Biosynthesis of biologically active terpenoids in the mint family (Lamiaceae).

Covering: 2000 to 2025The Lamiaceae family, the sixth largest among angiosperms, is renowned for its rich diversity of terpenoids, many of which exhibit remarkable bioactivities, including anti-inflammatory, psychoactive, anti-cancer, and antiviral effects. Notable examples with fully elucidated biosynthetic pathways include menthol from peppermint, forskolin from blue spur flower, and carnosol from rosemary. For other key Lamiaceae terpenes-such as the anti-cancer oridonin, the psychoactive salvinorin A, and bioactive marrubiin and vitexilactone-significant progress has been made.

Combinatorial biosynthesis in yeast leads to over 200 diterpenoids.

Diterpenoids form a diverse group of natural products, many of which are or could become pharmaceuticals or industrial chemicals. The modular character of diterpene biosynthesis and the promiscuity of the enzymes involved make combinatorial biosynthesis a promising approach to generate libraries of diverse diterpenoids. Here, we report on the combinatorial assembly in yeast of ten diterpene synthases producing (+)-copalyl diphosphate-derived backbones and four cytochrome P450 oxygenases (CYPs) in diverse combinations.

Respiratory energy demands and scope for demand expansion and destruction.

Nonphotosynthetic plant metabolic processes are powered by respiratory energy, a limited resource that metabolic engineers—like plants themselves—must manage prudently.

Fluoroacetate distribution, response to fluoridation, and synthesis in juvenile Gastrolobium bilobum plants.

Like angiosperms from several other families, the leguminous shrub Gastrolobium bilobum R.Br. produces and accumulates fluoroacetate, indicating that it performs the difficult chemistry needed to make a C-F bond.

The Moderately (D)efficient Enzyme: Catalysis-Related Damage and Its Repair.

Enzymes have life spans. Analysis of life spans, i.e.

Using continuous directed evolution to improve enzymes for plant applications.

Continuous directed evolution of enzymes and other proteins in microbial hosts is capable of outperforming classical directed evolution by executing hypermutation and selection concurrently in vivo, at scale, with minimal manual input. Provided that a target enzyme's activity can be coupled to growth of the host cells, the activity can be improved simply by selecting for growth. Like all directed evolution, the continuous version requires no prior mechanistic knowledge of the target.

CYP76 Oxidation Network of Abietane Diterpenes in Lamiaceae Reconstituted in Yeast.

Rosemary and sage species from Lamiaceae contain high amounts of structurally related but diverse abietane diterpenes. A number of substances from this compound family have potential pharmacological activities and are used in the food and cosmetic industry. This has raised interest in their biosynthesis.

Cytochrome P450 enzymes: A driving force of plant diterpene diversity.

In plant terpene biosynthesis, oxidation of the hydrocarbon backbone produced by terpene synthases is typically carried out by cytochrome P450 oxygenases (CYPs). The modifications introduced by CYPs include hydroxylations, sequential oxidations at one position and ring rearrangements and closures. These reactions significantly expand the structural diversity of terpenoids, but also provide anchoring points for further decorations by various transferases.