PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Vinces, Tania Churasacari AU - Souza, Anacleto Silva de AU - Carvalho, Cecília F. AU - Teixeira, Raphael D. AU - Bismara, Beatriz Aparecida Passos AU - Vicente, Elisabete J. AU - Pereira, José O. AU - Souza, Robson Francisco de AU - Yonamine, Mauricio AU - Marana, Sandro Roberto AU - Farah, Chuck Shaker AU - Guzzo, Cristiane R. TI - Molecular and functional basis of a novel Amazonian Dark Earth Esterase 1 (Ade1) with hysteresis behavior and quorum-quenching activity AID - 10.1101/2020.12.16.421545 DP - 2020 Jan 01 TA - bioRxiv PG - 2020.12.16.421545 4099 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/12/16/2020.12.16.421545.short 4100 - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/12/16/2020.12.16.421545.full AB - Amazon Dark Earth (ADE) soil is rich in organic compounds and its fertility has been associated with a high diversity of microorganisms. Herein, we investigate the biochemical and functional features of a novel esterase, Ade1, obtained from a metagenomic library of Amazonian Dark Earth soils of the Amazonian Rainforest, in Brazil. The esterases cleave ester bonds to form a carboxylic and an alcohol group. Esterases and lipases are enzymes found in almost all living organisms, demonstrating their biological relevance. We reported that Ade1 belongs to an α/β-hydrolase superfamily. We suggest that Ade1 is a moonlighting enzyme with hysteresis behavior and quorum-quenching activity, which may play a key role in the metabolism of a Gram-negative proteobacteria. In addition, molecular dynamics simulations reveal that the hysteresis behavior is directly associated with structural properties of the cap domain. Our findings reveal details of the molecular basis, catalytic and structural mechanisms of a novel α/β-hydrolase, which may be applied to other esterases of biotechnological, food, and/or pharmaceutical interest.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.