High Km soluble 5'-nucleotidase from human placenta. Properties and allosteric regulation by IMP and ATP

A human placental soluble "high Km" 5'-nucleotidase has been separated from "low Km" 5'-nucleotidase and nonspecific phosphatase by AMP-Sepharose affinity chromatography. The enzyme was purified 8000-fold to a specific activity of 25.6 mumol/min/mg. The subunit molecular mass is 53 kDa, and the native molecular mass is 210 kDa, suggesting a tetrameric structure. Soluble high Km 5'-nucleotidase is most active with IMP and GMP and their deoxy derivatives. IMP is hydrolyzed 15 times faster than AMP. The enzyme has a virtually absolute requirement for magnesium ions and is regulated by them. Purine nucleoside 5'-triphosphates strongly activate the enzyme with the potency order dATP greater than ATP greater than GTP. 2,3-Diphosphoglycerate activates the enzyme as potently as ATP. Three millimolar ATP decreased the Km for IMP from 0.33 to 0.09 mM and increased the Vmax 12-fold. ATP activation was modified by the IMP concentration. At 20 microM IMP the ATP-dependent activation curve was sigmoidal, while at 2 mM IMP it was hyperbolic. The A0.5 values for ATP were 2.26 and 0.70 mM, and the relative maximal velocities were 32.9 and 126.0 nmol/min, respectively. Inorganic phosphate shifts the hyperbolic substrate velocity relationship for IMP to a sigmoidal one. With physiological concentrations of cofactors (3 mM ATP, 1-4 mM Pi, 150 mM KCl) at pH 7.4, the enzyme is 25-35 times more active toward 100 microM IMP than 100 microM AMP. These data show that: (a) soluble human placental high Km 5'-nucleotidase coexists in human placenta with the low Km enzyme; (b) under physiological conditions the enzyme favors the hydrolysis of IMP and is critically regulated by IMP, ATP, and Pi levels; and (c) kinetic properties of ATP and IMP are each modified by the other compound suggesting complex interaction of the associated binding sites.     

5'-nucleotidase from the electric ray electric lobe. Primary structure and relation to mammalian and procaryotic enzymes.

A cDNA encoding a 5'-nucleotidase was identified by screening a lambda gt10 cDNA library from the electric lobe of Discopyge ommata using a cDNA probe containing the complete open reading frame coding for the rat liver enzyme. Nucleotide sequence analysis defines an open reading frame of 577 amino acids, corresponding to a calculated molecular mass of 63,833 Da. The N-terminus of the mature protein, as determined by direct protein sequencing, is preceded by 29 amino acid residues comprising a signal peptide. The C-terminus contains a stretch of hydrophobic amino acids, considered to be cleaved on post-translational modification and exchanged for glycosylphosphatidylinositol as a membrane anchor. The predicted protein contains four potential N-linked glycosylation sites. Electric ray 5'-nucleotidase shares 61% amino acid identity with the enzymes from rat liver and human placenta, and about 23% with bacterial proteins possessing 5'-nucleotidase activity and also additional enzyme activities like UDP-glucose hydrolase. Polyclonal antibodies raised against 5'-nucleotidase from mammalian sources or the electric ray electric organ reveal mutual cross-reactivity. Interestingly, there are 5-7 domains highly conserved in procaryotes and vertebrates in enzymes exhibiting 5'-nucleotidase, 3'-nucleotidase or phosphodiesterase activity. 5'-nucleotidase isolated from Torpedo electric organ hydrolyzes UDP-glucose at 8% of the rate of AMP hydrolysis. The possible phylogenetic origin of vertebrate 5'-nucleotidase from multifunctional nucleotide hydrolases is discussed.     

Kinetic properties of bifunctional 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase from spinach leaves.

A cDNA encoding 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase was isolated from a Spinacia oleracea leaf library and used to express a recombinant enzyme in Escherichia coli and Spodoptera frugiperda cells. The insoluble protein expressed in E. coli was purified and used to raise antibodies. Western blot analysis of a protein extract from spinach leaf showed a single band of 90.8 kDa. Soluble protein was purified to homogeneity from S. frugiperda cells infected with recombinant baculovirus harboring the isolated cDNA. The soluble protein had a molecular mass of 320 kDa, estimated by gel filtration chromatography, and a subunit size of 90.8 kDa. The purified protein had activity of both 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase specific activity 10.4-15.9 nmol min(-1) x mg protein (-1) and fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase (specific activity 1.65-1.75 nmol x mol(-1) mg protein(-1). The 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase activity was activated by inorganic phosphate, and inhibited by 3-carbon phosphorylated metabolites and pyrophosphate. In the presence of phosphate, 3-phosphoglycerate was a mixed inhibitor with respect to both fructose 6-phosphate and ATP. Fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase activity was sensitive to product inhibition; inhibition by inorganic phosphate was uncompetitive, whereas inhibition by fructose 6-phosphate was mixed. These kinetic properties support the view that the level of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate in leaves is determined by the relative concentrations of hexose phosphates, three-carbon phosphate esters and inorganic phosphate in the cytosol through reciprocal modulation of 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase and fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase activities of the bifunctional enzyme.     

Biosynthesis of the cyanobacterial reserve polymer multi-L-arginyl-poly-L-aspartic acid (cyanophycin): mechanism of the cyanophycin synthetase reaction studied with synthetic primers.

Biosynthesis of the cyanobacterial nitrogen reserve cyanophycin (multi-L-arginyl-poly-L-aspartic acid) is catalysed by cyanophycin synthetase, an enzyme that consists of a single kind of polypeptide. Efficient synthesis of the polymer requires ATP, the constituent amino acids aspartic acid and arginine, and a primer like cyanophycin. Using synthetic peptide primers, the course of the biosynthetic reaction was studied. The following results were obtained: (a) sequence analysis suggests that cyanophycin synthetase has two ATP-binding sites and hence probably two active sites; (b) the enzyme catalyses the formation of cyanophycin-like polymers of 25-30 kDa apparent molecular mass in vitro; (c) primers are elongated at their C-terminus; (d) the constituent amino acids are incorporated stepwise, in the order aspartic acid followed by arginine, into the growing polymer. A mechanism for the cyanophycin synthetase reaction is proposed; (e) the specificity of the enzyme for its amino-acid substrates was also studied. Glutamic acid cannot replace aspartic acid as the acidic amino acid, whereas lysine can replace arginine but is incorporated into cyanophycin at a much lower rate.     

Partial purification and properties of an AMP-specific soluble 5''-nucleotidase from pigeon heart.

A soluble 5'-nucleotidase was purified 200-fold from pigeon heart. The enzyme (1) had an apparent molecular mass close to 150 kDa, (2) had a neutral pH optimum and hydrolysed a wide range of nucleoside 5'-monophosphates with a 15-fold preference for AMP over IMP, (3) at near-physiological concentrations of AMP was activated by ADP but not by ATP, (4) was inhibited by high Mg2+ concentration and high ionic strength, (5) was weakly inhibited by p-nitrophenol phosphate and Pi, and (6) was non-competitively inhibited more potently by 5'-deoxy-5'-isobutylthioinosine than by 5'-deoxy-5'-isobutylthioadenosine, but not by [alpha,beta-methylene]ADP. The data show that the enzyme is distinct from the ecto-5'-nucleotidase and from the previously purified IMP-specific 5'-nucleotidase. They also predict that the enzyme is activated during ATP catabolism and hence will generate a more-than-linear increase in the adenosine-formation rate in response to an increase in cytosolic AMP concentration.     

Extracellular Ca2(+)-dependent inducible alkaline phosphatase from extremely halophilic archaebacterium Haloarcula marismortui.

When starved of inorganic phosphate, the extremely halophilic archaebacterium Haloarcula marismortui produces the enzyme alkaline phosphatase and secretes it to the medium. This inducible extracellular enzyme is a glycoprotein whose subunit molecular mass is 160 kDa, as estimated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis. The native form of the enzyme is heterogeneous and composed of multiple oligomeric forms. The enzymatic activity of the halophilic alkaline phosphatase is maximal at pH 8.5, and the enzyme is inhibited by phosphate. Unlike most alkaline phosphatases, the halobacterial enzyme requires Ca2+ and not Zn2+ ions for its activity. Both calcium ions (in the millimolar range) and NaCl (in the molar range) are required for the stability of the enzyme.     

Primary structure of rat liver 5'-nucleotidase deduced from the cDNA. Presence of the COOH-terminal hydrophobic domain for possible post-translational modification by glycophospholipid

Rat liver 5'-nucleotidase was purified from a crude microsomal fraction, and its molecular mass was estimated to be 73 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The purified protein was subjected to cleavage with CNBr or lysyl endopeptidase, and the resulting 21 peptides as well as the NH2 terminus of the native protein were sequenced by Edman degradation. For further information on the molecular structure, we constructed a lambda gt11 liver cDNA library and isolated two cDNA clones for 5'-nucleotidase, lambda cNTP6 and lambda cNT34. The 3.2-kilobase cDNA insert of lambda cNTP6 contains an open reading frame that encodes a 576-residue polypeptide with a calculated size of 63,965 Da, which is in reasonable agreement with that of 5'-nucleotidase (62 kDa) immunoprecipitated from cell-free translation products. The NH2-terminal 28 residues comprise a signal peptide, which is followed by the NH2-terminal sequence of the purified protein. The predicted structure contains all the other peptide sequences determined by Edman degradation. Five potential N-linked glycosylation sites are found in the molecule, accounting for the difference in mass between the precursor and mature forms. Another characteristic feature is that the primary structure contains a highly hydrophobic amino acid sequence at the COOH terminus, a possible signal for the post-translational modification by glycophospholipid. In fact, labeling experiments of rat hepatocytes demonstrated that 3H-labeled compounds such as ethanolamine, myo-inositol, and palmitic acid, components of the glycolipid anchor, were incorporated into 5'-nucleotidase. Phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C released 5'-nucleotidase from the cell surface, and the released protein no longer contained the radioactivity of [3H]palmitic acid incorporated.     

Purification and characterization of aspartic proteinase from sunflower seeds

Aspartic proteinases were purified from sunflower seed extracts by affinity chromatography on a pepstatin A-EAH Sepharose column and by Mono Q column chromatography. The final preparation contained three purified fractions. SDS-PAGE showed that one of the fractions consisted of disulfide-bonded subunits (29 and 9 kDa), and the other two fractions contained noncovalently bound subunits (29 and 9 kDa). These purified enzymes showed optimum pH for hemoglobinolytic activity at pH 3.0 and were completely inhibited by pepstatin A like other typical aspartic proteinases. Sunflower enzymes showed more restricted specificity on oxidized insulin B chain and glucagon than other aspartic proteinases. The cDNA coding for an aspartic proteinase was cloned and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequence showed that the mature enzyme consisted of 440 amino acid residues with a molecular mass of 47,559 Da. The difference between the molecular size of purified enzymes and of the mature enzyme was due to the fact that the purified enzymes were heterodimers formed by the proteolytic processing of the mature enzyme. The derived amino acid sequence of the enzyme showed 30-78% sequence identity with that of other aspartic proteinases.     

Production, purification, and luminometric analysis of recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae MET3 adenosine triphosphate sulfurylase expressed in Escherichia coli

ATP sulfurylase cDNA from MET3 on chromosome X of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was amplified and cloned, and recombinant ATP sulfurylase was expressed in Escherichia coli. The synthesis of ATP sulfurylase was directed by an expression system that employs the regulatory genes of the luminous bacterium Vibrio fischeri. A soluble, biologically active form was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from lysates of recombinant E. coli by ammonium sulfate fractionation, ion-exchange chromatography, and gel filtration. The specific activity of the purified enzyme was estimated to 140 U/mg. The apparent molecular mass of the recombinant enzyme was determined by gel filtration to be 470 kDa, which indicates that the active enzyme is an octamer of identical subunits (the molecular mass of a single subunit is 59.3 kDa). The ATP sulfurylase activity was monitored in real time by a very sensitive bioluminometric method.     

Cytosol 5'-nucleotidase from Artemia embryos. Purification and properties

Cytosol 5'-nucleotidase (EC 3.1.3.5) has been purified near homogeneity from Artemia embryos. The enzyme cleaves preferentially IMP and GMP, and to a lesser extent other 5'-mononucleotides. The substrate-velocity plot was hyperbolic with GMP and sigmoidal with AMP. The hydrolysis of GMP is stimulated both by ATP and beta, gamma-methyleneadenosine 5'-triphosphate with the same activation constant of around 0.6 mM. Both nucleotides decreased S0.5 without affecting V. The molecular mass of the native purified enzyme was 165 kDa, and one major band of 42 kDa was detected after sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.     

Enzymatic characterisation of the multifunctional enzyme delta-(L-alpha-aminoadipyl)-L-cysteinyl-D-valine synthetase from Streptomyces clavuligerus.

delta-(L-alpha-Aminoadipyl)-L-cysteinyl-D-valine (ACV) synthetase, the multienzyme catalyzing the formation of ACV from the constituent amino acids and ATP in the presence of Mg2+ and dithioerythritol, was purified about 2700-fold from Streptomyces clavuligerus. The molecular mass of the native enzyme as determined by gel filtration chromatography is 560 kDa, while that determined by denaturing gel electrophoresis is 500 kDa. The enzyme is able to catalyze pyrophosphate exchange in dependence on L-cysteine and L-valine, but no L-alpha-aminoadipic-acid-dependent ATP/PPi exchange could be detected. Other L-cysteine- and L-valine-activating enzymes present in crude extracts were identified as aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases which could be separated from ACV synthetase. The molecular mass of these enzymes is 140 kDa for L-valine ligase and 50 kDa for L-cysteine ligase. The dissociation constants have been estimated, assuming three independent activation sites, to be 1.25 mM and 1.5 mM for cysteine and ATP, and 2.4 mM and 0.25 mM for valine and ATP, respectively. The enzyme forms a thioester with alpha-aminoadipic acid and with valine in a molar ratio of 0.6:1 (amino acid/enzyme). Thus, the bacterial ACV synthetase is a multifunctional peptide synthetase, differing from fungal ACV synthetases in its mechanism of activation of the non-protein amino acid.     

An improved procedure for purifying 5'-nucleotidase from various sources. Evidence for tissue and species differences in their molecular mass and affinity for F-actin

5'-Nucleotidase from chicken gizzard smooth muscle has been extracted, using a sulfobetaine derivate of cholic acid, and purified to homogeneity by employing three chromatographic steps. It is shown that the purification scheme can be applied to 5'-nucleotidase from other sources, such as rat liver. On sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gels, stained with silver nitrate, the purified enzyme from chicken gizzard shows a single polypeptide band with an apparent molecular mass of 79 kDa. The enzyme purified from rat liver exhibits a molecular mass of 73 kDa in agreement with published data [Bailyes, E.M., Soos, M., Jackson, P., Newby, A. C., Siddle, K. & Luzio, J.P. (1984) Biochem. J. 221, 369-377). Gel filtration, using non-denaturating detergent solutions, indicates that the native enzyme may exist as a homodimer (152 kDa) or homotetramer (310 kDa). Antibodies raised against the enzyme purified from chicken gizzard bind only 5'-nucleotidase, solubilized from chicken muscular sources, when immobilized, but not from chicken or rat liver. The existence of tissue specific variants of 5'-nucleotidase is therefore postulated and it appears that these particular isoforms can also be classified in membranous and secretory forms of 5'-nucleotidase. They also differ in their mode of interaction with actin. The AMPase activity of the membranous (= muscular) isoform is inhibited to a considerably higher percentage by F-actin than the enzyme isolated from rat liver.     

A novel L-glutamate oxidase from Streptomyces endus. Purification and properties

A new flavoenzyme using molecular oxygen to oxidize L-glutamic acid has been purified to homogeneity, as judged by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, from the culture medium of Streptomyces endus. Hydrogen peroxide, 2-oxoglutaric acid and ammonia are formed as products. Among 25 amino acids tested including D-glutamic acid, L-glutamine and L-aspartic acid, only L-glutamic acid is converted. The molecular mass of the enzyme was estimated to be about 90 kDa by gel chromatography and 50 kDa by SDS/PAGE. The subunit contains 1 molecule noncovalently bound FAD. The absorption spectrum shows maxima at 273, 355 and 457 nm and the isoelectric point is at pH 6.2. The Km value for L-glutamic acid in air-saturated phosphate pH 7.0 was estimated to be 1.1 mM, the Km for oxygen was calculated to be 1.86 mM at saturating concentration of L-glutamic acid. The enzymic reaction is inhibited by Ag+ and Hg2+ ions. The enzyme described here distinctly differs from two microbial L-glutamate oxidases purified hitherto, with regard to extremely high substrate specificity and to the subunit structure.     

Characterization of a soluble inorganic pyrophosphatase from Microcystis aeruginosa and preparation of its antibody.

A soluble inorganic pyrophosphatase was isolated from a crude extract of Microcystis aeruginosa by adsorption chromatography. The enzyme was purified to homogeneity as judged by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and nondenaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and N-terminal amino acid analysis. The molecular mass was estimated to be 80 kDa by gel filtration chromatography, 87 kDa by nondenaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and 28 kDa by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme has an isoelectric point of 4.5, which is similar to the pI values reported for other soluble inorganic pyrophosphatases. The sequence of 29 N-terminal amino acids was determined; only 4 of these amino acids are identical to those in the sequence of Saccharomyces cerevisiae inorganic pyrophosphatase. M. aeruginosa inorganic pyrophosphatase is a Mg(2+)-dependent enzyme exhibiting a pH optimum of around 7.5. Its KM value for inorganic pyrophosphate was estimated to be 1.30 mM. A specific antibody was raised in chicken to M. aeruginosa inorganic pyrophosphatase. No immunological cross-reactivity was seen when Western blots of partially purified S. cerevisiae or Escherichia coli inorganic pyrophosphatase were probed with the antibody.     

Purification and Characterization of Sperm Creatine Kinase and Guanylate Cyclase of the Sea Urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus

Creatine kinase and guanylate cyclase were purified from Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus spermatozoa. The molecular weight of the purified sperm tail creatine kinase was estimated to be 137,000 by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Sperm tail guanylate cyclase was purified by chromatography on a WGA-Sepharose column connected to a Concanavalin A-Sepharose column, and a Superose 12 HR column. The molecular weight of the tail guanylate cyclase was estimated to be 128,000 by SDS-PAGE. The specific activity of the purified enzyme was 8.25 μmol of cGMP formed/min/mg protein. Sperm-activating peptide I (SAP-I) causes an electrophoretic mobility shift of H. pulcherrimus sperm guanylate cyclase from 131 kDa to 128 kDa. The 131 kDa form of guanylate cyclase was co-purified with a 76 kDa protein, whose molecular mass is similar to that of a SAP-I receptor. The purified 131 kDa form of guanylate cyclase had higher activity than the 128 kDa form. The 131 kDa and 128 kDa forms of guanylate cyclase contained 23.83 ± 0.65 and 4.16 ± 0.45 moles of phosphate per mol protein (mean ± S.D.; n = 3), respectively. The activities of guanylate cyclase and creatine kinase increased during the testis development. During spermatogenesis, sperm tail creatine kinase was detected immunohistochemically only in mature spermatozoa.     

Purification and characterization of a ferulic acid decarboxylase from Pseudomonas fluorescens.

A ferulic acid decarboxylase enzyme which catalyzes the decarboxylation of ferulic acid to 4-hydroxy-3-methoxystyrene was purified from Pseudomonas fluorescens UI 670. The enzyme requires no cofactors and contains no prosthetic groups. Gel filtration estimated an apparent molecular mass of 40.4 (+/- 6%) kDa, whereas sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed a molecular mass of 20.4 kDa, indicating that ferulic acid decarboxylase is a homodimer in solution. The purified enzyme displayed an optimum temperature range of 27 to 30 degrees C, exhibited an optimum pH of 7.3 in potassium phosphate buffer, and had a Km of 7.9 mM for ferulic acid. This enzyme also decarboxylated 4-hydroxycinnamic acid but not 2- or 3-hydroxycinnamic acid, indicating that a hydroxy group para to the carboxylic acid-containing side chain is required for the enzymatic reaction. The enzyme was inactivated by Hg2+, Cu2+, p-chloromercuribenzoic acid, and N-ethylmaleimide, suggesting that sulfhydryl groups are necessary for enzyme activity. Diethyl pyrocarbonate, a histidine-specific inhibitor, did not affect enzyme activity.     

Membrane-bound 5'-nucleotidase in marine luminous bacteria: biochemical and immunological properties

A novel 5'-nucleotidase previously described in halophilic Vibrio costicola was detected in marine Vibrio and Photobacterium strains. The enzyme of marine bacteria was similar in its properties to the 5'-nucleotidase of Vibrio costicola; it was outwardly oriented in the cytoplasmic membrane and dephosphorylated nucleoside 5'-tri-, di-, and mono-phosphates to respective nucleosides before uptake. The enzyme in marine strains was immunologically cross-reactive with the antibody raised against the purified 5'-nucleotidase of Vibrio costicola. The uptake of the products of ATP hydrolysis was studied in Vibrio harveyi, and it was shown that both adenosine and inorganic phosphate released upon the action of 5'-nucleotidase were rapidly taken up by the cell.