Omura Tsuneo
Department of Molecular Biology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
Biotechnol Appl Biochem. 2013 Jan-Feb;60(1):4-8. doi: 10.1002/bab.1099.
Emergence of eukaryotic cells in the ancient world of prokaryotic life was dependent on P450 as the synthesis of sterols, an essential constituent of the plasma membrane, required a P450-catalyzed reaction. As the ancestral monocellular eukaryotic organisms evolved into multicellular eukaryotes, and then diversified to plants, fungi, and animals with different body organizations and metabolic activities, many novel compounds were created in order to meet the requirements for increasing complex metabolic activities of a wide variety of eukaryotic organisms. Many new P450s, created by gene duplication and mutation, contributed to the synthesis of those novel compounds in animals, plants, and fungi, and supported the diversification of the eukaryotes. Many secondary metabolites of plants, which protect the plants from the predation by herbivorous animals, were also synthesized by P450-catalyzed reactions. The herbivorous animals detoxified the noxious foreign compounds in the plants by P450. This "chemical warfare" between animals and plants is particularly evident in plants-insects interaction, and contributed to the coevolution and diversification of both plants and insects. The interaction between flowering plants and insect pollinators, which contributed to their coevolution, also depends on various plant compounds synthesized by P450-catalyzed reactions. P450 has made highly important contributions to the evolution and diversification of eukaryotic organisms.
在原核生物的远古世界中，真核细胞的出现依赖于细胞色素P450，因为作为质膜重要组成成分的固醇类物质的合成需要细胞色素P450催化的反应。随着原始单细胞真核生物进化为多细胞真核生物，进而分化为具有不同身体结构和代谢活动的植物、真菌和动物，为了满足各种真核生物日益复杂的代谢活动需求，许多新的化合物应运而生。通过基因复制和突变产生的许多新的细胞色素P450，促进了动物、植物和真菌中这些新化合物的合成，并支持了真核生物的多样化。植物的许多次生代谢产物，可保护植物免受食草动物的捕食，也是由细胞色素P450催化的反应合成的。食草动物通过细胞色素P450对植物中的有害外来化合物进行解毒。动植物之间的这种“化学战”在植物与昆虫的相互作用中尤为明显，促进了植物和昆虫的共同进化和多样化。开花植物与昆虫传粉者之间的相互作用促进了它们的共同进化，这也依赖于由细胞色素P450催化的反应合成的各种植物化合物。细胞色素P450对真核生物的进化和多样化做出了极其重要的贡献。
