Omanische Heilpflanze im Fokus der Phytochemie IPB-Wissenschaftler und Partner aus Dhofar haben jüngst die omanische Heilpflanze Terminalia dhofarica unter die phytochemische Lupe genommen. Die Pflanze ist reich an…
Geschmack ist vorhersagbar: Mit FlavorMiner. FlavorMiner heißt das Tool, das IPB-Chemiker und Partner aus Kolumbien jüngst entwickelt haben. Das Programm kann, basierend auf maschinellem Lernen (KI), anhand der…
Prasad, A.; Breithaupt, C.; Nguyen, D.-A.; Lilie, H.; Ziegler, J.; Stubbs, M. T.;Mechanism of chorismate dehydratase MqnA, the first enzyme of the futalosine pathway, proceeds via substrate-assisted catalysisJ. Biol. Chem.298102601(2022)DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102601
MqnA, the only chorismate dehydratase known so far, catalyzes the initial step in the biosynthesis of menaquinone via the futalosine pathway. Details of the MqnA reaction mechanism remain unclear. Here, we present crystal structures of Streptomyces coelicolor MqnA and its active site mutants in complex with chorismate and the product 3-enolpyruvyl-benzoate, produced during heterologous expression in Escherichia coli. Together with activity studies, our data are in line with dehydration proceeding via substrate assisted catalysis, with the enol pyruvyl group of chorismate acting as catalytic base. Surprisingly, structures of the mutant Asn17Asp with copurified ligand suggest that the enzyme converts to a hydrolase by serendipitous positioning of the carboxyl group. All complex structures presented here exhibit a closed Venus flytrap fold, with the enzyme exploiting the characteristic ligand binding properties of the fold for specific substrate binding and catalysis. The conformational rearrangements that facilitate complete burial of substrate/product, with accompanying topological changes to the enzyme surface, could foster substrate channeling within the biosynthetic pathway.
Publikation
Holzmeyer, L.; Hartig, A.-K.; Franke, K.; Brandt, W.; Muellner-Riehl, A. N.; Wessjohann, L. A.; Schnitzler, J.;Evaluation of plant sources for antiinfective lead compound discovery by correlating phylogenetic, spatial, and bioactivity dataProc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.11712444-12451(2020)DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1915277117
The continued high rates of using antibiotics in healthcare and livestock, without sufficient new compounds reaching the market, has led to a dramatic increase in antimicrobial resistance, with multidrug-resistant bacteria emerging as a major public health threat worldwide. Because the vast majority of antiinfectives are natural products or have originated from them, we assessed the predictive power of plant molecular phylogenies and species distribution modeling in the search for clades and areas which promise to provide a higher probability of delivering new antiinfective compound leads. Our approach enables taxonomically and spatially targeted bioprospecting and supports the battle against the global antimicrobial crisis.
Publikation
Serra, P.; Carbonell, A.; Navarro, B.; Gago-Zachert, S.; Li, S.; Di Serio, F.; Flores, R.;Symptomatic plant viroid infections in phytopathogenic fungi: A request for a critical reassessmentProc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.11710126-10128(2020)DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1922249117
Wijnker, E.; Harashima, H.; Müller, K.; Parra-Nuñez, P.; de Snoo, C. B.; van de Belt, J.; Rajjou, L.; Bayer, M.; Pradillo, M.; Schnittger, A.;The Cdk1/Cdk2 homolog CDKA;1 controls the recombination landscape in ArabidopsisProc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.11612534-12539(2019)DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1820753116
Little is known how patterns of cross-over (CO) numbers and distribution during meiosis are established. Here, we reveal that cyclin-dependent kinase A;1 (CDKA;1), the homolog of human Cdk1 and Cdk2, is a major regulator of meiotic recombination in Arabidopsis. Arabidopsis plants with reduced CDKA;1 activity experienced a decrease of class I COs, especially lowering recombination rates in centromere-proximal regions. Interestingly, this reduction of type I CO did not affect CO assurance, a mechanism by which each chromosome receives at least one CO, resulting in all chromosomes exhibiting similar genetic lengths in weak loss-of-function cdka;1 mutants. Conversely, an increase of CDKA;1 activity resulted in elevated recombination frequencies. Thus, modulation of CDKA;1 kinase activity affects the number and placement of COs along the chromosome axis in a dose-dependent manner.