Electrostatic potential maps at the quantum chemistry level of the active sites of the serine peptidases, alpha-chymotrypsin and subtilisin.

The electronic properties of the active-sites of the structurally unrelated serine peptidases, alpha-chymotrypsin and subtilisin, have been expressed in the form of three-dimensional electrostatic potential maps derived from integrals calculated at the quantum chemistry level. As a consequence of the asymmetrical distribution of the secondary structures that occur within a 7 A sphere around the serine of the catalytic triad, the active sites are highly polarized entities and exhibit large dipole moments. One part of the active sites generates a nucleophilic suction-pump. Its isocontour at -10 kcal mol-1 defines an impressive, negatively-charged volume which bears a narrow channel in the immediate vicinity of the active-site serine 195 in alpha-chymotrypsin or 221 in subtilisin. In native alpha-chymotrypsin, there is a perfect complementation between this nucleophilic suction-pump and the positively-charged electrophilic hole that is generated by the backbone NH of Ser 195 and Gly 193. In subtilisin, generation of the complementing electrophilic hole requires binding of a carbonyl donor ligand and may be achieved by rotation of the side-chain amide of Asn 155 towards the backbone NH of Ser 221. Small variations in the atomic co-ordinates of alpha-chymotrypsin used for the calculations, the presence of water molecules in its active site and the occurrence of point mutations in the amino acid sequence of subtilisin have little effects on the shape and characteristics of the electrostatic potential.