MICROBIAL RIBULOSE 1,5-BISPHOSPHATE CARBOXYLASE OXYGENASE - A MOLECULE FOR PHYLOGENETIC AND ENZYMOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION/

Ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RubisCO) catalyzes th e key reaction of the Calvin reductive pentose phosphate cycle and as such is responsible for life as we know it. This enzyme has been inten sively studied for decades. Evidence that RubisCO phylogenies are inco ngruent with those derived from other macromolecules has been accumula ting and recent discoveries have driven home this point. Here we revie w findings regarding RubisCO phylogeny and discuss these in the contex t of the important biochemical and structural features of the enzyme. The implications for the engineering of improved RubisCO enzymes are c onsidered.