Discovery and overproduction of novel highly bioactive pamamycins through transcriptional engineering of the biosynthetic gene cluster.

BACKGROUND: Pamamycins are a family of highly bioactive macrodiolide polyketides produced by Streptomyces alboniger as a complex mixture of derivatives with molecular weights ranging from 579 to 705 Daltons. The large derivatives are produced as a minor fraction, which has prevented their isolation and thus studies of chemical and biological properties. RESULTS: Herein, we describe the transcriptional engineering of the pamamycin biosynthetic gene cluster (pam BGC), which resulted in the shift in production profile toward high molecular weight derivatives. The pam BGC library was constructed by inserting randomized promoter sequences in front of key biosynthetic operons. The library was expressed in Streptomyces albus strain with improved resistance to pamamycins to overcome sensitivity-related host limitations. Clones with modified pamamycin profiles were selected and the properties of engineered pam BGC were studied in detail. The production level and composition of the mixture of pamamycins was found to depend on balance in expression of the corresponding biosynthetic genes. This approach enabled the isolation of known pamamycins and the discovery of three novel derivatives with molecular weights of 663 Da and higher. One of them, homopamamycin 677A, is the largest described representative of this family of natural products with an elucidated structure. The new pamamycin 663A shows extraordinary activity (IC50 2 nM) against hepatocyte cancer cells as well as strong activity (in the one-digit micromolar range) against a range of Gram-positive pathogenic bacteria. CONCLUSION: By employing transcriptional gene cluster refactoring, we not only enhanced the production of known pamamycins but also discovered novel derivatives exhibiting promising biological activities. This approach has the potential for broader application in various biosynthetic gene clusters, creating a sustainable supply and discovery platform for bioactive natural products.

Anion and ether group influence in protic guanidinium ionic liquids.

Ionic liquids are attractive liquid materials for many advanced applications. For targeted design, in-depth knowledge about their structure-property-relations is urgently needed. We prepared a set of novel protic ionic liquids (PILs) with a guanidinium cation with either an ether or alkyl side chain and different anions. While being a promising cation class, the available data is insufficient to guide design. We measured thermal and transport properties, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra as well as liquid and crystalline structures supported by ab initio computations and were able to obtain a detailed insight into the influence of the anion and the ether substitution on the physical and spectroscopic properties. For the PILs, hydrogen bonding is the main interaction between cation and anion and the H-bond strength is inversely related to the proton affinity of the constituting acid and correlated to the increase of 1H and 15N chemical shifts. Using anions from acids with lower proton affinity leads to proton localization on the cation as evident from NMR spectra and self-diffusion coefficients. In contrast, proton exchange was evident in ionic liquids with triflate and trifluoroacetate anions. Using imide-type anions and ether side groups decreases glass transitions as well as fragility, and accelerated dynamics significantly. In case of the ether guanidinium ionic liquids, the conformation of the side chain adopts a curled structure as the result of dispersion interactions, while the alkyl chains prefer a linear arrangement.

Heterologous Production and Biosynthesis of Threonine-16:0dioic acids with a Hydroxamate Moiety.

Dereplication and genome mining in Streptomyces aureus LU18118 combined with heterologous expression of selected biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) led to the discovery of various threonine-16:0dioic acids named lipothrenins. Lipothrenins consist of the core elements l-Thr, d-allo-Thr, or Dhb, which are linked to hexadecanedioic acid by an amide bond. The main compound lipothrenin A (1) carries the N-hydroxylated d-allo form of threonine and expresses a siderophore activity. The lipothrenin BGC was analyzed by a series of deletion experiments. As a result, a variety of interesting genes involved in the recruitment and selective activation of linear 16:0dioic acids, amide bond formation, and the epimerization of l-Thr were revealed. Furthermore, a diiron N-oxygenase was identified that may be directly involved in the monooxygenation of the amide bond. This is divergent from the usual hydroxamate formation mechanism in siderophores, which involves hydroxylation of the free amine prior to amide bond formation. Siderophore activity was observed for all N-hydroxylated lipothrenins by application of the CAS assay method.

New Scabimycins A-C Isolated from Streptomyces acidiscabies (Lu19992).

Peptide natural products displaying a wide range of biological activities have become important drug candidates over the years. Microorganisms have been a powerful source of such bioactive peptides, and Streptomyces have yielded many novel natural products thus far. In an effort to uncover such new, meaningful compounds, the metabolome of Streptomyces acidiscabies was analyzed thoroughly. Three new compounds, scabimycins A-C (1-3), were discovered, and their chemical structures were elucidated by NMR spectroscopy. The relative and absolute configurations were determined using ROESY NMR experiments and advanced Marfey's method.

Rapid Organocatalytic Formation of Carbon Monoxide: Application towards Carbonylative Cross Couplings.

Herein, the first organocatalytic method for the transformation of non-derivatized formic acid into carbon monoxide (CO) is introduced. Formylpyrrolidine (FPyr) and trichlorotriazine (TCT), which is a cost-efficient commodity chemical, enable this decarbonylation. Utilization of dimethylformamide (DMF) as solvent and catalyst even allows for a rapid CO generation at room temperature. Application towards four different carbonylative cross coupling protocols demonstrates the high synthetic utility and versatility of the new approach. Remarkably, this also comprehends a carbonylative Sonogashira reaction at room temperature employing intrinsically difficult electron-deficient aryl iodides. Commercial 13 C-enriched formic acid facilitates the production of radiolabeled compounds as exemplified by the pharmaceutical Moclobemide. Finally, comparative experiments verified that the present method is highly superior to other protocols for the activation of carboxylic acids.

Engineering of Streptomyces lividans for heterologous expression of secondary metabolite gene clusters.

BACKGROUND: Heterologous expression of secondary metabolite gene clusters is used to achieve increased production of desired compounds, activate cryptic gene clusters, manipulate clusters from genetically unamenable strains, obtain natural products from uncultivable species, create new unnatural pathways, etc. Several Streptomyces species are genetically engineered for use as hosts for heterologous expression of gene clusters. S. lividans TK24 is one of the most studied and genetically tractable actinobacteria, which remain untapped. It was therefore important to generate S. lividans chassis strains with clean metabolic backgrounds. RESULTS: In this study, we generated a set of S. lividans chassis strains by deleting endogenous gene clusters and introducing additional φC31 attB loci for site-specific integration of foreign DNA. In addition to the simplified metabolic background, the engineered S. lividans strains had better growth characteristics than the parental strain in liquid production medium. The utility of the developed strains was validated by expressing four secondary metabolite gene clusters responsible for the production of different classes of natural products. Engineered strains were found to be superior to the parental strain in production of heterologous natural products. Furthermore, S. lividans-based strains were better producers of amino acid-based natural products than other tested common hosts. Expression of a Streptomyces albus subsp. chlorinus NRRL B-24108 genomic library in the modified S. lividans ΔYA9 and S. albus Del14 strains resulted in the production of 7 potentially new compounds, only one of which was produced in both strains. CONCLUSION: The constructed S. lividans-based strains are a great complement to the panel of heterologous hosts for actinobacterial secondary metabolite gene expression. The expansion of the number of such engineered strains will contribute to an increased success rate in isolation of new natural products originating from the expression of genomic and metagenomic libraries, thus raising the chance to obtain novel biologically active compounds.

Loseolamycins: A Group of New Bioactive Alkylresorcinols Produced after Heterologous Expression of a Type III PKS from Micromonospora endolithica.

Natural products are a valuable source of biologically active compounds with potential applications in medicine and agriculture. Unprecedented scaffold diversity of natural products and biocatalysts from their biosynthetic pathways are of fundamental importance. Heterologous expression and refactoring of natural product biosynthetic pathways are generally regarded as a promising approach to discover new secondary metabolites of microbial origin. Here, we present the identification of a new group of alkylresorcinols after transcriptional activation and heterologous expression of the type III polyketide synthase of Micromonospora endolithica. The most abundant compounds loseolamycins A1 and A2 have been purified and their structures were elucidated by NMR. Loseolamycins contain an unusual branched hydroxylated aliphatic chain which is provided by the host metabolism and is incorporated as a starter fatty acid unit. The isolated loseolamycins show activity against gram-positive bacteria and inhibit the growth of the monocot weed Agrostis stolonifera in a germination assay. The biosynthetic pathway leading to the production of loseolamycins is proposed in this paper.

Multiple Ether-Functionalized Phosphonium Ionic Liquids as Highly Fluid Electrolytes.

Ionic liquids (ILs) are promising electrolytes, although their often high viscosity remains a serious drawback. The latter can be addressed by the introduction of multiple ether functionalization. Based on the highly atom efficient synthesis of tris(2-ethoxyethyl) phosphine, several new phosphonium ionic liquids were prepared, which allows studying the influence of the ether side chains. Their most important physicochemical properties have been determined and will be interpreted using established approaches like ionicity, hole theory, and the Walden plot. There is striking evidence that the properties of phosphonium ionic liquids with the methanesulfonate anion are dominated by aggregation, whereas the two triple ether functionalized ILs with the highest fluidity show almost ideal behavior with other factors being dominant. It is furthermore found that the deviation from ideality is not significantly changed upon introduction of the ether side chains, although a very beneficial impact on the fluidity of ILs is observed. Multiple ether functionalization therefore proves as a powerful tool to overcome the disadvantages of phosphonium ionic liquids with large cations.

Substrate Hunting for the Myxobacterial CYP260A1 Revealed New 1α-Hydroxylated Products from C-19 Steroids.

Cytochromes P450 catalyze a variety of synthetically useful reactions. However, it is difficult to determine their physiological or artificial functions when a plethora of orphan P450 systems are present in a genome. CYP260A1 from Sorangium cellulosum So ce56 is a new member among the 21 available P450s in the strain. To identify putative substrates for CYP260A1 we used high-throughput screening of a compound library (ca. 17,000 ligands). Structural analogues of the type I hits were searched for biotechnologically relevant compounds, and this led us to select C-19 steroids as potential substrates. We identified efficient surrogate redox partners for CYP260A1, and an Escherichia coli-based whole-cell biocatalyst system was developed to convert testosterone, androstenedione, and their derivatives methyltestosterone and 11-oxoandrostenedione. A detailed (1) H and (13) C NMR characterization of the product(s) from C-19 steroids revealed that CYP260A1 is the very first 1α-steroid hydroxylase.

Human CYP27A1 catalyzes hydroxylation of ß-sitosterol and ergosterol.

ß-Sitosterol and ergosterol are the equivalents of cholesterol in plants and fungi, respectively, and common sterols in the human diet. In the current work, both were identified as novel CYP27A1 substrates by in vitro experiments applying purified human CYP27A1 and its redox partners adrenodoxin (Adx) and adrenodoxin reductase (AdR). A Bacillus megaterium based biocatalyst recombinantly expressing the same proteins was utilized for the conversion of the substrates to obtain sufficient amounts of the novel products for a structural NMR analysis. ß-Sitosterol was found to be converted into 26-hydroxy-ß-sitosterol and 29-hydroxy-ß-sitosterol, whereas ergosterol was converted into 24-hydroxyergosterol, 26-hydroxyergosterol and 28-hydroxyergosterol.

Genetic engineering of Bacillus megaterium for high-yield production of the major teleost progestogens 17α,20ß-di- and 17α,20ß,21α-trihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one.

17α,20ß-Dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (17α,20ßDiOH-P) and 17α,20ß,21α-trihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (20ßOH-RSS) are the critical hormones required for oocyte maturation in fish. We utilized B. megaterium's endogenous 20ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (20ßHSD) for the efficient production of both progestogens after genetically modifying the microorganism to reduce side-product formation. First, the gene encoding the autologous cytochrome P450 CYP106A1 was deleted, resulting in a strain devoid of any steroid hydroxylation activity. Cultivation of this strain in the presence of 17α-hydroxyprogesterone (17αOH-P) led to the formation of 17α,20α-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one (17α,20αDiOH-P) as a major and 17α,20ßDiOH-P as a minor product. Four enzymes were identified as 20αHSDs and their genes deleted to yield a strain with no 20αHSD activity. The 3-oxoacyl-(acyl-carrier-protein) reductase FabG was found to exhibit 20ßHSD-activity and overexpressed to create a biocatalyst yielding 0.22g/L 17α,20ßDiOH-P and 0.34g/L 20ßOH-RSS after 8h using shake-flask cultivation, thus obtaining products that are at least a thousand times more expensive than their substrates.

Metabolism of Oral Turinabol by Human Steroid Hormone-Synthesizing Cytochrome P450 Enzymes.

The human mitochondrial cytochrome P450 enzymes CYP11A1, CYP11B1, and CYP11B2 are involved in the biosynthesis of steroid hormones. CYP11A1 catalyzes the side-chain cleavage of cholesterol, and CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 catalyze the final steps in the biosynthesis of gluco- and mineralocorticoids, respectively. This study reveals their additional capability to metabolize the xenobiotic steroid oral turinabol (OT; 4-chlor-17ß-hydroxy-17α-methylandrosta-1,4-dien-3-on), which is a common doping agent. By contrast, microsomal steroid hydroxylases did not convert OT. Spectroscopic binding assays revealed dissociation constants of 17.7 µM and 5.4 µM for CYP11B1 and CYP11B2, respectively, whereas no observable binding spectra emerged for CYP11A1. Catalytic efficiencies of OT conversion were determined to be 46 min(-1) mM(-1) for CYP11A1, 741 min(-1) mM(-1) for CYP11B1, and 3338 min(-1) mM(-1) for CYP11B2, which is in the same order of magnitude as for the natural substrates but shows a preference of CYP11B2 for OT conversion. Products of OT metabolism by the CYP11B subfamily members were produced at a milligram scale with a recombinant Escherichia coli-based whole-cell system. They were identified by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to be 11ß-OH-OT for both CYP11B isoforms, whereby CYP11B2 additionally formed 11ß,18-diOH-OT and 11ß-OH-OT-18-al, which rearranges to its tautomeric form 11ß,18-expoxy-18-OH-OT. CYP11A1 produces six metabolites, which are proposed to include 2-OH-OT, 16-OH-OT, and 2,16-diOH-OT based on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry analyses. All three enzymes are shown to be inhibited by OT in their natural function. The extent of inhibition thereby depends on the affinity of the enzyme for OT and the strongest effect was demonstrated for CYP11B2. These findings suggest that steroidogenic cytochrome P450 enzymes can contribute to drug metabolism and should be considered in drug design and toxicity studies.

Regioselective Acetylation of C21 Hydroxysteroids by the Bacterial Chloramphenicol Acetyltransferase I.

Chloramphenicol acetyltransferase I (CATI) detoxifies the antibiotic chloramphenicol and confers a corresponding resistance to bacteria. In this study we identified this enzyme as a steroid acetyltransferase and designed a new and efficient Escherichia-coli-based biocatalyst for the regioselective acetylation of C21 hydroxy groups in steroids of pharmaceutical interest. The cells carried a recombinant catI gene controlled by a constitutive promoter. The capacity of the whole-cell system to modify different hydroxysteroids was investigated, and NMR spectroscopy revealed that all substrates were selectively transformed into the corresponding 21-acetoxy derivatives. The biotransformation was optimized, and the reaction mechanism is discussed on the basis of a computationally modeled substrate docking into the crystal structure of CATI.

Characterization of the gene cluster CYP264B1-geoA from Sorangium cellulosum So ce56: biosynthesis of (+)-eremophilene and its hydroxylation.

Terpenoids can be found in almost all forms of life; however, the biosynthesis of bacterial terpenoids has not been intensively studied. This study reports the identification and functional characterization of the gene cluster CYP264B1-geoA from Sorangium cellulosum So ce56. Expression of the enzymes and synthesis of their products for NMR analysis and X-ray diffraction were carried out by employing an Escherichia coli whole-cell conversion system that provides the geoA substrate farnesyl pyrophosphate through simultaneous overexpression of the mevalonate pathway genes. The geoA product was identified as a novel sesquiterpene, and assigned NMR signals unambiguously proved that geoA is an (+)-eremophilene synthase. The very tight binding of (+)-eremophilene (∼0.40 µM), which is also available in S. cellulosum So ce56, and its oxidation by CYP264B1 suggest that the CYP264B1-geoA gene cluster is required for the biosynthesis of (+)-eremophilene derivatives.

Squalenoylation of Chitosan: A Platform for Drug Delivery?

The present study describes the synthesis of chitosan-squalene (chitosan-SQ), a unique amphiphilic chitosan derivative, which enables the efficient formation of nanoparticles in acetate buffer by self-assembly. The influence of different parameters on the nanoparticle size such as percentage of substitution, pH of the acetate buffer, concentration in chitosan-SQ, and time of stirring was studied. It could be demonstrated that this new polymer was nontoxic to cells, biodegradable, and preserved the anti-infective properties of the initial chitosan.1 Moreover, chitosan-SQ showed good carrier properties by allowing the encapsulation of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic model drug compounds.

Process development for the production of 15ß-hydroxycyproterone acetate using Bacillus megaterium expressing CYP106A2 as whole-cell biocatalyst.

BACKGROUND: CYP106A2 from Bacillus megaterium ATCC 13368 was first identified as a regio- and stereoselective 15ß-hydroxylase of 3-oxo-∆4-steroids. Recently, it was shown that besides 3-oxo-∆4-steroids, 3-hydroxy-∆5-steroids as well as di- and triterpenes can also serve as substrates for this biocatalyst. It is highly selective towards the 15ß position, but the 6ß, 7α/ß, 9α, 11α and 15α positions have also been described as targets for hydroxylation. Based on the broad substrate spectrum and hydroxylating capacity, it is an excellent candidate for the production of human drug metabolites and drug precursors. RESULTS: In this work, we demonstrate the conversion of a synthetic testosterone derivative, cyproterone acetate, by CYP106A2 under in vitro and in vivo conditions. Using a Bacillus megaterium whole-cell system overexpressing CYP106A2, sufficient amounts of product for structure elucidation by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were obtained. The product was characterized as 15ß-hydroxycyproterone acetate, the main human metabolite. Since the product is of pharmaceutical interest, our aim was to intensify the process by increasing the substrate concentration and to scale-up the reaction from shake flasks to bioreactors to demonstrate an efficient, yet green and cost-effective production. Using a bench-top bioreactor and the recombinant Bacillus megaterium system, both a fermentation and a transformation process were successfully implemented. To improve the yield and product titers for future industrial application, the main bottlenecks of the reaction were addressed. Using 2-hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin, an effective bioconversion of 98% was achieved using 1 mM substrate concentration, corresponding to a product formation of 0.43 g/L, at a 400 mL scale. CONCLUSIONS: Here we describe the successful scale-up of cyproterone acetate conversion from shake flasks to bioreactors, using the CYP106A2 enzyme in a whole-cell system. The substrate was converted to its main human metabolite, 15ß-hydroxycyproterone acetate, a highly interesting drug candidate, due to its retained antiandrogen activity but significantly lower progestogen properties than the mother compound. Optimization of the process led to an improvement from 55% to 98% overall conversion, with a product formation of 0.43 g/L, approaching industrial process requirements and a future large-scale application.

Lefetamine, a controlled drug and pharmaceutical lead of new designer drugs: synthesis, metabolism, and detectability in urine and human liver preparations using GC-MS, LC-MS(n), and LC-high resolution-MS/MS.

Lefetamine (N,N-dimethyl-1,2-diphenylethylamine, L-SPA) was marketed as an opioid analgesic in Japan and Italy. After being widely abused, it became a controlled substance. It seems to be a pharmaceutical lead for designer drugs because N-ethyl-1,2-diphenylethylamine (NEDPA) and N-iso-propyl-1,2-diphenylethylamine (NPDPA) were confiscated by the German police. In contrast to these derivatives, metabolism and detectability of lefetamine were not studied yet. Therefore, phase I and II metabolism should be elucidated and correlated to the derivatives. Also the detectability using the authors' standard urine screening approaches (SUSA) needed to be checked. As lefetamine was commercially unavailable, it had to be synthesized first. For metabolism studies, a high dose of lefetamine was administered to rats and the urine samples worked up in different ways. Separation and analysis were achieved by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography-high resolution-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-HR-MS/MS). In accordance with NEPDA and NPDPA, the following metabolic steps could be proposed: N-oxidation, N-dealkylation, mono- and bis-hydroxylation of the benzene ring, and hydroxylation of the phenyl ring only after N-dealkylation. The di-hydroxy metabolites were conjugated by methylation of one hydroxy group, and hydroxy metabolites by glucuronidation or sulfation. All initial metabolites could also be detected in human liver preparations. After a therapeutic lefetamine dose, the bis-nor, bis-nor-hydroxy, nor-hydroxy, nor-di-hydroxy metabolites could be detected using the authors' GC-MS SUSA and the nor-hydroxy-glucuronide by the LC-MS(n) SUSA. Thus, an intake of lefetamine should be detectable in human urine assuming similar pharmacokinetics.

GC-MS, LC-MS(n), LC-high resolution-MS(n), and NMR studies on the metabolism and toxicological detection of mesembrine and mesembrenone, the main alkaloids of the legal high "Kanna" isolated from Sceletium tortuosum.

Mesembrine and mesembrenone are the main alkaloids of Sceletium tortuosum, a plant species that was used for sedation and analgesia by the KhoiSan, previously known as Hottentots, a tribe in South Africa. After fermentation, the obtained preparation called "Kanna" or "Kougoed" was used by chewing, smoking, or sniffing. Today, Kanna gains popularity by drug users as legal high. For monitoring such consumption, metabolism studies are mandatory because the metabolites are mostly the analytical targets, especially in urine. Therefore, the metabolism of both alkaloids was investigated in rat urine and pooled human liver preparations after several sample work-up procedures. As both alkaloids were not commercially available, they were isolated from plant material by Soxhlet extraction, and their identity confirmed by NMR. The metabolites were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and liquid chromatography coupled to linear ion trap high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HR-MS(n)). Both alkaloids were O- and N-demethylated, dihydrated, and/or hydroxylated at different positions. The phenolic metabolites were partly excreted as glucuronides and/or sulfates. Most of the phase I metabolites identified in rat urine could be detected also in the human liver preparations. After a common user's low dose application of mesembrine, mainly the O- and N demethyl-dihydro, hydroxy, and bis-demethyl-dihydro metabolites, and in case of mesembrenone only the N-demethyl and the N-demethyl-dihydro metabolite could be detected in rat urine using the authors' standard urine screening approaches (SUSA) by GC-MS or LC-MS(n). Thus, it should be possible to monitor a consumption of mesembrine and/or mesembrenone assuming similar pharmacokinetics in humans.

Comparison of CYP106A1 and CYP106A2 from Bacillus megaterium - identification of a novel 11-oxidase activity.

The CYP106A subfamily hydroxylates steroids, diterpenes, and triterpenes in a regioselective and stereoselective manner, which is a challenging task for synthetic chemistry. The well-studied CYP106A2 enzyme, from the Bacillus megaterium strain ATCC 13368, is a highly promising candidate for the pharmaceutical industry. It shares 63 % amino acid sequence identity with CYP106A1 from B. megaterium DSM319, which was recently characterized. A focused steroid library was screened with both CYP106A1 and CYP106A2. Out of the 23 tested steroids, 19 were successfully converted by both enzymes during in vitro and in vivo reactions. Thirteen new substrates were identified for CYP106A1, while the substrate spectrum of CYP106A2 was extended by seven new members. Finally, six chosen steroids were further studied on a preparative scale employing a recombinant B. megaterium MS941 whole-cell system, yielding sufficient amounts of product for structure characterization by nuclear magnetic resonance. The hydroxylase activity was confirmed at positons 6ß, 7ß, 9α, and 15ß. In addition, the CYP106A subfamily showed unprecedented 11-oxidase activity, converting 11ß-hydroxysteroids to their 11-keto derivatives. This novel reaction and the diverse hydroxylation positions on pharmaceutically relevant compounds underline the role of the CYP106A subfamily in drug development and production.

Steroid conversion with CYP106A2 - production of pharmaceutically interesting DHEA metabolites.

BACKGROUND: Steroids are lipophilic compounds with a gonane skeleton and play an important role in higher organisms. Due to different functionalizations - mainly hydroxylations - at the steroid molecule, they vary highly in their mode of action. The pharmaceutical industry is, therefore, interested in hydroxysteroids as therapeutic agents. The insertion of hydroxyl groups into a steroid core, however, is hardly accomplishable by classical chemical means; that is because microbial steroid hydroxylations are investigated and applied since decades. CYP106A2 is a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase from Bacillus megaterium ATCC 13368, which was first described in the late 1970s and which is capable to hydroxylate a variety of 3-oxo-delta4 steroids at position 15beta. CYP106A2 is a soluble protein, easy to express and to purify in high amounts, which makes this enzyme an interesting target for biotechnological purposes. RESULTS: In this work a focused steroid library was screened in vitro for new CYP106A2 substrates using a reconstituted enzyme assay. Five new substrates were identified, including dehydroepiandrosterone and pregnenolone. NMR-spectroscopy revealed that both steroids are mainly hydroxylated at position 7beta. In order to establish a biotechnological system for the preparative scale production of 7beta-hydroxylated dehydroepiandrosterone, whole-cell conversions with growing and resting cells of B. megaterium ATCC1336 the native host of CYP1062 and also with resting cells of a recombinant B. megaterium MS941 strain overexpressing CYP106A2 have been conducted and conversion rates of 400 muM/h (115 mg/l/h) were obtained. Using the B. megaterium MS941 overexpression strain, the selectivity of the reaction was improved from 0.7 to 0.9 for 7beta-OH-DHEA. CONCLUSIONS: In this work we describe CYP106A2 for the first time as a regio-selective hydroxylase for 3-hydroxy-delta5 steroids. DHEA was shown to be converted to 7beta-OH-DHEA which is a highly interesting human metabolite, supposed to act as neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory and immune-modulatory agent. Optimization of the whole-cell system using different B. megaterium strains lead to a conversion of DHEA with B. megaterium showing high selectivity and conversion rates and displaying a volumetric yield of 103 mg/l/h 7beta-OH-DHEA.