RESUMEN
Aspartate kinase (AK, EC 2.7.2.4), homoserine dehydrogenase (HSDH, EC 1.1.1.3) and dihydrodipicolinate synthase (DHDPS, EC 4.2.1.52) were isolated and partially purified from immature Chenopodium quinoa Willd seeds. Enzyme activities were studied in the presence of the aspartate-derived amino acids lysine, threonine and methionine and also the lysine analogue S-2-aminoethyl-l-cysteine (AEC), at 1 mM and 5 mM. The results confirmed the existence of, at least, two AK isoenzymes, one inhibited by lysine and the other inhibited by threonine, the latter being predominant in quinoa seeds. HSDH activity was also shown to be partially inhibited by threonine, whereas some of the activity was resistant to the inhibitory effect, indicating the presence of two isoenzymes, one resistant and another sensitive to threonine inhibition. Only one DHDPS isoenzyme highly sensitive to lysine inhibition was detected. The results suggest that the high concentration of lysine observed in quinoa seeds is possibly due to a combined effect of increased lysine synthesis and accumulation in the soluble form and/or as protein lysine. Nitrogen assimilation was also investigated and based on nitrate content, nitrate reductase activity, amino acid distribution and ureide content, the leaves were identified as the predominant site of nitrate reduction in this plant species. The amino acid profile analysis in leaves and roots also indicated an important role of soluble glutamine as a nitrogen transporting compound.
Asunto(s)
Chenopodium quinoa/enzimología , Lisina/biosíntesis , Nitrógeno/metabolismo , Hojas de la Planta/enzimología , Raíces de Plantas/enzimología , Aminoácidos/metabolismo , Aspartato Quinasa/metabolismo , Homoserina Deshidrogenasa/metabolismo , Hidroliasas/metabolismo , Isoenzimas/metabolismo , Nitrato-Reductasa/metabolismo , Proteínas de Plantas/metabolismoRESUMEN
Amino acid metabolism is a fundamental process for plant growth and development. Although a considerable amount of information is available, little is known about the genetic control of enzymatic steps or regulation of several pathways. Much of the information about biochemical pathways has arisen from the use of mutants lacking key enzymes. Although mutants were largely used already in the 60's, by bacterial and fungal geneticists, it took plant research a long time to catch up. The advance in this area was rapid in the 80's, which was followed in the 90's by the development of techniques of plant transformation. In this review we present an overview of the aspartic acid metabolic pathway, the key regulatory enzymes and the mutants and transgenic plants produced for lysine and threonine metabolism. We also discuss and propose a new study of high-lysine mutants.
Asunto(s)
Ácido Aspártico/metabolismo , Fenómenos Fisiológicos de las Plantas , Proteínas de Plantas/genética , Proteínas de Plantas/metabolismo , Aspartato Quinasa/genética , Aspartato Quinasa/metabolismo , Homoserina Deshidrogenasa/genética , Homoserina Deshidrogenasa/metabolismo , Hidroliasas/genética , Hidroliasas/metabolismo , Lisina/metabolismo , Plantas Modificadas Genéticamente , Sacaropina Deshidrogenasas/genética , Sacaropina Deshidrogenasas/metabolismo , Treonina/metabolismoRESUMEN
Quality protein maize (QPM) varieties have been produced by the introduction of opaque-2 modifier genes. Two QPM varieties, BR451 and BR473, a wild type and an opaque-2 variety, have been used to study key enzymes controlling lysine metabolism in the endosperm during development. Aspartate kinase and homoserine dehydrogenase enzymes, which are involved in lysine and threonine biosynthesis, respectively, exhibited identical activity patterns during endosperm development, with a maximum specific activity at 16 days after pollination. The QPM varieties exhibited higher levels of aspartate kinase activity in the endosperm, suggesting an increased rate of lysine biosynthesis when compared to the opaque-2 and wild-type genotypes. Similar results were observed for the lysine ketoglutarate reductase and saccharopine dehydrogenase enzymes, which form a single bifunctional polypetide involved in endosperm lysine degradation. Both enzyme activities were strongly reduced in the opaque-2 maize variety when compared to the wild-type maize, whereas the QPM varieties exhibited even lower levels of lysine ketoglutarate reductase-saccharopine dehydrogenase activities when compared to the opaque-2 variety. The developmental pattern of enzyme activity showed a different profile when compared to the enzymes involved in lysine biosynthesis, with activity being detected only 12-16 days after pollination (DAP) and maximum activities approximately 24 DAP. These results also suggest that the modifier genes have intensified the effect of the opaque-2 mutation on lysine ketoglutarate reductase-saccharopine dehydrogenase. These alterations lead to an increase in soluble lysine in the endosperm of the QPM varieties when compared to the opaque-2 and wild type.
Asunto(s)
Lisina/metabolismo , Zea mays/enzimología , Zea mays/crecimiento & desarrollo , Aspartato Quinasa/metabolismo , Homoserina Deshidrogenasa/metabolismo , Sacaropina Deshidrogenasas/metabolismo , Zea mays/genéticaRESUMEN
An immunohistochemical method using antibodies against bacterial aspartate kinase has been carried out in order to localize this enzyme in the cerebellar cortex of rat. The results obtained with light microscope have demonstrated a positive immunoreaction in both the granular and molecular layers. Electron microscopic observation has also revealed the reaction in several dendrites, axons and myelinated fibers. These facts lead us to think that aspartate kinase could be involved in the phosphorylation of aspartate in the nervous tissue.