Abstract
Over 23,000 isoprenoid compounds have been identified so far. They are known to play various important roles in cellular machinery, and all of them are synthesized through prenyldiphosphate compounds. These compounds are sub-classified into two families, cis- and trans-prenyldiphosphates, based on their geometric isomerism. Each isomer is synthesized by cis- and trans-prenyltransferases, respectively. This paper describes the structure and the reaction mechanism of a cis-prenyltransferase, undecaprenyl diphosphate synthase (UPP synthase), in comparison with those of trans-prenyltransferases. Despite the chemical similarity of the cis- and trans- reactions, the structures and the substrate recognition modes are quite different between each enzyme family.
