Abstract
Diguanylate cyclases (DGCs) and phosphodiesterases (PDEs) are essential enzymes deputed to maintain the intracellular homeostasis of the second messenger cyclic dimeric (3'→5') GMP (c-di-GMP). Recently, c-di-GMP has emerged as a crucial molecule for the streptomycetes life cycle, governing both morphogenesis and secondary metabolite production. Indeed, in Streptomyces ghanaensis ATCC14672 c-di-GMP was shown to be involved in the regulatory cascade of the peptidoglycan glycosytransferases inhibitor moenomycin A (MmA) biosynthesis. Here, we report the role of four c-di-GMP-metabolizing enzymes on MmA biosynthesis as well as morphological progression in S. ghanaensis. Functional characterization revealed that RmdA(gh) and CdgA(gh) are two active PDEs, while CdgE(gh) is a DGC. In vivo, overexpression of rmdA(gh) and cdgA(gh) led to precocious sporulation, whereas overexpression of cdgE(gh) and cdgD(gh) (encoding a predicted DGC) caused an arrest of morphological development. Furthermore, we demonstrated that individual deletion of rmdA(gh), cdgA(gh), and cdgD(gh) enhances MmA accumulation, whereas deletion of cdgE(gh) has no impact on antibiotic production. Conversely, an individual deletion of each studied gene does not affect morphogenesis. Altogether, our results show that manipulation of c-di-GMP-metabolizing enzymes represent a useful approach to improving MmA production titers in S. ghanaensis.