Biosynthesis of plant-speciWc phenylpropanoids by construction of an artiWcial biosynthetic pathway in Escherichia coli

Abstract

Biological synthesis of plant secondary metabolites has attracted increasing attention due to their proven or assumed beneWcial properties and health-promoting eVects. Phenylpropanoids are the precursors to a range of important plant metabolites such as the secondary metabolites belonging to the Xavonoid/stilbenoid class of compounds. In this study, engineered Escherichia coli containing artiWcial phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathways utilizing tyrosine as the initial precursor were established for production of plant-speciWc metabolites such as ferulic acid, naringenin, and resveratrol. The construction of the artiWcial pathway utilized tyrosine ammonia lyase and 4-coumarate 3-hydroxylase from Saccharothrix espanaensis, cinnamate/4-coumarate: coenzyme A ligase from Streptomyces coelicolor, caVeic acid O-methyltransferase and chalcone synthase from Arabidopsis thaliana, and stilbene synthase from Arachis hypogaea. © Society for Industrial Microbiology 2011.