Structural and Biochemical Evidence That a TEM-1 [beta]-Lactamase N170G Active Site Mutant Acts via Substrate-assisted Catalysis
TEM-1 {beta}-lactamase is the most common plasmid-encoded {beta}-lactamase in Gram-negative bacteria and is a model class A enzyme. The active site of class A {beta}-lactamases share several conserved residues including Ser{sup 70}, Glu{sup 166}, and Asn{sub 170} that coordinate a hydrolytic water involved in deacylation. Unlike Ser{sup 70} and Glu{sup 166}, the functional significance of residue Asn{sup 170} is not well understood even though it forms hydrogen bonds with both Glu{sup 166} and the hydrolytic water. The goal of this study was to examine the importance of Asn{sup 170} for catalysis and substrate specificity of {beta}-lactam antibiotic hydrolysis. The codon for position 170 was randomized to create a library containing all 20 possible amino acids. The random library was introduced into Escherichia coli, and functional clones were selected on agar plates containing ampicillin. DNA sequencing of the functional clones revealed that only asparagine (wild type) and glycine at this position are consistent with wild-type function. The determination of kinetic parameters for several substrates revealed that the N170G mutant is very efficient at hydrolyzing substrates that contain a primary amine in the antibiotic R-group that would be close to the Asn{sup 170} side chain in the acyl-intermediate. In addition, the x-ray structure of the N170G enzyme indicated that the position of an active site water important for deacylation is altered compared with the wild-type enzyme. Taken together, the results suggest the N170G TEM-1 enzyme hydrolyzes ampicillin efficiently because of substrate-assisted catalysis where the primary amine of the ampicillin R-group positions the hydrolytic water and allows for efficient deacylation.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 1006081
- Journal Information:
- J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 284, Issue (48) ; 11, 2009; ISSN 0021-9258
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- ENGLISH
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