NRPS and PKS Gene Analysis in Cyanobacteria Using PCR

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Protocols for Cyanobacteria Sampling and Detection of Cyanotoxin

Abstract

Cyanobacteria are ancient prokaryotes with the capacity to perform oxygenic photosynthesis and can be found in a great diversity of habitats, including extreme environments that are challenging to most of the life forms in Earth. Cyanobacteria are a prolific source of bioactive compounds with promising therapeutic applications. To further evaluate the potential of cyanobacterial isolates to produce bioactive compounds, a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) screening for the presence of genes encoding non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS) and polyketide synthases (PKS), targeting the adenylation (A) and ketosynthase (KS) domains, respectively, was performed. In addition to validating the use of degenerate primers for the identification of PKS and NRPS genes in cyanobacteria, this study also defines numerous gene fragments that will be useful as probes for future studies of the synthesis of natural products in cyanobacteria.

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Acknowledgment

The authors, Nazar Reehana and Mohamed Iqbal Mohamed Mahroop Raja, acknowledges the Secretary and Correspondent, the Principal and PG & Research Department of Microbiology, Jamal Mohamed College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli, Tamilnadu, India for the inherent support in preparing this data.

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Reehana, N., Imran, M.Y.M., Raja, M.I.M.M., Thajuddin, N., Dhanasekaran, D. (2023). NRPS and PKS Gene Analysis in Cyanobacteria Using PCR. In: Thajuddin, N., Sankara narayanan, A., Dhanasekaran, D. (eds) Protocols for Cyanobacteria Sampling and Detection of Cyanotoxin . Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-4514-6_52

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