Abstact

A novel type 1 geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthase GACE1337 has been identified within the genome of a newly identified hyperthermophilic archaeon Geoglobus acetivorans. The enzyme has been cloned and over-expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant enzyme has been biochemically and structurally characterized. It is able to catalyze the synthesis of geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate as a major product and of farnesyl pyrophosphate in smaller amounts, as measured by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry at an elevated temperature of 60 °C. Its ability to produce two products is consistent with the fact that GACE1337 is the only short-chain isoprenyl diphosphate synthase in G. acetivorans. Attempts to crystallize the enzyme were successful only at 37 °C. The three-dimensional structure of GACE1337 was determined by X-ray diffraction to 2.5 Å resolution. A comparison of its structure with those of related enzymes revealed that the Geoglobus enzyme has the features of both type I and type III geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthases, which allow it to regulate the product length. The active enzyme is a dimer and has three aromatic amino acids, two Phe, and a Tyr, located in the hydrophobic cleft between the two subunits. It is proposed that these bulky residues play a major role in the synthetic reaction by controlling the product elongation.