. Chiral GC-MS analysis of products from of (3)H- and (2)H-labelled farnesyl diphosphate identified the enzyme as (+)-(10R)-germacrene A synthase. Sequence analysis and molecular modelling was used to compare this enzyme with the mechanistically related epi-aristolochene synthase from tobacco.

Flavanone 8-dimethylallyltransferase in Sophora flavescens cell suspension cultures.

Dimethylallyl diphosphate: naringenin 8-dimethylallyltransferase (EC 2.5.1) was characterized. The enzyme was enantiospecific for (-)-(2S)-naringenin and utilized 3,3-dimethylallyl diphosphate as sole prenyl donor. It required Mg2+ (optimum concentration, 10 mM), and has an optimum pH of 9-10. The apparent Km values for 3,3-dimethylallyl diphosphate and naringenin were 120 and 36 microM, respectively. The microsomal fraction prenylated several other flavanones at the C-8 position less effectively as compared with naringenin. Interestingly, when 2'-hydroxynaringenin was used as a prenyl acceptor, the 8-lavandulyl (sophoraflavanone G) and the 6-dimethylallyl derivatives were formed, together with the 8-dimethylallyl derivative, leachianone G. These results suggest that the 2'-hydroxy group of naringenin plays an important role for the formation of a lavandulyl group.

Amorpha-4,11-diene synthase of Artemisia annua: cDNA isolation and bacterial expression of a terpene synthase involved in artemisinin biosynthesis.

Artemisia annua, an indigenous plant to Korea, contains an antimalarial sesquiterpene, artemisinin. The first committed step of artemisinin biosynthesis is the cyclization of farnesyl diphosphate by a sesquiterpene synthase to produce an amorphane-type ring system. The aims of this research were to molecularly clone and express amorpha-4,11-diene synthase for metabolic engineering. PCR amplification of genomic DNA with a pair of primers, designed from the conserved regions of sesquiterpene synthases of several plants, produced a 184-bp DNA fragment. This fragment was used in Northern blot analysis as a probe, showing approximately 2.2 kb of a single band. Its sequence information was used to produce 2106 bp of a full-length cDNA sequence including 1641 bp of open reading frame for 546 amino acids (kcs12) through a rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). The deduced amino acid sequence displayed 36% identity with 5-epi-aristolochene synthase of Nicotiana tabacum. A soluble fraction of Escherichia coli harboring kcs12 catalyzed the cyclization of farnesyl diphosphate to produce a sesquiterpene, which was identified through GC-MS analysis as amorpha-4,11-diene.

Cloning of nicotianamine synthase genes, novel genes involved in the biosynthesis of phytosiderophores.

Nicotianamine synthase (NAS), the key enzyme in the biosynthetic pathway for the mugineic acid family of phytosiderophores, catalyzes the trimerization of S-adenosylmethionine to form one molecule of nicotianamine. We purified NAS protein and isolated the genes nas1, nas2, nas3, nas4, nas5-1, nas5-2, and nas6, which encode NAS and NAS-like proteins from Fe-deficient barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv Ehimehadaka no. 1) roots. Escherichia coli expressing nas1 showed NAS activity, confirming that this gene encodes a functional NAS. Expression of nas genes as determined by northern-blot analysis was induced by Fe deficiency and was root specific. The NAS genes form a multigene family in the barley and rice genomes.

Germacrene C synthase from Lycopersicon esculentum cv. VFNT cherry tomato: cDNA isolation, characterization, and bacterial expression of the multiple product sesquiterpene cyclase.

Germacrene C was found by GC-MS and NMR analysis to be the most abundant sesquiterpene in the leaf oil of Lycopersicon esculentum cv. VFNT Cherry, with lesser amounts of germacrene A, guaia-6,9-diene, germacrene B, beta-caryophyllene, alpha-humulene, and germacrene D. Soluble enzyme preparations from leaves catalyzed the divalent metal ion-dependent cyclization of [1-3H]farnesyl diphosphate to these same sesquiterpene olefins, as determined by radio-GC. To obtain a germacrene synthase cDNA, a set of degenerate primers was constructed based on conserved amino acid sequences of related terpenoid cyclases. With cDNA prepared from leaf epidermis-enriched mRNA, these primers amplified a 767-bp fragment that was used as a hybridization probe to screen the cDNA library. Thirty-one clones were evaluated for functional expression of terpenoid cyclase activity in Escherichia coli by using labeled geranyl, farnesyl, and geranylgeranyl diphosphates as substrates. Nine cDNA isolates expressed sesquiterpene synthase activity, and GC-MS analysis of the products identified germacrene C with smaller amounts of germacrene A, B, and D. None of the expressed proteins was active with geranylgeranyl diphosphate; however, one truncated protein converted geranyl diphosphate to the monoterpene limonene. The cDNA inserts specify a deduced polypeptide of 548 amino acids (Mr = 64,114), and sequence comparison with other plant sesquiterpene cyclases indicates that germacrene C synthase most closely resembles cotton delta-cadinene synthase (50% identity).