An ancient family of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases with roles in arthropod development and biomass digestion

TY - JOUR

T1 - An ancient family of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases with roles in arthropod development and biomass digestion

AU - Sabbadin, Federico

AU - Hemsworth, Glyn R.

AU - Ciano, Luisa

AU - Henrissat, Bernard

AU - Dupree, Paul

AU - Tryfona, Theodora

AU - Marques, Rita D. S.

AU - Sweeney, Sean T.

AU - Besser, Katrin

AU - Elias, Luisa

AU - Pesante, Giovanna

AU - Li, Yi

AU - Dowle, Adam A.

AU - Bates, Rachel

AU - Gomez, Leonardo D.

AU - Simister, Rachael

AU - Davies, Gideon J.

AU - Walton, Paul H.

AU - Bruce, Neil C.

AU - McQueen-Mason, Simon J.

PY - 2018/2/22

Y1 - 2018/2/22

N2 - Thermobia domestica belongs to an ancient group of insects and has a remarkable ability to digest crystalline cellulose without microbial assistance. By investigating the digestive proteome of Thermobia, we have identified over 20 members of an uncharacterized family of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs). We show that this LPMO family spans across several clades of the Tree of Life, is of ancient origin, and was recruited by early arthropods with possible roles in remodeling endogenous chitin scaffolds during development and metamorphosis. Based on our in-depth characterization of Thermobia's LPMOs, we propose that diversification of these enzymes toward cellulose digestion might have endowed ancestral insects with an effective biochemical apparatus for biomass degradation, allowing the early colonization of land during the Paleozoic Era. The vital role of LPMOs in modern agricultural pests and disease vectors offers new opportunities to help tackle global challenges in food security and the control of infectious diseases.

AB - Thermobia domestica belongs to an ancient group of insects and has a remarkable ability to digest crystalline cellulose without microbial assistance. By investigating the digestive proteome of Thermobia, we have identified over 20 members of an uncharacterized family of lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs). We show that this LPMO family spans across several clades of the Tree of Life, is of ancient origin, and was recruited by early arthropods with possible roles in remodeling endogenous chitin scaffolds during development and metamorphosis. Based on our in-depth characterization of Thermobia's LPMOs, we propose that diversification of these enzymes toward cellulose digestion might have endowed ancestral insects with an effective biochemical apparatus for biomass degradation, allowing the early colonization of land during the Paleozoic Era. The vital role of LPMOs in modern agricultural pests and disease vectors offers new opportunities to help tackle global challenges in food security and the control of infectious diseases.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85042529065&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/s41467-018-03142-x

DO - 10.1038/s41467-018-03142-x

M3 - Article

C2 - 29472725

AN - SCOPUS:85042529065

SN - 2041-1723

VL - 9

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

IS - 1

M1 - 756

ER -