Increase in glutathione disulfide level regulates the activity of microsomal glutathione S-transferase in rat liver

Glutathione disulfide stimulates the activity of rat liver microsomal glutathione S-transferase 2-fold after incubation at 25 degrees C for 10 min. When the microsomes were incubated with the disulfide for over 20 min, the transferase activity increased to the same extent as in the case of N-ethylmaleimide (6-fold). Even in the presence of reduced glutathione, some enhancement of the transferase activity was observed. The data presented here are evidence that increase in glutathione disulfide level, e.g. by lipid peroxidation, on endoplasmic reticulum causes the upregulation of microsomal glutathione S-transferase activity.     

Activation of rat liver microsomal glutathione S-transferase by reduced oxygen species

The effect of enzymatically generated reduced oxygen metabolites on the activity of hepatic microsomal glutathione S-transferase activity was studied to explore possible physiological regulatory mechanisms of the enzyme. Noradrenaline and the microsomal cytochrome P-450-dependent monooxygenase system were used to generate reduced oxygen species. When noradrenaline (greater than 0.1 mM) was incubated with rat liver microsomes in phosphate buffer (pH 7.4), an increase in microsomal glutathione S-transferase activity was observed, and this activation was potentiated in the presence of a NADPH-generating system; the glutathione S-transferase activity was increased to 180% of the control with 1 mM noradrenaline and to 400% with both noradrenaline and NADPH. Superoxide dismutase and catalase inhibited partially the noradrenaline-dependent activation of the enzyme. In the presence of dithiothreitol and glutathione, the activation of the glutathione S-transferase by noradrenaline, with or without NADPH, was not observed. In addition, the activation of glutathione S-transferase activity by noradrenaline and glutathione disulfide was not additive when both compounds were incubated together. These results indicate that the microsomal glutathione S-transferase is activated by reduced oxygen species, such as superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide. Thus, metabolic processes that generate high concentrations of reduced oxygen species may activate the microsomal glutathione S-transferase, presumably by the oxidation of the sulfhydryl group of the enzyme, and this increased catalytic activity may help protect cells from oxidant-induced damage.     

Activation of rat liver microsomal glutathione S-transferase by hydrogen peroxide: role for protein-dimer formation.

The mechanism of oxygen radical-dependent activation of hepatic microsomal glutathione S-transferase by hydrogen peroxide was studied. Glutathione S-transferase activity in liver microsomes was increased 1.5-fold by incubation with 0.75 mM hydrogen peroxide at 37 degrees C for 10 min, and the increase in activity was reversed by incubation with dithiothreitol. Purified glutathione S-transferase was also activated by hydrogen peroxide after incubation at room temperature, and the increase in the activity was also reversed by dithiothreitol. Immunoblotting with anti-microsomal glutathione S-transferase antibodies after sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of hydrogen peroxide-treated microsomes or purified glutathione S-transferase revealed the presence of a glutathione S-transferase dimer. These results indicate that the hydrogen peroxide-dependent activation of the microsomal glutathione S-transferase is associated with the formation of a protein dimer.     

Activation of microsomal glutathione S-transferase activity by sulfhydryl reagents.

Rat liver microsomes exhibit glutathione S-transferase activity with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as the second substrate. This activity can be stimulated 8-fold by treatment of the microsomes with N-ethylmaleimide and 4-fold with iodoacetamide. The corresponding glutathione S-transferase activity of the supernatant fraction is not affected by such treatment. These findings suggest that rat liver microsomes contain glutathione S-transferase distinct from those found in the cytoplasmic and that the microsomal transferase can be activated by modification of microsomal sulfhydryl group(s).     

Radiation inactivation of microsomal glutathione S-transferase

Radiation inactivation analysis was used to determine the target size of rat liver microsomal glutathione S-transferase both in situ and following purification. When Tris-HCl-washed microsomes were irradiated, there was a 1.5-2.0-fold increase in enzymatic activity over the first 3-6 megarads followed by a decrease in enzymatic activity. Above 48 megarads the radiation inactivation curve of the Tris-HCl-washed microsomes was described by a monoexponential function which gave a target size of 48 kDa. The enzymatic activity of the microsomal enzyme was selectively increased by treating the Tris-HCl-washed microsomes either with N-ethylmaleimide or washing the microsomes with small unilamellar vesicles made from phosphatidylcholine. The inactivation curves obtained with both types of treated microsomes were simple monoexponential decays in enzymatic activity with target sizes of 46 kDa (N-ethylmaleimide) and 44 kDa (unilamellar vesicles). The microsomal enzyme was detergent solubilized and purified. The Mr value of the purified protein was 15,500 (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis). These data suggest that the functional unit of the microsomal form of glutathione S-transferase in situ is a trimer. The target size of the purified enzyme solubilized in Triton X-100 was 85 kDa, and no increase in activity was observed at the lower radiation doses. The increase in the target size of the purified enzyme could not be ascribed solely to the presence of the detergent. This result suggests that the microsomal form of this enzyme can exist as catalytically active oligomers of different sizes depending on its environment.     

Subcellular distribution of N-ethylmaleimide-stimulatable glutathione S-transferase activity in rat liver. Evidence of localization of glutathione S-transferase in peroxisomal membrane

Subcellular distribution of glutathione S-transferase activity was investigated as stimulated form by N-ethylmaleimide in rat liver. The stimulated glutathione S-transferase activity was localized in mitochondrial and lysosomal fractions besides microsomes. Among N-ethylmaleimide-treated submitochondrial fractions, glutathione S-transferase activity was stimulated only in outer mitochondrial membrane fraction. In lysosomal fraction, it was suggested that glutathione S-transferase activity in peroxisomes, which is immunochemically related to microsomal transferase, was also stimulated, but not in lysosomes.     

Microsomal glutathione transferase. Purification in unactivated form and further characterization of the activation process, substrate specificity and amino acid composition

The procedure developed for purification of the N-ethylmaleimide-activated microsomal glutathione transferase was applied successfully to isolation of this same enzyme in unactivated form. The microsomal glutathione transferases, the unactivated and activated forms, were shown to be identical in terms of molecular weight, immunochemical properties, and amino acid composition. In addition the microsomal glutathione transferase purified in unactivated form could be activated 15-fold with N-ethylmaleimide to give the same specific activity with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as that observed for the enzyme isolated in activated form. This activation involved the binding of one molecule N-ethylmaleimide to the single cysteine residue present in each polypeptide chain of the enzyme, as shown by amino acid analysis, determination of sulfhydryl groups by 2,2'-dithiopyridyl and binding of radioactive N-ethylmaleimide. Except for the presence of only a single cysteine residue and the total absence of tryptophan, the amino acid composition of the microsomal glutathione transferase is not remarkable. The contents of aspartic acid/asparagine + glutamic acid/glutamine, of basic amino acids, and of hydrophobic amino acids are 15%, 12% and 54% respectively. The isoelectric point of the enzyme is 10.1. Microsomal glutathione transferase conjugates a wide range of substrates with glutathione and also demonstrates glutathione peroxidase activity with cumene hydroperoxide, suggesting that it may be involved in preventing lipid peroxidation. Of the nine substrates identified here, the enzymatic activity towards only two, 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and cumene hydroperoxide, could be increased by treatment with N-ethylmaleimide. This treatment results in increases in both the apparent Km values and V values for 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and cumene hydroperoxide. Thus, although clearly distinct from the cytosolic glutathione transferases, the microsomal enzyme shares certain properties with these soluble enzymes, including a relative abundance, a high isoelectric point and a broad substrate specificity. The exact role of the microsomal glutathione transferase in drug metabolism, as well as other possible functions, remains to be established.     

Glucagon activation of the thiol:protein disulfide oxidoreductase in isolated, rat, hepatic microsomes

The hepatic, microsomal, thiol:protein disulfide oxidoreductase catalyzes the glutathione (GSH) reduction of protein disulfides to sulfhydryl groups. In the presence of physiological concentrations of glucagon this activity increased from 2.3 to 6.4 fold in isolated microsomes. The stimulation had a P50 for glucagon of 7.8 X 10(-10) M which was only observed at microsomal protein concentrations of less than 100 micrograms/ml and in the presence of a GSH reducing system. This latter observation suggests that the stimulation may be inhibited by the presence of oxidized glutathione. These data support the hypothesis that glucagon may act in part by stimulating the reduction of protein disulfides by the thiol:protein disulfide oxidoreductase.     

Human microsomal glutathione S-transferase. Its involvement in the conjugation of hexachlorobuta-1,3-diene with glutathione.

A microsomal glutathione S-transferase (GST) was purified from human liver. This enzyme was shown to have characteristics similar to those of the rat microsomal GST described by Morgenstern & De Pierre [(1983) Eur. J. Biochem. 134, 591-597]. The specific activity of human microsomal GST towards 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene or cumene hydroperoxide can be stimulated by treating the enzyme with N-ethylmaleimide. This enhancement of activity is accompanied by increased sensitivity to inhibition by haematin and cholic acid. The subunit Mr values of the rat and human enzymes are similar (approx. 17,300), and the proteins are immunologically related. During purification, both human and rat microsomal GST enzymes are the only hepatic proteins obtained from Triton X-100-solubilized microsomal fractions that show activity towards the nephrotoxin hexachlorobuta-1,3-diene. The involvement of microsomal GST in toxification reactions is discussed.     

Activation of rat liver microsomal glutathione transferase by limited proteolysis.

The activity of rat liver microsomal glutathione transferase is increased by limited tryptic proteolysis; the membrane-bound and purified forms of the enzyme are activated about 5- and 10-fold respectively. The cleavage sites that correlate with this activation were determined by amino acid sequence analysis to be located after Lys-4 and Lys-41. Differences in the relative extent of cleavage at these two sites did not consistently affect the degree of activation. Thus the data support the conclusion that cleavage at either site results in activation. The trypsin-activated enzyme was compared with the form activated with N-ethylmaleimide, which modifies Cys-49. These two differently activated forms were found to have similar kinetic parameters, which differ from those of the unactivated enzyme. The relatedness of the two types of activation is also demonstrated by the observation that microsomal glutathione transferase fully activated by N-ethylmaleimide is virtually resistant to further activation by trypsin. This is the case despite the fact that the N-ethylmaleimide-activated enzyme is much more susceptible to trypsin cleavage at Lys-41 than is the untreated enzyme. The latter observation indicates that activation with N-ethylmaleimide is accompanied by a conformational change involving Lys-41.     

Minor thiols cysteine and cysteinylglycine regulate the competition between glutathione and protein SH groups in human platelets subjected to oxidative stress

Changes in the concentrations of protein-mixed disulfides (XS-SP) of glutathione (GSH), cysteine (CSH), and cysteinylglycine (CGSH) were studied in human platelets treated with diamide and t-BOOH in timecourse experiments (time range, 1-30 min) in order to understand the contribution of minor thiols CSH and CGSH to the regulation of glutathione-protein mixed disulfides (GS-SP). Diamide was much more potent than t-BOOH in altering the platelet thiol composition of XS-SP (threshold dose: diamide, 0.03 mM; t-BOOH, 0.5 mM) and caused reversible XS-SP peaks whose magnitude was related to the concentration of free thiols in untreated cells. Thus maximum levels of GS-SP (8 min after 0.4 mM diamide) were about 16-fold higher than those of controls (untreated platelets, GS-SP = 0.374 nmol/10(9) platelets), whereas those of CS-SP and CGS-SP were only 4-fold increased (untreated platelets, CS-SP = 0.112 nmol/10(9) platelets; CGS-SP = 0.024 nmol/10(9) platelets). The greater effects of diamide with respect to t-BOOH were explained on the basis of the activities of fast reactive protein SH groups for diamide and glutathione reductase (GR) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PDH) for t-BOOH. The addition of cysteine (0.3 mM, at 4 min) after treatment of platelets with 0.4 mM diamide increased the rate of reversal of GS-SP peaks to normal values, but also caused a relevant change in CGS-SP with respect to that of platelets treated with diamide alone. An increased gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase activity was found in platelets treated with diamide. Moreover, untreated platelets were found to release and hydrolyze GSH to CGSH and CSH. Ratios of thiols/disulfides (XSH/XSSX) and activities of GR and G-6PDH were also related to a high reducing potential exerted by GSH but not by minor thiols. The lower mass and charge of minor thiols is a likely requisite of the regulation of GS-SP levels in platelets.     

Microsomal glutathione-dependent protection against lipid peroxidation acts through a factor other than glutathione peroxidase and glutathione S-transferase in rat liver

Ascorbate-Fe3+-induced and NADPH-induced lipid peroxidation of rat liver microsomes were inhibited by glutathione (GSH). This inhibition was due to microsomal GSH-dependent factor. This factor was heat labile, and storage of microsomes at 4 degrees C for 1 week diminished the activity. GSH could not be substituted by other sulfhydryl compounds tested. Deoxycholate (1 mM) and bromosulfophthalein (0.1 mM) inhibited GSH-dependent protection but did not inhibit microsomal GSH peroxidase activity. Iodoacetate (10 mM) inhibited GSH-dependent protection but did not inhibit microsomal GSH S-transferase. N-Ethylmaleimide (0.1 mM) and oxidized glutathione (10 mM) inhibited GSH-dependent protection but activated microsomal GSH S-transferase activity. These results indicate the existence of a heat-labile, microsomal GSH-dependent protective factor against lipid peroxidation that acts through a factor other than GSH-peroxidase and GSH S-transferase.     

Role of cysteine residues in the activity of rat glutathione transferase P (7-7): elucidation by oligonucleotide site-directed mutagenesis

To clarify the role(s) of thiol (sulfhydryl) groups of cysteine (Cys) residues in the activity of the rat glutathione transferase P (7-7) form (GST-P), a cDNA clone, pGP5, containing the entire coding sequence of GST-P (Y. Sugioka et al., (1985) Nucleic Acids Res. 13, 6044-6057) was inserted into the expression vector pKK233-2 and the recombinant GST-P (rGST-P) expressed in E. coli JM109. All four Cys residues in rGST-P were independently substituted with alanine (Ala) by site-directed mutagenesis, the resultant mutants as well as the rGST-P being identical to GST-P purified from liver preneoplastic nodules with regard to molecular weight and immunochemical staining. Since all mutants proved as enzymatically active towards 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as liver GST-P, it was indicated that none of the four Cys residues is essential for GST-P activity. However, the mutant with Ala at the 47th position from the N-terminus (Ala47) became resistant to irreversible inactivation by 0.1 mM N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), whereas the other three mutants remained as sensitive as the nonmutant type (rGST-P). Ala47 was also resistant to inactivation by the physiological disulfides, cystamine or cystine, which cause mixed disulfide and/or intra- or inter-subunit disulfide bond formation. These results suggest that the 47-Cys residue of GST-P may be located near the glutathione binding site, and modulation of this residue by thiol/disulfide exchange may play an important role in regulation of activity.     

Role of sulfhydryl groups in phospholipid methylation reactions of cardiac sarcolemma

The effect of reagents that modify sulfur-containing amino acid residues in the phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase was studied in the isolated rat cardiac sarcolemma by employing S-adenosyl-L-[methyl-³H]methionine as a methyl donor. Dithiothreitol protected the sulfhydryl groups in the membrane and caused a concentration- and time-dependent increase of phospholipid N-methylation at three different catalytic sites. This stimulation was highest (9-fold) in the presence of 1 MM MgCl₂ and 0.1 µM S-adenosyl-L-[methyl-³H]methionine at pH 8.0 (catalytic site 1), and was associated with an enhancement of V_max without changes in K_m for the methyl donor. Thiol glutathione was less stimulatory than dithiothreitol; glutathione disulfide inhibited the phosphatidylethanolamine N-methylation by 50%. The alkylating reagents, N-ethylmaleimide and methylmethanethiosulfonate, inhibited the N-methylation with IC_5O of 6.9 and 14.1 µM, respectively; this inhibition was prevented by 1 mM dithiothreitol. These results indicate a critical role of sulfhydryl groups for the activity of the cardiac sarcolemmal phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase and suggest that this enzyme system in cardiac sarcolemma may be controlled by the glutathione/glutathione disulfide redox state in the cell.Abbreviations AdoMet S-Adenosyl-L-methionine - AdoHey S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine - DTNB 5,5dithiobis (2-nitrobenzoate) - NEM N-ethylmaleimide - MMTS methylmethanethiosulfonate - DTT dithiothreitol - EDTA Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid - GSH glutathione - GSSG glutathione disulfide - PE phosphatidylethanolamine - PMME phosphatidyl-N-monomethylethamolamine - PDME phosphatidyl-N-dimethylethanolamine - PC phosphatidylcholine - NPL nonpolar lipids - SL sarcolemma     

Studies of endogenous inhibitors of microsomal glutathione S-transferase.

Glutathione S-transferase is present in rat liver microsomal fraction, but its activity is low relative to the transferase activity present in the soluble fraction of the hepatocyte. We have found, however, that the activity of microsomal glutathione S-transferase is increased 5-fold after treatment with small unilamellar vesicles made from phosphatidylcholine. The increase in activity is due to the removal of an inhibitor of the enzyme from the microsomal membrane. The inhibitor is present in the organic layer of a washed Folch extract of the microsomal fraction. When this fraction of the microsomal extract is reconstituted in the form of small unilamellar vesicles, it inhibits microsomal glutathione S-transferase that had been activated by prior treatment with small unilamellar vesicles of pure phosphatidylcholine, but does not affect the activity of unactivated microsomal glutathione S-transferase. The inhibitor did not seem to be formed during the isolation of the microsomal fraction, and hence may be a physiological regulator of microsomal glutathione S-transferase. In this regard, both free fatty acid (palmitate) and lysophosphatidylcholine were shown to inhibit the enzyme reversibly. The results indicate that the activity of microsomal glutathione S-transferase is far greater than appreciated until now, and that this form of the enzyme may be an important factor in the hepatic metabolism of toxic electrophiles.     

Nitration of tyrosine 92 mediates the activation of rat microsomal glutathione s-transferase by peroxynitrite

There is increasing evidence that protein function can be modified by nitration of tyrosine residue(s), a reaction catalyzed by proteins with peroxidase activity, or that occurs by interaction with peroxynitrite, a highly reactive oxidant formed by the reaction of nitric oxide with superoxide. Although there are numerous reports describing loss of function after treatment of proteins with peroxynitrite, we recently demonstrated that the microsomal glutathione S-transferase 1 is activated rather than inactivated by peroxynitrite and suggested that this could be attributed to nitration of tyrosine residues rather than to other effects of peroxynitrite. In this report, the nitrated tyrosine residues of peroxynitrite-treated microsomal glutathione S-transferase 1 were characterized by mass spectrometry and their functional significance determined. Of the seven tyrosine residues present in the protein, only those at positions 92 and 153 were nitrated after treatment with peroxynitrite. Three mutants (Y92F, Y153F, and Y92F, Y153F) were created using site-directed mutagenesis and expressed in LLC-PK1 cells. Treatment of the microsomal fractions of these cells with peroxynitrite resulted in an approximately 2-fold increase in enzyme activity in cells expressing the wild type microsomal glutathione S-transferase 1 or the Y153F mutant, whereas the enzyme activity of Y92F and double site mutant was unaffected. These results indicate that activation of microsomal glutathione S-transferase 1 by peroxynitrite is mediated by nitration of tyrosine residue 92 and represents one of the few examples in which a gain in function has been associated with nitration of a specific tyrosine residue.     

Biosynthesis of dimethyl selenide from sodium selenite in rat liver and kidney cell-free systems.

A pathway for the synthesis of dimethyl selenide from sodium selenite was studied in rat liver and kidney fractions under anaerobic conditions in the presence of GSH, a NADPH-generating system, and S-adenosylmethionine. Chromatography of liver or kidney soluble fraction on Sephadex G-75 yielded a Fraction C (30,000 molecular weight) which synthesized dimethyl selenide, but at a low rate. Addition of proteins eluting at the void volume (Fraction A) to Fraction C restored full activity. Fractionation of Fraction A on DEAE-cellulose revealed that its ability to stimulate Fraction C was associated with two fractions, one containing glutathione reductase and the other a NADPH-dependent disulfide reductase. It was concluded that Fraction C contains a methyltransferase acting on small amounts of hydrogen selenide produced non-enzymically by the reaction of selenite with GSH, and that stimulation by Fraction A results partly from the NADPH-linked formation of hydrogen selenide catalyzed by glutathione reductase present in Fraction A. Washed liver microsomal fraction incubated with selenite plus 20 mM GSH also synthesized dimethyl selenide, but addition of soluble fraction stimulated activity. A synergistic effect was obtained when liver soluble fraction was added to microsomal fraction in the presence of a physiological level of GSH (2 mM), whereas at 20 mM GSH the effect was merely additive. The microsomal component of the liver system was labile, had maximal activity around pH 7.5, and was exceedingly sensitive to NaAsO2 (93% inhibition by 10(-6) M arsenite in the presence of a 20,000-fold excess of GSH). The microsomal activity apparently results from a Se-methyltransferase, possibly a dithiol protein, that methylates hydrogen selenide produced enzymically by the soluble fraction or non-enzymically when a sufficiently high concentration of GSH is used.     

Affinity labeling of Cys111 of glutathione S-transferase, isoenzyme 1-1, by S-(4-bromo-2,3-dioxobutyl)glutathione.

Incubation of S-(4-bromo-2,3-dioxobutyl)glutathione (S-BDB-G), a reactive analogue of glutathione, with the 1-1 isoenzyme of rat liver glutathione S-transferase at pH 6.5 and 25 degrees C results in a time-dependent inactivation of the enzyme. k(obs) exhibits a nonlinear dependence on S-BDB-G from 50 to 1200 microM, with a kmax of 0.111 min-1 and KI = 185 microM. The addition of 5 mM S-hexylglutathione, a competitive inhibitor with respect to glutathione, gives almost complete protection against inactivation by S-BDB-G. About 1.2 mol of [3H]S-BDB-G/mol of enzyme subunit is incorporated when the enzyme is 85% inactivated, whereas 0.33 mol of reagent/mol of subunit is incorporated in the presence of S-hexylglutathione when the enzyme has lost only 17% of its original activity. Modified enzyme, prepared by incubating glutathione S-transferase with [3H]S-BDB-G in the absence or in the presence of S-hexylglutathione, was reduced with sodium borohydride, reacted with N-ethylmaleimide, and digested with alpha-chymotrypsin. Analysis of the chymotryptic digests, fractionated by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography, revealed Cys111 as the amino acid whose reaction with S-BDB-G correlates with enzyme inactivation. It is concluded that Cys111 lies within or near the hydrophobic substrate binding site of glutathione S-transferase, isoenzyme 1-1.     

Role of regucalcin as an activator of Ca(2+)-ATPase activity in rat liver microsomes.

The effect of Ca(2+)-binding protein regucalcin on Ca(2+)-ATPase activity in isolated rat liver microsomes was investigated. The presence of regucalcin (0.1-1.0 microM) in the enzyme reaction mixture led to a significant increase in Ca(2+)-ATPase activity. Regucalcin significantly stimulated ATP-dependent (45)Ca(2+) uptake by the microsomes. Thapsigargin (10(-6) M), a specific inhibitor of microsomal Ca(2+) pump enzyme (Ca(2+)-ATPase), clearly inhibited regucalcin (0.5 microM)-increased microsomal Ca(2+)-ATPase activity. Liver microsomal Ca(2+)-ATPase activity was markedly decreased by N-ethylmaleimide (NEM; 2.5 mM), while the activity was clearly elevated by dithiothreitol (DTT; 2.5 mM), indicating that the sulfhydryl (SH) group of the enzyme is an active site. The effect of regucalcin (0.5 microM) in increasing Ca(2+)-ATPase activity was completely inhibited by the presence of NEM (2.5 mM) or digitonin (10(-2) %), a solubilizing reagent of membranous lipids. Moreover, the effect of regucalcin on enzyme activity was seen in the presence of Ca(2+) ionophore (A23187; 10(-7) M). The present study demonstrates that regucalcin can stimulate Ca(2+) pump activity in rat liver microsomes, and that the protein may act the SH groups of microsomal Ca(2+)-ATPase.     

Cloning, nucleotide sequence, and disruption of Streptococcus mutans glutathione reductase gene (gor).

We cloned and sequenced the glutathione reductase gene (gor) of an oxygen-tolerant Streptococcus mutans, and constructed a gor-disruption mutant by homologous recombination. The gor gene consisted of 1,350 bp, coding for a protein of 450 amino acid residues. The deduced amino acid sequence of the S. mutans gor gene product showed extensive similarity with those of glutathione reductases from prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Although the mutant could grow aerobically, it showed no growth in the presence of 2 mM diamide, a thiol-specific oxidant. In contrast, growth of the wild-type strain was not significantly inhibited by 2 mM diamide, and glutathione reductase activity was increased 2.2-fold under these conditions. In addition, the level of glutathione reductase activity in the wild-type strain was increased 3.6-fold upon exposure to air, and the elevated level of the enzyme was retained throughout the aerobic growth. Thus, glutathione reductase may be important in protection of S. mutans against oxidative stress.