Formation of Activated Amino-Acids by Intact Cells of Azotobacter vinelandii

Abstract

IT has been shown^1–4 that various preparations of enzymes which activate amino-acids convert them into a form which is adsorbed on charcoal, is unstable to alkali, and which reacts with hydroxyl-amine to form amino-acid hydroxamates. These ‘activated’ amino-acids seem to be amino-acid-polynucleotide compounds^1–4, and have been suggested⁴ as intermediates in protein synthesis, because the amino-acid of such compounds is incorporated into the protein of isolated microsomes. Activated amino-acids have been formed only in cell-free preparations, and it is of considerable interest to determine whether similar compounds are formed by intact cells.