Chemistry, biology and ecology of ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides encoded in the Penicillium brasilianum genome

• Grant number: 24/19454-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date: March 10, 2025
• End date: March 09, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry - Organic Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Taicia Pacheco Fill
• Grantee: Daniel Yuri Akiyama
• Supervisor: Jonathan Chekan
• Host Institution: Instituto de Química (IQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: The University Of North Carolina At Greensboro, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 21/07038-0 - Chemical and molecular investigation of natural products involved in Penicillium brasilianum-hosts interactions, BP.DD

Abstract

Fungal ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs) are an underexplored class of natural products, with the first family of compounds biosynthetically characterized only in 2007. Although their unique structural features and proneness for diverse bioactivities act as a driving force for RiPP discovery, surveys of fungal genomes for biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) encoding RiPPs are hindered due to our incomplete understanding of their biosynthetic principals. Gaining knowledge on the chemistry and biology of fungal RiPPs is a key step for undercovering their ecological roles, leading to new applications of these molecules in modulating ecological interactions in human benefit. In this research internship, we propose to investigate the biosynthetic potential of two Penicillium brasilianum strains to produce RiPPs. As one of the strains was isolated as an endophyte and the other as a free-living soil microorganism, we hope to correlate the differentially produced compounds in each strain with the evolutionary pressure to adapt to their original habitats. We propose a collaboration with Prof. Dr. Jonathan Chekan, from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, to mine genomic and metabolomic data to discover new natural products of peptidic origin, link these molecules to their BGCs and elucidate their biosynthesis. Additionally, RiPPs will be investigated for their ecological role based on their identified bioactivities in vitro and in vivo.