Enzymatic Synthesis of Novel Glycyrrhizic Acid Glucosides Using a Promiscuous <i>Bacillus</i> Glycosyltransferase

oleh: Longhai Dai, Jiao Li, Jiangang Yang, Yan Men, Yan Zeng, Yi Cai, Yuanxia Sun

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2018-12-01

Deskripsi

Glycyrrhetinic acid (GA) and glycyrrhizin (GA-3-<i>O</i>-[<i>&#946;</i>-<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">d</span>-glucuronopyranosyl-(1&#8594;2)-<i>&#946;</i>-<span style="font-variant: small-caps;">d</span>-glucuronopyranoside], GL) are the major bioactive components of <i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i> and possess multifarious notable biological activities. UDP-glycosyltransferase (UGT)&#8315;catalyzed glycosylation remarkably extends the structural and functional diversification of GA-glycoside derivatives. In this study, six glucosides (<b>1</b>&#8315;<b>6</b>) of GA and GL were synthesized using a <i>Bacillus subtilis</i> 168&#8315;originated flexible UDP-glycosyltransferase Bs-YjiC. Bs-YjiC could transfer a glucosyl moiety from UDP-glucose to the free C3 hydroxyl and/or C30 carboxyl groups of GA and GL and further elongate the C30 glucosyl chain via a <i>&#946;</i>-1-2-glycosidic bond. Glycosylation significantly increased the water solubility of these novel glucosides by 4&#8315;90 folds. In vitro assays showed that GA monoglucosides (<b>1</b> and <b>2</b>) showed stronger antiproliferative activity against human liver cancer cells HepG2 and breast cancer cells MCF-7 than that of GL and GL glucosides. These findings provide significant insights into the important role of promiscuous UGTs for the enzymatic synthesis of novel bioactive GA derivatives.