Mechanism of substrate inactivation of Escherichia coli S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase

S-Adenosylmethionine decarboxylase, a pyruvoyl-containing decarboxylase, is inactivated in a time-dependent process under turnover conditions. The inactivation is dependent on the presence of both substrate and Mg2+, which is also required for enzyme activity. The rate of inactivation is dependent on the concentration of substrate and appears to be saturable. Inactivation by [methionyl-3,4-14C]-adenosylmethionine results in stoichiometric labeling of the protein. In contrast, when either S-[methyl-3H]adenosylmethionine or [8-14C]adenosylmethionine is used, there is virtually no incorporation of radioactivity. Automated Edman degradation of the alpha (pyruvoyl-containing) subunit reveals that substrate inactivation results in the conversion of the pyruvoyl group to an alanyl residue. These data suggest a mechanism of inactivation which involves the transamination of the nascent product to the pyruvoyl group, followed by the elimination of methylthioadenosine and the generation of a 2-propenal equivalent which could undergo a Michael addition to the enzyme. This is the first evidence for a transamination mechanism for substrate inactivation of a pyruvoyl enzyme.     

Appendix. Purification, molecular weight, and NH2-terminal sequence of cystathionine gamma-synthase of Escherichia coli

The cystathionine gamma-synthase of Escherichia coli has been purified to homogeneity. It is a tetramer (Mr = 160,000) composed of identical subunits (Mr approximately 40,000). We have determined its amino acid terminal sequence and thus localized the starting codon of the metB structural gene.     

Subunit structure of Escherichia coli exonuclease VII

Exonuclease VII has been purified 7,500-fold to 87% homogeneity from Escherichia coli K12 using a new purification procedure. The enzyme has been shown to be composed of two nonidentical subunits of 10,500 and 54,000 daltons. This has been confirmed by restoration of exonuclease VII activity after renaturation of denatured and purified subunits. The structure of the native enzyme consists of one large subunit and four small subunits. We have previously isolated exonuclease VII mutant strains containing defects which map at two distinct loci. Subunit-mixing experiments utilizing wild type enzyme and temperature-sensitive enzyme produced by an xseB mutant strain have shown that the xseB gene codes for the small subunit of the enzymes.     

The speEspeD operon of Escherichia coli. Formation and processing of a proenzyme form of S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase

We have previously shown that the gene (speD) for S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase is part of an operon that also contains the gene (speE) for spermidine synthase (Tabor, C. W., Tabor, H., and Xie, Q.-W. (1986) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 83, 6040-6044). We have now determined the nucleotide sequence of this operon and have found that speD codes for a polypeptide of Mr = 30,400, which is considerably greater than the subunit size of the purified enzyme. Our studies show that S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase is first formed as a Mr = 30,400 polypeptide and that this proenzyme is then cleaved at the Lys111-Ser112 peptide bond to form a Mr = 12,400 subunit and a Mr = 18,000 subunit. The latter subunit contains the pyruvoyl moiety that we previously showed is required for enzymatic activity. Both subunits are present in the purified enzyme. These conclusions are based on (i) pulse-chase experiments with a strain containing a speD+ plasmid which showed a precursor-product relationship between the proenzyme and the enzyme subunits, (ii) the amino acid sequence of the proenzyme form of S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase (derived from the nucleotide sequence of the speD gene), and (iii) comparison of this sequence of the proenzyme with the N-terminal amino acid sequences of the two subunits of the purified enzyme reported by Anton and Kutny (Anton, D. L., and Kutny, R. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 2817-2822).     

Aspartate transaminase from E. coli: amino acid sequences of the NH2-terminal 33 residues and chymotryptic pyridoxyl tetrapeptide.

The amino acid sequences of pyridoxal-binding tetrapeptide and the NH₂-terminal portion of aspartate transaminase from $\text{E.}$$\text{coli}$ B were analyzed and compared with those of the corresponding parts of the cytosolic and mitochondrial isozymes from pig heart. After borohydride reduction and chymotryptic digestion of the $\text{E.}$$\text{coli}$ enzyme, a pyridoxal-containing peptide was isolated, showing the sequence, Ser-Lys(Pxy)-Asn-Phe, identical with that of the cytosolic isozyme. The NH₂-terminal sequence was determined up to 33 residues with a liquid phase sequence analyzer. Nearly the same degree of homology was observed among the NH₂-terminal sequences of the three aspartate transaminases.     

Alkylation of an active-site cysteinyl residue during substrate-dependent inactivation of Escherichia coli S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase

S-Adenosylmethionine decarboxylase from Escherichia coli is a member of a small class of enzymes that uses a pyruvoyl prosthetic group. The pyruvoyl group is proposed to form a Schiff base with the substrate and then act as an electron sink facilitating decarboxylation. We have previously shown that once every 6000-7000 turnovers the enzyme undergoes an inactivation that results in a transaminated pyruvoyl group and the formation of an acrolein-like species from the methionine moiety. The acrolein then covalently alkylates the enzyme [Anton, D. L., & Kutny, R. (1987) Biochemistry 26, 6444]. After reduction of the alkylated enzyme with NaBH4, a tryptic peptide with the sequence Ala-Asp-Ile-Glu-Val-Ser-Thr-[S-(3-hydroxypropyl)Cys]-Gly-Val-Ile-Ser-Pro - Leu-Lys was isolated. This corresponds to acrolein alkylation of a cysteine residue in the second tryptic peptide from the NH2 terminal of the alpha-subunit [Anton, D. L., & Kutny, R. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 2817-2822]. The modified residue derived is from Cys-140 of the proenzyme [Tabor, C. W., & Tabor, H. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 16037-16040] and lies in the only sequence conserved between rat liver and E. coli S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase [Pajunen et al. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 17040-17049]. We suggest that the alkylated Cys residue could have a role in the catalytic mechanism.     

Biosynthesis of a lysosomal enzyme. Partial structure of two transient and functionally distinct NH2-terminal sequences in cathepsin D

Various biosynthetic forms of porcine spleen cathepsin D (Erickson, A. H. and Blobel, G. (1979) J. Biol. Chem. 254, 11771-11774), isolated by immunoprecipitation of in vivo- and in vitro-synthesized products, have been characterized by partial NH2-terminal sequence analysis. Two short lived and functionally distinct NH2-terminal sequence extensions, a "pre" sequence and a "pro" sequence, have been detected. Both sequence extensions are present in preprocathepsin D which is the primary translation product immunoprecipitated after translation of porcine spleen mRNA in a wheat germ cell-free system. Preprocathepsin D is not glycosylated and has an approximate Mr = 43,000. Its 20-residue pre sequence resembles the signal sequences of presecretory proteins in abundance of Leu residues (7 out of 20 residues). Addition of dog pancreatic microsomal vesicles to the translation system resulted in the cleavage of the pre sequence and yielded segregated and glycosylated procathepsin D (Mr = 46,000) that was indistinguishable from its in vivo-synthesized counterpart detected after pulse-labeling of cultured porcine kidney cells. Some of this in vivo-synthesized procathepsin D was secreted and persisted as such in the culture medium. The remainder was converted within a period of 15 min to 2 h to single chain cathepsin D (Mr = 44,000) by removal of a pro sequence which was estimated to be 44 residues. Its partial sequence showed considerable sequence homology to the 44-residue activation peptide of pepsinogen. It is possible, therefore, that the prosequence of procathepsin D serves as an activation peptide that keeps the enzyme inactive during intracellular transport to the lysosome. The enzymatically active single chain form of cathepsin D undergoes further cleavage into a light and a heavy chain (Mr = 15,000 and 30,000, respectively) over a period of 2-24 h after synthesis. The oligosaccharide moieties of procathepsin D and of the single chain and heavy chain forms of cathepsin D are cleaved by endoglycosidase H. Treatment of cells with tunicamycin arrests the biosynthetic pathway of cathepsin D at procathepsin D. The nonglycosylated procathepsin D is not proteolytically processed and its secretion is greatly inhibited.