Two-carbon folate cycle of commensal Lactobacillus reuteri 6475 gives rise to immunomodulatory ethionine, a source for histone ethylation.

ABSTRACT: Colonization of the gut by certain probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri strains has been associated with reduced risk of inflammatory diseases and colorectal cancer. Previous studies pointed to a functional link between immunomodulation, histamine production, and folate metabolism, the central 1-carbon pathway for the transfer of methyl groups. Using mass spectrometry and NMR spectroscopy, we analyzed folate metabolites of L. reuteri strain 6475 and discovered that the bacterium produces a 2-carbon-transporting folate in the form of 5,10-ethenyl-tetrahydrofolyl polyglutamate. Isotopic labeling permitted us to trace the source of the 2-carbon unit back to acetate of the culture medium. We show that the 2C folate cycle of L. reuteri is capable of transferring 2 carbon atoms to homocysteine to gen

SUBMITTER: Roth D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6404577 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature