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PubMed · 12791246

Complementing thymidylate synthase.

Abstract

The structure of thymidylate synthase complementing protein with substrates dUMP and FAD, presented in this issue of Structure, sheds light on a fascinating new catalytic mechanism, suggests a strategy for the design of new antimicrobial compounds, and highlights the promise of proteomics in medicine.

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William R Montfort. 2003. Complementing thymidylate synthase.. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0969-2126(03)00101-1

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The only active mutant of thymidylate synthase D169, a residue far from the site of methyl transfer, demonstrates the exquisite nature of enzyme specificity.

Cysteine is the only variant of D169, a cofactor-binding residue in thymidylate synthase, that shows in vivo activity. The 2.4 A crystal structure of Escherichia coli thymidylate synthase D169C in a complex with dUMP and the antifolate CB3717 shows it to be an asymmetric dimer, with only one active site covalently bonded to dUMP. At the active site with covalently bound substrate, C169 S gamma adopts the roles of both carboxyl oxygens of D169, making a 3.6 A S...H[bond]N hydrogen bond to 3-NH of CB3717 and a 3.4 A water-mediated hydrogen bond to H212. Analogous hydrogen bonds formed during the enzyme reaction are important for cofactor binding and are postulated to contribute to catalysis. The C169 side chain is likely to be ionized, making it a better hydrogen bond acceptor than a neutral sulfhydryl group. At the second active site, C169 S gamma makes a shorter (3 A) hydrogen bond to the 3-NH of CB3717, CB3717 is approximately 1.5 A out of its binding site and there is no covalent bond between dUMP and the catalytic cysteine. Changes to partitioning among productive and non-productive conformations of reaction intermediates may contribute as much, if not more, to the diminished activity of this mutant than reduced stabilization of transition states.

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Orf virus encodes a functional dUTPase gene.

The present study is the first report on the functional activity of a parapoxvirus-encoded dUTPase. The dUTPase gene of the attenuated orf virus (ORFV), strain D1701, was expressed as a bacterial thioredoxin fusion protein. In vitro assays showed that ORFV dUTPase was highly specific for dUTP as substrate. The enzyme was active over a broad pH range (pH 6.0-9.0), with maximal enzymatic activity at pH 7.0 in the presence of Mg(2+) cations. Kinetic studies of the recombinant ORFV dUTPase revealed an apparent K(m) of 4.0 microM, which is more similar to that of the mammalian or African swine fever virus enzyme than to the K(m) of vaccinia virus dUTPase. Enzyme activity was also found with purified ORFV particles, indicating its virion association.

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Simple method for preparation of fluor/hapten-labeled dUTP.

Many projects, such as multiplex-fluorescence in situ hybridization (M-FISH) karyotyping, require the use of relatively large amounts of multiple fluor- or hapten-labeled nucleotides for the preparation of DNA probes. Such a requirement makes these experimental approaches prohibitively expensive for many researchers. The cost of such nucleotides can be reduced approximately 99% by purchasing the chemical precursors, fluor or hapten succinimidyl esters and 5-(3-aminoallyl)-2'-deoxyuridine 5' triphosphate (AA-dUTP), and performing the simple coupling/purification described here. It is possible to finish four to ten different fluor/hapten dUTP preparations of 2.5 microM scale within a 24 h period. The reagent cost for each preparation ranges from $33-$237 per microM, depending on the fluor/hapten. This laboratory uses such nucleotide preparations to prepare FISH probes by nick translation or PCR amplification.

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