؉ -dependent MDH activity. Also mutants G95A and S97G were both impaired in cofactor NAD(H) binding but retained coenzyme NAD ؉ -dependent MDH activity. Mutant G95A displayed a rather low MDH activity, whereas mutant S97G was insensitive to activator protein but displayed "fully activated" MDH reaction rates. The various roles of these amino acid residues in coenzyme and/or cofactor NAD(H) binding in MDH are discussed.
Methanol dehydrogenase (MDH)1 of Bacillus methanolicus belongs to family III of NAD(P)-dependent alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs) (2, 3), distinct from the zinc-containing medium chain dehydrogenases/reductases (family I) and the zinc-lacking short chain 32 ADHs (family II) (4, 5). The initial members of family III all were iron-dependent ADHs. In time, with an increasing number of member proteins characterized, it became clear that not all members were iron-dependent. Where investigated, other metals like zinc and magnesium also were found instead of iron (5). B. methanolicus MDH contains one Zn 2ϩ and one or two Mg 2ϩ ions/subunit (3). Identification of members of family III ADHs increasingly became based on overall sequence similarity. Three unique, conserved amino acid sequence motifs have been defined for this family, aiding in ADH classification (2, 6) ( Table I). Over 100 fully sequenced members of family III ADHs are now found in data bases. Many of these are putative proteins, with no biochemical data available.The
genes encoding MDH of B. methanolicus, methanol:pnitroso-N,NЈ-dimethylaniline oxidoreductase (MNO) of Amycolatopsis methanolica, MNO of Mycobacterium gastri MB19, ADH of Desulfovibrio gigas, and ADH of Desulfovibrio HDv enzymes of B. methanolicus, A. methanolica, D. gigas, and Desulfovibrio HDv have been cloned and characterized by us (2).2 Classification of the M. gastri enzyme was based on Nterminal amino acid sequence analysis (Fig. 1A). Characterization of the five purified enzymes revealed that each of the proteins possesses a decameric quaternary structure (7-10). The first three are nicotinoproteins, containing a tightly but noncovalently bound NAD(P)(H)/subunit (8, 11). It is unknown whether other members of family III are nicotinoproteins as well. The bound NAD(P)(H) species of MDH and A. methanolica MNO act as cofactors; they become reduced when the enzymes oxidize primary alcohols to the respective aldehydes (8,11). B. methanolicus MDH requires a second, exogenous NAD ϩ for methanol oxidation, serving as a coenzyme and resulting in reoxidation of the NADH cofactor (11). These two NAD(H) molecules are not exchanged during the reaction (11). In vitro, the relatively low coenzyme NAD ϩ -dependent MDH activity is strongly stimulated by a M r 50,000 activator protein from the same organism, resulting in a 40-fold increase in the MDH turnover rate (11,12).Activator protein-mediated activation of MDH is characterized by hydrolytic removal of the NMN(H) moiety of cofactor NAD(H) and converts the Ping-Pong type of reaction mechanism of MDH to a ternary complex mechanism, implyin...