Cloning and characterization of phosphoglucomutase and phosphomannomutase derived from Sphingomonas chungbukensis DJ77.

The enzymes phosphoglucomutase (PGM) and phosphomannomutase (PMM) play an important role in the synthesis of extracellular polysaccharide. By colony hybridization of the fosmid library of Sphingomonas chungbukensis DJ77, an open reading frame (ORF-1) of 1,626 nucleotides, whose predicted product is highly homologous with other PGM proteins from several bacterial species, was identified. An additional open reading frame (ORF-2) of 1,437 nucleotides was identified, and its encoded protein shows a high level of similarity with the PGM/PMM protein family.

Amino acid residues conferring herbicide resistance in tobacco acetohydroxy acid synthase.

The enzyme AHAS (acetohydroxy acid synthase), which is involved in the biosynthesis of valine, leucine and isoleucine, is the target of several classes of herbicides. A model of tobacco AHAS was generated based on the X-ray structure of yeast AHAS. Well conserved residues at the herbicide-binding site were identified, and the roles of three of these residues (Phe-205, Val-570 and Phe-577) were determined by site-directed mutagenesis.