Cytochrome P450 Hydroxylase TnmL Catalyzing Sequential Hydroxylation with an Additional Proofreading Activity in Tiancimycin Biosynthesis

ACS Chem Biol. 2021 Jul 16;16(7):1172-1178. doi: 10.1021/acschembio.1c00365. Epub 2021 Jun 17.

Abstract

Tiancimycin (TNM) A belongs to the anthraquinone-fused subfamily of enediyne natural products, and selected enediynes have been translated into clinical drugs. Previously, inactivation of tnmL in Streptomyces sp. CB03234 resulted in the accumulation of TNM B and TNM E, supporting the functional assignment of TnmL as a cytochrome P450 hydroxylase that catalyzes A-ring modification in TNM A biosynthesis. Herein, we report in vitro characterization of TnmL, revealing that (i) TnmL catalyzes two successive hydroxylations of TNM E, resulting in sequential production of TNM F and TNM C, (ii) TnmL shows a strict substrate preference, with the C-26 side chain playing a critical role in substrate binding, and (iii) TnmL demethylates the C-7 OCH3 group of TNM G, affording TNM F, thereby channeling the shunt product TNM G back into TNM A biosynthesis and representing a rare proofreading logic for natural product biosynthesis. These findings shed new insights into anthraquinone-fused enediyne biosynthesis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anthraquinones / chemistry
  • Anthraquinones / metabolism*
  • Bacterial Proteins / chemistry
  • Bacterial Proteins / metabolism*
  • Biocatalysis
  • Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / chemistry
  • Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System / metabolism*
  • Enediynes / chemistry
  • Enediynes / metabolism*
  • Hydroxylation
  • Streptomyces / enzymology
  • Substrate Specificity

Substances

  • Anthraquinones
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • Enediynes
  • Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System