ENZYME FACTORY
During PKS biosynthesis, ACP moves to AT to pick up an extender group and then delivers it to KS. In KS’s active site, the group is added to pentaketide. ACP then takes the fused product to KR, where it is reduced. Finally, ACP offers the extended product to PKS’s next module. Active sites on enzyme domains are yellow.
Credit: Adapted from Nature
Polyketide Synthase Secrets Revealed
Structural Enzymology: Findings could aid engineering of multienzyme complexes for drug discovery
A new study solves long-standing mysteries about how bacterial natural-product-making factories are put together and how they work. The findings could accelerate efforts to engineer these workshops to produce novel bioactive agents for drug discovery.
