title: Site-directed mutagenesis of the active site serine290 in flavanone 3beta-hydroxylase from Petunia hybrida.
abstract: Flavanone 3beta-hydroxylase (FHT) catalyzes a pivotal reaction in the formation of flavonoids, catechins, proanthocyanidins and anthocyanidins. In the presence of oxygen and ferrous ions the enzyme couples the oxidative decarboxylation of 2-oxoglutarate, releasing carbon dioxide and succinate, with the oxidation of flavanones to produce dihydroflavonols. The hydroxylase had been cloned from Petunia hybrida and expressed in Escherichia coli, and a rapid isolation method for the highly active, recombinant enzyme had been developed. Sequence alignments of the Petunia hydroxylase with various hydroxylating 2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenases revealed few conserved amino acids, including a strictly conserved serine residue (Ser290). This serine was mutated to threonine, alanine or valine, which represent amino acids found at the corresponding sequence position in other 2-oxoglutarate-dependent enzymes. The mutant enzymes were expressed in E. coli and purified to homogeneity. The catalytic activities of [Thr290]FHT and [Ala290]FHT were still significant, albeit greatly reduced to 20 and 8%, respectively, in comparison to the wild-type enzyme, whereas the activity of [Val290]FHT was negligible (about 1%). Kinetic analyses of purified wild-type and mutant enzymes revealed the functional significance of Ser290 for 2-oxoglutarate-binding. The spatial configurations of the related Fe(II)-dependent isopenicillin N and deacetoxycephalosporin C synthases have been reported recently and provide the lead structures for the conformation of other dioxygenases. Circular dichroism spectroscopy was employed to compare the conformation of pure flavanone 3beta-hydroxylase with that of isopenicillin N synthase. A double minimum in the far ultraviolet region at 222 nm and 208-210 nm and a maximum at 191-193 nm which are characteristic for alpha-helical regions were observed, and the spectra of the two dioxygenases fully matched revealing their close structural relationship. Furthermore, the spectrum remained unchanged after addition of either ferrous ions, 2-oxoglutarate or both of these cofactors, ruling out a significant conformational change of the enzyme on cofactor-binding.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Pharmazeutische Biologie, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lukacin
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gröning
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Pieper
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Matern
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D020134:Catalytic Domain / Q000235:genetics; D002942:Circular Dichroism; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics; D007700:Kinetics; D006899:Mixed Function Oxygenases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D012694:Serine / Q000737:chemistry; D019657:Solanaceae / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012694:Serine; D006899:Mixed Function Oxygenases; C048797:flavanone 3-dioxygenase