InterPro domain: IPR001174

The lincomycin (LM)-production gene cluster of an over-producing strain ofStreptomyces lincolnensis has been analysed [ 1 ]. The lmb/lmr gene cluster contains 27 open reading frames with putative biosynthetic orregulatory functions (lmb genes) and three resistance (lmr) genes [ 2 ].

Only a minority of the putative Lmb proteins belong to known proteinfamilies: these include members of the gamma-glutamyl transferases (LmbA);amino acid acylases (LmbC); aromatic amino acid aminotransferases (LmbF);imidazoleglycerolphosphate dehydratases (LmbK); dTDP-glucose synthases(LmbO); dTDP-glucose 4,6-dehydratases (LmbM); and (NDP-) ketohexose (or ketocyclitol) aminotransferases (LmbS) [ 2 ].

LmbP seems to show some similarity to a family of enzymes that share anN-terminal Gly/Ser-rich putative ATP-binding region: these include galacto-kinase ( 2.7.1.6 ), homoserine kinase ( 2.7.1.39 ), mevalonate kinase ( 2.7.1.36 ) and phosphomevalonate kinase[ 2 ]. Sequence v031 from Mycobacterium tuberculosis [ 3 ] is also a homologue.

1. Molecular characterization of the lincomycin-production gene cluster of Streptomyces lincolnensis 78-11. Mol. Microbiol. 16, 1137-56
2. Cloning and characterization of ERG8, an essential gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae that encodes phosphomevalonate kinase. Mol. Cell. Biol. 11, 620-31
3. An integrated map of the genome of the tubercle bacillus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv, and comparison with Mycobacterium leprae. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 93, 3132-7