Abstract 2594 Structural Characterization of Methanobrevibacter ruminantium Aminobutanoyl Transferase

Transition metals are used in many different enzymatic reactions. An example is the abundant iron use by enzymes involved in methanogenesis. Transition metals can be rare in niche environments; thus, some organisms have evolved to obtain metal by biosynthesizing and secreting metal chelators called metallophores. The production of nicotianamine-like metallophores using a class of enzymes called aminobutanoyl transferases (ABT), appears to be a common strategy employed by archaeal methanogens. ABT's catalyze the reaction of an aminobutyl moiety from S-adenosyl L-methionine (SAM) onto an amino acid.