Information on EC 2.7.1.238 - phenol phosphorylase

The enzyme, characterized from the bacterium Thauera aromatica, catalyses the first step in an anaerobic phenol degradation pathway. The enzyme, composed of three subunits, transfers the β-phosphoryl from ATP to phenol, forming phenyl phosphate, AMP, and phosphate . During catalysis a diphosphoryl group is transferred from ATP to a histidine residue in one of the enzyme's subunits, from which phosphate is cleaved to render the reaction unidirectional. The remaining histidine phosphate subsequently serves as the actual phosphorylation agent .