Engineering Ustilago maydis for production of tailor-made mannosylerythritol lipids

Fabienne Becker; Thorsten Stehlik; Uwe Linne; Michael Bölker; Johannes Freitag; Björn Sandrock

doi:10.1016/j.mec.2021.e00165

Engineering Ustilago maydis for production of tailor-made mannosylerythritol lipids

Metab Eng Commun. 2021 Feb 6:12:e00165. doi: 10.1016/j.mec.2021.e00165. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Authors

Fabienne Becker¹, Thorsten Stehlik¹, Uwe Linne², Michael Bölker^{1

3}, Johannes Freitag¹, Björn Sandrock¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biology, Philipps-University, Marburg, Germany.
² Department of Chemistry, Philipps-University, Marburg, Germany.
³ LOEWE Center for Synthetic Microbiology, Marburg, Germany.

Abstract

Mannosylerythritol lipids (MELs) are surface active glycolipids secreted by various fungi. MELs can be used as biosurfactants and are a biodegradable resource for the production of detergents or pharmaceuticals. Different fungal species synthesize a unique mixture of MELs differing in acetyl- and acyl-groups attached to the sugar moiety. Here, we report the construction of a toolbox for production of glycolipids with predictable fatty acid side chains in the basidiomycete Ustilago maydis. Genes coding for acyl-transferases involved in MEL production (Mac1 and Mac2) from different fungal species were combined to obtain altered MEL variants with distinct physical properties and altered antimicrobial activity. We also demonstrate that a U. maydis paralog of the acyltransferase Mac2 with a different substrate specificity can be employed for the biosynthesis of modified MEL variants. In summary, our data showcase how the fungal repertoire of Mac enzymes can be used to engineer tailor-made MELs according to specific biotechnological or pharmaceutical requirements.

Keywords: Acyltransferases; Emulsification; Glycolipids; Secondary metabolites; Tailor-made Mannosylerythritol lipids; Ustilago maydis.