Linking a Gene Cluster to Atranorin, a Major Cortical Substance of Lichens, through Genetic Dereplication and Heterologous Expression.

ABSTRACT: The depside and depsidone series compounds of polyketide origin accumulate in the cortical or medullary layers of lichen thalli. Despite the taxonomic and ecological significance of lichen chemistry and its pharmaceutical potentials, there has been no single piece of genetic evidence linking biosynthetic genes to lichen substances. Thus, we systematically analyzed lichen polyketide synthases (PKSs) for categorization and identification of the biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) involved in depside/depsidone production. Our in-depth analysis of the interspecies PKS diversity in the genus Cladonia and a related Antarctic lichen, Stereocaulon alpinum, identified 45 BGC families, linking lichen PKSs to 15 previously characterized PKSs in nonlichenized fungi. Among these, we identified highl

SUBMITTER: Kim W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8262933 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature