The first protein structures of a dTDP-glucose 4,6-dehydratase (RmlB) were completed by Jim Thoden in the Hazel Holden lab (
University of Wisconsin–Madison) and Simon Allard in the Jim Naismith lab (
University of St Andrews). Further
structural,
mutagenic, and
enzymatic studies by both groups, along with important mechanistic work by the
W. Wallace Cleland and
Perry Frey groups have led to a good understanding of this enzyme. In brief summary, the enzyme is a
dimeric protein with a
Rossmann fold; it uses the tightly bound
coenzyme NAD+ for transiently oxidizing the substrate, activating it for the
dehydration step. == Nomenclature ==