Two distinct succinate thiokinases in both bloodstream and procyclic forms of Trypanosoma brucei

Two succinate thiokinase activities specific for either adenine or guanine nucleotides have been found in Trypanosoma brucei. Key glycolytic and citric acid cycle enzymes were measured to show repression of glycolysis and derepression of the citric acid cycle in the procyclic form, relative to the bloodstream form. A marked rise in adenine-linked succinate thiokinase activity accompanied a rise in activity of citric acid cycle enzymes. However, guanine-linked succinate thiokinase was found to increase only slightly in activity. These results implicate the adenine-linked enzyme as an essential component of the citric acid cycle, whereas the guanine-linked enzyme appears to be under separate control. This communication also reports for the first time the occurrence of citrate synthase activity in the bloodstream (long slender) form of T. brucei.     

Distinct physiological roles of animal succinate thiokinases. Association of guanine nucleotide-linked succinate thiokinase with ketone body utilization

Two distinct succinate thiokinases have recently been shown to exist in animal tissues, one specific for guanine nucleotide and the other for adenine nucleotide. Their physiological roles have here been investigated by comparing the levels of the two enzymes in liver and brain of normal and diabetic rats. A marked rise in the level of brain guanine nucleotide-linked succinate thiokinase in the diabetic condition is consistent with an enhanced utilization of ketone bodies and hence with the associated elevated demand for succinyl-CoA for the activation of acetoacetate. Taken together with the reported mitochondrial values of the ATP/ADP and GTP/GDP ratios, the results are interpreted to indicate that the adenine nucleotide-linked enzyme functions as a component of the citric acid cycle whereas the guanine nucleotide-linked enzyme functions in the opposite metabolic direction to produce succinyl-CoA from succinate.     

Nucleotide specificity of succinate thiokinases from bacteria.

The nucleotide specificity of succinate thiokinases, isolated from Escherichia coli, Aerobacter aerogenes, and Pseudomonas citronellolis, was determined and found to be nonspecific for adenine and 6-oxopurine nucleotides, guanine, and hypoxanthine. The enzyme from Herellae vaginicola was specific for the 6-oxopurine nucleotides. Succinate thiokinases from E. coli, A. aerogenes, and P. citronellolis also demonstrated purine nucleoside diphosphokinase activity (P-NDPK), which was 4, 9, and 40%, respectively, of the succinate thiokinase activity. P-NDPK activity was slightly stimulated by coenzyme A (CoA) and slightly inhibited by succinate; in the presence of both CoA and succinate, P-NDPK activity increased three-, three-, and sevenfold for the E. coli, A. aerogenes, and P. citronellolis enzymes, respectively. Isoelectric focusing demonstrated multiple forms of each enzyme, and the molecular weights of the A. aerogenes, P. citronellolis, and H. vaginicola enzymes were approximately 155,000.     

Physiological roles of animal succinate thiokinases Specific association of the guanine nucleotide-linked enzyme with haem biosynthesis

The discovery of two distinct succinate thiokinases in mammalian tissues, one (G-STK) specific for GDP/GTP and the other (A-STK) for ADP/ATP, poses the question of their differential metabolic roles. Evidence has suggested that the A-STK functions in the citric acid cycle in the direction of succinyl-CoA breakdown (and ATP formation) whereas one role of the G-STK appears to be the re-cycling of succinate to succinyl-CoA (at the expense of GTP) for the purpose of ketone body activation. A third metabolic participation of succinyl-CoA is in haem biosynthesis. This communication shows that in chemically induced hepatic porphyria, when the demand for succinyl-CoA is increased, it is the level of G-STK only which is elevated, that of A-STK being unaffected. The results implicate G-STK in the provision of succinyl-CoA for haem biosynthesis, a conclusion which is further supported by the observation of a high G-STK/A-STK ratio in bone marrow.     

Carboxins: Powerful selective inhibitors of succinate oxidation in animal tissues

Carboxin (5,6-dihydro-2-methyl-1,4-oxathiin-3-carboxanilide) is a systemic fungicide, reported to inhibit succinate oxidation in certain fungi, particularly $\text{Ustilago}\text{maydis}$ (corn smut). In the present study the action of carboxin and of other oxathiin derivatives on beef heart succinate dehydrogenase has been investigated. Carboxins inhibited the same activities to the same extent as thenoyltrifluoroacetone (TTF) but at much lower concentrations. For 14 carboxin derivatives the inhibition constants (concentration required to inhibit 50% of the carboxin-sensitive activity) ranged from 2 × 10^?8 to 2 × 10^?6$\text{M}$. Like TTF, carboxin derivatives did not inhibit soluble succinate dehydrogenase but inhibited the reduction of coenzyme Q analogs, of 2,6-dichlorophenolindophenol, and of phenazine methosulfate (PMS) in Complex II preparations. The same reactions and succinoxidase activity were also inhibited in inner membranes (ETP). In ETP only ～ 50% of the succinate-PMS activity was carboxin sensitive, the same fraction as is inhibited by TTF or is lost on extraction of coenzyme Q and on incubation with cyanide. While the inhibition of PMS reduction by carboxin was largely or entirely competitive in Complex II, it was predominantly non-competitive in ETP at low concentrations. Some other carboxin derivatives gave mixed inhibition patterns for PMS reduction in ETP even at low inhibitor concentrations. The complex inhibition pattern in the PMS assay seems more compatible with conformation changes affecting activity than with loss of a reaction site for PMS.     

Occurrence of two distinct types of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-2 in teleost fish

We have cloned for the first time two cDNAs encoding distinct types of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-2 (TIMP-2) from teleost fish, Japanese flounder, and designated these types as jfTIMP-2a and jfTIMP-2b. The open reading frames of the jfTIMP-2a and jfTIMP-2b cDNAs are composed of 663 and 657 nucleotides and 221 and 219 amino acids, respectively. Both jfTIMP-2s contain 12 cysteine residues, which might form six disulfide bonds as in other animals' TIMP-2s. The predicted full-length amino acid sequence of jfTIMP-2a has lower identity to jfTIMP-2b (63%) than to those of human (74%) and chicken (73%) TIMP-2s, but higher than to those of other human TIMPs (TIMP-1: 39%, TIMP-3: 43%, TIMP-4: 45%), indicating that jfTIMP-2a is a common TIMP-2, while jfTIMP-2b is unique to Japanese flounder. However, the C-terminal region including the last three disulfide bonds of jfTIMP-2b has higher amino acid identity to those of other animal TIMP-2s than to that of jfTIMP-2a. Reverse-transcribed polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis showed the mRNAs of jfTIMP-2a and jfTIMP-2b to be ubiquitously expressed in all tissues examined, but with different expression patterns. These findings suggest that the two distinct jfTIMP-2s might perform different functions in teleost tissues.     

Occurrence and localization of two distinct hydrogenases in the heterocystous cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. strain 7120

Two distinct types of hydrogenase occur in Anabaena 7120 and are distinguishable in whole filaments by the application of selective assay methods. A reversible hydrogenase occurs both in heterocysts and vegetative cells and can be selectively assayed by measuring H2 evolution from reduced methyl viologen. Activities in aerobically grown filaments were low but could be increased by 2 to 3 orders of magnitude by growing cells microaerobically. The presence of the reversible hydrogenase was independent of the N2-fixing properties of the organism, and activity did not respond to added H2 in the culture. Illumination was necessary during derepression of the reversible hydrogenase, and addition of 3-(3',4'-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea increased the amount of enzyme that was synthesized. An uptake hydrogenase occurred only in heterocysts of aerobically grown filaments, but a small amount of activity also was present in the vegetative cells of filaments grown microaerobically with 20% H2. It was assayed selectively by measuring an oxyhydrogen reaction at atmospheric levels of O2. Additional uptake hydrogenase could be elicited by including H2 or by removing O2 from the sparging gas of a culture.     

Acetoin metabolism in animal tissues

The acetoin-synthesizing activity has been studied in the skeletal muscles, brain, liver and spleen homogenates (numbered as the activity decreases). The acetoin-synthesizing activity drastically increases in case of the acetaldehyde excess and alcohol intoxication. The acetaldehyde concentrations of above 1.10(-3) M inhibit the liver pyruvate dehydrogenase activity and increase the non-oxidative transformation of pyruvate. Acetoin is rapidly metabolized in the organism eliminating from blood 10 minutes after its injection. Acetoin is an effective precursor in the biosynthesis of lipids.