Amino acid sequences of substrate-binding sites in chicken liver fatty acid synthase

Differential affinity labeling of the two subunits of the homodimeric animal fatty acid synthase allows isolation of heterodimers consisting of subunits that have been independently modified

To explore the domain interactions that are required for catalytic activity of the multifunctional, homodimeric fatty acid synthase (FAS), we have formulated a strategy that allows isolation of modified dimers containing independently mutated subunits. Either a hexahistidine or a FLAG octapeptide tag was incorporated into the FAS at either the amino terminus, within an internal noncatalytic domain, or at the carboxyl terminus. The presence of the tags had no effect on the activity of the wild-type FAS. His-tagged dimers were mixed with FLAG-tagged dimers, and the subunits were randomized to produce a mixture of His-tagged homodimers, FLAG-tagged homodimers, and doubly tagged heterodimers. The doubly tagged heterodimers could be purified to homogeneity by chromatography on an anti-FLAG immunoaffinity column followed by a metal ion chelating column. This procedure for isolation of FAS heterodimers was utilized to determine whether the two centers for fatty acid synthesis in the FAS dimer can function independently of each other. Doubly tagged heterodimers, consisting of one wild-type subunit and one subunit in which the thioesterase activity had been eliminated, either by mutation or by treatment with phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride, have 50% of the wild-type thioesterase activity and, in the presence of substrates, accumulate a long chain fatty acyl moiety on the modified subunit, thus blocking further substrate turnover at this center. Nevertheless, the ability of the heterodimer to synthesize fatty acids is also 50% of the wild-type FAS, demonstrating that an individual center for fatty acid synthesis has the same activity when paired with either a functional or nonfunctional catalytic center.

A putative pathway for biosynthesis of the O-antigen component, 3-deoxy-L-glycero-tetronic acid, based on the sequence of the Vibrio cholerae O1 rfb region

The nucleotide sequence of a region of the rfb genes, encoding biosynthesis of the Vibrio cholerae (Vc) O1 O-antigen, was determined. Analysis of the open reading frames (ORFs) within this region has revealed similarities with a number of different classes of biosynthetic proteins and enzymes. The ORFs have been designated RfbK, RfbL, RfbM, RfbN and RfbO. RfbK is a small, acidic protein which has similarity to the family of proteins known as acyl-carrier proteins (ACP). The RfbL protein has similarity to a super-family of enzymes which adenylate their substrates as a part of their reaction mechanism. Included in these are several acetyl-CoA ligases. Alignment of RfbL with these proteins reveals a highly conserved domain containing the motif GlyXaaXaaGlyXaaPro. This resembles the ATP-binding site motif and may represent a variant of the usual motif, except that Pro replaces Gly. The VcRfbM protein has similarity with a family of long-chain, iron-containing alcohol dehydrogenases, of which the Escherichia coli K-12 fucO and adhE gene products are also members. The RfbN protein has sequence homology with LuxE and LuxC of Vibrio harveyi (Vh) and other bioluminescent bacterial species. The latter are two components of the enzyme complex which synthesizes the long-chain aldehyde used in the V. harveyi bioluminescence system. Finally, the VcRfbO protein has sequence similarity with acetyl-CoA transferases. We were able to identify a number of the gene products using a T7 expression system, confirming several of the allocated ORFs. A biosynthetic pathway for the Vc O-antigen component 3-deoxy-L-glycero-tetronic acid, based on the enzymatic functions predicted for the RfbK, RfbL, RfbM, RfbN and RfbO proteins, is presented.

Arrangement of catalytic sites in the multifunctional enzyme enniatin synthetase

Enniatin synthetase is an N-methyl peptide synthetase comprising 3131 amino acids. Catalytic sites of the 347-kDa multifunctional enzyme were mapped by N-terminal sequencing of substrate affinity-labelled enzyme fragments formed by proteolysis, and functional studies of purified enniatin synthetase fragments. An N-terminal 200-kDa fragment containing the cofactor 4'-phosphopantetheine was able to activate D-hydroxyisovaleric acid (D-HOiVl) as a thioester. The N-termini of two [14C]HOiVl-labelled enzyme fragments could be assigned to amino acid position 429 within the N-terminal conserved enniatin synthetase portion named EA. This portion of about 600 amino acids shares high similarity to microbial peptide synthetase regions. A 68-kDa L-[14C]Val-labelled enniatin synthetase fragment was localized at amino acid position 2294 within the second C-terminal conserved protein portion EB. Additionally enniatin synthetase was labelled with isovaleryl-L-[14C]Val, an analogue of the D-hydroxyisovaleryl-L-Val intermediate in enniatin biosynthesis. The N-terminus of a 30-kDa isovaleryl-L-[14C]Val-labelled enniatin synthetase fragment was mapped in a C-terminal segment of the protein portion EA. The same N-terminal sequence was obtained from a 60-kDa enniatin synthetase fragment modified with [3H]beta Ala, a constituent of the cofactor 4'-phosphopantetheine. This indicates the presence of the cofactor in this protein fragment. Localization of the methyltransferase function of enniatin synthetase in an amino acid portion integrated into region EB was achieved by N-terminal sequencing of a photolabelled S-[methyl-14C]adenosyl methionine 45-kDa fragment and the identification of a photolabelled peptide Asn-Leu-Asn-Pro-Gly-Leu-Asn-Ser-Tyr.

The multifunctional 6-methylsalicylic acid synthase gene of Penicillium patulum. Its gene structure relative to that of other polyketide synthases

6-Methylsalicylic acid synthase (MSAS) from Penicillium patulum is a homomultimer of a single, multifunctional protein subunit. The enzyme is induced, at the transcriptional level, during the end of the logarithmic growth phase. After approximately 150-fold purification, a homogeneous enzyme preparation was obtained exhibiting, upon SDS gel electrophoresis, a subunit molecular mass of 188 kDa. By immunological screening of a genomic P. patulum DNA expression library, the MSAS gene together with its flanking sequences was isolated; 7131 base pairs of the cloned genomic DNA were sequenced. Within this sequence the MSAS gene was identified as a 5322-bp-long open reading frame coding for a protein of 1774 amino acids and 190,731 Da molecular mass. Transcriptional initiation and termination sites were determined both by primer extension studies and from cDNA sequences specially prepared for the 5' and 3' portions of the gene. The same cDNA sequences revealed the presence of a 69-bp intron within the N-terminal part of the MSAS gene. The intron contains the canonical GT and AG dinucleotides at its 5'- and 3'-splice junctions. An internal TACTGAC sequence, resembling the TACTAAC consensus element of Saccharomyces cerevisiae introns is suggested to represent the branch point of the lariat splicing intermediate. When compared to other known polyketide synthases, distinct amino acid sequence similarities of limited lengths were observed with some, though not all, of them. A comparatively low degree of similarity was detected to the yeast and Penicillium FAS or to the plant chalcone and resveratrol synthases. In contrast, a significantly higher sequence similarity was found between MSAS and the rat fatty acid synthase, especially at their transacylase, 2-oxoacyl reductase, 2-oxoacyl synthase and acyl carrier protein domains. Besides several dissimilar, interspersed regions probably coding for MSAS- and FAS-specific functions, the sequential order of the similar domains was colinear in both enzymes. The low similarity between the two P. patulum polyketide synthases, MSAS and FAS, possibly supports a convergent rather than a divergent evolution of both multienzyme proteins.

Homology analysis of the protein sequences of fatty acid synthases from chicken liver, rat mammary gland, and yeast

Homology analyses of the protein sequences of chicken liver and rat mammary gland fatty acid synthases [acyl-CoA:malonyl-CoA C-acyltransferase (decarboxylating, oxoacyl- and enoyl-reducing and thioester hydrolyzing), EC 2.3.1.85] and yeast fatty acid synthase [fatty-acyl-CoA synthase; acyl-CoA:malonyl-CoA C-acyltransferase (decarboxylating, oxoacyl- and enoyl-reducing), EC 2.3.1.86] were carried out. The amino acid sequences of the chicken and rat enzymes are 67% identical. If conservative substitutions are allowed, 78% of the amino acids are matched. A region of low homologies exists between the functional domains, in particular around amino acid residues 1059-1264 of the chicken enzyme. Homologies between the active sites of chicken and rat and of chicken and yeast enzymes have been analyzed by an alignment method. A high degree of homology exists between the active sites of the chicken and rat enzymes. However, the chicken and yeast enzymes show a lower degree of homology. The NADPH-binding dinucleotide folds of the beta-ketoacyl reductase and the enoyl reductase sites were identified by comparison with a known consensus sequence for the NADP- and FAD-binding dinucleotide folds. The active sites of all of the enzymes are primarily in hydrophobic regions of the protein. This study suggests that the genes for the functional domains of fatty acid synthase were originally separated, and these genes were connected to each other by using different connecting nucleotide sequences in different species. An alternative explanation for the differences in rat and chicken is a common ancestry and mutations in the joining regions during evolution. A higher mutation rate in the joining regions than in the active site regions of the enzymes without loss of function might be expected.

Molecular cloning and sequencing of chicken liver fatty acid synthase cDNA

The complete amino acid sequence of chicken liver fatty acid synthase [acyl-CoA:malonyl-CoA C-acyltransferase (decarboxylating, oxoacyl- and enoyl-reducing, and thioester-hydrolyzing), EC 2.3.1.85] has been determined from the corresponding cDNA sequence. A 5.3-kilobase-pair (kbp) region of cDNA coding for chicken fatty acid synthase has been cloned and sequenced that is contiguous to the 2.3-kbp region previously sequenced [Yuan, Z., Liu, W. & Hammes, G.G. (1988) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 85, 6328-6331]. The cDNA codes for the remaining 1677 amino acids of the previously unsequenced region of the protein. The amino acid sequence contains peptides known to be associated with the NADPH binding site of the enoylreductase active center, the acetyl/malonyltransacylase active site, the "waiting" site containing cysteine, and a pyridoxal 5'-phosphate binding site. Locations of the NADPH binding site of the beta-ketoacylreductase active site and of the dehydratase active site are proposed on the basis of protein sequence homologies to catalytic sites in other enzymes. The molecular weight of the complete polypeptide chain is 267,288. A linear functional map of the chicken fatty acid synthase derived from its primary sequence is presented.