Flavonoids are widely distributed secondary metabolites with different metabolic functions in plants. The elucidation of the biosynthetic pathways, as well as their regulation by MYB, basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH), and WD40-type transcription factors, has allowed metabolic engineering of plants through the manipulation of the different final products with valuable applications. The present review describes the regulation of flavonoid biosynthesis, as well as the biological functions of flavonoids in plants, such as in defense against UV-B radiation and pathogen infection, nodulation, and pollen fertility. In addition, we discuss different strategies and achievements through the genetic engineering of flavonoid biosynthesis with implication in the industry and the combinatorial biosynthesis in microorganisms by the reconstruction of the pathway to obtain high amounts of specific compounds.

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Flavonoids: biosynthesis, biological functions, and biotechnological applications.

SUMMARY Strains of bacteria resistant to antibiotics, particularly those that are multiresistant, are an increasing major health care problem around the world. It is now abundantly clear that both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria are able to meet the evolutionary challenge of combating antimicrobial chemotherapy, often by acquiring preexisting resistance determinants from the bacterial gene pool. This is achieved through the concerted activities of mobile genetic elements able to move within or between DNA molecules, which include insertion sequences, transposons, and gene cassettes/integrons, and those that are able to transfer between bacterial cells, such as plasmids and integrative conjugative elements. Together these elements play a central role in facilitating horizontal genetic exchange and therefore promote the acquisition and spread of resistance genes. This review aims to outline the characteristics of the major types of mobile genetic elements involved in acquisition and spread of antibiotic resistance in both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, focusing on the so-called ESKAPEE group of organisms (Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacter spp., and Escherichia coli), which have become the most problematic hospital pathogens.

https://cmr.asm.org/content/cmr/31/4/e00088-17.full-text.pdf

Mobile Genetic Elements Associated with Antimicrobial Resistance

[1] Arctic amplification (AA) – the observed enhanced warming in high northern latitudes relative to the northern hemisphere – is evident in lower-tropospheric temperatures and in 1000-to-500 hPa thicknesses. Daily fields of 500 hPa heights from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction Reanalysis are analyzed over N. America and the N. Atlantic to assess changes in north-south (Rossby) wave characteristics associated with AA and the relaxation of poleward thickness gradients. Two effects are identified that each contribute to a slower eastward progression of Rossby waves in the upper-level flow: 1) weakened zonal winds, and 2) increased wave amplitude. These effects are particularly evident in autumn and winter consistent with sea-ice loss, but are also apparent in summer, possibly related to earlier snow melt on high-latitude land. Slower progression of upper-level waves would cause associated weather patterns in mid-latitudes to be more persistent, which may lead to an increased probability of extreme weather events that result from prolonged conditions, such as drought, flooding, cold spells, and heat waves.

Antibiotic resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa: mechanisms and alternative therapeutic strategies

Plant phenolics: recent advances on their biosynthesis, genetics, and ecophysiology.

Detoxification of the Fusarium Mycotoxin Deoxynivalenol by a UDP-glucosyltransferase from Arabidopsis thaliana

Glycosyltransferases: managers of small molecules

Glycosyltransferases of small molecules transfer sugars to a wide range of acceptors, from hormones and secondary metabolites to biotic and abiotic chemicals and toxins in the environment. The enzymes are encoded by large multigene families and can be identified by a signature motif in their primary sequence, which classifies them as a subset of Family 1 glycosyltransferases. The transfer of a sugar onto a lipophilic acceptor changes its chemical properties, alters its bioactivity, and enables access to membrane transporter systems. In vitro studies have shown that a single gene product can glycosylate multiple substrates of diverse origins; multiple enzymes can also glycosylate the same substrate. These features suggest that in a cellular context, substrate availability is a determining factor in enzyme function, and redundancy depends on the extent of coordinate gene regulation. This review discusses the role of these glycosyltransferases in underpinning developmental and metabolic plasticity during adaptive responses.

Glycosyltransferases of lipophilic small molecules.

Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems are small genetic elements composed of a toxin gene and its cognate antitoxin. The toxins of all known TA systems are proteins while the antitoxins are either proteins or non-coding RNAs. Based on the molecular nature of the antitoxin and its mode of interaction with the toxin the TA modules are currently grouped into five classes. In general, the toxin is more stable than the antitoxin but the latter is expressed to a higher level. If supply of the antitoxin stops, for instance under special growth conditions or by plasmid loss in case of plasmid encoded TA systems, the antitoxin is rapidly degraded and can no longer counteract the toxin. Consequently, the toxin becomes activated and can act on its cellular targets. Typically, TA toxins act on crucial cellular processes including translation, replication, cytoskeleton formation, membrane integrity, and cell wall biosynthesis. TA systems and their components are also versatile tools for a multitude of purposes in basic research and biotechnology. Currently, TA systems are frequently used for selection in cloning and for single protein expression in living bacterial cells. Since several TA toxins exhibit activity in yeast and mammalian cells they may be useful for applications in eukaryotic systems. TA modules are also considered as promising targets for the development of antibacterial drugs and their potential to combat viral infection may aid in controlling infectious diseases.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.4161/mge.26219

Toxin–antitoxin systems: Biology, identification, and application

Steroid hormones are essential for development, and the precise control of their homeostasis is a prerequisite for normal growth. UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs) are considered to play an important regulatory role in the activity of steroids in mammals and insects. This study provides an indication that a UGT accepting plant steroids as substrates functions in brassinosteroid (BR) homeostasis. The UGT73C5 of Arabidopsis thaliana catalyses 23-O-glucosylation of the BRs brassinolide (BL) and castasterone. Transgenic plants overexpressing UGT73C5 displayed BR-deficient phenotypes and contained reduced amounts of BRs. The phenotype, which was already apparent in seedlings, could be rescued by application of BR. In feeding experiments with BL, wild-type seedlings converted BL to the 23-O-glucoside; in the transgenic lines silenced in UGT73C5 expression, no 23-O-glucoside was detected, implying that this UGT is the only enzyme that catalyzes BL-23-O-glucosylation in seedlings. Plant lines in which UGT73C5 expression was altered also displayed hypocotyl phenotypes previously described for seedlings in which BR inactivation by hydroxylation was changed. These data support the hypothesis that 23-O-glucosylation of BL is a function of UGT73C5 in planta, and that glucosylation regulates BR activity.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/102/42/15253.full.pdf

Brigitte Poppenberger

Papers

Detoxification of the Fusarium Mycotoxin Deoxynivalenol by a UDP-glucosyltransferase from Arabidopsis thaliana

Glycosyltransferases: managers of small molecules

Glycosyltransferases of lipophilic small molecules.

Toxin–antitoxin systems: Biology, identification, and application

The UGT73C5 of Arabidopsis thaliana glucosylates brassinosteroids