Anthony Persechini

Effects of Combined Phosphorylation at Ser-617 and Ser-1179 in Endothelial Nitric-oxide Synthase on EC50(Ca2+) Values for Calmodulin Binding and Enzyme Activation

We have investigated the possible biochemical basis for enhancements in NO production in endothelial cells that have been correlated with agonist- or shear stress-evoked phosphorylation at Ser-1179. We have found that a phosphomimetic substitution at Ser-1179 doubles maximal synthase activity, partially disinhibits cytochrome c reductase activity, and lowers the EC50(Ca2+) values for calmodulin binding and enzyme activation from the control values of 182 ± 2 and 422 ± 22 nm to 116 ± 2 and 300 ± 10 nm. These are similar to the effects of a phosphomimetic substitution at Ser-617 (Tran, Q. K., Leonard, J., Black, D. J., and Persechini, A. (2008) Biochemistry 47, 7557–7566). Although combining substitutions at Ser-617 and Ser-1179 has no additional effect on maximal synthase activity, cooperativity between the two substitutions completely disinhibits reductase activity and further reduces the EC50(Ca2+) values for calmodulin binding and enzyme activation to 77 ± 2 and 130 ± 5 nm. We have confirmed that specific Akt-catalyzed phosphorylation of Ser-617 and Ser-1179 and phosphomimetic substitutions at these positions have similar functional effects. Changes in the biochemical properties of eNOS produced by combined phosphorylation at Ser-617 and Ser-1179 are predicted to substantially increase synthase activity in cells at a typical basal free Ca2+ concentration of 50–100 nm.

Phosphorylation within an Autoinhibitory Domain in Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase Reduces the Ca2+ Concentrations Required for Calmodulin To Bind and Activate the Enzyme

We have investigated the effects of phosphorylation at Ser-617 and Ser-635 within an autoinhibitory domain (residues 595-639) in bovine endothelial nitric oxide synthase on enzyme activity and the Ca (2+) dependencies for calmodulin binding and enzyme activation. A phosphomimetic S617D substitution doubles the maximum calmodulin-dependent enzyme activity and decreases the EC 50(Ca (2+)) values for calmodulin binding and enzyme activation from the wild-type values of 180 +/- 2 and 397 +/- 23 nM to values of 109 +/- 2 and 258 +/- 11 nM, respectively. Deletion of the autoinhibitory domain also doubles the maximum calmodulin-dependent enzyme activity and decreases the EC 50(Ca (2+)) values for calmodulin binding and calmodulin-dependent enzyme activation to 65 +/- 4 and 118 +/- 4 nM, respectively. An S635D substitution has little or no effect on enzyme activity or EC 50(Ca (2+)) values, either alone or when combined with the S617D substitution. These results suggest that phosphorylation at Ser-617 partially reverses suppression by the autoinhibitory domain. Associated effects on the EC 50(Ca (2+)) values and maximum calmodulin-dependent enzyme activity are predicted to contribute equally to phosphorylation-dependent enhancement of NO production during a typical agonist-evoked Ca (2+) transient, while the reduction in EC 50(Ca (2+)) values is predicted to be the major contributor to enhancement at resting free Ca (2+) concentrations.

Variations at the semiconserved glycine in the IQ domain consensus sequence have a major impact on Ca2+-dependent switching in calmodulin-IQ domain complexes.

We have replaced the semiconserved Gly in the IQ domain consensus sequence with Ala, Arg, or Met in a reference sequence and determined how this affects its complexes with calmodulin. The K(d) for the Ca(2+)-free reference complex is 2.4 +/- 0.3 microM. The Ala and Arg replacements increase this to 5.4 +/- 0.4 and 6.2 +/- 0.5 microM, while the Met increases it to 26.4 +/- 2.5 microM. When Ca(2+) is bound to both calmodulin lobes, the K(d) for the reference complex is not significantly affected, but the K(d) for the Ala variant decreases to 0.9 +/- 0.04 microM, and the values for the Arg and Met variants decrease to 0.4 +/- 0.03 microM. Using mutant calmodulins, we defined the effect of Ca(2+) binding to each lobe, with the C-terminal preceding the N-terminal (C-->N) or vice versa (N-->C). In the C-->N order the first step increases the reference K(d) approximately 5-fold, while it decreases the values for the variants approximately 2- to approximately 10-fold. The second step decreases the K(d) values for the all of the complexes approximately 5-fold, suggesting that the N-terminal lobe does not interact with the semiconserved position after the first step. In the N-->C order the first step increases the K(d) values for the reference complex and Met and Ala variants approximately 15- to approximately 200-fold but does not affect the value for the Arg variant. The second step decreases the K(d) values for the reference and Arg variant approximately 10- and approximately 15-fold and the Ala and Met variants approximately 2000-fold. Thus, both steps in the N-->C order are sensitive to variations at the semiconserved position, while only the first is in the C-->N order. Due to energy coupling, this order is followed under equilibrium conditions.