Stereochemistry of yeast delta 24-sterol methyl transferase.

S-Adenosyl-l-methionine: delta 24-sterol methyl transferase (24-SMT) mediates introduction of the C-28 carbon of yeast sterols. It has been shown that sulfonium analogues of the presumptive cationic intermediates of the methylenation reaction are potent in vivo and in vitro inhibitors of this process. In the presence of these inhibitors, cultures of yeast produced increased proportions of zymosterol, the natural substrate of the enzyme, while proportions of ergosterol and ergostatetraenol were decreased. New C27-sterol metabolites were also found. The in vivo inhibitory power of the analogues [I50 (microM)] was determined from the proportion of C-24 methylated sterols to C-24 nonmethylated sterols in treated cultures to be in the following order: 25-thiacholesterol iodide (0.07) > 24(S)-methyl-25-thiacholesteryl iodide (0.14) > 24(R)-methyl-25-thiacholesteryl iodide (0.25). Kinetic inhibition as revealed by radiolabeled S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM), crude enzyme and 25-thiacholesteryl iodide revealed this inhibitor to be uncompetitive with respect to zymosterol and competitive with respect to SAM. The greater inhibitory power of 24(S)-methyl-25-thiacholesteryl iodide compared to 24(R)-methyl-25-thiacholesteryl iodide suggests that methyl donation to delta 24 occurs from the si face. When considered in conjunction with Arigoni's previous work, the present results infer the methylenation mediated by yeast 24-SMT proceeds by alkylation from the si face of delta 24 followed by migration of a hydrogen from C-24 to C-25 across the re face and final loss of a hydrogen from C-28 on the re face.