Kinetic mechanism of Ascaris suum phosphofructokinase desensitized to allosteric modulation by diethylpyrocarbonate modification

The kinetic mechanism of phosphofructokinase has been determined at pH 8 for native enzyme and pH 6.8 for an enzyme desensitized to allosteric modulation by diethylpyrocarbonate modification. In both cases, the mechanism is predominantly steady state ordered with MgATP binding first in the direction of fructose 6-phosphate (F6P) phosphorylation and rapid equilibrium random in the direction of MgADP phosphorylation. This is a unique kinetic mechanism for a phosphofructokinase. Product inhibition by MgADP is competitive versus MgATP and noncompetitive versus F6P while fructose 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP) is competitive versus fructose 6-phosphate and uncompetitive versus MgATP. The uncompetitive pattern obtained versus F6P is indicative of a dead-end E.MgATP.FBP complex. Fructose 6-phosphate is noncompetitive versus either FBP or MgADP. Dead-end inhibition by arabinose 5-phosphate or 2,5-anhydro-D-mannitol 6-phosphate is uncompetitive versus MgATP corroborating the ordered addition of MgATP prior to F6P. In the direction of MgADP phosphorylation, inhibition by anhydromannitol 1,6-bisphosphate is noncompetitive versus MgADP, while Mg-adenosine 5'(beta, gamma-methylene)triphosphate is noncompetitive versus FBP. Anhydromannitol 6-phosphate is a slow substrate, while anhydroglucitol 6-phosphate is not. This suggests that the enzyme exhibits beta-anomeric specificity.     

Kinetic characterization of a T-state of Ascaris suum phosphofructokinase with heterotropic negative cooperativity by ATP eliminated.

The affinity analogue, 2',3'-dialdehyde ATP has been used to chemically modify the ATP-inhibitory site of Ascaris suum phosphofructokinase, thereby locking the enzyme into a less active T-state. This enzyme form has a maximum velocity that is 10% that of the native enzyme in the direction of fructose 6-phosphate (F6P) phosphorylation. The enzyme displays sigmoid saturation for the substrate fructose 6-phosphate (S0.5 (F6P) = 19 mM and nH = 2.2) at pH 6.8 and a hyperbolic saturation curve for MgATP with a Km identical to that for the native enzyme. The allosteric effectors, fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP, do not affect the S0.5 for F6P but produce a slight (1.5- and 2-fold, respectively) V-type activation with Ka values (effector concentration required for half-maximal activation) of 0.40 and 0.24 mM, respectively. Their activating effects are additive and not synergistic. The kinetic mechanism for the modified enzyme is steady-state-ordered with MgATP as the first substrate and MgADP as the last product to be released from the enzyme surface. The decrease in V and V/K values for the reactants likely results from a decrease in the equilibrium constant for the isomerization of the E:MgATP binary complex, thus favoring an unisomerized form. The V and V/KF6P are pH dependent with similar pK values of about 7 on the acid side and 9.8 on the basic side. The microenvironment of the active site appears to be affected minimally as evidenced by the similarity of the pK values for the groups involved in the binding site for F6P in the modified and native enzymes.     

A kinetic study of pig liver pyruvate kinase activated by fructose diphosphate

The paper reports a study of the reaction between phosphoenolpyruvate, ADP and Mg(2+) catalysed by pig liver pyruvate kinase when activated by fructose diphosphate and K(+). The experimental results are consistent with two non-sequential mechanisms in which the substrates and products of the reaction are phosphoenolpyruvate, ADP, Mg(2+), pyruvate and MgATP. Pyruvate release occurs before ADP binding. Two Mg(2+) ions are involved, though the two Mg(2+)-binding sites cannot be occupied simultaneously. An isomerized enzyme complex forms before release of MgATP. Values were determined for the Michaelis constants of the reaction. Apparent MgATP inhibition constants are also given.     

Tryptophan fluorescence reveals the conformational state of a dynamic loop in recombinant porcine fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase

Wild-type porcine fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) has no tryptophan residues. Hence, the mutation of Try57 to tryptophan places a unique fluorescent probe in the structural element (loop 52-72) putatively responsible for allosteric regulation of catalysis. On the basis of steady-state kinetics, circular dichroism spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography, the mutation has little effect on the functional and structural properties of the enzyme. Fluorescence intensity from the Trp57 mutant is maximal in the presence of divalent cations, fructose 6-phosphate and orthophosphate, which together stabilize an R-state conformation in which loop 52-72 is engaged with the active site. The level of fluorescence emission decreases monotonically with increasing levels of AMP, an allosteric inhibitor, which promotes the T-state, disengaged-loop conformation. The titration of various metal-product complexes of the Trp57 mutant with fructose 2,6-bisphosphate (F26P(2)) causes similar decreases in fluorescence, suggesting that F26P(2) and AMP individually induce similar conformational states in FBPase. Fluorescence spectra, however, are sensitive to the type of divalent cation (Zn(2+), Mn(2+), or Mg(2+)) and suggest conformations in addition to the R-state, loop-engaged and T-state, loop-disengaged forms of FBPase. The work presented here demonstrates the utility of fluorescence spectroscopy in probing the conformational dynamics of FBPase.     

Diurnal Changes in Maize Leaf Photosynthesis : II. Levels of Metabolic Intermediates of Sucrose Synthesis and the Regulatory Metabolite Fructose 2,6-Bisphosphate

Diurnal changes in the regulatory metabolite, fructose-2,6-bisphosphate (F26BP), and key metabolic intermediates of sucrose biosynthesis were studied in maize (Zea mays L. cv Pioneer 3184) during a day-night cycle. Whole leaf concentrations of dihydroxyacetonephosphate (DHAP) and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate changed markedly during the photoperiod. DHAP concentration was correlated positively with the rate of sucrose formation in vivo (assimilate export plus sucrose accumulation) and extractable activity of sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS). The changes closely followed net photosynthetic rate, which tracked irradiance. The other metabolic intermediates measured (glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate, and UDP-glucose) were either relatively constant over the 24 hour period or changed in a different pattern. Diurnal changes in leaf F26BP concentrations were pronounced, and fundamentally different than the pattern reported with other species. F26BP concentration decreased at the beginning of the day and remained low and constant; a 3- to 4-fold increase occurred with darkness, and slowly declined thereafter. In general, leaf F26BP concentration was negatively correlated with net photosynthetic rate, and also leaf DHAP concentration. Consequently, co-ordination of the regulation of cytosolic fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase and SPS was apparent. The results support the postulate that in maize leaves the activation state of SPS may be dependent on availability of DHAP and possibly other metabolites.     

Fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP increase the affinity of the Ascaris suum phosphofructokinase for fructose 6-phosphate in a process separate from the relief of ATP inhibition

Kinetic data have been collected suggesting that heterotropic activation by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP is a result not only of the relief of allosteric inhibition by ATP but is also the result of an increase in the affinity of phosphofructokinase for fructose 6-phosphate. Modification of the Ascaris suum phosphofructokinase at the ATP inhibitory site produces a form of the enzyme that no longer has hysteretic time courses or homotropic positive (fructose 6-phosphate) cooperativity or substrate inhibition (ATP) (Rao, G.S. J., Wariso, B.A., Cook, P.F., Hofer, H.W., and Harris, B.G. (1987a) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 14068-14073). This form of phosphofructokinase is Michaelis-Menten in its kinetic behavior but is still activated by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP and by phosphorylation using the catalytic subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (cAPK). Fructose 2,6-bisphosphate activates by decreasing KF-6-P by about 15-fold and has an activation constant of 92 nM, while AMP decreases KF-6-P about 6-fold and has an activation constant of 93 microM. Double activation experiments suggest that fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP are synergistic in their activation. The desensitized form of the enzyme is phosphorylated by cAPK and has an increased affinity for fructose 6-phosphate in the absence of MgATP. The increased affinity results in a change in the order of addition of reactants from that with MgATP adding first for the nonphosphorylated enzyme to addition of fructose 6-phosphate first for the phosphorylated enzyme. The phosphorylated form of the enzyme is also still activated by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and AMP.     

Isotope exchange as a probe of the kinetic mechanism of pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase

Data obtained from isotope exchange at equilibrium, exchange of inorganic phosphate against forward reaction flux, and positional isotope exchange of 18O from the bridge position of pyrophosphate to a nonbridge position all indicate that the pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase from Propionibacterium freudenreichii has a rapid equilibrium random kinetic mechanism. The maximum rates of isotope exchange at equilibrium for the [14C]fructose 1,6-bisphosphate in equilibrium fructose 6-phosphate, [32P]Pi in equilibrium MgPPi, and Mg[32P]PPi in equilibrium fructose 1,6-bisphosphate exchange reactions increasing all four possible substrate-product pairs in constant ratio are identical, consistent with a rapid equilibrium mechanism. All exchange reactions are strongly inhibited at high concentrations of the fructose 6-phosphate (F6P)/Pi and MgPPi/Pi substrate-product pairs and weakly inhibited at high concentrations of the MgPPi/fructose 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP) pair suggesting three dead-end complexes, E:F6P:Pi, E:MgPPi:Pi, and E:FBP:MgPPi, in agreement with initial velocity studies [Bertagnolli, B.L., & Cook, P.F. (1984) Biochemistry 23, 4101]. Neither back-exchange by [32P]Pi nor positional isotope exchange of 18O-bridge-labeled pyrophosphate was observed under any conditions, suggesting that either the chemical interconversion step or a step prior to it limits the overall rate of the reaction.     

MgATP-induced conformational change of the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase

Conformational changes of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) catalytic (C) subunit are critical for the catalysis of gamma-phosphate transfer from adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) to target proteins. Time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy (TRFA) was used to investigate the respective roles of Mg(2+), ATP, MgATP, and the inhibitor peptide (IP20) in the conformational changes of a 5,6-carboxyfluorescein succinimidyl ester (CF) labeled C subunit ((CF)C). TRFA decays were fit to a biexponential equation incorporating the fast and slow rotational correlation times phi(F) and phi(S). The (CF)C apoenzyme exhibited the rotational correlation times phi(F)=1.8+/-0.3 ns and phi(S)=20.1+/-0.6 ns which were reduced to phi(F)=1.1+/-0.2 ns and phi(S)=13.3+/-0.9 ns in the presence of MgATP. The reduction in rotational correlation times indicated that the (CF)C subunit adopted a more compact shape upon formation of a (CF)C.MgATP binary complex. Neither Mg(2+) (1-3 mM) nor ATP (0.4 mM) alone induced changes in the (CF)C subunit conformation equivalent to those induced by MgATP. The effect of MgATP was removed in the presence of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). The addition of IP20 and MgATP to form the (CF)C x MgATP x IP20 ternary complex produced rotational correlation times similar to those of the (CF)C x MgATP binary complex. However, IP20 alone did not elicit an equivalent reduction in rotational correlation times. The results indicate that binding of MgATP to the C subunit may induce conformation changes in the C subunit necessary for the proper stereochemical alignment of substrates in the subsequent phosphorylation.     

Effect of substrates and effectors on the reversible inactivation of pig spleen phosphofructokinase by adenosine triphosphate

1. To investigate the mechanism of the reversible inactivation of pig spleen phosphofructokinase by ATP, the effect of order of addition of reactants (substrates, effectors and enzyme solution) was studied by preincubating the enzyme before assay with various combinations of its substrates and effectors. 2. Preincubation of the enzyme with MgATP or ATP at pH7.0 before addition of fructose 6-phosphate caused a rapid and much greater inhibition of activity than that observed when the reaction (carried out at identical substrate concentrations) was initiated with enzyme. 3. The rapid inhibition caused by preincubation with ATP, together with the sigmoidal response to fructose 6-phosphate and activation by AMP, were all blocked by prior photo-oxidation of the enzyme with Methylene Blue, which selectively destroys the inhibitory binding site for ATP [Ahlfors & Mansour (1969) J. Biol. Chem.244, 1247-1251]. 4. Fructose 6-phosphate, but not Mg(2+), protected phosphofructokinase from inhibition during preincubation with ATP in a manner that was sigmoidally dependent on the fructose 6-phosphate concentration. 5. Mg(2+), by protecting the enzyme from the inhibitory effect of preincubation at low pH (7.0) and by preventing its activation during preincubation with fructose 6-phosphate, demonstrated both a weak activating effect in the absence of the other substrates and a stronger inhibitory effect in the presence of fructose 6-phosphate. 6. Positive effectors (K(+), NH(4) (+), AMP and aspartate) protected the enzyme from inhibition during preincubation with MgATP in proportion to their potency as activators, but citrate potentiated the ATP inhibition. P(i) significantly slowed the inactivation process without itself acting as a positive effector. 7. The non-linear dependence of the initial rate of the unmodified enzyme on protein concentration (associated with increased positive homotropic co-operativity to fructose 6-phosphate) was intensified by preincubation with ATP and abolished by photo-oxidation. 8. The results are interpreted in terms of an association-dissociation model which postulates that protonation, at low pH, of a photo-oxidation-sensitive inhibitory site for ATP allows more rapid dissociation of an active tetramer to an inactive dimeric species.     

MgATP-dependent activation by phosphoenolpyruvate of the E187A mutant of Escherichia coli phosphofructokinase

Using enzymatic assays and steady-state fluorescence emission, we performed a linkage analysis of the three-ligand interaction of fructose 6-phosphate (Fru-6-P), phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP), and MgATP on E187A mutant Escherichia coli phosphofructokinase (PFK). PEP allosterically inhibits Fru-6-P binding to E. coli PFK. The magnitude of antagonism is 90-fold in the absence and 60-fold in the presence of a saturating concentration of MgATP [Johnson, J. J., and Reinhart, G. D. (1997) Biochemistry 36, 12814-12822]. Substituting an alanine for the glutamate at position 187, located in the allosteric site (i.e., mutant E187A), activates Fru-6-P binding and inhibits the maximal rate of enzyme turnover [Lau, F. T.-K., and Fersht, A. R. (1987) Nature 326, 811-812]. The allosteric action of PEP appears to depend on the presence of the cosubstrate MgATP. In the presence of a saturating concentration of MgATP, PEP enhances the binding of Fru-6-P to the enzyme by a modest 2-fold. Decreasing the concentration of MgATP mitigates the extent of activation. At MgATP concentrations approaching 25 microM, PEP becomes insensitive to the binding of Fru-6-P. At MgATP concentrations < 25 microM, PEP "crosses over" and becomes antagonistic toward substrate binding. The present study examines the role of Glu 187 at the allosteric site in the binding of Fru-6-P and offers a more complex explanation of the mechanism than that described by traditional allosteric mechanistic models.     

Temperature and the regulation of enzyme activity in poikilotherms. Properties of rainbow-trout fructose diphosphatase

1. The properties of fructose diphosphatase from the liver of rainbow trout (Salmo gairdnerii) were examined over the physiological temperature range of the organism. 2. Saturation curves for substrate (fructose 1,6-diphosphate) and a cofactor (Mg(2+)) are sigmoidal, and Hill plots of the results suggest a minimum of two interacting fructose 1,6-diphosphate sites and two interacting Mg(2+) sites per molecule of enzyme. 3. Mn(2+)-saturation curves are hyperbolic, and the K(a) for Mn(2+), which inhibits the enzyme at high concentrations, is 50-100-fold lower than the K(a) for Mg(2+). 4. Fructose diphosphatase is inhibited by low concentrations of AMP; this inhibition appears to be decreased and reversed by increasing the concentrations of Mg(2+) and Mn(2+). Higher concentrations of AMP are required to inhibit the trout fructose diphosphatase in the presence of Mn(2+). 5. The affinities of fructose diphosphatase for fructose diphosphate and Mn(2+) appear to be temperature-independent, whereas the affinities for Mg(2+) and AMP are highly temperature-dependent. 6. The pH optimum of the enzyme depends on the concentrations of Mg(2+) and Mn(2+). In addition, pH determines the K(a) for Mg(2+); at high pH, K(a) for Mg(2+) is lowered. 7. The enzyme is inhibited by Ca(2+) and Zn(2+), and the inhibition is competitive with respect to both cations. 8. The possible roles of these ions and AMP in the modulation of fructose diphosphatase and gluconeogenic activity are discussed in relation to temperature adaptation.     

Kinetic studies on the reaction catalysed by phosphofructokinase from Trypanosoma brucei.

The steady-state kinetics of the reaction catalysed by the bloodstream form of Trypanosoma brucei were studied at pH 6.7. In the presence of 50 mM-potassium phosphate buffer, the apparent co-operativity with respect to fructose 6-phosphate and the non-linear relationship between initial velocity and enzyme concentration, which were found when the enzyme was assayed in 50 mM-imidazole buffer [Cronin & Tipton (1985) Biochem. J. 227, 113-124], are not evident. Studies on the variations of the initial rate with changing concentrations of MgATP and fructose 6-phosphate, the product inhibition by fructose 1,6-bisphosphate and the effects of the alternative substrate ITP were consistent with an ordered reaction pathway, in which MgATP binds to the enzyme before fructose 6-phosphate, and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate is the first product to dissociate from the ternary complex.     

Kinetic mechanism of the Mg2+-dependent nucleotidyl transfer catalyzed by T4 DNA and RNA ligases.

The Mg(2+)-dependent adenylylation of the T4 DNA and RNA ligases was studied in the absence of a DNA substrate using transient optical absorbance and fluorescence spectroscopy. The concentrations of Mg(2+), ATP, and pyrophosphate were systematically varied, and the results led to the conclusion that the nucleotidyl transfer proceeds according to a two-metal ion mechanism. According to this mechanism, only the di-magnesium-coordinated form Mg(2)ATP(0) reacts with the enzyme forming the covalent complex E.AMP. The reverse reaction (ATP synthesis) occurs between the mono-magnesium-coordinated pyrophosphate form MgP(2)O(7)(2-) and the enzyme.MgAMP complex. The nucleotide binding rate decreases in the sequence ATP(4-) > MgATP(2-) > Mg(2)ATP(0), indicating that the formation of the non-covalent enzyme.nucleotide complex is driven by electrostatic interactions. T4 DNA ligase shows notably higher rates of ATP binding and of subsequent adenylylation compared with RNA ligase, in part because it decreases the K(d) of Mg(2+) for the enzyme-bound Mg(2)ATP(0) more than 10-fold. To elucidate the role of Mg(2+) in the nucleotidyl transfer catalyzed by T4 DNA and RNA ligases, we propose a transition state configuration, in which the catalytic Mg(2+) ion coordinates to both reacting nucleophiles: the lysyl moiety of the enzyme that forms the phosphoramidate bond and the alpha-beta-bridging oxygen of ATP.     

Kinetic studies on the activation of pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase from mung bean by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate and related compounds

Pyrophosphate-dependent phosphofructokinase (PPi-PFK) was purified from the mung bean Phaseolus aureus. The enzyme is activated by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate at nanomolar concentrations. The enzyme exhibits Michaelis-Menten kinetics, and the reaction mechanism, deduced from initial velocity studies in the absence of inhibitors as well as product and dead-end inhibition studies, is rapid equilibrium random in the presence and absence of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate. In the direction of fructose 6-phosphate phosphorylation, saturating fructose 2,6-bisphosphate (1 microM) increases V congruent to 9-fold and increases V/KMgPPi and V/KF6P about 30-fold. In the reverse direction (phosphate phosphorylation), the same concentration of activator has little if any effect on V or the Km for inorganic phosphate (Pi) and Mg2+ but does increase V/KFBP about 42-fold. No changes were observed in any of the other rate constants. The binding affinity of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate to all enzyme forms is identical. The activator site of the mung bean PPi-PFK binds fructose 2,6-bisphosphate with a Kact of 30 nM with the 2,5-anhydro-D-glucitol 1,6-bisphosphate (the most effective analogue) 33-fold less tightly. Of the alkanediol bisphosphate series, 1,4-butanediol bisphosphate exhibited the tightest binding (Kact congruent to 3 microM). These and a series of other activating analogues are discussed in relation to the activator site.     

The purification and properties of pig spleen phosphofructokinase.

Pig spleen phosphofructokinase has been purified 800-fold with a yield of 17%. Two isoenzymes that appear to be kinetically identical can be separated by DEAE-cellulose column chromatography. In common with the enzyme from other mammalian sources, the spleen enzyme has a pH optimum of 8.2. At pH 7.0 it displays sigmoidal kinetics with respect to fructose 6-phosphate concentration but its co-operative behaviour is very dependent on pH, protein concentration and the concentration of MgATP. MgGTP and MgITP can replace MgATP as phosphate donors but, unlike MgATP, these nucleotides do not cause significant inhibition. Mn2+ and Co2+ (as the metal ion-ATP complexes) act as cofactors and in the free form are far more inhibitory than free Mg2+. The spleen enzyme responds to a wide variety of potential effector molecules: ADP, AMP, cyclic AMP, aspartate, NH4+, fructose 6-phosphate, fructose 1,6-diphosphate and Pi all act as either activators or protectors, whereas Mg-ATP, Mg2+, citrate, phosphoenol-pyruvate and the phosphoglucerates are inhibitors.     

Importance of Thr-353 of the conserved phosphorylation loop of the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase in MgATP binding and catalytic activity.

Mutants in which Thr-353 of the Ca(2+)-ATPase of sarcoplasmic reticulum had been replaced with alanine, serine, glutamine, cysteine, valine, aspartate, or tyrosine were analyzed functionally. All the mutations severely affected MgATP binding, whereas ATP binding was close to normal in the alanine, serine, glutamine, and valine mutants. In the serine and valine mutants, the maximum rate of phosphorylation from MgATP was 8- and 600-fold lower, respectively, compared with wild type. Replacement of Mg(2+) with Mn(2+) led to a 1.5-fold enhancement of the maximum phosphorylation rate in the valine mutant and a 5-fold reduction in the wild type. The turnover of the phosphoenzyme formed from MgATP was slowed 1-2 orders of magnitude relative to wild type in the alanine, serine, and valine mutants, but was close to normal in the aspartate and cysteine mutants. Only the serine mutant formed a phosphoenzyme in the backward reaction with P(i), and the hydrolysis of this intermediate was greatly enhanced. Analysis of the functional changes in the mutants in the light of the recent high resolution structure of the Ca(2+)-ATPase crystallized without the MgATP substrate suggests that, in the native activated state of the enzyme, the side chain hydroxyl of Thr-353 participates in important interactions with nucleotide and phosphate, possibly in catalysis, whereas the main chain carbonyl of Thr-353, but not the side chain, may coordinate the catalytic Mg(2+).     

Kinetic properties of a magnesium ion- and calcium ion-stimulated adenosine triphosphatase from the outer-membrane fraction of rat spleen mitochondria

1. Isolated outer membranes from rat spleen mitochondria can be stored in liquid N(2) for several weeks without significant loss of ATPase (adenosine triphosphatase) activity. 2. The ATPase reaction has a broad pH optimum centering on neutral pH, with little significant activity above pH9.0 or below pH5.5. 3. A sigmoidal response of the ATPase activity to temperature is observed between 0 and 55 degrees C, with complete inactivation at 60 degrees C. The Arrhenius plot shows that the activation energy above the transition temperature (22 degrees C) (E(a)=144kJ/mol) is one-third of that calculated for below the transition temperature (E'(a)=408kJ/mol). 4. The outer-membrane ATPase (K(m) for MgATP=50mum) is inactive unless Mg(2+) is added, whereas the inner-membrane ATPase (K(m) for ATP=11mum) is active without added Mg(2+) unless the mitochondria have been depleted of all endogenous Mg(2+) (by using ionophore A23187). 5. The substrate for the outer-membrane ATPase is a bivalent metal ion-nucleoside triphosphate complex in which Mg(2+) (K(m)=50mum) can be replaced effectively by Ca(2+) (K(m)=6.7mum) or Mn(2+), and ATP by ITP. Cu(2+), Co(2+), Sr(2+), Ba(2+), Ni(2+), Cd(2+) and Zn(2+) support very little ATP hydrolysis. 6. Univalent metal ions (Na(+), K(+), Rb(+), Cs(+) and NH(4) (+), but not Li(+)) stimulate the MgATPase activity (<10%) at low concentrations (50mm), but, except for K(+), are slightly inhibitory (20-30%) at higher concentrations (500mm). 7. The Mg(2+)-stimulated ATPase activity is significantly inhibited by Cu(2+) (K(i)=90mum), Ni(2+) (K(i)=510mum), Zn(2+) (K(i)=680mum) and Co(2+) (K(i)=1020mum), but not by Mg(2+), Ca(2+), Ba(2+) or Sr(2+). 8. The outer-membrane ATPase is insensitive to the inhibitors oligomycin, NN'-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, NaN(3), ouabain and thiol-specific reagents. A significant inhibition is observed at high concentrations of AgNO(3) (0.5mm) and NaF (10mm). 9. The activity towards MgATP is competitively inhibited by the product MgADP (K(i)=0.7mm) but not by the second product P(i) or by 5'-AMP.     

Functional Approach to the Catalytic Site of the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Ca2+-ATPase: Binding and Hydrolysis of ATP in the Absence of Ca2+

Isolated sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles in the presence of Mg(2+) and absence of Ca(2+) retain significant ATP hydrolytic activity that can be attributed to the Ca(2+)-ATPase protein. At neutral pH and the presence of 5 mM Mg(2+), the dependence of the hydrolysis rate on a linear ATP concentration scale can be fitted by a single hyperbolic function. MgATP hydrolysis is inhibited by either free Mg(2+) or free ATP. The rate of ATP hydrolysis is not perturbed by vanadate, whereas the rate of p-nitrophenyl phosphate hydrolysis is not altered by a nonhydrolyzable ATP analog. ATP binding affinity at neutral pH and in a Ca(2+)-free medium is increased by Mg(2+) but decreased by vanadate when Mg(2+) is present. It is suggested that MgATP hydrolysis in the absence of Ca(2+) requires some optimal adjustment of the enzyme cytoplasmic domains. The Ca(2+)-independent activity is operative at basal levels of cytoplasmic Ca(2+) or when the Ca(2+) binding transition is impeded.     

Mutations in the hinge of a dynamic loop broadly influence functional properties of fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase

Loop 52-72 of porcine fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase may play a central role in the mechanism of catalysis and allosteric inhibition by AMP. The loop pivots between different conformational states about a hinge located at residues 50 and 51. The insertion of proline separately at positions 50 and 51 reduces k(cat) by up to 3-fold, with no effect on the K(m) for fructose 1,6-bisphosphate. The K(a) for Mg(2+) in the Lys(50) --> Pro mutant increases approximately 15-fold, whereas that for the Ala(51) --> Pro mutant is unchanged. Although these mutants retain wild-type binding affinity for AMP and the fluorescent AMP analog 2'(3')-O-(trinitrophenyl)adenosine 5'-monophosphate, the K(i) for AMP increases 8000- and 280-fold in the position 50 and 51 mutants, respectively. In fact, the mutation Lys(50) --> Pro changes the mechanism of AMP inhibition with respect to Mg(2+) from competitive to noncompetitive and abolishes K(+) activation. The K(i) for fructose 2,6-bisphosphate increases approximately 20- and 30-fold in the Lys(50) --> Pro and Ala(51) --> Pro mutants, respectively. Fluorescence from a tryptophan introduced by the mutation of Tyr(57) suggests an altered conformational state for Loop 52-72 due to the proline at position 50. Evidently, the Pro(50) mutant binds AMP with high affinity at the allosteric site, but the mechanism of allosteric regulation of catalysis has been disabled.     

Multiple zinc binding sites in retinal rod cGMP phosphodiesterase, PDE6alpha beta

The photoreceptor cGMP phosphodiesterase (PDE6) plays a key role in vertebrate vision, but its enzymatic mechanism and the roles of metal ion co-factors have yet to be determined. We have determined the amount of endogenous Zn(2+) in rod PDE6 and established a requirement for tightly bound Zn(2+) in catalysis. Purified PDE6 contained 3-4-g atoms of zinc/mole, consistent with an initial content of two tightly bound Zn(2+)/catalytic subunit. PDE with only tightly bound Zn(2+) and no free metal ions was inactive, but activity was fully restored by Mg(2+), Mn(2+), Co(2+), or Zn(2+). Mn(2+), Co(2+), and Zn(2+) also induced aggregation and inactivation at higher concentrations and longer times. Removal of 93% of the tightly bound Zn(2+) by treatment with dipicolinic acid and EDTA at pH 6.0 resulted in almost complete loss of activity in the presence of Mg(2+). This activity loss was blocked almost completely by Zn(2+), less potently by Co(2+) and almost not at all by Mg(2+), Mn(2+), or Cu(2+). The lost activity was restored by the addition of Zn(2+), but Co(2+) restored only 13% as much activity, and other metals even less. Thus tightly bound Zn(2+) is required for catalysis but could also play a role in stabilizing the structure of PDE6, whereas distinct sites where Zn(2+) is rapidly exchanged are likely occupied by Mg(2+) under physiological conditions.