Lichenicidin biosynthesis in Escherichia coli: licFGEHI immunity genes are not essential for lantibiotic production or self-protection

This study demonstrated, for the first time, that immunity genes licFGEHI are not essential for selfprotection and production of the two-component lantibiotic lichenicidin in the Gram-negative heterologous host Escherichia coli BLic5. Additionally, it was experimentally demonstrated that lichenicidin lantibiotics are active against the E. coli imp4213 strain, a mutant strain possessing a permeable outer membrane.The work was supported by the Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) of the University of Aveiro and the Cluster of Excellence “Unifying Concepts in Catalysis” granted by the DFG, coordinated by TU Berlin. We acknowledge José C. Duarte for supplying the B. licheniformis I89 strain, Thomas J. Silhavy from Princeton University for supplying the E. coli MC4100 and E. coli imp4213 strains, and Klaus Hantke from the University of Tübingen for supplying the E. coli BW25113 and BW25113ΔtolC::kan strains.publishe