Whole-Cell Biocatalytical Production of the Sesquiterpene Presilphiperfolan-8β-ol in Pathway-Engineered Escherichia coli

Abstract

Fermentative whole-cell production in Escherichia coli offers the option of producing complex natural products such as terpenes from simple, inexpensive, and sustainable carbon sources. The aim of this study was to develop such a process for the synthesis of presilphiperfolan-8β-ol (PSP). The biosynthetic pathway of this tricyclic sesquiterpene alcohol was successfully introduced into E. coli. The resulting multi-plasmid strain was able to produce farnesyl pyrophosphate in vivo via the mevalonate pathway, which was then converted to PSP by the sesquiterpene cyclase BcBOT2. The product, which is mainly secreted into the culture medium, was identified via GC-MS and quantified via GC-FID. The constructed strain produced 10 mg L−1 PSP in 48 h at 20 °C directly from carbon feedstock.