title: Biosynthesis of terpenoids: YchB protein of Escherichia coli phosphorylates the 2-hydroxy group of 4-diphosphocytidyl-2C-methyl-D-erythritol.
abstract: A comparative analysis of all published complete genomes indicated that the putative orthologs of the unannotated ychB gene of Escherichia coli follow the distribution of the dxs, dxr, and ygbP genes, which have been shown to specify enzymes of the deoxyxylulose phosphate pathway of terpenoid biosynthesis, thus suggesting that the hypothetical YchB protein also is involved in that pathway. To test this hypothesis, the E. coli ychB gene was expressed in a homologous host. The recombinant protein was purified to homogeneity and was shown to phosphorylate 4-diphosphocytidyl-2C-methyl-D-erythritol in an ATP-dependent reaction. The reaction product was identified as 4-diphosphocytidyl-2C-methyl-D-erythritol 2-phosphate by NMR experiments with various (13)C-labeled substrate samples. A (14)C-labeled specimen of this compound was converted efficiently into carotenoids by isolated chromoplasts of Capsicum annuum. The sequence of E. coli YchB protein is similar to that of the protein predicted by the tomato cDNA pTOM41 (30% identity), which had been implicated in the conversion of chloroplasts to chromoplasts.
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Organische Chemie und Biochemie, Technische Universität München, Lichtenbergstrasse 4, D-85747 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lüttgen
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rohdich
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Herz
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wungsintaweekul
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hecht
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Schuhr
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fellermeier
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sagner
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Zenk
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bacher
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Eisenreich
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002212:Capsicum / Q000378:metabolism; D004896:Erythritol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010766:Phosphorylation; D017853:Phosphotransferases (Alcohol Group Acceptor) / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010944:Plants / Q000235:genetics; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D018087:Plastids / Q000378:metabolism; D011106:Polyisoprenyl Phosphates / Q000096:biosynthesis; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013045:Species Specificity; D014996:Xylulose / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C400182:4-diphosphocytidyl-2-C-methylerythritol; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D011106:Polyisoprenyl Phosphates; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D014996:Xylulose; C029724:1-deoxy-2-pentulose; D017853:Phosphotransferases (Alcohol Group Acceptor); C404502:IspE protein, E coli; D004896:Erythritol