NMR studies of the AMP-binding site and mechanism of adenylate kinase.

NMR has previously been used to determine the conformation of enzyme-bound MgATP and to locate the MgATP-binding site on adenylate kinase [Fry, D. C., Kuby, S. A., & Mildvan, A. S. (1985) Biochemistry 24, 4680-4694]. To determine the conformation and location of the other substrate, AMP, distances have been measured from Cr3+AMPPCP, a linear competitive inhibitor with respect to MgATP, to six protons and to the phosphorus atom of AMP on adenylate kinase, with the paramagnetic probe-T1 method. Time-dependent nuclear Overhauser effects (NOEs) have been used to measure five interproton distances on enzyme-bound AMP. These distances were used to determine the conformation of bound AMP in addition to its position with respect to metal-ATP. Enzyme-bound AMP exhibits a high anti-glycosyl torsional angle (chi = 110 +/- 10 degrees), a 3'-endo,2'-exo ribose pucker (delta = 105 +/- 10 degrees), and gauche-trans orientations about the C4'-C5' bond (gamma = 180 +/- 10 degrees) and the C5'-O5' bond (beta = 170 +/- 20 degrees). The distance from Cr3+ to the phosphorus of AMP is 5.9 +/- 0.3 A, indicating a reaction coordinate distance of approximately 3 A, which is consistent with an associative SN2 mechanism for the phosphoryl transfer. Ten intermolecular NOEs, from protons of the enzyme to those of AMP, were detected, indicating the proximity of at least three hydrophobic amino acids to bound AMP. These constraints, together with the conformation of AMP and the intersubstrate distances, were used to position AMP into the X-ray structure of adenylate kinase. The AMP binding site is found to be near (less than or equal to 4 A from) Leu-116, Arg-171, Val-173, Val-182, and Leu-190; all of these residues have been found to be invariant in muscle-type rabbit, calf, human, porcine [Kuby, S. A., Palmieri, R. H., Frischat, A., Fischer, A. H., Wu, L. H., Maland, L., & Manship, M. (1984) Biochemistry 23, 2393-2399], and chicken adenylate kinase [Kishi, F., Maruyama, M., Tanizawa, Y., & Nakazawa, A. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 2942-2945].