Identification of a Cyclosporine-Specific P450 Hydroxylase Gene through Targeted Cytochrome P450 Complement (CYPome) Disruption in Sebekia benihana

Abstract

ABSTRACT It was previously proposed that regio-specific hydroxylation of an immunosuppressive cyclosporine (CsA) at the 4th N -methyl leucine is mediated by cytochrome P450 hydroxylase (CYP) in the rare actinomycete Sebekia benihana . This modification is thought to be the reason for the hair growth-promoting side effect without the immunosuppressive activity of CsA. Through S. benihana genome sequencing and in silico analysis, we identified the complete cytochrome P450 complement (CYPome) of S. benihana , including 21 CYPs and their electron transfer partners, consisting of 7 ferredoxins (FDs) and 4 ferredoxin reductases (FDRs). Using Escherichia coli conjugation-based S. benihana CYPome-targeted disruption, all of the identified CYP, FD, and FDR genes in S. benihana were individually inactivated. Among the 32 S. benihana exconjugant mutants tested, only a single S. benihana CYP mutant, ΔCYP-sb21, failed to exhibit CsA hydroxylation activity. The hydroxylation was restored by CYP-sb21 gene complementation. Since all S. benihana FD and FDR disruption mutants maintained CsA hydroxylation activity, it can be concluded that CYP-sb21, a new member of the bacterial CYP107 family, is the only essential component of the in vivo regio-specific CsA hydroxylation process in S. benihana . Moreover, expression of an extra copy of the CYP-sb21 gene increased CsA hydroxylation in wild-type S. benihana and an NADPH-enriched Streptomyces coelicolor mutant, by 2-fold and 1.5-fold, respectively. These results show for the first time that regio-specific hydroxylation of CsA is carried out by a specific P450 hydroxylase present in S. benihana , and they set the stage for the biotechnological application of regio-specific CsA hydroxylation through heterologous CYP-sb21 expression.