Coenzyme A thiosulfonate (coenzyme A disulfide-S,S-dioxide), an affinity analog of coenzyme A

Inactivation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase and other Acyl-CoA-utilizing enzymes by 3-Oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA

3-Oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA has been produced by oxidation of S-3-oxobutyl-CoA, the thioether analog of acetoacetyl-CoA. Avian hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) synthase is inactivated by oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA in a time-dependent fashion. Protection against inactivation is afforded by the substrate, acetyl-CoA, suggesting that inactivation involves modification of the enzyme's active site. Pretreatment of HMG-CoA synthase with the inactivator blocks the enzyme's ability to form Michaelis and acetyl-S-enzyme intermediates, supporting the hypothesis that modification is active-site directed. Incubation of enzyme with oxobutylsulfoxyl-[32P]CoA followed by precipitation with trichloroacetic acid indicates that inactivation correlates with stoichiometric formation of a covalent adduct between enzyme and a portion of the inactivator that includes the CoA nucleotide. The observation of reagent partitioning suggests that HMG-CoA synthase catalyzes conversion of oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA into a reactive species that modifies the protein. Treatment of inactivated enzyme with DTT or other mercaptans restores enzyme activity and reverses the covalent modification with release of CoASH. Oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA inactivates beta-ketothiolase and HMG-CoA lyase in a process that is also reversed by DTT. These three enzymes all contain active site cysteines, suggesting that inactivation results from disulfide formation between a cysteine and the CoA moiety of the inhibitor. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that enzymatic cleavage of oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA results in the transient formation of a sulfenic acid derivative of CoA which subsequently reacts to form a stable disulfide linkage to protein.

Irreversible inhibition of phosphotransacetylase by S-dimethylarsino-CoA

S-Dimethylarsino-CoA was synthesized by acylation of CoA with dimethylchloroarsine. The new analogue of acetyl-CoA was tested as an active-site-directed irreversible inhibitor of phosphotransacetylase (EC 2.3.1.8), carnitine acetyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.7) and citrate synthase (EC 4.1.3.7). Irreversible inhibition was observed only with phosphotransacetylase, which was derivatized via a simple bimolecular process (k2 = 197 +/- 15 min-1 . M-1). Acetyl-CoA provided complete substrate protection against the inactivation, while phosphate (a substrate) and desulfo-CoA (a competitive inhibitor) provided a partial protection. The inactivation was not reversed by dithiothreitol. The new reagent was a linear competitive inhibitor versus acetyl-CoA with both carnitine acetyltransferase (Ki = 41 microM) and citrate synthase (Ki = 20 microM). Chemical studies showed that S-dimethylarsino-CoA reacts with the thiol of N alpha-acetylcysteine but not with the side-chain functional groups of histidine and lysine. The nature of the chemical modification of cysteine was determined by investigating a model system. Thus the chemical reaction between the thioarsenite linkage of S-dimethylarsinobenzylmercaptan and the thiol of cysteine was shown to involve transesterification of the dimethylarsino group.

Affinity labeling of succinyl-CoA synthetase from Escherichia coli by the 2',3'-dialdehyde derivative of adenosine 5'-diphosphate

The 2'3'-dialdehyde of adenosine 5'-diphosphate, oADP, exhibited the properties of an affinity label with Escherichia coli succinyl-CoA synthetase. Inactivation of this synthetase by oADP followed pseudo-first-order kinetics and was competitively blocked by ADP. The stoichiometry of labeling of the synthetase was 1 mol/mol alpha beta or, extrapolated, 2 mol/mol inactive alpha 2 beta 2 molecule. oADP also exhibited the properties of a substrate, bringing about rapid dephosphorylation of the enzyme. Further specificity of oADP was demonstrated in partially inactivated succinyl-CoA synthetase by selective inhibition of the succinate in equilibrium succinyl-CoA exchange reaction, in comparison to the CoA in equilibrium succinyl-CoA exchange reaction. Modification of the synthetase by oADP resulted in cross-linking of the enzyme, casting uncertainty over the subunit binding site for ADP. Modification of the synthetase by ADP-2'-semialdehyde occurred at a faster rate than that by oADP but exhibited biphasic inhibitor concentration dependence and did not exhibit saturability.