Biosynthesis of hibarimicins. II. Elucidation of biosynthetic pathway by cosynthesis using blocked mutants.

The biosynthetic pathway of hibarimicin (HBM) was proposed on the basis of the experimental results obtained by using blocked mutants of Microbispora rosea subsp. hibaria TP-A0121, the HBM producer. In its biosynthesis, the oxidative coupling of the aromatic undecaketide unit generates a symmetrical aglycon HMP-Y1 (hibarimicin-mutant product Y1), which is oxidatively modified to hibarimicinone, the HBM aglycon. The following glycosylation of hibarimicinone gives rise to the HBM complex. We identified that HMP-Y1 prepared by methanolysis of HMP-Y6, a glycosylated metabolite from a blocked mutant, was the key intermediate: transformation of 13C-labeled HMP-Y1 to HBM B was confirmed by NMR measurements. Mutant strain produced another type of aglycon HMP-P1 in which the coupled polyketide units were intramolecularly bridged by the ether bond. This metabolite also arose by the spontaneous elimination of methanol molecule from hibarimicinone.