Cloning and characterization of monacolin K biosynthetic gene cluster from Monascus pilosus

Monacolin K is a secondary metabolite synthesized by polyketide synthases (PKS) from Monascus, and it has the same structure as lovastatin, which is mainly produced by Aspergillus terreus. In the present study, a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone, mps01, was screened from the BAC library constructed from Monascus pilosus BCRC38072 genomic DNA. The putative monacolin K biosynthetic gene cluster was found within a 42 kb region in the mps01 clone. The deduced amino acid sequences encoded by the nine genes designated as mokA-mokl, which share over 54% similarity with the lovastatin biosynthetic gene cluster in A. terreus, were assumed to be involved in monacolin K biosynthesis. A gene disruption construct designed to replace the central part of mokA, a polyketide synthase gene, in wild-type M. pilosus BCRC38072 with a hygromycin B resistance gene through homologous recombination, resulted in a mokA-disrupted strain. The disruptant did not produce monacolin K, indicating that mokA encoded the PKS responsible for monacolin K biosynthesis in M. pilosus BCRC38072.