Cutinases from fungi

Kolattukudy PE, Purdy RE, Maiti IB (1981) Cutinases from fungi and pollen. In Lowenstein JM (ed) Methods in enzymology. Academic Press, New York, p 652... 

Kolattukudy PE (1984) Cutinases from fungi and pollen. In Borgstrom B, Brockman H (eds) Lipases. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam, p 471... 

Comparison of Some Properties of Cutinases from Fungi and Pollen... 

Conidia from pathogenic fungi that land on a plant surface carry low levels of cutinase to sense the contact with the host, and the cutin monomers generated upon contact of the conidia with the plant can be the inducers that allow the fungus to produce enough quantities of cutinase to gain access into the host (Fig. 12). This postulate was supported by many lines of evidence. Highly pa-... 

Cutin. Structural component of the outer lipophilic protective layer (cuticle) of the aerial parts of plants, especially leaves. Suberin serves similar functions in roots and bark. C. is a natural polyester, formed enzymatically from hydroxyfatty acids with 16 and 18 C atoms. o+Hydroxy- and dihydroxyfatty acids, e.g., 10,16-dihydroxypalmitic acid, as well as epoxy- and oxofatty acids, and a,o>-dicarboxylic acids are the main components of cutin. Cutinases (C.-cleaving enzymes) occur especially in pollen and in plant-pathogenic fungi, e.g., Fusarium solani (while rot in potatoes). 

Cutinase was purified and characterized from the extracellular fluid of cutin-grown Fusarium solani pisi (3, )- Since then, cutinase has been purified from a variety of pathogenic fungi (5>6). 

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