Helicobacter pylorigamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (HpGT) is a glutathione-degrading enzyme that has been shown to be a virulence factor in infection. It is expressed as a 60-kDa inactive precursor that must undergo autocatalytic processing to generate a 40-kDa/20-kDa heterodimer with full gamma-glutamyl amide bond hydrolase activity. The new N terminus of the processed enzyme, Thr-380, is the catalytic nucleophile in both the autoprocessing and enzymatic reactions, indicating that HpGT is a member of the N-terminal nucleophile hydrolase superfamily. To further investigate activation as a result of autoprocessing, the structure of HpGT has been determined to a resolution of 1.9 A. The refined model contains two 40-kDa/20-kDa heterodimers in the asymmetric unit and has structural features comparable with other N-terminal nucleophile hydrolases. Autoprocessing of HpGT leads to a large conformational change, with the loop preceding the catalytic Thr-380 moving >35 A, thus relieving steric constraints that likely limit substrate binding. In addition, cleavage of the proenzyme results in the formation of a threonine-threonine dyad comprised of Thr-380 and a second conserved threonine residue, Thr-398. The hydroxyl group of Thr-398 is located equidistant from the alpha-amino group and hydroxyl side chain of Thr-380. Mutation of Thr-398 to an alanine results in an enzyme that is fully capable of autoprocessing but is devoid of enzymatic activity. Substrate docking studies in combination with homology modeling studies of the human homologue reveal additional mechanistic details of enzyme maturation and activation, substrate recognition, and catalysis.

␥-Glutamyltranspeptidase (␥GT), a member of the N-terminal nucleophile hydrolase superfamily, initiates extracellular glutathione reclamation by cleaving the ␥-glutamyl amide bond of the tripeptide. This protein is translated as an inactive proenzyme that undergoes autoprocessing to become an active enzyme. The resultant N terminus of the cleaved proenzyme serves as a nucleophile in amide bond hydrolysis. Helicobacter pylori ␥-glutamyltranspeptidase (HpGT) was selected as a model system to study the mechanistic details of autoprocessing and amide bond hydrolysis. In contrast to previously reported ␥GT, large quantities of HpGT were expressed solubly in the inactive precursor form. The 60-kDa proenzyme was kinetically competent to form the mature 40-and 20-kDa subunits and exhibited maximal autoprocessing activity at neutral pH. The activated enzyme hydrolyzed the ␥-glutamyl amide bond of several substrates with comparable rates, but exhibited limited transpeptidase activity relative to mammalian ␥GT. As with autoprocessing, maximal enzymatic activity was observed at neutral pH, with hydrolysis of the acyl-enzyme intermediate as the rate-limiting step. Coexpression of the 20-and 40-kDa subunits of HpGT uncoupled autoprocessing from enzymatic activity and resulted in a fully active heterotetramer with kinetic constants similar to those of the wild-type enzyme. The specific contributions of a conserved threonine residue (Thr 380 ) to autoprocessing and hydrolase activities were examined by mutagenesis using both the standard and coexpression systems. The results of these studies indicate that the ␥-methyl group of Thr 380 orients the hydroxyl group of this conserved residue, which is required for both the processing and hydrolase reactions.

Helicobacter pylori gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase (HpGT) is a member of the N-terminal nucleophile hydrolase superfamily. It is translated as an inactive 60 kDa polypeptide precursor that undergoes intramolecular autocatalytic cleavage to generate a fully active heterodimer composed of a 40 kDa and a 20 kDa subunit. The resultant N-terminus, Thr 380, has been shown to be the catalytic nucleophile in both autoprocessing and enzymatic reactions. Once processed, HpGT catalyzes the hydrolysis of the gamma-glutamyl bond in glutathione and its conjugates. To facilitate the determination of physiologically relevant substrates for the enzyme, crystal structures of HpGT in complex with glutamate (1.6 A, Rfactor = 16.7%, Rfree = 19.0%) and an inactive HpGT mutant, T380A, in complex with S-(nitrobenzyl)glutathione (1.55 A, Rfactor = 18.7%, Rfree = 21.8%) have been determined. Residues that comprise the gamma-glutamyl binding site are primarily located in the 20 kDa subunit and make numerous hydrogen bonds with the alpha-amino and alpha-carboxylate groups of the substrate. In contrast, a single hydrogen bond occurs between the T380A mutant and the remainder of the ligand. Lack of specific coordination beyond the gamma-glutamyl moiety may account for the substrate binding permissiveness of the enzyme. Structural analysis was combined with site-directed mutagenesis of residues involved in maintaining the conformation of a loop region that covers the gamma-glutamyl binding site. Results provide evidence that access to this buried site may occur through conformational changes in the Tyr 433-containing loop, as disruption of the intricate hydrogen-bond network responsible for optimal placement of Tyr 433 significantly diminishes catalytic activity.

Helicobacter pylori γ-glutamyltranspeptidase (HpGT) is a general γ-glutamyl hydrolase and a demonstrated virulence factor. The enzyme confers a growth advantage to the bacterium, providing essential amino acid precursors by initiating the degradation of extracellular glutathione and glutamine. HpGT is a member of the N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn) hydrolase superfamily and undergoes autoprocessing to generate the active form of the enzyme. Acivicin is a widely used γ-glutamyltranspeptidase inhibitor that covalently modifies the enzyme, but its precise mechanism of action remains unclear. The time-dependent inactivation of HpGT exhibits a hyperbolic dependence on acivicin concentration with k max = 0.033 ± 0.006 sec −1 and K I = 19.7 ± 7.2 μM. Structure determination of acivicin-modified HpGT (1.7 Å; R factor =17.9%; R free =20.8%) demonstrates that acivicin is accommodated within the γ-glutamyl binding pocket of the enzyme. The hydroxyl group of Thr 380, the catalytic nucleophile in the autoprocessing and enzymatic reactions, displaces chloride from the acivicin ring to form the covalently linked complex. Within the acivicin-modified HpGT structure, the C-terminus of the protein becomes ordered with Phe 567 positioned over the active site. Substitution or deletion of Phe 567 leads to a >10-fold reduction in enzymatic activity, underscoring its importance in catalysis. The mobile C-terminus is positioned by several electrostatic interactions within the C-terminal region, most notably a salt bridge between Arg 475 and Glu 566. Mutational analysis reveals that Arg 475 is critical for the proper placement of the C-terminal region, the Tyr 433 containing loop, and the proposed oxyanion hole. Keywordsγ-glutamyltranspeptidase; Ntn-hydrolase; glutathione; acivicin; x-ray crystallography H. pylori γ-glutamyltranspeptidase (HpGT) is a γ-glutamyl hydrolase with broad substrate specificity (1,2), and is a member of the N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn) hydrolase superfamily (3,4). The inactive precursor undergoes an intramolecular autoprocessing event, generating the mature and catalytically active heterotetramer. A conserved threonine residue, Thr 380, serves as the N-terminal nucleophile and is required for both maturation and enzymatic activity (1).HpGT has been shown to degrade extracellular glutathione and glutamine, providing a growth advantage to the bacterium within its microenvironment (2,5,6). Similarly, upregulation of human γ-glutamyltranspeptidase in cancer is thought to help supplement these rapidly dividing cells with essential amino acid precursors for glutathione and protein biosynthesis (7,8). In mammalian systems, γ-glutamyltranspeptidase has been shown to be critical for the transport of cysteine for use in protein and glutathione biosynthesis (9,10). The enzyme is required for normal glutathione metabolism, initiating extracellular glutathione degradation. Subsequent steps lead to the cellular uptake of the composite amino acids of glutathione: glutamate, cysteine, and glycine (11,12).Acivicin is a com...