Nitric oxide as a source for bacterial triazole biosynthesis.

Zhao, Guiyun; Guo, Yuan-Yang; Yao, Shunyu; Shi, Xinjie; Lv, Longxian; Du, Yi-Ling · Nat Commun · 2020

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

The heterocycle 1,2,3-triazole is among the most versatile chemical scaffolds and has been widely used in diverse fields. However, how nature creates this nitrogen-rich ring system remains unknown. Here, we report the biosynthetic route to the triazole-bearing antimetabolite 8-azaguanine. We reveal that its triazole moiety can be assembled through an enzymatic and non-enzymatic cascade, in which nitric oxide is used as a building block. These results expand our knowledge of the physiological role of nitric oxide synthase in building natural products with a nitrogen-nitrogen bond, and should also inspire the development of synthetic biology approaches for triazole production.

Medical subject headings