Oxalacetate amino acid synthesis

Another hypothesis of aromatic amino acid synthesis, based on the distribution of the label in tyrosine of yeast grown on radioactive pyruvate or acetate, is that it involves the cyclic condensation of two unsym-metric 4-carbon acids, e.g., oxalacetate. The side chain of tyrosine appears to be formed from pyruvate as an intact 3-carbon unit. 

Deoxy-araWno-heptulosonic acid 7-phosphate (10) is a metabolic intermediate before shikimic acid in the biosynthetic pathway to aromatic amino-acids in bacteria and plants. While (10) is formed enzymically from erythrose 4-phosphate (11) and phosphoenol pyruvate, a one-step chemical synthesis from (11) and oxalacetate has now been published.36 The synthesis takes place at room temperature and neutral pH... 

Kumagai and coworkers11131 developed an enzymatic procedure to produce d-alanine from fumarate by means of aspartase (E. C. 4.3.1.1), aspartate racemase, and D-amino acid aminotransferase (Fig. 17-12). Aspartase catalyzes conversion of fumarate into L-aspartate, which is racemized to form D-aspartate. D-Amino acid aminotransferase catalyzes transamination between D-aspartate and pyruvate to produce D-alanine and oxalacetate. This 2-oxo acid is easily decarboxylated spontaneously to form pyruvate in the presence of metals. Thus, the transamination proceeds exclusively toward the direction of D-alanine synthesis, and total conversion of fumarate into D-alanine was achieved. 

Hence, those enzymes involving PEP carboxylation and regeneration, and malate production and degradation plus synthesis of the amino acids aspartate and alanine from the keto acids oxalacetate and pyruvate are deemed most interesting for our understanding in CAM. 

These syntlieses give no indication as to the structure of aspartic acid, the constitutional formula of which is based upon Kolbe s work, that it is amino-succinic acid the only synthesis of aspartic acid which confirms this constitution appears to be that by Piutti in 1887. Sodium oxalacetic ester, prepared from oxalic ester and acetic ester in the presence of sodium ethylate —... 

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