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

In crystallo thermodynamic analysis of conformational change of the topaquinone cofactor in bacterial copper amine oxidase

In the catalytic reaction of copper amine oxidase, the protein-derived redox cofactor topaquinone (TPQ) is reduced by an amine substrate to an aminoresorcinol form (TPQ_amr), which is in equilibrium with a semiquinone radical (TPQ_sq). The transition from TPQ_amr to TPQ_sq is an endothermic process, accompanied by a significant conformational change of the cofactor. We employed the humid air and glue-coating (HAG) method to capture the equilibrium mixture of TPQ_amr and TPQ_sq in noncryocooled crystals of the enzyme from Arthrobacter globiformis and found that the equilibrium shifts more toward TPQ_sq in crystals than in solution. Thermodynamic analyses of the temperature-dependent equilibrium also revealed that the transition to TPQ_sq is entropy-driven both in crystals and in solution, giving the thermodynamic parameters that led to experimental determination of the crystal packing effect. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the binding of product aldehyde to the hydrophobic pocket in the active site produces various equilibrium states among two forms of the product Schiff-base, TPQ_amr, and TPQ_sq, in a pH-dependent manner. The temperature-controlled HAG method provides a technique for thermodynamic analysis of conformational changes occurring in protein crystals that are hardly scrutinized by conventional cryogenic X-ray crystallography.

Comparing hydrazine-derived reactive groups as inhibitors of quinone-dependent amine oxidases

Lysyl oxidase has emerged as an important enzyme in cancer metastasis. Its activity has been reported to become upregulated in several types of cancer, and blocking its activity has been shown to limit the metastatic potential of various cancers. The small-molecules phenylhydrazine and β-aminopropionitrile are known to inhibit lysyl oxidase; however, issues of stability, toxicity, and poorly defined mechanisms limit their potential use in medical applications. The experiments presented herein evaluate three other families of hydrazine-derived compounds – hydrazides, alkyl hydrazines, and semicarbazides – as irreversible inhibitors of lysyl oxidase including determining the kinetic parameters and comparing the inhibition selectivities for lysyl oxidase against the topaquinone-containing diamine oxidase from lentil seedlings. The results suggest that the hydrazide group may be a useful core functionality that can be developed into potent and selective inhibitors of lysyl oxidase and eventually find application in cancer metastasis research.

Probing the Catalytic Mechanism of Copper Amine Oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis with Halide Ions

The catalytic reaction of copper amine oxidase proceeds through a ping-pong mechanism comprising two half-reactions. In the initial half-reaction, the substrate amine reduces the Tyr-derived cofactor, topa quinone (TPQ), to an aminoresorcinol form (TPQamr) that is in equilibrium with a semiquinone radical (TPQsq) via an intramolecular electron transfer to the active-site copper. We have analyzed this reductive half-reaction in crystals of the copper amine oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis. Anerobic soaking of the crystals with an amine substrate shifted the equilibrium toward TPQsq in an "on-copper" conformation, in which the 4-OH group ligated axially to the copper center, which was probably reduced to Cu(I). When the crystals were soaked with substrate in the presence of halide ions, which act as uncompetitive and noncompetitive inhibitors with respect to the amine substrate and dioxygen, respectively, the equilibrium in the crystals shifted toward the "off-copper" conformation of TPQamr. The halide ion was bound to the axial position of the copper center, thereby preventing TPQamr from adopting the on-copper conformation. Furthermore, transient kinetic analyses in the presence of viscogen (glycerol) revealed that only the rate constant in the step of TPQamr/TPQsq interconversion is markedly affected by the viscogen, which probably perturbs the conformational change. These findings unequivocally demonstrate that TPQ undergoes large conformational changes during the reductive half-reaction.

High-resolution crystal structure of copper amine oxidase fromArthrobacter globiformis: assignment of bound diatomic molecules as O2

The crystal structure of a copper amine oxidase fromArthrobacter globiformiswas determined at 1.08 Å resolution with the use of low-molecular-weight polyethylene glycol (LMW PEG; average molecular weight ∼200) as a cryoprotectant. The final crystallographicRfactor andRfreewere 13.0 and 15.0%, respectively. Several molecules of LMW PEG were found to occupy cavities in the protein interior, including the active site, which resulted in a marked reduction in the overallBfactor and consequently led to a subatomic resolution structure for a relatively large protein with a monomer molecular weight of ∼70 000. About 40% of the presumed H atoms were observed as clear electron densities in theFo−Fcdifference map. Multiple minor conformers were also identified for many residues. Anisotropic displacement fluctuations were evaluated in the active site, which contains a post-translationally derived quinone cofactor and a Cu atom. Furthermore, diatomic molecules, most likely to be molecular oxygen, are bound to the protein, one of which is located in a region that had previously been proposed as an entry route for the dioxygen substrate from the central cavity of the dimer interface to the active site.

Structural analysis of aliphatic versus aromatic substrate specificity in a copper amine oxidase from Hansenula polymorpha

Copper amine oxidases (CAOs) are responsible for the oxidative deamination of primary amines to their corresponding aldehydes. The CAO catalytic mechanism can be divided into two half-reactions: a reductive half-reaction in which a primary amine substrate is oxidized to its corresponding aldehyde with the concomitant reduction of the organic cofactor 2,4,5-trihydroxyphenylalanine quinone (TPQ) and an oxidative half-reaction in which reduced TPQ is reoxidized with the reduction of molecular oxygen to hydrogen peroxide. The reductive half-reaction proceeds via Schiff base chemistry, in which the primary amine substrate first attacks the C5 carbonyl of TPQ, forming a series of covalent Schiff base intermediates. The X-ray crystal structures of copper amine oxidase-1 from the yeast Hansenula polymorpha (HPAO-1) in complex with ethylamine and benzylamine have been determined to resolutions of 2.18 and 2.25 Å, respectively. These structures reveal the two amine substrates bound at the back of the active site coincident with TPQ in its two-electron-reduced aminoquinol form. Rearrangements of particular amino acid side chains within the substrate channel and specific protein-substrate interactions provide insight into the substrate specificity of HPAO-1. These changes begin to account for this CAO's kinetic preference for small, aliphatic amines over the aromatic amines or whole peptides preferred by some of its homologues.

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.