Isolation and characterization of a Chlamydomonas L-asparaginase

An L-asparaginase (EC 3.5.1.1) specific for L-asparagine has been purified from a marine Chlamydomonas species, the first such enzyme to be purified from a microalga. The purified enzyme (mol.wt. 275 000) possessed a Km for asparagine of 1.34 x 10(-4) M and showed limited antitumour activity in an antilymphoma assay in vivo. Properties of the enzyme are contrasted with those of asparaginases from prokaryotic and eukaryotic sources.