Current progress in crystallographic studies of new lipases from filamentous fungi

Lipases from filamentous fungi have been studied extensively over many years. They exhibit properties attractive for industrial applications, e.g. in laundry detergents, tanning and paper industries and stereospecific organic synthesis. Enzymes from the fungi Rhizomucor miehei and Geotrichum candidum have been among the first neutral lipases to be characterized structurally by X-ray diffraction methods. In this paper we report a preliminary account of crystallographic studies of three other fungal lipases homologous to that from R. miehei and obtained from Humicola lanuginosa, Penicillium camembertii and Rhizopus delemar. These newly characterized structures have important implications for our understanding of structure-function relationships in lipases in general and the molecular basis of interfacial activation.