J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 262, Issue 15, 7028-7033, 05, 1987
L1210 dihydrofolate reductase. Kinetics and mechanism of activation by various agents
TH Duffy, SB Beckman, SM Peterson, KS Vitols and FM Huennekens
Dihydrofolate reductase from a methotrexate-resistant subline (R6) of L1210
mouse leukemia cells is activated (i.e. has its catalytic activity
increased severalfold) by treatment with (a) sulfhydryl- modifying agents
(p-chloromercuribenzoate (pCMB) or 5,5'-dithiobis(2- nitrobenzoic acid],
(b) salts (KCl or NaCl), or (c) chaotropes (urea or guanidinium
hydrochloride). With b or c activation is rapid (less than 10 s), but with
a the process is much slower; at 25 degrees C, pseudo first-order rate
constants for activation by excess pCMB or 5,5'- dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic
acid) are 0.45 and 0.08 min-1, respectively. Activation can also be
monitored by conformational changes in the protein as indicated by enhanced
fluorescence of 2-p- toluidinylnaphthalene-6-sulfonate or by increased
intrinsic fluorescence of tryptophan residues in the enzyme. Pseudo
first-order rate constants for the pCMB-induced conformational change,
measured by these fluorimetric procedures (0.45 min-1 and about 0.4 min-1,
respectively), are in good agreement with the value obtained from the
increase in catalytic activity. The rate of modification of the single
cysteine residue in the enzyme by excess 14C-labeled pCMB, however, is
faster than the rate of activation, indicating that the conformational
change follows derivatization and is the rate-limiting step in the overall
process. Activated forms of the enzyme are more labile to thermal
denaturation or proteolysis than the untreated enzyme; the former process,
however, is retarded by the presence of bovine serum albumin. Activation by
the various agents is considered to involve a common mechanism in which
interaction of the enzyme with the agents is followed by conformational
changes in the enzyme, producing a series of forms that differ in
microstructure, catalytic activity, and lability.