Enzyme Mechanism (enzyme + mechanism)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Does Negative Hyperconjugation Assist Enzymatic Dehydrogenations?

CHEMPHYSCHEM, Issue 9 2007
Gloria Tabacchi Dr.
Enzyme mechanisms: Using ab initio methods and natural bond orbital analysis, negative hyperconjugation is shown to govern L -lactate oxidation chemistry and may help to determine its enzymatic dehydrogenation mechanism. The picture shows the negative hyperconjugation interaction between the lone pair on the oxygen atom and the ,*(C,H,) orbital. [source]


Src kinase activation: A switched electrostatic network

PROTEIN SCIENCE, Issue 5 2006
Elif Ozkirimli
Abstract Src tyrosine kinases are essential in numerous cell signaling pathways, and improper functioning of these enzymes has been implicated in many diseases. The activity of Src kinases is regulated by conformational activation, which involves several structural changes within the catalytic domain (CD): the orientation of two lobes of CD; rearrangement of the activation loop (A-loop); and movement of an ,-helix (,C), which is located at the interface between the two lobes, into or away from the catalytic cleft. Conformational activation was investigated using biased molecular dynamics to explore the transition pathway between the active and the down-regulated conformation of CD for the Src-kinase family member Lyn kinase, and to gain insight into the interdependence of these changes. Lobe opening is observed to be a facile motion, whereas movement of the A-loop motion is more complex requiring secondary structure changes as well as communication with ,C. A key result is that the conformational transition involves a switch in an electrostatic network of six polar residues between the active and the down-regulated conformations. The exchange between interactions links the three main motions of the CD. Kinetic experiments that would demonstrate the contribution of the switched electrostatic network to the enzyme mechanism are proposed. Possible implications for regulation conferred by interdomain interactions are also discussed. [source]


Structure of Staphylococcus aureus adenylosuccinate lyase (PurB) and assessment of its potential as a target for structure-based inhibitor discovery

ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 8 2010
Paul K. Fyfe
The medium-resolution structure of adenylosuccinate lyase (PurB) from the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus in complex with AMP is presented. Oxalate, which is likely to be an artifact of crystallization, has been modelled in the active site and occupies a position close to that where succinate is observed in orthologous structures. PurB catalyzes reactions that support the provision of purines and the control of AMP/fumarate levels. As such, the enzyme is predicted to be essential for the survival of S. aureus and to be a potential therapeutic target. Comparisons of this pathogen PurB with the enzyme from Escherichia coli are presented to allow discussion concerning the enzyme mechanism. Comparisons with human PurB suggest that the close similarity of the active sites would make it difficult to identify species-specific inhibitors for this enyme. However, there are differences in the way that the subunits are assembled into dimers. The distinct subunit,subunit interfaces may provide a potential area to target by exploiting the observation that creation of the enzyme active site is dependent on oligomerization. [source]


Structural and functional role of water molecules in bovine pancreatic phospholipase A2: a data-mining approach

ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 1 2009
Shankar Prasad Kanaujia
The water molecules in 25 (21 high-resolution and four atomic resolution) crystal structures of bovine pancreatic phospholipase A2 have been analyzed in order to identify the invariant water molecules and their possible roles. A total of 24 water molecules have been identified that are invariant in all 25 crystal structures examined. These include the catalytic water molecule, which is directly involved in the enzyme mechanism, and the conserved structural water molecule, which stabilizes the extended hydrogen-bonding network of the active site. Furthermore, many other water molecules stabilize the structure, whilst a few have been found to maintain the active-site geometry and provide coordination to the functionally important calcium ion. The invariant water molecules have been carefully examined and their possible roles in the structure and/or function are discussed. Molecular-dynamics studies of all 25 crystal structures have also been carried out and the results provide a good explanation of and support the findings obtained from the crystal structures. [source]


Purification, crystallization and preliminary structural studies of dTDP-4-keto-6-deoxy-glucose-5-epimerase (EvaD) from Amycolatopsis orientalis, the fourth enzyme in the dTDP- l -epivancosamine biosynthetic pathway

ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION D, Issue 7 2002
Alexandra B. Merkel
The vancomycin class of antibiotics is regarded as the last line of defence against Gram-positive bacteria. The compounds used clinically are very complex organic molecules and are made by fermentation. The biosynthesis of these is complex and fascinating. Its study holds out the prospect of utilizing genetic engineering of the enzymes in the pathway in order to produce novel vancomycin analogues. In part, this requires detailed structural insight into substrate specificity as well as the enzyme mechanism. The crystallization of one of the enzymes in the chloroeremomycin biosynthetic pathway (a member of the vancomycin family), dTDP-3-­amino-4-keto 2,3,6-trideoxy-3- C -methyl-glucose-5-epimerase (EvaD) from Amycolatopsis orientalis, is reported here. The protein is fourth in the pathway which makes a carbohydrate essential for the activity of chloroeremomycin. The crystals of EvaD diffract to 1.5,Å and have unit-cell parameters a = 98.6, b = 72.0, c = 57.1,Å with space group P21212. Data to this resolution were collected at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility. [source]


Structural studies of phosphoglucose isomerase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv

ACTA CRYSTALLOGRAPHICA SECTION F (ELECTRONIC), Issue 5 2010
Kanchan Anand
Phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI) plays a key role in both glycolysis and gluconeogenesis inside the cell, whereas outside the cell it exhibits cytokine properties. PGI is also known to act as an autocrine motility factor, a neuroleukin agent and a differentiation and maturation mediator. Here, the first crystal structure of PGI from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv (Mtb) is reported. The structure was refined at 2.25,Å resolution and revealed the presence of one molecule in the asymmetric unit with two globular domains. As known previously, the active site of Mtb PGI contains conserved residues including Glu356, Glu216 and His387 (where His387 is from the neighbouring molecule). The crystal structure of Mtb PGI was observed to be rather more similar to human PGI than other nonbacterial PGIs, with only a few differences being detected in the loops, arm and hook regions of the human and Mtb PGIs, suggesting that the M. tuberculosis enzyme uses the same enzyme mechanism. [source]


Caged Protein Prenyltransferase Substrates: Tools for Understanding Protein Prenylation

CHEMICAL BIOLOGY & DRUG DESIGN, Issue 3 2008
Amanda J. DeGraw
Originally designed to block the prenylation of oncogenic Ras, inhibitors of protein farnesyltransferase currently in preclinical and clinical trials are showing efficacy in cancers with normal Ras. Blocking protein prenylation has also shown promise in the treatment of malaria, Chagas disease and progeria syndrome. A better understanding of the mechanism, targets and in vivo consequences of protein prenylation are needed to elucidate the mode of action of current PFTase (Protein Farnesyltransferase) inhibitors and to create more potent and selective compounds. Caged enzyme substrates are useful tools for understanding enzyme mechanism and biological function. Reported here is the synthesis and characterization of caged substrates of PFTase. The caged isoprenoid diphosphates are poor substrates prior to photolysis. The caged CAAX peptide is a true catalytically caged substrate of PFTase in that it is to not a substrate, yet is able to bind to the enzyme as established by inhibition studies and X-ray crystallography. Irradiation of the caged molecules with 350 nm light readily releases their cognate substrate and their photolysis products are benign. These properties highlight the utility of those analogs towards a variety of in vitro and in vivo applications. [source]


Determination of enzyme mechanisms by molecular dynamics: Studies on quinoproteins, methanol dehydrogenase, and soluble glucose dehydrogenase

PROTEIN SCIENCE, Issue 8 2004
Swarnalatha Y. Reddy
Abstract Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been carried out to study the enzymatic mechanisms of quinoproteins, methanol dehydrogenase (MDH), and soluble glucose dehydrogenase (sGDH). The mechanisms of reduction of the orthoquinone cofactor (PQQ) of MDH and sGDH involve concerted base-catalyzed proton abstraction from the hydroxyl moiety of methanol or from the 1-hydroxyl of glucose, and hydride equivalent transfer from the substrate to the quinone carbonyl carbon C5 of PQQ. The products of methanol and glucose oxidation are formaldehyde and glucolactone, respectively. The immediate product of PQQ reduction, PQQH, [,HC5(O,) ,C4( = O) ,] and PQQH [,HC5(OH) ,C4( = O) ,] converts to the hydroquinone PQQH2 [,C5(OH) = C4(OH) ,]. The main focus is on MD structures of MDH , PQQ , methanol, MDH , PQQH,, MDH , PQQH, sGDH , PQQ , glucose, sGDH , PQQH, (glucolactone, and sGDH , PQQH. The reaction PQQ , PQQH, occurs with Glu 171,CO2, and His 144,Im as the base species in MDH and sGDH, respectively. The general-base-catalyzed hydroxyl proton abstraction from substrate concerted with hydride transfer to the C5 of PQQ is assisted by hydrogen-bonding to the C5 = O by Wat1 and Arg 324 in MDH and by Wat89 and Arg 228 in sGDH. Asp 297,COOH would act as a proton donor for the reaction PQQH, , PQQH, if formed by transfer of the proton from Glu 171,COOH to Asp 297,CO2, in MDH. For PQQH , PQQH2, migration of H5 to the C4 oxygen may be assisted by a weak base like water (either by crystal water Wat97 or bulk solvent, hydrogen-bonded to Glu 171,CO2, in MDH and by Wat89 in sGDH). [source]