Metalloporphyrin chelatase from barley

Human Ferrochelatase: Insights for the Mechanism of Ferrous Iron Approaching Protoporphyrin IX by QM/MM and QTCP Free Energy Studies

Ferrochelatase catalyzes the insertion of ferrous iron into protoporphyrin IX, the terminal step in heme biosynthesis. Some disputes in its mechanism remain unsolved, especially for human ferrochelatase. In this paper, high-level quantum mechanical/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) and free-energy studies were performed to address these controversial issues including the iron-binding site, the optimal reaction path, the substrate porphyrin distortion, and the presence of the sitting-atop (SAT) complex. Our results reveal that the ferrous iron is probably at the binding site coordinating with Met76, and His263 plays the role of proton acceptor. The rate-determining step is either the first proton removed by His263 or the proton transition within the porphyrin with an energy barrier of 14.99 or 14.87 kcal/mol by the quantum mechanical thermodynamic cycle perturbation (QTCP) calculations, respectively. The fast deprotonation step with the conservative residues rather than porphyrin deformation found in solution provides the driving force for biochelation. The SAT complex is not a necessity for the catalysis though it induces a modest distortion on the porphyrin ring.

Functional characterization of the two ferrochelatases in Arabidopsis thaliana

The enzyme ferrochelatase catalyses the formation of protoheme by inserting Fe(2+) into protoporphyrin IX. Although most organisms express only one ferrochelatase, all land plants analysed so far possess at least two ferrochelatase proteins. Analysis of publicly available expression data suggests that the two Arabidopsis thaliana ferrochelatases, FC1 and FC2, serve different functions, corroborating previous assumptions. Co-expression analysis of FC1 and FC2, together with microarray analyses, implies that fc1 and fc2 trigger different modes of plastid signalling in roots and leaves, respectively, and indicates that FC2 might be involved in stress responses. Thus, loss of FC2 increases resistance to salt and flagellin treatment. Whereas fc1 plants showed no obvious mutant phenotype, fc2 mutants formed abnormally small, pale green rosette leaves; were low in chlorophylls, carotenoids and several photosynthetic proteins; and their photosynthetic performance was impaired. These phenotypes are attenuated by growth in continuous light, in agreement with the finding that fc2 plants accumulate protochlorophyllide and display a fluorescent (flu) phenotype in the dark. In consequence we show that, contrary to earlier suggestions, FC2 produces heme not only for photosynthetic cytochromes, but also for proteins involved in stress responses, whereas the impairment of FC1 apparently interferes only marginally with stress responses.

Metal ion selectivity and substrate inhibition in the metal ion chelation catalyzed by human ferrochelatase

Protoporphyrin IX ferrochelatase (EC 4.99.1.1) catalyzes the terminal step in the heme biosynthetic pathway, the insertion of ferrous iron into protoporphyrin IX. Ferrochelatase shows specificity, in vitro, for multiple metal ion substrates and exhibits substrate inhibition in the case of zinc, copper, cobalt, and nickel. Zinc is the most biologically significant of these; when iron is depleted, zinc porphyrins are formed physiologically. Examining the k(cat)/K(m)(app) ratios for zinc and iron reveals that, in vitro, zinc is the preferred substrate at all concentrations of porphyrin. This is not the observed biological specificity, where zinc porphyrins are abnormal; these data argue for the existence of a specific iron delivery mechanism in vivo. We demonstrate that zinc acts as an uncompetitive substrate inhibitor, suggesting that ferrochelatase acts via an ordered pathway. Steady-state characterization demonstrates that the apparent k(cat) depends on zinc and shows substrate inhibition. Although porphyrin substrate is not inhibitory, zinc inhibition is enhanced by increasing porphyrin concentration. This indicates that zinc inhibits by binding to an enzyme-product complex (EZnD(IX)) and is likely to be the second substrate in an ordered mechanism. Our analysis shows that substrate inhibition by zinc is not a mechanism that can promote specificity for iron over zinc, but is instead one that will reduce the production of all metalloporphyrins in the presence of high concentrations of zinc.

Two different genes encode ferrochelatase in Arabidopsis: mapping, expression and subcellular targeting of the precursor proteins

Ferrochelatase is the last enzyme of haem biosynthesis. We have isolated 27 independent ferrochelatase cDNAs from Arabidopsis thaliana by functional complementation of a yeast mutant. Twenty-two of these cDNAs were similar to a previously isolated clone, AF3, and although they varied in length at the 5' and 3' ends, their nucleotide sequences were identical, indicating that they were derived from the same gene (ferrochelatase-I). The remaining five cDNAs all encoded a separate ferrochelatase isoform (ferrochelatase-II), which was 69% identical at the amino acid level to ferrochelatase-I. Using RFLP analysis in recombinant inbred lines, the ferrochelatase-I gene was mapped to chromosome V and that for ferrochelatase-II to chromosome II. Northern analysis showed that both ferrochelatase genes are expressed in leaves, stems and flowers, and expression in the leaves is higher in the light than in the dark. However, in roots only ferrochelatase-I transcripts were detected. High levels of sucrose stimulated expression of ferrochelatase-I, but had no effect, or repressed slightly, the expression of the ferrochelatase-II isoform. Import experiments into isolated chloroplasts and mitochondria showed that the ferrochelatase-II gene encodes a precursor which is imported solely into the chloroplast, in contrast to ferrochelatase-I which is targeted to both organelles. The significance of these results for haem biosynthesis and the production of haemoproteins, both within the plant cell and in different plant tissues, is discussed.

Mechanism and regulation of Mg-chelatase

Mg-chelatase catalyses the insertion of Mg into protoporphyrin IX (Proto). This seemingly simple reaction also is potentially one of the most interesting and crucial steps in the (bacterio)chlorophyll (Bchl/Chl)-synthesis pathway, owing to its position at the branch-point between haem and Bchl/Chl synthesis. Up until the level of Proto, haem and Bchl/Chl synthesis share a common pathway. However, at the point of metal-ion insertion there are two choices: Mg2+ insertion to make Bchl/Chl (catalysed by Mg-chelatase) or Fe2+ insertion to make haem (catalysed by ferrochelatase). Thus the relative activities of Mg-chelatase and ferrochelatase must be regulated with respect to the organism's requirements for these end products. How is this regulation achieved? For Mg-chelatase, the recent design of an in vitro assay combined with the identification of Bchl-biosynthetic enzyme genes has now made it possible to address this question. In all photosynthetic organisms studied to date, Mg-chelatase is a three-component enzyme, and in several species these proteins have been cloned and expressed in an active form. The reaction takes place in two steps, with an ATP-dependent activation followed by an ATP-dependent chelation step. The activation step may be the key to regulation, although variations in subunit levels during diurnal growth may also play a role in determining the flux through the Bchl/Chl and haem branches of the pathway.

The magnesium-insertion step of chlorophyll biosynthesis is a two-stage reaction

Mg(2+)-chelatase catalyses the first step unique to chlorophyll synthesis, namely the insertion of Mg2+ into protoporphyrin IX. When pea (Pisum sativum L., cv. Spring) chloroplasts are lysed in a buffer lacking Mg2+ and the thylakoids removed by centrifugation, the remaining mixture of light membranes and soluble proteins (LM/S) has high Mg(2+)-chelatase activity. Several lines of evidence are presented to show that the Mg2+ insertion catalysed by this preparation is a two-step reaction consisting of activation followed by Mg2+ chelation. An activated state of Mg(2+)-chelatase is achieved by preincubating LM/S with ATP. The activated state is observed as the elimination of the approx. 6 min lag in the rate of Mg2+ chelation on addition of the porphyrin substrate. The activity of LM/S assayed at low protein concentrations can be greatly enhanced by preincubating at high protein concentrations (12 mg/ml is optimal). This activation effect requires the presence of both LM and S fractions, as well as ATP. Both steps require ATP, but at different concentrations; the first step is optimal at > 0.5 mM (EC50 = 0.3 mM) and the second step is optimal at 0.3 mM (EC50 < 0.2 mM). ATP in the first step could be replaced by ATP[S]; this analogue could not sustain activity in the second step. This activated state was stable for at least 30 min at room temperature, but chilling of preincubated LM/S on ice for 30 min caused an almost complete loss of the activated state.

In vitro assay of the chlorophyll biosynthetic enzyme Mg-chelatase: resolution of the activity into soluble and membrane-bound fractions

The first committed step in chlorophyll synthesis is the Mg-chelatase-catalyzed insertion of magnesium into protoporphyrin IX. Since iron insertion into protoporphyrin leads to heme formation, Mg-chelastase lies at the branch point of heme and chlorophyll synthesis in chloroplasts. Little is known about the enzymology or regulation of Mg-chelatase, as it has been assayed only in intact cucumber chloroplasts. In this report we describe an in vitro assay for Mg-chelatase. Mg-chelatase activity in intact pea chloroplasts was 3- to 4-fold higher than in cucumber chloroplasts. This activity survived chloroplast lysis and could be fractionated by centrifugation into supernatant and pellet components. Both of these fractions were required to reconstitute Mg-chelatase activity, and both were inactivated by boiling indicating that the enzyme is composed of soluble and membrane-bound protein(s). The product of the reaction was confirmed fluorometrically as the magnesium chelate of the porphyrin substrate. The specific activity of the reconstituted system was typically 1 nmol of Mg-deuteroporphyrin per h per mg of protein, and activity was linear for at least 60 min under our assay conditions. ATP and magnesium were required for Mg-chelatase activity and the enzyme was sensitive to the sulfhydryl reagent N-ethylmaleimide (I50, 20 microM). Broken and reconstituted cucumber chloroplasts were unable to maintain Mg-chelatase activity. However, the cucumber supernatant fraction was active when combined with the pellet fraction of peas; the converse was not true, which suggested that the cucumber pellet was the component that lost activity during lysis.

Liver ferrochelatase from normal and hexachlorobenzene porphyric rats. Mechanism of drug action

1. The action of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) on hepatic ferrochelatase was investigated. 2. A direct action of HCB, pentachlorophenol, porphyrins and haem on this enzyme activity was discarded. 3. In HCB porphyric liver there is probably an activator tightly bound to the enzyme. 4. Pyridoxal phosphate (PPL) may be a cofactor of ferrochelatase from both normal and porphyric rats. 5. The PPL would be involved in the binding site of Fe2+ or at least in the approaching of Fe2+ to the active site of the enzyme. 6. The differences found between normal and porphyric preparations could be attributed to conformational changes elicited by the HCB.

Ferrochelatase activity in Azospirillum brasilense with reference to the influence of metal cations

Ferrochelatase in membrane preparations from Azospirillum brasilense displayed an activity of 2.17 mumol protoheme formed.h-1.mg protein-1 which is 10-fold greater than previous reports for other bacteria. This ferrochelatase showed an apparent Km of 20.9 microM for Fe2+, a pH optimum of 6.0-6.5, and stimulation by oleic or stearic acids. Co2+, Cu2+ and Zn2+ inhibited the incorporation of Fe2+ into protoporphyrin IX while Ni2+ and Mg2+ had no effect on protoheme synthesis. Activity with Fe2+ and mesoporphyrin IX was less than with protoporphyrin IX but deuteroporphyrin IX produced the highest rate of protoheme synthesis. The membrane fraction containing ferrochelatase activity was found to insert Cu2+, Ni2+, Zn2+ and Co2+ enzymatically into protoporphyrin IX to produce metalloporphyrins. Cu2+ incorporation into protoporphyrin IX proceeded at a rate greater than with Fe2+ and the Km for Cu2+ was 21.9 microM.

Zinc chelatase in human lymphocytes: detection of the enzymatic defect in erythropoietic protoporphyria

We describe a fluorometric assay for heme synthetase, the enzyme that is genetically deficient in erythropoietic protoporphyria. The method, which can readily detect activity in 1 microliter of packed human lymphocytes, is based on the formation of zinc protoheme from protoporphyrin IX. That zinc chelatase and ferrochelatase activities reside in the same enzyme was shown by the competitive action of ferrous ions and the inhibitory effects of N-methyl protoporphyrin (a specific inhibitor of heme synthetase) on zinc chelatase. The Km for zinc was 11 micrograms and that for protoporphyrin IX was 6 microM. The Ki fro ferrous ions was 14 microM. Zinc chelatase was reduced to 15.3% of the mean control activity in lymphocytes obtained from patients with protoporphyria, thus confirming the defect of heme biosynthesis in this disorder. The assay should prove to be useful for determining heme synthetase in tissues with low specific activity and to investigate further the enzymatic defect in protoporphyria.

A comparative study on iron sources for mitochondrial haem synthesis including ferritin and models of transit pool species

The rates of reaction of various exogenic iron(III) complexes with deuteroporphyrin IX in isolated mitochondria to form deuterohaem were measured. Ferritin was shown to supply iron readily for haem synthesis if the ferritin iron was reductively mobilised by the mitochondrial respiratory chain with succinate as substrate and FMN as mediator. In contrast, polynuclear complexes of iron(III) were able to form deuterohaem without added FMN. Rates of haem formation are about five times higher for the lowest polynuclear units than for ferritin. Sorbitol, gluconate, and bovine serum albumin were used as scavengers for polynuclear complexes with restricted size. Strong chelators of iron(II) compete favourably for deuterohaem formation, which supports the multistep mechanism for haem formation suggested by a priori arguments. Rates of deuterohaem formation were measured in homologous and heterologous systems of ferritins and mitochondria. Slightly differing rates of haem formation were shown to originate in different rates of iron mobilisation from the ferritins. The lack of species specificity in the interaction of ferritin with mitochondria also shows up in the linear dependence of ferritin binding on its bulk concentration as measured using 3H-labeled ferritin. Rates of haem formation are virtually the same in mitoplasts and mitochondria which indicates insignificant influences of the outer membrane. The hypothesis of low polynuclears as major components of the intracellular transit iron pool implies that both ferritin and transit iron pool species are largely equivalent sources of iron for mitochondrial haem synthesis.

Evidence relating the inhibitory effect of cobalt on the activity of delta-aminolevulinate synthase to the intracellular concentration of porphyrins

This study shows that the inhibition of ALAS activity caused by cobalt is directly correlated with the intracellular porphyrin concentration, thus indicating that cobalt exerts its inhibitory effect on ALAS activity as a result of the formation of cobalt-protoporphyrin.

Kinetic studies of ferrochelatase in yeast. Zinc or iron as competing substrates

Ferrochelatase (protoheme ferro-lyase, EC 4.99.1.1) has been studied in yeast mitochondrial membranes with special reference to zinc-chelatase and iron-chelatase activities. Using physiological substrates (protoporphyrin IX, Fe(II) and Zn(II), anaerobic conditions of incubation and direct spectrophotometric assay, apparent Km values smaller than those previously described were found for the membrane-bound enzyme. Fe(II) but not Fe(III) was a strong competitive inhibitor of zinc-chelatase activity, while Zn(II) was a slight competitive inhibitor of iron-chelatase activity. These results could point to modes of control of ferrochelatase activity in yeast. We suggest that reduced supply of Fe(II) may explain the in vivo accumulation of zinc-protoporphyrin in yeast cells incubated under 'resting' conditions.

Purification and substrate specificity of bovine liver-ferrochelatase

Bovine ferrochelatase from liver mitochondria was purified 1434-fold with a 31% yield to apparent homogeneity by a procedure involving solubilization, ammonium sulfate fractionation and blue Sepharose CL-6B chromatography. The molecular weight of the homogeneous protein was 42 500 when measured by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. A molecular weight of approximately 200 000 was obtained by Sepharose 6B gel filtration. The specific activity for mesoheme synthesis was 413 nmol x mg protein-1 x min-1 at 37 degrees C and for protoheme synthesis 88 nmol x mg-1 x min-1. The optimum pH was 8.0 and Km values for the substrates were: protoporphyrin IX, 54 microM; mesoporphyrin IX, 46 microM; iron with protoporphyrin IX, 46 microM, iron with mesoporphyrin IX, 44 microM. The purified enzyme inserted iron into the following dicarboxylic porphyrins in descending order: meso-, deutero-, 2,4-diacetyldeutero-, hemato-, and protoporphyrin IX. This did not take place in the case of 2,4-diformyldeuteroporphyrin IX. Porphyrin c was converted to only a negligible amount of heme c, and coproporphyrin III did not act as a substrate at all. When metal specificity was examined, the highest value was obtained with zinc, decreasing in order with iron, cobalt and nickel. The enzyme failed to catalyze the insertion of copper or manganese into porphyrin. An antibody specific for the purified bovine ferrochelatase was prepared, and studies confirmed that the synthetic activities of iron-porphyrin, zinc-porphyrin and cobalt-porphyrin are ascribable to ferrochelatase.

Ferrochelatase of Rhodopseudomonas spheroides

Extracts of Rhodopseudomonas spheroides contain two ferrochelatases: one is soluble and forms metalloporphyrins from deuteroporphyrin and haematoporphyrin; the other is particulate and forms metalloporphyrins from protoporphyrin, mesoporphyrin, deuteroporphyrin and haematoporphyrin. Neither enzyme incorporates Mg(2+) into porphyrins or Fe(2+) into porphyrin cytochrome c. By using the particulate enzyme, plots of 1/v versus 1/s when one substrate was varied and the other kept constant showed that neither substrate affected the K(m) of the other. The suggested sequential mechanism for the reaction is supported by derivative plots of slopes and intercepts. The K(m) for deuteroporphyrin was 21.3mum and that for Co(2+) was 6.13mum. The enzyme incorporated Co(2+), Fe(2+), Zn(2+), Ni(2+) and Mn(2+); Cd(2+) was not incorporated and was an inhibitor, competitive with respect to Co(2+), non-competitive with respect to deuteroporphyrin. The K(i) for Cd(2+) was 0.73mum. Ferrochelatase was inhibited by protohaem, non-competitively with respect to Co(2+) or with respect to deuteroporphyrin. Inhibition by magnesium protoporphyrin was non-competitive with respect to deuteroporphyrin, uncompetitive with respect to Co(2+). The inhibitory concentrations of the metalloporphyrins are lower than those required for the inhibition of delta-aminolaevulate synthetase by protohaem. Fe(2+) is not incorporated aerobically into porphyrins unless an electron donor, succinate or NADH, is supplied; the low aerobic rate of metalloporphyrin synthesis obtained is insensitive to rotenone and antimycin. The rate of Fe(3+) incorporation increases as anaerobic conditions are achieved.