Inhibition of dopamine beta-hydroxylase by thiazoline-2-carboxylate, a suspected physiological product of D-amino acid oxidase

Thiazoline-2-carboxylate was chemically synthesized and shown to be identical in all respects to the product formed in a D-amino acid oxidase catalyzed reaction involving cysteamine and glyoxylate. Both the chemically synthesized and enzymically prepared thiazoline-2-carboxylate are effective inhibitors of dopamine β-hydroxylase but they do not appreciably affect the activity of several other metalloenzymes that require copper, iron or zinc. The inhibition of dopamine β-hydroxylase is competitive with respect to the reactant ascorbic acid and uncompetitive with respect to tyramine. The possible physiological significance of this inhibition is briefly considered.     

Serratia Protease

Protease from a strain of Serratia contained one gram atom of zinc ion per mole and the zinc ion was essential for the activity. Also zinc-free apoenzyme was isolated as a crystalline form from the native-enzyme. Several metalloenzymes were prepared by the addition of corresponding metal ions to the apoenzyme. Studies on activities toward the hydrolysis of casein showed that relative activities of native- (zinc), cobalt- and manganese-enzyme were 1.0, 1.2 and 0.8, respectively. Toward the hydrolysis of hippurylleucinamide, however, specific activity of cobalt-enzyme was about 10 times that of the native- (zinc-) enzyme. Spectroscopic studies did not reveal any significant differences in conformations among native-enzyme, apoenzyme and the other metalloenzymes.     

碳酸酐酶Ⅲ在疾病和肌肉疲劳发生发展中的作用

碳酸酐酶（carbonic anhydrases,CAs）是一种广泛存在的含锌的金属蛋白酶,能可逆性地高效催化CO2的水合反应,参与调节胞内pH值、离子运输和生物合成反应等多种生理过程。在哺乳动物体内已发现13种CA同工酶和3种CA相关蛋白,其中CAⅢ与其他CA同工酶相比,在组织分布、分子结构和生物学功能上均有其独特之处。CAⅢ表达异常可能与多种临床疾病的发生和发展有关,还可能参与了肌肉疲劳的发生。     

Picomolar concentrations of free zinc(II) ions regulate receptor protein-tyrosine phosphatase β activity

As key enzymes in the regulation of biological phosphorylations, protein-tyrosine phosphatases are central to the control of cellular signaling and metabolism. Zinc(II) ions are known to inhibit these enzymes, but the physiological significance of this inhibition has remained elusive. Employing metal buffering for strict metal control and performing a kinetic analysis, we now demonstrate that zinc(II) ions are reversible inhibitors of the cytoplasmic catalytic domain of the receptor protein-tyrosine phosphatase β (also known as vascular endothelial protein-tyrosine phosphatase). The K(i)((Zn)) value is 21 ± 7 pm, 6 orders of magnitude lower than zinc inhibition reported previously for this enzyme. It exceeds the affinity of the most potent synthetic small molecule inhibitors targeting these enzymes. Inhibition is in the range of cellular zinc(II) ion concentrations, suggesting that zinc regulates this enzyme, which is involved in vascular physiology and angiogenesis. Thus, for some enzymes that are not recognized as zinc metalloenzymes, zinc binding inhibits rather than activates as in classical zinc enzymes. Activation then requires removal of the inhibitory zinc.     

Metalloenzymes and signal transduction: the protein serine/threonine phosphatases,a novel class of binuclear metal-containing enzymes

The serine/threonine protein phosphatases are important regulatory enzymes involved in signal transduction pathways in eukaryotic organisms. These enzymes include protein phosphatases 1, 2A, and 2B (also known as calcineurin). Recent structural data have indicated that the serine/threonine protein phosphatases are novel metalloenzymes containing a dinuclear metal ion cofactor at the active site. The dinuclear metal site is situated in a unique protein fold, a β-α-β-α-β motif which provides the majority of ligands to the metal ions. A similar fold is also seen in plant purple acid phosphatases, which also contain a dinuclear iron–zinc cofactor. In these enzymes, the two metal ions are bridged by a solvent molecule and a carboxylate group from an aspartic acid residue, juxtaposing the two metal ions to within 3.0–4.0?Å of each other. A similar motif has been identified in a number of other enzymes which exhibit phosphoesterase activity, implicating several of them as metalloenzymes which contain dinuclear metal ion cofactors.     

Inhibition of Zinc Metallopeptidases by Flavonoids and Related Phenolic Compounds: Structure-Activity Relationships

Abstract

Flavonoids and other benzopyrone substances, having an appropriate hydroxylation profile, may inhibit the metalloenzymes leucine aminopeptidase (LAP), aminopeptidase M (AP-M), and carboxypeptidase A (CP-A). A structural feature that evidently favours the interaction between flavonoids and the three metalloenzymes is the 2,3-double bond conjugating the A and B rings and conferring a planar structure. This can be considered virtually indispensable for inhibition of the three metallopeptidases, though the hydroxylation profile required differed for each of the enzymes, and the interaction mechanism and behaviour also differed. The inhibitory effect of flavonoids on LAP was reversible, and to be effective the flavonoid had to have conjugated A and B rings and or tho-dihydroxylation on at least one of the aromatic rings. This same requirement was essential for inhibition by coumarins and was attributed to a catechol-like mechanism of interaction. The inhibitory effects on AP-M were due to inactivation of the enzyme, irreversibly altered by flavonoids with a 2,3-double bond and a minimum of one hydroxyl substituent on each of the aromatic rings. With CP-A, conjugation of the A and B rings enhanced the inhibitory effect of flavonoids, though it was not strictly required. The interaction between the polyphenolic substances tested and the two zinc aminopeptidases was not reversed by adding zinc to the reaction medium, indicating that the inhibition is not due to the coordination of the phenolic hydroxyl groups with the catalytical zinc of active site, though the presence of zinc affected the interaction behaviour differently according to each substance's hydroxylation profile.     

Inhibitory zinc sites in enzymes

Several pathways increase the concentrations of cellular free zinc(II) ions. Such fluctuations suggest that zinc(II) ions are signalling ions used for the regulation of proteins. One function is the inhibition of enzymes. It is quite common that enzymes bind zinc(II) ions with micro- or nanomolar affinities in their active sites that contain catalytic dyads or triads with a combination of glutamate (aspartate), histidine and cysteine residues, which are all typical zinc-binding ligands. However, for such binding to be physiologically significant, the binding constants must be compatible with the cellular availability of zinc(II) ions. The affinity of inhibitory zinc(II) ions for receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase β is particularly high (K _i = 21 pM, pH 7.4), indicating that some enzymes bind zinc almost as strongly as zinc metalloenzymes. The competitive pattern of zinc inhibition for this phosphatase implicates its active site cysteine and nearby residues in the coordination of zinc. Quantitative biophysical data on both affinities of proteins for zinc and cellular zinc(II) ion concentrations provide the basis for examining the physiological significance of inhibitory zinc-binding sites in proteins and the role of zinc(II) ions in cellular signalling. Regulatory functions of zinc(II) ions add a significant level of complexity to biological control of metabolism and signal transduction and embody a new paradigm for the role of transition metal ions in cell biology.     

Zinc-catalyzed sulfur alkyation:insights from protein farnesyltransferase

Zinc metalloenzymes catalyze many important cellular reactions. Recently, the involvement of zinc in the catalysis of alkylation of sulfur groups has gained prominence. Current studies of the zinc metalloenzyme protein farnesyltransferase have shed light on its structure and catalytic mechanism, as well as the general mechanism of zinc-catalyzed sulfur alkylation.     

Determination of picogram quantities of zinc in zinc metalloproteins by atomic absorption spectrometry using a graphite furnace atomizer

Optimum operating conditions have been determined for the atomization of zinc from metalloproteins in a graphite furnace. Addition of 50 mm ammonium dihydrogen phosphate to to protein and measurement of the integrated absorbance suppresses or eliminates matrix interference effects. Using a 5-μl sample both the sensitivity and the detection limit are 0.3 ng of Zn/ml, i.e., 1.5 pg of zinc on an absolute basis. For 10 ng/ml of zinc in 5-μl samples of a zinc metalloenzyme, the coefficient of variation is 1.5%. Accuracy has been established by analysis of zinc metalloenzymes of known zinc stoichiometry. The method has been applied successfully to the determination of zinc in several proteins for which zinc stoichiometry had been unknown.     

Zinc effects on LDH, MDH and alkaline phosphatase from cultures of fathead minnow cells.

1. Three purported zinc metalloenzymes have been investigated from cell cultures of the fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas). 2. With the addition of increasingly higher concentrations of zinc to the tissue culture medium, the specific activity of LDH increased. 3. The results with MDH were equivocal. 4. The specific activity of alkaline phosphatase decreased in the presence of increasing amounts of zinc in the growth medium. 5. Zinc exogenously added to the LDH enzyme assay did not alter the LDH enzyme activity of cells grown without zinc.     

Grafting a new metal ligand in the cocatalytic site of B. cereus metallo-beta-lactamase: structural flexibility without loss of activity

Metallo-beta-lactamases are zinc enzymes able to hydrolyze the four-membered ring of beta-lactam antibiotics, representing one of the latest generations of beta-lactamases. These enzymes belong to the zinc metallo-hydrolase family of the beta-lactamase fold. Enzymes belonging to this family have a bimetallic active site whose structure varies among different members by point substitutions of the metal ligands. In this work, we have grafted new metal ligands into the metal binding site of BcII from Bacillus cereus that mimic the ligands present in other members of this superfamily. We have characterized spectroscopically and modeled the structure of the redesigned sites, which differ substantially from the wild-type enzyme. Despite the changes introduced in the active site, the mutant enzymes retain almost full activity. These results shed some light on the possible evolutionary origin of these metalloenzymes.     

Conformational changes and inactivation of calf intestinal alkaline phosphatase in trifluoroethanol solutions

The changes in activity and unfolding of calf intestinal alkaline phosphatase (CIP) during denaturation in different concentrations of trifluoroethanol (TFE) have been investigated by far-ultraviolet circular dichroism and fluorescence emission spectra. Unfolding and activation rate constants were measured and compared, the activation and inactivation courses were much faster than that of unfolding, which suggests that the active site of CIP containing two zinc ions and one magnesium ion is situated in a limited and flexible region of the enzyme molecule that is more fragile to the denaturant than the protein as a whole. However, compared to other metalloenzymes, CIP is inactivated at higher concentrations of TFE as denaturant.     

A practically sensitive radioimmunoassay for cyclic CMP by 2'-O-acetylation

An improved method for the determination of subnanogram quantities of zinc has been devised using a tungsten filament for vaporization in a low-pressure microwave-induced helium plasma emission spectrometer. Desolvation and ashing in an air atmosphere of zinc containing samples in the presence of 1,10-phenanthroline (8 mm) and potassium chloride (3 mm) prevent fractional vaporization and yields a single, sharp emission signal. Analysis of nanogram quantities of zinc metalloenzymes contained in sample volumes of 5 μl illustrates the use of this method. The coefficient of variation for 0.14 ng of zinc in 75 ng of carboxypeptidase A is 3.5%, with a detection limit of 3 pg.     

The functional role of zinc in angiotensin converting enzyme: implications for the enzyme mechanism

Zinc is essential to the catalytic activity of angiotensin converting enzyme. The enzyme contains one g-atom of zinc per mole of protein. Chelating agents abolish activity by removing the metal ion to yield the inactive, metal-free apoenzyme. Zinc does not stabilize protein structure since the native and apoenzymes are equally susceptible to heat denaturation. Addition of either Zn2+, Co2+, or Mn2+ to the apoenzyme generates an active metalloenzyme; Fe2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Cd2+, and Hg2+ fail to restore activity. The activities of the metalloenzymes follow the order Zn greater than Co greater than Mn. The protein binds Zn2+ more firmly than it does Co2+ or Mn2+. Hydrolysis of the chromophoric substrate, furanacryloyl-Phe-Gly-Gly, by the active metalloenzymes is subject to chloride activation; the activation constant is not metal dependent. Metal replacement mainly affects Kcat with very little change in Km, indicating that the role of zinc is to catalyze peptide hydrolysis.     

Virtual screening against metalloenzymes for inhibitors and substrates

Molecular docking uses the three-dimensional structure of a receptor to screen databases of small molecules for potential ligands, often based on energetic complementarity. For many docking scoring functions, which calculate nonbonded interactions, metalloenzymes are challenging because of the partial covalent nature of metal-ligand interactions. To investigate how well molecular docking can identify potential ligands of metalloenzymes using a "standard" scoring function, we have docked the MDL Drug Data Report (MDDR), a functionally annotated database of 95,000 small molecules, against the X-ray crystal structures of five metalloenzymes. These enzymes included three zinc proteases, the nickel analogue of an iron enzyme, and a molybdenum metalloenzyme. The ability of the docking program to retrospectively enrich the annotated ligands as high-scoring hits for each enzyme and to calculate proper geometries was evaluated. In all five systems, the annotated ligands within the MDDR were enriched at least 20 times over random. To test the approach prospectively, a sixth target, the zinc beta-lactamase from Bacteroides fragilis, was screened against the fragment-like subset of the ZINC database. We purchased and tested 15 compounds from among the top 50 top-ranked ligands from docking, and found 5 inhibitors with apparent K(i) values less than 120 microM, the best of which was 2 microM. A more ambitious test still was predicting actual substrates for a seventh target, a Zn-dependent phosphotriesterase from Pseudomonas diminuta. Screening the Available Chemicals Directory (ACD) identified 25 thiophosphate esters as potential substrates within the top 100 ranked compounds. Eight of these, all previously uncharacterized for this enzyme, were acquired and tested, and all were confirmed experimentally as substrates. These results suggest that a simple, noncovalent scoring function may be used to identify inhibitors of at least some metalloenzymes.     

Zinc and human development: A review

In the last few years, considerable evidence has been obtained regarding the importance of zinc in human nutrition. Zinc is an important component of many metalloenzymes and is also required for metabolism of nucleic acids and synthesis of protein. Human requirements for zinc vary at different times in development, but appear to be particularly high during embryonic life, during periods of rapid growth, and during pregnancy. Although zinc is widely distributed in foods, a number of types of diets appear to be deficient or marginal in terms of available zinc. In addition, there is physiological loss of zinc in bleeding and sweating which may lead to low levels of body zinc. A syndrome characterized by markedly retarded growth and sexual development that occurs in the Middle East has been shown to be due to zinc deficiency. This syndrome is reviewed. It is thought that the zinc deficiency syndrome is only one end of a continuum of growth-related problems associated with low levels of physiologically available zinc. In rats, zinc deficiency during pregnancy has been shown to lead to congenital malformations in a large percentage of the offspring. A number of these malformations involve the central nervous system. We have suggested that epidemiological data support the possible importance of maternal zinc deficiency as an etiological factor in human CNS malformations. These data are discussed.This work was supported in part by NIH grants GM15253 and HD02274.Presented at a symposium Trends in Nutrition, sponsored by the California Dietetic Association, Los Altos, California, February 2, 1974.     

Metal binding to angiotensin converting enzyme: implications for the metal binding site

Angiotensin converting enzyme interacts with the chelator, 1,10-phenanthroline (OP) to form an OP-Zn-ACE ternary complex, which subsequently dissociates to OP-Zn and apoenzyme. The association and dissociation rate constants for the reaction OP + Zn-ACE in equilibrium OP-Zn-ACE have been determined and compared with those of known OP-metal complexes. Such constants were also used to calculate the rate constant for formation of the OP-Zn complex from OP-Zn-ACE. The rate of dissociation of zinc from ACE has been measured in the presence of EDTA (which acts only as a metal scavenger) as a function of chelator concentration, at different pH values, and with different buffers. The stability constant for the binding of zinc to apoACE log Kc = 8.2, determined by equilibrium dialysis using atomic absorption spectroscopy to assess metal concentration, is much smaller than that for Zn-carboxypeptidase A. Zn-thermolysin, or Zn-carbonic anhydrase. This weak binding is attributable to the zinc dissociation rate constant of ACE, 7.5 X 10(-3) sec-1 at pH 7.0, which is much greater than that of the other zinc metalloenzymes. These results lead to inferences regarding the metal binding site of ACE.     

The status of zinc in malaria (Plasmodium falciparum) infected human red blood cells: stage dependent accumulation,compartmentation and effect of dipicolinate

The inhibitory effect of metal chelators on intraerythrocytic malarial parasites imply that trace metal have a vital role in the biology of these organisms. In the present work X-ray fluorometry was used to study the status of zinc and iron in human red blood cells infected with Plasmodium falciparum in culture conditions. It was found that while the iron level remains constant throughout the parasite cell cycle, that of zinc increases in parallel with parasite maturation to reach a 2.3-fold higher level than that of uninfected red blood cells. Compartment analysis of infected red blood cells indicated that most of this gain was associated with the parasite and some with the host-cell membrane. Analysis of the malarial pigment showed that the zinc/iron ratio was similar to that of red blood cells, implying the this compound, which results from the digestion of host-cell cytosol, sequesters the zinc of host metalloenzymes. Dipicolinic acid (DPA), like other chelators, was found to inhibit the intracellular development of the parasite with an ED₅₀ of 1 mM. DPA does not penetrate into normal red blood cells but readily permeates into infected cells, although it does not leach out their zinc. It is uncertain whether the inhibitory effect of DPA is exerted through alterations of host cell metabolism or by directly affecting that of the parasite. The putative receptors of zinc in the infected red blood cell are discussed.     

Zinc coordination and substrate catalysis within the neuropeptide processing enzyme endopeptidase EC 3.4.24.15. Identification of active site histidine and glutamate residues.

Endopeptidase EC 3.4.24.15 (EP24.15) is a zinc metalloendopeptidase that is broadly distributed within the brain, pituitary, and gonads. Its substrate specificity includes a number of physiologically important neuropeptides such as neurotensin, bradykinin, and gonadotropin-releasing hormone, the principal regulatory peptide for reproduction. In studying the structure and function of EP24.15, we have employed in vitro mutagenesis and subsequent protein expression to genetically dissect the enzyme and allow us to glean insight into the mechanism of substrate binding and catalysis. Comparison of the sequence of EP24.15 with bacterial homologues previously solved by x-ray crystallography and used as models for mammalian metalloendopeptidases, indicates conserved residues. The active site of EP24.15 exhibits an HEXXH motif, a common feature of zinc metalloenzymes. Mutations have confirmed the importance, for binding and catalysis, of the residues (His473, Glu474, and His477) within this motif. A third putative metal ligand, presumed to coordinate directly to the active site zinc ion in concert with His473 and His477, has been identified as Glu502. Conservative alterations to these residues drastically reduces enzymatic activity against both a putative physiological substrate and a synthetic quenched fluorescent substrate as well as binding of the specific active site-directed inhibitor, N-[1-(RS)-carboxy-3-phenylpropyl]-Ala-Ala-Tyr-p-aminobenzoate, the binding of which we have shown to be dependent upon the presence, and possibly coordination, of the active site zinc ion. These studies contribute to a more complete understanding of the catalytic mechanism of EP24.15 and will aid in rational design of inhibitors and pharmacological agents for this class of enzymes.     

Angiotensin converting enzyme: implications from molecular biology for its physiological functions.

1. The two isozymes of human angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE; EC 3.4.15.1) have recently been cloned and sequenced. 2. The larger, endothelial isozyme has two highly similar internal domains each bearing a putative catalytic site. In contrast the smaller, testicular isozyme has a single catalytic site corresponding to the C-terminal domain of endothelial ACE and represents the ancestral, non-duplicated form of the gene. 3. Both isozymes are anchored in the plasma membrane by a single hydrophobic transmembrane polypeptide located near the C-terminus, and both are extensively N-glycosylated. 4. The testicular isozyme may also be O-glycosylated. 5. The soluble form of ACE in plasma, seminal fluid and other body fluids appears to be derived from the membrane-bound endothelial isozyme by a post-translational modification. 6. ACE has a complex substrate specificity with peptidyl tripeptidase or endopeptidase action on certain peptides, as well as the classical peptidyl dipeptidase activity. 7. Numerous potent inhibitors of the enzyme have been developed and used successfully in the treatment of hypertension, but some of the observed side effects may be due to inhibition of other zinc metalloenzymes. 8. Both endothelial and testicular ACE are highly conserved between species, indicative of the essential role(s) of the enzyme in blood pressure regulation and other physiological processes.