Hydroxymethylglutathione (gamma-L-glutamyl-L-cysteinyl-L-serine; hmGSH) occurs in many species belonging to the family Gramineae, but the biosynthetic pathway for hmGSH has not been identified. We found that carboxypeptidase Y (CPY), but not carboxypeptidase A, catalyzed hmGSH synthesis from glutathione and L-serine in vitro at acidic pH. CPY also catalyzed methylglutathione synthesis from glut...
