Human plasma platelet-activating factor (PAF) acetylhydrolase functions by reducing PAF levels as a general anti-inflammatory scavenger and is linked to anaphylactic shock, asthma, and allergic reactions. The enzyme has also been implicated in hydrolytic activities of other pro-inflammatory agents, such as sn-2 oxidatively fragmented phospholipids. This plasma enzyme is tightly bound to low and high density lipoprotein particles and is also referred to as lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A 2 . The crystal structure of this enzyme has been solved from x-ray diffraction data collected to a resolution of 1.5 Ă
. It has a classic lipase âŁ/â€-hydrolase fold, and it contains a catalytic triad of Ser 273 , His 351 , and Asp 296 . Two clusters of hydrophobic residues define the probable interface-binding region, and a prediction is given of how the enzyme is bound to lipoproteins. Additionally, an acidic patch of 10 carboxylate residues and a neighboring basic patch of three residues are suggested to play a role in high density lipoprotein/low density lipoprotein partitioning. A crystal structure is also presented of PAF acetylhydrolase reacted with the organophosphate compound paraoxon via its active site Ser 273 . The resulting diethyl phosphoryl complex was used to model the tetrahedral intermediate of the substrate PAF to the active site. The model of interface binding begins to explain the known specificity of lipoprotein-bound substrates and how the active site can be both close to the hydrophobic-hydrophilic interface and at the same time be accessible to the aqueous phase.2 is a phospholipid messenger synthesized by a variety of cells involved in host defense, such as endothelial cells, platelets, neutrophils, monocytes, and macrophages (1). High levels of PAF are responsible for a variety of human diseases such as inflammation, asthma, necrotizing enterocolitis, and sepsis (2). The enzyme PAF-AH (EC 3.1.1.47) was first identified from the plasma by its ability to hydrolyze and therefore inactivate PAF (3).The enzyme plasma PAF-AH has been classified as group VIIA phospholipase A2 (PLA 2 ) (4), and it hydrolyzes the ester bond at the sn-2 position of phospholipid substrates with a short sn-2 chain. In addition to its role in reducing PAF levels, PAF-AH functions by hydrolyzing other pro-inflammatory agents, such as oxidized lipids of LDL particles (5, 6). Many of these oxidized phospholipids have an oxidatively fragmented sn-2 chain that would orient away from the hydrophobic portion of an LDL particle. These oxidized phospholipid species are present at elevated levels at atherogenic lesions, and the PAF-AH hydrolysis of these species has attracted considerable attention recently as a potential therapeutic target (6 -10).Physiologically, plasma PAF-AH is associated to both LDL and HDL particles and therefore functions on the lipid-aqueous interface and can be considered a peripheral membrane protein. Another generally used name for plasma PAF-AH is lipoprotein-associated PLA 2 (7). Kinetic studies have shown ...