{
  "abstract": "Carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases (CCDs) are a superfamily of non-heme iron-containing enzymes ubiquitous across all kingdoms of life. Previously, we identified a new subfamily of CCDs termed beta-carotene oxygenase-like (BCOL) proteins, a chordate expansion of an ancestral sister clade of metazoan CCDs, which are widely distributed in marine invertebrates, including mollusks and lancelets. Here we present the three-dimensional structure of a representative BCOL protein from the lancelet Branchiostoma fforidae (BCOLg) at 2.4 Å resolution and its functional properties. BCOLg symmetrically cleaves β-carotene into all- trans retinal. RNAseq of wild-caught animals detected six of the seven annotated BCOL transcripts in Branchiostoma gut tissue. We expressed and crystallized recombinant BCOLg. BCOLg is heavily glycosylated, with four N-linked glycosylation sites, and adopts the seven-bladed propeller fold characteristic of the superfamily, with one disulfide bond contributing to structural stability. BCOLg and several other BCOL proteins contain Asp substitutions at two of three Glu positions found in other CCDs, stabilizing three of four His residues involved in Fe 2+ coordination. Notably, BCOLg lacks the canonical -PDPCK-motif characteristic of other metazoan CCDs.\n\nSummary: Reporting the structure of lancelet beta-carotene oxygenase-like BCOLg protein at 2.4 Å, an unusual carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase (CCD) superfamily member. BCOLg is a heavily glycosylated protein with a distinctive iron-coordination environment and lacking the canonical metazoan -PDPCK-motif.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "New results",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 10,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Sheetal Uppal",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3685-8602"
    },
    {
      "name": "Gleysin Cabrera Herrera"
    },
    {
      "name": "Liya Muslinkina"
    },
    {
      "name": "Gowthaman Govindarajan"
    },
    {
      "name": "Yan Li"
    },
    {
      "name": "David N. Garboczi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Igor B. Rogozin"
    },
    {
      "name": "Eugenia Poliakov"
    },
    {
      "name": "Apostolos G. Gittis"
    },
    {
      "name": "T. Michael Redmond",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1813-5291"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/e7ybzcjve7s0c.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.64898/2026.10.29.762971",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.29.762971v1.full",
  "id": "e7ybzcjve7s0c",
  "issns": [
    "2692-8205"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.29.762971v1",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "biorxiv",
      "biochemistry"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Article"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.29.762971v1.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13734108",
  "pmid": "42990419",
  "published": "2026-10-29",
  "publisher": "Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Preprints",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/e7ybzcjve7s0c.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-01T12:20:58Z",
      "native_id": "10.64898/2026.10.29.762971",
      "source": "biorxiv",
      "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.29.762971v1"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-08T12:23:45Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13734108",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.10.29.762971"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biochemistry",
      "origin": "biorxiv:biochemistry",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Structure of a secreted lancelet carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase (CCD), from an ancestral CCD clade",
  "title_text": "Structure of a secreted lancelet carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase (CCD), from an ancestral CCD clade",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T12:23:45Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/e7ybzcjve7s0c",
  "venue": "bioRxiv",
  "versions": []
}