Abstract
Mycobacterium leprae separated from infected human tissues, oxidizes 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (dopa) and a few other phenolic compounds1–3. This property is not shown by several other mycobacteria1,2,4. Phenoloxidase occurs in vertebrate melanocytes and is widely distributed in the plant kingdom5. (E.C. 1.10.3.1, o-diphenol: oxygen oxidoreductase). For a large number of substrates the phenoloxidase of the leprosy bacilli is similar to the enzyme from plant sources, and distinct from mammalian phenolase, which has a limited substrate specificity6. When the reaction products were compared, another distinguishing feature of the M. leprae enzyme became evident and this is reported here.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Prabhakaran, K., Intern. J. Leprosy, 35, 42 (1967).
Prabhakaran, K., and Kirchheimer, W. F., J. Bact., 92, 1267 (1966).
Prabhakaran, K., Nature, 215, 436 (1967).
Kirchheimer, W. F., and Prabhakaran, K., Intern. J. Leprosy, 36 (2) (1968).
Mason, H. S., Adv. Enzymol., 16, 105 (1955).
Brown, F. C., Ward, D. N., and Griffin, A. C., in Pigment Cell Biology (edit. by Gordon, M.), 525 (Academic Press, New York, 1959).
Prabhakaran, K., Kirchheimer, W. F., and Harris, E. B., J. Bact. (in the press).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
PRABHAKARAN, K. Properties of Phenoloxidase in Mycobacterium leprae. Nature 218, 973–974 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1038/218973a0
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/218973a0
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
