Monoterpene indole alkaloids (MIAs) are a diverse family of complex plant secondary metabolites with many medicinal properties, including the essential anti-cancer therapeutics vinblastine and vincristine1. As MIAs are difficult to chemically synthesize, the world’s supply chain for vinblastine relies on low-yielding extraction and purification of the precursors vindoline and catharanthine from the plant Catharanthus roseus, which is then followed by simple in vitro chemical coupling and reduction to form vinblastine at an industrial scale2,3. Here, we demonstrate the de novo microbial biosynthesis of vindoline and catharanthine using a highly engineered yeast, and in vitro chemical coupling to vinblastine. The study showcases a very long biosynthetic pathway refactored into a microbial cell factory, including 30 enzymatic steps beyond the yeast native metabolites geranyl pyrophosphate and tryptophan to catharanthine and vindoline. In total, 56 genetic edits were performed, including expression of 34 heterologous genes from plants, as well as deletions, knock-downs and overexpression of ten yeast genes to improve precursor supplies towards de novo production of catharanthine and vindoline, from which semisynthesis to vinblastine occurs. As the vinblastine pathway is one of the longest MIA biosynthetic pathways, this study positions yeast as a scalable platform to produce more than 3,000 natural MIAs and a virtually infinite number of new-to-nature analogues.

Secondary metabolome mining efforts in the myxobacterial multiproducer of natural products, Chondromyces crocatus Cm c5, resulted in the isolation and structure elucidation of crocagins, which are novel polycyclic peptides containing a tetrahydropyrrolo[2,3-b]indole core. The gene cluster was identified through an approach combining genome analysis, targeted gene inactivation in the producer, and in vitro experiments. Based on our findings, we developed a biosynthetic scheme for crocagin biosynthesis. These natural products are formed from the three C-terminal amino acids of a precursor peptide and thus belong to a novel class of ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs). We demonstrate that crocagin A binds to the carbon storage regulator protein CsrA, thereby inhibiting the ability of CsrA to bind to its cognate RNA target.

Two macrolide glycosides with a unique scaffold were isolated from cultures of the myxobacterium Pyxidicoccus fallax. Their structures, including absolute configurations, were elucidated by a combination of NMR, MS, degradation, and molecular modeling techniques. Analysis of the proposed biosynthetic gene cluster led to insights into the biosynthesis of the polyketide and confirmed the structure assignment. The more active compound, disciformycin B, potently inhibits methicillin- and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.