Resurrection and characterization of ancestral CYP11A1 enzymes.

Mitochondrial cytochromes P450 presumably originated from a common microsomal P450 ancestor. However, it is still unknown how ancient mitochondrial P450s were able to retain their oxygenase function following relocation to the mitochondrial matrix and later emerged as enzymes specialized for steroid hormone biosynthesis in vertebrates. Here, we used the approach of ancestral sequence reconstruction (ASR) to resurrect ancient CYP11A1 enzymes and characterize their unique biochemical properties.

Development and application of a highly efficient CRISPR-Cas9 system for genome engineering in Bacillus megaterium.

Bacillus megaterium has become increasingly important for the biotechnological production of valuable compounds of industrial and pharmaceutical importance. Despite recent advances in rational strain design of B. megaterium, these studies have been largely impaired by the lack of molecular tools that are not state-of-the-art for comprehensive genome engineering approaches.

Improvement of the 25-hydroxyvitamin D production in a CYP109A2-expressing Bacillus megaterium system.

Calcifediol (25(OH)VD3) is a physiologically very important vitamin D metabolite and of high pharmaceutical importance, due to its potential for treating not only vitamin D deficiencies but also coronary diseases and cancer. Previously, we established a whole-cell Bacillus megaterium-based system using the cytochrome P450 CYP109A2 for the biotransformation of vitamin D into its metabolite 25-hydroxyvitamin D In this study, we demonstrate the importance of the region between amino acids T103 and A106 for the catalytic activity of CYP109A2 towards vitamin D as a substrate. In order to increase the productivity of the system, reaction conditions (xylose, vitamin D, saponin, 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin) were optimized for the in vivo production of 25-hydroxyvitamin D.

Mixed-culture fermentation for enhanced C21-hydroxylation of glucocorticoids.

Synthetic glucocorticoids are generally preferred over their natural counterparts as these compounds exhibit improved anti-inflammatory potency and glucocorticoid receptor selectivity. However, the biotechnological production of these molecules is often subject to limitations inferred by restricted enzyme stability, selectivity or inhibition thereof. The latter is particularly important during 6α-methylprednisolone production, as the essential C21-hydroxylation of its precursor medrane appears to be hampered by product inhibition of the steroid-21-hydroxylase (CYP21A2).

Identification and circumvention of bottlenecks in CYP21A2-mediated premedrol production using recombinant Escherichia coli.

Synthetic glucocorticoids such as methylprednisolone are compounds of fundamental interest to the pharmaceutical industry as their modifications within the sterane scaffold lead to higher inflammatory potency and reduced side effects compared with their parent compound cortisol. In methylprednisolone production, the complex chemical hydroxylation of its precursor medrane in position C21 exhibits poor stereo- and regioselectivity making the process unprofitable and unsustainable. By contrast, the use of a recombinant E.

High-yield C11-oxidation of hydrocortisone by establishment of an efficient whole-cell system in Bacillus megaterium.

Steroidal compounds are one of the most widely marketed pharmaceutical products. Chemical synthesis of steroidal compounds faces many challenges, including the requirement for multiple chemical steps, low yield and selectivity in several synthesis steps, low profitability and the production of environmental pollutants. Consequently, in recent decades there has been growing interest in the use of microbial systems to produce pharmaceutical compounds.

Expanding the promoter toolbox of Bacillus megaterium.

Over the past decades, Bacillus megaterium has gained significant interest in the biotechnological industry due to its high capacity for protein production. Although many proteins have been expressed efficiently using the optimized xylose inducible system so far, there is a considerable demand for novel promoters with varying activities, particularly for the adjustment of protein levels in multi-enzyme cascades. Genome-wide microarray analyses of the industrially important B.

Characterization and engineering of a carotenoid biosynthesis operon from Bacillus megaterium.

Bacillus megaterium belongs to the group of pigmented bacilli producing carotenoids that ensure self-protection from UV radiation-induced and collateral oxidative damage. Metabolite profiling of strain MS941 revealed the presence of the C30 carotenoids 4,4'-diapophytofluene and 4,4'-diaponeurosporenic acid. A gene function analysis demonstrated the presence of a corresponding C30 carotenoid biosynthetic pathway with pharmaceutical importance.

CYP109E1 is a novel versatile statin and terpene oxidase from Bacillus megaterium.

CYP109E1 is a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase from Bacillus megaterium with a hydroxylation activity for testosterone and vitamin D3. This study reports the screening of a focused library of statins, terpene-derived and steroidal compounds to explore the substrate spectrum of this enzyme. Catalytic activity of CYP109E1 towards the statin drug-precursor compactin and the prodrugs lovastatin and simvastatin as well as biotechnologically relevant terpene compounds including ionones, nootkatone, isolongifolen-9-one, damascones, and β-damascenone was found in vitro.

Biochemical and structural characterization of CYP109A2, a vitamin D 25-hydroxylase from Bacillus megaterium.

Unlabelled: Cytochrome P450 enzymes are increasingly investigated due to their potential application as biocatalysts with high regio- and/or stereo-selectivity and under mild conditions. Vitamin D (VD ) metabolites are of pharmaceutical importance and are applied for the treatment of VD deficiency and other disorders. However, the chemical synthesis of VD derivatives shows low specificity and low yields.

Functionalized poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid) bodies as new in vitro biocatalysts.

Cytochromes P450 play a key role in the drug and steroid metabolism in the human body. This leads to a high interest in this class of proteins. Mammalian cytochromes P450 are rather delicate.

[Consequences of the Foundation of a University Centre for Orthopaedics and Accident Surgery].

Since the combination of orthopaedic and traumatology surgery as a single speciality, an extremely wide variety of orthopaedic and trauma surgery centres have been founded in Germany. The present investigation analysed the degree to which additional value has been generated by merging two previously independent university departments - one for orthopaedics, the other for trauma surgery - into a single orthopaedics and trauma surgery centre. The centre, merged in 1 June 2013, is led by two equal co-chairs (a full professor for orthopaedics and a full professor for trauma surgery).

A Novel NADPH-dependent flavoprotein reductase from Bacillus megaterium acts as an efficient cytochrome P450 reductase.

Cytochromes P450 (P450s) require electron transfer partners to catalyze substrate conversions. With regard to biotechnological approaches, the elucidation of novel electron transfer proteins is of special interest, as they can influence the enzymatic activity and specificity of the P450s. In the current work we present the identification and characterization of a novel soluble NADPH-dependent diflavin reductase from Bacillus megaterium with activity towards a bacterial (CYP106A1) and a microsomal (CYP21A2) P450 and, therefore, we referred to it as B.

Biotransformation of the mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists spironolactone and canrenone by human CYP11B1 and CYP11B2: Characterization of the products and their influence on mineralocorticoid receptor transactivation.

Spironolactone and its major metabolite canrenone are potent mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists and are, therefore, applied as drugs for the treatment of primary aldosteronism and essential hypertension. We report that both compounds can be converted by the purified adrenocortical cytochromes P450 CYP11B1 and CYP11B2, while no conversion of the selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist eplerenone was observed. As their natural function, CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 carry out the final steps in the biosynthesis of gluco- and mineralocorticoids.

An indole-deficient Escherichia coli strain improves screening of cytochromes P450 for biotechnological applications.

Escherichia coli has developed into an attractive organism for heterologous cytochrome P450 production, but, in some cases, was restricted as a host in view of a screening of orphan cytochromes P450 or mutant libraries in the context of molecular evolution due to the formation of the cytochrome P450 inhibitor indole by the enzyme tryptophanase (TnaA). To overcome this effect, we disrupted the tnaA gene locus of E. coli C43(DE3) and evaluated the new strain for whole-cell substrate conversions with three indole-sensitive cytochromes P450, myxobacterial CYP264A1, and CYP109D1 as well as bovine steroidogenic CYP21A2.

Human CYP27A1 catalyzes hydroxylation of β-sitosterol and ergosterol.

β-Sitosterol and ergosterol are the equivalents of cholesterol in plants and fungi, respectively, and common sterols in the human diet. In the current work, both were identified as novel CYP27A1 substrates by in vitro experiments applying purified human CYP27A1 and its redox partners adrenodoxin (Adx) and adrenodoxin reductase (AdR). A Bacillus megaterium based biocatalyst recombinantly expressing the same proteins was utilized for the conversion of the substrates to obtain sufficient amounts of the novel products for a structural NMR analysis.

Expression of human CYP27A1 in B. megaterium for the efficient hydroxylation of cholesterol, vitamin D3 and 7-dehydrocholesterol.

In the current work the ability of Bacillus megaterium to take up hydrophobic substrates and efficiently express eukaryotic membrane proteins was utilized for establishing a CYP27A1-based biocatalyst. The human mitochondrial cytochrome P450CYP27A1 was co-expressed with its redox partners adrenodoxin reductase (Adr) and adrenodoxin (Adx). CYP27A1 could be localized at the cell's polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) granules, carbon storage serving organelle-like vesicles that can take up cholesterol, resulting in bioreactor-like structures in B.

Phenotypic, metabolic, and molecular genetic characterization of six patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia caused by novel mutations in the CYP11B1 gene.

Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) is an autosomal recessive inherited disorder of steroidogenesis. Steroid 11β-hydroxylase deficiency (11β-OHD) due to mutations in the CYP11B1 gene is the second most common form of CAH. In this study, 6 patients suffering from CAH were diagnosed with 11β-OHD using urinary GC-MS steroid metabolomics analysis.

A CYP21A2 based whole-cell system in Escherichia coli for the biotechnological production of premedrol.

Background: Synthetic glucocorticoids like methylprednisolone (medrol) are of high pharmaceutical interest and represent powerful drugs due to their anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. Since the chemical hydroxylation of carbon atom 21, a crucial step in the synthesis of the medrol precursor premedrol, exhibits a low overall yield because of a poor stereo- and regioselectivity, there is high interest in a more sustainable and efficient biocatalytic process. One promising candidate is the mammalian cytochrome P450 CYP21A2 which is involved in steroid hormone biosynthesis and performs a selective oxyfunctionalization of C21 to provide the precursors of aldosterone, the main mineralocorticoid, and cortisol, the most important glucocorticoid.

Functionalized PHB granules provide the basis for the efficient side-chain cleavage of cholesterol and analogs in recombinant Bacillus megaterium.

Background: Cholesterol, the precursor of all steroid hormones, is the most abundant steroid in vertebrates and exhibits highly hydrophobic properties, rendering it a difficult substrate for aqueous microbial biotransformations. In the present study, we developed a Bacillus megaterium based whole-cell system that allows the side-chain cleavage of this sterol and investigated the underlying physiological basis of the biocatalysis.

Results: CYP11A1, the side-chain cleaving cytochrome P450, was recombinantly expressed in the Gram-positive soil bacterium B.

Regioselective Acetylation of C21 Hydroxysteroids by the Bacterial Chloramphenicol Acetyltransferase I.

Chloramphenicol acetyltransferase I (CATI) detoxifies the antibiotic chloramphenicol and confers a corresponding resistance to bacteria. In this study we identified this enzyme as a steroid acetyltransferase and designed a new and efficient Escherichia-coli-based biocatalyst for the regioselective acetylation of C21 hydroxy groups in steroids of pharmaceutical interest. The cells carried a recombinant catI gene controlled by a constitutive promoter.

A recombinant CYP11B1 dependent Escherichia coli biocatalyst for selective cortisol production and optimization towards a preparative scale.

Background: Human mitochondrial CYP11B1 catalyzes a one-step regio- and stereoselective 11β-hydroxylation of 11-deoxycortisol yielding cortisol which constitutes not only the major human stress hormone but also represents a commercially relevant therapeutic drug due to its anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties. Moreover, it is an important intermediate in the industrial production of synthetic pharmaceutical glucocorticoids. CYP11B1 thus offers a great potential for biotechnological application in large-scale synthesis of cortisol.

2β- and 16β-hydroxylase activity of CYP11A1 and direct stimulatory effect of estrogens on pregnenolone formation.

The biosynthesis of steroid hormones in vertebrates is initiated by the cytochrome P450 CYP11A1, which performs the side-chain cleavage of cholesterol thereby producing pregnenolone. In this study, we report a direct stimulatory effect of the estrogens estradiol and estrone onto the pregnenolone formation in a reconstituted in vitro system consisting of purified CYP11A1 and its natural redox partners. We demonstrated the formation of new products from 11-deoxycorticosterone (DOC), androstenedione, testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) during the in vitro reaction catalyzed by CYP11A1.