Peptide unit biosynthesis

The discovery of nbozymes (Section 28 11) in the late 1970s and early 1980s by Sidney Altman of Yale University and Thomas Cech of the University of Colorado placed the RNA World idea on a more solid footing Altman and Cech independently discovered that RNA can catalyze the formation and cleavage of phosphodiester bonds—exactly the kinds of bonds that unite individual ribonucleotides in RNA That plus the recent discovery that ribosomal RNA cat alyzes the addition of ammo acids to the growing peptide chain in protein biosynthesis takes care of the most serious deficiencies in the RNA World model by providing precedents for the catalysis of biologi cal processes by RNA... 

Thiostrepton family members are biosynthesized by extensive modification of simple peptides. Thus, from amino acid iacorporation studies, the somewhat smaller (mol wt 1200) nosiheptide, which contains five thiazole rings, a trisubstituted iadole, and a trisubstituted pyridine, is speculated to arise from a simple dodecapeptide. This work shows that the thiazole moieties arise from the condensation of serine with cysteiae (159,160). Only a few reports on the biosynthesis of the thiostrepton family are available (159,160). Thiostrepton is presently used ia the United States only as a poly antimicrobial vetetinary ointment (Panalog, Squibb), but thiazole antibiotics have, ia the past, been used as feed additives ia various parts of the world. General (158) and mechanism of action (152) reviews on thiostrepton are available. 

The ribosome is a ribozyme this is how Cech (2000) commented on the report by Nissen et al. (2000) in Science on the successful proof of ribozyme action in the formation of the peptide bond at the ribosome. It has been known for more than 30 years that in the living cell, the peptidyl transferase activity of the ribosome is responsible for the formation of the peptide bond. This process, which takes place at the large ribosome subunit, is the most important reaction of protein biosynthesis. The determination of the molecular mechanism required more than 20 years of intensive work in several research laboratories. The key components in the ribosomes of all life forms on Earth are almost the same. It thus seems justified to assume that protein synthesis in a (still unknown) common ancestor of all living systems was catalysed by a similarly structured unit. For example, in the case of the bacterium E. coli, the two subunits which form the ribosome consist of 3 rRNA strands and 57 polypeptides. Until the beginning of the 1980s it was considered certain that the formation of the peptide bond at the ribozyme could only be carried out by ri-bosomal proteins. However, doubts were expressed soon after the discovery of the ribozymes, and the possibility of the participation of ribozymes in peptide formation was discussed. 

During the biosynthesis of nonribosomal peptides, there are two ways to incorporate the nonprotein amino acids. They can be incorporated either as a single unit or as an L-a-amino acid, which then undergoes structural modifications, while attached to the carrier protein. In the case of coronamic acid, L-rr//o-isoleucine is loaded onto the carrier protein and a unique biosynthetic pathway produces a cyclopropyl group containing a nonprotein amino acid. Specific examples of the biosynthesis of nonprotein amino acids will be discussed in the following sections. 

Growth of Fusariutn sp. at low iron concentration causes the accumulation of a variety of hydroxamic acids of which one has been characterized and named fusarinine, or NS-( s-5-hydroxy-3-methylpent-2-enoyl)-NS-hydroxy-L-ornithine (38). The cis configuration in the unsaturated acyl substituent accounts for the extreme acid lability of the hydroxamic acid bond. Fusarinine is the amino acid unit, bearing the hydroxamic acid linkage, present in ferrirhodin. The characterization of fusarinine has important implications for the biosynthesis of the ferrichrome group for it indicates that the hydroxamic acid bond is inserted at the free amino, acid, rather than at the peptide level. 

Streptomyces pathogens are quite rare in plant diseases. Thaxtomin A from Streptomyces scabies causes scab disease of potato, which is characterized by conspicuous corky lesions on tubers. Molecular genetic investigation has revealed that thaxtomins are biosynthesized by nonribosomal peptide synthetases (txtAB) that condense modified L-phenylalanyl and L-4-nitrotryptophanyl units to form a 2,5-dioxopiperazine skeleton.316 Disruption of txtA results in the formation of nonpathogenic strain. This toxin is shown to affect the movement of calcium ions and protons across the plasma membrane and also inhibit cellulose biosynthesis.317... 

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