The pyridoxal-phosphate-dependent enzymes exclusively catalyzing reactions of beta-replacement.

Theoretic and experimental arguments are surveyed which justify the setting up, within the family of pyridoxal-P-dependent lyases, of a special subgroup that comprizes several enzymes catalyzing exclusively beta-replacement reactions of alpha-aminoacids with electronegative substituents in the beta-position. The authors and their associates have studied the physico-chemical and catalytic properties of four high purity enzymes belonging to this subgroup, namely: cysteine lyase (EC 4.1.1.10) from embryonic chicken yolk-sac, serine sulfhydrase from chicken liver and the closely analogous or synonymic cystathionine beta-synthase (EC 4.4.1.8) from rat liver, and beta-cyanoalanine synthase (EC 4.4.1.9) from lupine seedlings, in comparison with some pyridoxal-P-requiring lyases differing in reaction specificity, for example, gamma-specific, alphabeta-eliminating or plurifunctional lyases such as gamma-cystathionase (EC 4.4.1.1) of animal tissues. The results of these studies, relating to subtrate and cosubstrate specificities of the enzymes mentioned, their interactions with some selective inhibitors, catalysis of isotopic exchange of hydrogen atoms in substrates and substrate analogs, etc., indicate that lyases of the exclusively beta-replacing type substantially differ in reaction mechanism from other subgroups of this enzyme family. Thus, it appears highly improbable that transient formation of an alphabeta-unsaturated, coenzyme-substrate imine, considered as an obligatory step in the action of lyases in the alphabeta-eliminating and other subgroups, should occur in the sequences of reaction intermediates in the case of beta-replacing lyases. Suggested features of the presumable catalytic mechanism of these lyases are discussed, such as : fixed conformation of the aminoacid substrate in the ES complex (protein-bound pyridoxal-P aldimine), with beta-substituent in orientation cis (rather than trans) to the Halpha atom ; role of the binding of appropriate cosubstrates (nucleophilic replacing agent, Cs) inducing essential electronic and/or steric transitions in the catalytic site of the ternanry CsES complexes, etc.

Isotopic hydrogen exchange in reactions catalysed by cysteine lyase and serine sulphhydrase.

Serine sulphhydrase from chicken liver and cysteine lyase from chicken-embryo yolk sac catalyse the exchange of alpha-H atoms of the amino acid substrate with 3-H-2O. The degree of labelling of the unreacted substrate approaches a maximum of one atom per mol of amino acid. In the absence of replacing agent there is practically no H-exchange in the substrate. The alpha-H of the accumulating beta-substitution product is completely replaced by the labelled hydrogen of the solvent water, irrespective of the duration of incubation. The amount of labelled alpha-hydrogen incorporated into excess (unreacted) amino acids substrate within 3.5-h incubation is somewhat less than the amount incorporated into the product of the complete enzymic beta-replacement reaction. Within the sensitivity limits of detection, the enzymes do not induce any isotopic exchange either of b-H atoms in the amino substrate or of 18-O-labelled beta-HO groups, in the case of L-serine. Neither serine sulphhydrase nor cysteine lyase will catalyse alpha-hydrogen exchange in close structural analogues of their substrates, e.g. L-alanine, D-serine, threonin, 3-phosphoserine. A special case is the interaction of cysteine lyase with the competitive inhibitor, L-serine (whose inhibitor constant, K-i, is equal to the Michaelis constant, K-m, of L-cysteine): the lyase catalyses, only in presence of a cosubstrate thiol, alpha-H exchange in L-serine at approximately the same rate as in L-cysteine. The present data concerning isotopic alpha-H exchange in substrate amino acids, and evidence published earlier, suggest that the catalytic mechanism of replacement-specific beta-lyases may significantly differ from that of the eliminating or ambivalent (mixed-function) lyases. Formation of alpha, beta-unsaturated pyridoxylidene aldimines as real reaction intermediates is unlikely in the case of lyases specifically catalysing beta-replacement reactions; these may proceed by some alternative mechanism of the type suggested in this paper.

Beta-cyanoalanine synthase: purification and characterization.

Beta-cyano-L-alanine synthase [L-cysteine hydrogen-sulfide-lyase (adding HCN), EC 4.4.1.9] was purified about 4000-fold from blue lupine seedlings. The enzyme was homoegeneous on gel electrophoresis and free of contamination by other pyridoxal-P-dependent lyases. The enzyme has a molecular weight of 52,000 and contains 1 mole of pyridoxal-P per mole of protein; its isoelectric point is situated at pH 4.7. Its absorption spectrum has two maxima, at 280 and 410 nm. L-Cysteine is the natural primary (amino acid) substrate; beta-chloro- and beta-thiocyano can serve (with considerably lower affinity) instead of cyanide as cosubstrates for cyanoalanine synthase. The synthase is refractory to DL-cycloserine and D-penicillamine, potent inhibitors of many pyridoxal-P-dependent enzymes. Cyanoalanine synthase catalyzes slow isotopic alpha-H exchange in cysteine and in end-product amino acids; the rates of alpha-H exchange in nonreacted (excess) cysteine are markedly increased in the presence of an adequate cosubstrate; no exchange is observed of H atoms in beta-position.

[Primary structure of cytoplasmic aspartate aminotransferase from pig heart muscle. Amino acid sequence of peptides from cyanogen bromide hydrolysate]. / Pervichnaia Struktura Tsitoplazmaticheskoi Acpartat-aminotransferazy iz cerdechnoi myshtsy Sviní. Aminokislotnaia Posledovatelnostv peptidov Bromtsianovogo Racshchepleniia

Amino acid sequences were determined for the six peptides from cyanogen bromide hydrolysis of cytoplasmic aspartate aminotransferase. These peptides accounted for 177 amino acid residues of the enzyme. Partial sequence of N-terminal peptide accounting for 212 amino acid residues of enzyme was also determined.