Structure of Fungal Fatty Acid Synthase and Implications for Iterative Substrate Shuttling

Abstract

We report crystal structures of the 2.6-megadalton α₆β₆ heterododecameric fatty acid synthase from Thermomyces lanuginosus at 3.1 angstrom resolution. The α and β polypeptide chains form the six catalytic domains required for fatty acid synthesis and numerous expansion segments responsible for extensive intersubunit connections. Detailed views of all active sites provide insights into substrate specificities and catalytic mechanisms and reveal their unique characteristics, which are due to the integration into the multienzyme. The mode of acyl carrier protein attachment in the reaction chamber, together with the spatial distribution of active sites, suggests that iterative substrate shuttling is achieved by a relatively restricted circular motion of the carrier domain in the multifunctional enzyme.