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A common evolutionary origin of two elementary enzyme folds
Birte Höcker1, Steffen Schmidt, Reinhard Sterner
1Universität zu Köln, Institut für Biochimie, Cologne, Germany.
FEBS Letters
|January 22, 2002
Summary
Enzymes often feature a beta alpha 8-barrel fold. Researchers found unexpected similarities between beta alpha 4-half barrels and flavodoxin-like folds, suggesting a common evolutionary building block for many enzymes.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Structural Biology
- Enzymology
Background:
- The beta alpha 8-barrel is a prevalent and adaptable enzyme fold.
- Evidence suggests beta alpha 8-barrels evolved from a dimeric ancestral half-barrel structure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolutionary origins of the beta alpha 8-barrel enzyme fold.
- To identify potential ancestral structural building blocks for enzyme evolution.
Main Methods:
- Comprehensive database search for structural and sequence similarities.
- Comparative analysis of protein folds.
Main Results:
- Detected significant structural and amino acid sequence similarity between beta alpha 4-half barrels and flavodoxin-like folds.
- Identified a potential common ancestral structural motif.
Conclusions:
- A common structural building block may underlie the evolution of a large proportion of modern enzymes.
- Sequence and structural analyses can reveal deep evolutionary relationships between protein folds.