Reconstitution of aspartate aminotransferase from pig heart

The mechanism of addition of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate to Escherichia coli apo-serine hydroxymethyltransferase

Previous studies suggest that the addition of pyridoxal 5'-phosphate to apo-serine hydroxymethyltransferase from Escherichia coli is the last event in the enzyme's folding process. We propose a mechanism for this reaction based on quenched-flow, stopped-flow and rapid-scanning stopped-flow experiments. All experiments were performed with an excess of apo-enzyme over cofactor, since excess pyridoxal 5'-phosphate results in a second molecule of cofactor binding to Lys346, which is part of the tetrahydropteroylglutamate-binding site. The equilibrium between the aldehyde and hydrate forms of the cofactor affects the kinetics of addition to the active site. Direct evidence of the formation of an intermediate aldimine between the cofactor and the active-site lysine was obtained. The results have been interpreted according to a three-step mechanism in which: (i) both aldehyde and hydrate forms of the cofactor bind rapidly and non-covalently to the apo-enzyme; (ii) only the aldehyde form reacts with the active-site lysine to give an intermediate internal aldimine with unusual spectral properties; and (iii) a final conformational change gives the native holo-enzyme.

The interaction of pyridoxal phosphate with aspartate apoaminotransferase

The rate of biniding of pyridoxal phosphate to the apoenzyme of pig heart cytoplasmic aspartate aminotransferase (L-aspartate: 2-oxoglutarate aminotransferase, EC 2.6.1.1) was measured by adsorption spectroscopy and by formation of active enzyme. At pH 5.1 and 8.3 the binding of coenzyme follows saturation kinetics. The binding process thus involves at least two steps. The rate of pyridoxal phosphate binding to the apoenzyme is dependent on the anion present in the pH 8.3 triethanolamine buffer. Chloride activates somewhat at very low concentrations. Phosphate and its methyl, ethyl, and phenyl esters are very effective inhibitors of the recombination in that 0.2--0.4 mM inhibit the rate of coenzyme binding by 50%. This is below the physiological concentration of phosphate. Sulfate also inhibits the rate of binding, but nitrate and acetate have little effect.

Kinetic studies on coenzyme binding and coenzyme dissociation in tryptophanase immobilized on sepharose

The binding rate of pyridoxal '5-phosphate (Pxa-P) to apotryptophanase and the dissociation rate of the coenzyme from holotryptophanase were able to be determined by following the enzyme activity in continuous flow reactions on a column of immobilized tryptophanase. When the enzyme activity was assayed continuously in the flow system in the absence of coenzyme added to the reaction mixture, immobilized holotryptophanase lost gradually its initial activity owing to dissociation of coenzyme. The coenzyme dissociation at a given concentration of substrate (tryptophan) followed first-order kineticsmin a low substrate concentration range below the Km value, a more decreased rate constant was obtained for the coenzyme dissociation. This indicates that the coenzyme is more dissociable from the apoenzyme-coenzyme-substrate complex (ECS complex) rather than from the apoenzyme-coenzymecomplex (holoenzyme). Immobilized tryptophanase freed of coenzyme restored rapidly its original activity, when the assay mixture containing a given concentration of substrate and Pxa-P was passed through the immobilized enzyme column. The coenzyme binding at a given coenzyme concentration followed first-order kinetics, but the rate was not first order in regard to the coenzyme concentration. A plot of the reciprocal of the first-order rate constant obtained vs. the reciprocal of the coenzyme binding occurs in a two-step fashion; the first step is rapid and the second step is rate determining. Both the dissociation constant for the first step and the rate constant for the second step were shown to be independent of the substrate concentration. This means that Schiff base formation between Pxa-P and tryptophan in the assay mixture has no effect on the binding of Pxa-P to apoenzyme. The coenzyme dissociation constant at a given substrate concentration was calculated from both the rate constant of the coenzyme binding and the rate constant of the coenzyme dissociation. The values obtained by this method at different substrate concentrations were almost identical with those measured at the corresponding substrate concentrations directly by an ordinary method.