Stereochemistry of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylation catalyzed by phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

The stereochemistry of the carboxylation of phosphoenolpyruvate to yield oxalacetate, catalyzed by chicken liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and by Ascaris muscle phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, was determined. The substrate (Z)-3-fluorophosphoenolpyruvate was used for the stereochemical analysis. The carboxylation reaction was coupled to malate dehydrogenase to yield 3-fluoromalate, and the stereochemistry of the products was identified by 19F NMR. In separate experiments, the enantiomeric tautomers of 3-fluorooxalacetate were shown to be utilized by malate dehydrogenase to yield (2R,3R)- and (2R,3S)-3-fluoromalate in nearly identical amounts. The products were identified by 19F NMR. When (Z)-3-fluorophosphoenolpyruvate was used as a substrate for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from avian liver and from Ascaris, and malate dehydrogenase was used to trap the product, only a single diastereomer was observed. This product was shown to be (2R,3R)-3-fluoromalate in each case. The assignments were based on coupling constants taken from Keck et al. [Keck, R., Hess, H., & Rétey, J. (1980) FEBS Lett. 114, 287]. These results indicate that the stereochemistry of carboxylation, catalyzed by chicken phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase and by Ascaris phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, is identical and takes place from the si side of the enzyme-bound phosphoenolpyruvate. The carboxylation reaction was run both in H2O and in D2O. No deuterium incorporation into fluoromalate was shown to occur. The product 3-fluorooxalacetate is thus released from phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase as the keto form and is reduced more rapidly by reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide with malate dehydrogenase than by the occurrence of tautomerization.     

Structural investigation of the binding of nucleotide to phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase by NMR

The enzyme phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) catalyzes the reversible conversion of oxalacetate and GTP to phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP), GDP, and CO2. PEPCK from higher organisms is a monomer, specifically requires GTP or ITP, and uses Mn2+ as the activating cation. Currently, there is no crystal structure of GTP-utilizing PEPCKs. The conformation of the bound nucleotide was determined from transferred nuclear Overhauser effects (trnOe) experiments to determine internuclear proton distances. At 600 MHz in the presence of PEPCK, nOe effects were observed between nucleotide protons. Internuclear distances were calculated from the initial rate of the nOe buildup. These distance constraints were used in energy minimization calculations to determine the conformation of PEPCK-bound GTP. The bound nucleotide has the base oriented anti to the C2'-endo(2E) ribose ring conformation. Relaxation rate studies indicate that there is an additional relaxation effect on the C1' proton upon nucleotide binding to PEPCK. Nucleotide binding to PEPCK-Mn2+ was studied by 1H relaxation rate studies, but results were complicated by long dipole-dipole distances and the presence of competing complexes. Modification of PEPCK by iodoacetamido-TEMPO leads to an inactive enzyme that is spin-labeled at cys273. The interaction of TEMPO-PEPCK with GTP allows for the measurement of nuclear distances between GTP and the spin label. The results suggest that cys273 lies near the ribose ring of the bound nucleotide, but it is too far to be implicated in direct hydrogen bonding interactions consistent with previous results [Makinen, A. L., and Nowak, T. J. Biol. Chem. (1989) 264, 12148], suggesting that cys273 does not actively participate in catalysis. Modification of PEPCK with several cysteine specific modifying agents causes no change in the ability of the enzyme to bind nucleotide as monitored by fluorescence quenching. A correlation between the size of the modifying agent and the maximal observed quenching upon saturation of the enzyme with nucleotide is observed. This suggests a mechanism for inactivation of PEPCK by cysteine modification due to inhibition of a dynamic motion that may occur upon nucleotide binding.     

血清学诊断中结核杆菌磷酸烯醇型丙酮酸羧激酶的应用

[目的]在原核系统中表达结核杆菌磷酸烯醇型丙酮酸羧激酶(phosphoenolpyruvate car-boxykinase PEPCK),并研究该蛋白在诊断结核病人血清抗体中的应用价值.[方法]应用基因重组技术表达重组蛋白结核杆菌磷酸烯醇型丙酮酸羧激酶,经亲和层析法纯化表达产物.用表达的重组蛋白免疫小鼠,研究其免疫学特性.间接酶联免疫吸附试验(Enzyme link immunosorbent assay,ELISA)检测结核病人血清中特异性IgG抗体,并与结核杆菌抗体胶体金法诊断试剂盒检测结果对比.[结果]试验表明转化入大肠杆菌中的重组质粒能够表达并纯化出相对分子量为72 kDa的重组蛋白;Western blot证实重组蛋白能够与小鼠抗BCG血清发生特异性反应;重组蛋白免疫小鼠后,小鼠血清中的抗体滴度可达1∶1280以上;重组蛋白用作ELISA包被抗原检测病人血清阳性率为17.3%(30/173),其中排菌病人的阳性率为32.5%(13/42),不排菌病人的阳性率为12.9%.该方法结果与结核杆菌抗体胶体金法诊断试剂盒的检测结果相比,敏感性为51.0%,特异性为96.7%.[结论]结核杆菌PEPCK具有较好的免疫原性和抗原性,有可能作为结核病血清学诊断的一组抗原之一.     

Anilinonaphthalene sulfonate isomers inactivate phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Studies with anilinonaphthalene sulfonate and related compounds suggest that the remarkable ability of some of these isomers to inactivate phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase depends, in part, on their ability to assume a conformation in which the naphthyl and phenyl rings are coplanar. Comparison with seven anilino, sulfonate isomers gave an order of inactivating effectiveness of (1, 8) > (2, 1) > (2, 5), (2, 6), (2, 7), (2, 8). The (1, 2) isomer, i.e., 1-anilinonaphthalene-2-sulfonate, did not inactivate. 1-Anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate is a widely used hydrophobic binding fluorescent probe. The present study contributes information as to the steric and electronic properties of these isomers and their possible importance.     

Limited proteolysis ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Incubation ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase with trypsin under native conditions cases a time-dependent loss of activity and the production of protein fragments. Cleavage sites determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and sequence analyses identified protease-sensitive peptide bonds between amino acid residues at positions 9–10 and 76–77. Additional fragmentation sites were also detected in a region approximately 70–80 amino acids before the carboxyl end of the protein. These results suggest that the enzyme is formed by a central compact domain comprising more than two thirds of the whole protein structure. From proteolysis experiments carried out in the presence of substrates, it could be inferred that CO₂ binding specifically protects position 76–77 from trypsin action. Intrinsic fluorescence measurements demonstrated that CO₂ binding induces a protein conformational change, and a dissociation constant for the enzyme CO₂ complex of 8.2±0.6 mM was determined     

Guanosine thiophosphate derivatives as substrate analogues for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

The interactions of nucleotides with phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase were studied by using the stereospecific thiophosphate analogues of GDP and GTP. The metal ion dependent stereoselectivity of these analogues was determined by using steady-state kinetics. The RP and SP isomers of guanosine 5'-O-(1-thiodiphosphate) (GDP alpha S) were substrates with low turnover, and a small preference for the RP isomer was observed. Neither the enzyme-metal nor the nucleotide-metal complex elicited any substantial change in the selectivity. Guanosine 5'-O-(2-thiodiphosphate) (GDP beta S) exhibited no substrate activity for the enzyme, regardless of the cations. This nucleotide was a competitive inhibitor against GDP, however. Both RP and SP diastereomers of guanosine 5'-O-(1-thiotriphosphate) (GTP alpha S) were good substrates for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase; in several cases, depending upon the cation, kcat and/or Vm/Km for the RP isomer is greater than for the substrate GTP. The enzyme-metal complex but not the nucleotide-metal complex affects the relative Km and the Vmax values. In contrast, guanosine 5'-O-(2-thiotriphosphate) (GTP beta S) (SP) is a much better substrate (greater than 50 times) than is GTP beta S (RP). The metal ions have little effect on the selectivity. These results suggest a specific interaction of the beta-phosphate of the nucleotide with the protein. The analogue guanosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate) (GPT gamma S) serves as a substrate to yield GDP and thiophosphoenolpyruvate. The latter was detected by 31P NMR and was shown to slowly hydrolyze to form phosphoenolpyruvate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Analogs of oxalacetate as potential substrates for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Structural analogs of the substrate oxalacetate were examined as potential substrates and inhibitors for chicken liver mitochondrial phosphoenolpyruvate (P-enolpyruvate) carboxykinase. Steady-state kinetics were employed to characterize the inhibitory effects of these substrate analogs with the enzyme. Assays were carried out in both carboxylation and decarboxylation reaction directions. Pyruvate, beta-hydroxypyruvate, beta-mercaptopyruvate, beta-fluoropyruvate, DL-lactate, glycolate, glycoaldehyde, glyoxylate, glyphosate, and DL-aspartate showed no inhibitory effects by steady-state kinetics. Oxalate, acetopyruvate, and DL-, D-, and L-glycerate exhibited weak noncompetitive inhibition of the P-enolpyruvate carboxykinase-catalyzed reaction. DL-3-Nitro-2-hydroxypropionic acid, 3-nitro-2-oxopropionic acid, DL-malate, malonate, tartronate, and alpha-ketobutyrate all show weak inhibition with estimated inhibition constants greater than 20 nM. Several of these compounds were investigated by 31P NMR to determine if they function as phosphoryl acceptors for GTP. None of the compounds tested act as phosphoryl acceptors in the enzyme-catalyzed reaction. Chicken liver mitochondrial phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase shows a remarkably high degree of specificity at the binding site of oxalacetate.     

Inactivation of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase by acetaldehyde.

Preincubation with acetaldehyde at 37°C inactivates rat liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase. The inactivation is dependent upon the acetaldehyde concentration and the pH and duration of preincubation, and is prevented but not reversed by glutathione. The binding of the substrate ITP appears to be affected in the inactivation process. This effect of acetaldehyde might contribute to inhibition of gluconeogenesis resulting from ethanol metabolism.     

Characterization of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from Corynebacterium glutamicum

Abstract Phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) carboxykinase is present in crude extracts of Corynebacterium glutamicum grown on both glucose and lactate. Preparation of PEP carboxykinase free from interfering PEP carboxylase and oxaloacetate decarboxylase showed an absolute dependence on divalent manganese and IDP for activity in the oxaloacetate (OAA) formation. Other diphosphate nucleotides could not substitute for IDP. The enzyme activity displayed Michaelis-Menten kinetics for the substrates PEP, IDP, KHCO₃, OAA and ITP with a K _m of 0.7 mM, 0.4 mM, 12 mM, 1.0 mM, and 0.5 mM, respectively. At the optimum pH of 6.6, 850 nmol of OAA were formed per min per mg of protein. ATP inhibited PEP carboxykinase in the OAA forming reaction for 60% at 0.1 mM, indicating that the enzyme mainly functions in gluconeogenesis.     

A mitochondrial phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from rat brain

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from the rat brain has been purified approximately 6000-fold. This purified enzyme was stable at −20 °C for several months.     

The kinetic mechanism of yeast phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

The kinetic mechanism of yeast phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase, in the physiological direction, has been determined. Product inhibition using KHCO₃ showed competitive inhibition, when both oxalacetate (OAA) and ATP were varied. Phosphoenolpyruvate showed noncompetitive inhibition against OAA, and competitive inhibition with respect to ATP. Conversely, ADP showed competitive inhibition against OAA and noncompetitive inhibition vs. ATP. Dead-end inhibition studies with β-sulfopyruvate showed competitive inhibition against OAA and noncompetitive inhibition vs. ATP. Ethene-ATP exhibited competitive inhibition against ATP and noncompetitive inhibition with respect to OAA. These results are consistent with a random Bi-Ter mechanism with the formation of two abortive complexes: enzyme-ATP-ADP and enzyme-OAA-PEP.     

Reactive sulfhydryl groups in Saccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Saccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (ATP:oxaloacetate carboxy-lyase (transphosphorylating), EC 4.1.1.49) is inactivated by several thiol- and vicinal dithiol-specific reagents. Titration experiments of the enzyme with 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoate) (DTNB) show the presence of reactive monothiol and vicinal dithiol groups, whose modifications lead to enzyme inactivation. The enzyme is also inactivated by N-(1-pyrenyl)iodoacetamide (PyrIAM), with a binding stoichiometry of approx. 2 mol per mol of enzyme subunit. A high level of pyrene excimer fluorescence is detected on the labeled enzyme, thus implying the reaction of the reagent with two spatially close sulfhydryl groups in the protein. The carboxykinase is not completely inactivated by different vicinal dithiol-specific reagents, thus implying a catalytically non-essential character for these groups. From substrate protection experiments of the enzyme inactivation by DTNB, PyrIAM and vicinal dithiol-specific reagents, it is concluded that the loss of enzyme activity is caused by the modification of both thiol and vicinal dithiol groups in the substrate binding region.     

Characterization of the second metal site on avian phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Chicken liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) requires two divalent cations for activity. One cation activates the enzyme through a direct interaction with the protein at site n(1). The second cation, at site n(2), acts in the cation-nucleotide complex that serves as a substrate. The Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK and Cr(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK complexes were used to examine the kinetic, mechanistic, and binding properties of the n(2) metal. EPR studies performed on the Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-GTP complex yielded a stoichiometry of 1 mol of Mn(2+) bound per mole of Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-GTP with a K(D) of 5 microM. PRR studies show a significant enhancement for the Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-Mn(2+)(n(2))-GDP complex. A change in enhancement in the presence of PEP suggests that PEP interacts with the second metal ion. The distance between Mn(2+) at site n(2) on PEPCK and the cis and trans protons and the (31)P of PEP are 7.0, 7.5, and 4.8 A, respectively, as measured by high-resolution NMR. PRR studies of the Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-Mn(2+)(n(2))-GTP and Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-Mn(2+)(n(2))-GDP complexes as a function of frequency (omega(I)) were used to estimate the hydration number of the n(2) metal to be between 0.5 and 0.7. The metal-metal distance for the M(n(1))-PEPCK-M(n(2))-GTP complex is approximately 8.3 A, and the distance for the M(n(1))-PEPCK-M(n(2))-GDP complex is 9.2 A. The change in the metal-metal distance suggests a conformational change at the active site of PEPCK occurs during catalysis. The Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK complex was incubated with Co(2+), GTP, and H(2)O(2) to create a doubly labeled and inactive Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-Co(3+)(n(2))-GTP complex. The Co(3+)(n(1))-PEPCK-Co(3+)(n(2))-GTP complex was digested by LysC, and two cobalt-containing peptides were purified using RP-HPLC. Amino acid sequencing of the second cobalt-containing peptide points to the region of Tyr57-Lys76 of PEPCK. Asp66, Asp69, and Glu74 are all feasible ligands to the site n(2) metal.     

Regulation and roles of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase in plants

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK) is probably ubiquitous in flowering plants, but is confined to certain cells or tissues. It is regulated by phosphorylation, which renders it less active by altering both its substrate affinities and its sensitivity to regulation by adenylates. In the leaves of some C4 plants, such as Panicum maximum, dephosphorylation increases its activity in the light. In other tissues such regulation probably avoids futile cycling between phosphoenolpyruvate and oxaloacetate. Although PCK generally acts as a decarboxylase in plants, its affinity for CO2 measured at physiological concentrations of metal ions is high and would allow it to be freely reversible in vivo. While its function in gluconeogenesis in seeds postgermination and in leaves of C4 and crassulacean acid metabolism plants is clearly established, the possible functions of PCK in other plant cells are discussed, drawing parallels with those in animals, including its integrated function in cataplerosis, nitrogen metabolism, pH regulation, and gluconeogenesis.     

Ripening-related occurrence of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase in tomato fruit

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) is present in ripening tomato fruits. A cDNA encoding PEPCK was identified from a PCR-based screen of a cDNA library from ripe tomato fruit. The sequence of the tomato PEPCK cDNA and a cloned portion of the genomic DNA shows that the complete cDNA sequence contains an open reading frame encoding a peptide of 662 amino acid residues in length and predicts a polypeptide with a molecular mass of 73.5 kDa, which corresponds to that detected by western blotting. Only one PEPCK gene was identified in the tomato genome. PEPCK is shown to be present in the pericarp of ripening tomato fruits by activity measurements, western blotting and mRNA analysis. PEPCK abundance and activity both increased during fruit ripening, from an undetectable amount in immature green fruit to a high amount in ripening fruit. PEPCK mRNA, protein and activity were also detected in germinating seeds and, in lower amounts, in roots and stems of tomato. The possible role of PEPCK in the pericarp of tomato fruit during ripening is discussed.     

An active-site lysine in avian liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

The participation of lysine in the catalysis by avian liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase was studied by chemical modification and by a characterization of the modified enzyme. The rate of inactivation by 2,4-pentanedione is pseudo-first-order and linearly dependent on reagent concentration with a second-order rate constant of 0.36 +/- 0.025 M-1 min-1. Inactivation by pyridoxal 5'-phosphate of the reversible reaction catalyzed by phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase follows bimolecular kinetics with a second-order rate constant of 7700 +/- 860 M-1 min-1. A second-order rate constant of inactivation for the irreversible reaction catalyzed by the enzyme is 1434 +/- 110 M-1 min-1. Treatment of the enzyme with pyridoxal 5'-phosphate gives incorporation of 1 mol of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate per mole of enzyme or one lysine residue modified concomitant with 100% loss in activity. A stoichiometry of 1:1 is observed when either the reversible or the irreversible reactions catalyzed by the enzyme are monitored. A study of kobs vs pH suggests this active-site lysine has a pKa of 8.1 and a pH-independent rate constant of inactivation of 47,700 M-1 min-1. The phosphate-containing substrates IDP, ITP, and phosphoenolpyruvate offer almost complete protection against inactivation by pyridoxal 5'-phosphate. Modified, inactive enzyme exhibits little change in Mn2+ binding as shown by EPR. Proton relaxation rate measurements suggest that pyridoxal 5'-phosphate modification alters binding of the phosphate-containing substrates. 31P NMR relaxation rate measurements show altered binding of the substrates in the ternary enzyme.Mn2+.substrate complex. Circular dichroism studies show little change in secondary structure of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate modified phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase. These results indicate that avian liver phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase has one reactive lysine at the active site and it is involved in the binding and activation of the phosphate-containing substrates.     

Limited proteolysis ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase

Incubation ofSaccharomyces cerevisiae phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase with trypsin under native conditions cases a time-dependent loss of activity and the production of protein fragments. Cleavage sites determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and sequence analyses identified protease-sensitive peptide bonds between amino acid residues at positions 9–10 and 76–77. Additional fragmentation sites were also detected in a region approximately 70–80 amino acids before the carboxyl end of the protein. These results suggest that the enzyme is formed by a central compact domain comprising more than two thirds of the whole protein structure. From proteolysis experiments carried out in the presence of substrates, it could be inferred that CO₂ binding specifically protects position 76–77 from trypsin action. Intrinsic fluorescence measurements demonstrated that CO₂ binding induces a protein conformational change, and a dissociation constant for the enzyme CO₂ complex of 8.2±0.6 mM was determined     

A GTP-dependent vertebrate-type phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from Mycobacterium smegmatis

This is the first report on a bacterial verterbrate-type GTP-dependent phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PCK). The pck gene of Mycobacterium smegmatis was cloned. The recombinant PCK was overexpressed in Escherichia coli in a soluble form and with high activity. The purified enzyme was found to be monomeric (72 kDa), thermophilic (optimum temperature, 70 degrees C), very stable upon storage at 4 degrees C, stimulated by thiol-containing reducing agents, and inhibited by oxalate and by alpha-ketoglutarate. The requirement for a divalent cation for activity was fulfilled best by Mn(2+) and Co(2+) and poorly by Mg(2+). At 37 degrees C, the highest V(m) value (32.5 units/mg) was recorded with Mn(2+) and in the presence of 37 mm dithiothreitol (DTT). The presence of Mg(2+) (2 mm) greatly lowered the apparent K(m) values for Mn(2+) (by 144-fold in the presence of DTT and by 9.4-fold in the absence of DTT) and Co(2+) (by 230-fold). In the absence of DTT but in the presence of Mg(2+) (2 mm) as the co-divalent cation, Co(2+) was 21-fold more efficient than Mn(2+). For producing oxaloacetate, the enzyme utilized both GDP and IDP; ADP served very poorly. The apparent K(m) values for phosphoenolpyruvate, GDP, and bicarbonate were >100, 66, and 8300 micrometer, respectively, whereas those for GTP and oxaloacetate (for the phosphoenolpyruvate formation activity) were 13 and 12 microm, respectively. Thus, this enzyme preferred the gluconeogenesis/glycerogenesis direction. This property fits the suggestion that in M. smegmatis, pyruvate carboxylase is not anaplerotic but rather gluconeogenic (Mukhopadhyay, B., and Purwantini, E. (2000) Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 1475, 191-206). Both in primary structure and kinetic properties, the mycobacterial PCK was very similar to its vertebrate-liver counterparts and thus could serve as a model for these enzymes; examples for several immediate targets are presented.