Steady-state kinetic analysis of the quinoprotein methylamine dehydrogenase from Paracoccus denitrificans.

A steady-state kinetic analysis was performed of the reaction of methylamine and phenazine ethosulphate (PES) with the quinoprotein methylamine dehydrogenase from Paracoccus denitrificans. Experiments with methylamine and PES as varied-concentration substrates produced a series of parallel reciprocal plots, and when the concentrations of these substrates were varied in a constant ratio a linear reciprocal plot of initial velocity against PES concentration was obtained. Nearly identical values of V/Km of PES were obtained with four different n-alkylamines. These data suggest that this reaction proceeds by a ping-pong type of mechanism. The enzyme reacted with a variety of n-alkylamines but not with secondary, tertiary or aromatic amines or amino acids. The substrate specificity was dictated primarily by the Km value exhibited by the particular amine. A deuterium kinetic isotope effect was observed with deuterated methylamine as a substrate. The enzyme exhibited a pH optimum for V at pH 7.5. The absorbance spectrum of the pyrroloquinoline quinone prosthetic group of this enzyme was also effected by pH at values greater than 7.5. The enzyme was relatively insensitive to changes in ionic strength, and exhibited a linear Arrhenius plot over a range of temperatures from 10 degrees C to 50 degrees C with an energy of activation 46 kJ/mol (11 kcal/mol).     

CTP-phosphatidic acid cytidyltransferase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Partial purification, characterization, and kinetic behavior.

CTP-phosphatidic acid cytidyltransferase catalyzes the formation of CDP-diglyceride from CTP and phosphatidic acid. The enzyme was solubilized from crude mitochondrial membrane by treatment with digitonin and was further purified by chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex, quaternary aminoethyl (QAE) Sephadex, and Sepharose 6B columns. At this stage the enzyme, enriched 550-fold over crude cell homogenate, still remains associated with phospholipid and has an estimated approximate molecular weight of 400,000 on the basis of gel filtration chromatography. Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the 550-fold enriched enzyme yielded two major protein bands having molecular weights of 45,000 and 19,000. The enzyme exhibits an absolute dependence on Triton X-100, a sharp Mg2+ dependence with an optimum at 20 mM, and a pH optimum of 6.5 for activity. The product of the CTP-phosphatidic acid cytidyl-transferase reaction has been isolated and identified as CDP-diglyceride, both for the crude enzyme preparation as well as for the 550-fold enriched enzyme. CTP-phosphatidic acid cytidyltransferase is capable of catalyzing the reverse reaction in the presence of pyrophosphate, utilizing CDP-diglyceride as substrate. The product of the reverse reaction was identified as CTP. Kinetic analysis of the behavior of CTP-phosphatidic acid cytidyltransferase was performed at three different stages of its purification. Initial analysis of the data yielded biphasic behavior in double reciprocal plots with respect to both substrates. Hill plots of the data indicated the presence of negative cooperativity. A detailed analysis of the kinetic behavior was performed on the enzyme purified 550-fold. The data suggest a mechanism involving two distinct cycles of catalysis, responsive to homotropic modification, with different affinities for both substrates. Further analysis of the kinetic behavior in the presence of inhibitors (dCTP and PPi) yielded a reaction order for the entrance of substrates and departure of products from the reaction cycles. The high affinity site catalyzes the reaction via a double displacement mechanism and is the predominant form at low concentrations of substrates. At high concentrations of substrates the low affinity site starts contributing significantly to the reaction velocity with an ordered single displacement mechanism. In each case CTP is the first substrate to attach and PPi is the first product released.     

A linear equation that describes the steady-state kinetics of enzymes and subcellular particles interacting with tightly bound inhibitors

When an enzyme exhibits a high affinity for an inhibitor, the steady-state analysis of the mechanism is complicated by the non-linearity of normal dose-response plots or of reciprocal replots. It is shown here that dose-response measurements generate a linear plot of inhibitor concentration divided by degree of inhibition against velocity without inhibitor divided by velocity with inhibitor; the concentration of enzyme may be derived from the extrapolated intercept of such plots, and the mechanism of inhibition from replots of the variation of the slope with substrate concentration. The limiting cases where virtually all inhibitor molecules are bound or virtually all are free are described, together with the situation when a significant proportion of the substrate becomes bound. This type of analysis indicates that the inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation, rutamycin and bongkrekic acid, are tightly bound to rat liver mitochondria.     

Effects of internal diffusion on the lineweaver-Burk plots for immobilized enzymes

The effect of internal diffusion on the slope and the intercept of the LineweaverBurk plots for the immobilized enzyme was considered theoretically and it was found that the slope and the intercept are influenced not only by the dimensionless term M but also by the range of the dimensionless bulk substrate concentration ζ_b. The dependencies of the slope and the intercept on M and on the rate of ζ_b are shown graphically. Accurate estimations of M and the maximum velocity of the immobilized enzyme give the true, not apparent, Michaelis constant. It is shown that the linear correlations in the Lineweaver-Burk plots do not always coincide with the correlations for the estimation of M and the maximum velocity. It also is shown that large values of M may induce a serious error in the estimation of M with large values of ζ_b and in an estimation of the maximum velocity with small values of ζ_b.     

A method for obtaining linear reciprocal plots with caeruloplasmin and its application in a study of the kinetic parameters of caeruloplasmin substrates

1. The curved plots of 1/v against 1/[S] obtained when caeruloplasmin oxidizes NN-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine were investigated. The first free-radical oxidation product of caeruloplasmin oxidation of NN-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine is required for curvature, as straight-line plots were obtained when activities were measured either before appreciable free-radical product had appeared or in the presence of ascorbate, which reduced it back to NN-dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine. 2. In the presence of ascorbate linear reciprocal-plots were obtained with all of the 37 substrates tested. V(max.) values varied over only an eightfold range and those for the 20 p-amino compounds over only a twofold range. K(m) values, however, varied over a 10(4)-fold range. The small range of V(max.) values indicates that the rate-limiting step in caeruloplasmin action is relatively independent of the nature of the substrate. K(m) values suggest that substrates bind primarily by ring electrons, although certain side-chain groups increased the K(m) in a manner unrelated to likely changes of ring-electron densities. A mechanism involving repulsion between negative charges on the substrate and the enzyme was supported by the variation of the K(m) of 5-hydroxyindol-3-ylacetic acid with pH.     

On the temperature- and salt-dependent conformation change in human erythrocyte pyruvate kinase

The influence of temperature, K+, Mg2+ and fructose 1,6-bisphosphate on human red cell pyruvate kinase was investigated. Kinetic measurements between 4 degrees C and 43 degrees C revealed a remarkable influence of the temperature on the allosteric behaviour of the enzyme. Below a transition region between 15 degrees C and 20 degrees C (as obtained from an Arrhenius plot) the enzyme shows non-cooperative behaviour, as can be deduced from Michaelis-Menten, Hill and Scatchard plots. At temperatures above 20 degrees C cooperativity increases with rising temperature. This effect becomes even more pronounced at higher temperatures upon addition of increasing amounts of K+ and Mg2+ accompanied by a slight decrease of the reaction velocity. Fructose 1,6-bisphosphate, however, abolishes cooperativity at every temperature and salt concentration measured. Difficulties which arise in evaluating the correct values of V, Km and the Hill coefficient nH with cooperative systems are met by using a computer program of Wieker, Johannes and Hess, especially designed for the determination of kinetic parameters obtained from sigmoidal steady-state kinetics.     

The temperature-dependence of adenylate cyclase from baker''s yeast.

The Michaelis constant of membrane-bound adenylate cyclase increased from 1.1 to 1.8 mM between 7 and 38 degrees C (delta H = 13 kJ/mol). Over this temperature range, the maximum velocity increased 10-fold, and the Arrhenius plot was nearly linear, with an average delta H* of 51 kJ/mol. The temperature-dependence of the reaction rate at 2 mM-ATP was examined in more detail: for Lubrol-dispersed enzyme, Arrhenius plots were nearly linear with average delta H* values of 45 and 68 kJ/mol, respectively, for untreated and gel-filtered enzymes; for membrane-bound enzyme, delta H changed from 40 kJ/mol above about 21 degrees C to 62 kJ/mol below 21 degrees C, but this behaviour does not necessarily indicate an abrupt, lipid-induced, transition in the reaction mechanism.     

A continuous spectrophotometric assay for the Bacillus cereus phospholipase C using a thiophosphate substrate analog: evaluation of assay conditions and chromogenic agents

A thiophosphate analog of dioctanoylphosphatidylcholine has been used as the substrate in a continuous spectrophotometric assay for the Bacillus cereus phospholipase C. The reaction has been monitored at 412 nm using 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) and at 324 nm using 4,4'-dithiopuridine (DTP) as the respective thiol-reactive chromogenic agents. An optimum pH 6.0 was determined for the phospholipase C-catalyzed reaction which was independent of the chromogen utilized. Although the reaction rates observed when DTP was used were increased over those seen with DTNB, the rates were insensitive to changes in the concentration of the chromogen normally used for the assay. The initial velocities were shown to be linearly dependent upon the amount of enzyme added over at least a 20-fold enzyme concentration range. The dependency of the initial velocity on the concentration of substrate showed a discontinuity at [S] = 40 microM when either DTP or DTNB was used. This was consistent with a value of 56 microM estimated for the substrate critical micelle concentration by an independent measurement. While the substrate data measured using DTP could not be fit to existing equations based on Michaelis-Menten kinetics, the data obtained using DTNB as the chromogen conformed with the model proposed by Wells for enzymes acting upon micelle-forming substrates (M. A. Wells (1974, Biochemistry 13, 2248-2257). This allowed for the estimation of monomer and micelle Michaelis-Menten parameters for the B. cereus phospholipase C-catalyzed reaction with a thiophosphate analog substrate.     

Purification and properties of NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase from yeast nuclear fractions.

1. NADP-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase (EC 1.4.1.4) extracted from nuclear fractions of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was partially purified. The final purification achieved was over 100-fold over the initial extract. 2. Cellulose acetate electrophoresis shows that the preparation is close to homogeneity and that the enzyme is slightly more anionic than cytoplasmic glutamate dehydrogenase. 3. The response of the nuclear activity to variation of pH, of inorganic phosphate and other electrolyte concentration and of the concentration of the reaction substrates has been investigated. Several differences were detected in comparison with cytoplasmic glutamate dehydrogenase.     

Mechanism of activation by anions of phosphoglycolate phosphatases from spinach and human red blood cells

Phosphoglycolate phosphatases from spinach and human red blood cells show a number of common features not often found in enzymes. Both enzymes are activated more than 50-fold by millimolar concentrations of Cl-. Other inorganic anions and a number of carboxylic acids also activate. Each enzyme has limited substrate specificity yet each hydrolyzes P-glycolate and ethyl-P with the same maximal velocity. L-P-lactate is only a good substrate for the red cell enzyme. With both enzymes initial rate data obtained by varying both the P-glycolate and Cl- give parallel line double reciprocal plots. Similar experiments with ethyl-P as substrate give intersecting lines with both enzymes. The likelihood that both classes of substrates are acting at the same site is strengthened by the results of inhibition studies with alternative substrates and the constancy of inhibition constants for glycolate with all substrates for a given enzyme. For each substrate the experimentally observed variation in V/Km with different activators is small, suggesting that the enzyme has an ordered mechanism with the phosphorylated substrate reacting first. A mechanism that is consistent with all of the data is presented.     

The alpha-chymotryptic ydrolysis of glycine esters

1. The alpha-chymotrypsin-catalysed hydrolysis of N-acetylglycine ethyl and thiolethyl esters was investigated at pH7.90 and 25 degrees over a wide range of substrate concentrations. 2. The Lineweaver-Burk plots for these substrates are markedly curved, and it is shown that the curvature is due solely to the ;enzyme-blank' reaction. The rate of this reaction is proportional to free enzyme concentration in the range 10-100mum, with a pseudo-first-order rate constant of approx. 1x10(-3)sec.(-1). Correction for this reaction by the procedure described leads to linear plots. It is shown that the significance of the enzyme-blank reaction depends on the value of k(0)/K(m) for the substrate under investigation. 3. Interpretation of the curvature in the Lineweaver-Burk plots by previous workers in terms of activation by excess of substrate is shown to be erroneous. 4. Values of K(m) 387mm and k(0) 0.039sec.(-1), and K(m) 41mm and k(0) 0.23sec.(-1), were obtained for the ethyl and thiolethyl esters of N-acetylglycine respectively. The literature values for the methyl esters of N-acetyl- and N-propionyl-glycine have been corrected by the procedure described. The new values agree much better with current theories of alpha-chymotrypsin mechanism and specificity. 5. The kinetic parameters for the ethyl and thiolethyl esters indicate the absence of an electrophilic component in the catalytic mechanism of alpha-chymotrypsin, and the importance of the ester function in substrate binding.     

Kinetic studies of alkyl-dihydroxyacetone-phosphate (alkyl-glycerone-phosphate) synthase in peroxisomes of rat liver

The properties of peroxisomal enzyme alkylglycerone-phosphate synthase were studied in highly purified peroxisome fractions of rat liver. The requirements for optimal enzyme activity: pH and composition of the reaction mixture, incubation time, and enzyme concentration were investigated, and kinetic studies performed employing both different long-chain fatty alcohols and acyl dihydroxyacetone phosphates as substrates. Activities of the synthase considerably higher as reported before were found in the peroxisome preparation, with alkylglycerone (alkyldihydroxyacetone) phosphate as the sole product of the exchange reaction. The kinetic studies revealed divergent properties of peroxisomal synthase with respect to the substrates involved. Whereas the substrate concentration versus reaction velocity plot for the fatty alcohols reflects Michaelis-Menten kinetic behavior, it displays a maximum followed by inhibition with regard to the acylglycerone phosphate. The enzyme accepts different acylglycerone phosphates without much specificity but it is most active with 9-cis-octadecenol.     

Cytofluorometric quantification of the activity and reaction kinetics of acid phosphatase

Synopsis This paper describes how fluorogenic substrates derived from naphthol AS can be used for the microscopic demonstration and cytofluorometric quantification of the activity and reaction kinetics of acid phosphatase in single living cells.A special study has been made of acid naphthol AS-BI phosphatase. However, the method can be extended to other hydrolytic enzymes. The method is sensitive and accurate because: quantification of very low enzyme activity is possible; the reaction kinetics can be evaluated with a good degree of precision inasmuch as the initial reaction velocity is derived over short times; there is an absence of distributional error; and the errors due to extra-cellular diffusion of the hydrolysed substrate, to photo-decomposition, and to autofluorescence can be contained within very narrow limits.The procedures for determining enzyme activity and reaction kinetics, and the instrumental characteristics and devices required for carrying out these measurements, are described. Some possible applications are indicated.     

ATP sulfurylase from Penicillium chrysogenum. Molecular basis of the sigmoidal velocity curves induced by sulfhydryl group modification

ATP sulfurylase from Penicillium chrysogenum is a noncooperative homooligomer containing three free sulfhydryl groups per subunit. Under nondenaturing conditions, one SH group per subunit was modified by 5,5'-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoate), or N-ethylmaleimide. Modification had only a small effect on kcat, but markedly increased the [S]0.5 values for the substrates, MgATP and SO4(2-). MgATP and adenosine-5'-phosphosulfate protected against modification. The SH-modified enzyme displayed sigmoidal velocity curves for both substrates with Hill coefficients (nH) of 2. Fluorosulfonate (FSO3-) and other dead-end inhibitors competitive with SO4(2-) activated the SH-modified enzyme at low SO4(2-) concentration. In order to determine whether the sigmoidicity resulted from true cooperative binding (as opposed to a kinetically based mechanism), the shapes of the binding curves were established from the degree of protection provided by a ligand against phenylglyoxal-dependent irreversible inactivation under noncatalytic conditions. Under standard conditions (0.05 M Na-N-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine-N'-3-propanesulfonic acid buffer, pH 8, 30 degrees C, and 3mM phenylglyoxal) the native enzyme was inactivated with a k of 2.67 +/- 0.25 X 10-3 s-1, whereas k for the SH-modified enzyme was 5.44 +/- 0.27 X 10-3 s-1. The increased sensitivity of the modified enzyme resulted from increased reactivity of ligand-protectable groups. Both the native and the SH-modified enzyme displayed hyperbolic plots of delta k (i.e. protection) versus [MgATP], or [FSO3-], or [S2O3(2-]) in the absence of coligand (nH = 0.98 +/- 0.06). The plots of delta k versus [ligand] for the native enzyme were also hyperbolic in the presence of a fixed concentration of coligand. However, in the presence of a fixed [FSO3-] or [S2O3(2-]), the delta k versus [MgATP] plot for the SH-modified enzyme was sigmoidal, as was the plot of delta k versus [FSO3-] or [S2O3(2-]) in the presence of a fixed [MgATP]. The nH values were 1.92 +/- 0.09. The results indicate that substrates (or analogs) bind hyperbolically to unoccupied SH-modified subunits, but in a subunit-cooperative fashion to form a ternary complex.     

Automated kinetic analysis of pyruvate kinase

An apparatus for the automatic determination of enzyme kinetics of pyruvate kinase is described. A continuous plit of velocity versus substrate concentration is obtained using quantities of enzyme and substrates comparable to manual determinations. The automated procedure offers a number of advantages over manual methods including elimination of repetitive pipetting, simpler reaction temperature regulation, reduced analysis time, and possible on-line computer analysis. The apparatus utilizes a commercially available column uv flow monitor to measure NADH/NAD changes in the coupled lactic dehydrogenase reaction at 340 nm in a continuous flow system. The optical density changes are directly related to the velocity of the enzyme-catalyzed reaction. A linear substrate gradient is generated from a density gradient maker to provide the required relationship between velocity and substrate concentration. The system is calibrated by forming a gradient from a hemoglobin solution of known concentration. The procedure has been evaluated by determination of the kinetic parameters of three of the isozymes of pyruvate kinase. Values obtained by the continuous flow method are in close agreement with those obtained by individual point determination in a recording spectrophotometer.     

Effect of assay temperature on the kinetics of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase in rat liver and Morris hepatoma 5123C

A procedure is described for the assay of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA-reductase (HMG-CoA reductase) in a large number of samples with minimal benchwork and within a 24-hr period. The Michaelis constants for HMG-CoA reductase were determined for microsomal enzyme from the liver of normal and cholesterol-fed rats and Morris hepatoma 5123C. The apparent Km D-HMG-CoA was ca. 3.5 microM and was not affected by assay temperature or cholesterol feeding. The apparent Km NADPH for microsomal HMG-CoA reductase was 10-15 microM and similarly was not affected by assay temperature. The Arrhenius plot parameters (activation energy and transition temperatures) were the same whether determined using the reaction velocity from fixed substrate concentrations or V from subtraction curves. This confirmed that values obtained using fixed saturating substrate concentrations are valid and not affected by a temperature-dependent alteration in the affinity of the enzyme for its substrates.     

Purification and properties of malate dehydrogenase from the extreme thermophileBacillus caldolyticus

The enzyme malate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.37) from an extreme thermophileB. Caldolyticus was purified to about 91% homogeneity. The molar mass of the enzyme was determined as 73 000 daltons and it is composed of two subunits, each with a molar mass of 37 000. Initial velocity studies with oxaloacetic acid and NADH as substrates at pH 8.1, over a range of temperatures, indicate that the enzyme operates via a sequential type mechanism. Van't Hoff plots of the kinetic parameters displayed sharp changes in slope at characteristic temperatures, whereas the Arrhenius plot exhibited no such breaks over the temperature interval investigated. The enzyme was found to be stable at 41°C and lower temperatures. At 51°C and 59°C an almost immediate 20% reduction in activity was obtained, but no further inactivation occurred during the 60 min of incubation. At 59°C the enzyme lost 50% of its initial activity in about 38 s. High concentration of NADH was observed to greatly stabilize the enzyme at that temperature.It is suggested that the slope changes in the Van't Hoff plots and the stability profies at 51°C and 59°C are representative of a temperature induced conformational change in the enzyme.Proceedings of the Fourth College Park Colloquium on Chemical Evolution:Limits of Life, University of Maryland, College Park, 18–20 October 1978.     

A collagen-alkaline phosphatase conjugate membrane: enzymatic kinetics in-vitro stability

Collagen-alkaline phosphatase membranes have been prepared, and their enzymatic kinetics and in-vitro stability analyzed. Collagen-alkaline phosphatase dispersions were prepared by complexation in aqueous alkaline solution and cast into membranes by controlled dehydration. These membranes were then crosslinked in glutaraldehyde solution, washed thoroughly, and dried. Crosslinking in glutaraldehyde confers increased stability of catalytic activity to these collagen-enzyme membranes, especially when compared to uncrosslinked collagen-alkaline phosphatase membranes assayed in a similar fashion. Crosslinking in glutaraldehyde also appears to inhibit gross leaching of the soluble enzyme from the carrier matrix. Apparent intrinsic kinetic properties of the collagen-alkaline phosphatase conjugate were analyzed in membranes of various thickness in order to determine the effect of internal diffusion resistances on the kinetics of the immobilized enzyme. The apparent Michaelis constant of the immobilized enzyme decreased as a function of decreasing membrane thickness, reaching an observed apparent Michaelis constant of 1.6mM at a membrane thickness of 0.2 mm. Extrapolation of the apparent Michaelis constant to zero membrane thickness, using a linear plot of the natural logarithm of the apparent Michaelis constant versus membrane thickness, allowed estimation of the true Michaelis constant of the immobilized enzyme. The estimated value for the true Michaelis constant of the collagen-alkaline phosphatase complex was 0.7mM. This value agrees closely with reported values for several purified mammalian alkaline phosphatase. The apparent Michaelis constant for the 0.2mm collagen-enzyme membrane agrees closely with the Michaelis constant reported for an alkaline phosphate purified from chondrocyte matrix vesicles. The intrinsic maximum reaction velocity (V(m)) of the collagen-enzyme complex was estimated b plotting the observed reaction rate as a function of decreasing membrane thickness and extrapolating such plots, at various substrate concentrations, to the limiting case of zero membrane thickness. The maximum reaction velocity was obtained by the common intercept of these plots as they approached zero membrane thickness.     

Deoxycytidine kinase from human leukemic spleen: preparation and characteristics of homogeneous enzyme

Deoxycytidine kinase from human leukemic spleen has been purified 6000-fold to apparent homogeneity with an overall yield of 10%. The purification was achieved by using DEAE chromatography, hydroxylapatite chromatography, and affinity chromatography on dTTP-Sepharose. Only one form of deoxycytidine kinase activity was found during all the chromatographic procedures. The subunit molecular mass, as judged by sodium dodecyl sulfate--polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was 30 kilodaltons. The pure enzyme phosphorylates deoxycytidine, deoxyadenosine, and deoxyguanosine, demonstrating for the first time that the same enzyme molecule has the capacity to use these three nucleosides as substrates. The apparent molecular weight of the active enzyme, determined by gel filtration and glycerol gradient centrifugation, was 60,000. Thus, the active form of human deoxycytidine kinase is a dimer. The kinetic behavior of pure human deoxycytidine kinase was studied in detail with regard to four different phosphate acceptors and two different phosphate donors. The apparent Km values were 1, 20, 150, and 120 microM for deoxycytidine, arabinosylcytosine, deoxyguanosine, and deoxyadenosine, respectively. The Vmax values were 5-fold higher for the purine nucleosides as compared to the pyrimidine substrates. We observe competitive inhibition of the phosphorylation of one substrate by the presence of either of the three other substrates, but the apparent Ki values differed greatly from the corresponding Km values, suggesting the existence of allosteric effects. The double-reciprocal plots for ATP-MgCl2 as phosphate donor were convex, indicating negative cooperative effects. In contrast, plots with varying dTTP-MgCl2 concentration as phosphate donor were linear with an apparent Km of 2 microM. The enzyme activity was strongly inhibited by dCTP, in a noncompetitive way with deoxycytidine and in a competitive way with ATP-MgCl2.     

An investigation of the action of porcine pancreatic alpha-amylase on native and gelatinised starches

The action of pancreatic alpha-amylase (EC 3.2.1.1) on various starches has been studied in order to achieve better understanding of how starch structural properties influence enzyme kinetic parameters. Such studies are important in seeking explanations for the wide differences reported in postprandial glycaemic and insulinaemic indices associated with different starchy foodstuffs. Using starches from a number of different sources, in both native and gelatinised forms, as substrates for porcine alpha-amylase, we showed by enzyme kinetic studies that adsorption of amylase to starch is of kinetic importance in the reaction mechanism, so that the relationship between reaction velocity and enzyme concentration [E0] is logarithmic and described by the Freundlich equation. Estimations of catalytic efficiencies were derived from measurements of kcat/Km performed with constant enzyme concentration so that comparisons between different starches were not complicated by the logarithmic relationship between E0 and reaction velocity. Such studies reveal that native starches from normal and waxy rice are slightly better substrates than those from wheat and potato. After gelatinisation at 100 degrees C, kcat/Km values increased by 13-fold (waxy rice) to 239-fold (potato). Phosphate present in potato starch may aid the swelling process during heating of suspensions; this seems to produce a very favourable substrate for the enzyme. Investigation of pre-heat treatment effects on wheat starch shows that the relationship between treatment and kcat/Km is not a simple one. The value of kcat/Km rises to reach a maximum at a pre-treatment temperature of 75 degrees C and then falls sharply if the treatment is conducted at higher temperatures. It is known that amylose is leached from starch granules during heating and dissolves. On cooling, the dissolved starch is likely to retrograde and become resistant to amylolysis. Thus the catalytic efficiency tends to fall. In addition, we find that the catalytic efficiency on the different starches varies inversely with their solubility and we interpret this finding on the assumption that the greater the solubility, the greater is the likelihood of retrogradation. We conclude that although alpha-amylase is present in high activity in digestive fluid, the enzymic hydrolysis of starch may be a limiting factor in carbohydrate digestion because of factors related to the physico-chemical properties of starchy foods.