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PubMed1995

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase: identification of the natural folate ligand, covalent labeling, and partial tryptic digestion.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (EC 1.5.1.6) was previously identified as a folate-binding protein in rat liver cytosol (R.J. Cook and C. Wagner, Biochemistry 21, 4427-4434, 1982) by virtue of the tetrahydrofolate polyglutamate tightly bound to the partially purified enzyme. In this current study we provide evidence to show that when liver cytosol was rapidly processed to identify the protein bound folate, large amounts of both 10-formyl- and 5-formyltetrahydrofolate were present. After overnight storage of the cytosol at 5 degrees C before processing, almost no formylfolates were present and the major protein-bound form was tetrahydrofolate. This suggests that 10-formyltetrahydrofolate polyglutamates are tightly bound to the enzyme in vivo and are converted to tetrahydrofolate forms during isolation by the hydrolase activity associated with the enzyme. Covalent binding of the stable folate analogue, 5-formyltetrahydrofolate, to the purified enzyme resulted in 2 mol bound per mole of enzyme subunit. This is consistent with earlier reports suggesting the enzyme is capable of carrying out both oxidative and hydrolytic conversion of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate at the same time. Partial tryptic digestion of the purified enzyme selectively inhibited dehydrogenase activity of the enzyme but did not affect the hydrolase or aldehyde dehydrogenase activities.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Hydrolysis of 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate to 5-formyltetrahydrofolate at pH 2.5 to 4.5.

At pH 4.0 to 4.5, 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate is hydrolyzed to only 5-formyltetrahydrofolate if reducing agents are present or iron-redox cycling is suppressed. At pH 4.0, the equilibrium position for this hydrolysis is approximately equal concentrations of both folates. If no reducing agents are used or iron-redox cycling is promoted, considerable amounts of 10-formyldihydrofolate are also formed. It is likely that 10-formyldihydrofolate has been misidentified as 5,10-hydroxymethylenetetrahydrofolate, which was reported to accumulate during the hydrolysis of 5, 10-methenyltetrahydrofolate to 5-formyltetrahydrofolate [Stover, P. and Schirch, V. (1992) Biochemistry 31, 2148-2155 and 2155-2164; (1990) J. Biol. Chem. 265, 14227-14233]. Since 5, 10-hydroxymethylenetetrahydrofolate is reported to be the viable in vivo substrate for serine hydroxymethyltransferase-catalyzed formation of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate, and 5, 10-hydroxymethylenetetrahydrofolate probably does not accumulate, the above folate metabolism is now doubtful. It is hypothesized that mildly acidic subcellular organelles provide an environment for the hydrolysis of 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate to 5-formyltetrahydrofolate in vivo, and there is no requirement for enzyme catalysis. Finally, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate is susceptible to iron-catalyzed oxidation to 10-formyldihydrofolate at pH 4 to 4.5.

Ascorbic Acid↗

PubMed1998

Identification of protein-arginine N-methyltransferase as 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

S-Adenosylmethionine:protein-arginine N-methyltransferase (EC 2.1.1. 23; protein methylase I) transfers the methyl group of S-adenosyl-L-methionine to an arginine residue of a protein substrate. The homogeneous liver protein methylase I was subjected to tryptic digestion followed by reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) separation and either "on-line" mass spectrometric fragmentation or "off-line" Edman sequencing of selected fractions. Data base searching of both the mass spectrometric and Edman sequencing data from several peptides identified the protein methylase as 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (EC 1.5.1.6; Cook, R. J., Lloyd, R. S., and Wagner, C. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 4965-4973; Swiss accession number). This identification was confirmed by comparative HPLC tryptic peptide mapping and affinity chromatography of the methylase on the 5-formyltetrahydrofolate-Sepharose affinity gel used to purify the dehydrogenase. The purified rat liver methylase had approximately 33% of the 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase and 36% of the aldehyde dehydrogenase activity as compared with the recombinant dehydrogenase, which also had protein methylase I activity. Polyclonal antibodies against recombinant dehydrogenase reacted with protein methylase I purified either by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis or 5-formyltetrahydrofolate affinity chromatography. In each instance there was only a single immunoreactive band at a molecular weight of approximately 106,000. Together, these results confirm the co-identity of protein-arginine methyltransferase and 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

Disruption of a calmodulin central helix-like region of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase impairs its dehydrogenase activity by uncoupling the functional domains.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (FDH) is composed of three domains and possesses three catalytic activities but has only two catalytic centers. The amino-terminal domain (residue 1-310) bears 10-formyltetrahydrofolate hydrolase activity, the carboxyl-terminal domain (residue 420-902) bears an aldehyde dehydrogenase activity, and the full-length FDH produces 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase activity. The intermediate linker (residues 311-419) connecting the two catalytic domains does not contribute directly to the enzyme catalytic centers but is crucial for 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase activity. We have identified a region within the intermediate domain (residues 384-405) that shows sequence similarity to the central helix of calmodulin. Deletion of either the entire putative helix or the central part of the helix or replacement of the six residues within the central part with alanines resulted in total loss of the 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase activity, whereas the full hydrolase and aldehyde dehydrogenase activities were retained. Alanine-scanning mutagenesis revealed that neither of the six residues alone is required for FDH activity. Analysis of the predicted secondary structures and circular dichroic and fluorescence spectroscopy studies of the intermediate domain expressed as a separate protein showed that this region is likely to consist of two alpha-helices connected by a flexible loop. Our results suggest that flexibility within the putative helix is important for FDH function and could be a point for regulation of the enzyme.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1994

Domain structure and function of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase catalyzes the NADP(+)-dependent oxidation of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to CO2 and tetrahydrofolate. Previous studies have shown that the enzyme binds the physiological pentaglutamate form of tetrahydrofolate product so tightly that it remains bound during size exclusion chromatography (Cook, R. J., and Wagner, C. (1982) Biochemistry 21, 4427-4434). In addition to the dehydrogenase activity, the enzyme from rat liver has been reported to exhibit both 10-formyltetrahydrofolate hydrolase and aldehyde dehydrogenase activities (Cook, R. J., Lloyd, R. S., and Wagner, C. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 4965-4973). We have purified the enzyme from rabbit liver and found that it catalyzes the same three reactions with similar kinetic constants and that it is a 99-kDa homotetramer, as reported previously for the rat and pig enzymes. Previous studies have suggested that the enzyme is composed of three domains and has separate folate binding sites for the dehydrogenase and hydrolase activities. We have investigated the domain structure of the rabbit enzyme. Differential scanning calorimetry reveals two thermal transitions, indicating the presence of two independently folded domains. The pentaglutamate form of tetrahydrofolate and NADP+ each stabilize one of the thermal transitions, showing that these ligands bind to separate domains. Limited proteolytic digestions by several proteases cleave the enzyme in a linker region between the two domains. After proteolytic cleavage, the domains no longer remain associated and do not catalyze the 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase reaction. Isolation and characterization of the intact domains revealed that the N-terminal domain only catalyzes the NADP(+)-independent 10-formyltetrahydrofolate hydrolase activity and the C-terminal domain only catalyzes the NADP(+)-dependent aldehyde dehydrogenase activity. The kinetic constants of these isolated domains are similar to those of the intact enzyme. Binding studies on the native enzyme using fluorescence and isothermal titration calorimetry indicated that the enzyme binds one molecule of tetrahydrofolate and two molecules of NADP+ per tetramer. Dissociation constants for both ligands were also determined by these methods.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1992

Isolation and sequencing of the cDNA coding for spinach 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase. Comparisons with the yeast, mammalian, and bacterial proteins.

The one-carbon metabolism enzymes 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase (EC 6.3.4.3), 5,10-methenyltetrahydrofolate cyclohydrolase (EC 3.5.4.9), and 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (EC 1.5.1.5) can be found on a single trifunctional protein in the eukaryotes examined. The one exception is in spinach leaves where 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase is monofunctional (Nour, J. M., and Rabinowitz, J. C. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 18363-18369). In the prokaryotes examined, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase is either absent or is monofunctional. A cDNA clone encoding spinach leaf 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase was isolated through the use of antibodies to the purified enzyme. This clone had an open reading frame of 1914 base pairs and encoded for a protein containing 636 amino acids with a calculated M(r) of 67,727. The percentage identity between spinach 10-formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase and the synthetase domains in the four trifunctional eukaryotic enzymes and the two monofunctional prokaryotic enzymes that have been cloned and sequenced was: 64.9% human, 63.8% rat, 55.6% yeast cytoplasm, 53.8% yeast mitochondria, 47.8% Clostridium acidi-urici, and 47.9% Clostridium thermoaceticum. Clearly the spinach monofunctional protein had greatest homology with the mammalian proteins. The spinach protein is longer than the two other monofunctional prokaryotic proteins. Possible reasons for this are presented. The codon usage and the putative translation initiation sites are examined and compared with other spinach proteins.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1991

5-Formyltetrahydrofolate polyglutamates are slow tight binding inhibitors of serine hydroxymethyltransferase.

The interaction of the mono- and triglutamate forms of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and 5-formyltetrahydrofolate with serine hydroxymethyltransferase were determined by several methods. These methods included: determining dissociation constants by observing the absorbance at 502 nm of a ternary complex of the enzyme, glycine, and the folate compounds; determining inhibition constants from steady-state reactions; and determining the rate of formation and breakdown of the enzyme inhibitor complex by rapid reaction kinetics. Studies of the dissociation and inhibitor constants showed that both 5-methyltetrahydrofolate and 5-formyltetrahydrofolate have essentially the same affinity for the enzyme-glycine binary complex. However, rapid reaction and steady-state kinetic studies showed that the triglutamate form of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate both binds and is released much more slowly from the enzyme-glycine binary complex, compared with the triglutamate form of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate. The results also showed that only one rotamer of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate binds at the active site of serine hydroxymethyltransferase. The results are discussed in terms of the possible role of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate polyglutamates in regulation of one-carbon metabolism.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Baculovirus expression and purification of rat 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

The liver cytosolic enzyme, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (10-FTHFDH) (EC 1.5.1.6) catalyzes two reactions: the NADP(+)-dependent oxidation of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and CO2 and the NADP(+)-independent hydrolysis of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and formate. It exists as a tetramer of 99-kDa subunits in rat liver. We expressed rat liver cDNA encoding 10-FTHFDH in insect cells using the pVL 1393 expression vector and MaxBac expression kit. Despite the absence of a leader peptide the recombinant 10-FTHFDH was released from the cells to the culture medium during production in both Sf9 and High five cell lines. The enzyme released into the medium was no less than 80% of the total recombinant 10-FTHFDH. Both enzyme pools, from the medium and from cell extracts, displayed high activity. The maximum expression of 10-FTHFDH was observed 72 h postinfection in High five cells and 96 h postinfection in Sf9 cells. High five cells revealed four times higher expression of the recombinant enzyme per milligram of total cell protein than Sf9 cells. Passage of the cell-free culture medium over an affinity column of 5-formyltetrahydrofolate-Sepharose provided 10-FTHFDH that was more than 95% pure. Additional purification on a Mono Q column resulted in an homogenous preparation of the enzyme. Purified recombinant 10-FTHFDH displayed both dehydrogenase and hydrolase activities, similar to those of the rat liver enzyme, and the recombinant enzyme remained active at least 12 months when stored appropriately. These results show that 10-FTHFDH can be overexpressed as a functional enzyme in baculovirus-infected insect cells and purified in two steps by simple chromatographic procedures.

Animals↗

PubMed1986

A radioenzymatic method for the determination of tissue 10-formyltetrahydrofolate.

A radioenzymatic method for the determination of tissue 10-formyltetrahydrofolate is described based on the stable ternary complex formed from methylenetetrahydrofolate, tritiated fluorodeoxyuridylate and thymidylate synthase. Tissue extract 10-formyltetrahydrofolate is deacylated with 10-formyltetrahydrofolate deacylase and the tetrahydrofolate formed is converted to methylenetetrahydrofolate using formaldehyde. Mouse tissue 10-formyltetrahydrofolate levels and their stability to extraction procedures are described.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

Identification of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase-hydrolase as a major folate binding protein in liver cytosol.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (10-formyltetrahydrofolate:NADP+ oxidoreductase, EC 1.5.1.6) purified from pig liver contained bound tetrahydropteroylhexa-gamma-glutamate, a potent product inhibitor. Dehydrogenase purified from rat liver had chromatographic properties indistinguishable from those of a previously described major cytosolic folate binding protein of unknown function (Zamierowski, M.M. and Wagner, C. (1977) J. Biol. Chem. 252, 933-938; Cook, R.J. and Wagner, C. (1982) Biochemistry 21, 4427-4434). The dehydrogenase catalyzes the oxidative deformylation of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to carbon dioxide and tetrahydrofolate. The tight binding of product to the enzyme suggests that oxidation of one-carbon moieties is regulated by the ratio of formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate in liver.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Recombinant 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase catalyses both dehydrogenase and hydrolase reactions utilizing the synthetic substrate 10-formyl-5,8-dideazafolate.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (EC 1.5.1.6) is a bifunctional enzyme, displaying both NADP(+)-dependent dehydrogenase activity for the formation of tetrahydrofolate and CO2, and NADP(+)-independent hydrolase activity for the formation of tetrahydrofolate and formate. A previous report [Case, Kaisaki and Steele (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 1024-1027] claimed that dehydrogenase and hydrolase activities were products of separate cytosolic and mitochondrial forms of this enzyme. Here we report that recombinant 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase carries out both enzymic reactions, proving that a product of a single gene, i.e. one protein, not two, has both activities. The stable synthetic analogue 10-formyl-5,8-dideazafolate can substitute for the labile natural substrate, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate, in both reactions. This was shown with both native and recombinant rat liver enzyme. The Km values for 10-formyl-5,8-dideazafolate were half of those for 10-formyltetrahydrofolate in both the dehydrogenase and hydrolytic reactions. The Vmax, values were similar for both substrates. Both dehydrogenase and hydrolase reactions were dependent on the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. The pH optima were 7.8 and 5.6 for the dehydrogenase and hydrolase reactions respectively, consistent with the presence of two active sites in the enzyme.

Enzyme Activation↗

PubMed2004

The crystal structure of the hydrolase domain of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase: mechanism of hydrolysis and its interplay with the dehydrogenase domain.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (FDH) converts 10-formyltetrahydrofolate, a precursor for nucleotide biosynthesis, to tetrahydrofolate. The protein comprises two functional domains: a hydrolase domain that removes a formyl group from 10-formyltetrahydrofolate and a NADP(+)-dependent dehydrogenase domain that reduces the formyl to carbon dioxide. As a first step toward deciphering the catalytic mechanism of the enzyme, we have determined the crystal structure of the hydrolase domain of FDH from rat, solved to 2.3-A resolution. The structure comprises two domains. As expected, domain 1 shares the same Rossmann fold as the related enzymes, methionyl-tRNA-formyltransferase and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyltransferase, but, unexpectedly, the structural similarity between the amino-terminal domain of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase and methionyl-tRNA-formyltransferase extends to the C terminus of both proteins. The active site contains a molecule of beta-mercaptoethanol that is positioned between His-106 and Asp-142 and that appears to mimic the formate product. We propose a catalytic mechanism for the hydrolase reaction in which Asp-142 polarizes the catalytic water molecule and His-106 orients the carbonyl group of formyl. The structure also provides clues as to how, in the native enzyme, the hydrolase domain transfers its product to the dehydrogenase domain.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2006

Structures of the hydrolase domain of human 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase and its complex with a substrate analogue.

10-Formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase is a ubiquitously expressed enzyme in the human body. It catalyses the formation of tetrahydrofolate and carbon dioxide from 10-formyltetrahydrofolate, thereby playing an important role in the human metabolism of one-carbon units. It is a two-domain protein in which the N-terminal domain hydrolyses 10-formyltetrahydrofolate into formate and tetrahydrofolate. The high-resolution crystal structure of the hydrolase domain from human 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase has been determined in the presence and absence of a substrate analogue. The structures reveal conformational changes of two loops upon ligand binding, while key active-site residues appear to be pre-organized for catalysis prior to substrate binding. Two water molecules in the structures mark the positions of key oxygen moieties in the catalytic reaction and reaction geometries are proposed based on the structural data.

Binding Sites↗

PubMed1991

Isolation and characterization of cDNA clones for rat liver 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

We have isolated and characterized cDNA clones encoding rat liver cytosol 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (EC 1.5.1.6). An open reading frame of 2706 base pairs encodes for 902 amino acids of Mr 99,015. The deduced amino acid sequence contains exact matches to the NH2-terminal sequence (28 residues) and the sequences of five peptides derived from cyanogen bromide cleavage of the purified protein. The amino acid sequence of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase has three putative domains. The NH2-terminal sequence (residues 1-203) is 24-30% identical to phosphoribosylglycinamide formyltransferase (EC 2.1.2.2) from Bacillus subtilis (30%), Escherichia coli (24%), Drosophila melanogaster (24%), and human hepatoma HepG2 (27%). Residues 204-416 show no extensive homology to any known protein sequence. Sequence 417-900 is 46% (mean) identical to the sequences of a series of aldehyde dehydrogenase (NADP+) (EC 1.2.1.3). Intact 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase exhibits NADP-dependent aldehyde dehydrogenase activity. The sequence identity to phosphoribosylglycinamide formyltransferase is discussed, and a binding region for 10-formyltetrahydrofolate is proposed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1997

Covalent binding of acetaminophen to N-10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase in mice.

The analgesic acetaminophen is frequently used as a model chemical to study hepatotoxicity; however, the critical mechanisms by which it produces toxicity within the cell are unknown. It has been postulated that covalent binding of a toxic metabolite to crucial proteins may inhibit vital cellular functions and may be responsible for, or contribute to, the hepatotoxicity. To further understand the importance of covalent binding in the toxicity, a major cytosolic acetaminophen-protein adduct of 100 kDa has been purified by a combination of anion exchange chromatography and preparative electrophoresis. N-Terminal and internal amino acid sequences of peptides from the purified 100-kDa acetaminophen-protein adduct were found to be homologous with the deduced amino amino acid sequence from the cDNA of N-10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase. Antiserum specific for N-10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase and acetaminophen react in a Western blot with the purified 100-kDa acetaminophen-protein adduct. Administration of a toxic dose of acetaminophen (400 mg/kg) to mice resulted in a 25% decrease in cytosolic N-10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase activity at 2 hr. The covalent binding of acetaminophen to proteins such as N-10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase and the subsequent decreases in their enzyme activity may play a role in acetaminophen hepatotoxicity.

Acetaminophen↗

PubMed1987

Substrate activity of synthetic formyl phosphate in the reaction catalyzed by formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase.

Formyl phosphate, a putative enzyme-bound intermediate in the reaction catalyzed by formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase (EC 6.3.4.3), was synthesized from formyl fluoride and inorganic phosphate [Jaenicke, L. v., & Koch, J. (1963) Justus Liebigs Ann. Chem. 663, 50-58], and the product was characterized by 31P, 1H, and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Measurement of hydrolysis rates by 31P NMR indicates that formyl phosphate is particularly labile, with a half-life of 48 min in a buffered neutral solution at 20 degrees C. At pH 7, hydrolysis occurs with P-O bond cleavage, as demonstrated by 18O incorporation from H2(18)O into Pi, while at pH 1 and pH 13 hydrolysis occurs with C-O bond cleavage. The substrate activity of formyl phosphate was tested in the reaction catalyzed by formyltetrahydrofolate synthetase isolated from Clostridium cylindrosporum. Formyl phosphate supports the reaction in both the forward and reverse directions. Thus, N10-formyltetrahydrofolate is produced from tetrahydrofolate and formyl phosphate in a reaction mixture that contains enzyme, Mg(II), and ADP, and ATP is produced from formyl phosphate and ADP with enzyme, Mg(II), and tetrahydrofolate present. The requirements for ADP and for tetrahydrofolate as cofactors in these reactions are consistent with previous steady-state kinetic and isotope exchange studies, which demonstrated that all substrate subsites must be occupied prior to catalysis. The k cat values for both the forward and reverse directions, with formyl phosphate as the substrate, are much lower than those for the normal forward and reverse reactions. Kinetic analysis of the formyl phosphate supported reactions indicates that the low steady-state rates observed for the synthetic intermediate are most likely due to the sequential nature of the normal reaction.

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

PubMed1995

Cysteine 707 is involved in the dehydrogenase activity site of rat 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

The enzyme, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (10-FTHFDH) (EC 1.5.1.6) catalyzes both the NADP(+)-dependent oxidation of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and CO2 and the NADP(+)-independent hydrolysis of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and formate. The COOH-terminal domain of the 10-FTHFDH (residues 417-902) shows a 46% identity with a series of NAD(+)-dependent aldehyde dehydrogenases (EC 1.2.1.3). All known members of the aldehyde dehydrogenase family and 10-FTHFDH have a strictly conserved cysteine (Cys-707 for 10-FTHFDH), which has been predicted to be at the active site of these enzymes. Rat liver 10-FTHFDH was expressed in a baculovirus system, and site-directed mutagenesis has been used to study the role of cysteine 707 in the activity of 10-FTHFDH. 10-FTHFDH with alanine substituted for cysteine at position 707 had no dehydrogenase activity, while hydrolase activity and binding of NADP+ were unchanged. Light scattering analysis revealed that wild type and mutant 10-FTHFDH exist as tetramers. We conclude that cysteine 707 is directly involved in the active site of 10-FTHFDH responsible for dehydrogenase activity, and there is a separate site for the hydrolase activity.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Expression, purification, and properties of the aldehyde dehydrogenase homologous carboxyl-terminal domain of rat 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase.

The liver cytosolic enzyme, 10-formyltetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (FDH) (EC 1.5.1.6) catalyzes two reactions: the NADP+-dependent oxidation of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and CO2 and the NADP+-independent hydrolysis of 10-formyltetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate and formate. The COOH-terminal domain of the enzyme (residues 420-902) is about 48% identical to a family of NAD-dependent aldehyde dehydrogenases (EC 1.2.1.3), and FDH possesses aldehyde dehydrogenase activity. We expressed the COOH-terminal domain (residues 420-902) of FDH in insect cells using a baculovirus expression system. The recombinant protein was released from insect cells to the culture medium and was purified from the medium by a two-step procedure: precipitation with 35% saturated ammonium sulfate followed by chromatography on hydroxyapatite. The purified COOH-terminal domain displayed aldehyde dehydrogenase activity similar to that of native FDH but had neither dehydrogenase nor hydrolase activity toward folate substrates. Aldehyde dehydrogenase activity of the COOH-terminal domain and FDH was independent of the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol while 10-FDDF dehydrogenase activity of FDH occurred only in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. The COOH-terminal domain existed as a tetramer showing that the sites for oligomerization of subunits in native FDH resides in this domain. Using titration of tryptophan fluorescence, it was found that the COOH-terminal domain bound NADP+ to the same extent as FDH (Kd 0.2 and 0.3 microM, respectively) but did not bind folate. Both FDH and its COOH-terminal domain also bound NAD+ (Kd 11 and 16 microM, respectively) as measured by fluorescence titration. Both proteins were able to catalyze the aldehyde dehydrogenase reaction utilizing NADP+ or NAD+, but the Km for NAD+ was three orders higher than that for NADP+ (2 mM and 1.5-2.0 microM, respectively). The concentration of NAD+ required for the reaction was high compared with the physiological level of NAD+, suggesting that the reaction does not occur in vivo. NAD+ at physiological concentrations stimulated the aldehyde dehydrogenase reaction performed by FDH or its COOH-terminal domain using NADP+.

Aldehyde Dehydrogenase↗