title: Random nucleotide substitutions in primate nonfunctional gene for L-gulono-gamma-lactone oxidase, the missing enzyme in L-ascorbic acid biosynthesis.
abstract: Humans and other primates have no functional gene for L-gulono-gamma-lactone oxidase that catalyzes the last step of L-ascorbic acid biosynthesis. The 164-nucleotide sequence of exon X of the gene was compared among human, chimpanzee, orangutan, and macaque, and it was found that nucleotide substitutions had occurred at random throughout the sequence with a single nucleotide deletion, indicating that the primate L-gulono-gamma-lactone oxidase genes are a typical example of pseudogene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Wakayama Medical College, Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ohta
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nishikimi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001205:Ascorbic Acid / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D001483:Base Sequence; D004247:DNA; D006801:Humans; D050544:L-Gulonolactone Oxidase; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013401:Sugar Alcohol Dehydrogenases / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004247:DNA; D013401:Sugar Alcohol Dehydrogenases; D050544:L-Gulonolactone Oxidase; D001205:Ascorbic Acid