L-aspartate dehydrogenase: features and applications.

L-amino acid dehydrogenases are a group of enzymes that catalyze the reversible oxidative deamination of L-amino acids to their corresponding 2-oxoacids, using either nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD(+)) or nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP(+)) as cofactors. These enzymes have been studied widely because of their potential applications in the synthesis of amino acids for use in production of pharmaceutical peptides, herbicides and insecticides, in biosensors or diagnostic kits, and development of coenzyme regeneration systems for industrial processes. This article presents a review of the currently available data about the recently discovered amino acid dehydrogenase superfamily member L-aspartate dehydrogenase (L-AspDH), their relevant catalytic properties and speculated physiological roles, and potential for biotechnological applications. The proposed classification of L-AspDH on the basis of bioinformatic information and potential role in vivo into NadB (NAD biosynthesis-related) and non-NadB type is unique. In particular, the mesophilic non-NadB type L-AspDH is a novel group of amino acid dehydrogenases with great promise as potential industrial biocatalysts owing to their relatively high catalytic properties at room temperature. Considering that only a few L-AspDH homologs have been characterized so far, identification and prodigious enzymological research of the new members will be necessary to shed light on the gray areas pertaining to these enzymes.