Naturally produced halogenated compounds are ubiquitous across all domains of life where they perform a multitude of biological functions and adopt a diversity of chemical structures. Accordingly, a diverse collection of enzyme catalysts to install and remove halogens from organic scaffolds has evolved in nature. Accounting for the different chemical properties of the four halogen atoms (fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and iodine) and the diversity and chemical reactivity of their organic substrates, enzymes performing biosynthetic and degradative halogenation chemistry utilize numerous mechanistic strategies involving oxidation, reduction, and substitution. Biosynthetic halogenation reactions range from simple aromatic substitutions to stereoselective C-H functionalizations on remote carbon centers and can initiate the formation of simple to complex ring structures. Dehalogenating enzymes, on the other hand, are best known for removing halogen atoms from man-made organohalogens, yet also function naturally, albeit rarely, in metabolic pathways. This review details the scope and mechanism of nature’s halogenation and dehalogenation enzymatic strategies, highlights gaps in our understanding, and posits where new advances in the field might arise in the near future.

Oceanic harmful algal blooms of Pseudo-nitzschia diatoms produce the potent mammalian neurotoxin domoic acid (DA). Despite decades of research, the molecular basis for its biosynthesis is not known. By using growth conditions known to induce DA production in Pseudo-nitzschia multiseries, we implemented transcriptome sequencing in order to identify DA biosynthesis genes that colocalize in a genomic four-gene cluster. We biochemically investigated the recombinant DA biosynthetic enzymes and linked their mechanisms to the construction of DA’s diagnostic pyrrolidine skeleton, establishing a model for DA biosynthesis. Knowledge of the genetic basis for toxin production provides an orthogonal approach to bloom monitoring and enables study of environmental factors that drive oceanic DA production.

Transfer RNA is one of the most richly modified biological molecules. Biosynthetic pathways that introduce these modifications are underexplored, largely because their absence does not lead to obvious phenotypes under normal growth conditions. Queuosine (Q) is a hypermodified base found in the wobble positions of tRNA Asp, Asn, His, and Tyr from bacteria to mankind. Using liquid chromatography MS methods, we have screened 1,755 single gene knockouts of Escherichia coli and have identified the key final step in the biosynthesis of Q. The protein is homologous to B 12 -dependent iron-sulfur proteins involved in halorespiration. The recombinant Bacillus subtilis epoxyqueuosine (oQ) reductase catalyzes the conversion of oQ to Q in a synthetic substrate, as well as undermodified RNA isolated from an oQ reductase knockout strain. The activity requires inclusion of a reductant and a redox mediator. Finally, exogenously supplied cobalamin stimulates the activity. This work provides the framework for studies of the biosynthesis of other modified RNA components, where lack of accessible phenotype or obvious gene clustering has impeded discovery. Moreover, discovery of the elusive oQ reductase protein completes the biosynthetic pathway of Q.biochemistry | queuosine | reductive dehalogenation N early 100 modifications have been identified in RNA, many of which are found in tRNA and are common to eukaryotes, bacteria, and archaea (1). Most of these modifications are likely not essential under normal laboratory conditions, making discovery of biosynthetic pathways by phenotypic methods impossible. Queuosine (Q), a hypermodified RNA base containing a 7-deazapurine core, is among the more complex RNA modifications described to date. Q replaces the guanine in the wobble positions of the subset of tRNA molecules with a 5′-GUN-3′ sequence in their anticodon loops (His, Asp, Asn, and Tyr). Conservation of Q in RNA of organisms in nearly all kingdoms of life (2) suggests that the modification may be of cardinal importance. A physiological role for Q has eluded discovery partly because of gaps in understanding of the biosynthetic pathway. De novo biosynthesis of Q occurs in bacteria whereas eukaryotes acquire the free base, queuine, from dietary sources (3-5). The bacterial pathway for biosynthesis of Q has been elucidated up to the penultimate intermediate, epoxyqueuosine (oQ) (6, 7). However, the enzyme that catalyzes the final step in the pathway, conversion of oQ to Q, had yet to be identified. Because no selectable phenotypes have been demonstrated for the modification, discovery of the final step in the pathway required a different approach that melded modern analytical methods and emerging tools in bacterial genetics. This methodology has led to successful identification of the final step and can be generalized to other RNA modifications where lack of phenotype has hindered discovery of the biosynthetic pathway.Structural parallels between the 7-deazapurine core of queuosine and 7-deazapurine-containing antibiotic toyocamycin ...

Bacterial meroterpenoids constitute an important class of natural products with diverse biological properties and therapeutic potential. The biosynthetic logic for their production is unknown and defies explanation via classical biochemical paradigms. A large subgroup of naphthoquinone-based meroterpenoids exhibits a substitution pattern of the polyketide-derived aromatic core that seemingly contradicts the established reactivity pattern of polyketide phenol nucleophiles and terpene diphosphate electrophiles. We report the discovery of a hitherto unprecedented enzyme-promoted α-hydroxyketone rearrangement catalysed by vanadium-dependent haloperoxidases to account for these discrepancies in the merochlorin and napyradiomycin class of meroterpenoid antibiotics, and we demonstrate that the α-hydroxyketone rearrangement is potentially a conserved biosynthetic reaction in this molecular class. The biosynthetic α-hydroxyketone rearrangement was applied in a concise total synthesis of naphthomevalin, a prominent member of the napyradiomycin meroterpenes, and sheds further light on the mechanism of this unifying enzymatic transformation.

Queuosine is a hypermodified nucleoside present in the wobble position of tRNAs with a 5′-GUN-3′ sequence in their anticodon (His, Asp, Asn, and Tyr). The 7-deazapurine core of the base is synthesized de novo in prokaryotes from guanosine-5′-triphosphate in a series of eight sequential enzymatic transformations, the final three occurring on tRNA. Epoxyqueuosine reductase (QueG), catalyzes the final step in the pathway, which entails the 2-electron reduction of epoxyqueuosine to form queuosine. Biochemical analyses reveal that this enzyme requires cobalamin and two [4Fe-4S] clusters for catalysis. Spectroscopic studies show that the cobalamin appears to bind in a base-off conformation, whereby the dimethylbenzimidazole moiety of the cofactor is removed from the coordination sphere of the cobalt but not replaced by an imidazole sidechain, which is a hallmark of many cobalamin-dependent enzymes. The bioinformatically-identified residues are shown to have a role in modulating the primary coordination sphere of cobalamin. These studies provide the first demonstration of the cofactor requirements for QueG.

Queuosine (Q) was discovered in the wobble position of a transfer RNA (tRNA) 47 years ago, yet the final biosynthetic enzyme responsible for Q-maturation, epoxyqueuosine (oQ) reductase (QueG), was only recently identified. QueG is a cobalamin (Cbl)-dependent, [4Fe-4S] cluster-containing protein that produces the hypermodified nucleoside Q in situ on four tRNAs. To understand how QueG is able to perform epoxide reduction, an unprecedented reaction for a Cbl-dependent enzyme, we have determined a series of high resolution structures of QueG from Bacillus subtilis. Our structure of QueG bound to a tRNATyr anticodon stem loop shows how this enzyme uses a HEAT-like domain to recognize the appropriate anticodons and position the hypermodified nucleoside into the enzyme active site. We find Q bound directly above the Cbl, consistent with a reaction mechanism that involves the formation of a covalent Cbl-tRNA intermediate. Using protein film electrochemistry, we show that two [4Fe-4S] clusters adjacent to the Cbl have redox potentials in the range expected for Cbl reduction, suggesting how Cbl can be activated for nucleophilic attack on oQ. Together, these structural and electrochemical data inform our understanding of Cbl dependent nucleic acid modification.

The naphterpins and marinones are naphthoquinone meroterpenoids with an unusual aromatic oxidation pattern that is biosynthesized from 1,3,6,8-tetrahydroxynaphthalene (THN). We propose that cryptic halogenation of THN derivatives by vanadium-dependent chloroperoxidase (VCPO) enzymes is key to this biosynthetic pathway, despite the absence of chlorine in these natural products. This speculation inspired a total synthesis to mimic the naphterpin/marinone biosynthetic pathway. In validation of this biogenetic hypothesis, two VCPOs were discovered that interconvert several of the proposed biosynthetic intermediates.

The biosynthetic route to the napyradiomycin family of bacterial meroterpenoids has been fully described 32 years following their original isolation and 11 years after their gene cluster discovery. The antimicrobial and cytotoxic natural products napyradiomycins A1 and B1 are produced using three organic substrates (1,3,6,8-tetrahydroxynaphthalene, dimethylallyl pyrophosphate, and geranyl pyrophosphate), and catalysis via five enzymes: two aromatic prenyltransferases (NapT8 and T9); and three vanadium dependent haloperoxidase (VHPO) homologues (NapH1, H3, and H4). Building upon the previous characterization of NapH1, H3, and T8, we herein describe the initial (NapT9, H1) and final (NapH4) steps required for napyradiomycin construction. This remarkably streamlined biosynthesis highlights the utility of VHPO enzymology in complex natural product generation, as NapH4 efficiently performs a unique chloronium-induced terpenoid cyclization to establish two stereocenters and a new carbon−carbon bond, and dual-acting NapH1 catalyzes chlorination and etherification reactions at two distinct stages of the pathway. Moreover, we employed recombinant napyradiomycin biosynthetic enzymes to chemoenzymatically synthesize milligram quantities in one pot in 1 day. This method represents a viable enantioselective approach to produce complex halogenated metabolites, like napyradiomycin B1, that have yet to be chemically synthesized.