Sequence analysis identifies the proline dehydrogenase and delta 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate dehydrogenase domains of the multifunctional Escherichia coli PutA protein.

The PutA protein of Escherichia coli has two enzymatic activities: proline dehydrogenase (PDH) and delta 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate dehydrogenase (P5CDH). It associates with the cytoplasmic membrane as PDH and P5CDH and with put control region DNA as put repressor. Reduction of the PutA flavin by proline, a PutA conformational change and association of PutA with membranes are coincident. The nucleotide base sequence of E. coli putA was determined, that of S. typhimurium putA was updated and the deduced PutA protein sequences were surveyed for catalytic domains and ligand binding sites. The two sequences were very similar (80.5% and 95% on the nucleic acid and protein levels, respectively). Residues 650 through 1130 of PutA were very similar to the sequences of P5C dehydrogenases and aldehyde dehydrogenases from both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Glutamate 883 and cysteine 917 of PutA were conserved with the corresponding residues in P5C dehydrogenases and with those proposed to be active site residues in the aldehyde dehydrogenases. Those relationships suggest that gamma-glutamic semialdehyde, believed to equilibrate spontaneously with P5C, is the substrate for P5C dehydrogenases. Residues 340 through 590 of PutA were similar in sequence to proline dehydrogenases from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Drosophila melanogaster. Limited similarities were also found between residues 315 through 357 of PutA and a consensus sequence near a putative active site and FAD-binding region shared by succinate dehydrogenase sequences from several organisms. Since residues 228 through 358 of PutA were similar in sequence to several serine-pyruvate aminotransferases, PutA is proposed to catalyze the hydrolysis of P5C (a Schiff's base intermediate) to gamma-glutamic semialdehyde. A carboxyl-terminal sequence that resembles a leucine zipper motif may be involved in association of PutA with put control region DNA.