Activity of Enzymes Catalyzing Formation of beta-L-Fucosyl Phosphate and GDP-beta-L-Fucose in Amphibian Tissues and Their Application in Chemo--Enzymic Synthesis of GDP-beta-L-Fucose

T. N. Druzhinina¹, N. S. Utkina¹, K. Chan², G. Strecker², and V. N. Shibaev^1*

¹Zelinsky Institute of Organic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Leninskii pr. 47, Moscow, 117913 Russia; fax: (095) 135-5328; E-mail: shiba@ioc.ac.ru

²Laboratoire de Chimie Biologique et UMR 8576 CNRS, Universite des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, 59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq, France; fax: (33-320) 43-6555

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received September 29, 1998; Revision received February 4, 1999

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Amphibian oviduct and liver were shown to contain enzymes that catalyze the formation of GDP-beta-L-fucose from GDP-alpha-D-mannose or L-fucose. The conversion of L-fucose into beta-L-fucopyranosyl phosphate was achieved on a preparative scale using high-activity fucokinase in toad liver extracts. For chemo--enzymic preparation of GDP-beta-L-fucose, a convenient modification for pyrophosphate synthesis through phosphomorpholidate which does not require anhydrous conditions is suggested.

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KEY WORDS: fucosyl phosphate, guanosine diphosphate fucose, chemo--enzymic synthesis, amphibian tissues

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