Biosynthesis of Fluorinated Peptaibols Using a Site-Directed Building Block Incorporation Approach

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Tyler Graf, Research Scientist (Creator)
Nicholas Oberlies, Patricia A. Sullivan Distinguished Professor of Chemistry (Creator)
Cedric J Pearce, Adjunct Professor (Creator)
Huzefa A. Raja, Research Scientist (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/

Abstract: Synthetic biological approaches, such as site-directed biosynthesis, have contributed to the expansion of the chemical space of natural products, making possible the biosynthesis of unnatural metabolites that otherwise would be difficult to access. Such methods may allow the incorporation of fluorine, an atom rarely found in nature, into complex secondary metabolites. Organofluorine compounds and secondary metabolites have both played pivotal roles in the development of drugs; however, their discovery and development are often via nonintersecting tracks. In this context, we used the biosynthetic machinery of Trichoderma arundinaceum (strain MSX70741) to incorporate a fluorine atom into peptaibol-type molecules in a site-selective manner. Thus, fermentation of strain MSX70741 in media containing ortho- and meta-F-phenylalanine resulted in the biosynthesis of two new fluorine-containing alamethicin F50 derivatives. The fluorinated products were characterized using spectroscopic (1D and 2D NMR, including 19F) and spectrometric (HRESIMS/MSn) methods, and their absolute configurations were established by Marfey’s analysis. Fluorine-containing alamethicin F50 derivatives exhibited potency analogous to the nonfluorinated parent when evaluated against a panel of human cancer cell lines. Importantly, the biosynthesis of fluorinated alamethicin F50 derivatives by strain MSX70741 was monitored in situ using a droplet–liquid microjunction–surface sampling probe coupled to a hyphenated system.

Additional Information

Publication
Journal of Natural Products, 80, 1883-1892
Language: English
Date: 2017
Keywords
natural products research, fluorinated fungi, fungal fermentation, drug discovery

Email this document to