Genes specifying the thiamin monophosphate phosphatase and adenylated thiazole diphosphatase steps in fungal and plant thiamin biosynthesis remain unknown, as do genes for ThDP (thiamin diphosphate) hydrolysis in thiamin metabolism. A distinctive Nudix domain fused to Tnr3 (thiamin diphosphokinase) in Schizosaccharomyces pombe was evaluated as a candidate for these functions. Comparative genomi...

It has been recognized from recent studies that nucleoside triphosphates, other than ATP,’ function in biologic systems as phosphorylating agents (1) and in coenzyme synthesis (2) in a manner analogous to that of ATP. The discovery of the natural occurrence of a variety of purine and pyrimidine nucleoside diand triphosphates (3-5) and the likelihood that new biologic functions for these nucleot...

The detailed conformational features and dynamics of the naturally occurring deoxyribotrinucleoside diphosphates d-TpTpT and d-TpTpC have been investigated at 20 degrees C and 80 degrees C in aqueous solution by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The observed NMR parameters indicate that the conformational properties of the trimers are very similar to those of the constituent dimers and m...

Ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) catalyzes the conversion of nucleoside diphosphates to deoxynucleoside diphosphates (dNDPs). The Escherichia coli class Ia RNR uses a mechanism of radical propagation by which a cysteine in the active site of the RNR large (α2) subunit is transiently oxidized by a stable tyrosyl radical (Y•) in the RNR small (β2) subunit over a 35-Å pathway of redox-active amino a...

The trans-polyisoprene compounds are synthesized by trans-isoprenyl diphosphate synthase (IDS) with consecutive condensation of isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) to dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP). The in vitro condensation by IDS does not proceed efficiently by hydrophobic interaction between IDS and the hydrocarbon of longer products. In the present study, the enzymatic synthesis of trans-polyi...

Studies on nucleotide and coenzyme synthesis in this laboratory led to an attempt to convert nucleoside 5’-polyphosphates to polyribonucleotides. We were able to show that extracts of Escherichia coli convert C14-adenine-labeled ATP1 to an acid-insoluble nucleotide, and that the addition of adenylate kinase increased the rate of the reaction (1, 2). The discovery of Ochoa and coworkers ( 3 , 4)...

RNA ligase induced by bacteriophage T4 catalyzed the addition of nucleoside 5',3'-diphosphates to oligoribonucleotide acceptors in the presence of ATP. The reactions proceeded in equimolar concentrations of donors and acceptors. Several oligonucleotides of defined sequence were synthesized by this method in yields of 28-68%. The enzyme required the phosphate ester at the 3' position of the dono...

1. Polynucleotide phosphorylase was partially purified from the inner membrane of rat liver mitochondria. 2. The partially purified particulate enzyme catalyses phosphorolysis of poly(A), poly(C), poly(U) and RNA to nucleoside diphosphates. 3. It is devoid of nucleoside diphosphate-polymerization activity. 4. Variable amounts of ADP/P(i)-exchange activity are associated with the polynucleotide ...