Mechanistic insight into acrylate metabolism and detoxification in marine dimethylsulfoniopropionate-catabolizing bacteria

What is it about?

Dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) cleavage, yielding dimethyl sulfide (DMS) and acrylate, is an important step in global sulfur cycling. Since acrylate is toxic to cells, it is important to understand how organisms utilize and detoxify acrylate. Through molecular and structural analyses, we provide the molecular mechanism for acrylate metabolism and detoxification in DMSP-catabolizing Roseobacters and suggest an effective detoxification system which is likely relevant to many metabolic processes and environments beyond DMSP catabolism in Roseobacters.

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