Trimethylamine-N-oxide Biosynthesis in the Bullfrog

Abstract

THE comparative aspects of the mechanism of oxygenations dependent on molecular oxygen have recently been investigated using the biosynthesis of trimethylamine-N-oxide as a model¹. That investigation raised a number of questions beyond the presence of the enzymatic activity in a given organism. In the case of the bullfrog, Rana catesbeiana, questions which remained were: the intracellular location of the enzyme, the reason for the apparent lack of trimethylamine-N-oxide synthesis in the tadpole and the nature of the developmental processes involved in the ultimate production in frog cells of high levels of activity. Continued investigation of trimethylamine-N-oxide synthesis in the bullfrog system has provided some answers to these questions.