scholarly journals Structures and apoprotein linkages of phycoerythrobilin and phycocyanobilin

1980 ◽  
Vol 187 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Derek Killilea ◽  
Padraig O'Carra ◽  
Richard F. Murphy

Phycoerythrobilin and phycocyanobilin are covalently attached to the apoproteins of phycoerythrins and phycocyanins. One linkage consists of an ester bond between the hydroxy group of a serine residue and the propionate side chain on one of the inner pyrrole rings (probably ring C). The other linkage is a labile thioether bond between a cysteine residue and the two-carbon side chain on pyrrole ring A. This side chain and both of the α-positions of the ring A are in the reduced state. This constitutes an important structural revision, since, in the structures currently accepted for the phycobilins, the two-carbon side chain on ring A is depicted as an ethylidene grouping and this has been regarded not only as a very characteristic feature of the phycobilins, but also as a probable structural feature of the chromophore of phytochrome, largely on the basis of other analogies with the phycobilins. The ethylidene-containing structures apply instead to artefact forms of the pigments released from the apoproteins by treatment with hot methanol. Cleavage of the ring-A linkage involves an elimination reaction releasing the cysteine residue and generating a double bond in the ring-A side chain. During cleavage in methanol the direction of the elimination is towards the ring, generating the ethylidene double bond. Since this is linked to the conjugated system, the methanol-released pigments differ spectrally from the native phycobilins. During acid-catalysed release of the pigments, the elimination apparently goes in the opposite direction, generating a double bond at the outer position of the side chain. Since this double bond is not linked to the conjugated system, the acid-released pigments remain spectrally identical with their protein-bound counterparts.

1985 ◽  
Vol 226 (3) ◽  
pp. 723-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
S D Killilea ◽  
P O'Carra

R-Phycoerythrin contains two covalently bound bilin prosthetic groups, phycoerythrobilin and phycourobilin. The two chromophore types were separated as their peptide-bound derivatives by subjecting tryptic digests of R-phycoerythrin to adsorption chromatography on Sephadex G-25. The structure and apoprotein linkages of the bound phycoerythrobilin were found to be identical with those previously reported for this phycobilin [Killilea, O'Carra & Murphy (1980) Biochem. J. 187, 311-320]. Phycourobilin is a tetrapyrrole, containing no oxo bridges and has the same order of side chains as IX alpha bilins. The chromophore is linked to the peptide through two and possibly three of its pyrrole rings. One linkage possibly consists of an ester bond between the hydroxy group of a serine residue and the propionic acid side chain of one of the inner rings. The second linkage is a labile thioether bond between a cysteine residue and the C2 side chain of pyrrole ring A. The third linkage is a stable thioether bond between a cysteine residue and the alpha-carbon atom of the C2 side chain of pyrrole ring D. Ring D is unsaturated and is attached to ring C through a saturated carbon bridge. Rings B and C have a conjugated system of five bonds, as found in other urobilinoid pigments. Ring A is attached to ring B via a saturated carbon bridge. Both of the alpha-positions of ring A are in the reduced state, but the ring does contain an unsaturated centre (probably a double bond between the beta-carbon and the ring nitrogen atom). The presence of this double bond and its isomerization into the bridge position between rings A and B would explain the extension of the conjugated system of phycourobilin to that of a phycoerythrobilinoid/rhodenoid pigment in acid or alkali.


1983 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 1499-1507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alois Vystrčil ◽  
Václav Křeček ◽  
Miloš Buděšínský

Solvolysis of 28-p-toluenesulfonyloxy-20(29)-lupene derivatives IV-VII proceeds with isomerization of the isopropenyl side chain to the isopropylidene chain and expansion of the ring E to a six-membered ring, containing trisubstituted double bond; for „anhydrobetulin" and its derivatives formulae VIII-XI with homoconjugated double bonds are suggested. Formation of a conjugated diene system is hindered by steric interactions of the isopropylidene chain with the ring C (with C(12)). Only the trisubstituted double bond in the dienes VIII and X undergoes catalytic reduction, the hydrogen approaching from the α-side (XII-XVI) as demonstrated by the Cotton effect of trinorketone XXI and its 20,20-dibromo derivative XXIII.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 606-610
Author(s):  
Nguyen T. Diep ◽  
Luu D. Huy

Background: Vietnam currently imports up to 90% of the pharmaceuticals it consumes and 100% of the steroid-based pharmaceuticals. The ability for efficient chemical synthesis of the steroids could create commercial opportunities to address this issue. Synthesis of 21-acetoxypregna-1,4,9(11)- triene-17α,21-diol-3,20-dione is considered a key intermediate in the scheme of steroidal drug synthesis. Previous synthesis attempts of such steroids (corticoids) introduce a double bond at C-1(2) in the final stage of synthesis, which delivers a poor yield and reduces the economic efficiency of the process. Objective: To study and develop a novel and effective method for the synthesis of 21-acetoxypregna- 1,4,9(11)-triene-17α,21-diol-3,20-dione. Methods: Using 9α-hydroxyandrostenedione as a substrate chemical synthesis was performed as follows: pregnane side chain construction at C-17 (acetylene method), introduction of C-1(2) double bond (using SeO2), epimerization of C-17 (via 17-ONO2 ester) and Stork’s iodination. Results: 21-acetoxypregna-1,4,9(11)-triene-17α,21-diol-3,20-dione was prepared from 9α- hydroxyandrostenedione with an improved yield compared to previous attempts. Conclusion: Here, 21-acetoxypregna-1,4,9(11)-triene-17α,21-diol-3,20-dione has been synthesized from 9α-hydroxyandrostenedione based on a novel, effective and commercially feasible scheme. The introduction of the C-1(2) double bond at an earlier stage of the synthesis has increased the economic efficiency of the entire process. For the first time, the indirect epimerization mechanism has been clarified along with the configuration of the C-17 stereo-center which has been confirmed using NOESY data.


1991 ◽  
Vol 280 (3) ◽  
pp. 659-662 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Martín ◽  
A Slade ◽  
A Aitken ◽  
R Arche ◽  
R Virden

The site of reaction of penicillin acylase from Kluyvera citrophila with the potent inhibitor phenylmethanesulphonyl fluoride was investigated by incubating the inactivated enzyme with thioacetic acid to convert the side chain of the putative active-site serine residue to that of cysteine. The protein product contained one thiol group, which was reactive towards 2,2′-dipyridyl disulphide and iodoacetic acid. Carboxymethylcysteine was identified as the N-terminal residue of the beta-subunit of the carboxy[3H]methylthiol-protein. No significant changes in tertiary structure were detected in the modified penicillin acylase using near-u.v. c.d. spectroscopy. However, the catalytic activity (kcat) with either an anilide or an ester substrate was decreased in the thiol-protein by a factor of more than 10(4). A comparison of sequences of apparently related acylases shows no other extensive regions of conserved sequence containing an invariant serine residue. The side chain of this residue is proposed as a candidate nucleophile in the formation of an acyl-enzyme during catalysis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Azizuddin ◽  
Muhammad Iqbal ◽  
Syed Ghulam Musharraf

: For several decades, biotransformational studies on steroidal compounds have gained a lot of attention because it is an efficient approach for the structural modification of complicated natural or synthetic compounds with high regio-, chemo- and stereoselectivity at environmentally friendly conditions. This review summarizes the use of different strains of Cunninghamella blakesleeana for the biotransformation of sixteen steroids 1-16 into a variety of transformed products. The transformed products may be important as a drug or precursor for the production of important pharmaceuticals. The types of reactions performed by C. blakesleeana include hydroxylation, epoxidation, reduction, demethylation, oxidation, glycosidation, double bond formation, side-chain degradation, isomerisation and opening of an isoxazol ring, which would be difficult to produce by traditional synthesis.


Synlett ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroki Tanimoto ◽  
Kazuki Tojo ◽  
Tsumoru Morimoto ◽  
Kiyomi Kakiuchi

The terpene core structure of suaveolindoles was synthesized through a concise route in a time-economical manner. A scalable synthetic route from pulegone delivered the desired α,β,γ,δ-unsaturated ester in a brief period. By way of Eschenmoser-Claisen rearrangement, carbon side chain moiety at the crowded double-allylic position was introduced stereoselectively.


1970 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 4145-4148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nobuo Ikekawa ◽  
Yasushi Honma ◽  
Naoko Morisaki ◽  
Kiyoshi Sakai
Keyword(s):  

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 156
Author(s):  
Li Li ◽  
Fusheng Chen

Monascus pigments (MPs) have been used as food colorants for several centuries in Asian countries and are now used throughout the world via Asian catering. The MP biosynthetic pathway has been well-illustrated, but the functions of a few genes, including mrpigG, in the MP gene cluster are still unclear. In the current study, in order to investigate the function of mrpigG in M. ruber M7, gene deletion (ΔmrpigG), complementation (ΔmrpigG::mrpigG) and overexpression (M7::PtrpC-mrpigG) mutants were successfully obtained. The morphologies and biomasses, as well as the MP and citrinin production, of these mutants were analyzed. The results revealed that the disruption, complementation and overexpression of mrpigG showed no apparent defects in morphology, biomass or citrinin production (except MP production) in ΔmrpigG compared with M. ruber M7. Although the MP profiles of ΔmrpigG and M. ruber M7 were almost the same—with both having four yellow pigments, two orange pigments (OPs) and two red pigments (RPs)—their yields were decreased in ΔmrpigG to a certain extent. Particularly, the content of rubropunctatin (an OP) and its derivative rubropunctamine (an RP) in ΔmrpigG, both of which have a five-carbon side chain, accounted for 57.7%, and 22.3% of those in M. ruber M7. On the other hand, monascorubrin (an OP) and its derivative monascorubramine (an RP), both of which have a seven-carbon side chain, were increased by 1.15 and 2.55 times, respectively, in ΔmrpigG compared with M. ruber M7. These results suggest that the MrPigG protein may preferentially catalyze the biosynthesis of MPs with a five-carbon side chain.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document