The dihydroxyacetone kinase (DhaK) of Escherichia coli consists of three soluble protein subunits. DhaK (YcgT; 39.5 kDa) and DhaL (YcgS; 22.6 kDa) are similar to the N-and C-terminal halves of the ATPdependent DhaK ubiquitous in bacteria, animals and plants. The homodimeric DhaM (YcgC; 51.6 kDa) consists of three domains. The N-terminal dimerization domain has the same fold as the IIA domain (PDB code 1PDO) of the mannose transporter of the bacterial phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system (PTS). The middle domain is similar to HPr and the C-terminus is similar to the N-terminal domain of enzyme I (EI) of the PTS. DhaM is phosphorylated three times by phosphoenolpyruvate in an EI-and HPr-dependent reaction. DhaK and DhaL are not phosphorylated. The IIA domain of DhaM, instead of ATP, is the phosphoryl donor to dihydroxyacetone (Dha). Unlike the carbohydrate-speci®c transporters of the PTS, DhaK, DhaL and DhaM have no transport activity.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Dihydroxyacetone kinases are a sequence-conserved family of enzymes, which utilize two different phosphoryldonors, ATP in animals, plants and some bacteria, and a multiphosphoprotein of the phosphoenolpyruvate carbohydrate phosphotransferase system in bacteria. Here we report the 2.5-Å crystal structure of the homodimeric Citrobacter freundii dihydroxyacetone kinase complex with an ATP analogue and dihydroxyacetone. The N-terminal domain consists of two ␣/␤-folds with a molecule of dihydroxyacetone covalently bound in hemiaminal linkage to the N⑀2 of His-220. The Cterminal domain consists of a regular eight-helix ␣-barrel. The eight helices form a deep pocket, which includes a tightly bound phospholipid. Only the lipid headgroup protrudes from the surface. The nucleotide is bound on the top of the barrel across from the entrance to the lipid pocket. The phosphate groups are coordinated by two Mg 2؉ ions to ␥-carboxyl groups of aspartyl residues. The ATP binding site does not contain positively charged or aromatic groups. Paralogues of dihydroxyacetone kinase also occur in association with transcription regulators and proteins of unknown function pointing to biological roles beyond triose metabolism. Dihydroxyacetone (Dha)1 kinases can utilize either of two sources for high energy phosphate, ATP or a phosphoprotein of the bacterial phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system (PTS) (1). Little is known about the function of this enzyme and the metabolic origin of its substrate, Dha. Dihydroxyacetone phosphate (DhaP) can be formed by aldol cleavage of fructose-1,6-bisphosphate, by isomerization from glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate, and by oxidation of glycerol-3-phosphate in the mitochondrial glycerol phosphate shuttle. DhaP is an obligatory precursor of glyceryl ether phospholipid biosynthesis (2). Free Dha plays a pivotal role in methanol assimilation by methylotrophic yeast and plants where it is produced in the transketolase reaction between xylulose-5-phosphate and formaldehyde catalyzed by dihydroxyacetone synthase (3-6). Bacteria produce free Dha by oxidation of glycerol under anaerobic conditions and aldol cleavage of fructose-6-phosphate (9 -13). Dha is a carbon source for bacteria, and if added to the medium, it is also used as gluconeogenic precursor by mammalian tissues (14 -18). Although the pathways utilizing free Dha appear few and limited in scope, genes for Dha kinases and Dha kinase homologues are widely distributed among plants and animals where their biological function is not obvious (for a survey see accession numbers PF02733 and PF02734 at www.sanger.ac.uk/Software/Pfam/index.shtml). Dha like other triose sugars has an increased propensity to react with proteins in Maillard-type reactions (19,20), because unlike hexoses and pentoses, it cannot be deactivated by formation of cyclic hemiacetals. The chemical reactivity of Dha might be the rationale for its use as a therapeutic tanning agent (21, 22). It has recently been shown that Dha can be toxic to yeast cells and that detoxification is d...

The glucose transporter of Escherichia coli couples translocation with phosphorylation of glucose. The IICB Glc subunit spans the membrane eight times. Split, circularly permuted and cyclized forms of IICB Glc are described. The split variant was 30 times more active when the two proteins were encoded by a dicistronic mRNA than by two genes. The stability and activity of circularly permuted forms was improved when they were expressed as fusion proteins with alkaline phosphatase. Cyclized IICB Glc and IIA Glc were produced in vivo by RecA intein-mediated trans-splicing. Purified, cyclized IIA Glc and IICB Glc had 100% and 30% of wild-type glucose phosphotransferase activity, respectively. Cyclized IIA Glc displayed increased stability against temperature and GuHCl-induced unfolding. ß

The amino acyl sequences of eight permeases (enzymes II and enzyme II-III pairs) of the bacterial phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system (PTS) have been analyzed. All systems show similar sizes, and six of these systems exhibit the same molecular weight +/- 2%. Several exhibit sequence homology. Characteristic NH2-terminal and COOH-terminal sequences were found. The NH2-terminal leader sequences are believed to function in targeting of the permeases to the membrane, whereas the characteristic COOH-terminal sequences are postulated to mediate interaction with the energy-coupling protein phospho HPr. One of the systems, the one specific for mannose, exhibits distinctive characteristics. A pair of probable phosphorylation sites was detected in each of the five most similar systems, those specific for beta-glucosides, sucrose, glucose, N-acetylglucosamine, and mannitol. One of the two equivalent phosphorylation sites (proposed phosphorylation site 1) was located approximately 80 residues from the COOH terminus of each system. The other site (proposed phosphorylation site 2) was located approximately 440 residues from the COOH termini of the glucose and N-acetylglucosamine systems, approximately 320 residues from the COOH termini of the beta-glucoside and sucrose systems, and 381 residues from the COOH terminus of the mannitol system. Intragenic rearrangement during evolutionary history may account for the different positions of phosphorylation sites 2 in the different PTS permeases. More extensive intragenic rearrangements may have given rise to entirely different positions of phosphorylation in the glucitol, mannose, and lactose systems. A single, internal amphipathic alpha-helix with characteristic features was found in each of seven of the eight enzymes II. The lactose-specific enzyme III of Staphylococcus aureus was unique in possessing a COOH-terminal amphipathic alpha-helix rich in basic amino acyl residues. Possible functions for these amphipathic segments are discussed.