ACS DIVISION OF BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY

January 16th, 2018 by Karin Kuehnel

Cell biology: Eaten up from the inside

Cell biology: Eaten up from the inside, Published online: 16 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2563

Cell biology: Eaten up from the inside

January 16th, 2018 by Gregg A Howe

Plant hormones: Metabolic end run to jasmonate

Plant hormones: Metabolic end run to jasmonate, Published online: 16 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2553

The lipid-derived hormone jasmonate promotes durable resistance of plants to a myriad of herbivores and pathogens. New evidence reveals an alternative pathway for the terminal steps of jasmonate biosynthesis and further advances our understanding of bioactive oxylipins in the plant kingdom.

January 16th, 2018 by Stéphane Larochelle

RNA Splicing: Making the cut

RNA Splicing: Making the cut, Published online: 16 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2564

RNA Splicing: Making the cut

January 16th, 2018 by Wei Zhang

Drug development: Allosteric inhibitors hit USP7 hard

Drug development: Allosteric inhibitors hit USP7 hard, Published online: 16 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2557

A potent and specific small-molecule inhibitor of a long-sought-after anticancer drug target, USP7, that acts allosterically to inhibit MDM2-stabilizing activity foretells of more allosteric inhibitors for deubiquitinases and E3 ligases.

January 8th, 2018 by Matthew Jenner

Mechanism of intersubunit ketosynthase–dehydratase interaction in polyketide synthases

Mechanism of intersubunit ketosynthase–dehydratase interaction in polyketide synthases, Published online: 08 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2549

A combination of biochemical and structural techniques allows the characterization of a novel docking domain in polyketide synthases, which is structurally disordered and facilitates association of subunits at ketosynthase–dehydratase junctions.

January 8th, 2018 by Tammy M Hsu

Employing a biochemical protecting group for a sustainable indigo dyeing strategy

Employing a biochemical protecting group for a sustainable indigo dyeing strategy, Published online: 08 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2552

An environmentally friendly approach to indigo production is facilitated by the characterization of a plant indoxyl glucosyltransferase, which converts the unstable indoxyl precursor into indican by addition of a glucose protecting group.

January 8th, 2018 by Tetsuya Hori

Na⁺-mimicking ligands stabilize the inactive state of leukotriene B₄ receptor BLT1

Na⁺-mimicking ligands stabilize the inactive state of leukotriene B₄ receptor BLT1, Published online: 08 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2547

A structure of leukotriene B4 receptor BLT1 bound with a benzamidine-containing compound, BIIL260, reveals an inverse-agonist mechanism involving ligand binding in the sodium ion-centered water cluster adjacent to the conserved orthosteric site of class A GPCRs.

January 1st, 2018 by Andrea Chini

An OPR3-independent pathway uses 4,5-didehydrojasmonate for jasmonate synthesis

An OPR3-independent pathway uses 4,5-didehydrojasmonate for jasmonate synthesis, Published online: 01 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2540

OPR3 is required to reduce the JA-Ile precursor OPDA. Analyses of JA levels in a loss-of-function opr3-3 mutant identified an OPR3-independent pathway for JA-Ile biosynthesis, based on OPDA conversion to 4,5-ddh-JA and reduction to JA by OPR2.

January 1st, 2018 by Thomas E Smith

Accessing chemical diversity from the uncultivated symbionts of small marine animals

Accessing chemical diversity from the uncultivated symbionts of small marine animals, Published online: 01 January 2018; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2537

A combination of spectroscopy, metagenomics, and synthetic biology enables the characterization of the antiviral divamides, a class of lanthipeptide natural products in which even minor changes in structure lead to different biological activities.

December 18th, 2017 by Kelley W Moremen

Expression system for structural and functional studies of human glycosylation enzymes

Expression system for structural and functional studies of human glycosylation enzymes, Published online: 18 December 2017; doi:10.1038/nchembio.2539

A modular protein expression system enables the structural and functional characterization of human glycosyltransferases, glycoside hydrolases and other carbohydrate-modifying enzymes.