Triptolide is a trace natural product of Tripterygium wilfordii. It has antitumor activities, particularly against pancreatic cancer cells. Identification of genes and elucidation of the biosynthetic pathway leading to triptolide are the prerequisite for heterologous bioproduction. Here, we report a reference-grade genome of T. wilfordii with a contig N50 of 4.36 Mb. We show that copy numbers of triptolide biosynthetic pathway genes are impacted by a recent whole-genome triplication event. We further integrate genomic, transcriptomic, and metabolomic data to map a gene-to-metabolite network. This leads to the identification of a cytochrome P450 (CYP728B70) that can catalyze oxidation of a methyl to the acid moiety of dehydroabietic acid in triptolide biosynthesis. We think the genomic resource and the candidate genes reported here set the foundation to fully reveal triptolide biosynthetic pathway and consequently the heterologous bioproduction.

Diterpenes are widely distributed across many biological kingdoms, where they serve a diverse range of physiological functions, and some have significant industrial utility. Their biosynthesis involves class I diterpene synthases (DTSs), whose activity can be preceded by that of class II diterpene cyclases (DTCs). Here, a modular metabolic engineering system was used to examine the promiscuity of DTSs. Strikingly, both a bacterial and plant DTS were found to exhibit extreme promiscuity, reacting with all available precursors with orthogonal activity, producing an olefin or hydroxyl group, respectively. Such DTS promiscuity enables combinatorial biosynthesis, with remarkably high yields for these unoptimized non-native enzymatic combinations (up to 15 mg/L). Indeed, it was possible to readily characterize the 13 unknown products. Notably, 16 of the observed diterpenes were previously inaccessible, and these results provide biosynthetic routes that are further expected to enable assembly of more extended pathways to produce additionally elaborated ‘non-natural’ diterpenoids.

Through site-directed mutagenesis targeted at identification of the catalytic base in the rice (Oryza sativa) syn-copalyl diphosphate synthase OsCPS4, changes to a single residue (H501) were found to induce rearrangement rather than immediate deprotonation of the initially formed bicycle, leading to production of the novel compound syn-halimadienyl diphosphate. These mutational results are combined with quantum chemical calculations to provide insight into the underlying reaction mechanism.

The astounding structural and biological diversities of the large class of terpenoid natural products are imparted by both their complex hydrocarbon backbones and further elaboration by the addition of multiple hydroxyl groups, which provide both solubility and specific binding properties. While the role of terpene synthases (TPSs) in generating hydrocarbons with complex backbones is well known, these also are known to generate (singly) hydroxylated products by the addition of water prior to terminating deprotonation. Here a maize sesquiterpene synthase was unexpectedly found to generate dually hydroxylated products directly from (E,E)-farnesyl diphosphate, primarily eudesmane-2,11-diol, along with two closely related structural isomers. The unprecedented formation of these diols was proposed to proceed via initial addition of water to a germacradienyl intermediate, followed by protonation of the internal carbon-6,7-double-bond in the resulting hedycarol, with subsequent cyclization and further addition of water to an eudesmolyl intermediate. Evidence for the proposed mechanism was provided by labeling studies, as well as site-directed mutagenesis, based on structural modeling, which identified an active site phenylalanine required for the protonation and further elaboration of hedycaryol. This dihydroxylated sesquiterpenoid synthase was specifically expressed in maize roots and induced by pathogen infection, with its major enzymatic product only detected in root exudates or infected roots, suggesting a role in defense. Regardless of the ultimate metabolic fate or physiological role of these diols, this report not only reveals an unanticipated extension of the catalytic prowess of TPSs, but also provides insight into the underlying enzymatic mechanism.

The substrate specificity of enzymes from natural products' metabolism is a topic of considerable interest, with potential biotechnological use implicit in the discovery of promiscuous enzymes. However, such studies are often limited by the availability of substrates and authentic standards for identification of the resulting products. Here, a modular metabolic engineering system is used in a combinatorial biosynthetic approach toward alleviating this restriction. In particular, for studies of the multiply reactive cytochrome P450, ent-kaurene oxidase (KO), which is involved in production of the diterpenoid plant hormone gibberellin. Many, but not all, plants make a variety of related diterpenes, whose structural similarity to ent-kaurene makes them potential substrates for KO. Use of combinatorial biosynthesis enabled analysis of more than 20 such potential substrates, as well as structural characterization of 12 resulting unknown products, providing some insight into the underlying structure-function relationships. These results highlight the utility of this approach for investigating the substrate specificity of enzymes from complex natural products' biosynthesis.labdane-related diterpenoids | cytochrome P450 monooxygenases | natural products | enzyme specificity | gibberellins