Malic enzyme dehydrogenase activity

Both dehydrogenases of the pentose phosphate pathway can be classified as adaptive enzymes, since they increase in activity in the well-fed animal and when insulin is given to a diabetic animal. Activity is low in diabetes or starvation. Malic enzyme and ATP-citrate lyase behave similarly, indicating that these two enzymes are involved in lipogenesis rather than gluconeogenesis (Chapter 21). 

When linked enzyme assays are used, the exogenous added enzymes may also be contaminated with small traces of the primary enzyme whose activity is measured, thereby leading to falsely high activities In this instance it is also desirable to make certain that the added enzymes are free of any undesirable activity, i.e, pig heart malic dehydrogenase should be free of GOT activity when used for GOT assays (17),... 

In this pathway the electrons for the drug reduction are generated by the oxidative decarboxylation of malate catalyzed by the NAD-dependent malic enzyme (malate dehydrogenase (decarboxylating)). The NADH produced by this reaction is reoxidized by an enzyme with NADH ferredoxin oxidoreductase activity that has been recently identified as a homologue of the NADH dehydrogenase (NDH) module of the mitochondrial respiratory complex I (Hrdy et al. 2004 and see Hrdy et al., this volume). The... 

Fig. 4 Scheme of alternative pathway of metronidazole activation in hydrogenosomes of T. vaginalis the malate pathway. Electrons generated by hydrogenosomal malic enzyme (ME) reduce NAD+ to NADH, NADH dehydrogenase (NDH) recycles NADH and transfers electrons to ferredoxin (Fd) which, in a final step, donates electrons for metronidazole reduction. MTZ metronidazole, R-NO2" metronidazole anion radicals. Experimental conditions as in Fig. 3... 

NADH as an end product. This implicates oxidized malic acid, either pyruvic or oxaloacetic acid, as another end product. By adding commercial preparations of L-lactic dehydrogenase or malic dehydrogenase to the reaction mixture, Morenzoni (90) concluded that the end product was pyruvic acid. Attempts were then made to show whether two enzymes—malate carboxy lyase and the classic malic enzyme, malate oxidoreductase (decarboxylating), were involved or if the two activities were on the same enzyme. The preponderance of evidence indicated that only one enzyme is involved. This evidence came from temperature inactivation studies, heavy-metal inhibition studies, and ratio measurements of the two activities of partially purified preparations of Schiitz and Radlers malo-lactic enzyme (76, 90). This is not the first case of a single enzyme having two different activities (91). 

They stated further that, the new adaptive enzyme catalyzing Reaction 3 appears to be similar to the malic enzyme of pigeon liver, although strictly DPN (instead of TPN)-specific. The coenzyme specificity explains the ready occurrence of Reaction 1. Therefore, the authors showed that exogenous NAD was required for the overall reaction (malic acid -> lactic acid), but because this activity was measured manometrically, they never demonstrated the formation of reduced NAD. Similarly, they did not attempt to show that pyruvic acid was the intermediate between L-malic acid and lactic acid. Instead, the formation of pyruvic acid was inferred from the NAD requirement and because the malic acid dissimilation activity remained constant during purification while the lactate dehydrogenase activity decreased (14). In fact, attempts to show any appreciable amounts of pyruvic acid intermediate failed (22). 

Linked oxidation and decarboxylation. Metabolic pathways often make use of oxidation of a (3-hydroxy acid to a (3-oxoacid followed by decarboxylation in the active site of the same enzyme. An example is conversion of L-malate to pyruvate (Eq. 13-45). The Mg2+ or Mn2+-dependent decarboxylating malic dehydrogenase that catalyzes the reaction is usually called the malic enzyme. It is found in most organisms.237-240 While a concerted decarboxylation and dehydrogenation may sometimes occur,241-242 the enzymes of this group appear usually to operate with bound oxoacid intermediates as in Eq. 13-45. 

Aside from PEPCase, a number of other CAM-related genes have been partially characterised (Table 1). These include cDNA clones for pyruvate, orthophosphate dikinase (PPDK), a specific NADP malate dehydrogenase (MDH), glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase (GaPDH) and NADP-dependent malic enzyme (MOD). Previous studies indicated that the enzymatic activities of these gene products increased upon salt stress in the ice plant (Holtum Winter, 1982). As in the case... 

The activities of cytoplasmic enzymes, such as aspartase, glutamate, oxaloacetate, malic enzyme, and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) decrease at the onset of anaerobiosis, with occasional transient increases on the... 

From all the hypotheses mentioned above, the low flux of pyruvate into the TCA cycle is better explained by a decreased activity of several enzymes pyruvate carboxylase, pyruvate phosphoenol carboxykinase, pyruvate dehydrogenase, and malic enzyme II (Figure 4.3). Then, the pyruvate accumulated is converted to lactate by the enhanced catalytic action of the lactate dehydrogenase, as an alternative pathway to generate energy for cellular processes. 

Mitochondrial malate dehydrogenase, decarboxylating (malic enzyme) and transhydrogenase activities of adult Hymenolepis microstoma (Cestoda). Journal of Parasitology, 68 213-20. 

Figure 2.4. The provision of acetyl-CoA and NADPH for lipogenesis. PPP, pentose phosphate pathway T, tricarboxylate transporter K, a-ketoglutarate transporter. In ruminants, pyruvate dehydrogenase, ATP-citrate lyase and malic enzyme activities are low and perhaps non-functional. (From Murray et al., 1988. Harper s Biochemistry, 21st edn, p. 207, Appleton and Lange, Norwalk, CT reproduced with permission of The McGraw-Hill Companies).

Subsequent metabolism of oxaloacetate (OAA) varies according to species. Three main types of C4 pathway are recognized, of which the most extensively studied is that shown by plants such as Zea mays (corn) (Fig. 2). In these plants (here called type-1 C4 plants) OAA is reduced to malate via NADP-malate dehydrogenase in mesophyll chloroplasts. Malate is then transported to bundle sheath chloroplasts and oxidatively decarboxylated by NADP-malic enzyme to produce pyruvate, CO2 and NADPH. Pyruvate is recycled to the mesophyll cells while the CO2 and NADPH are used in the RPP cycle in the bundle sheath chloroplast. The original C3 carbon acceptor (PEP) is regenerated from pyruvate in the mesophyll chloroplast by the activity of pyruvate, Pj dikinase [8] (Eq. 5). 

The alcohol dehydrogenase activity was about twice as high in juice from anaerobic-treated fruit, but the levels of malic enzyme (ME), malate dehydrogenase (MDH), and pyruvate decarboxylase (PDC) were not greatly affected by the treatment. 

---