Enzyme flexibility and the catalytic mechanism of farnesyltransferase: targeting the relation.
Farnesyltransferase enzyme (FTase) is an interesting target for anticancer therapy that has been the subject of particular attention over the past decade. However, despite of the thrilling achievements in the development of farnesyltransferase inhibitors (FTIs) over the past few years, the farnesylation mechanism remains, to some degree, a mystery. This work describes the application of molecular dynamics simulations to the study of enzyme flexibility in the 4 key intermediate states formed during the FTase catalytic mechanism--FTase resting state, binary complex (FTase-FPP), ternary complex (FTase-FPP-Peptide), and product complex (FTase-Product)--thereby covering the main states in the mechanistic pathway of this mysterious enzyme, while relating, dissecting, and exploring, in minute detail, the set of structural and dynamical changes taking place with FPP binding, peptide coordination and product formation. This study reveals the existence of a series of variational patterns involving the mechanistic events taking place at the active site of the enzyme, increasing in magnitude away from the active-site, demonstrating that relatively small-scale events such as substrate binding or product formation cause minor changes at the neighboring residues and corresponding helices, but ultimately induce much more dramatic effects on the more external regions of the enzyme.
Sousa
Sérgio F
SF
REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 687, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal.
Fernandes
Pedro A
PA
Ramos
Maria João
MJ
D001665:Binding Sites; D002384:Catalysis; D003198:Computer Simulation; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D051231:Farnesyltranstransferase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D006860:Hydrogen Bonding; D008958:Models, Molecular; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D013379:Substrate Specificity
D051231:Farnesyltranstransferase