z-logo
open-access-imgOpen Access
Bipartite interactions, antibiotic production and biosynthetic potential of the Arabidopsis leaf microbiome
Author(s) -
Eric J. N. Helfrich,
Christine Vogel,
Reiko Ueoka,
Martin Schäfer,
Florian Ryffel,
Daniel B. Müller,
Silke I. Probst,
Markus Kreuzer,
Jörn Piel,
Julia A. Vorholt
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
nature microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.305
H-Index - 79
ISSN - 2058-5276
DOI - 10.1038/s41564-018-0200-0
Subject(s) - phyllosphere , biology , genome , natural product , arabidopsis thaliana , polyketide , gene , arabidopsis , computational biology , genetics , biosynthesis , bacteria , biochemistry , mutant
Plants are colonized by phylogenetically diverse microorganisms that affect plant growth and health. Representative genome-sequenced culture collections of bacterial isolates from model plants, including Arabidopsis thaliana, have recently been established. These resources provide opportunities for systematic interaction screens combined with genome mining to discover uncharacterized natural products. Here, we report on the biosynthetic potential of 224 strains isolated from the A. thaliana phyllosphere. Genome mining identified more than 1,000 predicted natural product biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs), hundreds of which are unknown compared to the MIBiG database of characterized BGCs. For functional validation, we used a high-throughput screening approach to monitor over 50,000 binary strain combinations. We observed 725 inhibitory interactions, with 26 strains contributing to the majority of these. A combination of imaging mass spectrometry and bioactivity-guided fractionation of the most potent inhibitor, the BGC-rich Brevibacillus sp. Leaf182, revealed three distinct natural product scaffolds that contribute to the observed antibiotic activity. Moreover, a genome mining-based strategy led to the isolation of a trans-acyltransferase polyketide synthase-derived antibiotic, macrobrevin, which displays an unprecedented natural product structure. Our findings demonstrate that the phyllosphere is a valuable environment for the identification of antibiotics and natural products with unusual scaffolds.

The content you want is available to Zendy users.

Already have an account? Click here to sign in.
Having issues? You can contact us here