Secondary kinase reactions catalyzed by yeast pyruvate kinase.

1. Yeast pyruvate kinase (EC 2.7.1.40) catalyzes, in addition to the primary, physiologically important reaction, three secondary kinase reactions, the ATP-dependent phosphorylations of fluoride (fluorokinase), hydroxylamine (hydroxylamine kinase) and glycolate (glycolate kinase). 2. These reactions are accelerated by fructose-1,6-bisphosphate, the allosteric activator of the primary reaction. Wth Mg2+ as the required divalent cation, none of these reactions are observed in the absence of fructose-biphosphate. With Mn2+, fructose-bisphosphate is required for the glycolate kinase reaction, but merely stimulates the other reactions. 3. The effect of other divalent cations and pH on three secondary kinase reactions was also examined. 4. Results are compared with those obtained from muscle pyruvate kinase and the implications of the results for the mechanism of the yeast enzyme are discussed.     

Histidine mutagenesis of Arabidopsis thaliana pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase.

Pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDK) is the primary regulator of flux through the mitochondrial pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC). Analysis of the primary amino-acid sequences of PDK from various sources reveals that these enzymes include the five domains characteristic of prokaryotic two-component His-kinases, despite the fact that PDK exclusively phosphorylates Ser residues in the E1alpha subunit of the PDC. This seeming contradiction might be resolved if the PDK-catalyzed reaction employed a phospho-His intermediate. The results from pH-stability studies of autophosphorylated Arabidopsis thaliana PDK did not provide any support for a phospho-His intermediate. Furthermore, site-directed mutagenesis of the two most likely phosphotransfer His residues (H121 and H168) did not abolish either PDK autophosphorylation or the ability to transphosphorylate E1alpha. Thus, PDK is a unique type of protein kinase having a His-kinase-like sequence but Ser-kinase activity.     

The regulatory properties of yeast pyruvate kinase.

The kinetics of pyruvate kinase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae were studied in assays at pH 6.2 where the relationships between the initial velocities of the catalysed reaction and the concentrations of the substrates ADP, phosphoenolpyruvate and Mg2+ are non-hyperbolic. The findings were represented empirically by the exponential model for a regulatory enzyme. The analysis shows that ADP, phosphoenolpyruvate and Mg2+ display positive homotropic interaction in their binding behaviour with (calculated) Hill slopes at half-saturation equal to 1.06, 2.35 and 3.11 respectively [Ainsworth (1977) J. Theor. Biol. 68, 391-413]. The direct heterotropic interaction between ADP and phosphoenolpyruvate is small and negative, but the overall interaction between these substrates becomes positive when their positive interactions with Mg2+ are taken into account. The heterotropic interactions of the substrates, though smaller in magnitude, are comparable with those revealed by the rabbit muscle enzyme [Ainsworth, Kinderlerer & Gregory (1983) Biochem. J. 209, 401-411], and it is suggested that they have a common origin in charge interactions within the active site.     

Purification and characterization of human muscle pyruvate kinase.

The M1 isozyme of pyruvate kinase has been purified from human psoas muscle in a seven-step procedure. Fractionation by ammonium sulfate precipitation, heat treatment, acetone precipitation, diethylaminoethyl cellulose batchwise treatment followed by chromatography on carboxymethyl cellulose and Sephadex G-200 gave a product with a specific activity of 383 U/mg representing a 294-fold purification with a yield of 11%. The product formed orthorhombic crystals and was homogeneous on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with and without sodium dodecyl sulfate, sedimentation velocity, sedimentation equilibrium, and immunodiffusion. The purified enzyme has a molecular weight of 240700 and has a sedimentation coefficient (S20,W) of 10.04S. It contains four subunits with identical molecular weights of 61000. No free N-terminal amino acids could be detected. Antibody prepared against the purified human M1 isozyme does not cross-react by immunodiffusion or enzyme inactivation with the human erythrocyte isozyme and in the reverse experiment antibody prepared against human erythrocyte pyruvate kinase does not cross-react with the purified M1 isozyme. The amino acid composition of the M1 isozyme is presented.     

Purification and properties of pyruvate kinase from Streptococcus mutans.

Pyruvate kinase (EC 2.7.1.40) from Streptococcus mutans strain JC2 was purified, giving a single band on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the native enzyme was 180,000 to 190,000, and the enzyme was considered to consist of four identical subunits. This enzyme was completely dependent on glucose 6-phosphate for activity, and the saturation curve for activation by glucose 6-phosphate was sigmoidal. In the presence of 0.5 mM glucose 6-phosphate, the saturation curves for the substrates phosphoenolpyruvate and ADP were hyperbolic, and the Km values were 0.22 and 0.39 mM, respectively. GDP, IDP, and UDP could replace ADP, and the Km for GDP (0.026 mM) was 0.067 of that for ADP. The enzyme required not only divalent cations, Mg2+ or Mn2+, but also monovalent cations, K+ or NH4+, for activity, and it was strongly inhibited by Pi. When the concentration of Pi was increased, the half-saturating concentration and Hill coefficient for glucose 6-phosphate increased. However, the enzyme was immediately inactivated in a solution without Pi. The intracellular concentration of glucose 6-phosphate, in cooperation with that of Pi, may regulate pyruvate kinase activity in S. mutans.     

Purification, characterisation and cDNA sequencing of pyruvate decarboxylase from Zygosaccharomyces bisporus

Cells of the wild-type yeast strain Zygosaccharomyces bisporus CBS 702 form alpha-hydroxy ketones from aromatic amino acid precursors during fermentation. Pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC, E.C. 4.1.1.1), the key enzyme of this biotransformation catalysing the non-oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate and other 2-oxo-acids, was purified and characterised. The active enzyme is homotetrameric (alpha4) with a molecular mass of about 244 kDa. Activation of PDC by its substrate pyruvate results in a sigmoidal dependence of the reaction rate from substrate concentration (apparent Km value 1.73 mM; Hill coefficient 2.10). A cDNA library was screened using a PCR-based procedure, and a 1856 bp cDNA of PDC was identified and sequenced. The cDNA encodes a polypeptide of 563 amino acid residues (monomeric unit). Sequence alignments demonstrate high homologies (> 80%) to PDC genes from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Kluyveromyces lactis and Kluyveromyces marxianus.     

Purification of recombinant wheat cytochrome P450 monooxygenase expressed in yeast and its properties

To investigate the properties of wheat cytochrome P450 and the characteristics of herbicide metabolism by cytochrome P450 in vitro, deeply understand the mechanisms of herbicide selectivity, recombinant wheat cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (CYP71Cv1) heterologously expressed in yeast was purified by DE-52 cellulose chromatography and fast protein liquid chromatography (FPLC) with Mono-Q column. The degree of purification was 1366-fold. The specific activity of purified cytochrome P450 reached to 512 nmol min-1 mg-1 protein with herbicide chlorsulfuron as substrate. The purified cytochrome P450 exhibited one band in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and the molecular mass was 52.5 kDa. Kinetic parameter was determined in vitro. The Km values for chlorsulfuron and triasulfuron were 57 (+/-15) and 38 (+/-16) microM, respectively; and Vmax for chlorsulfuron and triasulfuron were 4.1 (+/-0.7) and 2.7 (+/-0.5) nmol min-1 mg-1protein in vitro, respectively.     

Large-scale production,purification, and characterisation of recombinant Phaseolus vulgaris phytohemagglutinin E-form expressed in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris

The kidney bean lectin Phaseolus vulgaris phytohemagglutinin E-form (PHA-E) was expressed and secreted by the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris. To optimise yields of PHA-E, transformants of P. pastoris were selected for high-level production of the recombinant protein. A scaleable process for the production and purification of gram quantities of recombinant PHA-E is reported. PHA-E was secreted at approximately 100 mg/L at the 2- and 200-L scale and was purified to 95% homogeneity in a single step using cation-exchange chromatography. The purified recombinant PHA-E consists of four forms with molecular masses between 28.5 and 31.5 kDa, as assessed by MALDI-TOF, whereas its native counterpart has a molecular mass of approximately 30.5 kDa. Endoglycosidase treatment revealed that the range in size of the recombinant protein was attributed to differences in the nature of the N-linked oligosaccharides bound to the protein. The primary amino acid sequence of the recombinant PHA-E was found to be identical to the native protein and to have an agglutination activity similar to that of native PHA-E. The data presented here suggest that, using P. pastoris, gram quantities of a recombinant phytohemagglutinin E-form can be produced and that the recombinant protein is similar to the protein synthesised in plants with respect to structure and biological activity.     

Purification and properties of the pyruvate kinase of sturgeon muscle.

Pyruvate kinase was purified from sturgeon muscle in yeilds comparable with those obtained from the muscles of other species. In contrast with mammalian muscle pyruvate kinase the enzyme from sturgeon muscle gives a sigmoidal velocity curve with respect to phosphoenolpuruvate saturation, is activated by fructose 1.6-diphosphate, and is inhibited by bivalent copper ions. In these respects it is similar to the enzyme isolated from mammalian liver. The degree of interaction between phosphoenolpyruvate-binding sites is dependent on temperature.     

Purification of a recombinant protein expressed in yeast: optimization of analytical and preparative chromatography

The industrial production of recombinant proteins requires control of both fermentation and purification steps. For the serodiagnosis of toxoplasmosis, the main antigen is a membrane protein of 30 kDa (P30). The P30 gene was cloned and expressed in Schizosaccharomyces pombe at 0.7 μg/ml in culture medium. Batch fermentation was optimized by the specific choice of peptones, which enabled optimum growth and protein expression without reducing the efficacy of the purification step. Analytical purification was then carried out using cation-exchange chromatography. For larger volumes, scaling up was performed on expanded mode by using a Streamline system (Pharmacia). This purification step allowed us to obtain a 67.5% recovery with a purification factor greater than 27-fold. Expanded bed adsorption technology is a convenient and effective technique for protein capture directly from feedstock, and the eluted fraction is ready for a second affinity chromatography step. This second step is performed with a yield of 40% and provides a final purification factor of 2000-fold.     

Purification and properties of rat brain pyruvate kinase

Rat brain pyruvate kinase was purified to near homogeneity by a three-step process involving ammonium sulfate precipitation and phosphocellulose and Blue-Sepharose CL-6B column chromatography. The enzyme migrated on polyacrylamide gel along with a commercial sample of rabbit muscle pyruvate kinase. The enzyme showed a hyperbolic relationship with phosphoenolpyruvate and ADP, with apparent Km's of 0.18 and 0.42 X 10(-3) M, respectively. The enzyme was inhibited by ATP, the effect being more pronounced at unsaturating concentrations of phosphoenolpyruvate. L-Phenylalanine was found to be a strong inhibitor of the enzyme, with the Ki for inhibitor being 0.11 mM. The inhibition by phenylalanine was more pronounced at pH 7.4 than at pH 7.0, and appeared to be competitive with phosphoenolpyruvate. L-Alanine and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate prevented the inhibition of the enzyme by phenylalanine. Ca2+ was found to be a strong inhibitor of the enzyme, and the inhibition was more marked at saturating phosphoenolpyruvate concentrations. The kinetic properties of the purified brain pyruvate kinase suggest that the enzyme may be distinct from the muscle or liver enzymes.     

Purification and properties of pig heart pyruvate kinase

Using essentially a two-step procedure involving phosphocellulose column chromatography followed by gel filtration on Sephadex G200, pig heart pyruvate kinase (PH PyK) was purified 267-fold to at least 97% purity. PH PyK co-sedimented with rabbit muscle PyK during sucrose density ultracentrifugation yielding an S_20,w of 10 and a corresponding molecular weight of about 237,000. Sodium docedyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis yielded a subunit molecular weight of approximately 59,000, suggesting that native PH PyK exists as a tetramer. The isoelectric point (pI) was determined to be 8.2, and thepH optimum (pHo) for the forward reaction is 7.2. Steady-state kinetics with phospho(enol)pyruvate (PEP) as the variable substrate show that there is a threefold decrease in the Km for PEP in the presence of 1.0 mM fructose-1,6-diphosphate (FDP), and that the activity of PH PyK is increased over fourfold by FDP at low (0.1 mM) PEP concentrations. Lineweaver-Burk plots are linear in the presence and absence of FDP, indicating that the Michaelis-Menten curves are hyperbolic. The amino acid composition for pig heart PyK shows close similarities between pig muscle and kidney PyKs, but not liver PyK. Among the data on pI,pHo, and FDP activation, only the activation by FDP is useful in tentatively designating pig heart PyK as an M₂ isozyme.Presented in partial fulfillment for the Master of Science degree.     

Purification and properties of a yeast protein kinase.

A protein phosphokinase (EC 2.7.1.1.37) was isolated from baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) after a 17,000-fold purification; the purified enzyme is homogeneous according to the criteria of gel electrophoresis and ultracentrifuge analysis. The enzyme has a high isoelectric point of ca. 9 and appears to exist as a monomer with a molecular weight of 42,000 plus or minus 1500. It is neither stimulated by cyclic 3',5'-AMP, -GMP, -CMP or -ump nor inhibited by the regulatory subunit of rabbit muscle protein kinase (Reimann, E. M., Walsh, D. A., and Krebs, E. G. (1971), J. Biol. Chem. 246, 1986). In the presence of divalent metal ions, preferably Mg-2+ or Mn-2+, the enzyme readily transfers the terminal phosphate group of ATP to phosvitin, alphaS1B- and beta a-casein and an NH2-terminal tryptic peptide derived from beta a-casein, but not to protamine, lysine, or arginine-rich histones or to yeast enzymes such as phosphorylase, phosphofructokinase, or pyruvate carboxylase; serine and polyserine were also inactive as phosphate acceptors. Km values of 0.17 mM for beta a-casein and 0.2 mMfor ATP were determined at 10 mM Mg-2+. The urified yeast protein kinase also catalyzes the reverse reaction, namely, the transfer of phosphate from fully phosphorylated beta a-casein or its NH2-terminal peptide to ADP resulting in the formation of ATP. AMP, GDP, UDP, and CDP did not serve as phosphate acceptors in this reaction. As observed by Rabinowitz and Lipmann (Rabinowitz, M., and Lipmann, F. (1960), J. Biol. Chem. 235, 1043) both reactions have different pHoptima with values of 7.5 for the forward reaction (phosphorylation of the proteins) and ca 5.2 for the formation of ATP; both are differently affected by salts. Phosphorylation of beta a-casein with [gamma-32-P]ATP followed by digestion of the labeled protein with trypsin indicated that all the radioactivity was exclusively introduced in an NH2-terminal peptide possessing the unique sequence: Glu-Ser(P)-Leu-Ser(P)-Ser(P)-Ser(P)-Glu-Glu...(Ribadeau-Dumas, B., Brignon, G., Grosclaude, F., and Mercier, J.-C. (1971), eur J. Biochem. 20, 264). By subjecting beta a-casein and its NH2-terminal peptide to the combined action of almond acid phosphatease and purified yeast protein kinase, it was determined that the phosphorylation and dephosphorylation reactions proceed randomly, i.e., all seryl phosphate residues are equally susceptible and that the rate of phosphorylation decreases drastically as the number of bound phosphate groups in the substrate diminishes.     

Purification and kinetic properties of pyruvate kinase from Brochothrix thermosphacta.

Pyravate kinase (ATP: pyruvate 2-0 phosphotransferase E.C.2.7.1.40) was purified from Brochothrix thermosphacta. The enzyme is a homotetramer of monomer Mr 58,000. Fructose-1,6-bisphosphate stimulates activity and promotes hyperbolic kinetics although it is not essential for enzyme activity. The positive effect of fructose-1,6-bisphosphate on activity is repressed by inorganic phosphate which enhances cooperative kinetics. Unlike pyruvate kinases from other sources, the Brochothrix enzyme is uncompetitively inhibited by glucose-6-phosphate, although at high concentration. ATP is a strong inhibitor of pyruvate kinase and shifts the residual activity/pH profile towards more alkaline values.