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► Structural features of 2OG oxygenases involved in substrate recognition are analyzed. ► Crystallographic studies reveal the versatility of the jelly roll fold in substrate ...binding. ► Defined structural regions that interact with substrate(s) are biased by fold topology. ► The utility of the enzyme–substrate structures for engineering and selective inhibition are discussed.
2-Oxoglutarate (2OG) and ferrous iron dependent oxygenases catalyze two-electron oxidations of a range of small and large molecule substrates, including proteins/peptides/amino acids, nucleic acids/bases, and lipids, as well as natural products including antibiotics and signaling molecules. 2OG oxygenases employ variations of a core double-stranded β-helix (DSBH; a.k.a. jelly-roll, cupin or jumonji C (JmjC)) fold to enable binding of Fe(II) and 2OG in a subfamily conserved manner. The topology of the DSBH limits regions directly involved in substrate binding: commonly the first, second and eighth strands, loops between the second/third and fourth/fifth DSBH strands, and the N-terminal and C-terminal regions are involved in primary substrate, co-substrate and cofactor binding. Insights into substrate recognition by 2OG oxygenases will help to enable selective inhibition and bioengineering studies.
2-Oxoglutarate (2OG) is involved in biological processes including oxidations catalyzed by 2OG oxygenases for which it is a cosubstrate. Eukaryotic 2OG oxygenases have roles in collagen biosynthesis, ...lipid metabolism, DNA/RNA modification, transcriptional regulation, and the hypoxic response. Aspartate/asparagine-β-hydroxylase (AspH) is a human 2OG oxygenase catalyzing post-translational hydroxylation of Asp/Asn-residues in epidermal growth factor-like domains (EGFDs) in the endoplasmic reticulum. AspH is of chemical interest, because its Fe(
ii
) cofactor is complexed by two rather than the typical three residues. AspH is upregulated in hypoxia and is a prognostic marker on the surface of cancer cells. We describe studies on how derivatives of its natural 2OG cosubstrate modulate AspH activity. An efficient synthesis of C3- and/or C4-substituted 2OG derivatives, proceeding
via
cyanosulfur ylid intermediates, is reported. Mass spectrometry-based AspH assays with >30 2OG derivatives reveal that some efficiently inhibit AspH
via
competing with 2OG as evidenced by crystallographic and solution analyses. Other 2OG derivatives can substitute for 2OG enabling substrate hydroxylation. The results show that subtle changes,
e.g.
methyl- to ethyl-substitution, can significantly alter the balance between catalysis and inhibition. 3-Methyl-2OG, a natural product present in human nutrition, was the most efficient alternative cosubstrate identified; crystallographic analyses reveal the binding mode of (
R
)-3-methyl-2OG and other 2OG derivatives to AspH and inform on the balance between turnover and inhibition. The results will enable the use of 2OG derivatives as mechanistic probes for other 2OG utilizing enzymes and suggest 2-oxoacids other than 2OG may be employed by some 2OG oxygenases
in vivo
.
Efficient synthesis of 2-oxoglutarate derivatives enables identification of inhibitors and novel cosubstrates of human aspartate/asparagine-β-hydroxylase as revealed by spectroscopic and crystallographic studies.
Human and other animal cells deploy three closely related dioxygenases (PHD 1, 2 and 3) to signal oxygen levels by catalysing oxygen regulated prolyl hydroxylation of the transcription factor HIF. ...The discovery of the HIF prolyl-hydroxylase (PHD) enzymes as oxygen sensors raises a key question as to the existence and nature of non-HIF substrates, potentially transducing other biological responses to hypoxia. Over 20 such substrates are reported. We therefore sought to characterise their reactivity with recombinant PHD enzymes. Unexpectedly, we did not detect prolyl-hydroxylase activity on any reported non-HIF protein or peptide, using conditions supporting robust HIF-α hydroxylation. We cannot exclude PHD-catalysed prolyl hydroxylation occurring under conditions other than those we have examined. However, our findings using recombinant enzymes provide no support for the wide range of non-HIF PHD substrates that have been reported.
2-Oxoglutarate (2OG) dependent oxygenases are ubiquitous iron enzymes that couple substrate oxidation to the conversion of 2OG to succinate and carbon dioxide. In humans their roles include collagen ...biosynthesis, fatty acid metabolism, DNA repair, RNA and chromatin modifications, and hypoxic sensing. Commercial applications of 2OG oxygenase inhibitors began with plant growth retardants, and now extend to a clinically used pharmaceutical compound for cardioprotection. Several 2OG oxygenases are now being targeted for therapeutic intervention for diseases including anaemia, inflammation and cancer. In this critical review, we describe studies on the inhibition of 2OG oxygenases, focusing on small molecules, and discuss the potential of 2OG oxygenases as therapeutic targets (295 references).
Regulation of nuclear import is fundamental to eukaryotic biology. The majority of nuclear import pathways are mediated by importin-cargo interactions. Yet not all nuclear proteins interact with ...importins, necessitating the identification of a general importin-independent nuclear import pathway. Here, we identify a code that determines importin-independent nuclear import of ankyrin repeats (ARs), a structural motif found in over 250 human proteins with diverse functions. AR-containing proteins (ARPs) with a hydrophobic residue at the 13th position of two consecutive ARs bind RanGDP efficiently, and consequently enter the nucleus. This code, experimentally tested in 17 ARPs, predicts the nuclear-cytoplasmic localization of over 150 annotated human ARPs with high accuracy and is acquired by the most common familial melanoma-associated CDKN2A mutation, leading to nuclear accumulation of mutant p16ink4a. The RaDAR (RanGDP/AR) pathway represents a general importin-independent nuclear import pathway and is frequently used by AR-containing transcriptional regulators, especially those regulating NF-κB/p53.
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•RanGDP binding to ankyrin repeat (AR) defines the RaDAR nuclear import pathway•Hydrophobic 13th residues in ARs (AR13Hb) form a code for RanGDP binding•The most common familial melanoma CDKN2A mutation introduces the code into the p16•Presence of AR13Hb in two consecutive ARs predicts the nuclear localization of ARPs
Ankyrin-repeat-containing proteins, including transcriptional regulators of NF-κB and p53, use patterned binding of RanGDP within their ankyrin repeats to regulate their nuclear localization independent of the importin pathway.
Epidermal growth factor-like domains (EGFDs) have important functions in cell–cell signaling. Both secreted and cell surface human EGFDs are subject to extensive modifications, including aspartate ...and asparagine residue C3-hydroxylations catalyzed by the 2-oxoglutarate oxygenase aspartate/asparagine-β-hydroxylase (AspH). Although genetic studies show AspH is important in human biology, studies on its physiological roles have been limited by incomplete knowledge of its substrates. Here, we redefine the consensus sequence requirements for AspH-catalyzed EGFD hydroxylation based on combined analysis of proteomic mass spectrometric data and mass spectrometry–based assays with isolated AspH and peptide substrates. We provide cellular and biochemical evidence that the preferred site of EGFD hydroxylation is embedded within a disulfide-bridged macrocycle formed of 10 amino acid residues. This definition enabled the identification of previously unassigned hydroxylation sites in three EGFDs of human fibulins as AspH substrates. A non-EGFD containing protein, lymphocyte antigen-6/plasminogen activator urokinase receptor domain containing protein 6B (LYPD6B) was shown to be a substrate for isolated AspH, but we did not observe evidence for LYPD6B hydroxylation in cells. AspH-catalyzed hydroxylation of fibulins is of particular interest given their important roles in extracellular matrix dynamics. In conclusion, these results lead to a revision of the consensus substrate requirements for AspH and expand the range of observed and potential AspH-catalyzed hydroxylation in cells, which will enable future study of the biological roles of AspH.
Quick and clean: A method for Pd‐catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura cross‐coupling to iododeoxyuridine (IdU) in DNA is described. Key to the reactivity is the choice of the ligand and the buffer. A covalent ...Pd–DNA intermediate was isolated and characterized. Photocrosslinking probes were generated to trap proteins that bind to epigenetic DNA modifications.
The HIF (hypoxia-inducible factor) hydroxylases PHDs or EGLNs (prolyl hydroxylases), which in humans are PHD isoforms 1-3, and FIH (factor inhibiting HIF) regulate HIF levels and activity. These ...enzymes are Fe(II)/2-oxoglutarate-dependent oxygenases, many of which are stimulated by ascorbate. We have investigated the ascorbate dependence of PHD2-catalysed hydroxylation of two prolyl hydroxylation sites in human HIF-1alpha, and of FIH-catalysed hydroxylation of asparaginyl hydroxylation sites in HIF-1alpha and in a consensus ankyrin repeat domain peptide. The initial rate and extent of hydroxylation was increased in the presence of ascorbate for each of these reactions. When ascorbate was replaced with structural analogues, the results revealed that the ascorbate side chain was not important in its contribution to HIF hydroxylase catalysis, whereas modifications to the ene-diol portion of the molecule negated the ability to promote hydroxylation. We investigated whether alternative reducing agents (glutathione and dithiothreitol) could be used to promote HIF hydroxylase activity, and found partial stimulation of hydroxylation in an apparently enzyme- and substrate-specific manner. The results raise the possibility of developing reducing agents targeted to specific HIF hydroxylase-catalysed reactions.