Molecular characterization of the PR-toxin gene cluster in Penicillium roqueforti and Penicillium chrysogenum: Cross talk of secondary metabolite pathways

The PR-toxin is a potent mycotoxin produced by Penicillium roqueforti in moulded grains and grass silages and may contaminate blue-veined cheese. The PR-toxin derives from the 15 carbon atoms sesquiterpene aristolochene formed by the aristolochene synthase (encoded by ari1). We have cloned and sequenced a four gene cluster that includes the ari1 gene from P. roqueforti. Gene silencing of each of the four genes (named prx1 to prx4) resulted in a reduction of 65-75% in the production of PR-toxin indicating that the four genes encode enzymes involved in PR-toxin biosynthesis. Interestingly the four silenced mutants overproduce large amounts of mycophenolic acid, an antitumor compound formed by an unrelated pathway suggesting a cross-talk of PR-toxin and mycophenolic acid production. An eleven gene cluster that includes the above mentioned four prx genes and a 14-TMS drug/H+ antiporter was found in the genome of Penicillium chrysogenum. This eleven gene cluster has been reported to be very poorly expressed in a transcriptomic study of P. chrysogenum genes under conditions of penicillin production (strongly aerated cultures). We found that this apparently silent gene cluster is able to produce PR-toxin in P. chrysogenum under static culture conditions on hydrated rice medium. Noteworthily, the production of PR-toxin was 2.6-fold higher in P. chrysogenum npe10, a strain deleted in the 56.8 kb amplifiable region containing the pen gene cluster, than in the parental strain Wisconsin 54-1255 providing another example of cross-talk between secondary metabolite pathways in this fungus. A detailed PR-toxin biosynthesis pathway is proposed based on all available evidence.