= Yoko Iijima
{c}
<Yoko Iijima> is the first author of a 2004 study characterizing <geraniol synthase> from aromatic leaf glands. The work connected purification of the plant <enzyme> with expression in <Escherichia coli>, where the encoded <protein> reproduced the geraniol-forming activity.<Characterization of Geraniol Synthase from the Peltate Glands of Sweet Basil by Yoko Iijima and others>[Original byline; Abstract; Figure 3]{ref}
The team used <isotope labelling> to test mechanism. Water containing <oxygen-18> supplied the oxygen incorporated into <geraniol>, detected through a mass shift by <mass spectrometry>. That observation distinguished the tested synthesis route from simple removal of a phosphate group while retaining the substrate's original oxygen.<Characterization of Geraniol Synthase from the Peltate Glands of Sweet Basil by Yoko Iijima and others>[Abstract; Characterization of the Mechanism; Figure 4]{ref}
Producing the same final <molecule> does not establish that two catalysts use the same route. Tracing the origin of an atom adds mechanistic information beyond identifying the product. The expression comparison separately linked the isolated gene sequence to the measured <enzyme> activity.
Back to article page
