Protein tyrosine phosphatase-like phytases: a new class of bacterial regulatory proteins?

我的研究计划的总体目标是增加我们对新发现的蛋白酪氨酸磷酸酶样植酸酶家族的理解。植酸酶广泛存在于自然界中，并已在原核生物、原生生物、真菌、动物和植物中鉴定。这些酶催化从肌醇磷酸盐中逐步去除磷酸盐，肌醇磷酸盐是一组重要的信号传导分子，其涉及许多重要的真核细胞过程，包括DNA修复、分泌和内吞途径中的膜运输、发育、程序性细胞死亡和致病性。为了了解这些酶在自然界中是如何工作的，我使用各种技术来表征它们的基本生物化学，结构，催化机制和生物功能。从这些研究中获得的见解也可用于开发具有成本效益的肌醇磷酸盐来源，其中许多具有已知的药物特性。这方面的知识也可用于制定解决集约化畜牧业生产中常见污染问题的办法。植酸是谷物中最常见的肌醇磷酸。植酸盐是一种重要的地表水污染物周围密集的畜牧业运作，因为植酸盐是在很大程度上不消化的猪和家禽。给动物喂食植酸酶是消除这个问题的一种简单方法。

The overall objective of my research program is to increase our understanding of a newly discovered family of enzymes known as protein tyrosine phosphatase-like phytases. Phytases are widespread in nature and have been identified in prokaryotes, protists, fungi, animals, and plants. These enzymes catalyze the stepwise removal of phosphates from inositols phosphates which are an important group of signaling molecule that have been implicated in numerous important eukaryotic cellular processes including DNA repair, membrane trafficking in secretory and endocytic pathways, development, programmed cell death, and pathogenicity. In order to understand how these enzymes work in nature, I use a variety of techniques to characterize their basic biochemistry, structure, catalytic mechanism and biological function. Insights gained from these studies can also be used to develop cost effective sources of inositol phosphates, many of which have known pharmaceutical properties. This knowledge may also be used to develop solutions to a common pollution problem in intensive livestock production. Phytate is the most common inositol phosphate found in grains. Phytate is an important pollutant of surface water around intensive livestock operations because phytate is largely indigestible by swine and poultry. Feeding animals phytases is a simple approach to eliminate this problem.