Phosphoglucoisomerase-catalysed interconversion of hexose phosphates. Kinetic study by 13C n.m.r. of the phosphoglucoisomerase reaction in 2H2O.

The fate of D-[2-13C]glucose 6-phosphate exposed to phosphoglucoisomerase (glucose-6-phosphate isomerase, EC 5.3.1.9) in 2H2O was monitored by 13C-n.m.r. spectroscopy. The generation of the anomers of both D-[2-13C]fructose 6-phosphate and D-[2-13C,2-2H]glucose 6-phosphate followed a single-exponential pattern. The rate constant, which was proportional to the enzyme concentration, was about 14 times higher, however, in the former than in the latter case. The disappearance of D-[2-13C,2-1H]glucose 6-phosphate occurred in a bi-exponential manner, the rate constants for the fast and the slow processes being in fair agreement with those obtained for the generation of D-[2-13C]fructose 6-phosphate and D-[2-13C,2-2H]glucose 6-phosphate respectively. These findings indicate that the process of equilibration of D-[2-13C]glucose 6-phosphate and D-[2-13C]fructose 6-phosphate is at least one order of magnitude faster than the intermolecular proton transfer involving the deuterons from the solvent. Such a difference provides strong support to the view that the inverconversion of hexose phosphates in the reaction catalysed by phosphoglucoisomerase proceeds in two distinct steps, the second of which occurs according to two competing modalities with either an intramolecular or an intermolecular proton transfer.