Stereochemical specificity of the biosynthesis of the alkyl ether bond in alkyl ether lipids.

The stereochemical course of the formation of the alkyl ether bond in alkyl ether lipids was investigated through the synthesis of stereospecifically labeled acyl R- or S-[1-3H]dihydroxyacetone 3-phosphate (DHAP) starting from L-glyceraldehyde. It was demonstrated directly that the formation of the alkyl ether bond results in the stereospecific exchange of the pro-R C-1 hydrogen of DHAP with a proton of water. The configuration of the hydrogen that is retained on C-1 after formation of the alkyl ether bond was also investigated. The alkyl ether lipid was degraded, and the DHAP backbone isolated as glycerol, converted to DHAP via glycerol 3-phosphate and treated with either aldolase or triose phosphate isomerase. The results demonstrated that the retained hydrogen on C-1, which was pro-S in the starting substrate, was pro-S in the product alkyl ether.     

Stereochemistry and mechanism of a new single-turnover, half-transamination reaction catalyzed by the tryptophan synthase alpha 2 beta 2 complex

Tryptophan synthase is a versatile enzyme that catalyzes a wide variety of pyridoxal phosphate dependent reactions that are also catalyzed in model systems. These include beta-replacement, beta-elimination, racemization, and transamination reactions. We now show that the apo-alpha 2 beta 2 complex of tryptophan synthase will bind two unnatural substrates, pyridoxamine phosphate and indole-3-pyruvic acid, and will convert them by a single-turnover, half-transamination reaction to pyridoxal phosphate and L-tryptophan, the natural coenzyme and a natural product, respectively. This enzyme-catalyzed reaction is more rapid and more stereospecific than an analogous model reaction. The pro-S 4'-methylene proton of pyridoxamine phosphate is removed during the reaction, and the product is primarily L-tryptophan. We conclude that pyridoxal phosphate enzymes may be able to catalyze some unnatural reactions involving bound reactants and bound coenzyme since the coenzyme itself has the intrinsic ability to promote a variety of reactions.     

Isolation, crystallization, and properties of indolyl-3-alkane alpha-hydroxylase. A novel tryptophan-metabolizing enzyme.

Indolyl-3-alkane alpha-hydroxylase, a novel tryptophan-metabolizing enzyme, was prepared in crystalline form from soil isolate organism Pseudomonas XA. Emission spectroscopy and atomic absorption analyses of purified enzyme revealed the presence of iron (0.8 mol/mol of protein), and a number of observations supported the presence of heme prosthetic group (1.1 mol/mol of protein). The S20,w value of indolyl-3-alkane alpha-hydroxylase is 10.2 S, and the molecular weight by sedimentation equilibrium ultracentrifugation is 250,000. The E1%280 of the enzyme is 21, and the isoelectric point by isoelectric focusing on ampholine polyacrylamide gel plates is 4.8. The enzyme catalyzes hydroxylation on the side chain of a variety of 3-substituted indole compounds, including certain tryptophan-containing oligopeptides. The reaction product from tryptamine was identified by proton nuclear magnetic resonance and gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy analyses. While the indole ring remained intact, hydroxylation occurred at the side chain carbon adjacent to the ring. Nuclear magnetic resonance studies indicated that hydroxylation always took place at the same position when the substrate was tryptophan methyl ester, tryptophol, indole-3-propionate, or indole-3-butyrate. No other chemical change occurred when these substrates were incubated with the enzyme. The Km value of indolyl-3-alkane alpha-hydroxylase for L-tryptophan is 2.4 X 10(-6) M, at pH 7.2. The enzyme is inhibited by potassium cyanide (0.1 mM) or hydroxylamine (1mM), but not by NaBH4 (25 mM), aminooxyacetic acid (7mM), quinacrine (1 mM), chlortetracycline (1 mM), p-mercuribenzoate (0.1 mM), or ethylenediaminetetraacetate (1 mM). The plasma half-life (t1/2) of indolyl-3-alkane alpha-hydroxylase in tumor-bearing mice is approximately 25 h.     

Stereospecific labilization of the C-4' pro-S hydrogen of pyridoxamine 5'-phosphate in aspartate aminotransferase

In the course of a half-reaction of enzymic transamination, the aldimine adduct formed between the coenzyme pyridoxal 5'-phosphate and the amino acid substrate tautomerizes to the ketimine intermediate which is then hydrolyzed to the oxo acid product and the pyridoxamine 5'-phosphate form of the enzyme. In the reverse half-reaction the tautomerization is initiated by the removal of a proton from the pro-S position at C-4' of the PMP moiety of the ketimine intermediate. The present study investigates the question whether the pro-S hydrogen at C-4' of PMP is labilized by its active site environment independently of the formation of the ketimine intermediate, i.e. in the absence of substrate. Reconstitution of apoaspartate aminotransferase (mitochondrial isoenzyme from chicken) with [4'-3H] PMP results indeed in a stereospecific exchange of pro-S 3H with solvent water. The exchange follows first order kinetics (t 1/2 = 23 min at pH 7.5 and 25 degrees C). Unbound PMP showed no measurable exchange. Rigorous control experiments excluded the possibility that the observed exchange was due to a transamination reaction of the enzyme with contaminating oxo acid substrates. The newly observed stereospecific exchange reaction allows to investigate the acid/base properties of C-4' and the modulating effects of its active site environment independently of the preceding and following steps of enzymic transamination.     

Crystalline hemoprotein from Pseudomonas that catalyzes oxidation of side chain of tryptophan and other indole derivatives.

A new enzyme which catalyzes the oxidation of the side chain of tryptophan and other indole derivatives, has been purified to apparent homogeneity from Pseudomonas and crystallized. The overall purification was about 25-fold with a yield of 4.5%. The purified enzyme was apparently homogeneous as judged by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight estimated by gel filtration was approximately 280,000 and sedimentation coefficient (S20,w) was 11 by sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation. The absorption spectra indicated that the enzyme was a hemoprotein. The purified enzyme was shown to catalyze the reaction in which 1 mol each of NH3 and CO2 was formed at the expense of 1 mol each of L-tryptophan and molecular oxygen. Neither peroxidase nor catalase activity was detected in the purified enzyme and no formation of H2O2 was observed during the enzyme reaction. The product(s) of the reaction was unstable but was converted to and was identified as its stable quinoxaline derivative, 2-(3-indolyl)quinoxaline, in the presence of o-phenylenediamine. These results indicate that the product of the reaction was 3-indolylglycoaldehyde or 3-indolylglyoxal. A variety of other indole derivatives such as D-tryptophan, 5-hydroxyl-L-tryptophan, tryptamine, serotonin, melatonin, N-acetyl-L-tryptophan, N-acetyl-L-tryptophanamide, 3-indoleacetamide, 3-indolelactic acid, 3-indolepropionic acid, 3-indoleethanol, and skatole were also substrates.     

Stereochemical trends in copper amine oxidase reactions

Copper amine oxidases (EC 1.4.3.6) exhibit atypical stereochemical patterns in the reactions they catalyze. Dopamine and tyramine are oxidized with abstraction of the pro-R hydrogen by the porcine plasma amine oxidase, the pro-S hydrogen by pea seedling amine oxidase and a net nonstereospecific proton abstraction by the bovine plasma enzyme. This provides the first example in which a reaction catalyzed by enzymes in the same formal class occurs by all three possible stereochemical routes. To assess the underlying mechanistic significance of this heterogeneity, we have established the stereochemical course of the oxidation of tyramine by five additional copper amine oxidases using 1H NMR spectroscopy. Reactions catalyzed by rabbit and sheep serum amine oxidases are nonstereospecific. These enzymes exhibit rare mirror image binding with differential flux through two opposite and stereospecific reaction pathways. Differential primary kinetic isotope effects are observed for each mode, 8 and 4.6 for pro-S abstraction and 2.6 and 2.7 for pro-R abstraction by the sheep and rabbit amine oxidases, respectively. Tyramine oxidations catalyzed by the soybean and chick pea amine oxidases and porcine kidney diamine oxidase, however, are all stereospecific, occurring with loss of the pro-S hydrogen at C-1. Solvent exchange profiles are consistent within each stereochemical class of enzyme; the pro-R and nonstereospecific enzymes exchange solvent into C-2 of product aldehydes, the pro-S enzymes do not.     

Stereospecific elimination of hydrogen at C-10 in eicosapentaenoic acid during the conversion to leukotriene C5

(10L)- and (10D)-[1-14C, 10-3H]5,8,11,14,17-eicosapentaenoic acids were synthesized to investigate mechanistic and stereochemical aspects of leukotriene biosynthesis. Experiments with mastocytoma cells showed that a hydrogen is stereospecifically eliminated from C-10 during the conversion of eicosapentaenoic acid to leukotriene C5. The hydrogen lost has the pro-S (D) configuration. 5-Hydroxy-6,8,11,14,17-eicosapentaenoic acid, formed in the same experiments, was enriched in tritium when the (10D), but not when the (10L), isomer of labeled eicosapentaenoic acid was used. This indicates that oxygenation of the acid at C-5 occurred before the elimination of hydrogen and suggests that removal of the pro-S hydrogen at C-10 in 5-hydroperoxy-6,8,11,14,17-eicosapentaenoic acid initiates its transformation to trans-5(S),6(S)-oxido-7,9-trans-11,14,17-cis-eicosapentaenoic acid (leukotriene A5).     

Purification and properties of NADH oxidase from Bacillus megaterium

NADH oxidase, which catalyzes the oxidation of NADH, with the consumption of a stoichiometric amount of oxygen, to NAD+ and hydrogen peroxide was purified from Bacillus megaterium by 5'-AMP Sepharose affinity chromatography to homogeneity. The enzyme is a dimeric protein containing 1 mol of FAD per mol of subunit, Mr = 52,000. The absorption maxima of the native enzyme (oxidized form) were found at 270, 383, and 450 with a shoulder at 475 nm in 50 mM KPi buffer, pH 7.0. The visible absorption bands at 383 and 450 nm disappeared on the addition of NADH under anaerobic conditions and reappeared upon the introduction of air. Thus, the non-covalently bound FAD functioned as a prosthetic group for the enzyme. We tentatively named this new enzyme NADH oxidase (NADH:oxygen oxidoreductase, hydrogen peroxide forming). This enzyme stereospecifically oxidizes the pro-S hydrogen at C-4 of the pyridine ring of NADH.     

8-Ketodeoxycoformycin and 8-ketocoformycin as intermediates in the biosynthesis of 2'-deoxycoformycin and coformycin

An enzyme has been isolated from cell-free extracts of Streptomyces antibioticus that can catalyze the reduction of 8-ketodeoxycoformycin (8-KetodCF) and 8-ketocoformycin (8-ketoCoF) to the naturally occurring nucleoside analogues 2'-deoxycoformycin (dCF) and coformycin (CoF), respectively. The partially purified reductase requires NADPH as the cofactor and stereospecifically reduces the 8-keto group of both ketonucleoside substrates to a hydroxyl group with the R configuration at C-8. This is the same configuration of the hydroxyl group as that of the dCF and CoF isolated from S. antibioticus. The reduction proceeds at the nucleoside level, and ATP is not required. The reductase is stereospecific for the NADPH cofactor in that it transfers the pro-S but not the pro-R hydrogen from C-4 of NADPH to the 8-keto group. The apparent Km for 8-ketodCF and 8-ketoCoF were 250 and 150 microM, respectively. These in vitro results, which show that 8-ketodCF and 8-ketoCoF may be intermediates in the biosynthesis of dCF and CoF, support and extend our earlier results from in vivo studies which established that adenosine and C-1 of D-ribose are the carbon-nitrogen precursors of dCF. A possible mechanism for the formation of dCF is presented.     

Stereochemistry of 2-phenylethylamine oxidation catalyzed by bacterial copper amine oxidase

The stereochemical course of the reaction catalyzed by a copper amine oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis has been investigated using 2-phenylethylamine stereospecifically deuterium-labeled at the C1 position. Measurements of deuterium content in the product, phenylacetaldehyde, by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry revealed stereospecific abstraction of the pro-S hydrogen during the enzymatic oxidation, as predicted from the structure modeling for the enzyme-bound substrate.     

Metabolism of 6,9,12-octadecatrienoic acid in the red alga Lithothamnion corallioides: mechanism of formation of a conjugated tetraene fatty acid.

Incubation of [1-14C]6(Z),9(Z),12(Z)-octadecatrienoic acid with an enzyme preparation from the red alga Lithothamnion corallioides Crouan led to the formation of two new compounds, i.e. the conjugated tetraene 6(Z),8(E),10(E),12(Z)-octadecatetraenoic acid and the bis-allylic hydroxy acid 11(R)-hydroxy-6(Z),9(Z),12(Z)-octadecatrienoic acid. These two compounds were formed by independent pathways and were not interconvertible by the enzyme preparation. Experiments with stereospecifically deuteriated 6,9,12-octadecatrienoic acids demonstrated that formation of 6,8,10,12-octadecatetraenoic acid was accompanied by loss of the pro-S and pro-R hydrogens from C-8 and C-11, respectively, whereas formation of 11-hydroxy-6,9,12-octadecatrienoic acid proceeded with loss of the pro-S hydrogen from C-11. Biosynthesis of 6,8,10,12-octadecatetraenoic acid was dioxygen-dependent and was accompanied by production of hydrogen peroxide. A number of artificial electron acceptors supported formation of 6,8,10,12-octadecatetraenoic acid under anaerobic conditions. The existence in Lithothamnion corallioides of a fatty acid oxidase that catalyzes the oxidation of certain poly-unsaturated fatty acids into conjugated tetraene fatty acids is postulated.     

A novel fungal enzyme, NADPH-dependent carbonyl reductase, showing high specificity to conjugated polyketones. Purification and characterization

A novel enzyme which specifically catalyzes the reduction of conjugated polyketones was purified to homogeneity from cells of Mucor ambiguus AKU 3006. The enzyme has a strict requirement for NADPH and irreversibly reduces a number of quinones such as p-benzoquinone, alpha-naphthoquinone and acenaphthenequione. The enzyme also reduces polyketones such as isatin and ketopantoyl lactone, and their derivatives. The apparent Km values for isatin and ketopantoyl lactone are 49.9 microM and 714 microM, respectively. The reduction of ketopantoyl lactone proceeds stereospecifically to yield L-(+)-pantoyl lactone. The pro-S (A) hydrogen at C-4 of NADPH is transferred to the substrate. The enzyme is not a flavoprotein and consists of two polypeptide chains with an identical relative molecular mass of 27,500. Quercetin, dicoumarol and some SH reagents inhibit the enzyme activity. 3-Methyl-1,2-cyclopentanedione and 1,3-cyclohexanedione are uncompetitive inhibitors with Ki values of 80.9 microM and 64.5 microM, respectively, to ketopantoyl lactone.     

Stereochemistry and mechanism of reactions catalyzed by tryptophanase Escherichia coli.

Several beta replacement and alpha,beta elimination reactions catalyzed by tryptophanase from Escherichia coli are shown to proceed stereospecifically with retention of configuration. These conversions include synthesis of tryptophan from (2S,3R)- and (2s,3s)-[3(-3H)]serine in the presence of indole, deamination of these serines in D2O to pyruvate and ammonia, and cleavage of (2S,3R)-and (2S,3S)-[3(-3H)]tryptophan in D2O to indole, pyruvate, and ammonia. A coupled reaction with lactate dehydrogenase was used to trap the stereospecifically labeled [3-H,2H,3H]pryuvates as lactate, which was oxidized to acetate for chirality analysis of the methyl group. During deamination of tryptophan there is significant intramolecular transfer of the alpha proton of the amino acid to C-3 of indole. To determine the exposed face of the cofactor.substrate complex on the enzyme surface and to analyze its conformational orientation, sodium boro[3H]hydride was used to reduce tryptophanase-bound alaninepyridoxal phosphate Schiff's base. Degradation of the resulting pyridoxylalanine to (2S)-[2(-3H)]alanine and (4'S)-[4'(-3H)]pyridoxamine demonstrates that reduction occurs from the exposed si face at C-4' of the complex and that the ketimine double bond is trans.     

Stereochemistry of the β-cyanoalanine synthetase and S-alkylcysteine lyase reactions

The stereochemistry of the replacement of the SH-group of cysteine by CN catalyzed by β-cyanoalanine synthetase was studied using cysteine stereospecifically tritiated at C-3. Analysis of the resulting β-cyanoalanine by conversion into fumarate via aspartate and malate showed that the reaction had occurred with retention of configuration at C-3. Using cystine stereospecifically labeled at C-3 with tritium or with tritium and deuterium, it was found that the α,β-elimination reaction catalyzed by S-alkylcysteine lyase involves stereo-specific replacement of the β-substituent of the substrate by a hydrogen derived from the solvent, D₂O or H₂O, with retention of configuration to give pyruvate containing a chiral methyl group. The results are discussed, particularly in the light of mechanistic proposals by Braunstem and co-workers.     

Stereochemistry of NADPH oxidation by dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase from pig liver.

Dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase reduces uracil to 5,6-dihydrouracil in a strictly NADPH-dependent reaction. Either by analysing the 1H-NMR spectra of the NADP+ products formed or by determination of the kinetic isotope effects of stereospecifically deuterated coenzymes dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase was found to abstract specifically the pro-S hydrogen of NADPH, making it a member of the B-side stereospecific class of dehydrogenases.     

Biosynthesis of riboflavin: mechanism of formation of the ribitylamino linkage

Feeding experiments with Ashbya gossypii followed by NMR analysis of the resulting riboflavin showed incorporation of deuterium from D-[2-2H]ribose at C-2' and from D-[1-2H]ribose in the pro-R position at C-1' of the ribityl side chain. The results rule out an Amadori rearrangement mechanism for the reduction of the ribosylamino to the ribitylamino linkage and point to formation of a Schiff base that is reduced stereospecifically opposite to the face from which the oxygen has departed. As prerequisite for the analysis, the 1H NMR signals for the pro-R and pro-S hydrogens at C-1' of 6,7-dimethyl-8-ribityllumazine and riboflavin and its tetraacetate were assigned with the aid of synthetic stereospecifically deuteriated samples.     

15-Hydroxy-prostanoate dehydrogenase. Prostaglandins as substrates and inhibitors

Determination of Michaelis constnats and maximum reaction rates for a series of prostaglandin dehydrogenase substrates showed that the enzyme is stereospecific with regard to configuration at C-15. Substituents of the cyclopentane ring did not markedly affect the properties as a substrate, whereas the nature of the carboxyl side chain proved important. A noncompetitive inhibition was produced between prostaglandin B compounds and a synthetic epimer of prostaglandin E1, 15-R-prostaglandin E1.     

Mechanistic and stereochemical studies of a unique dehydration catalyzed by CDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-D-glucose-3-dehydrase: a pyridoxamine 5'-phosphate dependent enzyme isolated from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis.

CDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-D-glucose-3-dehydrase (E1) purified from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis is a pyridoxamine 5'-phosphate (PMP) dependent enzyme which catalyzes the C-O bond cleavage at C-3 of a CDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-D-glucose substrate, a key step in the formation of 3,6-dideoxyhexoses. Since enzyme E1 utilizes the PMP cofactor in a unique manner, it is essential to establish its role in E1 catalysis. When an incubation was conducted in [18O]H2O, incorporation of 18O into positions C-3 and C-4 of the recovered substrate was observed. This result not only provided the evidence necessary to reveal the reversibility of E1 catalysis but also lent credence to the formation of a delta 3,4-glucoseen intermediate. In view of E1 catalysis being initiated by a C-4' deprotonation of the PMP-substrate complex, the stereochemical course of this step was examined using chemically synthesized (4'S)- and (4'R)-[4'-3H]PMP as probes. Our results clearly demonstrated that the stereochemistry of this deprotonation is pro-S specific, which is in agreement with the stereochemical consistency found with other vitamin B6 phosphate dependent enzymes. The fact that reprotonation at C-4' of the PMP-delta 3,4-glucoseen complex in the reverse direction of E1 catalysis was also found to be pro-S stereospecific strongly suggested that enzyme E1, like most of its counterparts, has the si face of its cofactor-substrate complex exposed to solvent and accessible to active-site catalytic groups as well.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The stereospecificity of D-glucose-6-phosphate: 1L-myo-inositol-1-phosphate cycloaldolase on the hydrogen atoms at C-6

D-Glucose-6-phosphate: 1L-$\text{myo}$-Inositol-1-phosphate cycloaldolase from rat testis or mammary gland removed stereospecifically the pro-S hydrogen atom at C-6 from D-glucose-6-phosphate. The pro-R hydrogen at C-6 remained in the product, 1L-$\text{myo}$-Inositol-1-phosphate and evidence is given that it is the hydrogen at C-1 of 1L-$\text{myo}$-Inositol-1-phosphate. The possible mechanism of cyclization is discussed.     

1H NMR studies of substrate hydrogen exchange reactions catalyzed by L-methionine gamma-lyase

Hydrogen exchange reactions of various L-amino acids catalyzed by L-methionine gamma-lyase (EC 4.4.1.11) have been studied. The enzyme catalyzes the rapid exchange of the alpha- and beta-hydrogens of L-methionine and S-methyl-L-cysteine with deuterium from the solvent. The rate of alpha-hydrogen exchange was about 40 times faster than that of the enzymatic elimination reaction of the sulfur-containing amino acids. The enzyme also catalyzes the exchange reaction of alpha- and beta-hydrogens of the following straight-chain L-amino acids which are not susceptible to elimination: norleucine, norvaline, alpha-aminobutyrate, and alanine. The exchange rates of the alpha-hydrogen and the total beta-hydrogens of L-alanine and L-alpha-aminobutyrate with deuterium followed first-order kinetics. For L-norvaline, L-norleucine, S-methyl-L-cysteine, and L-methionine, the rate of alpha-hydrogen exchange followed first-order kinetics, but the rate of total beta-hydrogen exchange decreased due to a primary isotope effect at the alpha-position. One beta-hydrogen of S-methyl-L-cysteine was exchanged faster than the other, although both the beta-hydrogens were exchanged completely with deuterium ultimately. L-Phenylalanine and L-tryptophan slowly underwent alpha-hydrogen exchange. The pro-R hydrogen of glycine was deuterated stereospecifically. None of the following amino acids were susceptible to the enzymatic hydrogen exchange: D isomers of the above amino acids, branched chain L-amino acids, acidic L-amino acids, and basic L-amino acids.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)