Spectroscopic observation of intermediates formed during the oxidative half-reaction of copper/topa quinone-containing phenylethylamine oxidase

Inhibition and oxygen activation in copper amine oxidases

Copper-containing amine oxidases (CuAOs) use both copper and 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ) to catalyze the oxidative deamination of primary amines. The CuAO active site is highly conserved and comprised of TPQ and a mononuclear type II copper center that exhibits five-coordinate, distorted square pyramidal coordination geometry with histidine ligands and equatorially and axially bound water in the oxidized, resting state. The active site is buried within the protein, and CuAOs from various sources display remarkable diversity with respect to the composition of the active site channel and cofactor accessibility. Structural and mechanistic factors that influence substrate preference and inhibitor sensitivity and selectivity have been defined. This Account summarizes the strategies used to design selective CuAO inhibitors based on active site channel characteristics, leading to either enhanced steric fits or the trapping of reactive electrophilic products. These findings provide a framework to support the future development of candidate molecules aimed at minimizing the negative side effects associated with drugs containing amine functionalities. This is vital given the existence of human diamine oxidase and vascular adhesion protein-1, which have distinct amine substrate preferences and are associated with different metabolic processes. Inhibition of these enzymes by antifungal or antiprotozoal agents, as well as classic monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitors, may contribute to the adverse side effects associated with drug treatment. These observations provide a rationale for the limited clinical value associated with certain amine-containing pharmaceuticals and emphasize the need for more selective AO inhibitors. This Account also discusses the novel roles of copper and TPQ in the chemistry of O2 activation and substrate oxidation. Reduced CuAOs exist in a redox equilibrium between the Cu(II)-TPQAMQ (aminoquinol) and Cu(I)-TPQSQ (semiquinone). Elucidating the roles of Cu(I), TPQSQ, and TPQAMQ in O2 activation, for example, distinguishing inner-sphere versus outer-sphere electron transfer mechanisms, has been actively investigated since the discovery of TPQSQ in 1991 and has only recently been clarified. Kinetics and spectroscopic studies encompassing metal substitution, stopped-flow and temperature-jump relaxation methods, and oxygen kinetic isotope experiments have provided strong support for an inner-sphere electron transfer step from Cu(I) to O2. Data for two enzymes support a mechanism wherein O2 prebinds to a three-coordinate Cu(I) site, yielding a [Cu(II)(η(1)-O2(-1))](+) intermediate, with H2O2 generated from ensuing rate-determining proton coupled electron transfer from TPQSQ. While kinetics data from the cobalt-substituted yeast enzyme indicated that O2 is reduced through an outer-sphere process involving TPQAMQ, new findings with a bacterial CuAO demonstrate that both the Cu(II) and Co(II) forms of the enzyme operate via parallel mechanisms involving metal-superoxide intermediates. Structural observations of a coordinated TPQSQ-Cu(I) complex in two CuAOs supports previous indications that Cu(II)/(I) ligand substitution chemistry may be mechanistically relevant. Substantial evidence indicates that rapid and reversible inner-sphere reduction of O2 at a three-coordinate Cu(I) site occurs, but the existence of a coordinated semiquinone in some AOs suggests that, in these enzymes, an outer-sphere reaction between O2 and TPQSQ may also be possible, since this is expected to be energetically favorable compared with outer-sphere electron transfer from TPQAMQ to O2.

Structural snapshots from the oxidative half-reaction of a copper amine oxidase: implications for O2 activation

The mechanism of molecular oxygen activation is the subject of controversy in the copper amine oxidase family. At their active sites, copper amine oxidases contain both a mononuclear copper ion and a protein-derived quinone cofactor. Proposals have been made for the activation of molecular oxygen via both a Cu(II)-aminoquinol catalytic intermediate and a Cu(I)-semiquinone intermediate. Using protein crystallographic freeze-trapping methods under low oxygen conditions combined with single-crystal microspectrophotometry, we have determined structures corresponding to the iminoquinone and semiquinone forms of the enzyme. Methylamine reduction at acidic or neutral pH has revealed protonated and deprotonated forms of the iminoquinone that are accompanied by a bound oxygen species that is likely hydrogen peroxide. However, methylamine reduction at pH 8.5 has revealed a copper-ligated cofactor proposed to be the semiquinone form. A copper-ligated orientation, be it the sole identity of the semiquinone or not, blocks the oxygen-binding site, suggesting that accessibility of Cu(I) may be the basis of partitioning O2 activation between the aminoquinol and Cu(I).

The role of protein crystallography in defining the mechanisms of biogenesis and catalysis in copper amine oxidase

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) are a ubiquitous group of enzymes that catalyze the conversion of primary amines to aldehydes coupled to the reduction of O₂ to H₂O₂. These enzymes utilize a wide range of substrates from methylamine to polypeptides. Changes in CAO activity are correlated with a variety of human diseases, including diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammatory disorders. CAOs contain a cofactor, 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ), that is required for catalytic activity and synthesized through the post-translational modification of a tyrosine residue within the CAO polypeptide. TPQ generation is a self-processing event only requiring the addition of oxygen and Cu(II) to the apoCAO. Thus, the CAO active site supports two very different reactions: TPQ synthesis, and the two electron oxidation of primary amines. Crystal structures are available from bacterial through to human sources, and have given insight into substrate preference, stereospecificity, and structural changes during biogenesis and catalysis. In particular both these processes have been studied in crystallo through the addition of native substrates. These latter studies enable intermediates during physiological turnover to be directly visualized, and demonstrate the power of this relatively recent development in protein crystallography.

Structural insights into the substrate specificity of bacterial copper amine oxidase obtained by using irreversible inhibitors

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) catalyse the oxidation of various aliphatic amines to the corresponding aldehydes, ammonia and hydrogen peroxide. Although CAOs from various organisms share a highly conserved active-site structure including a protein-derived cofactor, topa quinone (TPQ), their substrate specificities differ considerably. To obtain structural insights into the substrate specificity of a CAO from Arthrobacter globiformis (AGAO), we have determined the X-ray crystal structures of AGAO complexed with irreversible inhibitors that form covalent adducts with TPQ. Three hydrazine derivatives, benzylhydrazine (BHZ), 4-hydroxybenzylhydrazine (4-OH-BHZ) and phenylhydrazine (PHZ) formed predominantly a hydrazone adduct, which is structurally analogous to the substrate Schiff base of TPQ formed during the catalytic reaction. With BHZ and 4-OH-BHZ, but not with PHZ, the inhibitor aromatic ring is bound to a hydrophobic cavity near the active site in a well-defined conformation. Furthermore, the hydrogen atom on the hydrazone nitrogen is located closer to the catalytic base in the BHZ and 4-OH-BHZ adducts than in the PHZ adduct. These results correlate well with the reactivity of 2-phenylethylamine and tyramine as preferred substrates for AGAO and also explain why benzylamine is a poor substrate with markedly decreased rate constants for the steps of proton abstraction and the following hydrolysis.

Fluorinated phenylcyclopropylamines. Part 6: Effects of electron withdrawing or donating aryl substituents on the inhibition of tyramine oxidase from Arthrobacter sp. by diastereomeric 2-aryl-2-fluoro-cyclopropylamines

Diastereomeric arylcyclopropylamines substituted with fluorine in the 2-position and with electron donating or electron withdrawing groups at the aromatic ring were evaluated as inhibitors of microbial tyramine oxidase. The trans-isomers were consistently more potent inhibitors of the enzyme than the cis-isomers. Electron donating substituents increased the potency of tyramine oxidase inhibition, while electron withdrawing substituents decreased the activity. The results obtained are discussed in terms of pK(a) and log D values of the inhibitors as well as the mechanism of action of tranylcypromines and the geometry of the active site of the enzyme.

Kinetics and spectroscopic evidence that the Cu(I)-semiquinone intermediate reduces molecular oxygen in the oxidative half-reaction of Arthrobacter globiformis amine oxidase

The role of copper during the reoxidation of substrate-reduced amine oxidases by O(2) has not yet been definitively established. Both outer-sphere and inner-sphere pathways for the reduction of O(2) to H(2)O(2) have been proposed. A key step in the inner-sphere mechanism is the reaction of O(2) directly with the Cu(I) center of a Cu(I)-semiquinone intermediate. To thoroughly examine this possibility, we have measured the spectral changes associated with single-turnover reoxidation by O(2) of substrate-reduced Arthrobacter globiformis amine oxidase (AGAO) under a wide range of conditions. We have previously demonstrated that the internal electron-transfer reaction [Cu(II)-TPQ(AMQ) --> Cu(I)-TPQ(SQ)] (where TPQ(AMQ) is the aminoquinol form of reduced TPQ and TPQ(SQ) is the semiquinone form) occurs at a rate that could permit the reaction of O(2) with both species to be observed on the stopped-flow time scale [Shepard, E. M., and Dooley, D. M. (2006) J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 11, 1039-1048]. The transient absorption spectra observed for the reaction of O(2) with substrate-reduced AGAO provide compelling support for the reaction of the Cu(I)-TPQ(SQ) form. Further, global analysis of the kinetics and the transient absorption spectra are fully consistent with an inner-sphere reaction of the Cu(I)-semiquinone intermediate with O(2) and are inconsistent with an outer-sphere mechanism for the reaction of the reduced enzyme with O(2).

Exploring molecular oxygen pathways in Hansenula polymorpha copper-containing amine oxidase

The accessibility of large substrates to buried enzymatic active sites is dependent upon the utilization of proteinaceous channels. The necessity of these channels in the case of small substrates is questionable because diffusion through the protein matrix is often assumed. Copper amine oxidases contain a buried protein-derived quinone cofactor and a mononuclear copper center that catalyze the conversion of two substrates, primary amines and molecular oxygen, to aldehydes and hydrogen peroxide, respectively. The nature of molecular oxygen migration to the active site in the enzyme from Hansenula polymorpha is explored using a combination of kinetic, x-ray crystallographic, and computational approaches. A crystal structure of H. polymorpha amine oxidase in complex with xenon gas, which serves as an experimental probe for molecular oxygen binding sites, reveals buried regions of the enzyme suitable for transient molecular oxygen occupation. Calculated O(2) free energy maps using copper amine oxidase crystal structures in the absence of xenon correspond well with later experimentally observed xenon sites in these systems, and allow the visualization of O(2) migration routes of differing probabilities within the protein matrix. Site-directed mutagenesis designed to block individual routes has little effect on overall k(cat)/K(m) (O(2)), supporting multiple dynamic pathways for molecular oxygen to reach the active site.

Intramolecular electron transfer rate between active-site copper and TPQ in Arthrobacter globiformis amine oxidase

Copper amine oxidases catalyze the oxidative deamination of primary amines operating through a ping-pong bi bi mechanism, divided into reductive and oxidative half-reactions. Considerable debate still exists regarding the role of copper in the oxidative half-reaction, where O2 is reduced to H2O2. Substrate-reduced amine oxidases display an equilibrium between a Cu(II) aminoquinol and a Cu(I) semiquinone, with the magnitude of the equilibrium constant being dependent upon the enzyme source. The initial electron transfer to dioxygen has been proposed to occur from either the reduced Cu(I) center or the reduced aminoquinol cofactor. In order for Cu(I) to be involved, it must be shown that the rate of electron transfer (kET) between the aminoquinol and Cu(II) is sufficiently rapid to place the Cu(I) semiquinone moiety on the mechanistic pathway. To further explore this issue, we measured the intramolecular electron transfer rate for the Cu(II) aminoquinol left arrow over right arrow Cu(I) semiquinone equilibrium in Arthrobacter globiformis amine oxidase (AGAO) by temperature-jump relaxation techniques. The results presented herein establish that kET is greater than the rate of catalysis (kcat) for the preferred amine substrate beta-phenylethylamine at three pH values, thereby permitting the Cu(I) semiquinone to be a viable catalytic intermediate during enzymatic reoxidation in this enzyme. The data show that kET is approximately equivalent at pH 6.2 and 7.2, being 2.5 times kcat for these pH values. At pH 8.2, however, kET decreases, becoming comparable to kcat. Potential reasons for the decreased kET at basic pH are presented. The implications of these results in light of a previously published study measuring reoxidation rates of substrate-reduced AGAO are also addressed.

Mechanism-Based Cofactor Derivatization of a Copper Amine Oxidase by a Branched Primary Amine Recruits the Oxidase Activity of the Enzyme to Turn Inactivator into Substrate

The copper amine oxidases (CAOs) have evolved to catalyze oxidative deamination of unbranchedprimary amines to aldehydes. We report that a branched primary amine bearing an aromatization-prone moiety, ethyl 4-amino-4,5-dihydrothiophene-2-carboxylate (1), is recognized enantioselectively (S >> R) by bovine plasma amine oxidase (BPAO) both as a temporary inactivator and as a substrate. Substrate activity results from an O(2)-dependent turnover of the covalently modified enzyme, with release of 4-aminothiophene-2-carboxylate (2) as ultimate product. Interaction of (S)-1 with BPAO occurs within the enzyme active site with a dissociation constant of 0.76 microM. Evidence from kinetic and spectroscopic studies, and HPLC analysis of stoichiometric reactions of BPAO with (S)-1, combined with a model study using a quinone cofactor mimic, establishes that the enzyme metabolizes 1 according to a transamination mechanism. Following the initial isomerization of substrate Schiff base to product Schiff base, a facile aromatization of the latter results in a metastable N-aryl derivative of the reduced cofactor aminoresorcinol, which is catalytically inactive. The latter derivative is then slowly oxidized by O(2), apparently facilitated partially by the active-site Cu(II), to form a quinonimine of the native cofactor that releases 2 upon hydrolysis or transimination with substrate amine. Preferential metabolism of (S)-1 is consistent with the preferential removal of the pro-Salpha-proton in metabolism of benzylamine by BPAO. This study represents the first report of product identification in metabolism of a branched primary amine by a copper amine oxidase and suggests a novel type of reversible mechanism-based (covalent) inhibition where inhibition lifetime can be fine-tuned independently of inhibition potency.

Using Xenon as a Probe for Dioxygen-binding Sites in Copper Amine Oxidases

Potential dioxygen-binding sites in three Cu amine oxidases have been investigated by recording X-ray diffraction data at 1.7-2.2A resolution for crystals under a high pressure of xenon gas. Electron-density difference maps and crystallographic refinement provide unequivocal evidence for a number of Xe-binding sites in each enzyme. Only one of these sites is present in all three Cu amine oxidases studied. Structural changes elsewhere in the protein molecules are insignificant. The results illustrate the use of xenon as a probe for cavities, in which a protein may accommodate a dioxygen molecule. The finding of a potential dioxygen-binding cavity close to the active site of Cu amine oxidases may be relevant to the function of the enzymes, since the formation of a transient protein-dioxygen complex is a likely step in the catalytic mechanism. No evidence was found for xenon binding in a region of the molecule that was previously identified in two other Cu amine oxidases as a potential transient dioxygen-binding site.

A Theoretical Study of the Mechanism for the Biogenesis of Cofactor Topaquinone in Copper Amine Oxidases

In the present quantum chemical study, the biogenesis of the cofactor topaquinone (TPQ) has been studied using hybrid density functional theory (B3LYP). The suggested mechanism is divided into six steps and incorporates the observation of four crystallized intermediates. The experimental suggestion that the formation of the Cu(II)-peroxy species is the rate-limiting step is consistent with the results of the present study. Before the formation of the Cu(II)-peroxy species, dioxygen is suggested to first bind at the equatorial position on the copper metal center. A mechanism for the critical O-O bond cleavage is suggested, and this step is found to be driven by an unusually large exothermicity. A complex, spin-forbidden formation of H(2)O(2) with and without the involvement of the copper metal center is discussed. The results are discussed in detail, and comparisons are made to experimental findings and suggestions.

Fluorinated Phenylcyclopropylamines. 1. Synthesis and Effect of Fluorine Substitution at the Cyclopropane Ring on Inhibition of Microbial Tyramine Oxidase

Two series of diastereopure phenylcyclopropylamine analogues, 2-fluoro-2-phenylcyclopropylamines and 2-fluoro-2-phenylcyclopropylalkylamines, as well as 2-fluoro-1-phenylcyclopropylamines and 2-fluoro-1-phenylcyclopropylmethylamines, were synthesized in order to study the effects of fluorine substitution on monoamine oxidase inhibition. Inhibitory activity was assayed using commercially available microbial tyramine oxidase. Characterization of tyramine oxidase, carried out prior to the inhibition experiments, confirmed earlier suggestions that this enzyme is a semicarbazide-sensitive copper-containing monoamine oxidase. The most potent competitive inhibitor was trans-2-fluoro-2-phenylcyclopropylamine, which had an IC(50) value 10 times lower than that of the nonfluorinated compound, tranylcypromine. 2-Fluoro-1-phenylcyclopropylmethylamine was found to be a weak noncompetitive inhibitor of tyramine oxidase. The presence of a free amino group, directly bonded to the cyclopropane ring, and a fluorine atom in a relationship cis to the amino group were structural features that increased tyramine oxidase inhibition.

Tyrosine-derived quinone cofactors

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) and lysyl oxidase (LOX) both contain Cu(2+) and quinone cofactors that are derived from a tyrosine residue in the active site. In CAOs, the cofactor is 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ), and in LOX it is lysine tyrosyl quinone (LTQ). The mechanism of oxidative deamination by CAOs is well understood, but there is a controversy surrounding the role of Cu(2+) in cofactor reoxidation. The chemistry of LTQ in LOX, by contrast, has not been as extensively studied. This Account discusses the strategies that CAOs have evolved to control the mobility of TPQ to optimize activity. In addition, some recent studies on CAOs whose active-site Cu(2+) has been replaced with Co(2+) or Ni(2+) are summarized. Finally, there is a discussion on the properties of a model compound of LTQ and their relevance to the chemistry of LOX.

Role of copper ion in bacterial copper amine oxidase: spectroscopic and crystallographic studies of metal-substituted enzymes

The role of the active site Cu(2+) of phenylethylamine oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis (AGAO) has been studied by substitution with other divalent cations, where we were able to remove >99.5% of Cu(2+) from the active site. The enzymes reconstituted with Co(2+) and Ni(2+) (Co- and Ni-AGAO) exhibited 2.2 and 0.9% activities, respectively, of the original Cu(2+)-enzyme (Cu-AGAO), but their K(m) values for amine substrate and dioxygen were comparable. X-ray crystal structures of the Co- and Ni-AGAO were solved at 2.0-1.8 A resolution. These structures revealed changes in the metal coordination environment when compared to that of Cu-AGAO. However, the hydrogen-bonding network around the active site involving metal-coordinating and noncoordinating water molecules was preserved. Upon anaerobic mixing of the Cu-, Co-, and Ni-AGAO with amine substrate, the 480 nm absorption band characteristic of the oxidized form of the topaquinone cofactor (TPQ(ox)) disappeared rapidly (< 6 ms), yielding the aminoresorcinol form of the reduced cofactor (TPQ(amr)). In contrast to the substrate-reduced Cu-AGAO, the semiquinone radical (TPQ(sq)) was not detected in Co- and Ni-AGAO. Further, in the latter, TPQ(amr) reacted reversibly with the product aldehyde to form a species with a lambda(max) at around 350 nm that was assigned as the neutral form of the product Schiff base (TPQ(pim)). Introduction of dioxygen to the substrate-reduced Co- and Ni-AGAO resulted in the formation of a TPQ-related intermediate absorbing at around 360 nm, which was assigned to the neutral iminoquinone form of the 2e(-)-oxidized cofactor (TPQ(imq)) and which decayed concomitantly with the generation of TPQ(ox). The rate of TPQ(imq) formation and its subsequent decay in Co- and Ni-AGAO was slow when compared to those of the corresponding reactions in Cu-AGAO. The low catalytic activities of the metal-substituted enzymes are due to the impaired efficiencies of the oxidative half-reaction in the catalytic cycle of amine oxidation. On the basis of these results, we propose that the native Cu(2+) ion has essential roles such as catalyzing the electron transfer between TPQ(amr) and dioxygen, in part by providing a binding site for 1e(-)- and 2e(-)-reduced dioxygen species to be efficiently protonated and released and also preventing the back reaction between the product aldehyde and TPQ(amr).