Thiol-specific Reagents Research Articles

Purification and characterization of a plasma membrane ferricyanide-utilizing NADH dehydrogenase from Ehrlich tumour cells

A ferricyanide-utilizing NADH dehydrogenase (NADH-ferricyanide oxidoreductase) from the plasma membrane of Ehrlich ascites tumour cells has been purified about 1500-fold to apparent homogeneity. The method comprises the isolation of an enriched plasma membrane fraction, solubilization with Triton X-100, ion-exchange chromatography, ammonium sulphate precipitation, Cibacron Blue chromatography and fast-protein liquid chromatography with a Superose-6 gel filtration column. The specific activity of the final pool was more than 61 units/mg protein. The pure enzyme examined by SDS/PAGE displayed only one type of subunit with an apparent molecular mass of 32.0 kDa. The molecular mass of the native protein (117.0 kDa) was estimated by gel filtration; these results suggest a protein composed of four subunits of identical molecular mass. The enzyme was stable in the pH interval between 6 and 9, with maximum activity at pH values from 7.5 to 8.5. The purified enzyme showed Michaelis-Menten kinetics for the substrates, with apparent K(m) values of 4.3 X 10(-5) M and 6.7 X 10(-5) M for NADH and ferricyanide respectively. The isolated protein was strongly inhibited by Zn2+ and the thio-specific reagents mersalyl and p-chloromercuribenzenesulphonic acid.

On the Use of Thiol-modifying Agents to Determine Channel Topology

A powerful tool in the study of cloned ion channels is the combined use of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification. Site-directed mutagenesis is used to introduce new cysteine residues at specific positions in a channel protein, and chemical modification by thiol-specific reagents is then used to assess the exposure of the introduced cysteines. This method has been used to assess secondary structure, membrane topology and conformational changes. We report that one commonly used, charged reagent (MTSEA; aminoethyl methanethiosulfonate) can cross the membrane quite readily. We also find that other reagents that are quite membrane-impermeant can cross the membrane when patches are electrically leaky. Both of these undesired effects can be controlled by the use of a thiol scavenger. These findings argue for caution in the use of modifying reagents to determine the membrane topology of channels and other membrane proteins. Copyright © 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd

Identification of Contact Sites in the Actin-Thymosin β4 Complex by Distance-dependent Thiol Cross-linking

Binding sites of actin and thymosin beta 4 were investigated using a set of bifunctional thiol-specific reagents, which allowed the insertion of cross-linkers of defined lengths between cysteine residues of the complexed proteins. After the cross-linkers were attached to actin specifically at either Cys10, Cys374, or the sulfur atom of the ATP analog adenosine 5'-O-(thiotriphosphate) (ATP gamma S), the actin derivatives were reacted with synthetic thymosin beta 4 analogs containing a cysteine at one of the positions 6, 17, 28, 34, and 40. Immediate cross-linking as followed by UV spectroscopy was found for Cys374 of actin and Cys6 of thymosin beta 4, indicating that the N terminus of thymosin beta 4 is in close proximity (< or = 9.2 A) to the C terminus of actin. In contrast, only insignificant reactivity was measured for all thymosin beta 4 analogs when the cross-linkers were anchored at Cys10 of actin. A second contact site was identified by cross-linking of Cys17 and Cys28 in thymosin beta 4 with the ATP gamma S derivative bound to actin, indicating that the hexamotif of thymosin beta 4 (positions 17-22) is in close proximity (< or = 9.2 A) to the nucleotide. The importance of the amino acids 17 and 28 in thymosin beta 4 for the interaction with actin was emphasized by the finding that thymosin analogs containing cysteine in these positions exhibited strongly reduced abilities to inhibit actin polymerization.

Characterization of N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive thiol groups required for the GTP-dependent fusion of endoplasmic reticulum membranes.

The GTP-dependent fusion activity of endoplasmic reticulum membranes is thought to be required for the structural maintenance and post-mitotic regeneration of the endoplasmic reticulum. This fusion is sensitive to the thiol-alkylating agent N-ethylmaleimide. In many intracellular fusion events N-ethylmaleimide-sensitivity is associated with a homotrimeric ATPase called N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein or NSF. The addition of cytosol containing NSF is known to restore fusion activity to N-ethylmaleimide-treated membranes. We found that the inhibition of fusion of rat liver endoplasmic reticulum membranes (microsomes) by N-ethylmaleimide was not reversed by the addition of untreated cytosol. Fusion was also unaffected by treatment with a buffer known to remove NSF from membranes. Accordingly, no membrane-associated NSF was detected by immunoblot analysis. These data suggest that microsome fusion requires an N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive component distinct from NSF. This component was tightly associated with the membranes, so we used a number of chemical probes to characterize it in situ. Its thiol groups did not appear to be part of a GTP-binding site. They showed relatively low reactivity with sodium periodate, which induces the formation of disulphide bonds between proximate thiol groups. The thiols were not protected against N-ethylmaleimide by Zn2+, a potent inhibitor of fusion which is known to efficiently co-ordinate thiol groups. To characterize the topology of the fusion-related thiol groups we used bulky thiol-specific reagents prepared by conjugating BSA or 10 kDa aminodextran to the bifunctional reagent N-succinimidyl 3-(2-pyridyldithio)propionate. The inhibition of fusion by these reagents indicated that these thiols are highly exposed on the membranes. This exposure might be important for the function of these groups during GTP-triggered fusion.

Purification, partial kinetic characterization and reactive sulfhydryl groups of the phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase from Perumytilus purpuratus adductor muscle

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK) from the adductor muscle of Perumytilus purpuratus was purified to homogeneity, as determined by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The purification consisted of a three-step procedure: ammonium sulphate precipitation, ion exchange chromatography on phosphocellulose and affinity chromatography on GTP-agarose. The enzyme presented a native molecular mass of 85 kDa, appearing as an active monomer. Under denaturing conditions (SDS-PAGE), the enzyme showed a relative molecular mass of 74 kDa. The specific activity of homogeneous PEPCK in the presence of 2.3 mM Mn 2+ was 13.0 U/mg at 25°C. Apparent K m values at pH 7 and in the presence of 2.3 MM Mn 2+ were 0.55, 2.4 and 0.045 mM for phosphoenolpyruvate, HCO 3 and inosine 5 ′-diphosphate (IDP), respectively. Apparent K m for GDP was < 0.01 mM. ADP was not a substrate of the enzyme. Inosine 5'-triphosphate (ITP) inhibited the PEPCK activity (IC 50 = 1.7 mM), and this inhibition was not reverted by 5 mM alanine. The enzyme showed an optimum pH of 6.7 and required a divalent metal ion for activity, in the following order of effectiveness: Co 2+ > Mn 2+> Zn 2+ Mg 2+ Mg 2+ alone also activated (partially) the PEPCK. P. purpuratus adductor muscle PEPCK was inactivated by the thiol specific reagent 5,5'-dithiobis (2-nitrobenzoate) (DTNB). Titration experiments of the native enzyme suggest the presence of three thiols in the enzyme. From substrate protection experiments with IDP plus Mn 2+ and the kinetic studies of inactivation at 0°C, it is concluded that the loss of enzymatic activity with DTNB was caused by the modification of one monothiol group in the nucleotide binding region.

Irreversible thermal denaturation of Torpedo californica acetylcholinesterase.

Thermal denaturation of Torpedo californica acetylcholinesterase, a disulfide-linked homodimer with 537 amino acids in each subunit, was studied by differential scanning calorimetry. It displays a single calorimetric peak that is completely irreversible, the shape and temperature maximum depending on the scan rate. Thus, thermal denaturation of acetylcholinesterase is an irreversible process, under kinetic control, which is described well by the two-state kinetic scheme N-->D, with activation energy 131 +/- 8 kcal/mol. Analysis of the kinetics of denaturation in the thermal transition temperature range, by monitoring loss of enzymic activity, yields activation energy of 121 +/- 20 kcal/mol, similar to the value obtained by differential scanning calorimetry. Thermally denatured acetylcholinesterase displays spectroscopic characteristics typical of a molten globule state, similar to those of partially unfolded enzyme obtained by modification with thiol-specific reagents. Evidence is presented that the partially unfolded states produced by the two different treatments are thermodynamically favored relative to the native state.

Steroidal affinity labels of the estrogen receptor. 2. 17 alpha-[(Haloacetamido)alkyl]estradiols.

In a previous study, we described affinity labeling of the lamb uterine estrogen receptor by 17 alpha-[(bromoacetoxy)alkyl/alkynyl]estradiols. However, the intrinsic receptor-alkylating activities of these compounds were probably very hampered by their poor hydrolytic stability in estrogen receptor-containing tissue extracts. Therefore, (i) to develop affinity labels of the receptor not susceptible to hydrolysis and (ii) to specify the structural requirements for 17 alpha-electrophilic estradiol derivatives to be potent affinity labels of the receptor, we prepared four 17 alpha-[(haloacetamido)alkyl]estradiols. Three were bromoacetamides differing at the alkyl substituent (methyl, ethyl, or propyl), and the last was an [(iodoacetamido)propyl]estradiol prepared under both nonradioactive and 3H-labeled forms. Although their affinities for the estrogen receptor were very low (from 0.008% to 0.02% that of estradiol), they appeared to be efficient affinity labels of the receptor due to their irreversible inhibition of [3H]estradiol specific binding in lamb uterine cytosol. The effect of the compounds was time-, pH-, and concentration-dependent, with > 50% and > 80% estrogen-binding sites inactivated at 0 degrees C and pH 8.5, for the less active and more active compounds, respectively; the corresponding IC50 values varied from approximately 20 nM to approximately 10 microM. The order of efficiency was [(bromoacetamido)methyl]estradiol < [(bromoacetamido)ethyl]estradiol << [(bromoacetamido)propyl]estradiol < [(iodoacetamido)propyl]estradiol. Affinity labeling was directly demonstrated by ethanol-resistant binding of [3H][(iodoacetamido)propyl]estradiol to the receptor. The irreversible inactivation of the hormone-binding site by the four haloacetamides was prevented by treatment of the cytosol with the thiol-specific reagent methyl methanethiosulfonate, suggesting that the target of these compounds was probably the -SH of cysteines. Negative results obtained with other 17 alpha-electrophilic estradiol derivatives suggested that affinity labeling of the receptor by such derivatives required a minimal distance, including at least four C-C or C-N bonds, between the steroid and the electrophilic carbon. We therefore concluded that target cysteines in the hormone-binding site were not in direct contact with the steroid but probably in the immediate neighborhood of the D ring of the bound steroid.

Localization of Reactive Cysteine Residues by Maleidoyl Undecagold in the Mitochondrial Creatine Kinase Octamer

Octamers of mitochondrial creatine kinase (Mi-CK) wore modified with the thiol-specific reagents N-ethylmaleimide or the gold-coupled derivative, maleidoyl undecagold. The kinetics of inhibition of the Mi-CK catalysis was shown to be comparable for both reagents, suggesting that the large gold cluster complex is accessible to the reactive cysteines. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that two of eight cysteines per Mi-CK monomer were labeled with maleidoyl undecagold with a similar affinity for the functional maleimide group. Gel exclusion chromatography of labeled molecules showed that the octameric structure of Mi-CK was preserved after thiol modification. Freeze-dried gold-labeled octamers visualized by electron microscopy under cryoconditions were enhanced in contrast and showed a well-preserved fourfold symmetry of the end-on view, Image analysis of gold-labeled Mi-CK exhibited an averaged end-on view with four strong contrast signals located at the periphery of the notamer, whereas the center of the molecule remained electron translucent. We conclude that the two cysteine residues per monomer labeled with maleidoyl undecagold are located at the octamer's perimeter and we discuss the possible role of these reactive cysteines in enzyme catalysis.

Membrane Topology of a Cysteine-less Mutant of Human P-glycoprotein

A human P-glycoprotein devoid of cysteine residues was constructed by site-directed mutagenesis for studying its topology. The cDNA for human P-glycoprotein-A52 in which codons for cysteines 137, 431, 717, 956, 1074, 1125, 1227, 1288, and 1304 were changed to Ala, was transfected into NIH 3T3 cells and analyzed with respect to its ability to confer resistance to various drugs. The cysteine-less P-glycoprotein-A52 retained the ability to confer resistance to vinblastine, colchicine, doxorubicin, and actinomycin D with only a small decrease in efficiency relative to wild-type enzyme. Cysteine residues were then reintroduced into predicted extracellular or cytoplasmic loops of the cysteine-less P-glycoprotein-A52, and the topology of the protein was determined using membrane-permeant and impermeant thiol-specific reagents. It was found that 8 of 15 cysteine residues introduced into P-glycoprotein-A52 could be biotinylated, when cells expressing the mutant P-glycoprotein were incubated with membrane-permeant biotin maleimide. Biotinylation of a cysteine residue placed in predicted extracellular loops between transmembrane segment (TM) 5 and TM6, TM7 and TM8, or TM11 and TM12 was blocked by pretreatment of the cells with a membrane-impermeant maleimide, suggesting that these residues have an extracellular location. By contrast, biotinylation of cysteine residues located in the predicted cytoplasmic loops between TM2 and TM3, TM4 and TM5, TM8 and TM9, or TM10 and TM11 were not blocked by pretreatment with membrane impermeant maleimide, suggesting that these residues were in the cytoplasm. These results are consistent with the model of P-glycoprotein, which predicts six transmembrane segments in each of the two homologous halves of the molecule.

Purification and properties of a novel type of malonate decarboxylase from Acinetobacter calcoaceticus.

A novel type of malonate decarboxylase which is induced and located in periplasm of Acinetobacter calcoaceticus grown on malonate as sole carbon and energy source was purified to homogeneity. The purified 185-kDa decarboxylase was found to be an oligomer composed of three different polypeptides in a ratio of 2:1:1, designated alpha (65 kDa), beta (32 kDa), and gamma (25 kDa). Optimum pH was 6.8, while pI was 6.39. The enzyme was highly specific for malonate with Km 1.4 mM. This enzyme contained a biotin prosthetic group on alpha subunit which does not seem to be directly related to malonate decarboxylation. The purified enzyme showed almost no activity; activity was restored, however, by treatment with acetic anhydride or malonyl-CoA, which formed an acetyl-enzyme. The 14C-acylated enzyme was isolated by a gel filtration from the reaction mixtures containing [2-14C]malonyl-CoA and the enzyme or [2-14C]malonate, malonyl-CoA, and the enzyme. When treated by thiol-specific reagents, such as N-ethylmaleimide, 5,5'-dinitro-bis(2-nitrobenzoic acid), and 2-nitro-5-thiocyanobenzoic acid, the purified enzyme showed no increase in activity after the acetic anhydride treatment. The thiol-specific reagents failed to inhibit, however, the catalytically active acetyl-enzyme, suggesting that the site of acylation is the thiol group. Further evidence was provided when sodium borohydride inactivated the acetyl-enzyme. These results suggest that malonate decarboxylation by this enzyme may proceed by a catalytic cycle in which the acetyl group on the active enzyme is displaced by malonate, which binds covalently to a thiol group on the enzyme and is subsequently decarboxylated.

Epitope mapping by cysteine mutagenesis: Identification of residues involved in recognition by three monoclonal antibodies directed against LamB glycoporin in the outer membrane of Escherichia coli

Site-directed mutagenesis of the lamB gene was used to introduce individual cysteine substitutions at 20 sites in two regions (surface loops L7 and L8) of LamB protein significant in antibody recognition. Characterisation of cysteine mutants involved immunoblotting with three surface-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb72, mAb302, mAb347) before and after incubation with thiol-specific reagents. In contrast to an earlier study that showed no amino acid changes affecting recognition by all three antibodies, changes at six amino acids were found to influence a common core epitope. These core sites included one residue (T336) in the predicted loop L7 containing amino acids 329–342 and four (Y379, N387, N389, K392, F398) in the large surface loop involving residues 370–412. Individual antibodies made additional but distinct contacts within the two studied regions, with mAb347 binding the most different and affected by seven substitutions in the 328–338 regions. The lamB mutants were also tested for phage λ receptor activity and starch binding before and after thiol modification and were useful in extending previous maps of these ligand binding sites.

Epitope mapping by cysteine mutagenesis: identification of residues involved in recognition by three monoclonal antibodies directed against LamB glycoporin in the outer membrane of Escherichia coli.

Site-directed mutagenesis of the lamB gene was used to introduce individual cysteine substitutions at 20 sites in two regions (surface loops L7 and L8) of LamB protein significant in antibody recognition. Characterisation of cysteine mutants involved immunoblotting with three surface-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb72, mAb302, mAb347) before and after incubation with thiol-specific reagents. In contrast to an earlier study that showed no amino acid changes affecting recognition by all three antibodies, changes at six amino acids were found to influence a common core epitope. These core sites included one residue (T336) in the predicted loop L7 containing amino acids 329-342 and four (Y379, N387, N389, K392, F398) in the large surface loop involving residues 370-412. Individual antibodies made additional but distinct contacts within the two studied regions, with mAb347 binding the most different and affected by seven substitutions in the 328-338 regions. The lamB mutants were also tested for phage lambda receptor activity and starch binding before and after thiol modification and were useful in extending previous maps of these ligand binding sites.

Calcium binding to HMG1 protein induces DNA looping by the HMG-box domains

Electron microscopy has shown that non-histone chromosomal HMG1 could induce DNA looping or compaction in the presence (but not in the absence) of Ca 2+. The effect of calcium on DNA looping and compaction was interpreted as calcium binding to the acidic C-domain of HMG1. Both individual DNA-binding HMG1-box domains A and B were found to be involved in DNA looping and compaction. Treatment of HMG1 with a thiol-specific reagent, N-ethylmaleimide, inhibited the ability of the protein to induce DNA looping and compaction but not the electrostatic interaction with DNA. These results indicated that cysteine-sulfhydryl groups of the HMG1-box domains A and B are specifically involved in DNA looping and compaction, and that in the absence of calcium the acidic C-domain down-regulates these effects by modulation of the DNA-binding properties of the HMG1-box domains.

Identification of an essential cysteine residue in pyridoxal phosphatase from human erythrocytes.

Pyridoxal-specific phosphatase purified from human erythrocytes was inactivated by a variety of thiol-specific reagents in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. The presence of pyridoxal phosphate, a substrate, or inorganic phosphate, a competitive inhibitor, protected the enzyme from inactivation. Phosphatase inactivated by disulfide reagents was reactivated by the addition of excess dithiothreitol, indicating that the inactivation was due to formation of a mixed disulfide between the reagent and a free cysteinyl residue at or near the active site of the enzyme. Incorporation of either 1 mol of 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB), 0.6 mol of iodo[3H]acetate, or 0.6 mol of N-[3H]ethylmaleimide per mol of subunit led to complete inactivation of the enzyme. High concentration of phosphate prevented the incorporation of DTNB and iodo[3H]acetate. Amino acid analysis of carboxymethylated enzyme and DTNB titration of the denatured phosphatase indicated that there may be only 1 cysteinyl residue per subunit. Modification by iodoacetate did not affect the quaternary structure of the enzyme. The phosphatase modified by iodo[3H]acetate was subjected to trypsin digestion, and the resulting peptides were separated on a reverse phase C18 column. Two radioactive peaks were obtained and contained a peptide with the N-terminal sequence of Ala-Gln-Gly-Val-Leu-Phe-Asp-Cys(Cm)-Asp-Gly-Val-Leu-X-Asn-Gly. Most of the radioactivity was released with Cys(Cm). These results indicate that the cysteinyl residue in this sequence is at or near the active site and is essential for activity. Residues 5-12 and 15 of this peptide are identical with a sequence of a yeast alkaline p-nitrophenylphosphatase, and the peptide has little homology with other mammalian phosphatases.

Evidence for proximal cysteine and lysine residues present at the nucleotide domain of rabbit muscle creatine kinase

Inactivation of rabbit muscle creatine kinase by o-phthalaldehyde was investigated. The loss of enzyme activity was concomitant with the increase in fluorescence intensity at 410 nm. The modified enzyme showed a characteristic absorption peak at 336 nm. These evidences suggested that the mechanism of inhibition of creatine kinase by o-phthalaldehyde involves binding of the thiol and the ϵ-amino group of enzyme leading to the formation of isoindole derivative. None of the substrate, except Mg-ATP, provided protection against o-phthalaldehyde inhibition. This was corroborated by fluorescence studies. Double inhibition experiments showed that p-chloromercuricphenyl sulphonic acid, a thiol-specific reagent, binds to the same cysteine which is also involved in the o-phthalaldehyde reaction. Stoichiometric results indicated that 2 mol of o-phthalaldehyde were incorporated per mole of enzyme molecule upon complete inactivation. Denaturation of creatine kinase by urea or heat treatment prior to o-phthalaldehyde addition resulted in the decrease of fluorescence intensity indicating that native conformation of the enzyme is essential for isoindole derivative formation.

Chemical modification of the Ca 2+-ATPase of rabbit skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum: identification of sites labeled with aryl isothiocyanates and thiol-directed conformational probes

The Ca 2+-ATPase protein of rabbit skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum is a single polypeptide chain of 1001 amino-acid residues. Among these residues are 24 Cys, 9 of which have previously been shown to be accessible to one or more thiol-specific reagents. Many studies on the structure and function of this Ca 2+-ATPase have made use of sulfhydryl-directed, conformationally-sensitive probes, but the labeling sites for these probes have been directly identified in only a few cases, causing uncertainty in the interpretation of results. In the present work, we have investigated the Ca 2+-ATPase labeling sites for three thiol-directed spectroscopic probes: fluorescein 5′-maleimide (Fmal), 4-dimethylaminophenyl-azo phenyl-4′-maleimide (DABmal), and 4-dimethylaminophenylazophenyl-4t́-iodoacetamide (DABIA). Labeled Ca 2+-ATPase was digested exhaustively with trypsin, and labeled peptides were purified and sequenced in order to identify the labeled Cys residues. Our results do not support the widely held assumptions that Cys-344 and Cys-364 are the most reactive residues with maleimide-based reagents, while Cys-670 and Cys-674 react most rapidly with iooacetamide derivatives. We found instead that Fmal reaced most rapidly with Cys-471, followed by Cys-364, and more slowly with Cys-498, −525, −614 and −636. DABmal reacted most rapidly with Cys-364, followed by Cys-614, and more slowly with Cys-471, -498, -636 and -670. Cys-344 was not labeled by either Fmal or DABmal. DABIA reacted with the same six Cys residues, including Cys-670, as were labeled with DABmal, but in much lower yield. There was no evidence for labeling of Cys-674 with DABIA. The high reactivity of Fmal, but not the more hydrophobic DABmal, with Cys-471 is of interest because of previous studies suggesting that the accessibility of Cys-471 is influenced by ATP and that fluorescein derivatives bind to a hydrophobic pocket in the ATP binding site. Another derivative, fluorescein-5′-isothiocyanate (FITC), is thought to label the catalytic site of the Ca 2+-ATPase and has been widely used as a conformational probe in structure-function studies on this and related proteins. We reinvestigated the chemical modification of the Ca 2+-ATPase by FITC and 4-dimethyl-aminophenyl-4′-isothiocyanate (DABITC). Incorporation of stoichiometric amounts of FITC resulted in a nearly complete loss of ATPase activity. Labeling and inactivation of the Ca 2+-ATPase by FITC did not occur in the presence of ATP. DABITC was less reactive than FITC, and did not inactivate the Ca 2+-ATPase to any significant extent. Our identification of the reactive site(s) is consistent with the generally held assumption that Lys-515 is the predominant site of labeling by FITC, but does not support reports that FITC labels more than one Lys residue in the Ca 2+-ATPase (Kirley, T.L., Wang, T., Wallick, E.T., and Lane, L.K. (1985) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 130, 732–738) and Na +/K +-ATPase (Xu, K. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 5764–5772). Only 10% of the DABITC-labeled peptides were solubilized by tryptic digestion. Among these peptides, Lys-515 was the only labeled residue that could be identified.

The role of cysteine residues 129 and 329 in Escherichia coli K1 CMP-NeuAc synthase.

N-Acetylneuraminic acid cytidyltransferase (CMP-NeuAc synthase) of Escherichia coli K1 is sensitive to mercurials and has cysteine residues only at positions 129 and 329. The role of these residues in the catalytic activity and structure of the protein has been investigated by site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification. The enzyme is inactivated by the thiol-specific reagent dithiodipyridine. Inactivation by this reagent is decreased in the presence of the nucleotide substrate CTP, suggesting that a thiol residue is at or near the active site. Site-directed mutagenesis of either residue Cys-129 to serine or Cys-329 to selected amino acids has minor effects on the specific activity of the enzyme, suggesting that cysteine is not essential for catalysis and that a disulphide bond is not an essential structural component. The limited reactivity of the enzyme to other thiol-blocking reagents suggests that its cysteine residues are partially exposed. The accessibility and role of the cysteine residues in enzyme structure were investigated by fluorescence, c.d. and denaturation studies of wild-type and mutant enzymes. The mutation of Cys-129 to serine makes the enzyme more sensitive to heat and chemical denaturation, but does not cause gross changes in the protein structure as judged by the c.d. spectrum. The mutant containing Ser-129 instead of Cys-129 had a complex denaturation pathway similar to that of wild-type E. coli K1 CMP-NeuAc synthase consisting of several partially denatured states. Cys-329 reacts more readily with N-[14C]ethylmaleimide when the enzyme is in a heat-induced relaxed state. Cys-129 is less reactive and is probably a buried residue.

Chemical modification of octopine dehydrogenase by thiol-specific reagents: evidence for the presence of an essential cysteine at the catalytic site

Thiol-specific reagents, p-cchloromercuricphenyl sulfonic acid (PCMS), 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) and N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), incubated with octopine dehydrogenase resulted in the loss of catalytic activity. The kinetic profile of PCMS inactivated enzyme showed that the reaction followed pseudo-first-order kinetics during the initial phase of inactivation. The reversal of enzyme activity was obtained by thiol-containing reagents. The loss of enzyme activity was prevented only by NADH and not by other substrates. The dissociation constant for NADH calculated from the decrease in the enzyme inactivation rate was 45 μM. Cyanolysis of the DTNB-modified enzyme with KCN led to the release of 5-thio-2-nitrobenzoate (TNB) accompanied by the formation of thio-cyano enzyme. By correlating the enzyme activity with the formation of thio-cyano derivative it was found that no activity was recovered after kCN treatment. These evidences clearly established the critical involvement of the thiol group in catalysis. Double inhibition studies with PCMs and NEM on octopine dehydrogenase showed that the inactivating reagents bind to the same functional thiol present at the catalytic center. pH-dependent inactivation by PCMS indicated that a group with a p K a value of 7.4 is involved in the loss of enzyme activity. These approaches suggested that at least one thiol group present at the coenzyme-binding domain is essential for the catalytic reaction of octopine dehydrogenase.

Steroidal affinity labels of the estrogen receptor. 1. 17 alpha-(Bromoacetoxy)alkyl/alkynylestradiols.

To develop steroidal affinity labels for the estrogen receptor, we prepared five electrophilic estradiol derivatives bearing the 17 alpha-propyl, 17 alpha-(1'-butynyl), or 17 alpha-(1'octynyl) chain, with either a terminal epoxy function (for the 17 alpha-propyl substituent) or a terminal bromoacetoxy function (for all three 17 alpha-substituent types). These compounds displayed low affinity for the lamb uterine estrogen receptor; with apparent relative affinity constants ranging from 0.02% to 0.24% that of estradiol. They were also rapidly transformed in cytosol, probably to the corresponding vicinal diols (epoxy compounds) or primary alcohols (bromoacetoxy compounds). Nevertheless, bromoacetates induced irreversible inactivation of the hormone-binding site but only with ligand-free binding sites. The effect of bromoacetates was prevented by treatment of the cytosol with the thiol-specific reagent methyl methanethiosulfonate. Inactivation of the receptor at 0 degrees C was rapid (< 1 h) and strongly dependent on both compound concentration and pH, with significant effects obtained at either > 150 nM (at pH 9) or pH > 7.5 (at 5 microM). Regardless of the conditions used, the order of efficiency for bromoacetates was always: 17 alpha-propyl derivative < 17 alpha-butynyl derivative < 17 alpha-octynyl derivative, with maximal inactivation of approximately 30% and approximately 70% of the hormone-binding sites obtained for the less active and more active compounds, respectively. Characteristics of the receptor inactivation suggest that (i) prepared bromoacetates are highly reactive affinity labels for the estrogen receptor, (ii) they react with similar (or even a single) nucleophilic amino acid residues located within or near the hormone-binding site of the receptor; these residues are probably the -SH of cysteines, and (iii) position 17 alpha of steroidal ligands is suitable for introducing electrophilic substituents to develop efficient affinity labels for the receptor.

Creatine kinase: the reactive cysteine is required for synergism but is nonessential for catalysis.

Chemical modification of rabbit muscle creatine kinase (CK) with thiol-specific reagents led to partial or complete inactivation of the enzyme. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we have substituted the corresponding reactive Cys278 in the chicken cardiac mitochondrial creatine kinase (Mib-CK) with either glycine, serine, alanine, asparagine, or aspartate. The resulting mutant Mib-CK enzymes showed qualitatively similar changes in their enzymatic properties. In both directions of the CK reaction, a shift of the pH optimum to lower values was observed. Mutant Mib-CKs were severalfold more sensitive to inhibition by free ADP in the reverse reaction (ATP synthesis) and to free ATP in the forward reaction (phosphocreatine synthesis). With the exception of C278D, all mutant enzymes were specifically activated by chloride and bromide anions. C278D and wild-type Mib-CK were significantly inhibited under the same conditions. At low chloride concentrations, the Vmax of C278D was about 12-fold higher than that of C278N. Thus, Cys278 probably provides a negative charge which is directly or indirectly involved in maximizing CK activity. Under near-optimal conditions in the reverse reaction, mutants C278G and C278S showed about an 11-fold increase in Km(PCr), but only 1.7- and 2.8-fold reductions in Vmax, respectively, compared to wild-type Mib-CK. Thus, the reactive cysteine clearly is not essential for catalysis. For rabbit muscle CK, substrate binding had been shown to be synergistic (i.e., Kd > Km). We confirmed this finding for wild-type Mib-CK by determining the Kd and Km values for both substrates in the forward reaction.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)