Guidelines for Determining the Structures of Radical SAM Enzyme-Catalyzed Modifications in the Biosynthesis of RiPP Natural Products. Author Leah Bushin, Mohammad Seyedsayamdost Publication Year 2018 Type Journal Article Abstract Radical S-adenosylmethionine (RaS) enzymes catalyze some of the most fascinating transformations in Nature. With only ~100 of the >300,000 members studied to date, it is safe to assume that a plethora of new reactions and reaction mechanisms remain to be elucidated. It is by now relatively easy to spot RaS enzymes in microbial genomes. However, to determine the reactions that they carry out, detailed structural characterization of the product(s) is necessary, a process that still represents a significant roadblock in the study of RaS enzymes. We have recently combined natural products structural elucidation along with RaS enzymology to provide a proof of concept for how the confluence of these approaches can lead to the discovery of new natural products and RaS enzyme-mediated transformations. Herein, we provide guidelines for expressing, purifying, and reconstituting a subclass of RaS enzymes that contain a so-called SPASM domain, as well as characterizing the reactions that they catalyze using a combination of HR/MS and NMR investigations. Application of these approaches will aid in expanding the chemical and biosynthetic repertoire of RaS enzymes in the future. Keywords Bacterial Proteins, Recombinant Proteins, S-Adenosylmethionine, Multigene Family, Protein Processing, Post-Translational, Biocatalysis, Biological Products, Peptides, Ribosomes, Guidelines as Topic, Enzyme Assays, Alkyl and Aryl Transferases Journal Methods Enzymol Volume 606 Pages 439-460 Date Published 2018 ISSN Number 1557-7988 DOI 10.1016/bs.mie.2018.04.016 Alternate Journal Methods Enzymol PMID 30097102 PubMedGoogle ScholarBibTeXEndNote X3 XML