Cyanobacterial Secondary Metabolite Scytonemin: A Potential Photoprotective and Pharmaceutical Compound
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REVIEW
Cyanobacterial Secondary Metabolite Scytonemin: A Potential Photoprotective and Pharmaceutical Compound Jainendra Pathak1 • Abha Pandey1 • Pankaj K. Maurya2 • Rajneesh Rajneesh1 Rajeshwar P. Sinha1 • Shailendra P. Singh2
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Received: 27 April 2019 / Revised: 12 August 2019 / Accepted: 16 August 2019 The National Academy of Sciences, India 2019
Abstract Scytonemin is a lipid-soluble, highly stable, yellow–brown-coloured secondary metabolite that is accumulated in the extracellular polysaccharide sheath of several but not all members of cyanobacteria. Chemically, scytonemin is an indole alkaloid composed of two heterocyclic units symmetrically connected through a carbon– carbon bond. Thus, scytonemin is unique among natural products due to its special structure, location in a cell, as well as strong absorption maxima in UV-A in addition to the violet–blue region. Traditionally, scytonemin is a wellestablished photoprotective compound against ultraviolet radiation. Its accumulation in the cyanobacterial sheath has been suggested to be a strategy adopted by several cyanobacteria to protect their cellular components against damaging effects of UVR. Additionally, recent studies have also established the importance of scytonemin in reactive oxygen species scavenging as well as in controlling the growth of cancerous cells. Thus, scytonemin is both ecologically as well as pharmaceutically important
Significance Statement This review highlights the recent advancements made in the study of a cyanobacterial photoprotective compound called scytonemin. The biochemistry and genetics of scytonemin production have been discussed in detail. The roadmap for scytonemin production using metabolically engineered strains and rate-limiting steps for scytonemin biosynthesis have been presented. Also, it emphasizes the various application of scytonemin in different industries for human welfare. & Shailendra P. Singh [email protected] 1
Laboratory of Photobiology and Molecular Microbiology, Centre of Advanced Study in Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005, India
2
Centre of Advanced Study in Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005, India
metabolite. Recent developments made in the biochemistry and genetics of this compound have paved the way for its application and commercialization for human welfare. This review aims to present a brief history of the compound with chronological developments made in the study of scytonemin and emphasizes its physiochemistry, analytical chemistry, biochemistry, and genetics. We provide a separate section for metabolic engineering and potential applications of scytonemin, mainly as sunscreen and anticancerous drugs. We also discuss the future research directions which need to be worked out. Keywords Anti-cancerous Kinase inhibitor Scytonemin Sunscreen UVR
Introduction Scytonemin is exclusively biosynthesized by several but not all cyanobacteria in response to mainly ultraviolet-A (UV-A; 315–400 nm) radiation stress. It
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