Quantitative cytochemical measurement of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity.

A system has been developed for the quantitative measurment of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity in tissue sections. An obstacle to the histochemical study of this enzyme has been the fact that the substrate, gylceraldehyde 3-phosphate, is very unstable. In the present system a stable compound, fructose 1, 6-diphosphate, is used as the primary substrate and the demonsatration of the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity depends on the conversion of this compound into the specific substrate by the aldolase present in the tissue. The characteristics of the dehydrogenase activity resulting from the addition of fructose 1, 6-diphosphate, resemble closely the known properties of purified glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase. Use of polyvinyl alcohol in the reaction medium prevents release of enzymes from the sections, as occurs in aqueous media. Although in this study intrinsic aldolase activity was found to be adequate for the rapid conversion of fructose 1, 6-diphosphate into the specific substrate for the dehydrogenase, the use of exogenous aldolase may be of particular advantage in assessing the intergrity of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway.     

The route of ethanol formation in Zymomonas mobilis

1. Enzymic evidence supporting the operation of the Entner-Doudoroff pathway in the anaerobic conversion of glucose into ethanol and carbon dioxide by Zymomonas mobilis is presented. 2. Cell extracts catalysed the formation of equimolar amounts of pyruvate and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate from 6-phosphogluconate. Evidence that 3-deoxy-2-oxo-6-phosphogluconate is an intermediate in this conversion was obtained. 3. Cell extracts of the organism contained the following enzymes: glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (active with NAD and NADP), ethanol dehydrogenase (active with NAD), glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (active with NAD), hexokinase, gluconokinase, glucose dehydrogenase and pyruvate decarboxylase. Extracts also catalysed the overall conversion of glycerate 3-phosphate into pyruvate in the presence of ADP. 4. Gluconate dehydrogenase, fructose 1,6-diphosphate aldolase and NAD-NADP transhydrogenase were not detected. 5. It is suggested that NAD is the physiological electron carrier in the balanced oxidation-reduction involved in ethanol formation.     

Histochemical technique for the demonstration of phosphofructokinase activity in heart and skeletal muscles

A histochemical multi-step technique for the demonstration of phosphofructokinase activity in tissue sections is described. With this technique a semipermeable membrane is interposed between the incubating solution and the tissue sections preventing diffusion of the non-structurally bound enzyme into the medium during incubation. In the histochemical system the enzyme converts the substrate D-fructose-6-phosphate to D-fructose-1,6-diphosphate, which in turn is hydrolyzed by exogenous and endogenous fructose diphosphate aldolase to dihydroxyacetone phosphate and D-glyceral-dehyde-3-phosphate. The dihydroxyacetone phosphate is reversibly converted into D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate by exogenous and endogenous triosephosphate isomerase. Next the D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate is oxidized by exogenous and endogenous glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase into 1,3-diphospho-D-glycerate. Concomitantly the electrons are transported via NAD+, phenazine methosulphate and menadione to nitro-BT. Sodium azide and amytal are incorporated to block electron transfer to the cytochromes.     

Enzymatic analysis of the pathways of glucose catabolism and gluconeogenesis in Pseudomonas citronellolis

Extracts of Pseudomonas citronellolis cells grown on glucose or gluconate possessed all the enzymes of the Entner-Doudoroff pathway. Gluconokinase and either or both 6-phosphogluconate dehydratase and KDPG aldolase were induced by growth on these substrates. Glucose and gluconate dehydrogenases and 6-phosphofructokinase were not detected. Thus catabolism of glucose proceeds via an inducible Entner-Doudoroff pathway. Metabolism of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate apparently proceeded via glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, phosphoglycerate kinase, phosphoglycerate mutase, enolase and pyruvate kinase. These same enzymes plus triose phosphate isomerase were present in lactate-grown cells indicating that synthesis of triose phosphates from gluconeogenic substrates also occurs via this pathway. Extracts of lactate grown-cells possessed fructose diphosphatase and phosphohexoisomerase but apparently lacked fructose diphosphate aldolase thus indicating either the presence of an aldolase with unusual properties or requirements or an alternative pathway for the conversion of triose phosphate to fructose disphosphate. Cells contained two species of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, one an NAD-dependent enzyme which predominated when the organism was grown on glycolytic substrates and the other, an NADP-dependent enzyme which predominated when the organism was grown on gluconeogenic substrates.     

Histochemical technique for the demonstration of phosphofructokinase activity in heart and skeletal muscles

Summary A histochemical multi-step technique for the demonstration of phosphofructokinase activity in tissue sections is described. With this technique a semipermeable membrane is interposed between the incubating solution and the tissue sections preventing diffusion of the non-structurally bound enzyme into the medium during incubation. In the histochemical system the enzyme converts the substrate d-fructose-6-phosphate to d-fructose-1,6-diphosphate, which in turn is hydrolyzed by exogenous and endogenous fructose diphosphate aldolase to dihydroxyacetone phosphate and d-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate. The dihydroxyacetone phosphate is reversibly converted into d-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate by exogenous and endogenous triosephosphate isomerase. Next the d-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate is oxidized by exogenous and endogenous glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase into 1,3-diphospho-d-glycerate. Concomitantly the electrons are transported via NAD⁺, phenazine methosulphate and menadione to nitro-BT. Sodium azide and amytal are incorporated to block electron transfer to the cytochromes.     

The histochemical demonstration of fructose diphosphate aldolase activity using a semipermeable membrane technique

Summary In this communication an enzyme histochemical multistep technique for the demonstration of class 1 fructose-1,6-diphosphate aldolase in heart and skeletal muscle sections is described. With this technique a semipermeable membrane is interposed between the incubating solution and the tissue sections preventing diffusion of the enzyme into the medium during incubation. In the histochemical system the enzyme cleaves the substrate D-fructose-1,6-diphosphate to dihydroxyacetone phosphate and D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate. The dihydroxyacetone phosphate is reversibly converted into D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate by exogenous and endogenous triose phosphate isomerase. Next the D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate is oxidized by exogenous and endogenous glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and the electrons are transported concomitantly via NAD⁺, phenazine methosulphate and menadione to nitro-BT. Sodium azide and amytal are incorporated to block electron transfer to the cytochromes.     

Effect of some glycolytic intermediates and palmitoyl-CoA on alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase in mitochondria isolated from liver of triiodothyronine-treated rats

alpha-Glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.99.5) in mitochondria from liver of the triiodothyronine-treated rats is competitively inhibited by phosphoenolpyruvate, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate and 3-phosphoglycerate, the apparent Ki values for phosphoenolpyruvate being 0.76 mM at pH 7.0, 1.7 mM at pH 7.4 and 3.5 mM at pH 7.7. The apparent Ki values for glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate and 3-phosphoglycerate are also pH-dependent. Other glycolytic intermediates, such as 2-phosphoglycerate, 2,3-diphosphoglycerate, pyruvate, glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate and fructose 1,6-diphosphate did not alter significantly alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase activity. Palmitoyl-CoA is a competitive inhibitor of this enzyme, with Ki value of about 30 micron.     

Mechanism of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate transfer from aldolase to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase

The catalytic interaction of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase with glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate has been examined by transient-state kinetic methods. The results confirm previous reports that the apparent Km for oxidative phosphorylation of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate decreases at least 50-fold when the substrate is generated in a coupled reaction system through the action of aldolase on fructose 1,6-bisphosphate, but lend no support to the proposal that glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate is directly transferred between the two enzymes without prior release to the reaction medium. A theoretical analysis is presented which shows that the kinetic behaviour of the coupled two-enzyme system is compatible in all respects tested with a free-diffusion mechanism for the transfer of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate from the producing enzyme to the consuming one.     

Chloroplast Aldolase is Controlled by a Nuclear Gene

Variant chloroplast fructose 1,6-diphosphate aldolases were found in Pisum sativum when 10 commercial varieties were examined for electrophoretically distinct species of chloroplast triose phosphate isomerase, phosphoglyceric acid kinase, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, and aldolase. When reciprocal crosses are made, both aldolases appear in individuals in the F(1) generation. Backcrossing gives offspring having aldolases characteristic of the homozygous or of the heterozygous parent; the inheritance is therefore not maternal but Mendelian. Clearly this chloroplast reductive pentose phosphate cycle enzyme is under nuclear gene control in P. sativum.     

Reversal of glycolysis in yeast.

When a buffered, aerobic suspension of ethanol-grown cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is treated with ethanol, a rapid flux of metabolism is observed from endogenous phosphoenolpyruvate to hexose monophosphates. Intracellular concentrations of phosphoenolpyruvate, 2-phosphoglycerate, and 3-phosphoglycerate record a monotonic drop, while those of triose phosphates and fructose 1,6-diphosphate fall after an early rise; fructose 6-phosphate, mannose 6-phosphate, and glucose 6-phosphate levels rise to a plateau. Prior growth on glucose extinguishes fructose 1,6-diphosphatase activity and completely arrests the rise of the hexose monophosphates. By using mutants blocked at a number of glycolytic steps it has been concluded that the metabolic flow takes place along the Embden-Meyerhof pathway in the reverse direction bypassing pyruvate kinase and fructose 6-phosphate kinase. Ethanol acts as a trigger by supplying NADH at the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase step. The rate of the reversal in the span phosphoenolpyruvate to fructose 1,6-diphosphate approaches 40 μ mol of 3-carbon units per minute per gram of wet cells. The in vivo activity of fructose 1,6-diphosphatase is nearly a quarter of this rate.     

The control properties of phosphofructokinase in relation to the respiratory climacteric in banana fruit

Glucose 6-phosphate, fructose 6-phosphate, fructose 1, 6-diphosphate, and triose phosphates, and the enzymes phosphofructokinase, aldolase, and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase were extracted from banana fruit (Musa cavendishii, Lambert var. Valery) at the (a) preclimacteric, (b) climacteric rise, (c) climacteric peak, and (d) postclimacteric stages of ripening. The level of fructose 1, 6-diphosphate increased 20-fold whereas the concentration of other intermediates changed no more than 2.5-fold between stages a and c. For these same extracts, phosphofructokinase activity increased 2.5-fold whereas the activity of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase and aldolase changed only fractionally. Substrate saturation studies (fructose 6-phosphate) of phosphofructokinase activity showed a decrease in the [S]_0.5 from 5.6 to 1.7 mM betwen stages a and c. The enzyme from both sources seems to be regulated by a negative cooperative effect with the control being more stringent in the enzyme from stage a. The difference in enzyme activity is consistent with the increase in respiratory activity between the two stages.     

Kinetic evidence for interaction between aldolase and D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase.

The possibility of interaction between purified rabbit muscle aldolase and D-glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase was studied by rapid kinetic methods, by analyzing the kinetics of the consecutive reaction catalyzed by the coupled enzyme system. The Km of the intermediary product, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate, produced by aldolase was determined in the coupled reaction for glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase. Its value corresponds to that of the aldehyde (active) form of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate, although in the given conditions the aldehyde leads to diol interconversion is faster than the enzymic reaction catalyzed by glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase. We suggest that above a certain concentration of the enzymes the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate produced by aldolase gets direct access to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase without participating in the aldehyde leads to diol interconversion which otherwise would occur if the substrate were to mix with the bulk medium.     

Dynamic interactions of enzymes involved in triosephosphate metabolism

A steady-state kinetic analysis of the coupled reactions catalysed by the three-enzyme system, aldolase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and triosephosphate isomerase, was performed. The kinetic parameters of the progress curves of end-product formation calculated for noninteracting enzymes were compared with those measured in the two-enzyme and three-enzyme systems. Changes in the fluorescence anisotropy of labelled dehydrogenase upon addition of aldolase and/or isomerase were also measured. Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate oxidation catalysed by glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase in the presence of isomerase (which ensures rapid equilibration of the triosephosphates) follows single first-order kinetics. The rate constant depends simply on the concentration of the dehydrogenase, indicating no kinetically significant isomerase-dehydrogenase interaction. Fluorescence anisotropy measurements also fail to reveal complex formation between the two enzymes. The steady-state velocity of 3-phosphoglycerate formation from fructose 1, 6-bisphosphate in the reactions catalysed by aldolase and dehydrogenase is not increased twofold on addition of the isomerase, even though a 1:2 stoichiometry of fructose 1,6-bisphosphate/glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate is expected. In fact, by increasing the concentration of the isomerase, the steady-state velocity actually decreases. This effect of the isomerase may be a kinetic consequence of an aldolase-isomerase interaction, which results in a decrease of aldolase activity. Furthermore, the fluorescence anisotropy of labelled dehydrogenase, measured at different aldolase concentrations, is significantly lower when the sample contains isomerase. The decrease in the steady-state velocity of the consecutive reactions caused by the elevation of isomerase concentration could be negated by increasing the dehydrogenase concentrations in the three-enzyme system. All of these observations fit the assumption that the amount of aldolase-dehydrogenase complex is reduced due to competition of isomerase with dehydrogenase. The alternate binding of dehydrogenase and isomerase to aldolase may regulate the flux rate of glycolysis.     

The resting metabolism of dodder seeds

Extracts of mature seeds of Cuscuta reflexa were examined for any deficiency in key enzymes. The activities of malate dehydrogenase, β-amylase and fructose 1,6-diphosphate aldolase exceeded 5.0 μmol substrate/min/g, while those of starch phosphorylase, α-amylase, acid phosphatase, phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (decarboxylating), aspartate aminotransferase, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase, fructose 1,6-diphosphatase and alanine aminotransferase fell within the range 1 to 5 μmol/min/g and hexokinase, isocitrate dehydrogenase and alkaline phosphatase were below 1 μmol substrate/min/g seed powder. No activity of the following were found: acid invertase, alkaline invertase, phytase and glutamate dehydrogenase. Some of these observations were made also for seeds of Cuscuta campestris and Cuscuta indicora.     

Mode of action of alpha-chlorohydrin as a male anti-fertility agent. Inhibition of the metabolism of ram spermatozoa by alpha-chlorohydrin and location of block in glycolysis

1. The effect of alpha-chlorohydrin on the metabolism of glycolytic and tricarboxylate-cycle substrates by ram spermatozoa was investigated. The utilization and oxidation of fructose and triose phosphate were much more sensitive to inhibition by alpha-chlorohydrin (0.1-1.0mm) than lactate or pyruvate. Inhibition of glycolysis by alpha-chlorohydrin is concluded to be between triose phosphate and pyruvate formation. Oxidation of glycerol was not as severely inhibited as that of the triose phosphate. This unexpected finding can be explained in terms of competition between glycerol and alpha-chlorohydrin. A second, much less sensitive site, of alpha-chlorohydrin inhibition appears to be associated with production of acetyl-CoA from exogenous and endogenous fatty acids. 2. Measurement of the glycolytic intermediates after incubation of spermatozoal suspensions with 15mm-fructose in the presence of 3mm-alpha-chlorohydrin showed a ;block' in the conversion of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate into 3-phosphoglycerate. alpha-Chlorohydrin also caused conversion of most of the ATP in spermatozoa into AMP. After incubation with 3mm-alpha-chlorohydrin, glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase and triose phosphate isomerase activities were decreased by approx. 90% and 80% respectively, and in some experiments aldolase was also inhibited. Other glycolytic enzymes were not affected by a low concentration (0.3mm) of alpha-chlorohydrin. Loss of motility of spermatozoa paralleled the decrease in glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity. alpha-Chlorohydrin, however, did not inhibit glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase or triose phosphate isomerase in sonicated enzyme preparations when added to the assay cuvette. 3. Measurement of intermediates and glycolytic enzymes in ejaculated spermatozoa before, during and after injection of rams with alpha-chlorohydrin (25mg/kg body wt.) confirmed a severe block in glycolysis in vivo at the site of triose phosphate conversion into 3-phosphoglycerate within 24h of the first injection. Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase activity was no longer detectable and both aldolase and triose phosphate isomerase were severely inhibited. Spermatozoal ATP decreased by 92% at this time, being quantitatively converted into AMP. At 1 month after injection of alpha-chlorohydrin glycolytic intermediate concentrations returned to normal in the spermatozoa but ATP was still only 38% of the pre-injection concentration. Motility of spermatozoa was, however, as good as during the pre-injection period. The activity of the inhibited enzymes also returned to normal during the recovery period and 26 days after injection were close to pre-injection values. 4. An unknown metabolic product of alpha-chlorohydrin is suggested to inhibit glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase and triose phosphate isomerase of spermatozoa. This results in a lower ATP content, motility and fertility of the spermatozoa. Glycidol was shown not to be an active intermediate of alpha-chlorohydrin in vitro.     

Compartmentalized ATP synthesis in skeletal muscle triads.

Isolated skeletal muscle triads contain a compartmentalized glycolytic reaction sequence catalyzed by aldolase, triosephosphate isomerase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, and phosphoglycerate kinase. These enzymes express activity in the structure-associated state leading to synthesis of ATP in the triadic junction upon supply of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate or fructose 1,6-bisphosphate. ATP formation occurs transiently and appears to be kinetically compartmentalized, i.e., the synthesized ATP is not in equilibrium with the bulk ATP. The apparent rate constants of the aldolase and the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase/phosphoglycerate kinase reaction are significantly increased when fructose 1,6-bisphosphate instead of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate is employed as substrate. The observations suggest that fructose 1,6-bisphosphate is especially effectively channelled into the junctional gap. The amplitude of the ATP transient is decreasing with increasing free [Ca2+] in the range of 1 nM to 30 microM. In the presence of fluoride, the ATP transient is significantly enhanced and its declining phase is substantially retarded. This observation suggests utilization of endogenously synthesized ATP in part by structure associated protein kinases and phosphatases which is confirmed by the detection of phosphorylated triadic proteins after gel electrophoresis and autoradiography. Endogenous protein kinases phosphorylate proteins of apparent Mr 450,000, 180,000, 160,000, 145,000, 135,000, 90,000, 54,000, 51,000, and 20,000, respectively. Some of these phosphorylated polypeptides are in the Mr range of known phosphoproteins involved in excitation-contraction coupling of skeletal muscle, which might give a first hint at the functional importance of the sequential glycolytic reactions compartmentalized in triads.     

Modulation of the interaction between aldolase and glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase by fructose phosphates

Kinetics of fructose-1,6-disphosphate aldolase (EC 4.1.2.13) catalyzed conversion of fructose phosphates was analyzed by coupling the aldolase reactions to the metabolically sequential enzyme, glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.8), which interacts with aldolase. At low enzyme concentration poly(ethylene glycol) was added to promote complex formation of aldolase and glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase resulting in a 3-fold increase in KM of fructose-1,6-bisphosphate and no change in Vmax. Kinetic parameters for fructose-1-phosphate conversion changed inversely upon complex formation: Vmax increased while KM remained unchanged. Gel penetration and ion-exchange chromatographic experiments showed positive modulation of the interaction of aldolase and dehydrogenase by fructose-1,6-bisphosphate. The dissociation constant of the heterologous enzyme complex decreased 10-fold in the presence of this substrate. Fructose-1-phosphate or dihydroxyacetone phosphate had no effect on the dissociation constant of the aldolase-dehydrogenase complex. In addition, titration of fluorescein-labelled glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase with aldolase indicated that both fructose-1,6-bisphosphate and fructose-2,6-biphosphate enhanced the affinity of aldolase to glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase. The results of the kinetic and binding experiments suggest that binding of the C-6 phosphate group of fructose-1,6-bisphosphate to aldolase complexed with dehydrogenase is sterically impeded while saturation of the C-6 phosphate group site increases the affinity of aldolase for dehydrogenase. The possible molecular mechanism of the fructose-1,6-bisphosphate modulated interaction is discussed.     

Exploring substrate binding and discrimination in fructose1, 6-bisphosphate and tagatose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolases.

Fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase catalyses the reversible condensation of glycerone-P and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate into fructose 1,6-bisphosphate. A recent structure of the Escherichia coli Class II fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase [Hall, D.R., Leonard, G.A., Reed, C.D., Watt, C.I., Berry, A. & Hunter, W.N. (1999) J. Mol. Biol. 287, 383-394] in the presence of the transition state analogue phosphoglycolohydroxamate delineated the roles of individual amino acids in binding glycerone-P and in the initial proton abstraction steps of the mechanism. The X-ray structure has now been used, together with sequence alignments, site-directed mutagenesis and steady-state enzyme kinetics to extend these studies to map important residues in the binding of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate. From these studies three residues (Asn35, Ser61 and Lys325) have been identified as important in catalysis. We show that mutation of Ser61 to alanine increases the Km value for fructose 1, 6-bisphosphate 16-fold and product inhibition studies indicate that this effect is manifested most strongly in the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate binding pocket of the active site, demonstrating that Ser61 is involved in binding glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate. In contrast a S61T mutant had no effect on catalysis emphasizing the importance of an hydroxyl group for this role. Mutation of Asn35 (N35A) resulted in an enzyme with only 1.5% of the activity of the wild-type enzyme and different partial reactions indicate that this residue effects the binding of both triose substrates. Finally, mutation of Lys325 has a greater effect on catalysis than on binding, however, given the magnitude of the effects it is likely that it plays an indirect role in maintaining other critical residues in a catalytically competent conformation. Interestingly, despite its proximity to the active site and high sequence conservation, replacement of a fourth residue, Gln59 (Q59A) had no significant effect on the function of the enzyme. In a separate study to characterize the molecular basis of aldolase specificity, the agaY-encoded tagatose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase of E. coli was cloned, expressed and kinetically characterized. Our studies showed that the two aldolases are highly discriminating between the diastereoisomers fructose bisphosphate and tagatose bisphosphate, each enzyme preferring its cognate substrate by a factor of 300-1500-fold. This produces an overall discrimination factor of almost 5 x 105 between the two enzymes. Using the X-ray structure of the fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase and multiple sequence alignments, several residues were identified, which are highly conserved and are in the vicinity of the active site. These residues might potentially be important in substrate recognition. As a consequence, nine mutations were made in attempts to switch the specificity of the fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase to that of the tagatose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase and the effect on substrate discrimination was evaluated. Surprisingly, despite making multiple changes in the active site, many of which abolished fructose 1, 6-bisphosphate aldolase activity, no switch in specificity was observed. This highlights the complexity of enzyme catalysis in this family of enzymes, and points to the need for further structural studies before we fully understand the subtleties of the shaping of the active site for complementarity to the cognate substrate.     

Degradation of endogenous fructose during catabolism of sucrose and mannitol in halophilic archaebacteria

Metabolism of fructose arising endogenously from sucrose or mannitol was studied in halophilic archaebacteria Haloarcula vallismortis and Haloferax mediterranei. Activities of the enzymes of Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas (EMP) pathway, Entner-Doudoroff (ED) pathway and Pentose Phosphate (PP) pathway were examined in extracts of cells grown on sucrose or mannitol and compared to those grown on fructose and glucose. Sucrase and NAD-specific mannitol dehydrogenase were induced only when sucrose or mannitol respectively were the growth substrates. Endogenously arising fructose was metabolised in a manner similar to that for exogenously supplied fructose i.e. a modified EMP pathway initiated by ketohexokinase. While the enzymes for modified EMP pathway viz. ketohexokinase, 1-phosphofructokinase and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate aldolase were present under all growth conditions, their levels were elevated in presence of fructose. Besides, though fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase, phosphohexoseisomerase and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase were present, the absence of 6-phosphogluconate dehydratase precluded routing of fructose through ED pathway, or through PP pathway directly as 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase was lacking. Fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase plays the unusual role of a catabolic enzyme in supporting the non-oxidative part of PP pathway. However the presence of constitutive levels of glucose dehydrogenase and 2-keto 3-deoxy 6-phosphogluconate aldolase when glucose or sucrose were growth substrates suggested that glucose breakdown took place via the modified ED pathway.Abbreviations EMP Embden Meyerhof Parnas - ED Entner Doudoroff - PP pentose phosphate - KHK ketohexokinase - 1-PFK 1-phosphofructokinase - PEP-PTS phosphoenolpyruvate phosphotransferase - 6-PFK 6-phosphofructokinase - FBPase fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase - PHI phosphohexoseisomerase - G6P-DH glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase - 6PG-DH 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase - GAPDH glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase - FIP fructose 1-phosphate - GSH reduced glutathione - 2-ME -mercaptoethanol - FBP fructose 1,6-bisphosphate - KDPG 2-keto 3-deoxy 6-phosphogluconate - F6P fructose 6-phosphatez     

FURTHER INVESTIGATION OF HISTOCHEMISTRY OF FRUCTOSE-1,6-DIPHOSPHATE d-GLYCERALDEHYDE-3-PHOSPHATE-LYASE IN THE RAT BRAIN

The distribution of fructose-1,6-diphosphate d -glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate-lyase (I.U.B. 4.1.2.13) (fructose diphosphate aldolase) in brain sections fixed by alcohol was studied using a gelled substrate mixture containing d -glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate: NAD oxidoreductase (I.U.B. 1.2.1.12) and phenazine methosulphate. The formazan precipitation pattern in brain sections depends on the experimental conditions determining the affinity of the complex of Nitro-blue tetrazolium and phenazine methosulphate to tissue components. The complex is unable to precipitate on the white matter in fresh sections but alcohol fixation increases its affinity to the white matter and decreases it to the neuropil. Using the modified histochemical method, aldolase activity in the brain was seen both in the gray and white matter. Although the distribution of this enzyme activity in the gray matter was generally identical with that obtained previously, in the present study enzyme activity was found in the paraventricular structures and in the white matter where negative activity was previously obtained.