Molecular genetics of superoxide dismutases.

Molecular genetics of SOD has been recently developed primarily due to the new biotechnologies. Different types of isoenzymes have now been cloned and sequenced from several species ranging from bacteria to human and plants. Knowledge of the nucleotide sequences permitted refinement of structural models and provided information on subcellular locations. Cloned genes allowed the production of large amounts of SOD. They have been used for physiological and regulation studies, structural and enzymatic analyses, and are vital tools for the isolation of mutants. Isolation of mutants is generally essential to the understanding of the biological function of the gene in question. Indeed, SOD deficient mutants have now been isolated in bacteria and yeast. Their properties support, at numerous levels, a major role of SOD in cellular defense against oxygen toxicity. Few data are presently available on the molecular basis of mechanisms that regulate the expression of SOD.