Microbial dehalogenation

Novel dehalogenases have been identified recently in various bacteria that utilise halogenated substrates. X-ray studies and sequence analysis have re vealed insight into the molecular mechanisms of hydrolytic dehalogenases. F urthermore, genetic and biochemical studies have indicated that reductive d ehalogenases are extra-cytoplasmic corrinoid-containing iron-sulphur protei ns. Sequence analysis and mutagenesis studies indicate that several dehalog enases are homologous to enzymes that carry out transformations on non-halo genated substrates.