title: Evidence for phosphorylation-dependent conformational changes in methylesterase CheB.
abstract: Enhancement of methylesterase activity of the response regulator CheB is dependent upon phosphorylation of the N-terminal regulatory domain of the enzyme. This domain plays a dual role in the regulation of methylesterase activity with an inhibitory effect in the unphosphorylated state and a stimulatory effect in the phosphorylated state. Structural studies of the unphosphorylated state have indicated that the basis for the regulatory domain's inhibitory effect is partial blockage of access of substrate to the active site suggesting that the activation upon phosphorylation involves a repositioning of the two domains with respect to each other. We report in this study evidence for phosphorylation-dependent conformational changes in CheB. Differences in rates of proteolytic cleavage by trypsin between the phosphorylated and unphosphorylated states have been observed at three sites in the protein with one site, 113, within the regulatory domain and two sites, 134 and 148, lying within the interdomain linker. These results support the hypothesis for the mechanism for the activation of CheB wherein phosphorylation of a specific aspartate residue within the N-terminal domain results in a propagated conformational change within the regulatory domain leading to a repositioning of its two domains. Presumably, structural changes in the regulatory domain of CheB facilitate a repositioning of the N- and C-terminal domains, leading to stimulation of methylesterase activity.
authors.affiliation: Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA.
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Anand
authors.forename: P N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Goudreau
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Lewis
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Stoc
mesh_terms: D001665:Binding Sites; D002265:Carboxylic Ester Hydrolases / Q000737:chemistry*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D008958:Models, Molecular; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017510:Protein Folding; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D012486:Salmonella typhimurium / Q000201:enzymology; D019032:Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; D013997:Time Factors; D014357:Trypsin / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D002265:Carboxylic Ester Hydrolases; C041144:chemotactic protein methylesterase; D014357:Trypsin