Biomaterial Database

Methanopterin biosynthesis: methylation of the biosynthetic intermediates. 1998

R H White

Department of Biochemistry, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061-0308, USA. rhwhite@vt.edu

The basic scheme for the biosynthesis of methanopterin (MPT) in Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum strain DeltaH, and M. thermoautotrophicum strain Marburg, has been shown to be the same as that recently determined for Methanosarcina thermophila strain TM-1. This scheme has, as one of its unique steps, the condensation of 4-aminobenzoic acid with 5-phospho-alpha-d-ribosyl diphosphate (PRPP) to form 4-(beta-d-ribofuranosyl)aminobenzene 5'-phosphate (beta-RFA-P). Labeling experiments with each of these organisms have established that the sites in the overall sequence of reactions from beta-RFA-P to MPT, where the S-adenosylmethionine-dependent C-9 and C-7 methylations of the pterin-containing intermediates occur, are organism related. In this work, cell extracts of M. thermoautotrophicum strain DeltaH, and M. thermoautotrophicum strain Marburg were found to contain significant amounts of methanopterin lacking the phosphate and 2-hydroxyglutaric acid groups.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008745	Methylation	Addition of methyl groups. In histo-chemistry methylation is used to esterify carboxyl groups and remove sulfate groups by treating tissue sections with hot methanol in the presence of hydrochloric acid. (From Stedman, 25th ed)	Methylations
D010766	Phosphorylation	The introduction of a phosphoryl group into a compound through the formation of an ester bond between the compound and a phosphorus moiety.	Phosphorylations
D011622	Pterins	Compounds based on 2-amino-4-hydroxypteridine.	Pterin
D005977	Glutarates	Derivatives of glutaric acid (the structural formula (COO-)2C3H6), including its salts and esters.	Glutarate
D001391	Azo Compounds	Organic chemicals where aryl or alkyl groups are joined by two nitrogen atoms through a double bond (R-N	Azo Dye,Azo Dyes,Compounds, Azo,Dye, Azo,Dyes, Azo
D001665	Binding Sites	The parts of a macromolecule that directly participate in its specific combination with another molecule.	Combining Site,Binding Site,Combining Sites,Site, Binding,Site, Combining,Sites, Binding,Sites, Combining
D013045	Species Specificity	The restriction of a characteristic behavior, anatomical structure or physical system, such as immune response; metabolic response, or gene or gene variant to the members of one species. It refers to that property which differentiates one species from another but it is also used for phylogenetic levels higher or lower than the species.	Species Specificities,Specificities, Species,Specificity, Species
D013347	Subcellular Fractions	Components of a cell produced by various separation techniques which, though they disrupt the delicate anatomy of a cell, preserve the structure and physiology of its functioning constituents for biochemical and ultrastructural analysis. (From Alberts et al., Molecular Biology of the Cell, 2d ed, p163)	Fraction, Subcellular,Fractions, Subcellular,Subcellular Fraction
D014316	Tritium	The radioactive isotope of hydrogen also known as hydrogen-3. It contains two NEUTRONS and one PROTON in its nucleus and decays to produce low energy BETA PARTICLES.	Hydrogen-3,Hydrogen 3
D017014	Methanobacterium	A genus of anaerobic, rod-shaped METHANOBACTERIACEAE. Its organisms are nonmotile and use ammonia as the sole source of nitrogen. These methanogens are found in aquatic sediments, soil, sewage, and the gastrointestinal tract of animals.