title: Heterologous production of fosfomycin and identification of the minimal biosynthetic gene cluster.
abstract: Fosfomycin is a clinically utilized, highly effective antibiotic, which is active against methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant pathogens. Here we report the cloning and characterization of a complete fosfomycin biosynthetic cluster from Streptomyces fradiae and heterologous production of fosfomycin in S. lividans. Sequence analysis coupled with gene deletion and disruption revealed that the minimal cluster consists of fom1-4, fomA-D. A LuxR-type activator that was apparently required for heterologous fosfomycin production was also discovered approximately 13 kb away from the cluster and was named fomR. The genes fomE and fomF, previously thought to be involved in fosfomycin biosynthesis, were shown not to be essential by gene disruption. This work provides new insights into fosfomycin biosynthesis and opens the door for fosfomycin overproduction and creation of new analogs via biomolecular pathway engineering.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 600 S. Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Woodyer
authors.forename: Zengyi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Neil L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Kelleher
authors.forename: Joshua A V
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Blodgett
authors.forename: William W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Metcalf
authors.forename: Wilfred A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: van der Donk
authors.forename: Huimin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D019883:Alkyl and Aryl Transferases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000494:pharmacology; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development; D005578:Fosfomycin / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000494:pharmacology; D005810:Multigene Family; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D005578:Fosfomycin; D019883:Alkyl and Aryl Transferases; C022566:UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 1-carboxyvinyltransferase