Methanofuran
In biochemistry, methanofuran is a coenzyme that is involved in the first step of methanogenesis . It contains a five-membered furan ring with an amino nitrogen atom (NH-R) that binds carbon dioxide . This creates an N-carboxymethanofuran, which is converted to formylmethanofuran by a reductase . Formylmethanofuran then enters into further steps of methanogenesis.
Methanofuran is the only known enzyme that contains a furan residue. The coenzyme was detected in archaea and bacterial methylotrophs and was first discovered in Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum .
There are several methanofurans that differ in their structure (see picture). All variants have a common basic structure, chemically this is 4- [ N - (γ- L -glutamyl-γ- L -glutamyl) - p - (β-aminoethyl) phenoxymethyl] -2- (aminomethyl) furan. In methanofuran a from M. thermoautotrophicum , 1,3,4,6-hexanetetracarboxylic acid (HTCS) is also bound to the basic structure, on methanofuran b these are two linked γ- L -glutamyl residues, and methanofuran c from Methanobrevibacter smithii bears 2-hydroxy- HCTS.
literature
- Michael T. Madigan, John M. Martinko: Brock - Microbiology . Spektrum Akademischer Verlag GmbH, Heidelberg and Berlin, 2001, 1st reprint 2002, ISBN 3-8274-0566-1
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Graham, DE. and White, RH. (2002): Elucidation of methanogenic coenzyme biosyntheses: from spectroscopy to genomics . In: Nat Prod Rep . 19 (2); 133-147; PMID 12013276 ; doi : 10.1039 / B103714P