| Comments |
The enzyme catalyses a complex oxygen-dependent conversion of reduced flavin mononucleotide to form 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole, the lower ligand of vitamin B12. This conversion involves many sequential steps in two distinct stages, and an alloxan intermediate that acts as a proton donor, a proton acceptor, and a hydride acceptor [4]. The C-2 of 5,6-dimethylbenzimidazole is derived from C-1′ of the ribityl group of FMNH2 and 2-H from the ribityl 1′-pro-S hydrogen. While D-erythrose 4-phosphate has been shown to be one of the byproducts, the nature of the other product(s) has not been verified yet. |
