Degradation of Nucleic Acids and their Related Compounds by Microbial Enzymes

Part II. On the Distribution of Extracellular Enzymes Capable of Degrading Ribonucleic Acid into 2'-(3')-Mononucleotides or Oligonucleotides in Microorganisms

抄録

Degradation of ribonucleic acid (RNA) was investigated with extracellular microbial enzymes capable of hydrolyzing RNA into products other than 5'-mononucleotides. The degradation products were analyzed by using 5'-nucleotidase and non-specific prostatic phopshomonoesterase. It was found that most microorganisms investigated, including Rhodotorula glutinis, Spolobolomyces pararoseus, Helicostylum piriforme, Poria vaporaria, Gibberella fujikuroi, Penicillium citrinum, Aspergillus flavus, and Rhizopus chinensis, produced enzymes which degrade RNA into 2'-(3')-mononucleotides. However, such microorganisms as Candida clausenii, Bacillus cereus, Absidia butleri, Mucor genevensis, Polystictus hirsutus, Polystictus versicolor, and Phycomyces blakeslecanus degraded RNA into oligonucleotides.
It is not clear whether the oligonucleotides formed from RNA by these microbial enzymes are terminated with 5'-phosphomonoester end group or with 3'-phosphomonoester end group.