Engineered microorganisms are increasingly used in industry as a sustainable source of small molecules. However, native biosynthetic pathways are limited to the generation of molecules already occurring in Nature. One method to introduce this non-native reactivity into a living organism is through the use of abiotic catalysis. By developing and interfacing non-enzymatic biocompatible reactions with microbial metabolism, this could increase the synthetic opportunities provided by biotechnology for the production of value-added compounds. 1,2-carbonyl rearrangements are examples of important functional group transformations not accessed in biology. To address this, we have demonstrated an abiotic 1,2-carbonyl rearrangement in the presence of living Escherichia coli cells - specifically, we observed cell growth of an auxotrophic strain only in the presence of our substrate. Reactivity occurred in M9 growth media, indicating that product formation was dependent on the presence of a biocompatible catalyst. Furthermore, this aqueous rearrangement can interface with enzymatic processes and can be adapted to a range of substrates and products, highlighting how this transformation is applicable to larger, previously inaccessible, biosynthetic pathways.

Biocompatible 1,2-carbonyl rearrangements in living E. coli

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ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.