Assay for the terminal enzyme of the stearoyl coenzyme A desaturase system using chick embryo liver microsomes.

The NADH-dependent stearoyl CoA desaturase of hepatic microsomes (EC 1.14.99.5) is an enzyme system consisting of cytochrome b5 reductase (EC 1.6.2.2), cytochrome b5, and the terminal desaturase. We have developed a simple method for routine assay of the terminal enzyme based on complementation of the enzyme with chick embryo liver microsomes lacking desaturase activity. Desaturation of [1-14C]stearoyl CoA by the enzyme-microsome mixture is then assayed by thin-layer chromatography of the reaction products and determination of the amount of oleate formed. Microsomes from the livers of starved-refed rats were used as the source of the stearoyl CoA desaturase. The enzyme alone, solubilized and free from cytocrome b5 reductase and cytochrome b5, was unable to catalyze the desaturation of stearoyl CoA. However, after preincubation with chick embryo liver microsomes in the presence of 1% Triton X-100, the enzyme was active. The enzyme activity was linear with time and desaturase protein under the conditions described and depended on the concentrations of Triton X-100 present in the preincubation and the assay. The optimum concentrations of Triton X-100 were 1% for the preincubation and 0.1-0.15% in the assay. The desaturation activity was dependent on NADH and O2, and was inhibited 95% by 1 mM KCN. The use of chick embryo liver microsomes in this method eliminates the need to use purified cytochrome b5 reductase, cytochrome b5, and liposomes for routine assays and greatly reduces the complexities of timing and order of addition encountered in the existing assays.     

Purification and characterization of hyoscyamine 6 beta-hydroxylase from root cultures of Hyoscyamus niger L. Hydroxylase and epoxidase activities in the enzyme preparation

Hyoscyamine 6 beta-hydroxylase, a 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase that catalyzes the hydroxylation of l-hyoscyamine to 6 beta-hydroxyhyoscyamine in the biosynthetic pathway leading to scopolamine [Hashimoto, T. & Yamada, Y. (1986) Plant Physiol. 81, 619-625] was purified 310-fold from root cultures of Hyoscyamus niger L. The enzyme has an average Mr of 41,000 as determined by gel filtration on Superose 12 and exhibited maximum activity at pH 7.8 l-Hyoscyamine and 2-oxoglutarate are required for the enzyme activity, with respective Km values of 35 microM and 43 microM. Fe2+, catalase and a reductant such as ascorbate significantly activated the enzyme. 2-Oxoglutarate was not replaced by any of ten other oxo acids tested, nor was Fe2+ by nine other divalent cations tested. The enzyme was inhibited moderately by EDTA, Tiron and various oxo acids and aliphatic dicarboxylic acids, and strongly by nitroblue tetrazolium and divalent cations Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+ and Hg2+. Several pyridine dicarboxylates and o-dihydroxyphenyl derivatives inhibited the hydroxylase. Pyridine 2,4-dicarboxylate and 3,4-dihydroxybenzoate are competitive inhibitors with respect to 2-oxoglutarate with the respective Ki values of 9 microM and 90 microM. Several alkaloids with structures similar to l-hyoscyamine were hydroxylated by the enzyme at the C-6 position of the tropane moiety. The enzyme preparation also epoxidized 6,7-dehydrohyoscyamine, a hypothetical precursor of scopolamine, to scopolamine (Km 10 microM). This epoxidation reaction required the same co-factors as the hydroxylation reaction and the epoxidase activities were found in the same fractions with the hydroxylase activities during purification. Two possible pathways for scopolamine biosynthesis are discussed in the light of the hydroxylase and epoxidase activities found in the partially purified preparation of hyoscyamine 6 beta-hydroxylase.     

Purification and characterization of trehalose-6-phosphate synthase from Saccharomycopsis fibuligera A11

Mutant A11, a mutant of Saccharomycopsis fibuligera Sdu with low acid and neutral trehalase was found to accumulate over 18% (w/w) trehalose from starch in its cells. In this study, trehalose-6-phosphate synthase (Tps1) was purified to homogeneity from this mutant, with a 30-fold increase in the specific enzyme activity, as compared to the concentrated cell-free extract, from initial cells. The molecular mass of the purified enzyme as determined by SDS-PAGE was 66 kDa. The optimum pH and temperature of the purified enzyme were 6.6 and 37 degrees C, respectively. The enzyme was activated by Ca2+, K+ and Mg2+, with K+ showing the highest activation at 35 mM. On the other hand, Mn2+, Cu2+, Fe3+, Hg2+ and Co2+ inhibited the enzyme. The enzyme was also strongly inhibited by protease inhibitors such as iodoacetic acid, EDTA and PMSF.     

Regulation of microsomal stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase. Purification of a non-substrate-binding protein that stimulates activity.

Crude cytosolic fraction from rat liver was examined for proteins that may be involved in regulation of microsomal stearoyl-CoA desaturase activity. Gel filtration revealed the presence of several components that either stimulate or inhibit this enzyme. In addition, other components bind the acyl-CoA substrate, thus affecting observed activities in vitro. A protein that stimulates stearoyl-CoA desaturase but does not bind substrate was purified approx. 1100-fold. The purified protein had no visible absorption spectrum and an approximate mol.wt. of 26500. Maximal stimulation of desaturase activity occurred with less than 2 micrometer purified protein. The protein was heat-labile and exhibited neither catalase nor glutathione peroxidase activity. Addition of the cytosolic protein produced no effect on the desaturase reaction stoicheiometry; the proportions O2 consumed/NADH oxidized/stearoyl-CoA desaturated remained 1:1:1. Because the Km' for stearoyl-CoA was also unchanged by addition of the cytosolic protein, no change in substrate affinity was suggested. Furthermore addition of the cytosolic protein also produced no effect on desaturase inhibition by oleoyl-CoA, which suggested that the protein does not simply relieve apparent product inhibition. These results indicate that, in analogy to other cytosolic proteins that stimulate microsomal oxidase activities, the protein may have a regulatory function, perhaps related to activity modulation via organization of the multienzymic desaturase in the membrane.     

Purification and characterization of a novel lactonohydrolase from Agrobacterium tumefaciens

A novel lactonohydrolase, catalyzing the stereospecific hydrolysis of L-pantoyl lactone to L-pantoic acid, was purified 2,400-fold to apparent homogeneity with a 1.96% overall recovery from Agrobacterium tumefaciens AKU 316 through a purification procedure including ammonium sulfate fractionation, and column chromatographies on DEAE-Sephacel, phenyl-Sepharose CL-4B, Sephacryl S-200, Mono-Q and alkyl-Superose. The relative molecular mass of the native enzyme estimated on high-pressure gel permeation chromatography was 62,000 Da, and the subunit molecular mass was estimated to 26,500 Da on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme hydrolyzes several aromatic lactones, such as 3,4-dihydrocoumarin and homogentisic acid lactone, other than L-pantoyl lactone. The Km and Vmax for L-pantoyl lactone were 3.59 mM and 13.7micromol/min/mg, respectively. The enzymatic activity was inhibited by several chelating reagents, Fe2+, Sn2+, Pb2+, and Fe3+.     

A single five-step desaturase is involved in the carotenoid biosynthesis pathway to beta-carotene and torulene in Neurospora crassa

Phytoene desaturase Al-1 from Neurospora crassa was expressed in Escherichia coli and an active enzyme was isolated which catalyzed the stepwise introduction of up to five double bonds into the substrate phytoene. The major reaction products were 3, 4-didehydrolycopene and lycopene. Several of the desaturation intermediates, zeta-carotene, neurosporene, and lycopene, were also accepted as a substrate by Al-1. In contrast to the structurally related bacterial enzymes, the cofactor involved in the dehydrogenation reaction was NAD for Al-1. In situ competition with a neurosporene- and lycopene-converting hydratase and cyclase indicated that these enzymes can divert intermediates of the desaturation sequence. Based on the in vitro and in vivo results, the organization of the phytoene desaturase from N. crassa was proposed as an assembly of identical protein units which are responsible for the multistep reaction. However, the spatial arrangement should be loose enough to allow an exchange of individual intermediates in both directions in and out of this complex. Since gamma-carotene is not accepted as a substrate by Al-1, the formation of torulene must proceed exclusively by the cyclization of 3,4-didehydrolycopene.     

Properties of rat liver microsomal stearoyl-coenzyme A desaturase.

1. Rat liver microsomal stearoyl-CoA desaturase activity was shown to be stimulated by both bovine serum albumin and a basic cytoplasmic protein from rat liver. 2. Partially purified desaturase is unaffected by either of these two proteins. 3. Bovine serum albumin appears to exert its effect on the crude system by protecting the desaturase substrate, stearoly-CoA, from the action of endogenous thiolesterases. 4. By using partially purified enzyme preparations, it was possible to establish the substate specificity of the delta9-fatty acyl-CoA desaturase with the C14, C15, C16, C17, C18 and C19 fatty acyl-CoA substrates. Maximum enzyme activity was shown with stearoyl-CoA decreasing with both palmitoyl-CoA and nonadecanoyl-CoA, as reported previously for free fatty acids. 5. Both cytochrome b5 and NADH-cytochrome b5 reductase (EC 1.6.2.2) are required for these studies and a method is described for the purification of homogeneous preparations of detergent-isolated cytochrome b5 from rat liver. 6. From amino acid analyses, a comparison was made of the hydrophobicity of the membrane portion of cytochrome b5 with the hydrophobicity reported for stearoyl-CoA desaturase. The close resemblance of the two values suggested that unlike cytochrome b5 and its reductase, the stearoyl-CoA desaturase may be largely buried in the endoplasmic reticulum.     

A specific enzyme for glucose 1,6-bisphosphate synthesis.

The reaction: glycerate-1,3-P2 PLUS GLUCOSE-1-P YIELDS TO GLUCOSE-1,6-P2 plus glycerate-P is catalyzed by a distinct enzyme of mouse brain. A divalent metal requirement was shown when the enzyme was treated with imidazole and EDTA. Mg2+, Mn2+, Ca2+, Zn2+, Ni2+, Co2+, and Cd2+ were quite effective cofactors. The enzyme, in better than 50 percent yield, has been purified away from 99 percent of the phosphoglucomutase, phosphoglycrate mutase, and phosphofructokinase. Acetyl-P, ATP, enolpyruvate-P, creatine-P, and fructose-1,6-P2 are not phosphoryl donors. Glucose-6-P and mannose-1-P are good alternate acceptors. Mannose-6-P, galactose-Ps, and fructose-Ps have little or no acceptor activity. Strong inhibition was found with fructose-1,6-P2, glycerate-2,3-P2, enolpyruvate-P, and acetyl CoA. From the amount of activity and the kinetic constants of the purified enzyme it seems likely that this enzyme is responsible for the glucose-1,6-P2 synthesis of brain.     

Cleavage of spermidine as the first step in deoxyhypusine synthesis. The role of NAD

The biosynthesis of deoxyhypusine (N-(4-aminobutyl)lysine) occurs by the transfer of the 4-aminobutyl moiety of spermidine to a specific lysine residue in a precursor of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4D (eIF-4D). Deoxyhypusine synthase, the enzyme that catalyzes this reaction, was purified approximately 700-fold from rat testis. The Km values for the substrates, spermidine, the eIF-4-D precursor protein, and NAD+, were estimated as approximately 1, 0.08, and 30 microM, respectively. After incubation of partially purified enzyme with [1,8-3H]spermidine, NAD+, and the eIF-4D precursor, equal amounts of radioactivity were found in free 1,3-diaminopropane and in protein-bound deoxyhypusine. However, when the protein substrate (eIF-4D precursor) was omitted, radioactivity was found in 1,3-diaminopropane and in delta 1-pyrroline in nearly equal quantities, providing evidence that the cleavage of spermidine occurs, albeit at a slower rate, in the absence of the eIF-4D precursor. That NAD+, which is required for this reaction, functions as the hydrogen acceptor was demonstrated by the fact that radioactivity from spermidine labeled with 3H at position 5 is found in NADH as well as in delta 1-pyrroline. Transfer of this hydrogen from spermidine to the re face of the nicotinamide ring of NAD+, as determined by the use of dehydrogenases of known stereospecificity, defines the first step of deoxyhypusine synthesis as a pro-R, or A, stereospecific dehydrogenation. Based on these findings, an enzyme mechanism involving imine intermediate formation is proposed.     

Highly thermostable xylanase purified from Rhizomucor miehei NRL 3169

A thermostable xylanase was purified and characterized from the thermophilic fungus Rhizomucor miehei (Cooney & Emerson) Schipper. The enzyme was purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulfate precipitation, sephadex G-100 gel filtration and diethylaminoethyl cellulose anion exchange chromatography with a 29.1-fold. The enzyme was highly active within a range of pH from 5.0 to 6.5. The optimum temperature of the purified enzyme was 75°C. The enzyme showed high thermal stability at 70°C and 75°C and the half-life of the xylanase at 90°C was 30 min. Km and Vmax values at 50°C of the purified enzyme were 0.055 mg/ml and 113.5 μmol min?1 mg?1 respectively. The enzyme was activated by Ca2+, Cu2+, K+ and Na+. On the other hand, Ag2+, Hg2+, Ba2+, and Zn2+ inhibited the enzyme. The molecular weight of the xylanase was estimated to be 27 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The present study is among the first works to examine and describe a secreted highly thermostable endoxylanase from the Rhizomucor miehei fungus. This enzyme displays a number of biochemical properties that make it a potentially strong candidate for industrial and commercial application in pulp bleaching.     

Cytoplasmic location of linoleoyl-CoA desaturase in microsomal membranes of rat liver

The intramembrane localization of linoleoyl-CoA desaturase in rat liver microsomes was examined by various methods, such as digestion by proteases, effect of detergents, and inhibition by the antibodies against purified terminal desaturase. Exposure of the desaturase on the surface of microsomal vesicles was suggested by the fact that the enzyme activity in the intact microsomes was susceptible to tryptic digestion, and considerably inhibited by anti-desaturase antibodies. When microsomes were previously treated with trypsin, the enzyme became more susceptible to the antibodies. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the protein fragments cleaved from microsomal membranes by tryptic digestion formed a single precipitin line with the antibodies by the double-immunodiffusion test. These findings suggest the presence of linoleoyl-CoA desaturase on the cytoplasmic surface in the endoplasmic reticulum, since tryptic digestion liberates only the protein components situated on the surface area of membranes. In addition, desaturase activity in the intact microsomes was not stimulated by addition of the detergent, indicating the further outside location of the active site of the enzyme in microsomal vesicles. The pretreatment of microsomes with a low concentration (0.05%) of sodium deoxycholate, which destroys the permeability barrier for macromolecules without membrane disassembly, did not increase the susceptibility to tryptic digestion and the antibodies. These results show that linoleoyl-CoA desaturase is not present in a latent state in the membrane.     

Purification and properties of uroporphyrinogen III synthase from human erythrocytes

Uroporphyrinogen III synthase (hydroxymethylbilane hydro-lyase (cyclizing); EC 4.2.1.75), the fourth enzyme in the heme biosynthetic pathway, was purified to homogeneity from human erythrocytes. For enzyme purification and characterization, a sensitive coupled enzyme assay was used which generated the substrate, hydroxymethylbilane; the oxidized product, uroporphyrin III, was quantitated by high pressure liquid chromatography. Uroporphyrinogen III synthase was initially separated from delta-aminolevulinate dehydratase and hydroxymethylbilane synthase by a preparative anion exchange chromatographic step. Subsequent chromatography on hydroxyapatite, phenyl-Sepharose, and Sephadex G-100 purified the enzyme about 70,000-fold with an 8% yield. Homogeneous enzyme was obtained following a final C4-reversed phase high pressure liquid chromatographic step which removed a single major and several minor protein contaminants from the enzyme. The purified enzyme had a specific activity of over 300,000 units/mg, an isoelectric point of 5.5, and was thermolabile (t1/2 at 60 degrees C approximately 1 min). Molecular weight studies by gel filtration (Mr approximately equal to 30,000) and analytical sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (Mr approximately equal to 29,500) were consistent with the enzyme being a monomer. Using hydroxymethylbilane as substrate, the purified enzyme formed uroporphyrinogen III in the absence of hydroxymethylbilane synthase or other cofactors. The pH optimum was 7.4 and the Km for hydroxymethylbilane was 5-20 microM. The enzyme was activated by Na+, K+, Mg+, and Ca2+ and was inhibited by Cd2+, Cu2+, Hg2+, and Zn2+. Amino acid composition analysis was performed, and the N-terminal sequence, Met-Lys-Val-Leu-Leu-Leu, was determined by microsequencing. The availability of the purified enzyme should permit investigation of its reaction mechanism as well as facilitate biochemical and molecular studies of the genetic defect in congenital erythropoietic porphyria.     

Surface Glycolipids in Shoot-forming Culture of Nicotiana umbratica

Phthalate oxygenase was induced in Rhodococcus erythropolis S-1, a Gram-positive bacterium, when this bacterium was cultured in a medium containing phthalate as a sole carbon source. The enzyme was purified 118-fold with 4.7% activity yield. The purified enzyme appeared homogenous on native PAGE. This enzyme is a large protein (213 kDa), a tetramer of identical 56kDa monomers, and a flavoprotein containing FAD with NADH-dependent dioxygenase activity. The enzyme is specific for phthalate and other closely related aromatic compounds. Optimum pH and temperature were 6.5 and 40°C. The K_m for phthalate and NADH were 0.040 mM and 0.069 mM. The enzyme catalyzes dihydroxylation of phthalate to form 3,4-dihydro-3,4-dihydroxyphthalate with consumption of NADH and oxygen.     

Purification and characteristics of an alginase from Alginovibrio aquatilis.

An exocellular inducible alginase from a strain of Alginovibrio aquatilis was purified 61-fold by ammonium sulfate precipitation and column chromatography on Sephadex G-150 and diethylaminoethyl-cellulose. The purified enzyme was more resistant than the crude enzyme to elevated temperatures. The monovalent cations Cs+, Rb+, K+, Na+, and Li+, in order of decreasing enzyme activation, were required for activity. The pH optimum of the purified alginase was 8.0 and its molecular weight from exclusion chromatography on Sephadex G-150 was 110,000.     

Purification and characteristics of an alginase from Alginovibrio aquatilis.

An exocellular inducible alginase from a strain of Alginovibrio aquatilis was purified 61-fold by ammonium sulfate precipitation and column chromatography on Sephadex G-150 and diethylaminoethyl-cellulose. The purified enzyme was more resistant than the crude enzyme to elevated temperatures. The monovalent cations Cs+, Rb+, K+, Na+, and Li+, in order of decreasing enzyme activation, were required for activity. The pH optimum of the purified alginase was 8.0 and its molecular weight from exclusion chromatography on Sephadex G-150 was 110,000.     

Enzyme system involved in the synthesis of thiamin triphosphate. I. Purification and characterization of protein-bound thiamin diphosphate: ATP phosphoryltransferase

An enzyme system catalyzing the synthesis of thiamin triphosphate consists of an enzyme (protein-bound thiamin diphosphate:ATP phosphoryltransferase), thiamin diphosphate bound to a macromolecule as substrate, ATP, Mg2+, and a low molecular weight cofactor. This system was established by combining a purified enzyme and an essentially pure, macromolecule-bound substrate prepared from rat livers. This macromolecule was found to be a protein, and the transphosphorylation of thiamin diphosphate to thiamin triphosphate with ATP and enzyme was shown to occur on this macromolecule which binds thiamin diphosphate. Free thiamin, thiamin monophosphate, thiamin diphosphate, and thiamin triphosphate have no effect on this reaction. Thus, the overall reaction is: thiamin diphosphate-protein + ATP in equilibrium thiamin triphosphate-protein + ADP. So-called thiamin diphosphate:ATP phosphoryltransferase (EC 2.7.4.15) activity was not detected in rat brain or liver. The enzyme was extracted from acetone powder of a crude mitochondrial fraction of bovine brain cortex and purified to homogeneity with a 0.6% yield after DEAE-cellulose chromatography, a first gel filtration, hydroxylapatite chromatography, chromatofocusing, and a second gel filtration. The purified enzyme showed a single protein band on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. Its molecular weight was estimated to be 103,000. The pH optimum was 7.5, and the Km was determined to be 6 X 10(-4) M for ATP. ATP was found to be the most effective phosphate donor among the nucleoside triphosphates. Amino acid analysis of the purified enzyme revealed an abundance of glutaminyl, glutamyl, and aspartyl residues. Sulfhydryl reagents inhibited the enzyme reaction. Metals such as Fe2+, Zn2+, Pb2+, and Cu2+ strongly inhibited the activity. The enzyme was unstable, and glycerol (20%) and dithiothreitol (1.0 mM) were found to preserve the enzyme activity.     

Characterization and molecular cloning of a flavoprotein catalyzing the synthesis of phytofluene and zeta-carotene in Capsicum chromoplasts.

In plants, zeta-carotene is the first visible carotenoid formed in the biosynthetic pathway through the following two-step desaturation reaction: phytoene-->phytofluene--> zeta-carotene. Using Capsicum annuum chromoplast membranes and the reconstitution system previously described [Camara, B., Bardat, F. & Monéger, R. (1982) Eur. J. Biochem. 127, 255-258], we have attempted to purify the desaturase(s) catalyzing these reactions. The two activities were coincidental during all the purification procedures. Only a single polypeptide with 56 +/- 2 kDa was detected by SDS/PAGE of all active fractions. The enzyme contained protein-bound FAD. Antibodies raised against the purified polypeptide selectively precipitated the phytoene and the phytofluene desaturase activities, thus demonstrating that the enzyme is a bifunctional flavoprotein. The antibodies were used to isolate a full-length cDNA clone from which was deduced the primary structure of the desaturase which contains a characteristic dinucleotide-binding site. Overexpression of the cDNA in Escherichia coli allowed the production of a recombinant desaturase which had all the properties of the chromoplast desaturase. The phytoene/phytofluene desaturase mRNA levels were extremely low in green fruits and increased slightly before detectable carotenoid synthesis and remained constant throughout ripening. However, the desaturase activity and protein levels were found to increase significantly during the chloroplast to chromoplast transition in C. annuum fruits.     

Studies on the purification and properties of UDP-galactose glycoprotein galactosyltransferase from rat liver and serum.

1. Rat liver microsomal preparations incubated with 200mM-NaCl at either 0 or 30 degrees C released about 20-30% of the membrane-bound UDP-galactose-glycoprotein galactosyl-transferase (EC 2.4.1.22) into a 'high-speed' supernatant. The 'high-speed' supernatant was designated the 'saline wash' and the galactosyltransferase released into this fraction required Triton X-100 for activation. It was purified sixfold by chromatography on Sephadex G-200, and appeared to have a higher molecular weight than the soluble serum enzyme. 2. Rat serum galactosyltransferase was purified 6000-7000-fold by an affinity-chromatographic technique using a column of activated Sepharose 4B coupled with alpha-lactalbumin. The purified enzyme ran as a single broad band on polacrylamide gels and contained no sialytransferase, N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase and UDP-galactose pyrophosphatase activities. 3. The highly purified enzyme had properties similar to those of both soluble and membrane-bound galactosyltransferase. It required 0.1% Triton X-100 for stabilization, but lost activity on freezing. The enzyme had an absolute requirement for Mn2+, not replaceable by Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+ or Co2+. It was active over a wide pH range (6-8) and had a pH optimum of 6.8. The apparent Km for UDP-galactose was 12.5 x 10(-6) M. Alpha-Lactalbumin had no appreciable effect on UDP-galactose-glycoprotein galactosyltransferase, but it increased the specificity for glucose rather than for N-acetylglucosamine, thus modifying the enzyme to a lactose synthetase. 4. The possibility of a conversion of higher-molecular-weight liver enzyme into soluble serum enzyme is discussed, especially in relation to the elevated activities of this and other glycosyltransferases in patients with liver diseases.     

Purification and characterization of a beta-galactosidase from peach (Prunus persica)

A beta-galactosidase (EC 3.2.1.23) from peach (Prunus persica cv Mibackdo) was purified and characterized. The purified peach beta-galactosidase was 42 kDa in molecular mass and showed high enzyme activity against a the beta-galactosidase substrate, rho-nitrophenyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside. The Km and Vmax values of the enzyme activity of the peach beta-galactosidase were 5.16 and 0.19 mM for rho-nitrophenyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside mM/h, respectively. The optimum pH of the enzyme activity was pH 3.0, but it was relatively stable from pH 3.0-10.0. The temperature optimum was 50 degrees C. The enzyme activities were not improved in the buffers that contained Ca2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, and Mg2+, which indicates that the purified peach beta-galactosidase did not require these cations as co-factors. However, the enzyme was completely inhibited by Hg2+. The purified protein was cross-reacted with an antibody against the persimmon fruit beta-galactosidase. A further comparison of the N-terminal amino acid sequence of the purified protein showed high homologies to those of beta-galactosidase in apple (87%), persimmon (80%), and tomato (87%). Therefore, enzymatic, immunological, and molecular evidences in this study indicate that the purified 42-kDa protein is a peach beta-galactosidase.     

Mechanism of rat liver microsomal stearyl-CoA desaturase. Studies of the substrate specificity, enzyme-substrate interactions, and the function of lipid.

The three purified proteins which are required for microsomal stearyl-CoA desaturation, NADH-cytochrome b5 reductase, cytochrome b5, and desaturase, have been combined with egg lecithin or dimyristyl lecithin vesicles to reconstruct a functional electron transport system capable of utilizing NADH and O2 in the desaturation of stearyl-CoA. Such preparations appear to consist of phospholipid vesicles which contain the three proteins bound to the outer surface of the vesicles. Acyl-CoA derivatives containing 12 to 19 carbon fatty acyl chains are required for desaturase activity while derivatives containing 9 to 20 carbons are capable of binding to the enzyme. Shorter chain acyl-CoA derivatives, free CoA, and free fatty acids do not appear to bind to the enzyme. Inhibition and analog studies suggest that the methylene chain of stearyl-CoA assumes an eclipsed ("gauche") conformation at carbon atoms 9,10 in the enzyme-substrate complex. Furthermore, isotope rate effects obtained with deuterated stearyl-CoA derivatives indicate that hydrogen removal is the rate-limiting step of desaturation. Stearyl-CoA binds to pure liposomes and desaturase-containing liposomes, and it is this form of stearyl-CoA which appears to be the substrate for desaturase. The Arrhenius plots of desaturase activity obtained using desaturase bound to egg lecithin liposomes, in which the liquid crystalline to crystalline phase transition temperature is -5 degrees, was linear between 15 and 35 degrees, while that obtained using desaturase bound to dimyristyl lecithin liposomes showed a break at 24 degrees coinciding with the liquid crystalline to crystalline phase transition temperature for this lipid. The decrease observed in the deuterium isotope rate effect below the transition temperature indicates that a step in the reaction sequence other than hydrogen abstraction becomes rate-limiting when the lipid is in the crystalline state. In this system translational diffusion does not emerge as the rate-limiting step. The liposomes contained sufficient reductase and cytochrome b5 so that translational diffusion was not rate-limiting.