Oxidoreductases: Significance for Humans and Microorganism

Oxidoreductases consist of a large class of enzymes catalyzing the transfer of electrons from an electron donor (reductant) to an electron acceptor (oxidant) molecule. Since so many chemical and biochemical transformations comprise oxidation/reduction processes, it has long been an important goal in biotechnology to develop practical biocatalytic applications of oxidoreductases. During the past few years, significant breakthrough has been made in the development of oxidoreductase-based diagnostic tests and improved biosensors, and the design of innovative systems for the regeneration of essential coenzymes. Research on the construction of bioreactors for pollutants biodegradation and biomass processing, and the development of oxidoreductase-based approaches for synthesis of polymers and functionalized organic substrates have made great progress. Proper names of oxidoreductases are in a form of “donor:acceptor oxidoreductase”; while in most cases “donor dehydrogenase” is much more common. Common names also sometimes appeared as “acceptor reductase”, such as NAD+ reductase. “Donor oxidase” is a special case when O2 serves as the acceptor. In biochemical reactions, the redox reactions are sometimes more difficult to observe, such as this reaction from glycolysis: Pi + glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate + NAD+ → NADH + H+ + 1,3-bisphosphoglycerate, where NAD+ is the oxidant (electron acceptor), and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate functions as reductant (electron donor).