GTP cyclohydrolase I utilizes metal‐free GTP as its substrate

Abstract

GTP cyclohydrolase I (GCH) is the rate-limiting enzyme for the synthesis of tetrahydrobiopterin and its activity is important in the regulation of monoamine neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin. We have studied the action of divalent cations on the enzyme activity of purified recombinant human GCH expressed in Escherichia coli. First, we showed that the enzyme activity is dependent on the concentration of Mg-free GTP. Inhibition of the enzyme activity by Mg 2+ , as well as by Mn 2+ , Co 2+ or Zn 2+ , was due to the reduction of the availability of metal-free GTP substrate for the enzyme, when a divalent cation was present at a relatively high concentration with respect to GTP. We next examined the requirement of Zn 2+for enzyme activity by the use of a protein refolding assay, because the recombinant enzyme contained approximately one zinc atom per subunit of the decameric protein. Only when Zn 2+ was present was the activity of the denatured enzyme effectively recovered by incubation with a chaperone protein. These are the first data demonstrating that GCH recognizes Mg-free GTP and requires Zn 2+ for its catalytic activity. We suggest that the cellular concentration of divalent cations can modulate GCH activity, and thus tetrahydrobiopterin biosynthesis as well.Keywords: GTP cyclohydrolase I; magnesium; recombinant protein; tetrahydrobiopterin; zinc.Metal ions are essential for many physiological functions of the brain. They may also induce or aggravate numerous neurodegenerative processes. Thus, it is important to understand the roles of metal ions in normal and pathological brain functions.GTP cyclohydrolase I (GCH) is the rate-limiting enzyme for the biosynthesis of tetrahydrobiopterin (BH 4 ), and the cellular BH 4 content is regulated mainly by the activity of this enzyme. BH 4 is an essential cofactor for three aromatic amino-acid monooxygenases ) phenylalanine, tyrosine, and tryptophan hydroxylases -and for nitric oxide synthase [1]. BH 4 deficiency caused not only a decrease in the activity of these enzymes but also a decrease in the protein levels of tyrosine hydroxylase and nitric oxide synthase [2,3]. Therefore, the availability of BH 4 affects the amounts of neurotransmitters such as catecholamines, serotonin, melatonin and nitric oxide. The role of BH 4 in the activity of nitric oxide synthase also makes BH 4 an important factor for the immune system and endothelial cell function.Various hormones and cytokines are known to induce the expression of the GCH gene in neural, lymphocytic and endothelial cells, and in different cell lines, resulting in an increased BH 4 content [4][5][6][7][8]. At the post-transcriptional level, BH 4 was shown to inhibit, and phenylalanine to stimulate, GCH activity through interaction with GFRP, a GTP cyclohydrolase I feedback regulatory protein [9]. GCH, which is a homodecameric protein, shows positive cooperativity against the GTP substrate [10] and phenylalanine changes the substrate velocity curve from sigmoidal to hyperbolic [11].Recent...

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