The Tzs protein from Agrobacterium tumefaciens C58 produces zeatin riboside 5′‐phosphate from 4‐hydroxy‐3‐methyl‐2‐(E)‐butenyl diphosphate and AMP

Abstract
The plant pathogen Agrobacterium tumefaciens produces cytokinins upon induction of the virulence genes by secondary metabolites from wounded plants, and these hormones are believed to stimulate the infection process. To study the biosynthetic pathway, the tzs gene, encoding the Tzs (trans‐zeatin‐synthesizing) protein from A. tumefaciens, was cloned and the protein was overproduced and purified. Analysis of its reactivity with radioactively labeled substrate demonstrated conversion of 4‐hydroxy‐3‐methyl‐2‐(E)‐butenyl diphosphate, a product of the deoxyxylulose phosphate pathway, with AMP to zeatin riboside 5′‐phosphate. This suggests that A. tumefaciens uses an alternative pathway of cytokinin biosynthesis, which had previously been hypothesized to operate in plants.