On Being an Honorary Member of Arny's Army: Some Musings About Fungal Fermentations, Secondary Metabolism, and Scientific Communities

Overview

Journal J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol

Publisher Oxford University Press

Specialty Biotechnology

Date 2017 Apr 29

PMID 28451907

Citations 2

Authors

Joan Wennstrom Bennett

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

This essay is an unabashed celebration of applied microbiology and secondary metabolism, and how one scientist-Arnold Demain-has been a spokesman for industrial microbiology and biotechnology. There are many reasons for Arny's professional success. During his long and distinguished career, Arnold Demain has expanded and enriched our understanding of the importance secondary metabolism. He has studied topics that ranged from pickles, to pectinolytic enzymes, to penicillin. His experimental versatility was conducted under the unifying theme of fermentation microbiology. In addition, one of his most positive achievements was his ability to bring scientists from different disciplines and national backgrounds together and thereby nucleate new collaborations. I am one of many people who has benefited from Arny's generous mentoring and speak from the heart when I say that industrial microbiology could not have a better representative. Arny has been the catalyst for much of that has gone right in my professional life and the lives of the many other applied microbiologists who have had the good fortune to know him.

Citing Articles

Introduction and commentaries for the special issue: "Arnold L. Demain-A life lived".

Baltz R, Vandamme E, Bennett J, Agathos S, Sanchez S, Osada H J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol. 2021; 48(9-10).

PMID: 34850020 PMC: 8788371. DOI: 10.1093/jimb/kuab082.

Professor Arnold L. (Arny) Demain's historical position in the rise of industrial microbiology and biotechnology.

Vandamme E J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol. 2021; 48(9-10).

PMID: 34113991 PMC: 8788709. DOI: 10.1093/jimb/kuab034.

References

Bennett J, Lee L, Shoss S, Boudreaux G . Identification of averantin as an aflatoxin B1 precursor: placement in the biosynthetic pathway. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1980; 39(4):835-9. PMC: 291429. DOI: 10.1128/aem.39.4.835-839.1980. View

Bennett J, GOLDBLATT L . The isolation of mutants of Aspergillus flavus and A.parasiticus with altered aflatoxin producing ability. Sabouraudia. 1973; 11(3):235-41. View

Lee L, Bennett J, CUCULLU A, Stanley J . Synthesis of versicolorin A by a mutant strain of Aspergillus parasiticus deficient in aflatoxin production. J Agric Food Chem. 1975; 23(6):1132-4. DOI: 10.1021/jf60202a011. View

Lee L, Bennett J, CUCULLU A, Ory R . Biosynthesis of aflatoxin B1. Conversion of versicolorin A to aflatoxin B1 by Aspergillus parasiticus. J Agric Food Chem. 1976; 24(6):1167-70. DOI: 10.1021/jf60208a017. View

Medema M, Blin K, Cimermancic P, de Jager V, Zakrzewski P, Fischbach M . antiSMASH: rapid identification, annotation and analysis of secondary metabolite biosynthesis gene clusters in bacterial and fungal genome sequences. Nucleic Acids Res. 2011; 39(Web Server issue):W339-46. PMC: 3125804. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkr466. View

CHANG P, Cary J, Bhatnagar D, Cleveland T, Bennett J, Linz J . Cloning of the Aspergillus parasiticus apa-2 gene associated with the regulation of aflatoxin biosynthesis. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1993; 59(10):3273-9. PMC: 182448. DOI: 10.1128/aem.59.10.3273-3279.1993. View

DEMAIN A, Fang A . The natural functions of secondary metabolites. Adv Biochem Eng Biotechnol. 2000; 69:1-39. DOI: 10.1007/3-540-44964-7_1. View

DEMAIN A . Industrial microbiology. Science. 1981; 214(4524):987-95. DOI: 10.1126/science.6946560. View

Yu J, Chang P, Ehrlich K, Cary J, Bhatnagar D, Cleveland T . Clustered pathway genes in aflatoxin biosynthesis. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2004; 70(3):1253-62. PMC: 368384. DOI: 10.1128/AEM.70.3.1253-1262.2004. View

10.

Bennett J, CHANG P, Bhatnagar D . One gene to whole pathway: the role of norsolorinic acid in aflatoxin research. Adv Appl Microbiol. 1997; 45:1-15. DOI: 10.1016/s0065-2164(08)70260-0. View

11.

Umemura M, Koike H, Nagano N, Ishii T, Kawano J, Yamane N . MIDDAS-M: motif-independent de novo detection of secondary metabolite gene clusters through the integration of genome sequencing and transcriptome data. PLoS One. 2014; 8(12):e84028. PMC: 3877130. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084028. View

12.

DEMAIN A . How do antibiotic-producing microorganisms avoid suicide?. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1974; 235(0):601-12. DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1974.tb43294.x. View

13.

Tawfike A, Viegelmann C, Edrada-Ebel R . Metabolomics and dereplication strategies in natural products. Methods Mol Biol. 2013; 1055:227-44. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-62703-577-4_17. View

14.

Drew S, DEMAIN A . Effect of primary metabolites on secondary metabolism. Annu Rev Microbiol. 1977; 31:343-56. DOI: 10.1146/annurev.mi.31.100177.002015. View

15.

Bentley R, Bennett J . A ferment of fermentations: reflections on the production of commodity chemicals using microorganisms. Adv Appl Microbiol. 2008; 63:1-32. DOI: 10.1016/S0065-2164(07)00001-9. View

16.

Andersen M, Nielsen J, Klitgaard A, Petersen L, Zachariasen M, Hansen T . Accurate prediction of secondary metabolite gene clusters in filamentous fungi. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012; 110(1):E99-107. PMC: 3538241. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1205532110. View

17.

Khaldi N, Seifuddin F, Turner G, Haft D, Nierman W, Wolfe K . SMURF: Genomic mapping of fungal secondary metabolite clusters. Fungal Genet Biol. 2010; 47(9):736-41. PMC: 2916752. DOI: 10.1016/j.fgb.2010.06.003. View

18.

DE VOGEL P, Van Rhee R, Blanche Koelensmid W . A rapid screening test for aflatoxin-synthesizing aspergilli of the flavus-oryzae group. J Appl Bacteriol. 1965; 28(2):213-20. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2672.1965.tb02145.x. View

19.

Hsieh D, Singh R, Yao R, Bennett J . Anthraquinones in the biosynthesis of sterigmatocystin by Aspergillus versicolor. Appl Environ Microbiol. 1978; 35(5):980-2. PMC: 242966. DOI: 10.1128/aem.35.5.980-982.1978. View

20.

Keller N, Turner G, Bennett J . Fungal secondary metabolism - from biochemistry to genomics. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2005; 3(12):937-47. DOI: 10.1038/nrmicro1286. View