A tethering mechanism for length control in a processive carbohydrate polymerization
- 21 July 2009
- journal article
- Published by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
- Vol. 106 (29), 11851-11856
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0901407106
Abstract
Carbohydrate polymers are the most abundant organic substances on earth. Their degrees of polymerization range from tens to thousands of units, yet polymerases generate the relevant lengths without the aid of a template. To gain insight into template-independent length control, we investigated how the mycobacterial galactofuranosyl-transferase GlfT2 mediates formation of the galactan, a polymer of galactofuranose residues that is an integral part of the cell wall. We show that isolated recombinant GlfT2 can catalyze the synthesis of polymers with degrees of polymerization that are commensurate with values observed in mycobacteria, indicating that length control by GlfT2 is intrinsic. Investigations using synthetic substrates reveal that GlfT2 is processive. The data indicate that GlfT2 controls length by using a substrate tether, which is distal from the site of elongation. The strength of interaction of that tether with the polymerase influences the length of the resultant polymer. Thus, our data identify a mechanism for length control by a template-independent polymerase.This publication has 51 references indexed in Scilit:
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