Streptomycetes are a large group of Gram-positive, soil-dwelling bacteria that have evolved remarkable metabolic capabilities for survival in a nutrient-poor and a biodiverse ecological niche. Streptomyces bacteria are best known for their capacity to produce structurally complex antibiotics for chemical defense from simple intermediates in central metabolism. Indeed, streptomycetes are the source of about half of the 23,000 known antibiotics and two-thirds of the antibiotics that are used in clinical and veterinary medicine. Beyond these anabolic capabilities, streptomycetes are also distinguished by their abilities to consume various forms of carbon in soil. Their ability to catabolize the abundant organic matter in the soil has been ascribed to numerous secreted and cytosolic enzymes. The ecological importance of carbon recycling and the commercial value of antibiotics have motivated much research into the metabolic capabilities of these bacteria. My thesis work has focused on both how these bacteria consume the lignin component of plant biomass and how they produce antibiotics from the proteinogenic amino acid tryptophan. Aside from their common connection in aromatic metabolism, these projects are linked by origins in in-depth bioinformatic analyses of streptomycete genome sequences. The resulting hypotheses about the structure and regulation of these anabolic and catabolic pathways were tested systematically using a combination of genetic, biochemical and biophysical experiments. My thesis outlines our findings and points that towards the exploitation of the metabolic capabilities of Streptomyces bacteria in biotechnology.
Zhang, Rui,
"Investigations of Aromatic Metabolism in Streptomyces Bacteria Using a Multidisciplinary Approach"
(2016).
Chemistry Theses and Dissertations.
Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.
https://doi.org/10.7301/Z0RV0M39
