Philadelphia (LabNews Media LLC) – Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a new, precise gene-editing tool for molds. With its help, they were able to isolate eight previously unknown natural products from fungi, three of which showed promising anti-cancer properties.
The tool, named fPE7max, enables the targeted activation of silent biosynthetic gene clusters in filamentous fungi. These clusters often produce complex molecules with medical potential that are not formed under normal conditions. By specifically altering the regulatory gene laeA, the scientists succeeded in releasing new compounds.
Three of the discovered substances showed selective toxicity against breast cancer, liver cancer, and leukemia cells in initial tests. The researchers see this as a promising approach for drug discovery from the chemical diversity of the fungal world, which has so far been hardly tapped.
“It is remarkable how much fungal biotechnology has been neglected so far, even though fungi have significantly shaped modern medicine,” explained Xue “Sherry” Gao, head of the study. From penicillin to cholesterol-lowering statins, many important active ingredients originated from fungi.
The study was published in the journal Nature Biotechnology. The researchers hope to establish a systematic pipeline for the discovery of new natural products from fungi with the new tool.
