Fine-structure mapping of charge-shift mutations in regulatory subunit of type I cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase.

A variety of structural mutations that alter functional properties of regulatory subunit (R) of type I cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase are available in the cultured S49 mouse lymphoma cell system. Many of these mutations also alter the electrostatic charge of R by about 1 or 2 units. By a novel peptide mapping procedure, a number of these "charge-shift" structural mutations were localized to small regions within the R polypeptide. The procedure employed two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis to separate large overlapping fragments generated from denatured, affinity-purified R by limited digestion with papain. Mutations were mapped to intervals between the endpoints of these fragments. The position of one mutation was confirmed by mapping a new site for cleavage by Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease. Six different Ka mutations, which increase the concentrations of cyclic AMP required for kinase activation, mapped to three clusters in the carboxy-terminal half of R. Second-site mutations that cause phenotypic reversion of a single Ka mutant strain mapped to either side of the original mutation. By using charge-shift mutations for calibration, a map of charge density distribution was constructed for the R polypeptide. This map allowed tentative assignment of mutational lesions to portions of the R amino acid sequence implicated in cyclic AMP binding.