isopimaric-acid and pimaric-acid

Cytochrome P450 enzymes of the CYP720B subfamily play a central role in the biosynthesis of diterpene resin acids (DRAs), which are a major component of the conifer oleoresin defense system. CYP720Bs exist in families of up to a dozen different members in conifer genomes and fall into four different clades (I-IV). Only two CYP720B members, loblolly pine (Pinus taeda) PtCYP720B1 and Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) PsCYP720B4, have been characterized previously. Both are multisubstrate and multifunctional clade III enzymes, which catalyze consecutive three-step oxidations in the conversion of diterpene olefins to DRAs. These reactions resemble the sequential diterpene oxidations affording ent-kaurenoic acid from ent-kaurene in gibberellin biosynthesis. Here, we functionally characterized the CYP720B clade I enzymes CYP720B2 and CYP720B12 in three different conifer species, Sitka spruce, lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta), and jack pine (Pinus banksiana), and compared their activities with those of the clade III enzymes CYP720B1 and CYP720B4 of the same species. Unlike the clade III enzymes, clade I enzymes were ultimately found not to be active with diterpene olefins but converted the recently discovered, unstable diterpene synthase product 13-hydroxy-8(14)-abietene. Through alternative routes, CYP720B enzymes of both clades produce some of the same profiles of conifer oleoresin DRAs (abietic acid, neoabietic acid, levopimaric acid, and palustric acid), while clade III enzymes also function in the formation of pimaric acid, isopimaric acid, and sandaracopimaric acid. These results highlight the modularity of the specialized (i.e. secondary) diterpene metabolism, which produces conifer defense metabolites through variable combinations of different diterpene synthase and CYP720B enzymes.

Topics: Abietanes; Amino Acid Sequence; Base Sequence; Carboxylic Acids; Cloning, Molecular; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System; Diterpenes; Diterpenes, Kaurane; DNA, Complementary; DNA, Plant; Escherichia coli; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Gene Expression; Gibberellins; Microsomes; Phenanthrenes; Phylogeny; Picea; Pinus; Plant Proteins; Resins, Plant; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Transcriptome

Diterpene resin acids (DRAs) are major components of pine (Pinus spp.) oleoresin. They play critical roles in conifer defense against insects and pathogens and as a renewable resource for industrial bioproducts. The core structures of DRAs are formed in secondary (i.e. specialized) metabolism via cycloisomerization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) by diterpene synthases (diTPSs). Previously described gymnosperm diTPSs of DRA biosynthesis are bifunctional enzymes that catalyze the initial bicyclization of GGPP followed by rearrangement of a (+)-copalyl diphosphate intermediate at two discrete class II and class I active sites. In contrast, similar diterpenes of gibberellin primary (i.e. general) metabolism are produced by the consecutive activity of two monofunctional class II and class I diTPSs. Using high-throughput transcriptome sequencing, we discovered 11 diTPS from jack pine (Pinus banksiana) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta). Three of these were orthologous to known conifer bifunctional levopimaradiene/abietadiene synthases. Surprisingly, two sets of orthologous PbdiTPSs and PcdiTPSs were monofunctional class I enzymes that lacked functional class II active sites and converted (+)-copalyl diphosphate, but not GGPP, into isopimaradiene and pimaradiene as major products. Diterpene profiles and transcriptome sequences of lodgepole pine and jack pine are consistent with roles for these diTPSs in DRA biosynthesis. The monofunctional class I diTPSs of DRA biosynthesis form a new clade within the gymnosperm-specific TPS-d3 subfamily that evolved from bifunctional diTPS rather than monofunctional enzymes (TPS-c and TPS-e) of gibberellin metabolism. Homology modeling suggested alterations in the class I active site that may have contributed to their functional specialization relative to other conifer diTPSs.

Topics: Alkyl and Aryl Transferases; Amino Acid Sequence; Biocatalysis; Carboxylic Acids; Chromatography, Liquid; Cloning, Molecular; Diterpenes; DNA, Complementary; Evolution, Molecular; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Mass Spectrometry; Molecular Sequence Data; Phenanthrenes; Phylogeny; Pinus; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Species Specificity; Transcriptome

Lipophilic extractives commonly referred to as wood pitch or wood resin can have a negative impact on paper machine runnability and product quality. The lipophilic extractives are composed mainly of fatty acids, resin acids, sterols, steryl esters and triglycerides. In this work, the suitability of laccases for the modification of fatty and resin acids was studied, using two model fractions. In the treatments, resin and fatty acid dispersions were treated with two different laccases, i.e. laccases from Trametes hirsuta and T. villosa. Different chromatographic methods were used to elucidate the effects of laccase treatments on the chemistry of the fatty and resin acids. Both laccases were able to modify the fatty and resin acids to some extent. In the case of fatty acids, a decrease in the amount of linoleic, oleic and pinolenic acids was observed, whereas the modification of resin acids resulted in a reduced amount of conjugated resin acids.

Topics: Abietanes; alpha-Linolenic Acid; Carboxylic Acids; Chromatography, Gas; Chromatography, Gel; Diterpenes; Fatty Acids; Laccase; Oleic Acid; Oxidoreductases; Phenanthrenes; Polyporaceae

Topics: Abietanes; Animals; Bivalvia; Carboxylic Acids; Digestive System; Diterpenes; Epithelial Cells; Industry; NADPH Dehydrogenase; Paper; Phenanthrenes; Resins, Plant; Water Pollutants, Chemical