title: A census of carbohydrate-active enzymes in the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana.
abstract: The synthesis, modification, and breakdown of carbohydrates is one of the most fundamentally important reactions in nature. The structural and functional diversity of glycosides is mirrored by a vast array of enzymes involved in their synthesis (glycosyltransferases), modification (carbohydrate esterases) and breakdown (glycoside hydrolases and polysaccharide lyases). The importance of these processes is reflected in the dedication of 1-2% of an organism's genes to glycoside hydrolases and glycosyltransferases alone. In plants, these processes are of particular importance for cell-wall synthesis and expansion. starch metabolism, defence against pathogens, symbiosis and signalling. Here we present an analysis of over 730 open reading frames representing the two main classes of carbohydrate-active enzymes, glycoside hydrolases and glycosyltransferases, in the genome of Arabidopsis thaliana. The vast importance of these enzymes in cell-wall formation and degradation is revealed along with the unexpected dominance of pectin degradation in Arabidopsis, with at least 170 open-reading frames dedicated solely to this task.
authors.affiliation: Architecture et Fonction des Macromolécules Biologiques, UMR 6098, CNRS and Universités d'Aix-Marseille I and II, France. bernie@afmb.cnrs-mrs.fr
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Henrissat
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Coutinho
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Davies
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000378:metabolism; D004798:Enzymes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018745:Genome, Plant; D006026:Glycoside Hydrolases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D016695:Glycosyltransferases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D011487:Protein Conformation
chemical_list: D004798:Enzymes; D016695:Glycosyltransferases; D006026:Glycoside Hydrolases