ABSTRACT
Post-mitotic tissues, such as the heart, exhibit high concentrations (20 mM) of carnosine (beta-alanyl-l-histidine). Carnosine may have aldehyde scavenging properties. We tested this hypothesis by examining its protective effects against inhibition of enzyme activity by glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate (Glyc3P). Glyc3P is a potentially toxic triose; Glyc3P inhibits the cardiac aspartate aminotransferase (cAAT) by non-enzymatic glycosylation (or glycation) of the protein. cAAT requires pyridoxal 5-phosphate (PyP) for catalysis. We observed that carnosine (20 mM) completely prevents the inhibition of cAAT activity by Glyc3P (5 mM) after brief incubation (30 min at 37 degrees C). After a prolonged incubation (3.25 h) of cAAT with Glyc3P (0.5 mM) at 37 degrees C, the protection by carnosine (20 mM) persisted but PyP availability was affected. In the absence of PyP from the assay medium, cAAT activities (plus Glyc3P) were 95 +/- 18.2 micromol/min per mg protein (mean +/- SD), minus carnosine and 100 +/- 2.4, plus carnosine; control activity was 172 +/- 3.9. When PyP (1.0 microM) was included in the assay medium, cAAT activities (plus Glyc3P) were 93 +/- 14.8, minus carnosine and 151 +/- 16.8, plus carnosine, P < 0. 001; control activity was 180 +/- 17.7. These data, which showed carnosine moderating the effects of both Glyc3P and PyP, suggest that carnosine may be an endogenous aldehyde scavenger.
Subject(s)
Aspartate Aminotransferases/antagonists & inhibitors , Carnosine/pharmacology , Enzyme Inhibitors/pharmacology , Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate/antagonists & inhibitors , Glyceraldehyde 3-Phosphate/pharmacology , Aspartate Aminotransferases/metabolism , Guanidines/pharmacology , Kinetics , Myocardium/enzymology , Pyridoxal Phosphate/pharmacologyABSTRACT
The binding of a spin-labeled AMP analog to tetrameric glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase from rabbit muscle is described. The spin label, perdeuterated and 15N-substituted 4-amino-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-oxyl, was attached to C-8 of AMP (C8-SL-AMP). Up to 8 equivalents of C8-SL-AMP bind per enzyme tetramer, i.e., 2 per monomer. Combining sites are the adenine subsite of the coenzyme-binding domain and the phosphate site. Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate causes a conformational change in the enzyme that brings C8-SL-AMP molecules bound to adjacent R-axis-related subunits closer to one another by 0.2-0.3 nm and allows for spin-spin interaction between the nitroxide radicals. Similar, but less pronounced structural changes take place upon lowering the pH from 8 to 7. Addition of a single equivalent of NAD+ to a complex of the enzyme with 7.6 equivalents of C8-SL-AMP leads to the release of almost 4 C8-SL-AMP molecules. This supports our previous findings that binding of just one NAD+ molecule induces conformational changes in all four subunits.
