How do substrates enter and products exit the buried active site of cytochrome P450cam? 1. Random expulsion molecular dynamics investigation of ligand access channels and mechanisms

Cytochrome P450s form a ubiquitous protein family with functions including the synthesis and degradation of many physiologically important compounds and the degradation of xenobiotics. Cytochrome P450cam from Pseudomonas putida has provided a paradigm for the structural understanding of cytochrome P450s. However, the mechanism by which camphor, the natural substrate of cytochrome P450cam, accesses the buried active site is a long-standing puzzle. While there is recent crystallographic and simulation evidence for opening of a substrate-access channel in cytochrome P450BM-3, for cytochrome P450cam, no such conformational changes have been observed either in different crystal structures or by standard molecular dynamics simulations. Here, a novel simulation method, random expulsion molecular dynamics, is presented, in which substrate-exit channels from the buried active site are found by imposing an artificial randomly oriented force on the substrate, in addition to the standard molecular dynamics force field. The random expulsion molecular dynamics method was tested in simulations of the substrate-bound structure of cytochrome P450BM-3, and then applied to complexes of cytochrome P450cam with different substrates and with product. Three pathways were identified, one of which corresponds to a channel proposed earlier on the basis of crystallographic and site-directed mutagenesis data. Exit via the water-filled channel, which was previously suggested to be a product exit channel, was not observed. The pathways obtained by the random expulsion molecular dynamics method match well with thermal motion pathways obtained by an analysis of crystallographic B-factors. In contrast to large backbone motions (up to 4 A) observed in cytochrome P450BM-3 for the exit of palmitoleic acid, passage of camphor through cytochrome P450cam only requires small backbone motions (less than 2.4 A) in conjunction with side-chain rotations. Concomitantly, in almost all the exit trajectories, salt-links that have been proposed to act as ionic tethers between secondary structure elements of the protein, are perturbed.     

How do substrates enter and products exit the buried active site of cytochrome P450cam? 2. Steered molecular dynamics and adiabatic mapping of substrate pathways

Three possible channels by which substrates and products can exit from the buried active site of cytochrome P450cam have been identified by means of random expulsion molecular dynamics simulations. In the investigation described here, we computed estimates of the relative probabilities of ligand passage through the three channels using steered molecular dynamics and adiabatic mapping. For comparison, the same techniques are also applied to investigate substrate egress from cytochrome P450-BM3. The channel in cytochrome P450cam, for which there is the most supporting evidence from experiments (which we name pathway 2a), is computed to be the most probable ligand exit channel. It has the smallest computed unbinding work and force. For this channel, the ligand exits between the F/G loop and the B' helix. Two mechanistically distinct, but energetically similar routes through this channel were observed, showing that multiple pathways along one channel are possible. The probability of ligand exit via the next most probable channel (pathway 3), which is located between the I helix and the F and G helices, is estimated to be less than 1/10 of the probability of exit along pathway 2a. Low-frequency modes of the protein extracted from an essential dynamics analysis of a 1 ns duration molecular dynamics simulation of cytochrome P450cam with camphor bound, support the opening of pathway 2a on a longer timescale. On longer timescales, it is therefore expected that this pathway becomes more dominant than estimated from the present computations.     

Structural evidence for a functionally relevant second camphor binding site in P450cam: model for substrate entry into a P450 active site

P450cam has long served as a prototype for the cytochrome P450 (CYP) gene family. But, little is known about how substrate enters its active site pocket, and how access is achieved in a way that minimizes exposure of the reactive heme. We hypothesize that P450cam may first bind substrate transiently near the mobile F-G helix that covers the active site pocket. Such a two-step binding process is kinetically required if P450cam rarely populates an open conformation-as suggested by previous literature and the inability to obtain a crystal structure of P450cam in an open conformation. Such a mechanism would minimize exposure of the heme by allowing P450cam to stay in a closed conformation as long as possible, since only brief flexing into an open conformation would be required to allow substrate entry. To test this model, we have attempted to dock a second camphor molecule into the crystal structure of camphor-bound P450cam. The docking identified only one potential entry site pocket, a well-defined cavity on the F-helix side of the F-G flap, 16 A from the heme iron. Location of this entry site pocket is consistent with our NMR T1 relaxation-based measurements of distances for a camphor that binds in fast exchange (active site camphor is known to bind in slow exchange). Presence of a second camphor binding site is also confirmed with [(1)H-(13)C] HSQC titrations of (13)CH3-threonine labeled P450cam. To confirm that camphor can bind outside of the active site pocket, (13)CH3-S-pyridine was bound to the heme iron to physically block the active site, and to serve as an NMR chemical shift probe. Titration of this P450cam-pyridine complex confirms that camphor can bind to a site outside the active site pocket, with an estimated Kd of 43 microM. The two-site binding model that is proposed based on these data is analogous to that recently proposed for CYP3A4, and is consistent with recent crystal structures of P450cam bound to tethered-substrates, which force a partially opened conformation.     

Controlling the regiospecificity and coupling of cytochrome P450cam: T185F mutant increases coupling and abolishes 3-hydroxynorcamphor product.

Cytochrome P450cam (P450CIA1) catalyzes the hydroxylation of camphor and several substrate analogues such as norcamphor and 1-methyl-norcamphor. Hydroxylation was found experimentally at the 3, 5, and 6 positions of norcamphor, but only at the 5 and 6 positions of 1-methyl-norcamphor. In the catalytic cycle, the hydroxylation of substrate is coupled to the consumption of NADH. For camphor, the degree of coupling is 100%, but for both norcamphor and 1-methyl-norcamphor, the efficiency is dramatically lowered to 12% and 50%, respectively. Based on an examination of the active site of P450cam, it appeared that mutating position 185 might dramatically alter the product specificity and coupling of hydroxylation of norcamphor by P450cam. Analysis of molecular dynamics trajectories of norcamphor bound to the T185F mutant of cytochrome P450cam predicted that hydroxylation at the 3 position should be abolished and that the coupling should be dramatically increased. This mutant was constructed and the product profile and coupling experimentally determined. The coupling was doubled, and hydroxylation at the 3 position was essentially abolished. Both of these results are in agreement with the prediction.     

Role of protein and substrate dynamics in catalysis by Pseudomonas putida cytochrome P450cam

The role of protein structural flexibility and substrate dynamics in catalysis by cytochrome P450 enzymes is an area of current interest. We have addressed these in cytochrome P450(cam) (P450(cam)) and its Y96A mutant with camphor and its related compounds using fluorescence spectroscopy. Previously [Prasad et al. (2000) FEBS Lett. 477, 157-160], we provided experimental support to dynamic fluctuations in P450(cam), and substrate access into the active site region via the channel next to the flexible F-G helix-loop-helix segment. In the investigation described here, we show that the dynamic fluctuations in the enzyme are substrate dependent as reflected by tryptophan fluorescence quenching experiments. The orientation of tryptophan relative to heme (kappa(2)) for W42 obtained from time-resolved tryptophan fluorescence measurements show variation with type of substrate bound to P450(cam) suggesting regions distant from heme-binding site are affected by physicochemical and steric characteristics/protein-substrate interactions of P450(cam) active site. We monitored substrate dynamics in the active site region of P450(cam) by time-resolved substrate anisotropy measurements. The anisotropy decay of substrates bound to P450(cam) indicate that mobility of substrates is modulated by physicochemical and steric characteristics/protein-substrate interactions of local active site structure, and provides an understanding of factors controlling observed hydroxylated products for substrate bound P450(cam) complexes. The present study shows that P450(cam) local and peripheral structural flexibility and heterogeneity along with substrate mobility play an important role in regulating substrate binding orientation during catalysis and accommodating diverse range of substrates within P450(cam) heme pocket.     

Effect of alcohols on binding of camphor to cytochrome P450cam: spectroscopic and stopped flow transient kinetic studies

Addition of alcohols to cytochrome P450cam (CYP101) was shown to release the substrate camphor from the heme pocket of the enzyme. The release of the substrate was found to be caused both due to increased solubility of the substrate in solution in presence of alcohol and due to change in the tertiary structure of the active site of the enzyme. The far-UV CD and near-UV CD spectra reveal that addition of alcohols to cytochrome P450cam cause a small change in the secondary structural elements but a significant change in the tertiary structural organization of this enzyme. The CD spectra at the heme region at various concentrations of alcohols indicate a substantial change in the tertiary structural organization around the heme moiety too. The equilibrium constant associated with the binding of camphor to Cyt P450cam is strongly dependent on the concentration of alcohols and the corresponding free energy associated with the binding is found to scale linearly with the concentration of alcohols. Kinetic experiments on binding of camphor to Cyt P450cam show that both k(on) and k(off) rate constants are strongly affected by addition of alcohols suggesting that alcohol expel camphor out of the heme cavity of Cyt P450cam by affecting tertiary structure of Cyt P450cam as well as by modifying the solubility properties of camphor in aqueous medium.     

Mutations of glutamate-84 at the putative potassium-binding site affect camphor binding and oxidation by cytochrome p450cam.

Cytochrome P450cam (CYP101) from Pseudomonas putida is unusual among P450 enzymes in that it exhibits co-operative binding between the substrate camphor and a potassium ion. This behaviour has been investigated by mutagenesis of Glu84, a surface residue which forms part of the cation-binding site. Substitutions that neutralize or reverse the charge of this side chain are shown to disrupt the co-operativity of potassium and camphor binding by P450cam, and also to influence the catalytic activity. In particular, replacement of Glu84 by positively charged residues such as lysine results in increased high-spin haem fractions and camphor turnover activities in the absence of potassium, along with decreased camphor dissociation constants. However, in the presence of potassium the camphor dissociation constants of these mutants are significantly increased compared with the wild-type, although the camphor turnover activities remain marginally higher. In contrast, substitution by aspartate results in tighter binding of both potassium and camphor, but has little effect on the enzymatic activity. In all cases the reaction remains essentially 100% coupled and gives 5-exo-hydroxycamphor as the only product. These results suggest that an anionic side chain at the 84 position is crucial for the co-operativity of camphor and cation binding, and that the physiological role for potassium binding by cytochrome P450cam is to promote camphor binding even at the expense of turnover rate, thus allowing the organism to utilize low environmental concentrations of this substrate for growth.     

Crystal structure of P450cin in a complex with its substrate, 1,8-cineole, a close structural homologue to D-camphor, the substrate for P450cam

Cytochrome P450cin catalyzes the monooxygenation of 1,8-cineole, which is structurally very similar to d-camphor, the substrate for the most thoroughly investigated cytochrome P450, cytochrome P450cam. Both 1,8-cineole and d-camphor are C(10) monoterpenes containing a single oxygen atom with very similar molecular volumes. The cytochrome P450cin-substrate complex crystal structure has been solved to 1.7 A resolution and compared with that of cytochrome P450cam. Despite the similarity in substrates, the active site of cytochrome P450cin is substantially different from that of cytochrome P450cam in that the B' helix, essential for substrate binding in many cytochrome P450s including cytochrome P450cam, is replaced by an ordered loop that results in substantial changes in active site topography. In addition, cytochrome P450cin does not have the conserved threonine, Thr252 in cytochrome P450cam, which is generally considered as an integral part of the proton shuttle machinery required for oxygen activation. Instead, the analogous residue in cytochrome P450cin is Asn242, which provides the only direct protein H-bonding interaction with the substrate. Cytochrome P450cin uses a flavodoxin-like redox partner to reduce the heme iron rather than the more traditional ferredoxin-like Fe(2)S(2) redox partner used by cytochrome P450cam and many other bacterial P450s. It thus might be expected that the redox partner docking site of cytochrome P450cin would resemble that of cytochrome P450BM3, which also uses a flavodoxin-like redox partner. Nevertheless, the putative docking site topography more closely resembles cytochrome P450cam than cytochrome P450BM3.     

Specific and non-specific effects of potassium cations on substrate-protein interactions in cytochromes P450cam and P450lin

Substrate binding to cytochrome P450cam is generally considered to be a two-step process. The first step corresponds to the entrance of the substrate, camphor, into the heme pocket. The second step corresponds to a spin transition (low spin-->high spin) of the iron in the protein-substrate complex. This spin transition is related to the mobility of the substrate inside the active site [Biochim Biophys Acta 1338 (1997) 77]. Potassium cations (K(+)) have a specific effect on the spin equilibrium. This is generally attributed to the K(+) ion-induced conformational change of tyrosine 96, the hydroxyl group of which is hydrogen bonded to the keto group of camphor and results in optimum substrate orientation and reduced mobility of this substrate in the active site. In the present paper, we show that K(+) not only affects the substrate-Tyr 96 couple, but acts more globally since K(+) effects are also observed in the Tyr96Phe mutant as well as in complexes with camphor-analogues. Large compounds, that fit well in the heme pocket and bind with higher affinity than camphor, display high spin contents that are less dependent on the presence of K(+). In contrast, K(+) has a significant effect on the high spin content of substrate-cytochrome P450cam complexes with looser interactions. We conclude that large compounds with higher affinities than camphor have more van der Waals contacts with the active site residues. Their mobilities are then reduced and less dependent on the presence of K(+). In this study, we also explored, for comparison, the K(+) effect on the spin transition state of another member of the P450 superfamily, cytochrome P450lin. This effect is not as strong as those observed for cytochrome P450cam. Even though the spin equilibrium does not change dramatically in the presence of K(+) or Na(+), the value of the dissociation constant (K(d)) for linalool binding is significantly affected by ionic strength. Analysis of the thermodynamic parameters for the linalool binding strongly suggests that, similarly to our previous finding for cytochrome P450cam, electrostatic gates participate in the control of substrate access.     

The roles of active site hydrogen bonding in cytochrome P-450cam as revealed by site-directed mutagenesis

The role of the active site hydrogen bond of cytochrome P-450cam has been studied utilizing a combination of site-directed mutagenesis and substrate analogues with altered hydrogen bonding capabilities. Cytochrome P-450cam normally catalyzes the regiospecific hydroxylation of the monoterpene camphor. The x-ray crystal structure of this soluble bacterial cytochrome P-450 (Poulos, T. L., Finzel, B. C., Gunsalus, I. C., Wagner, G. C., and Kraut, J. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 16122-16128) indicates a specific hydrogen bond between tyrosine 96 and the carbonyl moiety of the camphor substrate. The site-directed mutant in which tyrosine 96 has been changed to a phenylalanine and the substrate analogues thiocamphor and camphane have been used to probe this interaction in several aspects of catalysis. At room temperature, both the mutant enzyme with camphor and the wild type enzyme with thiocamphor bound result in 59 and 65% high-spin ferric enzyme as compared to the 95% high spin population obtained with native enzyme and camphor as substrate. The equilibrium dissociation constant is moderately increased, from 1.6 microM for the wild type protein to 3.0 and 3.3 microM for wild type-thiocamphor and mutant-camphor complexes, respectively. Camphane bound to cytochrome P-450cam exhibits a larger decrease in high spin fraction (45%) and a correspondingly larger KD (46 microM), suggesting that the carbonyl moiety of camphor plays an important steric role in addition to its interaction as a hydrogen bond acceptor. The absolute regioselectivity of the mutant enzyme, and of the wild type enzyme with thiocamphor, is lost resulting in production of several hydroxylated products in addition to the 5-exo-hydroxy isomer. Based on rates of NADH oxidation, comparison of the substrate specificity for these systems (kcat/KD) indicates a 5- and 7-fold decrease in specificity for the mutant enzyme and thiocamphor-wild type complex, respectively. The replacement of the cytochrome P-450cam active site tyrosine with phenylalanine does not affect the branching ratio of monooxygenase versus oxidase chemistry or peroxygenase activity (Atkins, W.M., and Sligar, S.G. (1987) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 109, 3754-3760).     

Active-site hydration and water diffusion in cytochrome P450cam: a highly dynamic process

Long-timescale molecular dynamics simulations (300 ns) are performed on both the apo- (i.e., camphor-free) and camphor-bound cytochrome P450cam (CYP101). Water diffusion into and out of the protein active site is observed without biased sampling methods. During the course of the molecular dynamics simulation, an average of 6.4 water molecules is observed in the camphor-binding site of the apo form, compared to zero water molecules in the binding site of the substrate-bound form, in agreement with the number of water molecules observed in crystal structures of the same species. However, as many as 12 water molecules can be present at a given time in the camphor-binding region of the active site in the case of apo-P450cam, revealing a highly dynamic process for hydration of the protein active site, with water molecules exchanging rapidly with the bulk solvent. Water molecules are also found to exchange locations frequently inside the active site, preferentially clustering in regions surrounding the water molecules observed in the crystal structure. Potential-of-mean-force calculations identify thermodynamically favored trans-protein pathways for the diffusion of water molecules between the protein active site and the bulk solvent. Binding of camphor in the active site modifies the free-energy landscape of P450cam channels toward favoring the diffusion of water molecules out of the protein active site.     

Substrate modulates compound I formation in peroxide shunt pathway of Pseudomonas putida cytochrome P450(cam)

The active oxygenating intermediate, a ferryl-oxo-(II) porphyrin cation radical (compound I), in substrate-bound cytochrome P450(cam) (P450(cam)) has eluded detection and kinetic analysis for several decades. Upon rapid mixing of peroxides-H(2)O(2) and m-CPBA with substrate-bound forms of P450(cam), we observed an intermediate with spectral features characteristic of compound I. Unlike in H(2)O(2), kinetic investigation on the reaction of m-CPBA with various substrate (camphor, adamantone, and norcamphor)-bound P450(cam) and its Y96A mutant shows a preferential binding of the aromatic end group of m-CPBA to the active-site of the enzyme and modulation of compound I formation by the local environment of heme active-site. The results presented in this paper describe the importance of heme environment in modulating formation of compound I, and form the first kinetic analysis of this intermediate in the peroxide shunt pathway of substrate-bound P450(cam).     

Formation, crystal structure, and rearrangement of a cytochrome P-450cam iron-phenyl complex

Cytochrome P-450cam reacts with phenyldiazene (PhN = NH), or less efficiently with phenylhydrazine, to give a catalytically inactive complex with an absorption maximum at 474 nm. The prosthetic group extracted anaerobically from the inactivated protein has the spectroscopic properties of a sigma phenyl-iron complex and rearranges, on exposure to air and acid, to an approximately equal mixture of the four N-phenylprotoporphyrin IX regioisomers. The crystal structure of the intact protein complex, refined at 1.9-A resolution to an R factor of 20%, confirms that the phenyl group is directly bonded through one of its carbons to the iron atom. The phenyl ring is tilted from the heme normal by about 10 degrees in the opposite direction from that in which carbon monoxide tilts when bound to P-450cam. Camphor, the natural substrate for P-450cam, is larger than a phenyl group and hydrogen bonds to Tyr 96, the only hydrophilic residue near the active site. Electron density in the active site in addition to that contributed by the phenyl group suggests that two water molecules occupy part of the camphor binding site but are not within hydrogen-bonding distance of Tyr 96. As observed in a previous crystallographic study of inhibitor-P-450cam complexes [Poulos, T.L., & Howard, A.J. (1987) Biochemistry 26, 8165-8174], there are large changes in both the atomic positions and mobilities of the residues in the proposed substrate access channel region of the protein.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Structural alterations of the heme environment of cytochrome P450cam and the Y96F mutant as deduced by resonance Raman spectroscopy

Resonance Raman spectroscopy at 2.5cm(-1) resolution was used to probe differences in wild-type and Y96F mutant P450cam (CYP101), both with and without bound camphor or styrene substrates. In the substrate-free state, the spin state equilibrium is shifted from 6-coordinate low spin (6CLS) toward more 5-coordinate high spin (5CHS) when tyrosine-96 in the substrate pocket is replaced by phenylalanine. About 25% of substrate-free Y96F mutant is 5CHS as opposed to 8% for substrate-free wild-type P450cam. Spin equilibrium constants calculated from Raman intensities indicate that the driving force for electron transfer from putidaredoxin, the natural redox partner of P450cam, is significantly smaller on styrene binding than for camphor binding. Spectral differences suggest that there is a tilt in camphor toward the pyrrole III ring on Y96F mutation. This finding is consistent with the altered product distribution found for camphor hydroxylation by the Y96F mutant relative to the single enantiomer produced by the wild-type enzyme.     

Mutagenesis of a single hydrogen bond in cytochrome P-450 alters cation binding and heme solvation

Cytochrome P-450cam, a monoxygenase responsible for the regiospecific hydroxylation of camphor, binds its substrate through complimentary van der Waals contacts and the formation of a single hydrogen bond between tyrosine 96 and the ketone group of camphor. Substrate association is positively regulated through the binding of a monovalent cation and the oxidation-reduction potential modulated by the spin state of the ferric heme controlled by water access to the sixth coordination site of the iron. Removal of this single hydrogen bond via site-directed mutagenesis of tyrosine 96 to phenylalanine 96 defines this aspect of the protein structure as responsible for the linkage between cation and substrate cooperativities, the degree of spin state conversion resulting from water access via macromolecule and substrate dynamics, and suggests a specific location for the cation binding site.     

Protein engineering of cytochrome p450(cam) (CYP101) for the oxidation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Mutations of the active site residues F87 and Y96 greatly enhanced the activity of cytochrome P450(cam) (CYP101) from Pseudomonas putida for the oxidation of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons phenanthrene, fluoranthene, pyrene and benzo[a]pyrene. Wild-type P450(cam) had low (<0.01 min(-1)) activity with these substrates. Phenanthrene was oxidized to 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-phenanthrol, while fluoranthene gave mainly 3-fluoranthol. Pyrene was oxidized to 1-pyrenol and then to 1,6- and 1,8-pyrenequinone, with small amounts of 2-pyrenol also formed with the Y96A mutant. Benzo[a]pyrene gave 3-hydroxybenzo[a]pyrene as the major product. The NADH oxidation rate of the mutants with phenanthrene was as high as 374 min(-1), which was 31% of the camphor oxidation rate by wild-type P450(cam), and with fluoranthene the fastest rate was 144 min(-1). The oxidation of phenanthrene and fluoranthene were highly uncoupled, with highest couplings of 1.3 and 3.1%, respectively. The highest coupling efficiency for pyrene oxidation was a reasonable 23%, but the NADH turnover rate was slow. The product distributions varied significantly between mutants, suggesting that substrate binding orientations can be manipulated by protein engineering, and that genetic variants of P450(cam) may be useful for studying the oxidation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by P450 enzymes.     

P450cam biocatalysis in surfactant-stabilized two-phase emulsions

Cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (P450s) are powerful biocatalysts that have the ability to oxidize a broad range of substrates, often at non-reactive carbon centers. However, incorporation of P450s into synthetic schemes has so far been limited to a few whole-cell transformations. P450 substrates are often hydrophobic and have low water solubility, limiting the amount of product that can be produced. To help overcome this limitation, we have examined P450cam activity in two-phase hexane/water emulsions with and without the anionic surfactant, bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate sodium salt (AOT). Hydroxylation of camphor to hydroxycamphor by the three- component P450cam system was chosen as the model reaction, and regeneration of NADH was accomplished with yeast alcohol dehydrogenase (YADH). P450cam was activated in the surfactant-free emulsions, and addition of AOT improved the activity even further, at least over the range of camphor concentrations for which initial rates were readily measurable in all media. The largest observed rate enhancement was 4.5-fold. Nearly 50-times more product was formed in the surfactant-stabilized emulsions than was achieved in aqueous buffer, with total turnover numbers reaching 28,900 for P450cam and 11,800 for YADH. In the absence of surfactant, the two-phase reaction appeared to be mass-transfer limited, while inclusion of AOT alleviated transport limitations and/or afforded a larger interfacial area for P450 activation. The oxidation of hydroxycamphor to 2,5-diketocamphane was also observed, owing to the large concentration of hydroxycamphor relative to camphor in the aqueous phase of the two-phase emulsion. This competing reaction was accompanied by the uncoupled oxidation of NADH (i.e., NADH oxidation without formation of 2,5-diketocamphane), which reduced the availability of NADH for camphor oxidation and further limited the yield of hydroxycamphor in the two-phase emulsions. These results indicate that a surfactant-stabilized two-phase emulsion is a promising reaction medium for practical P450 biocatalysis, although its effectiveness for a given P450/substrate combination can depend on several factors, including competitive or sequential reactions, product inhibition, and NAD(P)H uncoupling.     

Spring-loading the active site of cytochrome P450cam

A hydrogen bond network has been identified that adjusts protein-substrate contacts in cytochrome P450(cam) (CYP101A1). Replacing the native substrate camphor with adamantanone or norcamphor causes perturbations in NMR-detected NH correlations assigned to the network, which includes portions of a β sheet and an adjacent helix that is remote from the active site. A mutation in this helix reduces enzyme efficiency and perturbs the extent of substrate-induced spin state changes at the haem iron that accompany substrate binding. In turn, the magnitude of the spin state changes induced by alternate substrate binding parallel the NMR-detected perturbations observed near the haem in the enzyme active site.     

Analysis of active site motions from a 175 picosecond molecular dynamics simulation of camphor-bound cytochrome P450cam.

The structure and internal motions of the active site residues of camphor-bound cytochrome P450cam have been evaluated on the basis of a 175 psec molecular dynamics simulation. The active site residues generally show very small deviations away from their starting crystal positions. These residues also generally show much smaller fluctuations than for the enzyme as a whole. Phe 87 is dynamically very unusual and is suggested to play a role in substrate movement into and/or out of the active site. The average distance between the heme iron and atoms C5, C6, and C3 of camphor is 5.3, 6.0, and 7.0 A, respectively. This trend is consistent with the experimentally observed stereospecificity of the hydroxylation reaction. On the basis of distance and angle criteria, both 5-exo and 5-endo hydrogen abstraction are predicted to occur during the hydroxylation reaction; although the 5-exo pathway is expected to be 3-fold more likely.     

Benign synthesis of 2-ethylhexanoic acid by cytochrome P450cam: enzymatic, crystallographic, and theoretical studies

This study examines the ability of P450cam to catalyze the formation of 2-ethylhexanoic acid from 2-ethylhexanol relative to its activity on the natural substrate camphor. As is the case for camphor, the P450cam exhibits stereoselectivity for binding (R)- and (S)-2-ethylhexanol. Kinetic studies indicate (R)-2-ethylhexanoic acid is produced 3.5 times as fast as the (S)-enantiomer. In a racemic mixture of 2-ethylhexanol, P450cam produces 50% more (R)-2-ethylhexanoic acid than (S)-2-ethylhexanoic acid. The reason for stereoselective 2-ethylhexanoic acid production is seen in regioselectivity assays, where (R)-2-ethylhexanoic acid comprises 50% of total products while (S)-2-ethylhexanoic acid comprises only 13%. (R)- and (S)-2-ethylhexanol exhibit similar characteristics with respect to the amount of oxygen and reducing equivalents consumed, however, with (S)-2-ethylhexanol turnover producing more water than the (R)-enantiomer. Crystallographic studies of P450cam with (R)- or (S)-2-ethylhexanoic acid suggest that the (R)-enantiomer binds in a more ordered state. These results indicate that wild-type P450cam displays stereoselectivity toward 2-ethylhexanoic acid synthesis, providing a platform for rational active site design.