UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase and similar proteins
Bacterial members of the UDP-N-Acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) 2-Epimerase family (EC 5.1.3.14) are known to catalyze the reversible interconversion of UDP-GlcNAc and UDP-N-acetylmannosamine (UDP-ManNAc). The enzyme serves to produce an activated form of ManNAc residues (UDP-ManNAc) for use in the biosynthesis of a variety of cell surface polysaccharides; The mammalian enzyme is bifunctional, catalyzing both the inversion of stereochemistry at C-2 and the hydrolysis of the UDP-sugar linkage to generate free ManNAc. It also catalyzes the phosphorylation of ManNAc to generate ManNAc 6-phosphate, a precursor to salic acids. In mammals, sialic acids are found at the termini of oligosaccharides in a large variety of cell surface glycoconjugates and are key mediators of cell-cell recognition events. Mutations in human members of this family have been associated with Sialuria, a rare disease caused by the disorders of sialic acid metabolism. This family belongs to the GT-B structural superfamily of glycoslytransferases, which have characteristic N- and C-terminal domains each containing a typical Rossmann fold. The two domains have high structural homology despite minimal sequence homology. The large cleft that separates the two domains includes the catalytic center and permits a high degree of flexibility.
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