A positive biological function of the element cadmium has been established for the first time in a marine diatom which synthesizes a special cadmium carbonic anhydrase when there is a zinc deficiency. Also new is the finding that β-carbonic anhydrases of plants contain {Zn(N⋅His)(S⋅Cys)2L} centers (L=OH2, O2C⋅Asp). The picture shows such a center and—greatly simplified—the probable mechanism of CO2 hydration. It remains to be seen how closely analogous to this the cadmium center of the cadmium carbonic anhydrase is.
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Henry Strasdeit (2001) studied this question.
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