Purification, cloning, and expression of the mitochondrial malate dehydrogenase (mMDH) from protoscolices of Echinococcus granulosus

Insights into the regulation of malate dehydrogenase: inhibitors, activators, and allosteric modulation by small molecules

Cellular metabolism comprises a complex network of biochemical anabolic and catabolic processes that fuel the growth and survival of living organisms. The enzyme malate dehydrogenase (MDH) is most known for its role in oxidizing malate to oxaloacetate (OAA) in the last step of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, but it also participates in the malate-aspartate shuttle in the mitochondria as well as the glyoxylate cycle in plants. These pathways and the specific reactions within them are dynamic and must be carefully calibrated to ensure a balance between nutrient/energy supply and demand. MDH structural and functional complexity requires a variety of regulatory mechanisms, including allosteric regulation, feedback, and competitive inhibition, which are often dependent on whether the enzyme is catalyzing its forward or reverse reaction. Given the role of MDH in central metabolism and its potential as a target for therapeutics in both cancer and infectious diseases, there is a need to better understand its regulation. The involvement of MDH in multiple pathways makes it challenging to identify which effectors are critical to its activity. Many of the in vitro experiments examining MDH regulation were done decades ago, and though allosteric sites have been proposed, none to date have been specifically mapped. This review aims to provide an overview of the current knowledge surrounding MDH regulation by its substrate, products, and other intermediates of the TCA cycle while highlighting all the gaps in our understanding of its regulatory mechanisms.

Kinetic characterization and thermostability of C. elegans cytoplasmic and mitochondrial malate dehydrogenases

Malate dehydrogenase (MDH) catalyzes the conversion of NAD⁺ and malate to NADH and oxaloacetate in the citric acid cycle. Eukaryotes have one MDH isozyme that is imported into the mitochondria and one in the cytoplasm. We overexpressed and purified Caenorhabditis elegans cytoplasmic MDH-1 and mitochondrial MDH-2 in E. coli. Our goal was to compare the kinetic and structural properties of these enzymes because C. elegans can survive adverse environmental conditions, such as lack of food and elevated temperatures. In steady-state enzyme kinetics assays, we measured K_M values for oxaloacetate of 54 and 52 μM and K_M values for NADH of 61 and 107 μM for MDH-1 and MDH-2, respectively. We partially purified endogenous MDH-1 and MDH-2 from a mixed population of worms and separated them using anion exchange chromatography. Both endogenous enzymes had a K_M for oxaloacetate similar to that of the corresponding recombinant enzyme. Recombinant MDH-1 and MDH-2 had maximum activity at 40 °C and 35 °C, respectively. In a thermotolerance assay, MDH-1 was much more thermostable than MDH-2. Protein homology modeling predicted that MDH-1 had more intersubunit salt-bridges than mammalian MDH1 enzymes, and these ionic interactions may contribute to its thermostability. In contrast, the MDH-2 homology model predicted fewer intersubunit ionic interactions compared to mammalian MDH2 enzymes. These results suggest that the increased stability of MDH-1 may facilitate its ability to remain active in adverse environmental conditions. In contrast, MDH-2 may use other strategies, such as protein binding partners, to function under similar conditions.

Pcal_1699, an extremely thermostable malate dehydrogenase from hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrobaculum calidifontis

Two malate dehydrogenase homologs, Pcal_0564 and Pcal_1699, have been found in the genome of Pyrobaculum calidifontis. The gene encoding Pcal_1699 consisted of 927 nucleotides corresponding to a polypeptide of 309 amino acids. To examine the properties of Pcal_1699, the structural gene was cloned, expressed in Escherichia coli and the purified gene product was characterized. Pcal_1699 was NADH specific enzyme exhibiting a high malate dehydrogenase activity (886 U/mg) at optimal pH (10) and temperature (90 °C). Unfolding studies suggested that urea could not induce complete unfolding and inactivation of Pcal_1699 even at a final concentration of 8 M; however, in the presence of 4 M guanidine hydrochloride enzyme structure was unfolded with complete loss of enzyme activity. Thermostability experiments revealed that Pcal_1699 is the most thermostable malate dehydrogenase, reported to date, retaining more than 90 % residual activity even after heating for 6 h in boiling water.

Enzymatic activity analysis and catalytic essential residues identification of Brucella abortus malate dehydrogenase

Malate dehydrogenase (MDH) plays important metabolic roles in bacteria. In this study, the recombinant MDH protein (His-MDH) of Brucella abortus was purified and its ability to catalyze the conversion of oxaloacetate (OAA) to L-malate (hereon referred to as MDH activity) was analyzed. Michaelis Constant (K_m) and Maximum Reaction Velocity (V_max) of the reaction were determined to be 6.45 × 10⁻³ M and 0.87 mM L⁻¹min⁻¹, respectively. In vitro studies showed that His-MDH exhibited maximal MDH activity in pH 6.0 reaction buffer at 40°C. The enzymatic activity was 100%, 60%, and 40% inhibited by Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Pb²⁺, respectively. In addition, six amino acids in the MDH were mutated to investigate their roles in the enzymatic activity. The results showed that the substitutions of amino acids Arg 89, Asp 149, Arg 152, His 176, or Thr 231 almost abolished the activity of His-MDH. The present study will help to understand MDH's roles in B. abortus metabolism.

Cloning, sequencing and functional expression of cytosolic malate dehydrogenase from Taenia solium: Purification and characterization of the recombinant enzyme

We report herein the complete coding sequence of a Taenia solium cytosolic malate dehydrogenase (TscMDH). The cDNA fragment, identified from the T. solium genome project database, encodes a protein of 332 amino acid residues with an estimated molecular weight of 36517Da. For recombinant expression, the full length coding sequence was cloned into pET23a. After successful expression and enzyme purification, isoelectrofocusing gel electrophoresis allowed to confirm the calculated pI value at 8.1, as deduced from the amino acid sequence. The recombinant protein (r-TscMDH) showed MDH activity of 409U/mg in the reduction of oxaloacetate, with neither lactate dehydrogenase activity nor NADPH selectivity. Optimum pH for enzyme activity was 7.6 for oxaloacetate reduction and 9.6 for malate oxidation. K(cat) values for oxaloacetate, malate, NAD, and NADH were 665, 47, 385, and 962s(-1), respectively. Additionally, a partial characterization of TsMDH gene structure after analysis of a 1.56Kb genomic contig assembly is also reported.

Identification and biochemical characterization of a thermostable malate dehydrogenase from the mesophile Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

We identified and characterized a malate dehydrogenase from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) (ScMDH). The molecular mass of ScMDH was 73,353.5 Da with two 36,675.0 Da subunits as analyzed by matrix-assisted laser-desorption ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). The detailed kinetic parameters of recombinant ScMDH are reported here. Heat inactivation studies showed that ScMDH was more thermostable than most MDHs from other organisms, except for a few extremely thermophile bacteria. Recombinant ScMDH was highly NAD(+)-specific and displayed about 400-fold (k(cat)) and 1,050-fold (k(cat)/K(m)) preferences for oxaloacetate reduction over malate oxidation. Substrate inhibition studies showed that ScMDH activity was inhibited by excess oxaloacetate (K(i)=5.8 mM) and excess L-malate (K(i)=12.8 mM). Moreover, ScMDH activity was not affected by most metal ions, but was strongly inhibited by Fe(2+) and Zn(2+). Taken together, our findings indicate that ScMDH is significantly thermostable and presents a remarkably high catalytic efficiency for malate synthesis.

Cloning, expression and biochemical characterization of mitochondrial and cytosolic malate dehydrogenase from Phytophthora infestans

The genes of the mitochondrial and cytosolic malate dehydrogenase (mMDH and cMDH) of Phytophthora infestans were cloned and overexpressed in Escherichia coli as active enzymes. The catalytic properties of these proteins were determined: both enzymes have a similar specific activity. In addition, the natural mitochondrial isoenzyme was semi-purified from mycelia and its catalytic properties determined: the recombinant mitochondrial isoform behaved as the natural enzyme. A phylogenetic analysis indicated that mMDH, present in all stramenopiles studied, can be useful to study the relationships between these organisms. MDH with the conserved domain MDH_cytoplasmic_cytosolic is absent in some stramenopiles as well as in fungi. This enzyme seems to be less related within the stramenopile group. The Phytophthora cMDHs have an insertion of six amino acids that is also present in the stramenopile cMDHs studied, with the exception of Thalassiosira pseudonana cMDH, and is absent in other known eukaryotic cMDHs.

Recent advances in the immunology and diagnosis of echinococcosis

Echinococcosis is a cosmopolitan zoonosis caused by adult or larval stages of cestodes belonging to the genus Echinococcus (family Taeniidae). The two major species of medical and public health importance are Echinococcus granulosus and Echinococcus multilocularis, which cause cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosis, respectively. Both cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosis are serious diseases, the latter especially so, with a high fatality rate and poor prognosis if managed inappropriately. This review highlights recent advances in immunity to infection and vaccination against both parasites in their intermediate and definitive hosts and procedures for diagnosis of cystic echinococcosis and alveolar echinococcosis, including the value of immunodiagnostic and DNA approaches. There is discussion also of progress in genomics and related technologies that is providing valuable insights on the functional biology of the Echinococcus organisms. These studies will underpin future research that will reveal a better understanding of the Echinococcus-host interplay, and suggest new avenues for the identification of additional targets for diagnosis, vaccination and chemotherapy.