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Physiological status of submergedClaviceps during enzymic assembly of ergot alkaloids

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Abstract

Ergot alkaloids are formed only for arelatively brief time during the lifespan of the culture and under conditions of reduced proliferation. They cannot be taken for waste products of general metabolism. Ergot strains are capable of carrying out all the simple steps of the anthranilic acid—tryptophan cycles. Alkaloids influence activities of certain enzymes of primary metabolism in the ergot mycelium,e.g. tryptophan synthetase, acetyl-CoA carboxylase, citrate synthase, isocitrate lyase, and malate synthase. Ergot alkaloids do not belong to a group of physiologically inert secondary metabolites. A tentative scheme of the enzymic assembly of the ergoline nucleus is presented. The increased yield of ergoline alkaloids may be attributed to the following points: (1) Unbalnced growth of the culture. (2) Support of competition of fatty acids and alkaloid biosynthesis for acetyl-CoA. (3) Decreased activities of tricarboxylic acid and glyoxylate cycles. (4) Positive association between the rate of protein turnover and alkaloid formation. (5) Stimulation of both tryptophan synthesis and degradation via kynurenine—anthranilate. (6) Regulation of tryptophan-histidine cross-pathway. (7) Continuous control of the alkaloid level during fermentation.

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  1. Department of Biogenesis of Natural Substances, Institute of Microbiology, Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, Prague 4

    Z. Řeháček & K. A. Malik

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  1. Z. Řeháček
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  2. K. A. Malik
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Řeháček, Z., Malik, K.A. Physiological status of submergedClaviceps during enzymic assembly of ergot alkaloids. Folia Microbiol 17, 490–499 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02872734

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