TY - JOUR
T1 - Complex scaffold remodeling in plant triterpene biosynthesis
AU - Pena, Ricardo De La
AU - Hodgson, Hannah
AU - Liu, Chun-Ting
AU - Stephenson, Michael J
AU - Martin, Azahara Carmen
AU - Owen, Charlotte
AU - Harkess, Alex
AU - Leebens-Mack, James
AU - Jimenez, Luis
AU - Osbourn, Anne
AU - Sattely, Elizabeth
PY - 2023/1/27
Y1 - 2023/1/27
N2 - Triterpenes with complex scaffold modifications are widespread in the plant kingdom. Limonoids are an exemplary family that are responsible for the bitter taste in citrus (e.g., limonin) and the active constituents of neem oil, a widely used bioinsecticide (e.g., azadirachtin). Despite the commercial value of limonoids, a complete biosynthetic route has not been described. We report the discovery of 22 enzymes, including a pair of neofunctionalized sterol isomerases, that catalyze 12 distinct reactions in the total biosynthesis of kihadalactone A and azadirone, products that bear the signature limonoid furan. These results enable access to valuable limonoids and provide a template for discovery and reconstitution of triterpene biosynthetic pathways in plants that require multiple skeletal rearrangements and oxidations.
AB - Triterpenes with complex scaffold modifications are widespread in the plant kingdom. Limonoids are an exemplary family that are responsible for the bitter taste in citrus (e.g., limonin) and the active constituents of neem oil, a widely used bioinsecticide (e.g., azadirachtin). Despite the commercial value of limonoids, a complete biosynthetic route has not been described. We report the discovery of 22 enzymes, including a pair of neofunctionalized sterol isomerases, that catalyze 12 distinct reactions in the total biosynthesis of kihadalactone A and azadirone, products that bear the signature limonoid furan. These results enable access to valuable limonoids and provide a template for discovery and reconstitution of triterpene biosynthetic pathways in plants that require multiple skeletal rearrangements and oxidations.
KW - Biosynthesis
KW - Triterpenoids
KW - Limonoids
KW - Transient expression
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85146941395&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1126/science.adf1017
DO - 10.1126/science.adf1017
M3 - Article
SN - 0036-8075
VL - 379
SP - 361
EP - 368
JO - Science
JF - Science
IS - 6630
ER -