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Updated: May 25, 2026
Mass Spectrometry-Guided Genome Mining as a Tool to Uncover Novel Natural Products
Published on: March 12, 2020
The ARTS toolset: Resistance-based genome mining for systematic prioritization of bioactive gene clusters
Martina Adamek1, Turgut Mesut Yılmaz1, Semih Erdogmus1
1Translational Genome Mining for Natural Products, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine Tübingen (IMIT), Interfaculty Institute for Biomedical Informatics (IBMI), University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Partner Site Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Researchers developed the ARTS toolset to identify gene clusters in microbes that produce medically important compounds. This computational approach links resistance genes to biosynthetic gene clusters, aiding drug discovery from natural products.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Bioinformatics
- Genomics
Background:
- Microorganisms, particularly bacteria and fungi, are prolific sources of natural products with medicinal value.
- Genome sequencing reveals vast biosynthetic potential in microbes, but identifying bioactive gene clusters is challenging.
- Resistance genes, protecting microbes from their own toxic compounds, are often co-located with biosynthetic genes, offering a clue for identification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To introduce the ARTS (Anti- कार्यात्मक Resistance-linked Target) toolset, a computational solution for identifying resistance-linked biosynthetic gene clusters.
- To enable researchers to efficiently mine microbial genomes for novel bioactive compound discovery.
Main Methods:
- The ARTS toolset comprises ARTS 2.0 for bacterial and metagenomic analysis, ARTS-DB for accessing precomputed genomic results, and FunARTS for fungal genome adaptation.
- The tools identify biosynthetic gene clusters by locating genes associated with resistance mechanisms.
Main Results:
- The ARTS toolset provides a systematic computational strategy for discovering resistance-linked biosynthetic gene clusters.
- The described tools and examples facilitate the application of this approach in microbial genomics.
Conclusions:
- The ARTS toolset significantly aids in identifying potential bioactive compound-producing gene clusters in microbial genomes.
- This approach enhances the discovery of novel natural products for pharmaceutical applications.
