• Journal of Marine Life Science
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2021

In marine ecosystems, the biosynthesis and catabolism of dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) by marine bacteria is critical to microbial survival and the ocean food chain. Furthermore, these processes also influence sulfur recycling and climate change. Recent studies using emerging genome sequencing data and extensive bioinformatics analysis have enabled us to identify new DMSP-related genes. Currently, seven bacterial DMSP lyases (DddD, DddP, DddY, DddK, DddL, DddQ and DddW), two acrylate degrading enzymes (DddA and DddC), and four demethylases (DmdA, DmdB, DmdC, and DmdD) have been identified and characterized in diverse marine bacteria. In this review, we focus on the biochemical properties of DMSP cleavage enzymes with special attention to DddD, DddA, and DddC pathways. These three enzymes function in the production of acetyl coenzyme A (CoA) and CO₂ from DMSP. DddD is a DMSP lyase that converts DMSP to 3-hydroxypropionate with the release of dimethylsulfide. 3-Hydroxypropionate is then converted to malonate semialdehyde by DddA, an alcohol dehydrogenase. Then, DddC transforms malonate semialdehyde to acetyl-CoA and CO₂ gas. DddC is a putative methylmalonate semialdehyde dehydrogenase that requires nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide and CoA cofactors. Here we review recent insights into the structural characteristics of these enzymes and the molecular events of DMSP degradation.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.197-203
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• 2005

Dimethylsulfide (DMS) is the most abundant form of volatile sulfurs in the ocean. Many biogeochemical studies have been conducted in the past several decades to unveil the processes driving the production, transformation and removal of DMS. They have shown that the Southern Ocean is an area with one of the highest levels of DMS concentrations during the austral summer in the global oceans. It has recently been observed that Antarctic krill, Euphausia superba, produces DMS and dissolved dimethyl-sulfoniopropionate (DMSP) in its gazing process. Copepods also produce DMS, and the potential production rates of DMS in the Southern Ocean by krill and copepods are estimated to be as much as $21{\mu}mol\;m^{-2}d^{-1}$ and $0.6{\mu}mol\;m^{-2}d^{-1}$, respectively. These production rates of zooplankton and the presence of phytoplanktot which have high DMSP contents in their cells, might facilitate in situ DMS production in the Southern Ocean.