Rubisco: the enzyme that keeps on giving.
In cyanobacteria, the RbcX protein enhances the production of Rubisco, the multisubunit enzyme that catalyzes the first step of carbon dioxide fixation in most autotrophic organisms. In this issue of Cell, Saschenbrecker et al. (2007) report that RbcX acts as a specific assembly chaperone that mobilizes the large subunits of Rubisco to a specific oligomeric core that can then combine with the small subunits of Rubisco to form the functional holoenzyme.
Tabita
F Robert
FR
Department of Microbiology and Plant Molecular Biology/Biotechnology Program, The Ohio State University, 484 West 12th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210-1292 USA. tabita.1@osu.edu
D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry; D002384:Catalysis; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000378:metabolism*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000378:metabolism; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000378:metabolism; D020035:Holoenzymes / Q000737:chemistry; D008954:Models, Biological; D018832:Molecular Chaperones / Q000737:chemistry; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*
D020035:Holoenzymes; D018832:Molecular Chaperones; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D012273:Ribulose-Bisphosphate Carboxylase