Publications

• Endogenous synthesis of coenzyme Q in eukaryotes.

  Tran U.C., Clarke C.F.

  Coenzyme Q (Q) functions in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and serves as a lipophilic antioxidant. There is increasing interest in the use of Q as a nutritional supplement. Although, the physiological significance of Q is extensively investigated in eukaryotes, ranging from yeast to human, th ... >> More

  Coenzyme Q (Q) functions in the mitochondrial respiratory chain and serves as a lipophilic antioxidant. There is increasing interest in the use of Q as a nutritional supplement. Although, the physiological significance of Q is extensively investigated in eukaryotes, ranging from yeast to human, the eukaryotic Q biosynthesis pathway is best characterized in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. At least ten genes (COQ1-COQ10) have been shown to be required for Q biosynthesis and function in respiration. This review highlights recent knowledge about the endogenous synthesis of Q in eukaryotes, with emphasis on S. cerevisiae as a model system. << Less

  Mitochondrion 7 Suppl:S62-71(2007) [PubMed] [EuropePMC]

  This publication is cited by 4 other entries.

• Functional characterization of OsPPT1, which encodes p-hydroxybenzoate polyprenyltransferase involved in ubiquinone biosynthesis in Oryza sativa.

  Ohara K., Yamamoto K., Hamamoto M., Sasaki K., Yazaki K.

  Prenylation of the aromatic intermediate p-hydroxybenzoate (PHB) is a critical step in ubiquinone (UQ) biosynthesis. The enzyme that catalyzes this prenylation reaction is p-hydroxybenzoate polyprenyltransferase (PPT), which substitutes an aromatic proton at the m-position of PHB with a prenyl cha ... >> More

  Prenylation of the aromatic intermediate p-hydroxybenzoate (PHB) is a critical step in ubiquinone (UQ) biosynthesis. The enzyme that catalyzes this prenylation reaction is p-hydroxybenzoate polyprenyltransferase (PPT), which substitutes an aromatic proton at the m-position of PHB with a prenyl chain provided by polyprenyl diphosphate synthase. The rice genome contains three PPT candidates that share significant similarity with the yeast PPT (COQ2 gene), and the rice gene showing the highest similarity to COQ2 was isolated by reverse transcription-PCR and designated OsPPT1a. The deduced amino acid sequence of OsPPT1a contained a putative mitochondrial sorting signal at the N-terminus and conserved domains for putative substrate-binding sites typical of PPT protein family members. The subcellular localization of OsPPT1a protein was shown to be mainly in mitochondria based on studies using a green fluorescent protein-PPT fusion. A yeast complementation study revealed that OsPPT1a expression successfully recovered the growth defect of the coq2 mutant. A prenyltransferase assay using recombinant protein showed that OsPPT1a accepted prenyl diphosphates of various chain lengths as prenyl donors, whereas it showed strict substrate specificity for the aromatic substrate PHB as a prenyl acceptor. The apparent K (m) values for geranyl diphosphate and PHB were 59.7 and 6.04 microM, respectively. The requirement by OsPPT1a and COQ2 for divalent cations was also studied, with Mg2+ found to produce the highest enzyme activity. Northern analysis showed that OsPPT1a mRNA was accumulated in all tissues of O. sativa. These results suggest that OsPPT1a is a functional PPT involved in UQ biosynthesis in O. sativa. << Less

  Plant Cell Physiol 47:581-590(2006) [PubMed] [EuropePMC]

  This publication is cited by 3 other entries.

• Functional conservation of coenzyme Q biosynthetic genes among yeasts, plants, and humans.

  Hayashi K., Ogiyama Y., Yokomi K., Nakagawa T., Kaino T., Kawamukai M.

  Coenzyme Q (CoQ) is an essential factor for aerobic growth and oxidative phosphorylation in the electron transport system. The biosynthetic pathway for CoQ has been proposed mainly from biochemical and genetic analyses of Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae; however, the biosynthetic pat ... >> More

  Coenzyme Q (CoQ) is an essential factor for aerobic growth and oxidative phosphorylation in the electron transport system. The biosynthetic pathway for CoQ has been proposed mainly from biochemical and genetic analyses of Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae; however, the biosynthetic pathway in higher eukaryotes has been explored in only a limited number of studies. We previously reported the roles of several genes involved in CoQ synthesis in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Here, we expand these findings by identifying ten genes (dps1, dlp1, ppt1, and coq3-9) that are required for CoQ synthesis. CoQ10-deficient S. pombe coq deletion strains were generated and characterized. All mutant fission yeast strains were sensitive to oxidative stress, produced a large amount of sulfide, required an antioxidant to grow on minimal medium, and did not survive at the stationary phase. To compare the biosynthetic pathway of CoQ in fission yeast with that in higher eukaryotes, the ability of CoQ biosynthetic genes from humans and plants (Arabidopsis thaliana) to functionally complement the S. pombe coq deletion strains was determined. With the exception of COQ9, expression of all other human and plant COQ genes recovered CoQ10 production by the fission yeast coq deletion strains, although the addition of a mitochondrial targeting sequence was required for human COQ3 and COQ7, as well as A. thaliana COQ6. In summary, this study describes the functional conservation of CoQ biosynthetic genes between yeasts, humans, and plants. << Less

  PLoS One 9:e99038-e99038(2014) [PubMed] [EuropePMC]

  This publication is cited by 3 other entries.

• Isolation and functional expression of human COQ2, a gene encoding a polyprenyl transferase involved in the synthesis of CoQ2.

  Forsgren M., Attersand A., Lake S., Gruenler J., Swiezewska E., Dallner G., Climent I.

  The COQ2 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a Coq2 (p-hydroxybenzoate:polyprenyl transferase), which is required in the biosynthetic pathway of CoQ (ubiquinone). This enzyme catalyses the prenylation of p-hydroxybenzoate with an all-trans polyprenyl group. We have isolated cDNA which we beli ... >> More

  The COQ2 gene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae encodes a Coq2 (p-hydroxybenzoate:polyprenyl transferase), which is required in the biosynthetic pathway of CoQ (ubiquinone). This enzyme catalyses the prenylation of p-hydroxybenzoate with an all-trans polyprenyl group. We have isolated cDNA which we believe encodes the human homologue of COQ2 from a human muscle and liver cDNA library. The clone contained an open reading frame of length 1263 bp, which encodes a polypeptide that has sequence homology with the Coq2 homologues in yeast, bacteria and mammals. The human COQ2 gene, when expressed in yeast Coq2 null mutant cells, rescued the growth of this yeast strain in the absence of a non-fermentable carbon source and restored CoQ biosynthesis. However, the rate of CoQ biosynthesis in the rescued cells was lower when compared with that in cells rescued with the yeast COQ2 gene. CoQ formed when cells were incubated with labelled decaprenyl pyrophosphate and nonaprenyl pyrophosphate, showing that the human enzyme is active and that it participates in the biosynthesis of CoQ. << Less

  Biochem. J. 382:519-526(2004) [PubMed] [EuropePMC]

  This publication is cited by 1 other entry.

• COQ2 is a candidate for the structural gene encoding para-hydroxybenzoate:polyprenyltransferase.

  Ashby M.N., Kutsunai S.Y., Ackerman S., Tzagoloff A., Edwards P.A.

  Coenzyme Q functions as a lipid-soluble electron carrier in eukaryotes. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the enzymes responsible for the assembly of the polyisoprenoid side chain and subsequent transfer to para-hydroxybenzoate (PHB) are encoded by the nuclear genes COQ1 and COQ2, respectively. Yeast m ... >> More

  Coenzyme Q functions as a lipid-soluble electron carrier in eukaryotes. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the enzymes responsible for the assembly of the polyisoprenoid side chain and subsequent transfer to para-hydroxybenzoate (PHB) are encoded by the nuclear genes COQ1 and COQ2, respectively. Yeast mutants defective in coenzyme Q biosynthesis are respiratory defective and provide a useful tool to study this non-sterol branch of the isoprenoid biosynthetic pathway. We isolated a 5.5-kilobase genomic DNA fragment that was able to functionally complement a coq2 strain. Additional complementation analyses located the COQ2 gene within a 2.1-kilobase HindIII-BglII restriction fragment. Sequence analyses revealed the presence of a 1,116-base pair open reading frame coding for a predicted protein of 372 amino acids and a molecular mass of 41,001 daltons. The amino acid sequence exhibits a typical amino-terminal mitochondrial leader sequence and six potential membrane-spanning domains. Primer extension and Northern analyses indicate the gene is transcriptionally active. Transformation of a coq2 strain with the 2.1-kilobase HindIII-BglII genomic restriction fragment on a multicopy plasmid restores PHB:polyprenyltransferase activity to wild-type levels. Disruption of the chromosomal COQ2 gene indicates the gene is not essential for viability, yet is required for PHB:polyprenyltransferase activity and respiratory function. In addition, the deduced amino acid sequence of PHB:polyprenyltransferase contains a putative allylic polyprenyl diphosphate-binding site. The presence of this aspartate-rich domain in a number of functionally distinct proteins which utilize polyprenyl diphosphate substrates is reported. << Less

  J. Biol. Chem. 267:4128-4136(1992) [PubMed] [EuropePMC]

  This publication is cited by 3 other entries.