An Esterase-like Lyase Catalyzes Acetate Elimination in Spirotetronate/Spirotetramate Biosynthesis

Spirotetronate and spirotetramate natural products include a multitude of compounds with potent antimicrobial and antitumor activities. Their biosynthesis incorporates many unusual biocatalytic steps, including regio- and stereo-specific modifications, cyclizations promoted by Diels-Alderases, and acetylation-elimination reactions. Here we focus on the acetate elimination catalyzed by AbyA5, implicated in the formation of the key Diels-Alder substrate to give the spirocyclic system of the antibiotic abyssomicin C. Using synthetic substrate analogues, it is shown that AbyA5 catalyzes stereospecific acetate elimination, establishing the (R)-tetronate acetate as a biosynthetic intermediate. The X-ray crystal structure of AbyA5, the first of an acetate-eliminating enzyme, reveals a deviant acetyl esterase fold. Molecular dynamics simulations and enzyme assays show the use of a His-Ser dyad to catalyze either elimination or hydrolysis, via disparate mechanisms, under substrate control.