Global Awakening of Cryptic Biosynthetic Gene Clusters in Burkholderia thailandensis.

ABSTRACT: Many bacteria encode biosynthetic proteins that produce a vast array of natural products. These compounds are often synthesized during host invasion as they function as virulence factors. In addition, such secondary metabolites have yielded numerous molecular scaffolds with pharmaceutical and clinical importance. The gene clusters that encode proteins responsible for synthesis of these compounds are typically silenced or "cryptic" under laboratory growth conditions, hampering discovery of novel lead compounds. We report here that MftR is a global repressor of secondary metabolite synthesis in Burkholderia thailandensis and that urate functions as a physiologically relevant inducer of gene expression. Biosynthetic gene clusters under MftR control include those associated with production of

SUBMITTER: Gupta A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5732026 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature