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A polyketide synthase gene required for ochratoxin A biosynthesis in Aspergillus ochraceus

¹ Department of Microbiology, University College Cork, National University of Ireland Cork, Cork, Ireland
² School of Biological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK

Correspondence
A. D. W. Dobson
a.dobson{at}ucc.ie

Ochratoxin A is an important nephrotoxic and nephrocarcinogenic mycotoxin, produced by Aspergillus ochraceus as a polyketide-derived secondary metabolite. A portion of a putative polyketide synthase gene (pks) involved in the biosynthesis of this mycotoxin was cloned by using a suppression subtractive hybridization PCR-based approach. The predicted amino acid sequence of the 1·4 kb clone shared 28–35 % identity to acyl transferase regions from fungal polyketide synthases found in the databases. Based on reverse transcription PCR studies, the pks gene is expressed only under ochratoxin A permissive conditions and only during the early stages of the mycotoxin synthesis. A mutant in which the pks gene has been interrupted cannot synthesize ochratoxin A. This report is the first of the cloning and characterization of a gene involved in ochratoxin A biosynthesis.

The GenBank accession number for the nucleotide sequence of the portion of the pks gene cloned as part of this study is AY272043.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				P.V. Martinez Culebras, A. Crespo-Sempere, J.V. Gil, and D. Ramon Acyl Transferase Domains of Putative Polyketide Synthase (PKS) Genes in Aspergillus and Penicillium Producers of Ochratoxin A and the Evaluation of PCR Primers to Amplify PKS Sequences in Black Aspergillus Species Food Science and Technology International, February 1, 2009; 15(1): 97 - 105. [Abstract] [PDF]