Review – Lichen-associated bacteria as a hot spot of chemodiversity: focus on uncialamycin, a promising compound for future medicinal applications

Delphine Parrot (1) , Nathalie Legrave (1) , David Delmail (1) , Martin Grube (2) , Marcelino T. Suzuki (3) , Sophie Tomasi (1)

1 ISCR - Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes
2 Institut für Pflanzenwissenschaften Karl-Franzens
3 LBBM - Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Biotechnologies Microbiennes

This review presents the state of knowledge on the medicinal potential of bacteria associated with lichens. In fact, besides the classical symbiotic partners (photobiont and mycobiont) forming the lichen thallus, associated bacteria have been recently described as a third partner. Various studies demonstrated the diversity of these communities with a predominance of Alphaproteobacteria. Bacterial groups more relevant for secondary metabolite synthesis have also been revealed. This article summarizes studies reporting the abilities of these communities to produce metabolites with relevant bioactivities. The biotechnological interest of these bacteria for drug discovery is highlighted regarding the production of compounds with therapeutic potential. Special focus is given to the synthesis of the most promising compound, uncialamycin, a potent enediyne isolated from a Streptomyces sp. associated with Cladonia uncialis.

Keywords: lihens; bacterial communities; chemodiversity; drug discovery; bioactive compounds; uncialamycin

Domains: Chemical Sciences; Medicinal Chemistry; Life Sciences [q-bio]; Vegetal Biology; Life Sciences [q-bio]; Pharmaceutical sciences

Delphine Parrot, Nathalie Legrave, David Delmail, Martin Grube, Marcelino T. Suzuki, et al.. Review – Lichen-associated bacteria as a hot spot of chemodiversity: focus on uncialamycin, a promising compound for future medicinal applications. Planta Medica, 2016, 82 (13), pp.1143-1152. ⟨10.1055/s-0042-105571⟩. ⟨hal-01360065⟩