The biosynthesis of CoA from pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) is an essential universal pathway in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. The CoA biosynthetic genes in bacteria have all recently been identified, but their counterparts in humans and other eukaryotes remained mostly unknown. Using comparative genomics, we have identified human genes encoding the last four enzymatic steps in CoA biosynthesis: phosphopantothenoylcysteine synthetase (EC ), phosphopantothenoylcysteine decarboxylase (EC ), phosphopantetheine adenylyltransferase (EC ), and dephospho-CoA kinase (EC ). Biological functions of these human genes were verified using a complementation system in Escherichia coli based on transposon mutagenesis. The individual human enzymes were overexpressed in E. coli and purified, and the corresponding activities were experimentally verified. In addition, the entire pathway from phosphopantothenate to CoA was successfully reconstituted in vitro using a mixture of purified recombinant enzymes. Human recombinant bifunctional phosphopantetheine adenylyltransferase/dephospho-CoA kinase was kinetically characterized. This enzyme was previously suggested as a point of CoA biosynthesis regulation, and we have observed significant differences in mRNA levels of the corresponding human gene in normal and tumor cells by Northern blot analysis.
Phosphopantothenoylcysteine decarboxylase (PPC-DC) catalyzes the decarboxylation of the cysteine moiety of 4'-phosphopantothenoylcysteine (PPC) to form 4'-phosphopantetheine (PPantSH); this reaction forms part of the biosynthesis of coenzyme A. The enzyme is a member of the larger family of cysteine decarboxylases including the lantibiotic-biosynthesizing enzymes EpiD and MrsD, all of which use a tightly bound flavin cofactor to oxidize the thiol moiety of the substrate to a thioaldehyde. The thioaldehyde serves to delocalize the charge that develops in the subsequent decarboxylation reaction. In the case of PPC-DC enzymes the resulting enethiol is reduced to a thiol giving net decarboxylation of cysteine, while in EpiD and MrsD it is released as the final product of the reaction. In this paper, we describe the characterization of the novel cyclopropyl-substituted product analogue 4'-phospho-N-(1-mercaptomethyl-cyclopropyl)-pantothenamide (PPanDeltaSH) as a mechanism-based inhibitor of the human PPC-DC enzyme. This inhibitor alkylates the enzyme on Cys(173), resulting in the trapping of a covalently bound enethiolate intermediate. When Cys(173) is exchanged for the weaker acid serine by site-directed mutagenesis the enethiolate reaction intermediate also accumulates. This suggests that Cys(173) serves as an active site acid in the protonation of the enethiolate intermediate in PPC-DC enzymes. We propose that this protonation step is the key mechanistic difference between the oxidative decarboxylases EpiD and MrsD (which have either serine or threonine at the corresponding position in their active sites) and PPC-DC enzymes, which also reduce the intermediate in an overall simple decarboxylation reaction.
The chemical reactions and pathways resulting in the formation of coenzyme A, 3'-phosphoadenosine-(5')diphospho(4')pantatheine, an acyl carrier in many acylation and acyl-transfer reactions in which the intermediate is a thiol ester.
IEAUniPathway
Enzymatic activity
This protein acts as an enzyme. It is known to catalyze the following reaction
Protein involved in the biosynthetic pathway leading from pantothenate to coenzyme A (CoA). CoA has two halves in phosphodiester linkage: a 3',5'-ADP residue, and 4-phosphopantetheine. The phosphopantetheine moiety is itself composed of three structural entities: a branched chain dihydroxy acid in amide linkage to a beta-alanyl residue, which is in turn linked to a cysteamide containing the reactive thiol. Coenzyme A functions as a carrier of acetyl and acyl groups and is essential for numerous biosynthetic, energy-yielding, and degradative metabolic pathways. Acetyl-CoA is the common cellular currency for acetyl transfers.
Enzyme that belongs to the lyase family and which catalyzes the spliting of CO(2) from the carboxylic group of amino acids, beta-keto acids and alpha-keto acids.
Enzyme that catalyzes the cleavage of C-C, C-O, C-S, C-N or other bonds by other means than by hydrolysis or oxidation, with two substrates in one reaction direction, and one in the other. In the latter direction, a molecule (of carbon dioxide, water, etc) is eliminated, thus creating a new double bond or a new ring.
A reference proteome is a set of protein sequences derived from a complete proteome which constitutes a defined standard for a particular user community. Reference proteomes are manually defined according to a number of criteria. They cover the proteomes of well- studied model organisms and other proteomes of interest for biomedical and biotechnological research. Reference proteomes have been selected to provide broad coverage of the tree of life, and constitute a representative cross-section of the taxonomic diversity to be found within UniProtKB.