Inactivation of beta-Galactosidase by iodination of tyrosine-253.

Beta-Galactosidase is rapidly inactivated by iodination catalyzed by lactoperoxidase but is not inactivated in the presence of the substrate analogue, isopropyl beta-D-thiogalactoside (IPTG). Enzyme activity is lost upon the incorporation of 1 mol of iodine per mol of monomer, without dissociation of the tetrameric structure. Tryptic digests of beta-galactosidase iodinated with 125I in the presence and absence of IPTG were separated by high-performance liquid chromatography and were compared. One fraction was found to be more highly labeled in the digest from the inactivated protein. After isolation of the peptide, amino acid analysis indicated it to be Asp-Tyr-Leu-Arg, residues 252-255. Thus, Tyr-253 is the most reactive tyrosine in beta-galactosidase. This suggests that the conformation of this region of the protein may be altered by binding of IPTG to make Tyr-253 less accessible to iodination. Alternatively, Tyr-253 could be an active-site residue.