Omics Approaches Applied to Penicillium chrysogenum and Penicillin Production: Revealing the Secrets of Improved Productivity

Abstract

Penicillin biosynthesis by Penicillium chrysogenum is one of the best-characterized biological processes from the genetic, molecular, biochemical, and subcellular points of view. Several omics studies have been carried out in this filamentous fungus during the last decade, which have contributed to gathering a deep knowledge about the molecular mechanisms underlying improved productivity in industrial strains. The information provided by these studies is extremely useful for enhancing the production of penicillin or other bioactive secondary metabolites by means of Biotechnology or Synthetic Biology.

Keywords: Penicillium chrysogenum; beta-lactam antibiotics; omics; penicillin.

Figure 1

Schematic representation of the benzylpenicillin biosynthetic pathway.

Figure 2

Catabolism of phenylacetic acid in P. chrysogenum via the homogentisate pathway.

Figure 3

Enriched functional categories (FunCat) of differentially expressed genes after the transcriptome analysis between ΔPcvelA and the parental strain P2NiaD18. Significantly enriched categories either for up or down-regulated genes are represented by a check mark icon, whereas n.s. indicates non-significant enrichment. Adapted from [61].

Figure 4

Websites of the intra- and extra-cellular proteome reference maps of P. chrysogenum Wisconsin 54-1255. The consecutive views obtained by clicking over each identified protein spot are presented.

Figure 5

Summary with the main findings focused on penicillin production and provided by omics analyses showing the modifications undergone by P. chrysogenum throughout the strain improvement programs.