Structure-based Analysis of Apocarotenoid Biosynthesis

描述（由申请人提供）：类维生素A是动物体内必需的信号分子，已成为常见的化学预防性膳食剂。 类维生素A的生物合成途径始于类胡萝卜素被首先在植物中发现的类胡萝卜素裂解双加氧酶（CCD）家族的成员裂解。 在植物中，CCD参与植物激素脱落酸的生物合成，脱落酸是一种控制植物结构的新激素。 在动物中，CCD负责类维生素A的生物合成，特别是维生素A，这是视力所必需的，以及视黄酸，这对正常发育至关重要。 目前，不存在任何CCD的高分辨率结构信息。 利用一个或多个CCD的结构，可以进行植物中酶和代谢途径工程化的结构引导方法，以允许控制植物结构以及增加营养质量。 在动物中，这种方法可能会导致对视觉发色团和信号分子视黄酸的产生有更好的理解。 模式生物拟南芥中的CCD家族提供了一个相关基因的集合，用于系统解剖复杂的CCD机制的结构和功能特征。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Retinoids are essential signaling molecules in animals and have become common chemo-preventive dietary agents. The retinoid biosynthetic pathway begins with the cleavage of a carotenoid by a member of the Carotenoid Cleavage Dioxygenase (CCD) family of enzymes first discovered in plants. In plants, CCDs participate in the biosynthesis of the phytohormone abscisic acid and a novel hormone that controls plant architecture. In animals the CCDs are responsible for the biosynthesis of retinoids, notably vitamin A, which is necessary for vision, and retinoic acid, which is critical to normal development. Currently, no high resolution structural information for any CCD exists. With the structure of one or more CCDs, a structurally guided approach towards enzyme and metabolic pathway engineering in plants could be done to allow for the control of plant architecture as well as increase nutritional quality. In animals, this approach could lead to a greater understanding of the production of the visual chromophore and to the signaling molecule, retinoic acid. The CCD family in the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana provides a collection of related genes for the systematic dissection of the structural and functional features of the mechanistically complex CCDs.