IDENTIFICATION OF A NATURALLY-OCCURRING PEROXIDASE-LIPOXYGENASE FUSION PROTEIN

A distant relative of catalase that is specialized for metabolism of a fatty acid hydroperoxide was identified. This heme peroxidase occurs in coral as part of a fusion protein, the other component of which is a lipoxygenase that forms the hydroperoxide substrate, The end product is an unstable epoxide (an allene oxide) that is a potential precurso r of prostaglandin-like molecules. These results extend the known chem istry of catalase-like proteins and reveal a distinct type of enzymati c construct involved in the metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids.