« Previous AbstractDelta11 desaturases of Trichoplusia ni and Spodoptera littoralis exhibit dual catalytic behaviour    Next Abstract"Electrophysiological Responses of the Mediterranean Fruit Fly, Ceratitis capitata, to the Cera Trap(R) Lure: Exploring Released Antennally-Active Compounds" »

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

Title:		A multifunctional desaturase involved in the biosynthesis of the processionary moth sex pheromone
Author(s):		Serra M; Pina B; Abad JL; Camps F; Fabrias G;
Address:		"Research Unit on BioActive Molecules (RUBAM), Departament de Quimica Organica Biologica, Institut d'Investigacions Quimiques i Ambientals de Barcelona, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain"
Journal Title:		Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
Year:		2007
Volume:		20071005
Issue:		42
Page Number:		16444 - 16449
DOI:		10.1073/pnas.0705385104
ISSN/ISBN:		0027-8424 (Print) 1091-6490 (Electronic) 0027-8424 (Linking)
Abstract:		"The sex pheromone of the female processionary moth, Thaumetopoea pityocampa, is a unique C16 enyne acetate that is biosynthesized from palmitic acid. Three consecutive desaturation reactions transform this saturated precursor into the triunsaturated fatty acyl intermediate: formation of (Z)-11-hexadecenoic acid, acetylenation to 11-hexadecynoic acid, and final Delta(13) desaturation to (Z)-13-hexadecen-11-ynoic acid. By using degenerate primers common to all reported insect desaturases, a single cDNA sequence was isolated from total RNA of T. pityocampa female pheromone glands. The full-length transcript of this putative desaturase was expressed in elo1Delta/ole1Delta yeast mutants (both elongase 1 and Delta(9) desaturase-deficient) for functional assays. The construct fully rescued the Deltaole1 yeast phenotype, confirming its desaturase activity. Analysis of the unsaturated products from transformed yeast extracts demonstrated that the cloned enzyme showed Delta(11) desaturase, Delta(11) acetylenase, and Delta(13) desaturase activities. Therefore, this single desaturase may account for the three desaturation steps involved in the sex pheromone biosynthetic pathway of the processionary moth"
Keywords:		"Amino Acid Sequence Animals Cloning, Molecular Fatty Acid Desaturases/*classification/genetics/*metabolism Fatty Acids, Unsaturated/*biosynthesis/chemistry Female Molecular Sequence Data Moths/*enzymology Phylogeny Sex Attractants/*biosynthesis/chemistry;"
Notes:		"MedlineSerra, Montserrat Pina, Benjamin Abad, Jose Luis Camps, Francisco Fabrias, Gemma eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2007/10/09 Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Oct 16; 104(42):16444-9. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0705385104. Epub 2007 Oct 5"