Stereochemistry of the coenzyme-B12-dependent methylamalonyl-CoA-mutase reaction. Investigation with ethylmalonyl-CoA

The role and source of 5'-deoxyadenosyl radical in a carbon skeleton rearrangement catalyzed by a plant enzyme

The last step in the biosynthesis of tropane alkaloids is the carbon skeleton rearrangement of littorine to hyoscyamine. The reaction is catalyzed by a cell-free extract prepared from cultured hairy roots of Datura stramonium. Adenosylmethionine stimulated the rearrangement 10-20-fold and showed saturation kinetics with an apparent Km of 25 microM. It is proposed that S-adenosylmethionine is the source of a 5'-deoxyadenosyl radical which initiates the rearrangement in a similar manner as it does in analogous rearrangements catalyzed by coenzyme B12-dependent enzymes. Possible roles of S-adenosylmethionine as a radical source in higher plants are discussed.

[Vitamin B12 as a biologically active model compound]

A critical review on corrinoid biochemistry and physiology is presented. This includes: chemical synthesis of biologically important organocorrinoids and the correlation between their structures and coenzymatic activity; forms, distribution and transport of physiologically active corrinoids; methylcobalamin- and adenosylcobalamin-dependent enzymatic reactions and their physiological functions; and steric course of the adenosylcobalamin-dependent enzymatic rearrangements. Special attention is paid to the mechanisms of adenosylcobalamin-dependent enzymatic reactions.

The mechanism of cobalamin-dependent rearrangements

Adenosylcobalamin-dependent rearrangements are enzyme catalyzed reactions in which a hydrogen atom is transfered from one carbon atom to an adjacent one in exchange for a group X which migrates in the opposite direction. In the hydrogen transfer step, the mechanism of which is reasonably well understood, the cofactor serves as an intermediate hydrogen carrier. The transfer of hydrogen to the cofactor involves homolysis of the carbon-cobalt bond to generate cob(II) alamin and the 5'-deoxyadenos-5'-yl radical, followed by abstraction of a hydrogen atom from the substrate to form 5'-deoxyadenosine and the substrate radical. After migration of group X, the hydrogen atom is returned to the product radical by the reverse of the above reactions to generate the final product and reconstitute the cofactor. In contrast to the transfer of hydrogen, the mechanism of group X migration is poorly understood. Many reactions mechanisms have been proposed on chemical grounds, but there is insufficient biochemical evidence to permit a choice among these propsals. A quantity of negative evidence has accumulated suggesting that group X migration does not involve alkylation of the cobalt of cobalamin by the substrate, but in the absence of firm data supporting an alternative mechanism, even this weak conclusion must be regarded as provisional.