New transaminase from Odontosyllis undecimdonta the first potential enzyme of the luciferin biosynthesis pathway

Among nearly a hundred known bioluminescent systems, only about a dozen have been studied to some extent, and the structures of only a few luciferins have been established. Moreover, the biosynthesis pathway is known only for two of them - the fungal and bacterial ones. Marine polychaetes of the Odontosyllis genus possess bright bioluminescence. The structures of its bioluminescence system key components were recently elucidated, and a possible pathway of the luciferin biosynthesis was proposed. Here we report the transaminase enzyme from Odontosyllis undecimdonta, the first potential participant of the cascade. We demonstrate that the discovered ferment catalyzes the transamination of the cys2DOPA, one of the potential luciferin biosynthetic precursors. The results of the experiments support the hypothesis that the discovered enzyme might be the part of the Odontosyllis luciferin biosynthesis pathway. •New transaminase from Odontosyllis undecimdonta was identified and cloned.•The native enzyme was produced, purified and tested in vitro.•Transaminase catalyzes a proposed Odontosyllis luciferin precursor transamination.•Potential enzyme from the Odontosyllis luciferin biosynthetic pathway was discovered.