Open AccessAspergillus fumigatus alb1 encodes naphthopyrone synthase when expressed in Aspergillus oryzae
Author(s) -
Watanabe Akira,
Fujii Isao,
Tsai HueiFung,
Chang Yun C.,
KwonChung K.J.,
Ebizuka Yutaka
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.2000.tb09356.x
Subject(s) - polyketide synthase , aspergillus fumigatus , aspergillus oryzae , atp synthase , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , biosynthesis , heterologous expression , heterologous , aspergillus , gene , biochemistry , enzyme , polyketide , recombinant dna
Conidial pigment biosynthesis is an important virulence factor in Aspergillus fumigatus , a human fungal pathogen. Involvement of DHN–melanin pathway in the biosynthesis of A. fumigatus conidial pigment implies that the Alb1p polyketide synthase (PKS) is a 1,3,6,8‐tetrahydroxynaphthalene (T4HN) synthase. The Alb1p, however, shows higher sequence similarity to a naphthopyrone synthase than to a T4HN synthase. To clarify the function of Alb1p, the alb1 gene was overexpressed in a heterologous host Aspergillus oryzae . The Alb1p PKS product in this heterologous expression system was identified as heptaketide naphthopyrone instead of pentaketide T4HN. The data suggest that Alb1p is a naphthopyrone synthase.