Dr. Buttery's Public Health BLOG

A fascinating discovery about how folate levels could be affected biologically, as a serendipitous finding in a basic bench research study. At Johns Hopkins. Amzel and colleague Maurice Bessman and their labs were in the middle of systematically characterizing how members of a family of related enzymes in bacteria can recognize specific molecules. With each family member, they isolated purified enzyme, grew crystals of pure enzyme, and figured out the enzyme’s 3-D structure by using techniques that use X-rays. We had to ask, "Can the bacteria make folate if we remove the orf17 gene?” says Amzel. Bessman and colleagues then “knocked-out” the gene and, predictably, the bacteria made 10 times less folate than usual. Such research can lead to new ways to enhance drugs, even though not the intent of the study.