Substrate binding enzyme-anion complexes

An artificial metalloenzyme (26) was designed by Breslow et al. 24). It was the first example of a complete artificial enzyme, having a substrate binding cyclodextrin cavity and a Ni2+ ion-chelated nucleophilic group for catalysis. Metalloenzyme (26) behaves a real catalyst, exhibiting turnover, and enhances the rate of hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl acetate more than 103 fold. The catalytic group of 26 is a -Ni2+ complex which itself is active toward the substrate 1, but not toward such a substrate having no metal ion affinity at a low catalyst concentration. It is appearent that the metal ion in 26 activates the oximate anion by chelation, but not the substrate directly as believed in carboxypeptidase. 

The pH dependence of Ks/Km is similar for step 1 and step 2 reactions as shown in Fig. 26b, but this similarity in the pH curves indicate only that the same titratable groups on the free enzyme and/or free substrate are involved in the two steps. As discussed explicitly by Usher et al. (522) the roles of the two histidines could be reversed and this would make no difference since the ratio of HE EH where these are the two singly protonated species is independent of pH. Similar ks and Ka curves for the two steps would also fail to prove identical roles for the two histidines. Since a pentacovalent species—whether it is a transient activated complex or a more stable intermediate—is common to the various alternatives, pK shifts deduced from ka curves could be the same. Both substrates are monovalent anions with low pK values so that 1 /Km, whether interpreted as an equilibrium binding value or as a function of the kinetic parameters mirroring the total occupancy of all the stable intermediates, could also be the same for both steps. The values for the reverse of step 2 would behave differently since the pj of 3 -CMP, for example, is 5.9. It should also be noted that ks/Km curves should be and are ionic strength dependent (508) in the same way that the His 12 and His 119 pK values are as observed by NMR (280). 

Partial protection by bicarbonate may indicate that the carbamylated enzyme is more resistant to photoinactivation. Although non-substrate bicarbonate does bind to the active site, and actually competitively inhibits RuBP binding (6), anions such as formate, and perhaps acetate would be expected to behave similarly. The lack of protection by these compounds (5) suggests that the mode of bicarbonate protection may be due to carbamylation. The lack of any effect by Mg+ suggests that it is the binding of CO2 (or bicarbonate) that confers resistance to photomodification, and not the formation of the active ternary complex enzyme C02 Mg+. ... 

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