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R E MacKenzie

Publications and source records attributed to R E MacKenzie.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Binding and interconversion of tetrahydrofolates at a single site in the bifunctional methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase.

The bifunctional dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase domain of the human NADP-dependent trifunctional methyleneH4folate dehydrogenase/methenylH4folate cyclohydrolase/formylH4folate synthetase (H4folate = tetrahydrofolate) catalyzes two sequential reactions involved in the interconversion of H4folate derivatives. We have established by equilibrium dialysis that a single H4folate-binding site exists per monomer of the dimeric domain and that the presence of nucleotides has two unexpected effects on H4folate substrate binding. Nucleotides containing a 5'-phosphate cause positive cooperativity in the binding of methyleneH4folate but not of 10-formylH4folate, and NADP increases the affinity for 10-formylH4folate by a factor of 25. The results indicate that dinucleotide preferentially binds before 10-formylH4folate in the reverse cyclohydrolase reaction, and this mechanism increases the efficiency of conversion of 10-formylH4folate to methyleneH4folate. We report new kinetic data that are also consistent with a steady-state random mechanism for this enzyme. To assess whether the enzyme functions at equilibrium in vivo, we determined the overall chemical equilibrium constant of Keq = 16 for ([10- formylH4folate][NADPH])/([methyleneH4folate][NADP]). Using this value and reported ratios of free dinucleotides and folate derivatives in vivo, we estimate that the cytosolic dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase reactions exist near the equilibrium position. However, the NAD-dependent dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase reactions in mitochondria are far from equilibrium and are poised toward 10-formylH4folate synthesis. The results of the binding and kinetic studies indicate that the bifunctional nature of the methyleneH4folate dehydrogenase/methenylH4folate cyclohdrolase domain is designed to optimize the overall reverse reactions in vivo.

Aminohydrolases

The two monofunctional domains of octameric formiminotransferase-cyclodeaminase exist as dimers.

Formiminotransferase-cyclodeaminase is a bifunctional enzyme arranged as a circular tetramer of dimers that exhibits the ability to efficiently channel polyglutamylated folate between catalytic sites. Through deletion mutagenesis we demonstrate that each subunit consists of an N-terminal transferase active domain and a C-terminal deaminase active domain separated by a linker sequence of minimally eight residues. The full-length enzyme and both isolated domains have been expressed as C-terminally histidine-tagged proteins. Both domains self-dimerize, providing direct evidence for the existence of two types of subunit interfaces. The results suggest that both the transferase and the deaminase activities are dependent on the formation of specific subunit interfaces. Because channeling is not observed between isolated domains, only the octamer appears able to directly transfer pentaglutamylated intermediate between active sites.

Amino Acid Sequence

NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase is targeted to the cytoplasm in insect cell lines.

Cytosolic NADP-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase synthetase and the mitochondrial NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase (NMDMC) are differentially expressed during insect development although both enzymes are detectable at all stages. In contrast, cell lines derived from a variety of insect species express high levels of NMDMC but undetectable levels of the NADP-dependent enzyme. Northern analysis indicates the NMDMC message is expressed at levels 50-100 times higher in a Drosophila cell line compared to adult flies. RNase protection showed the predominance of shortened transcripts that require initiation at a downstream AUG producing a truncated protein that lacks a mitochondrial targeting sequence. These changes in expression effectively exchange the cytosolic NADP-dependent dehydrogenase for one with NAD specificity.

Amino Acid Sequence

Primary structure of a folate-dependent trifunctional enzyme from Spodoptera frugiperda.

The dehydrogenase and synthetase activities of the NADP-dependent methylenetetra-hydrofolate dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase-synthetase are undetectable in extracts of the Spodoptera frugiperda cell line, Sf9. However, a single cDNA encoding this protein was isolated from a library and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequence codes for a protein of 933 amino acids in length that shows 59% identity to the human enzyme. The cDNA inserted in the yeast expression vector pVT102-U complements a purine auxotrophic yeast strain lacking this enzyme.

Amino Acid Sequence

Binding of the 2',5'-ADP subsite stimulates cyclohydrolase activity of human NADP(+)-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase.

The bifunctional dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase domain of the human trifunctional methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase/methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase/formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase catalyzes two sequential reactions with significant channeling of the intermediate, methenyltetrahydrofolate. Equilibrium dialysis established that a single, high-affinity NADP+ binding site exists per monomer of the dimeric enzyme. Kinetic characterization of NADP+ binding to the dehydrogenase using analogs as inhibitors demonstrated that affinity for this substrate is due almost exclusively to binding at the 2',5'-ADP subsite. The same structural specificities for binding are exhibited by these analogs in their effects on the cyclohydrolase. Both NADP+ and its 3-aminopyridine analog AADP partially inhibit the activity of the cyclohydrolase when assayed with added methenyltetrahydrofolate as substrate. However, under the same conditions, the cyclohydrolase is actually activated by 2',5'-ADP; activation requires the presence of the 5'-phosphate since 2'-AMP binds but does not activate. Nicotinamide ribose monophosphate (NMN) has no detectable effect either alone or in combination with 2',5'-ADP. The results are consistent with the existence of a shared dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase active site proximal to the 2',5'-ADP subsite. NADP+ reduces the rate of the fully activated cyclohydrolase by 2-fold. Inhibition appears to be due to the loosely bound nicotinamide ring interacting with the common folate subsite, resulting in only partial inhibition by NADP+. The interaction of 2',5'-ADP with the cyclohydrolase suggests a potential role for this portion of the molecule in promoting the efficiency of the channeling of endogenously generated methenyltetrahydrofolate.

Adenine Nucleotides

The nucleotide sequence of porcine formiminotransferase cyclodeaminase. Expression and purification from Escherichia coli.

We have isolated and characterized cDNA clones encoding the porcine liver octameric enzyme, 5-formiminotetrahydrofolate:L-glutamate N-formiminotransferase (EC 2.1.2.5)-formiminotetrahydrofolate cyclodeaminase (EC 4.3.1.4). The cDNA encodes a novel amino acid sequence of 541 residues which contains exact matches to two sequences derived by automated sequence analysis of CNBr cleavage fragments isolated from the porcine enzyme. The recombinant enzyme has been expressed as a soluble protein in Escherichia coli at levels 4-fold higher than those observed in liver, and is bifunctional, displaying both transferase and deaminase activities. With a calculated subunit molecular mass of 58,926 Da, it is similar in size to the enzyme isolated from porcine liver. Purification of the enzyme from E. coli involves chromatography on a novel polyglutamate column which might interact with the folylpolyglutamate binding site of the protein. The purified recombinant enzyme has a transferase specific activity of 39-41 units/mg/min.

Amino Acid Sequence

NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase is the mammalian homolog of the mitochondrial enzyme encoded by the yeast MIS1 gene.

The recombinant human bifunctional NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase is unique in its absolute requirement for Mg2+ and inorganic phosphate. Both ions affect the affinity of the enzyme for NAD and have no effect on the binding of methylenetetrahydrofolate. The NAD cofactor can be replaced by NADP with a much higher KM and lower VMAX. Kinetic investigation using NADP supports the role of Mg2+ in dinucleotide binding and illustrates that the 2'-phosphate can substitute for phosphate in this process. The human NAD-dependent bifunctional enzyme has a 44% amino acid sequence identity with the dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase domain of the yeast mitochondrial NADP-dependent trifunctional enzyme encoded by the MIS1 gene, compared to 37% identity with the corresponding domain of the cytosolic trifunctional enzyme. The sequence comparison and the kinetic properties suggest that the NAD bifunctional enzyme is the mammalian homolog of the yeast mitochondrial trifunctional enzyme, which has evolved a unique use of inorganic phosphate to change its dinucleotide specificity from NADP to NAD. Its role is proposed to be in providing formyltetrahydrofolate for the synthesis of formylmethionyl transfer RNA required for the initiation of protein synthesis in mitochondria.

Aminohydrolases

The NADP-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase is not expressed in Spodoptera frugiperda cells.

The insect cell line derived from Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) does not express the activities of the trifunctional NADP-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase. The lack of synthetase activity was confirmed by the inability to incorporate radiolabeled formate into nucleotides. The cells express, instead, a Mg2+ and NAD-dependent bifunctional methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase with properties similar to the enzyme found in the mitochondria of transformed mammalian cells. In contrast, the enzyme in Sf9 cells is localized in the cytoplasm. Nutritional studies in defined medium with dialyzed serum demonstrated that the Sf9 cell does not required added purines or pyrimidines for growth. It is auxotrophic for cysteine and glycine; this latter requirement is probably due to the absence of mitochondrial serine hydroxymethyltransferase. Incorporation of labeled glycine and serine into DNA indicates that only serine is a source of one-carbon units. These results suggest that the mitochondria in Sf9 cells do not play a major role in folate-mediated metabolism.

Aminohydrolases

Expression of human NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase in Escherichia coli: purification and partial characterization.

NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase is a bifunctional enzyme synthesized as a 37-kDa precursor that is imported into the mitochondria of embryonic and transformed mammalian cells. The cDNA encoding the human bifunctional enzyme was modified to remove nucleotides corresponding to the mitochondrial targeting sequence and was subcloned into a procaryotic expression vector under the control of the T7 RNA polymerase promoter. The soluble dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase was expressed in Escherichia coli at levels up to 150-fold higher than those found in transformed mammalian cells. Forms of the recombinant enzyme with one, three, or seven additional amino-terminal residues were purified to homogeneity and shown to have similar kinetic properties. Investigation of the absolute requirement of the enzyme for Mg2+ using fluorescence quenching indicates that this ion binds in the absence of substrates.

Amino Acid Sequence

Transcriptional regulation of murine NADP(+)-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase-synthetase.

The cytosolic NADP(+)-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase is ubiquitously expressed in all mouse tissues and cell lines examined. Northern analyses of the RNA indicated that there is an extensive variation in the levels of mRNA in different tissues. However, the gene is refractory to induction by serum, phorbol esters or growth factors in cultured fibroblasts. The mRNA of the NADP(+)-dependent trifunctional enzyme is stabilized post-transcriptionally by insulin-like growth factor-1.

3T3 Cells

Analysis of the promoter region of the gene encoding NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase.

Sequence analysis of the 5'-flanking region of the gene encoding NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase (NMDMC) revealed several putative cis-regulatory elements. To delineate the function of these regulatory elements, various deletion mutants of the 5'-flanking region were connected to the reporter gene chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) and promoter activity was measured in transient transfection assays. Transfection experiments performed with the sequence extending from -508 to +59 produced a high-level transient expression of the CAT gene in BALB/c 3T3-SV-T2 and NIH 3T3 cells. Removal of the sequence from +16 to +59 which includes the second transcription start point at +43, a TATA-like box and 5'-untranslated sequences abolished the promoter activity. Deletion analysis of 5'-upstream sequences revealed that the region from positions -55 to +59 is sufficient to mediate a high CAT activity comparable to the level obtained with the construct -508/+59. Within this region are found a CAAT box, a TATA-like box and two putative GC boxes. A functional analysis of the promoter showed that the sequence from -55 to +59 is sufficient to respond to stimulation by serum.

Aminohydrolases

Structural organization of the murine gene encoding NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase.

The structural organization of the entire nuclear gene (NMDMC) encoding the mitochondrial (mt) NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase enzyme (NMDMC) was determined by analysis of clones obtained from a lambda EMBL3 murine genomic DNA library. The gene is approx. 13 kb in length and contains eight exons and seven introns. All exon/intron splice junctions follow the GT/AG rule. The amino acid presequence, which is essential for transport of the NMDMC enzyme precursor into mt, is encoded almost entirely in the first exon. Two major transcriptional start points (tsp), located 33 and 75 nucleotides upstream from the AUG start codon, were revealed by S1 nuclease mapping and RNase protection analyses. The immediate 5'-flanking region of the first exon contains one CAAT box, a TATA-like box and three sites homologous to the consensus sequence for the binding of transcription factor Sp1.

Aminohydrolases

A pseudogene on the X chromosome for the human trifunctional enzyme MTHFD (methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase).

The human trifunctional folate-dependent protein MTHFD has been mapped to chromosome 14q24 and to the X chromosome was identified by screening an X-chromosome-specific library. Amplification by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of PCR products indicate that the sequence is an intronless pseudogene.

Aminohydrolases

Expression of active domains of a human folate-dependent trifunctional enzyme in Escherichia coli.

The cDNA encoding the human trifunctional enzyme methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase was engineered to contain a prokaryotic ribosome binding site and was expressed under the bacteriophage T7 RNA polymerase promoter in Escherichia coli. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to prepare constructs that encode separately the dehydrogenase/cyclohydrolase (D/C) domain as amino acid residues 1-301, and the synthetase (Syn) domain as residues 304-935. Both domains formed active enzymes thereby demonstrating their ability to fold independently. The full-length enzyme, D/C and Syn domains were expressed at levels 4-, 55- and 3-fold higher than the specific activities found in liver. Additional mutagenesis and independent expression of domains further defined the interdomain region to include amino acids 292-310. The D/C domain was purified to homogeneity by a single affinity chromatographic step, and the full-length protein in a two-step procedure. The kinetic properties of the D/C domain appear unaltered from those of the trifunctional enzyme.

Amino Acid Sequence

An improved procedure for the purification of formiminotransferase-cyclodeaminase from pig liver. Kinetics of the transferase activity with tetrahydropteroylpolyglutamates.

Formiminotransferase-cyclodeaminase is stabilized and activated approx. 40% in the presence of low concentrations (equal or less than 0.2%) of Triton X-100, possibly because the average hydrophobicity (1.10 kcal per residue) and the frequency of large non-polar side-chains (0.34) of this protein are both somewhat higher than average. This stabilization enabled us to develop a new purification procedure for the enzyme using chromatography on Matrex Gel Orange A and heparin-Sepharose columns in the presence of Triton X-100. This procedure is easier, much more reproducible, and gives slightly higher yield than the previous method described by Drury, et al. Further investigations of the role of tetrahydropteroylpolyglutamates with formiminotransferase-cyclodeaminase reveal that the use of polyglutamylated folate substrates does not change the mechanism of the transferase reaction, but decreases the K(m) for formininoglutamate, the second substrate, more than 10-fold, bringing it closer to the expected physiological concentration.

Amino Acids

Isolation and characterization of cDNA clones encoding the murine NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase.

Forty cDNA clones corresponding to the bifunctional NAD-dependent methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase enzyme were isolated from a mouse lambda gt11 library. Two classes of cDNA clones were shown by Northern analysis to correspond to the two mRNA species of 1.7 and 2.0 kilobases present in transformed cells but not in normal tissues and that apparently are derived from alternate polyadenylation signals. The 1050-base pair coding region encodes a protein of 350 amino acids which contains a putative mitochondrial-targeting signal peptide of 34 amino acids following the initiator methionine. The 20 amino acids immediately following the signal peptide correspond exactly to those determined by sequence analysis of the amino terminus of the purified protein. The derived amino acid sequence of the NAD-dependent dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase shows extensive homology with the corresponding amino-terminal sequence of the trifunctional NADP-dependent dehydrogenase-cyclohydrolase-synthetase enzyme from human cells (approximately 40%), yeast cytosol (approximately 36%), and yeast mitochondria (approximately 45%).

Amino Acid Sequence

Chromosomal localization of the gene for the human trifunctional enzyme, methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase.

A trifunctional protein in man, 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase-10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase, catalyzes three consecutive steps in the interconversion of tetrahydrofolate derivatives; these derivatives supply one-carbon units for intermediary metabolism. Somatic cell hybridization and in situ hybridization were used to localize the functional gene coding for this protein--to human chromosome 14q24, near the c-fos and TGF-beta 3 loci. A second hybridizing sequence, possibly a pseudogene, was identified near the centromere of the X chromosome, at Xp11.

Aminohydrolases