Regulation mechanisms underlying the biosynthesis of daptomycin and related lipopeptides

Daptomycin is a lipopeptide antibiotics used to treat Gram-positive pathogens infections, including drug-resistant strains. In-depth exploration of its biosynthesis and regulation is crucial for metabolic engineering improvement of this ever-increasing important antibiotic. The past years have witnessed the significant progresses in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the biosynthesis and regulation of daptomycin. This information was updated in our review, with special focus on the regulatory network integrating a wide variety of physiological and environmental inputs. This should provide novel insight into the regulatory mechanism of biosynthesis of daptomycin and nodes for strain improvement to increase the yields of daptomycin. J. Cell. Biochem. 113: 735741, 2012. (C) 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.