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Zinc‐Handling in Cyanobacteria: An Update
Author(s) -
Blindauer Claudia A.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
chemistry and biodiversity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.427
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1612-1880
pISSN - 1612-1872
DOI - 10.1002/cbdv.200890183
Subject(s) - cyanobacteria , zinc , detoxification (alternative medicine) , efflux , chemistry , biology , biochemistry , bacteria , genetics , alternative medicine , organic chemistry , pathology , medicine
Zinc is a constituent of all six classes of enzymes, plays important roles in gene regulation, and is thought to be essential for most organisms. Despite initial discoveries of cyanobacterial metallothioneins, zinc efflux pumps and uptake systems, and zinc sensors, our knowledge of the zinc requirements, uptake, and detoxification mechanisms of cyanobacteria is still limited. Although cyanobacteria occupy extremely diverse habitats, most available data pertains to freshwater species, and almost no studies of zinc‐handling mechanisms have been conducted in marine species. The current report highlights what is known about zinc homeostasis in cyanobacteria, and presents an analysis of the 40 sequenced cyanobacterial genomes.