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Hoffmann, R. A wiki for the life sciences where authorship matters. Nature Genetics (2008)
 
 
 

Convergent evolution sheds light on the anti-beta -elimination mechanism common to family 1 and 10 polysaccharide lyases.

Enzyme-catalyzed beta-elimination of sugar uronic acids, exemplified by the degradation of plant cell wall pectins, plays an important role in a wide spectrum of biological processes ranging from the recycling of plant biomass through to pathogen virulence. The three-dimensional crystal structure of the catalytic module of a "family PL-10" polysaccharide lyase, Pel10Acm from Cellvibrio japonicus, solved at a resolution of 1.3 A, reveals a new polysaccharide lyase fold and is the first example of a polygalacturonic acid lyase that does not exhibit the "parallel beta-helix" topology. The "Michaelis" complex of an inactive mutant in association with the substrate trigalacturonate/Ca2+ reveals the catalytic machinery harnessed by this polygalacturonate lyase, which displays a stunning resemblance, presumably through convergent evolution, to the tetragalacturonic acid complex observed for a structurally unrelated polygalacturonate lyase from family PL-1. Common coordination of the -1 and +1 subsite saccharide carboxylate groups by a protein-liganded Ca2+ ion, the positioning of an arginine catalytic base in close proximity to the alpha-carbon hydrogen and numerous other conserved enzyme-substrate interactions, considered in light of mutagenesis data for both families, suggest a generic polysaccharide anti-beta-elimination mechanism.[1]

References

  1. Convergent evolution sheds light on the anti-beta -elimination mechanism common to family 1 and 10 polysaccharide lyases. Charnock, S.J., Brown, I.E., Turkenburg, J.P., Black, G.W., Davies, G.J. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. (2002) [Pubmed]
 
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