Biosynthetic pathway of citrinin in the filamentous fungus monascus ruber as revealed by 13C nuclear magnetic resonance

Medium-chain fatty acids affect citrinin production in the filamentous fungus Monascus ruber.

During submerged culture in the presence of glucose and glutamate, the filamentous fungus Monascus ruber produces water-soluble red pigments together with citrinin, a mycotoxin with nephrotoxic and hepatoxic effects on animals. Analysis of the (13)C-pigment molecules from mycelia cultivated with [1-(13)C]-, [2-(13)C]-, or [1, 2-(13)C]acetate by (13)C nuclear magnetic resonance indicated that th...

Monascus ruber Production in the Filamentous Fungus Medium-Chain Fatty Acids Affect Citrinin

Effect of media composition on citrinin and bio-pigments production by Monascus ruber

Article history: Received on: 06/12/2016 Accepted on: 19/01/2017 Available online: 20/03/2017 Monascus species are used for production of red bio-pigments, which are used as food coloring agents. However, presence of the mycotoxin citrinin, which is a secondary metabolite produced in conjunction with the red pigments, prevents the use of these pigments in large scale. In the present study, Mona...

Repression of secondary metabolite production by exogenous cAMP in Monascus.

The cAMP signal pathway controls various biological functions, including secondary metabolism of filamentous fungi. We found that exogenous cAMP represses the production of lovastatin, red pigments, and citrinin in Monascus. Interestingly, a mutant MK-1 with increased lovastatin and red pigments production was not influenced by cAMP on these productions, indicating that cAMP signaling might be ...

Exploring the Distribution of Citrinin Biosynthesis Related Genes among <named-content content-type="genus-species" type="simple">Monascus</named-content> Species

Citrinin, a hepato-nephrotoxic compound to humans, can be produced by the food fermentation microorganisms Monascus spp. In this study, we investigated the distribution of mycotoxin citrinin biosynthesis genes in 18 Monascus strains. The results show that the acyl-transferase and ketosynthase domains of the pksCT gene encoding citrinin polyketide synthase were found in Monascus purpureus, Monas...