Production of Prodiginines Is Part of a Programmed Cell Death Process in Streptomyces coelicolor.

ABSTRACT: Actinobacteria are prolific producers of antitumor antibiotics with antiproliferative activity, but why these bacteria synthetize metabolites with this bioactivity has so far remained a mystery. In this work we raised the hypothesis that under certain circumstances, production of antiproliferative agents could be part of a genetically programmed death of the producing organism. While programmed cell death (PCD) has been well documented when Streptomyces species switch from vegetative (nutrition) to aerial (reproduction) growth, lethal determinants are yet to be discovered. Using DNA-damaging prodiginines of Streptomyces coelicolor as model system, we revealed that, under certain conditions, their biosynthesis is always triggered in the dying zone of the mycelial network prior to morphologi

SUBMITTER: Tenconi E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6087738 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature