Beta-apo-4'-carotenal oxygenase explained

Beta-apo-4'-carotenal oxygenase
Ec Number:	1.2.1.82

Beta-apo-4'-carotenal oxygenase (beta-apo-4'-carotenal dehydrogenase, YLO-1, carD (gene)) is an enzyme with systematic name 4'-apo-beta,psi-carotenal:NAD⁺ oxidoreductase.^{[1] [2]} This enzyme catalyses the following chemical reaction:

4'-apo-beta, psi-caroten-4'-al + NAD⁺ + H2O

\rightleftharpoons neurosporaxanthin + NADH + 2 H⁺

Neurosporaxanthin is responsible for the orange color of Neurospora.

Notes and References

1. Estrada AF, Youssar L, Scherzinger D, Al-Babili S, Avalos J . The ylo-1 gene encodes an aldehyde dehydrogenase responsible for the last reaction in the Neurospora carotenoid pathway . Molecular Microbiology . 69 . 5 . 1207–20 . September 2008 . 18627463 . 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2008.06349.x . free .
2. Díaz-Sánchez V, Estrada AF, Trautmann D, Al-Babili S, Avalos J . The gene carD encodes the aldehyde dehydrogenase responsible for neurosporaxanthin biosynthesis in Fusarium fujikuroi . The FEBS Journal . 278 . 17 . 3164–76 . September 2011 . 21749649 . 10.1111/j.1742-4658.2011.08242.x . free .