Catalytic and regulatory properties of native and chymotrypsintreated pyridoxine-5-phosphate oxidase

Brain pyridoxine-5-P oxidase is activated by the tryptophan metabolites 3-hydroxyanthranilate and 3-hydroxykynurenine. 3-Hydroxyanthranilate at concentrations of 0.03 mM relieves the inhibition elicited by accumulation of the substrate pyridoxine-5-P (K_i = 60 MM). The results of fluorometric measurements indicate that four molecules of 3-hydroxyanthranilate bind to the dimeric enzyme (56 kDa) with an association constant of 5.5 × 10⁴ M^-1. Differential spectral measurements failed to detect any direct interaction between the cofactor FMN and the effector 3-hydroxyanthranilate. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that the effector molecules bind to sites of the dimeric protein distinct from the cofactor site. Limited chymotrypsin digestion of pyridoxine-5-P oxidase yields catalytically active species that are no longer susceptible to activation by 3-hydroxykynurenine. A polypeptide of 16 kDa containing FMN and endowed with full catalytic activity was isolated by ion-exchange chromatography. It is postulated that the structural domain associated with catalytic activity composes approximately one-half of the molecular mass of pyridoxine-5-P oxidase (28 kDa), whereas the remaining portion of the macromolecule contains regulatory binding sites.