AUTHOR=Pan Weimin , Zhou Yong-Ling , Wang Jian , Dai Huai-En , Wang Xiao , Liu Lin 

TITLE=Structural and Functional Analysis of Nonheme Iron Enzymes BCMO-1 and BCMO-2 from Caenorhabditis elegans

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-biosciences/articles/10.3389/fmolb.2022.844453

DOI=10.3389/fmolb.2022.844453

ISSN=2296-889X

ABSTRACT=<p>Carotenoid metabolism is critical for diverse physiological processes. The nematode <italic>Caenorhabditis elegans</italic> has two genes that are annotated as β-carotene 15,15′-monooxygenase (BCMO) and are 17 centimorgan apart on chromosome II, but the function of BCMO-1 and BCMO-2 remains uncharacterized. Sequence homology indicates that the two enzymes belong to the carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase family that share a seven-bladed β-propeller fold with a nonheme iron center. Here we determined crystal structures of BCMO-1 and BCMO-2 at resolutions of 1.8 and 1.9 Å, respectively. Structural analysis reveals that BCMO-1 and BCMO-2 are strikingly similar to each other. We also characterized their β-carotene cleavage activity, but the results suggest that they may not act as β-carotene 15,15′-oxygenases.</p>