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M H Gelb

Publications and source records attributed to M H Gelb.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Brain G protein gamma subunits contain an all-trans-geranylgeranylcysteine methyl ester at their carboxyl termini.

We have shown previously that guanine nucleotide-binding protein (G protein) beta gamma complexes purified from bovine brain membranes are methyl esterified on a C-terminal cysteine residue of the gamma polypeptide. In the present study, 3H-methylated G beta gamma complexes cleaved to their constituent amino acids by exhaustive proteolysis were shown to contain radiolabeled material that coeluted with geranylgeranylcysteine methyl ester on reversed-phase HPLC and two TLC systems. Further treatment by performic acid oxidation yielded radiolabeled material that coeluted with L-cysteic acid methyl ester, verifying that the prenyl modification occurs on a C-terminal cysteine residue. Analysis by gas chromatography-coupled mass spectrometry of material released from purified G beta gamma by treatment with Raney nickel positively identified the covalently bound lipid as an all-trans-geranylgeranyl (C20) isoprenoid moiety. To delineate the distribution of this modification among gamma subunits, purified G beta gamma complexes were separated into 5-kDa (gamma 5) and 6-kDa (gamma 6) forms of the gamma polypeptide by reversed-phase HPLC. Gas chromatography-coupled mass spectrometry analyses of Raney nickel-treated purified gamma 5 and gamma 6 subunits showed that both polypeptides were modified by geranylgeranylation. These results demonstrate that at least two forms of brain gamma subunit are posttranslationally modified by geranylgeranylation and carboxyl methylation. These modifications may be important for targeting G beta gamma complexes to membranes.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Posttranslationally processed structure of the human platelet protein smg p21B: evidence for geranylgeranylation and carboxyl methylation of the C-terminal cysteine.

smg p21A and -B are small GTP-binding proteins that share putative effector and consensus C-terminal sequences with ras p21 proteins. In the present report, we showed that human platelet smg p21B became labeled when intact platelets were incubated with exogenous [3H]mevalonolactone and when a purified preparation of smg p21B was incubated with bovine brain membranes and S-adenosyl-L-[methyl-3H]methionine. In addition, we demonstrated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry that treatment of smg p21B with Raney nickel released a geranylgeranyl moiety in a molar ratio of about 1:1. In contrast, treatment of smg p21B with NH2OH or KOH yielded no evidence for the presence of a palmitoyl thioester. Extensive digestion of smg p21B with Achromobacter protease I yielded two C-terminal tripeptides that contained serine and cysteine in a molar ratio of 2:1. Both peptides were modified by a thioether-linked geranylgeranyl group. One of the peptides comigrated with a 3H-labeled proteolytic product of methylated smg p21B on reverse-phase HPLC and this peptide appeared at the same retention time as that of the other peptide after being treated with KOH. Since the cDNA-predicted C-terminal sequence of smg p21B contains a unique Ser-Ser-Cys peptide within its C-terminal domain, -Lys-Lys-Ser-Ser-Cys-Gln-Leu-Leu184, these results indicate that smg p21B is posttranslationally modified by geranylgeranylation of Cys-181 and suggest that further modifications cause proteolytic removal of the three predicted C-terminal amino acids followed by partial methylation of the cysteinyl carboxyl group.

Blood Platelets↗
PubMed1990

Mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae defective in the farnesylation of Ras proteins.

Ras proteins are post-translationally modified by farnesylation. In the present investigation, we identified an activity in crude soluble extracts of yeast cells that catalyzes the transfer of a farnesyl moiety from farnesyl pyrophosphate to yeast RAS2 protein. RAS2 proteins having a C-terminal Cys-Ali-Ali-Xaa sequence (where Ali is an aliphatic amino acid and Xaa is the unspecified C-terminal amino acid) served as substrates for this reaction, whereas RAS2 proteins with an altered or deleted Cys-Ali-Ali-Xaa sequence did not. A yeast mutant, dpr1/ram1, originally isolated as a Ras-processing mutant was shown to be defective in farnesyltransferase activity. In addition, another mutant, ram2, also was defective in the transferase activity. These results demonstrate that at least two genes, DPR1/RAM1 and RAM2, are required for the farnesyltransferase activity in yeast.

Alkyl and Aryl Transferases↗
PubMed1989

Human lamin B contains a farnesylated cysteine residue.

We recently showed that HeLa cell lamin B is modified by a mevalonic acid derivative. Here we identified the modified amino acid, determined its mode of linkage to the mevalonic acid derivative, and established the derivative's structure. A cysteine residue is modified because experiments with lamin B that had been biosynthetically labeled with [3H]mevalonic acid or [35S]cysteine and then extensively digested with proteases yielded 3H- or 35S-labeled products that co-chromatographed in five successive systems. A thioether linkage rather than a thioester linkage is involved because the mevalonic acid derivative could be released from the 3H-labeled products in a pentane-extractable form by treatment with Raney nickel but not with methanolic KOH. The derivative is a farnesyl moiety because the Raney nickel-released material was identified as 2,6,10-trimethyl-2,6,10-dodecatriene by a combination of gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. The thioether-modified cysteine residue appears to be located near the carboxyl end of lamin B because treatment of 3H-labeled lamin B with cyanogen bromide yielded a single labeled polypeptide that mapped toward this end of the cDNA-inferred sequence of human lamin B.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Competitive inhibition of phospholipase A2 in vesicles.

Kinetic studies with phospholipase A2 are complicated by the fact that binding of the enzyme to the interface precedes catalytic turnover. This difficulty can be overcome by monitoring interfacial catalysis in the scooting mode where the enzyme does not leave the interface. The kinetics of inhibition by transition-state analogues shows that specific competitive inhibition is the result of competition between inhibitor and substrate for the binding to the active site of the enzyme in the interface. Several lipophilic compounds, including alkanols, substituted butyrophenones, aristolochic acid, and mepacrine apparently reduce the rate of lipolysis by promoting the desorption of phospholipase A2 from the interface.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1989

Human plasma lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase. Inhibition of the phospholipase A2-like activity by sn-2-difluoroketone phosphatidylcholine analogues.

Lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) is a plasma enzyme which catalyzes the transacylation of the sn-2-fatty acid of lecithin to cholesterol, forming lysolecithin and cholesteryl ester. We have recently proposed a covalent catalytic mechanism for LCAT in which lecithin cleavage proceeds via the formation of a transition state tetrahedral adduct between the oxygen atom of the catalytic serine residue and the sn-2-carbonyl carbon atom of the substrate (Jauhiainen, M., Ridgway, N.D., and Dolphin, P.J. (1987) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 918, 175-188). This proposal is evaluated here by use of nonhydrolyzable sn-2-difluoroketone phosphatidylcholine analogues, known to inhibit calcium-dependent phospholipase A2. These compounds inhibited the calcium-independent phospholipase A2 activity of LCAT in a time and concentration dependent manner. The most potent analogues had a 100-fold higher affinity for the enzyme than the substrate, lecithin, when present within lecithin/apoA-I proteoliposomes. The inhibition was dependent upon the presence of a difluoromethylene group alpha to the sn-2-carbonyl carbon of the analogues. The inhibition is attributed to the formation of a tetrahedral adduct between the catalytic serine residue of LCAT and the sn-2-carbonyl carbon atom of the analogues which is stabilized by the electronegative fluorine atoms present upon the carbon atom alpha to the carbonyl carbon. This adduct mimics that proposed by us to occur during lecithin cleavage by LCAT, and the data substantiate the existence of this transition state adduct prior to the release of lysolecithin and formation of a fatty acylserine oxyester of the enzyme.

Humans↗
PubMed1988

Bacterial N-succinyl-L-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase. Purification, partial characterization, and substrate specificity.

The enzyme N-succinyl-L-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase from Escherichia coli has been purified 7,100-fold to apparent homogeneity. The enzyme is part of the diaminopimelic acid-lysine pathway in bacteria and catalyzes the hydrolysis of N-succinyl-L-diaminopimelic acid to produce L-diaminopimelic acid and succinate. The enzyme exists as a mixture of dimeric and tetrameric species of identical subunits of molecular weight approximately 40,000. Activity was completely abolished following dialysis of the enzyme against metal chelators. Cobalt(II) and zinc were effective in restoring the activity. The apparent affinities of the apoenzyme for cobalt and zinc were similar (Kd values near 1 microM) and the cobalt enzyme was 2.2-fold more active than the zinc enzyme. The Km and turnover number for the hydrolysis of the natural substrate, N-succinyl-L-diaminopimelic acid, were 0.4 mM and 16,000 min-1, respectively. The substrate specificity of the enzyme was defined by preparing a number of substrate analogues that systematically lack the various functional groups present in the molecule. These studies show that the enzyme is highly specific for the natural substrate. These properties of N-succinyl-L-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase and the fact that the enzyme is essential for bacterial growth make it an ideal target for the development of inhibitors with potential antibacterial activity.

Amidohydrolases↗
PubMed1987

Fluoro ketone containing peptides as inhibitors of human renin.

The pentapeptide BOC-Phe-Phe-difluorostatone-Leu-Phe-NH2 has been prepared and found to be a potent inhibitor of human renin. This compound contains a difluoromethylene ketone group that exists predominantly in the hydrated form in water. The difluorostatone-containing peptide is 7-fold and 22-fold more potent than the analogous statine- and statone-containing peptides, respectively. Structure/activity analysis of the most potent inhibitor was carried out by replacing some of the peptide bonds with trans-alkenes. In all cases, a dramatic loss in binding to renin was observed. A number of statine-containing inhibitors of renin have been reported and this work suggests that the replacement of statine with difluorostatone will yield more potent compounds.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1986

X-ray diffraction analysis of the inactivation of chymotrypsin by 3-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone.

The inactivation of chymotrypsin by 3-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone has been studied. A covalent adduct is formed that deacylates slowly with a half-life of 23 h. X-ray diffraction analysis at 1.9-A resolution of the inactivator-enzyme complex shows that the gamma-oxygen of the active-site serine (serine-195) is covalently attached to C-1 of (Z)-2-benzylpentenedioic acid, the benzyl group of the inactivator is held in the hydrophobic specificity pocket of the enzyme, and the free carboxylate forms a salt bridge with the active-site histidine (histidine-57). The conformational changes that occur in the protein as a result of complexation are described. It is proposed that formation of the salt bridge prevents access of water and, therefore, hydrolysis of the acyl-enzyme.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1986

Substituted isatoic anhydrides: selective inactivators of trypsin-like serine proteases.

Derivatives of isatoic anhydride were prepared and tested as inhibitors of serine proteases. A number of isatoic anhydrides with positively charged substituents irreversibly inactivated several trypsin-like enzymes and preferentially inactivated trypsin over chymotrypsin. Further selectivity was obtained by introduction of an aromatic group on the N-1 position of isatoic anhydride. 7-(Aminomethyl)-1-benzylisatoic anhydride was prepared and was a selective inactivator of thrombin; thus it is possible to prepare derivatives of isatoic anhydride that are highly enzyme selective without attaching peptide recognition structures.

Anticoagulants↗
PubMed1985

Fluoro ketone inhibitors of hydrolytic enzymes.

The use of fluoro ketones as inhibitors of hydrolytic enzymes has been investigated. The acetylcholine analogues 6,6-dimethyl-1,1,1-trifluoro-2-heptanone and 3,3-difluoro-6,6-dimethyl-2-heptanone are inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase with Ki values of 16 X 10(-9) M and 1.6 X 10(-9) M, respectively. These fluoro ketones are 10(4)-10(5) times better as inhibitors than the corresponding methyl ketone. Since nucleophiles readily add to fluoro ketones, it is likely that these compounds inhibit acetylcholinesterase by formation of a stable hemiketal with the active-site serine residue. Fluoro ketone substrate analogues are also inhibitors of zinc metallo- and aspartylproteases. 2-Benzyl-4-oxo-5,5,5-trifluoropentanoic acid is an inhibitor of carboxypeptidase A (Ki = 2 X 10(-7) M). Trifluoromethyl ketone dipeptide analogues are good inhibitors of angiotensin converting enzyme. An analogue of pepstatin that contains a difluorostatone residue in place of statine has been prepared and found to be an extremely potent inhibitor of pepsin (Ki = 6 X 10(-11) M). The hydrated ketones are probably the inhibitory species since they are structural mimics of the tetrahedral intermediate that forms during the hydrolysis of peptide substrates.

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors↗
PubMed1985

Inactivation of chymotrypsin by 5-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone: 13C NMR and X-ray diffraction analyses of the inactivator-enzyme complex.

The inactivation of chymotrypsin by 5-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone has been studied. Chloride analysis of the inactivated enzyme suggests that chlorine is no longer present in the complex. 13C NMR spectroscopy of chymotrypsin inactivated with 5-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone-2,6-13 C2 shows the presence of two new resonances from the protein-bound inactivator. The chemical shift values of these resonances are consistent with an intact pyrone ring on the enzyme as well as the replacement of the C-6 chlorine by a different heteroatom. X-ray diffraction analysis at 1.5-A resolution of the inactivator-enzyme complex demonstrates that the gamma-oxygen of the active site serine residue (serine 195) is covalently attached to C-6 of the inactivator and that the pyrone ring is intact. The 5-benzyl group of the inactivator is bound to the enzyme in the hydrophobic specificity pocket. The conformational changes that occur in the protein as a result of complexation with the inactivator are discussed.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1984

Mechanism of inactivation of chymotrypsin by 3-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone.

The mechanism of inactivation of chymotrypsin by 3-benzyl-6-chloro-2-pyrone has been studied. Chloride analysis of the inactivated enzyme suggests that the complex does not contain intact chloropyrone or an acid chloride. 13C NMR studies of the enzyme inactivated with 13C-enriched chloropyrones show that (1) the pyrone ring is no longer intact, (2) C-6 becomes a carboxylate group and C-2 becomes esterified to the enzyme, probably to serine-195, and (3) a double bond is present adjacent to the serine ester. The inactivated enzyme slowly regains catalytic activity with the concomitant release of (E)-4-benzyl-2-pentenedioic acid. It is concluded that double bond migration occurs during reactivation since the position of the double bond in the released diacid product is different than in the inactivator-enzyme complex. When the reactivation is carried out in [18O]H2O-enriched water, a single oxygen-18 is incorporated into the released product and is further evidence that the inactivator is bound to the enzyme only through a single ester linkage. A deuterium isotope effect on reactivation is observed when a chloropyrone deuterated at C-5 is used. This result demonstrates that removal of a proton from C-5 is required for reactivation and that isomerization of the double bond and not hydrolysis of the acyl-enzyme is rate determining. A variety of amines accelerate the rate of reactivation by functioning as general bases and not as nucleophiles. A reaction scheme is presented that accounts for the formation of the stable inactivator-enzyme complex as well as the production of two products derived from enzymatic hydrolysis of the chloropyrone.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Chemical Phenomena↗
PubMed1982

Stereochemistry and deuterium isotope effects in camphor hydroxylation by the cytochrome P450cam monoxygenase system.

Bacterial cytochrome P450cam catalyzes the hydroxylation of camphor to yield 5-exo-hydroxycamphor in vivo and in a reconstituted system with oxygen, pyridine nucleotide, flavoprotein dehydrogenase, and putidaredoxin. Product is also formed when the ferric form of the hemoprotein is mixed with the exogenous oxidants iodosobenzene, m-chloroperbenzoic acid, and hydrogen peroxide. In this paper we show that when the P450cam-dependent hydroxylation reactions are studied with camphor analogues containing deuterium at either the 5-exo or 5-endo position, a very small intermolecular isotope on the overall reaction velocity is observed and a significant intramolecular isotope effect is documented. We suggest the existence of an intermediate substrate-carbon radical and demonstrate that abstraction can occur from either the exo or endo position at carbon 5 on the camphor skeleton, with the oxygen stereospecifically added to only the Re face to give 5-exo-hydroxycamphor as the unique product. Using these substrates, we observed nearly identical hydrogen/deuterium isotope ratios in the product alcohol for the pyridine nucleotide/atmospheric dioxygen as well as exogenous oxidant supported hydroxylations, suggesting that these reactions share a common hydrogen-abstracting species. The relatively small magnitude of the measured intramolecular isotope effect can be rationalized with a model involving a reversible hydrogen-abstraction step and/or the involvement of heavy-atom motion in the reaction coordinate.

Camphor↗
PubMed1982

Chemical mechanisms for cytochrome P-450 oxidation: spectral and catalytic properties of a manganese-substituted protein.

Bacterial cytochrome P-450 induced by camphor (P-450cam) is reconstituted with manganese-protoporphyrin IX, yielding an enzyme that displays unique spectral properties relative to previously characterized manganese-porphyrin systems. The nitric oxide complex of the manganese(II)-protein shows a hyper-metalloporphyrin spectrum suggestive of thiolate ligation to the porphyrin-bound manganese ion. In the presence of iodosobenzene as a source of active oxygen, manganese-substituted cytochrome P-450cam serves as a catalyst for the epoxidation of an enzyme-bound olefin substrate. This reactivity proceeds through a spectrally detectable intermediate that resembles the manganese(V)-oxo complexes that have been well documented with model systems employing artificial manganese-metalloporphyrins in organic solution. Interestingly, manganese-substituted cytochrome-P-450cam shows no hydroxylation activity either in the reconstituted camphor hydroxylase system with pyridine nucleotide or in the presence of iodosobenzene and the Mn(III) form of the protein.

Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System↗
PubMed1981

Interaction of 5-bromocamphor with cytochrome P-450 cam. Production of 5-ketocamphor from a mixed spin state hemoprotein.

Camphor is stereospecifically hydroxylated by the soil bacterium Pseudomonas putida at the 5-exo position by a cytochrome P-450 mixed function oxidase system consisting of a flavoprotein reductase; putidaredoxin, an iron-sulfur oxidation-reduction transport-effector protein; and the P-450 hemoprotein. We have studied the interaction of a substrate analog of camphor, 5-exo-bromocamphor, with this cytochrome P-450 mixed function oxidase system in order to probe the molecular mechanisms of electron transport and catalytic substrate oxygenation. 5-exo-Bromocamphor was found to bind tightly in a 1:1 complex with P-450 with a dissociation constant of 2.9 microM, very near that for the normal camphor substrate. Contrary to camphor, however, the 5-exo-bromocamphor-bound material exhibits only a 46% population of the high spin form of the macromolecule. Measurement of the oxidation-reduction potential of the bromocamphor-P-450 complex yields a value of E0' = -246 mV, intermediate between that of substrate-free (-300 mV) and camphor-bound (-173 mV) cytochrome. These data are interpreted in terms of a thermodynamic linkage model relating spin, substrate, and oxidation-reduction equilibria in the P-450 monoxygenase system. 5-exo-Bromocamphor is readily metabolized by the P-450cam mixed function oxidase to 5-ketocamphor at rates and yields similar to that of the normal substrate, camphor, suggesting abstraction of the endo-hydrogen of 5-exo-bromocamphor and oxygen addition to produce a transient 5-bromo-5-hydroxycamphor intermediate. Implications of these chemical findings for the chemical mechanisms of P-450-catalyzed oxygenations and the flexibility of substrates at the active site of the macromolecule are discussed.

Camphor↗
PubMed1980

Binding of xylenol orange to transferrin. Demonstration of metal-anion linkage.

The iron transport protein, transferrin, binds two metal ions and, concomitantly, two carboxylate anions. The metal ion indicators, xylenol orange and semi-xylenol orange are carboxylate anions which exhibit a characteristic visible spectrum when attached to a metal. We prepared the ternary complexes VO2+-transferrin-xylenol orange and VO2+-transferrin-semi-xylenol orange. The EPR spectra show that the vanadyl ion is attached to the protein and the visible spectra show that the xylenol orange or semi-xylenol orange is attached to the metal. The implication is that in other metal-transferrin-anion complexes, the anion is directly attached to the metal.

Chemical Phenomena↗