Different Characteristics of the Two Glutamate Synthases in the Green Leaves of Lycopersicon esculentum

The two glutamate synthases, NAD(P)H- and ferredoxin-dependent, from the green leaves of tomato plants (Lycopersicon esculentum L. cv Hellfrucht frühstamm) differed in their chemical properties and catalytic behavior. Gel filtration of NAD(P)H enzyme gave an apparent molecular size of 158 kilodalton, whereas the ferredoxin enzyme molecular size was 141 kilodalton. Arrhenius plots of the activities of the two enzymes showed that the NAD(P)H enzyme had two activation energies; 109.6 and 70.5 kilojoule per mole; the transition temperature was 22°C. The ferredoxin enzyme however, had only one activation energy; 56.1 kilojoule per mole. The respective catalytic activity pH optima for the NAD(P)H- dependent and the ferredoxin dependent enzymes were around 7.3 and 7.8. In experiments to evaluate the effects of modulators aspartate enhanced the NAD(P)H-linked activity, with a K_a value of 0.25 millimolar, but strongly inhibited that of the ferredoxin-dependent glutamate synthase with a K_i of 0.1 millimolar. 3-Phosphoserine was another inhibitor of the ferredoxin dependent enzyme with a K_i value of 4.9 millimolar. 3-Phosphoglyceric acid was a potent inhibitor of the ferredoxin-dependent form, but hardly affected the NAD(P)H-dependent enzyme. The results are discussed and interpreted to propose different specific functions that these activities may have within the leaf tissue cell.     

Immunochemical studies on two DT diaphorase active antigens isolated from rat liver cytosol by affinity chromatography

Two immunologically different DT diaphorases were isolated on an affinity column containing Dicumarol as ligand from the cytosol fraction of rat liver. With a specific antiserum raised in rabbits against the DT diaphorase fraction eluted from the column, the two DT diaphorases were shown with immunodiffusion methods to be present in the microsomal and mitochondrial as well as in the cytosol fraction of rat liver. The NAD(P)H oxidizing activity in the immunoprecipitates containing the two DT diaphorases was found to be inhibited by 10^?4m Dicumarol but not by 10^?3m 2-pivaloyl-1,3-indandione or warfarin. With the anti-DT diaphorase antiserum the two DT diaphorases were also demonstrated to be present in other organs but with a somewhat different distribution. One of them appeared predominantly in kidney and heart and the other in lung, brain, testis, and spleen. The latter DT diaphorase was also found to be retained in four 3-methylcholanthrene-induced rat hepatomas. These findings indicate different physiological functions for the two DT diaphorases which at present are unknown.     

Analysis of calorimetric data for isodesmic self-associating systems.

ATP and respiration (NADH)-driven NAD(P)⁺ transhydrogenase (EC 1.6.1.1) activities are low in membranes from Escherichia coli cultured on yeast extract medium (17 and 21 nmol/min × mg) but high on glucose (82 and 142 nmol/min × mg). The ATPase and respiratory activities in both cases appeared comparable. Growth of the bacteria in yeast extract medium followed by washing and replacement into a glucose medium showed that after 3 h the energy-linked and energy-independent NAD(P)⁺ transhydrogenase (reduction of acetylpyridine NAD⁺ by NADPH) activities had appeared simultaneously. Incorporation of chloramphenicol or omission of glucose in the induction medium resulted in no increase in these activities indicating that de novo protein synthesis is required for the induction of energy-linked and -independent NAD(P)⁺ transhydrogenase. It was found that the K_m values for acetylpyridine NAD⁺ and NADPH for the energy-independent reaction in membranes from glucose grown cells (143 and 62 μm) were similar to those in membranes from cells grown on glucose-yeast extract (135 and 45 μm), respectively, but the maximum velocity at infinite acetyl pyridine NAD⁺ and NADPH increased from 353 to 2175 nmol/min × mg. Furthermore, the membrane-bound NAD(P)⁺ transhydrogenase in glucose-yeast extract grown cells showed substrate inhibition at high NADPH and low acetyl pyridine NAD⁺ levels. Further kinetic data demonstrate that the mechanism of the energy-independent NAD(P)⁺ transhydrogenase in E. coli is similar to that of the mitochondrial enzyme and exhibits similar responses to competitive inhibitors at the NAD⁺ and NADPH sites.     

Purification and some properties of NAD(P)H dehydrogenase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: Contribution to glycolytic methylglyoxal pathway

NAD(P)H dehydrogenase was purified approximately 480-fold from Saccharomyces cerevisiae with 6.5% activity yield. The enzyme was homogeneous on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated to be 40,000–44,000 by gel filtration on Sephadex G-150 column chromatography and SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The K_m values for NADPH and NADH were 7.3 μM and 0.1 mM, respectively. The activity of the enzyme increased approximately 4-fold with Cu²⁺. FAD, FMN and cytochrome c were not effective as electron acceptors, although Fe(CN)₆³⁻ was slightly effective. NADH generated by the reaction of lactaldehyde dehydrogenase in the glycolytic methylglyoxal pathway will be reoxidized by NAD(P)H dehydrogenase. NAD(P)H dehydrogenase thus may contribute to the reduction/oxidation system in the glycolytic methylglyoxal pathway to maintain the flux of methylglyoxal to lactic acid via lactaldehyde.     

NAD(P)H oxidase V from Lactobacillus plantarum (NoxV) displays enhanced operational stability even in absence of reducing agents

Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) such as l-sugars and keto acids are favorably accessed through selective oxidation of sugar alcohols and amino acids, respectively, catalyzed by NAD(P)-dependent dehydrogenases. Cofactor regeneration from NAD(P)H conveniently is achieved via water-forming NAD(P)H oxidases (nox2), which only need molecular oxygen as co-substrate. Turnover-dependent overoxidation of the conserved cysteine residue in the active site of water-forming NADH oxidases is the presumed cause of the limited nox2 stability.We present a novel NAD(P)H oxidase, NoxV from Lactobacillus plantarum, with specific activity of 167 U/mg and apparent kinetic constants at air saturation and 25 °C of k_cat,app = 212 s⁻¹ and K_M,app = 50.2 μM in the broad pH optimum from 5.5 to 8.0. The enzyme features a higher stability than other NAD(P)H oxidases against overoxidation, as is evidenced by a higher total turnover number, in the presence (168,000) and, most importantly, also in the absence (128,000) of exogenously added reducing agents. While the native enzyme shows exclusively activity on NADH, we engineered the substrate binding pocket to generate variants, G178K,R and L179K,R,H that accommodate and oxidize both NADH and NADPH as substrates.     

A continuous microplate assay for sirtuins and nicotinamide-producing enzymes

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD⁺)-dependent protein deacetylases (sirtuins) and other enzymes that produce nicotinamide are integral to many cellular processes. Yet current activity measurements involve expensive and time-consuming assays. Here we present a spectroscopic assay that circumvents many issues of previous methods. This assay permits continuous product monitoring over time, allows determination of steady-state kinetic parameters, and is readily adaptable to high-throughput screening. The methodology uses an enzyme-coupled system in which nicotinamide is converted to nicotinic acid and ammonia by nicotinamidase. The ammonia is transferred to α-ketoglutarate via glutamate dehydrogenase, yielding glutamate and the oxidation of NAD(P)H to NAD(P)⁺, which is measured spectrophotometrically at 340 nm. Using this continuous assay with sirtuin-1 (Sirt1) and the ADP-ribosyl cyclase CD38, the resulting steady-state kinetic parameters are in excellent agreement with values obtained by other published methods. Importantly, this assay permitted determination of k_cat and K_m values with the native acetylated substrate acetyl-CoA synthetase-1; measurement of Sirt1, Sirt2, and Sirt3 activities from mammalian cell extracts; and determination of IC₅₀ values of various Sirt1 inhibitors. This assay is applicable to any nicotinamide-forming enzyme and will be an important tool to address many outstanding questions surrounding their regulation.     

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase from Leuconostoc mesenteroides. Interaction of the enzyme with coenzymes and coenzyme analogs.

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase from Leuconostoc mesenteroides utilizes either NAD⁺ or NADP⁺ as coenzyme. Kinetic studies showed that NAD⁺ and NADP⁺ interact with different enzyme forms (Olive, C., Geroch, M. E., and Levy, H. R. (1971) J. Biol. Chem.246, 2047–2057). In the present study the techniques of fluorescence quenching and fluorescence enhancement were used to investigate the interaction between Leuconostoc mesenteroides glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and coenzymes. In addition, kinetic studies were performed to examine interaction between the enzyme and various coenzyme analogs. The maximum quenching of protein fluorescence is 5% for NADP⁺ and 50% for NAD⁺. The dissociation constant for NADP⁺, determined from fluorescence quenching measurements, is 3 μm, which is similar to the previously determined K_m of 5.7 μm and K_i of 5 μm. The dissociation constant for NAD⁺ is 2.5 mm, which is 24 times larger than the previously determined K_m of 0.106 mm. Glucose 1-phosphate, a substrate-competitive inhibitor, lowers the dissociation constant and maximum fluorescence quenching for NAD⁺ but not for NADP⁺. This suggests that glucose 6-phosphate may act similarly and thus play a role in enabling the enzyme to utilize NAD⁺ under physiological conditions. When NADPH binds to the enzyme its fluorescence is enhanced 2.3-fold. The enzyme was titrated with NADPH in the absence and presence of NAD⁺; binding of these two coenzymes is competitive. The dissociation constant for NADPH from these measurements is 24 μm; the previously determined K_i is 37.6 μm. The dissociation constant for NAD′ is 2.8 mm, in satisfactory agreement with the value obtained from protein fluorescence quenching measurements. Various compounds which resemble either the adenosine or the nicotinamide portion of the coenzyme structure are coenzyme-competitive inhibitors; 2′,5′-ADP, the most inhibitory analog tested, gives NADP⁺-competitive and NAD⁺-noncompetitive inhibition, consistent with the kinetic mechanism previously proposed. By using pairs of coenzyme-competitive inhibitors it was shown in kinetic studies that the two portions of the NAD⁺ structure cannot be accommodated on the enzyme simultaneously unies they are covalently linked. Fluorescence studies showed that there are both “buried” and “exposed” tryptophan residues in the enzyme structure.     

A [P]NAD-based method to identify and quantitate long residence time enoyl-acyl carrier protein reductase inhibitors

The classical methods for quantifying drug–target residence time (t_R) use loss or regain of enzyme activity in progress curve kinetic assays. However, such methods become imprecise at very long residence times, mitigating the use of alternative strategies. Using the NAD(P)H-dependent FabI enoyl-acyl carrier protein (enoyl-ACP) reductase as a model system, we developed a Penefsky column-based method for direct measurement of t_R, where the off-rate of the drug was determined with radiolabeled [adenylate-³²P]NAD(P⁺) cofactor. In total, 23 FabI inhibitors were analyzed, and a mathematical model was used to estimate limits to the t_R values of each inhibitor based on percentage drug–target complex recovery following gel filtration. In general, this method showed good agreement with the classical steady-state kinetic methods for compounds with t_R values of 10 to 100 min. In addition, we were able to identify seven long t_R inhibitors (100–1500 min) and to accurately determine their t_R values. The method was then used to measure t_R as a function of temperature, an analysis not previously possible using the standard kinetic approach due to decreased NAD(P)H stability at elevated temperatures. In general, a 4-fold difference in t_R was observed when the temperature was increased from 25 to 37 °C.     

Estimation of kinetic parameters for substrate and inhibitor in a reaction with an enzyme sample containing different types of inhibitor

The method of kinetic analysis is developed to obtain the maximum velocity (V_m), the Michaelis constant (K_m) and the parameters characterizing the inhibitors in an impure enzyme reaction, contaminated with one of four types of inhibitor (competitive, noncompetitive, uncompetitive and mixed-type). Although the reaction rate decreases with the increasing concentration of the enzyme sample containing an inhibitor, the double-reciprocal plot of the rate against the sample concentration becomes linear. The slopes of these linear plots at several different concentrations of substrate provide K_m and the specific enzyme activity, which is proportional to V_m, in the sample. These linear straight lines intersect in a point, of which the coordinates give the unique parameters for the inhibitor. To prove the validity of this kinetic method, the model experiments were carried out with acetylcholinesterase and its inhibitors, phenyltrimethylammonium and trimethylammonium. The present method was applied to the measurement of the specific activity of galactosylceramide galactosidase in the mouse cerebral homogenate. In addition, a kinetic method is indicated for the inhibition of an enzymatic reaction by a contaminant which binds the substrate to reduce the fraction available to the enzyme.     

Nitrate reductase from Spinacea oleracea. FAD and the inactivation by NAD (P) H.

Treatment by p-hydroxymercuribenzoate of nitrate reductase from spinach leaves causes the disappearance of NADH-diaphorase activity and the appearance of an FAD-requirement for the inactivation by NAD(P)H of FNH₂-nitrate reductase. The diaphorase activity of the treated preparation is not affected by incubation with FAD or the addition of this nucleotide to the assay mixture. Conversely, filtration of the native preparation through a column of Sepharose 6B produces the appearance of an FAD-stimulation of the diaphorase activity, but no effect of FAD on the NADH-inactivation was observed. These differences between the FAD-requirement of NADH-diaphorase activity and NADH-inactivation agree with the postulated independence of the two processes.     

Heteromultimeric structure of the nitrate reductase complex of Chlamydomonas reinhardii

The NAD(P)H-nitrate reductase complex (overall-NR) of Chlamydomonas reinhardii exhibits two partial activities: NAD(P)H-cytochrome c reductase (diaphorase) and reduced benzyl viologen-NR (terminal-NR). Mild tryptic digestion of the enzyme complex resulted in the loss of both overall and terminal-NR activities, whereas diaphorase activity remained unaltered. The diaphorase activity of mutant 104 and the terminal-NR activity of mutant 305 of C. reinhardii, which are the sole activities related to NR present in these mutants, responded to tryptic treatment to the same extent as the corresponding activities of the wild enzyme complex. Trypsin disassembled the 220-kd NR native complex by destroying the aggregation capability of the diaphorase subunits without affecting their activity nor molecular size (45 kd). A 67-kd thermostable protein, containing molybdenum co-factor, was also released from trypsin-treated NR. This protein lacked diaphorase and NR activities but was able to reconstitute the overall-NR complex by complementation with untreated diaphorase subunit of mutant 104. Our results support a tetrameric structure for the C. reinhardii NR complex, containing two kinds of subunits.     

An NADH:Quinone Oxidoreductase Active during Biodegradation by the Brown-Rot Basidiomycete Gloeophyllum trabeum

The brown-rot basidiomycete Gloeophyllum trabeum uses a quinone redox cycle to generate extracellular Fenton reagent, a key component of the biodegradative system expressed by this highly destructive wood decay fungus. The hitherto uncharacterized quinone reductase that drives this cycle is a potential target for inhibitors of wood decay. We have identified the major quinone reductase expressed by G. trabeum under conditions that elicit high levels of quinone redox cycling. The enzyme comprises two identical 22-kDa subunits, each with one molecule of flavin mononucleotide. It is specific for NADH as the reductant and uses the quinones produced by G. trabeum (2,5-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone and 4,5-dimethoxy-1,2-benzoquinone) as electron acceptors. The affinity of the reductase for these quinones is so high that precise kinetic parameters were not obtainable, but it is clear that k_cat/K_m for the quinones is greater than 10⁸ M⁻¹ s⁻¹. The reductase is encoded by a gene with substantial similarity to NAD(P)H:quinone reductase genes from other fungi. The G. trabeum quinone reductase may function in quinone detoxification, a role often proposed for these enzymes, but we hypothesize that the fungus has recruited it to drive extracellular oxyradical production.     

Physical and Kinetic Properties and Regulation of the NAD Malic Enzyme Purified from Leaves of Crassula argentea

The NAD malic enzyme has been purified to near homogeneity from the leaves of Crassula argentea Thunb. The enzyme has two subunits, one of 59,000 daltons, and one of 62,000 daltons. In native gels stained for activity, the enzyme appears to exist in the dimeric, tetrameric, and predominantly the octameric forms.

The enzyme uses either Mg²⁺ or Mn²⁺ as the required divalent cation, and utilizes NADP at a rate less than 20% of that with NAD. With Mn²⁺ the K_m for malate²⁻ is lower than with Mg²⁺, but V_max is lower than with Mg²⁺. In the forward (malate-decarboxylating) direction with NAD, the kinetic parameters are essentially like those observed for the enzyme from C₃ plants. In the reverse reaction, run with Mn²⁺, the activity is 1.5% of that in the forward reaction. The equilibrium constant is 1.1 × 10⁻³ molar.

The kinetic mechanism of the reaction, at least in the forward direction, is sequential, with apparently random binding of all reaction components. Product inhibition patterns confirm this.

The enzyme displays a strong hysteretic lag, which is shortened by high enzyme concentrations, high substrate concentrations, and the presence of the product NADH.

The enzyme is activated by coenzyme A with K_a = 4 micromolar. AMP also shows competitive activation, with K_a = 24 micromolar. The activation by coenzyme A and AMP is additive, implying separate sites for their binding. Phosphoenolpyruvate activates the reaction at low (micromolar) concentrations, but higher concentrations of phosphoenolpyruvate cause deactivation. Fumarate²⁻ is a strong activator, with K_a = 0.3 millimolar. Fructose-1,6-bisphosphate activates the enzyme, but its most pronounced effect is in shortening the lag. Citrate is a competitive inhibitor of malate, with K_i = 4.9 millimolar.

     

Nucleotide binding affinities of the intact proton-translocating transhydrogenase from Escherichia coli

Transhydrogenase (E.C. 1.6.1.1) couples the redox reaction between NAD(H) and NADP(H) to the transport of protons across a membrane. The enzyme is composed of three components. The dI and dIII components, which house the binding site for NAD(H) and NADP(H), respectively, are peripheral to the membrane, and dII spans the membrane. We have estimated dissociation constants (K_d values) for NADPH (0.87 μM), NADP⁺ (16 μM), NADH (50 μM), and NAD⁺ (100-500 μM) for intact, detergent-dispersed transhydrogenase from Escherichia coli using micro-calorimetry. This is the first complete set of dissociation constants of the physiological nucleotides for any intact transhydrogenase. The K_d values for NAD⁺ and NADH are similar to those previously reported with isolated dI, but the K_d values for NADP⁺ and NADPH are much larger than those previously reported with isolated dIII. There is negative co-operativity between the binding sites of the intact, detergent-dispersed transhydrogenase when both nucleotides are reduced or both are oxidised.     

Characterization of monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 inhibitors by a novel probe in binding assays

Monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (MGAT2) is a membrane-bound lipid acyltransferase that catalyzes the formation of diacylglycerol using monoacylglycerol and fatty acyl CoA as substrates. MGAT2 is important for intestinal lipid absorption and is an emerging target for the treatment of metabolic diseases. In the current study, we identified and characterized four classes of novel MGAT2 inhibitors. We established both steady state and kinetic binding assay protocols using a novel radioligand, [³H]compound A. Diverse chemotypes of MGAT2 inhibitors were found to compete binding of [³H]compound A to MGAT2, indicating the broad utility of [³H]compound A for testing various classes of MGAT2 inhibitors. In the dynamic binding assays, the kinetic values of MGAT2 inhibitors such as K_on, K_off, and T_1/2 were systematically defined. Of particular value, the residence times of inhibitors on MGAT2 enzyme were derived. We believe that the identification of novel classes of MGAT2 inhibitors and the detailed kinetic characterization provide valuable information for the identification of superior candidates for in vivo animal and clinical studies. The current work using a chemical probe to define inhibitory kinetics can be broadly applied to other membrane-bound acyltransferases.     

Interaction of human aldehyde dehydrogenase with aromatic substrates and ligands

The substrate benzaldehyde (but not propionaldehyde) could elute aldehyde dehydrogenase from a p-hydroxyacetophenone-affinity column, and inhibit the esterase activity (K_i=47 μM), indicating that this simple aromatic aldehyde binds to the free enzyme and possibly in the substrate-binding site. Thus, the kinetic mechanism for aldehyde dehydrogenase might be dependent upon which aldehyde is used in the reaction. Chloramphenicol which also elutes the enzyme from the affinity column, shows a discriminatory effect by inhibiting the ALDH1 oxidation of benzaldehyde and activating that of propionaldehyde while showing no effect when assayed with hexanal or cyclohexane–carboxaldehyde. Chloramphenicol is an uncompetitive inhibitor against NAD when benzaldehyde is the substrate. We propose that this drug might interact with both the benzaldehyde and NAD binding sites.     

Purification and Characterization of NAD Malic Enzyme from Leaves of Eleusine coracana and Panicum dichotomiflorum

NAD malic enzyme (EC 1.1.1.39), which is involved in C₄ photosynthesis, was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from leaves of Eleusine coracana and to near homogeneity from leaves of Panicum dichotomiflorum. The enzyme from each C₄ species was found to have only one type of subunit by SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The M_r of subunits of the enzme from E. coracana and P. dichotommiflorum was 63 and 61 kilodaltons, respectively. The native Mr of the enzyme from each species was determined by gel filtration to be about 500 kilodaltons, indicating that the NAD malic enzyme from C₄ species is an octamer of identical subunits. The purified NAD malic enzyme from each C₄ species showed similar kinetic properties with respect to concentrations of malate and NAD; each had a requirement for Mn²⁺ and activation by fructose- 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP) or CoA. A cooperativity with respect to Mn²⁺ was apparent with both enzymes. The activator (FBP) did not change the Hill value but greatly decreased K_0.5 (the concentration giving half-maximal activity) for Mn²⁺. The enzyme from E. coracana showed a very low level of activity when NADP was used as substrate, but this activity was also stimulated by FBP. Significant differences between the enzymes from E. coracana and P. dichotomiflorum were observed in their responses to the activators and their immunochemical properties. The enzyme from E. coracana was largely dependent on the activators FBP or CoA, regardless of concentration of Mn²⁺. In contrast, the enzyme from P. dichotomiflorum showed significant activity in the absence of the activator, especially at high concentrations of Mn²⁺. Both immunodiffusion and immunoprecipitation, using antiserum raised against the purified NAD malic enzyme from E. coracana, revealed partial antigenic differences between the enzymes from E. coracana and P. dichotomiflorum. The activity of the NAD malic enzyme from Amaranthus edulis, a typical NAD malic enzyme type C₄ dicot, was not inhibited by the antiserum raised against the NAD malic enzyme from E. coracana.     

Stereo-specificity for pro-(R) hydrogen of NAD(P)H during enzyme-catalyzed hydride transfer to CL-20

A dehydrogenase from Clostridium sp. EDB2 and a diaphorase from Clostridium kluyveri were reacted with CL-20 to gain insights into the enzyme-catalyzed hydride transfer to CL-20, and the enzyme's stereo-specificity for either pro-R or pro-S hydrogens of NAD(P)H. Both enzymes biotransformed CL-20 at rates of 18.5 and 24nmol/h/mg protein, using NADH and NADPH as hydride-source, respectively, to produce a N-denitrohydrogenated product with a molecular weight of 393Da. In enzyme kinetics studies using reduced deuterated pyridine nucleotides, we found a kinetic deuterium isotopic effect of 2-fold on CL-20 biotransformation rate using dehydrogenase enzyme against (R)NADD as a hydride-source compared to either (S)NADD or NADH. Whereas, in case of diaphorase, the kinetic deuterium isotopic effect of about 1.5-fold was observed on CL-20 biotransformation rate using (R)NADPD as hydride-source. In a comparative study with LC-MS, using deuterated and non-deuterated NAD(P)H, we found a positive mass-shift of 1Da in the N-denitrohydrogenated product suggesting the involvement of a deuteride (D(-)) transfer from NAD(P)D. The present study thus revealed that both dehydrogenase and diaphorase enzymes from the two Clostridium species catalyzed a hydride transfer to CL-20 and showed stereo-specificity for pro-R hydrogen of NAD(P)H.     

Comparative study of immobilized and soluble NADH:FMN-oxidoreductase-luciferase coupled enzyme system

The properties of a coupled enzyme system (NAD(P)H:FMN-oxidoreductase and luciferase) from luminous bacteria were studied. The enzymes and their substrates were immobilized in polymer gels of different types: starch (polysaccharide) and gelatin (polypeptide). Maximum activity yield (100%) was achieved with the enzymes immobilized in starch gel. An increase in K _{m app} was observed in both immobilized systems as compared with the soluble coupled enzyme system. Immobilization in starch and gelatin gels increased the resistance of the NAD(P)H:FMN-oxidoreductase and luciferase coupled enzyme system to the effects of external physical and chemical factors. The optimum pH range expanded both to the acidic and alkaline regions. The resistance to concentrated salt solutions and high temperature also increased. The coupled enzyme system immobilized in starch gel (with activation energy 30 kJ/mol) was characterized by the best thermostability. The immobilized coupled enzyme system can be used to produce a stable and highly active reagent for bioluminescent analysis.     

Purification and Characterization of NAD(P)H:Nitrate Reductase and NADH:Nitrate Reductase from Corn Roots

The nitrate reductase activity of 5-day-old whole corn roots was isolated using phosphate buffer. The relatively stable nitrate reductase extract can be separated into three fractions using affinity chromatography on blue-Sepharose. The first fraction, eluted with NADPH, reduces nearly equal amounts of nitrate with either NADPH or NADH. A subsequent elution with NADH yields a nitrate reductase which is more active with NADH as electron donor. Further elution with salt gives a nitrate reductase fraction which is active with both NADH and NADPH, but is more active with NADH. All three nitrate reductase fractions have pH optima of 7.5 and Stokes radii of about 6.0 nanometers. The NADPH-eluted enzyme has a nitrate K_m of 0.3 millimolar in the presence of NADPH, whereas the NADH-eluted enzyme has a nitrate K_m of 0.07 millimolar in the presence of NADH. The NADPH-eluted fraction appears to be similar to the NAD(P)H:nitrate reductase isolated from corn scutellum and the NADH-eluted fraction is similar to the NADH:nitrate reductases isolated from corn leaf and scutellum. The salt-eluted fraction appears to be a mixture of NAD(P)H: and NADH:nitrate reductases.