1.
C-terminal domains of bacterial proteases: structure, function and the biotechnological applications.
Huang, J, Wu, C, Liu, D, Yang, X, Wu, R, Zhang, J, Ma, C, He, H
Journal of applied microbiology. 2017;(1):12-22
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Abstract
C-terminal domains widely exist in the C-terminal region of multidomain proteases. As a β-sandwich domain in multidomain protease, the C-terminal domain plays an important role in proteolysis including regulation of the secretory process, anchoring and swelling the substrate molecule, presenting as an inhibitor for the preprotease and adapting the protein structural flexibility and stability. In this review, the diversity, structural characteristics and biological function of C-terminal protease domains are described. Furthermore, the application prospects of C-terminal domains, including polycystic kidney disease, prepeptidase C-terminal and collagen-binding domain, in the area of medicine and biological artificial materials are also discussed.
2.
Recent advances in microbial production of δ-aminolevulinic acid and vitamin B12.
Kang, Z, Zhang, J, Zhou, J, Qi, Q, Du, G, Chen, J
Biotechnology advances. 2012;(6):1533-42
Abstract
δ-aminolevulinate (ALA) is an important intermediate involved in tetrapyrrole synthesis (precursor for vitamin B12, chlorophyll and heme) in vivo. It has been widely applied in agriculture and medicine. On account of many disadvantages of its chemical synthesis, microbial production of ALA has been received much attention as an alternative because of less expensive raw materials, low pollution, and high productivity. Vitamin B12, one of ALA derivatives, which plays a vital role in prevention of anaemia has also attracted intensive works. In this review, recent advances on the production of ALA and vitamin B12 with novel approaches such as whole-cell enzyme-transformation and metabolic engineering are described. Furthermore, the direction for future research and perspective are also summarized.