Emergence of fractal geometries in the evolution of a metabolic enzyme.

ABSTRACT: Fractals are patterns that are self-similar across multiple length-scales¹. Macroscopic fractals are common in nature^2-4; however, so far, molecular assembly into fractals is restricted to synthetic systems^5-12. Here we report the discovery of a natural protein, citrate synthase from the cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus, which self-assembles into Sierpiński triangles. Using cryo-electron microscopy, we reveal how the fractal assembles from a hexameric building block. Although different stimuli modulate the formation of fractal complexes and these complexes can regulate the enzymatic activity of citrate synthase in vitro, the fractal may not serve a physiological function in vivo. We use ancestral sequence reconstruction to retrace how the citrate synt

SUBMITTER: Sendker FL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11041685 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature