Ribulose Biphosphate Carboxylase

1
Ribulose Biphosphate Carboxylase

• Josh Brand
• Bioinformatics Spring 2001

2
Whats an rbcL?

• Enzyme

3
Whats an rbcL?

• Enzyme - Large Subunit
• Coded By Chloroplast Genes

4
Whats an rbcL?

• Enzyme - Large Subunit
• Coded By Chloroplast Genes
• Introns?

5
Whats an rbcL?

• Enzyme - Large Subunit
• Coded By Chloroplast Genes
• Introns?
• Average Molecular Weight 53,000

6
Whats an rbcL?

• Enzyme - Large Subunit
• Coded By Chloroplast Genes
• Introns?
• Average Molecular Weight 53,000

7
Where is an rbcL?

• Water Soluble - Location...

8
Where is an rbcL?

• Located in the Chloroplast

9
What does it do?

• Multi-Functional

10
What does it do?

• Multi-Functional
• Both Oxygenase Carboxylase Activity

11
What does it do?

• Multi-Functional
• Both Oxygenase Carboxylase Activity
• High Concentration of rbcL...

12
What does it do?

• Multi-Functional
• Both Oxygenase Carboxylase Activity
• High Concentration of rbcL
• High Concentration of CO2

13
What does it do?

• The Calvin Cycle

14
The Calvin Cycle

• Elucidated by Melvin Calvin after WWII

15
The Calvin Cycle

• Elucidated by Melvin Calvin after WWII
• 1961 Nobel Prize

16
The Calvin Cycle

• Elucidated by Melvin Calvin after WWII
• 1961 Nobel Prize
• Tech Alum! (31)

17
How does this happen?

• Molecular activation of RuBisCO by CO2
  involves the formation of a carbamate with the
  epsilon-amino group of a conserved lysine
  residue. This carbamate is stabilized by a
  magnesium ion. One of the ligands of the
  magnesium ion is an aspartic acid residue close
  to the active site lysine.

18
Whats A Carbamate?

• A Simple Carbamate
• Resonance!

19
How does this happen?

• Binding Site
• 151
  200
• Consensus PPHGIQ-ERD -----GR-LL GCTIKPKLGL
  SAKNYGRA-Y ECLRGGLDFT
• 201
  250
• Consensus KDDENVNSQP FMRWRDRF-F CAE---K-Q-
  ET-EIKG-YL NA-A-----M
• Red amino acids are the active site all 40
  enzymes have this area conserved.

20
Diversity

• Genes From 40 Species

Tecophilaea cyanocrocus
21
Diversity

• Genes From 40 Species
• Ranging From Palm to Cactus to Birch

Tecophilaea cyanocrocus
22
Similarity

• Phylogram Heuristic/Max Parsimony

100 Bootstraps
23
Why is this important?

• The Calvin Cycle Makes All Life On This
  Planet Possible.