Purification of rabbit kidney cytokinase and a comparison of its properties with human urokinase

1. The cytokinase (tissue activator of plasminogen) content of several mammalian tissues was evaluated by a quantitative casein hydrolysis method. 2. An alkaline (pH10·5) extraction of cytokinase from rabbit kidney lysosome–microsome fraction, followed by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose at pH7·6 with stepwise or linear increase in concentration of phosphate buffer, gave an 86-fold purification of the enzyme. The purified material was non-proteolytic against casein and heated fibrin and was freeze-dried without significant loss of activity or solubility. 3. Cytokinase is a protein with E^0·1%_1cm.=0·87 at 280mμ, and does not possess sufficient hexose or sialic acid to be classified as a glycoprotein. It has S_20,w 2·9–3·1s and molecular weight 50000 when measured on a calibrated Sephadex G-100 column. It has an isoelectric point between pH8 and pH9, and is maximally active and stable at pH8·5. It is inactivated by heat at 78°. 4. Cytokinase and human urokinase have the same K_m value and are inhibited in a partially competitive manner by -aminohexanoic acid and aminomethylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid. They are also inhibited by cysteine and arginine, but are unaffected by iodoacetamide and p-chloromercuribenzoate. 5. On the basis of this and other evidence it is suggested that rabbit kidney cytokinase and human urokinase are similar, if not identical, enzymes.     

Exchange Properties of the Activator CO(2) of Spinach Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase

The exchange properties of the activator CO₂ of spinach ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase were characterized both in vitro with the purified enzyme, and in situ within isolated chloroplasts. Carboxyarabinitol-1,5-bisphosphate, a proposed reaction intermediate analog for the carboxylase activity of the enzyme, was used to trap the activator CO₂ on the enzyme both in vitro and in situ. Modulation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase activity in intact chloroplasts during a light/dark cycle was associated with a similar modulation in carboxyarabinitol-1,5-bisphosphate-trapped CO₂. The exchange kinetics of the activator CO₂ were monitored by activation of the enzyme to steady state in the presence of ¹²CO₂, followed by addition of ¹⁴CO₂ and determination of the amount of labeled CO₂ trapped on the enzyme by carboxyarabinitol-1,5-bisphosphate. Rate constants (K_obs) for exchange with both the purified enzyme (0.45 min⁻¹) and in illuminated chloroplasts (0.18 min⁻¹) were comparable to the observed rate constants for enzyme activation under the two conditions. A similar exchange of the activator CO₂ was not observed in chloroplasts in the dark. Kinetic analysis of the exchange properties of the purified enzyme were consistent with an equilibrium between active and inactive forms of the enzyme during steady state activation.     

Purification of membrane-bound galactosyltransferase from rat liver microsomal fractions

1. Rat liver microsomal preparations incubated in 1% Triton X-100 at 37°C for 1h released about 60% of the membrane-bound UDP-galactose–glycoprotein galactosyltransferase (EC 2.4.1.22) into a high-speed supernatant. The supernatant galactosyltransferase which was solubilized but not purified by this treatment had a higher molecular weight than the serum enzyme as shown by Sephadex G-100 column chromatography. 2. The galactosyltransferase present in the high-speed supernatant was purified 680-fold by an affinity-column-chromatographic technique by using a column of activated Sepharose 4B coupled with α-lactalbumin. The galactosyltransferase ran as a single band on polyacrylamide gels and contained no sialyltransferase, N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase or UDP-galactose pyrophosphatase activities. 3. The purified membrane enzyme had properties similar to serum galactosyltransferase. It had an absolute requirement for Mn²⁺ that could not be replaced by Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Zn²⁺ or Co²⁺, and was active over a wide pH range (6–8) with a pH optimum of 6.5. The apparent K_m for UDP-galactose was 10.8μm. The protein α-lactalbumin modified the enzyme to a lactose synthetase by increasing substrate specificity for glucose in preference to N-acetylglucosamine and fetuin depleted of sialic acid and galactose. 4. The molecular weight of the membrane enzyme was 65000–70000, similar to that of the purified serum enzyme. Amino acid analyses of the two proteins were similar but not identical. 5. Sephadex G-100 column chromatography of the purified membrane enzyme showed a small peak (2–5%) of higher molecular weight than the purified serum enzyme. Inclusion of 1mm-ε-aminohexanoic acid in the isolation procedures increased this peak to as much as 30% of the total enzyme recovered. Increasing the ε-aminohexanoic acid concentration to 100mm resulted in no further increase in this high-molecular-weight fraction.     

Purification and properties of adenylyl sulphate:ammonia adenylyltransferase from Chlorella catalysing the formation of adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate from adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate and ammonia

Extracts of Chlorella pyrenoidosa, Euglena gracilis var. bacillaris, spinach, barley, Dictyostelium discoideum and Escherichia coli form an unknown compound enzymically from adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate in the presence of ammonia. This unknown compound shares the following properties with adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate: molar proportions of constituent parts (1 adenine:1 ribose:1 phosphate:1 ammonia released at low pH), co-electrophoresis in all buffers tested including borate, formation of AMP at low pH through release of ammonia, mass and i.r. spectra and conversion into 5′-AMP by phosphodiesterase. This unknown compound therefore appears to be identical with adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate. The enzyme that catalyses the formation of adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate from ammonia and adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate was purified 1800-fold (to homogeneity) from Chlorella by using (NH₄)₂SO₄ precipitation and DEAE-cellulose, Sephadex and Reactive Blue 2–agarose chromatography. The purified enzyme shows one band of protein, coincident with activity, at a position corresponding to 60000–65000 molecular weight, on polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis, and yields three subunits on sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis of 26000, 21000 and 17000 molecular weight, consistent with a molecular weight of 64000 for the native enzyme. Isoelectrofocusing yields one band of pI4.2. The pH optimum of the enzyme-catalysed reaction is 8.8. ATP, ADP or adenosine 3′-phosphate 5′-phosphosulphate will not replace adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate, and the apparent K_m for the last-mentioned compound is 0.82mm. The apparent K_m for ammonia (assuming NH₃ to be the active species) is about 10mm. A large variety of primary, secondary and tertiary amines or amides will not replace ammonia. One mol.prop. of adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate reacts with 1 mol.prop. of ammonia to yield 1 mol.prop. each of adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate and sulphate; no AMP is found. The highly purified enzyme does not catalyse any of the known reactions of adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate, including those catalysed by ATP sulphurylase, adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate kinase, adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate sulphotransferase or ADP sulphurylase. Adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate is found in old samples of the ammonium salt of adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate and can be formed non-enzymically if adenosine 5′-phosphosulphate and ammonia are boiled. In the non-enzymic reaction both adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate and AMP are formed. Thus the enzyme forms adenosine 5′-phosphoramidate by selectively speeding up an already favoured reaction.     

Sequence Analysis of the Gene Encoding Amylosucrase from Neisseria polysaccharea and Characterization of the Recombinant Enzyme

The Neisseria polysaccharea gene encoding amylosucrase was subcloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. Sequencing revealed that the deduced amino acid sequence differs significantly from that previously published. Comparison of the sequence with that of enzymes of the α-amylase family predicted a (β/α)₈-barrel domain. Six of the eight highly conserved regions in amylolytic enzymes are present in amylosucrase. Among them, four constitute the active site in α-amylases. These sites were also conserved in the sequence of glucosyltransferases and dextransucrases. Nevertheless, the evolutionary tree does not show strong homology between them. The amylosucrase was purified by affinity chromatography between fusion protein glutathione S-transferase–amylosucrase and glutathione-Sepharose 4B. The pure enzyme linearly elongated some branched chains of glycogen, to an average degree of polymerization of 75.     

Pyruvatephosphate dikinase from Bacteroides symbiosus

1. An improved method is given for preparation of pyruvate,phosphate dikinase from Bacteroides symbiosus. 2. The bacterial enzyme is stable, free from interfering enzyme activities, and does not require thiol compounds to maintain stability during storage or assay. 3. New direct assays of enzyme activity are based on acid evolution or consumption as measured at constant pH in a pH-stat. 4. The optimum rate of reaction in the direction of pyruvate formation occurs at about pH6.4; in the direction of phosphoenolpyruvate formation, it is at pH7.2–7.8. 5. Newly determined substrate K_m values for the enzyme are: AMP, 3.5×10⁻⁶m; ATP, 1×10⁻⁴m; pyruvate, 8×10⁻⁵m; P_i, 6×10⁻⁴m. 6. K⁺ may substitute for NH₄⁺ in activating the reaction catalysed by the B. symbiosus enzyme. 7. In the direction of pyruvate formation the bivalent metal ion requirement of the enzyme is fulfilled by salts of nickel, manganese, magnesium and cobalt. In the other direction only magnesium salts were effective. 8. The nucleotide specificity of the enzyme is strictly limited to the adenine nucleotides. CTP and ITP strongly inhibit the reaction in the direction of phosphoenolpyruvate formation.     

Cloning, Overexpression, and Mutagenesis of the Sporobolomyces salmonicolor AKU4429 Gene Encoding a New Aldehyde Reductase, Which Catalyzes the Stereoselective Reduction of Ethyl 4-Chloro-3-Oxobutanoate to Ethyl (S)-4-Chloro-3-Hydroxybutanoate

We cloned and sequenced the gene encoding an NADPH-dependent aldehyde reductase (ARII) in Sporobolomyces salmonicolor AKU4429, which reduces ethyl 4-chloro-3-oxobutanoate (4-COBE) to ethyl (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutanoate. The ARII gene is 1,032 bp long, is interrupted by four introns, and encodes a 37,315-Da polypeptide. The deduced amino acid sequence exhibited significant levels of similarity to the amino acid sequences of members of the mammalian 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase–plant dihydroflavonol 4-reductase superfamily but not to the amino acid sequences of members of the aldo-keto reductase superfamily or to the amino acid sequence of an aldehyde reductase previously isolated from the same organism (K. Kita, K. Matsuzaki, T. Hashimoto, H. Yanase, N. Kato, M. C.-M. Chung, M. Kataoka, and S. Shimizu, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 62:2303–2310, 1996). The ARII protein was overproduced in Escherichia coli about 2,000-fold compared to the production in the original yeast cells. The enzyme expressed in E. coli was purified to homogeneity and had the same catalytic properties as ARII purified from S. salmonicolor. To examine the contribution of the dinucleotide-binding motif G₁₉-X-X-G₂₂-X-X-A₂₅, which is located in the N-terminal region, during ARII catalysis, we replaced three amino acid residues in the motif and purified the resulting mutant enzymes. Substrate inhibition of the G₁₉→A and G₂₂→A mutant enzymes by 4-COBE did not occur. The A₂₅→G mutant enzyme could reduce 4-COBE when NADPH was replaced by an equimolar concentration of NADH.     

Purification and properties of the hexosaminidase A-activating protein from human liver

Human liver extracts contain an activating protein which is required for hexosaminidase A-catalysed hydrolysis of the N-acetylgalactosaminyl linkage of G_M2 ganglioside [N-acetylgalactosaminyl-(N-acetylneuraminyl) galactosylglucosylceramide]. A partially purified preparation of human liver hexosaminidase A that is substantially free of G_M2 ganglioside hydrolase activity is used to assay the activating protein. The proceudres of heat and alcohol denaturation, ion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration were used to purify the activating protein over 100-fold from crude human liver extracts. When the purified activating protein is analysed by polyacrylamide-gel disc electrophoresis, two closely migrating protein bands are seen. When purified activating protein is used to reconstitute the G_M2 ganglioside hydrolase activity, the rate of reaction is proportional to the amount of hexosaminidase A used. The activation is specific for G_M2 ganglioside and and hexosaminidase A. The activating protein did not stimulate hydrolysis of asialo-G_M2 ganglioside by either hexosaminidase A or B. Hexosaminidase B did not catalyse hydrolysis of G_M2 ganglioside with or without the activator. Kinetic experiments suggest the presence of an enzyme–activator complex. The dissociation constant of this complex is decreased when higher concentrations of substrate are used, suggesting the formation of a ternary complex between enzyme, activator and substrate. Determination of the molecular weight of the activating protein by gel-filtration and sedimentation-velocity methods gave values of 36000 and 39000 respectively.     

Biochemical characterization of Rhodococcus erythropolis N′4 nitrile hydratase acting on 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile

The Rhodococcus erythropolis strain (N′4) possesses the ability to convert 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile into the corresponding acid. This conversion was determined to be performed by its nitrile hydratase and amidase. Ammonium sulfate fractionation, DEAE ion exchange chromatography, and phenyl chromatography were used to partially purify nitrile hydratase from cell-free extract. A SDS-PAGE showed that the partially purified enzyme had two subunits and gel filtration chromatography showed that it consisted of four subunits of α₂β₂. The purified enzyme had a high specific activity of 860 U mg⁻¹ toward methacrylonitrile. The enzyme was found to have high activity at low temperature range, with a maximum activity occurring at 25 °C and be stable in the presence of organic acids at higher temperatures. The enzyme exhibited a preference for aliphatic saturated nitrile substrates over aliphatic unsaturated or aromatic ones. It was inhibited by sulfhydryl, oxidizing, and serine protease inhibitors, thus indicating that essential cysteine and serine residues can be found in the active site.The purified nitrile hydratase was able to convert 4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyronitrile into the corresponding amide at 15 °C. GC analysis showed that the initial conversion rate of the reaction was 215 mg substrate consumed min⁻¹ mg⁻¹. This demonstrated that this enzyme could be used in conjunction with a stereoselective amidase to synthesize ethyl (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyrate, an intermediate for a hypercholesterolemia drug, Atorvastatin.     

Purification, Characterization, and Mechanism of a Flavin Mononucleotide-Dependent 2-Nitropropane Dioxygenase from Neurospora crassa

A nitroalkane-oxidizing enzyme was purified to homogeneity from Neurospora crassa. The enzyme is composed of two subunits; the molecular weight of each subunit is approximately 40,000. The enzyme catalyzes the oxidation of nitroalkanes to produce the corresponding carbonyl compounds. It acts on 2-nitropropane better than on nitroethane and 1-nitropropane, and anionic forms of nitroalkanes are much better substrates than are neutral forms. The enzyme does not act on aromatic compounds. When the enzyme reaction was conducted in an ¹⁸O₂ atmosphere with the anionic form of 2-nitropropane as the substrate, acetone (with a molecular mass of 60 Da) was produced. This indicates that the oxygen atom of acetone was derived from molecular oxygen, not from water; hence, the enzyme is an oxygenase. The reaction stoichiometry was 2CH₃CH(NO₂)-CH₃ + O₂→2CH₃COCH₃ + 2HNO₂, which is identical to that of the reaction of 2-nitropropane dioxygenase from Hansenula mrakii. The reaction of the Neurospora enzyme was inhibited by superoxide anion scavengers in the same manner as that of the Hansenula enzyme. Both of these enzymes are flavoenzymes; however, the Neurospora enzyme contains flavin mononucleotide as a prosthetic group, whereas the Hansenula enzyme contains flavin adenine dinucleotide.     

Characterization of Nitrate Reductase from Corn Leaves (Zea mays cv W64A x W182E) : Two Molecular Forms of the Enzyme

The primary leaves from corn seedlings grown for 6 days were harvested, frozen with liquid N₂ and extracted in a Tris buffer (pH 8.5, 250 millimolar) containing 1 millimolar dithiothreitol, 10 millimolar cysteine, 1 millimolar EDTA, 20 micromolar flavin adenine dinucleotide and 10% (v/v) glycerol. Nitrate reductase (NR) in the crude extract was stable for several days at 0°C and for several months at −80°C. The enzyme was purified using (NH₄)₂SO₄ fractionation, brushite-hydroxyl-apatite chromatography and blue-sepharose affinity chromatography. The enzyme was eluted from the blue-sepharose column with a linear gradient of NADH (0-100 micromolar) or with 0.3 molar KNO₃. About 10% of the original activity was recovered with NADH (NADH-NR). It had a specific activity of about 60 to 70 units (micromoles NO₂⁻ per minute per milligram protein). A sequential elution with NADH followed by KNO₃ (0.3 molar) or KCl (0.3 molar) yielded 2 peaks. Rechromatography of each peak gave two peaks again. These results indicate that we are dealing with two forms of the same enzyme rather than two different NR proteins. The two NRs had different molecular weights as judged by chromatography on Toyopearl. The NADH-NR was more sensitive than the NO₃⁻-NR to antibody prepared against barley leaf NR. In Ouchterlony assays a single precipitin line, with completely fused boundaries, was observed.     

Storage and maintaining activity of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase

Purified ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase in 50% saturated (NH₄)₂SO₄ was stable when frozen as small beads in liquid nitrogen and stored at −80 C. When stored as a slurry at 4 C most of the activity was lost within four weeks. This loss was due not only to enzyme polymerization. Activity in old preparations purified from spinach leaves, but not tobacco or tomato leaves, can be restored to the level of newly purified enzyme after storage at 4 C by treatment with 50 to 100 millimolar dithiothreitol for several hours followed by dialysis against buffer and 1 millimolar dithiothreitol before CO₂ and Mg²⁺ activation and assay. Some enzyme oligomers that had been formed were not converted back to native enzyme by treatment with 100 millimolar dithiothreitol.     

Purification and characterization of membrane-bound peroxidase from date palm leaves (Phoenix dactylifera L.)

Peroxidase from date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) leaves was purified to homogeneity and characterized biochemically. The enzyme purification included homogenization, extraction of pigments followed by consecutive chromatographies on DEAE-Sepharose and Superdex 200. The purification factor for purified date palm peroxidase was 17 with 5.8% yield. The purity was checked by SDS and native PAGE, which showed a single prominent band. The molecular weight of the enzyme was approximately 55 kDa as estimated by SDS–PAGE. The enzyme was characterized for thermal and pH stability, and kinetic parameters were determined using guaiacol as substrate. The optimum activity was between pH 5–6. The enzyme showed maximum activity at 55 °C and was fairly stable up to 75 °C, with 42% loss of activity. Date palm leaves peroxidase showed K_m values of 0.77 and 0.045 mM for guaiacol and H₂O₂, respectively. These properties suggest that this enzyme could be a promising tool for applications in different analytical determinations as well as for treatment of industrial effluents at low cost.     

Isolation and Characterization of a Novel Endoglucanase from a Bursaphelenchus xylophilus Metagenomic Library

A novel gene (designated as cen219) encoding endoglucanase was isolated from a Bursaphelenchus xylophilus metagenomic library by functional screening. Sequence analysis revealed that cen219 encoded a protein of 367 amino acids. SDS-PAGE analysis of purified endoglucanase suggested that Cen219 was a monomeric enzyme with a molecular mass of 40 kDa. The optimum temperature and pH for endoglucanase activity of Cen219 was separately 50°C and 6.0. It was stable from 30 to 50°C, and from pH 4.0 to 7.0. The activity was significantly enhanced by Mn²⁺ and dramatically reduced by detergent SDS and metals Fe³⁺, Cu²⁺ or Hg²⁺. The enzyme hydrolyzed a wide range of β-1, 3-, and β-1, 4-linked polysaccharides, with varying activities. Activities towards microcrystalline cellulose and filter paper were relatively high, while the highest activity was towards oat gum. The K_m and V_max of Cen219 towards CMC was 17.37 mg/ml and 333.33 U/mg, respectively. The findings have an insight into understanding the molecular basis of host–parasite interactions in B. xylophilus species. The properties also make Cen219 an interesting enzyme for biotechnological application.     

Purification and Characterization of NAD Malic Enzyme from Leaves of Eleusine coracana and Panicum dichotomiflorum

NAD malic enzyme (EC 1.1.1.39), which is involved in C₄ photosynthesis, was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from leaves of Eleusine coracana and to near homogeneity from leaves of Panicum dichotomiflorum. The enzyme from each C₄ species was found to have only one type of subunit by SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The M_r of subunits of the enzme from E. coracana and P. dichotommiflorum was 63 and 61 kilodaltons, respectively. The native Mr of the enzyme from each species was determined by gel filtration to be about 500 kilodaltons, indicating that the NAD malic enzyme from C₄ species is an octamer of identical subunits. The purified NAD malic enzyme from each C₄ species showed similar kinetic properties with respect to concentrations of malate and NAD; each had a requirement for Mn²⁺ and activation by fructose- 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP) or CoA. A cooperativity with respect to Mn²⁺ was apparent with both enzymes. The activator (FBP) did not change the Hill value but greatly decreased K_0.5 (the concentration giving half-maximal activity) for Mn²⁺. The enzyme from E. coracana showed a very low level of activity when NADP was used as substrate, but this activity was also stimulated by FBP. Significant differences between the enzymes from E. coracana and P. dichotomiflorum were observed in their responses to the activators and their immunochemical properties. The enzyme from E. coracana was largely dependent on the activators FBP or CoA, regardless of concentration of Mn²⁺. In contrast, the enzyme from P. dichotomiflorum showed significant activity in the absence of the activator, especially at high concentrations of Mn²⁺. Both immunodiffusion and immunoprecipitation, using antiserum raised against the purified NAD malic enzyme from E. coracana, revealed partial antigenic differences between the enzymes from E. coracana and P. dichotomiflorum. The activity of the NAD malic enzyme from Amaranthus edulis, a typical NAD malic enzyme type C₄ dicot, was not inhibited by the antiserum raised against the NAD malic enzyme from E. coracana.     

Partial Purification and Characterization of the Gibberellin A(20) 3beta-Hydroxylase from Seeds of Phaseolus vulgaris

The GA₂₀ 3β-hydroxylase present in immature seeds of Phaseolus vulgaris has been partially purified and characterized. The physical characteristics of the enzyme are similar to those of the GA 2β-hydroxylases present in mature and immature seeds of Pisum sativum. It is acid-labile, hydrophobic, and of M_r 45,000. The enzyme catalyzes the synthesis of GA₁, GA₅, and GA₂₉ from GA₂₀. Activity is dependent upon the presence of Fe²⁺, ascorbate, 2-oxoglutarate, and oxygen. 2-Oxoglutarate does not function as a cosubstrate; in the presence of the enzyme, succinate is not a reaction product.     

Isolation and purification of calcium and magnesium dependent endonuclease from rat liver nuclei

An endonuclease associated with rat liver chromatin was extracted with 0.6 M NaCl and purified by ammonium sulfate fractionation and Sephadex G-100 gel filtration. The enzyme produces single strand scissions on native DNA at neutral pH in the presence of 1 mM CaCl₂ and 5 mM MgCl₂. Alkali-denatured DNA was not nicked by the enzyme. Omission of Ca²⁺ reduced the enzyme activity to about one seventh. Without Ca²⁺, however, Mn²⁺ was more effective than Mg²⁺. The molecular weight of the enzyme is about 27,000.     

Purification and properties of α-d-mannosidase from jack-bean meal

1. α-Mannosidase from jack-bean meal was purified 150-fold. β-N-Acetyl-glucosaminidase and β-galactosidase were removed from the preparation by treatment with pyridine. Zn²⁺ was added during the purification to stabilize the α-mannosidase. 2. At pH values below neutrality, α-mannosidase undergoes reversible spontaneous inactivation at a rate dependent on the temperature, the degree of dilution and the extent of purification. The enzyme is also subject to irreversible inactivation, which is prevented by the addition of albumin. 3. Reversible inactivation of α-mannosidase is accelerated by EDTA and reversed or prevented by Zn²⁺. Other cations, such as Co²⁺, Cd²⁺ and Cu²⁺, accelerate inactivation; an excess of Zn²⁺ again exerts a protective action, and so does EDTA in suitable concentration. 4. Neither Zn²⁺ nor EDTA has any marked effect in the assay of untreated enzyme. In an EDTA-treated preparation, however, Zn²⁺ reactivates the enzyme during assay. 5. It is postulated that α-mannosidase is a dissociable Zn²⁺–protein complex in which Zn²⁺ is essential for enzyme activity.     

Purification and Characterization of the Soluble F(1)-ATPase of Oat Root Mitochondria

The properties of the soluble moiety (F₁) of the mitochondrial H⁺-ATPase from oat roots were examined and compared to those of the native mitochondrial membrane-bound enzyme. The chloroform soluble preparation was purified by Sephadex G-200 and DEAE-cellulose chromatography. The purified F₁ preparation contained major polypeptides corresponding to α, β, γ, δ, and ε of apparent molecular mass 58, 55, 35, 22, and 14 kilodaltons, respectively. The purified F₁-ATPase, like the native enzyme, was inhibited by azide (I₅₀ = 10 micromolar), nitrate (I₅₀ = 7-10 millimolar), 4,4′-diisothiocyano-2,2′-stilbene disulfonic acid (I₅₀ = 1-3 micromolar), and 7-chloro-4-nitrobenzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole (I₅₀ = 3 micromolar). F₁-ATPase activity was stimulated by bicarbonate but not by chloride. In both the native and the F₁-form of the ATPase, ATP was hydrolyzed in preference to GTP. The results indicate that these properties of the native membrane-bound mitochondrial ATPase have been conserved in the purified F₁. In contrast to the membrane-bound enzyme, the F₁-ATPase was not inhibited by oligomycin or by N,N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide. The mitochondrial F₁-ATPase from oat roots is analogous to other known F₁F₀-ATPases.