Identification of the algal dimethyl sulfide-releasing enzyme: A missing link in the marine sulfur cycle

Uria Alcolombri, Shifra Ben-Dor, Ester Feldmesser, Yishai Levin, Dan S. Tawfik*, Assaf Vardi

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

185 Scopus citations

Abstract

Algal blooms produce large amounts of dimethyl sulfide (DMS), a volatile with a diverse signaling role in marine food webs that is emitted to the atmosphere, where it can affect cloud formation. The algal enzymes responsible for forming DMS from dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) remain unidentified despite their critical role in the global sulfur cycle. We identified and characterized Alma1, a DMSP lyase from the bloom-forming algae Emiliania huxleyi. Alma1 is a tetrameric, redox-sensitive enzyme of the aspartate racemase superfamily. Recombinant Alma1 exhibits biochemical features identical to the DMSP lyase in E. huxleyi, and DMS released by various E. huxleyi isolates correlates with their Alma1 levels. Sequence homology searches suggest that Alma1 represents a gene family present in major, globally distributed phytoplankton taxa and in other marine organisms.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1466-1469
Number of pages4
JournalScience
Volume348
Issue number6242
DOIs
StatePublished - 26 Jun 2015
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science. All rights reserved.

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