Microbial Production of Methyl Anthranilate, a Grape Flavor Compound
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Microbial production of methyl anthranilate, a grape flavor compound Zi Wei Luoa,b,1, Jae Sung Choa,b,1, and Sang Yup Leea,b,c,d,2 aMetabolic and Biomolecular Engineering National Research Laboratory, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (BK21 Plus Program), Institute for the BioCentury, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 34141 Daejeon, Republic of Korea; bSystems Metabolic Engineering and Systems Healthcare Cross-Generation Collaborative Laboratory, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 34141 Daejeon, Republic of Korea; cBioProcess Engineering Research Center, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 34141 Daejeon, Republic of Korea; and dBioInformatics Research Center, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 34141 Daejeon, Republic of Korea Contributed by Sang Yup Lee, April 5, 2019 (sent for review March 6, 2019; reviewed by Jay D. Keasling and Blaine A. Pfeifer) Methyl anthranilate (MANT) is a widely used compound to give While these biotransformation procedures are considered more grape scent and flavor, but is currently produced by petroleum-based natural and ecofriendly compared with chemical synthesis, their processes. Here, we report the direct fermentative production of actual use is limited due to low yields, long reaction times, and MANT from glucose by metabolically engineered Escherichia coli and formation of byproducts (5). In addition, the chemical and bio- Corynebacterium glutamicum strains harboring a synthetic plant- transformation processes mentioned above depend on substrates of derived metabolic pathway. Optimizing the key enzyme anthranilic petroleum origin. For these reasons, we were motivated to produce acid (ANT) methyltransferase1 (AAMT1) expression, increasing the MANT through one-step microbial fermentation of renewable direct precursor ANT supply, and enhancing the intracellular avail- abilityandsalvageofthecofactorS-adenosyl-L-methionine required feedstocks (e.g., glucose), which would offer 100% biobased nat- by AAMT1, results in improved MANT production in both engineered ural MANT in an ecofriendly manner. microorganisms. Furthermore, in situ two-phase extractive fermen- To our knowledge, there have been rare attempts on the de tation using tributyrin as an extractant is developed to overcome novo microbial production of MANT, except for two reports MANT toxicity. Fed-batch cultures of the final engineered E. coli nearly 30 y ago describing MANT biosynthesis from simple sugars and C. glutamicum strains in two-phase cultivation mode led to (i.e., maltose) by the wild-type fungi, Poria cocos (6) and Pycno- SCIENCES the production of 4.47 and 5.74 g/L MANT, respectively, in minimal porus cinnabarinus (7). Unfortunately, the productivities achieved APPLIED BIOLOGICAL media containing glucose. The metabolic engineering strategies de- in these two studies were extremely low (18.7 mg/L MANT pro- veloped here will be useful for the production of volatile aromatic duced after 5 d of culture). Also, the underlying biosynthetic esters including MANT. mechanisms, including the biosynthesis genes, enzymes, and pathways, in these two fungal species have not been elucidated. metabolic engineering | Escherichia coli | Corynebacterium glutamicum | Thus, it is a prerequisite to first identify a metabolic pathway methyl anthranilate | two-phase fermentation leading to the biosynthesis of MANT from simple carbon sources (e.g., glucose), before implementing various metabolic engineering ethyl anthranilate (MANT), which gives grape scent and Mflavor, has been extensively used in flavoring foods (e.g., strategies to develop microbial strains capable of efficiently pro- candy, chewing gum, soft drinks, and alcoholic drinks, etc.) and ducing MANT based on the reconstituted biosynthetic pathway. drugs (as a flavor enhancer and/or mask). Due to its pleasant aroma, MANT is an important component in perfumes and cos- Significance metics. MANT also has other important industrial applications as a bird and goose repellent for crop protection, as an oxidation in- Methyl anthranilate (MANT) is widely used in the flavoring and hibitor or a sunscreen agent, and as an intermediate for the syn- cosmetics industry to give grape scent and flavor. In an effort thesis of a wide range of chemicals, dyes, and pharmaceuticals (1). to replace the conventional petroleum-based synthesis of MANT is a natural metabolite giving the characteristic odor of MANT, we report the direct fermentative production of MANT Concord grapes and occurs also in several essential oils (e.g., from glucose in metabolically engineered Escherichia coli and neroli, ylang ylang, and jasmine) (1). It has been challenging and Corynebacterium glutamicum strains. A synthetic plant-derived economically infeasible to directly extract MANT from these metabolic pathway was introduced and extensive metabolic plants due to low yields. Currently, MANT is commercially engineering was performed including fine-tuning key enzyme manufactured by petroleum-based chemical processes, which levels and increasing the availability of precursor and cofactor mainly rely on esterification of anthranilic acid (ANT) with metabolites. A two-phase extractive cultivation was developed methanol or isatoic anhydride with methanol, using homogeneous using an extractant solvent to recover MANT in situ, which led acids as catalysts (2). These processes, however, suffer from sev- to high levels of MANT production. This work demonstrates a eral disadvantages, for example, the requirement of acid catalysts promising sustainable alternative to MANT production and in large quantities and problems with disposal of these toxic liquid presents strategies applicable toward production of other acids after the reaction (2). Moreover, MANT produced by such valuable natural compounds. chemical methods is labeled “artificial flavor,” which does not meet the increasing demand by consumers for natural flavors. Author contributions: S.Y.L. designed research; Z.W.L. and J.S.C. performed research; Taking another important flavoring agent vanillin as an example, Z.W.L., J.S.C., and S.Y.L. analyzed data; and Z.W.L., J.S.C., and S.Y.L. wrote the paper. market preference for natural vanillin has led to a far higher price Reviewers: J.D.K., University of California, Berkeley; and B.A.P., University at Buffalo. of $1,200–$4,000/kg over $15/kg for artificial vanillin (3). Such a The authors declare no conflict of interest. market for natural MANT is also highly desirable, but unfortu- Published under the PNAS license. nately there have so far been no promising methods for preparing 1Z.W.L. and J.S.C. contributed equally to this work. MANT from natural sources and/or by natural means. Several 2To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: [email protected]. enzymatic and microbial whole-cell biotransformation approaches This article contains supporting information online at www.pnas.org/lookup/suppl/doi:10. have been attempted for MANT production by esterification of 1073/pnas.1903875116/-/DCSupplemental. ANT (4) or N-demethylation of N-methyl methyl anthranilate (5). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1903875116 PNAS Latest Articles | 1of8 Downloaded by guest on October 2, 2021 In this study, we report the development of metabolically synthetic metabolic pathway originated from plant for de novo engineered Escherichia coli and Corynebacterium glutamicum MANT biosynthesis was constructed in both E. coli and C. gluta- strains capable of producing MANT directly from glucose micum. Next, MANT production in both engineered organisms through fermentation (Fig. 1). E. coli was initially chosen as a was improved through optimization of the key enzyme level, in- model organism for metabolic engineering toward efficient crease of flux to the direct precursor metabolite, increase of the production of MANT. In addition, C. glutamicum, a generally availability of cosubstrate required in MANT synthesis, and es- recognized as safe (GRAS) strain, was also engineered for the tablishment of in situ two-phase extractive cultivation process. production of MANT for its consequent human consumption to Finally, two-phase fed-batch cultures of the best E. coli and C. give grape flavor and scent in food and cosmetics industries. We glutamicum strains were performed to demonstrate their po- applied multiple strategies to produce MANT by optimizing its tential for large-scale production of MANT from glucose in biosynthesis in both E. coli and C. glutamicum (Fig. 2). First, a minimal media. Fig. 1. The metabolic network related to MANT biosynthesis from glucose in (A) E. coli and (B) C. glutamicum, as well as metabolic engineering strategies employed in this study. Abbreviations: ANT, anthranilate; ASP, L-aspartate; CHA, chorismate; DAHP, 3-deoxy-D-arabinoheptulosonate 7-phosphate; DHQ, 3- dehydroquinate; DHS, 3-dehydroshikimate; E4P, erythrose 4-phosphate; EPSP, 5-enolpyruvyl-shikimate 3-phosphate; G6P, glucose 6-phosphate; Gln, glutamine; Glu, glutamate; HCYS, L-homocysteine; ILE, isoleucine; L-PHE, L-phenylalanine; L-TRP, L-tryptophan; L-TYR, L-tyrosine; MANT, methyl anthranilate; MET, L-methionine; PCA, protocatechuate; PEP, phosphoenolpyruvate; PPP, pentose phosphate pathway; PRANT, N-(5-phosphoribosyl)-anthranilate; PTS, phosphotransferase system; PYR, pyruvate; QA, quinate; S3P, shikimate-3-phosphate; SAH, S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine; SAM, S-adenosyl-L-methionine; SER, L-serine; SHK, shikimate; SRH, S-ribosyl-L-homocysteine; TCA, tricarboxylic acid cycle. Genes that