engleski

Enzymes of the shikimic acid pathway encoded in the genome of a basal metazoan, Nematostella vectensis, have microbial origins

The shikimic acid pathway is responsible for the biosynthesis of many aromatic compounds by a broad range of organisms, including bacteria, fungi, plants and some protozoans. Animals are considered to lack this pathway as evinced by their dietary requirement for shikimate-derived, aromatic amino acids. We challenge the universality of this traditional view in this first report of genes encoding enzymes for the shikimate pathway in an animal, the starlet sea anemone Nematostella vectensis. Molecular evidence establishes, for the first time, horizontal transfer of ancestral genes of the shikimic acid pathway into the N. vectensis genome from both bacterial and eukaryotic (dinoflagellate) donors. Additional bioinformatic analysis reveals four additional genes encoding enzymes of the shikimic acid pathway, raising speculation for the existence of a previously unsuspected bacterial symbiont. These results provide a complementary view for the biogenesis of shikimate-related metabolites in marine Cnidaria as a “ shared metabolic adaptation” between the partners. The results could also have wider implications for future development of the shikimic acid pathway as a ‘ druggable’ target in lead discovery for new antibiotics and for the treatment of parasitic infections including malaria.

Shikimic acid pathway; Cnidaria; Nematostella vectensis; basal Metazoa; symbiosis; Tenacibaculum

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