PMID: 25730549

Authors:

Fage CD, Isiorho EA, Liu Y, Wagner DT, Liu HW, Keatinge-Clay AT

Title:

The structure of SpnF, a standalone enzyme that catalyzes [4 + 2] cycloaddition.

Journal:

Nat Chem Biol. 2015 Mar 2. doi: 10.1038/nchembio.1768.

Abstract:

In the biosynthetic pathway of the spinosyn insecticides, the tailoring enzyme SpnF performs a [4 + 2] cycloaddition on a 22-membered macrolactone to forge an embedded cyclohexene ring. To learn more about this reaction, which could potentially proceed through a Diels-Alder mechanism, we determined the 1.50-A-resolution crystal structure of SpnF bound to S-adenosylhomocysteine. This sets the stage for advanced experimental and computational studies to determine the precise mechanism of SpnF-mediated cyclization.