• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• 제40권6호
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• pp.478-483
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• 1997

E. coli K-12 균주에서 ${\gamma}-Glutamylcysteine$ synthetase를 정제하고 효소적 방법에 의한 글루타치온 합성에 관련된 특성을 검사하였다. 정제한 효소의 활성은 L-glutamate의 농도가 60 mM 까지 증가와 더불어 증가하였으나, 60 mM L-cysteine 에서는 50% 그리고 45 mM glycine 에서는 40%의 효소활성이 감소되었다. 효소의 활성은 반응산물 중의 하나인 ADP 뿐만 아니라 환원형 글루타치온에 의해서 감소되었다. 그러므로 환원형 글루타치온 뿐만 아니라 glutathione synthetase의 기질인 glycine은 ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase 활성을 저해하므로 글루타치온 생산을 위해서는 ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase 반응과 glutathione synthetase의 두 분리된 반응으로 이루어진 생반응계를 고안하는 것이 바람직하다. 또한 글루타치온 합성반응으로 부터 생성되는 ADP는 ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase의 활성을 감소시키므로 글루타치온 합성을 위해서 ATP 재생계의 도입이 필요하다.

• 미생물학회지
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• 제29권5호
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• pp.278-283
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• 1991

Two amino acid residues ($Ala^{494}$ and $Ser^{495}$ of E. coli .gamma.-glutamylcysteine synthetase have been investigated whether they are the site of feedback inhibition by site specific mutagenesis. Single substitution of $serine^{495}$ (S495F), and double substitutions of alanine$^{494}$ and $serine^{495}$ (A494G-S495F) resulted in the inactivation of the .gamma.-glutamylcysteine synthetase activity. Substitution of $alanine^{494}$ with $glycine^{494}$ resulted in a higher level of feedback inhibition. These results suggest that $serine^{495}$ in .gamma.-glutamylcysteine synthetase is required for its catalytic acitvity and $alanine^{494}$ is presumably related to the feeback inhibition site.

• BMB Reports
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• 제31권3호
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• pp.254-257
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• 1998

The gshI gene from the Escherichia coli K-12 strain codes for ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase which mediates the rate-limiting step of glutathione biosynthesis. The isolated gshI gene from E. coli K-12 has an unusual translation initiation codon, UUG. The 494th amino acid is Ala rather than Gly which was found in a mutant strain E. coli B. In order to improve the translational rate of the gshI gene of E. coli K-12, the initiation codon, UUG, was changed to the usual AUG codon by the site-specific mutagenesis. This change has resulted in a 53% increase of ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase activity. The enzyme activity was also improved by replacing $Ala^{494}$ with Val (A494V) or Leu (A494L). The replacement of $Ser^{495}$ with Thr (S495T) also resulted in a 62% increase of the enzyme activity. Therefore, the specific activity of ${\gamma}-glutamylcysteine$ synthetase was increased with the increasing chain length of the aliphathic amino acid at the site of the 494th amino acid (Ala<$Val{\leq}Leu$).

• Toxicological Research
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• 제23권2호
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• pp.127-133
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• 2007

Metformin is a drug used to lower blood sugar levels in patients with type 2 diabetes via activation of adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK). The primary objective of this study was to investigate whether metformin at the pharmacologically effective concentrations affects the expressions of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase and phase II antioxidant genes in the H4IIE cell. Treatment of the cells with either metformin or 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide riboside (AICAR) abrogated tert-butylhydroxyquinone (t-BHQ) induction of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase, a rate limiting enzyme of GSH synthesis. The ability of t-BHQ to induce glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), a major class of phase II detoxifying enzymes that playa critical role in protecting cells from oxidative stress or electrophiles, was also inhibited by the agents. Transcriptional gene repression by metformin was verified by the GSTA2 promoter luciferase assay. Moreover, either metformin or AICAR treatment significantly decreased t-BHQ-dependent induction of other GSTs (i.e., $GST{\mu}$ and $GST{\pi}$ forms). Taken together, our data indicate that metformin treatment may result in the repression of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase and glutathione S-transferase genes possibly via AMPK activation.

• 약학회지
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• 제39권6호
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• pp.654-660
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• 1995

The present study was attempted to investigate the mechanism of oxidative cellular injuries which occur in diabetic rats by determining changes of antioxidant enzymes activity in the lung of alloxan-induced diabetic rats, the contents of glutathione in the lung, liver, blood samples, and ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase activities in the liver. Superoxide dismutase activities (SOD), including Cu, Zn-SOD and Mn-SOD, decreased in the lung of diabetic rats compared with those of normal control rats. However, activities of catalase and glutathione peroxidase(GPX) activities were not affected in the lung of diabetic rats. In diabetic rats, glutathione contents in the lung, liver, and blood samples, as well as the activities of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase in the livers which is known to be the key enzyme of glutatione biosynthesis, decreased significantly. From these experimental results, it is thought that the decrease in SOD activities in the lung, glutathione contents and ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase activities in some tissues in alloxan-induced diabetic rats may be the crucial cause of vullnerability to oxidative cellular injuries.

• 한국초지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국초지조사료학회 2005년도 학술심포지엄, 제43회 학술발표회
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• pp.158-159
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• 2005

• 식품기술
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• 제17권4호
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• pp.98-106
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• 2004

Two mutant enzymes of $\gamma$-glutamylcysteine synthetase ($\gamma$-GCS) which catalyzed the synthesis of $\gamma$-glutamylcysteine from L-glutamic acid and L-cysteine in the presence of ATP, were prepared bypoint mutation of $\gamma$-GCS gene with site-directed mutagensis in E. coli. Conformational structuresand catalytic reaction kinetics of mutant enzymes were compared with wild type $\gamma$-GCS afterpurification. The S495F mutant enzyme (serine at 495 residue was substituted with phenylalanine),which had no catalytic activity for $\gamma$-glutamylcysteine synthesis, rarely folded even in neutral pH.However, the mutant A494V (alanine of 494 residue was replaced by valnine) which showed 50 %increase of activity, had a high folding structure. The folding structure of A494V also more stable athigh temperature and extreme pH compared to wild type and S495F. Reaction kinetics of wild typeand A494V were also investigated, Km value of A494V was smaller than that of wild type, while itshowed a little difference at Vmax values. This result evolved that alanine at 494 may be involved inbinding site of substrate rather than catalytic site. In addition, change of catalytic activity by onepoint mutation was highly correlated with the folding structure of enzyme.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• 제41권3호
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• pp.248-251
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• 2003

Glutathione (GSH) is an important factor in determining tolerance against oxidative stress in living organisms. It is synthesized in two sequential reactions catalyzed by ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase (GCS) and glutathione synthetase (GS) in the presence of ATP. In this work, the effects of three different oxidative stresses were examined on GSH content and GSH-related enzyme activities in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. GSH content in S. pombe was significantly enhanced by treatment with hydrogen peroxide, ${\beta}$-naphthoflavone (BNF) and tert-butylhydroquinone (BHQ). Simultaneously, they greatly induced GCS and GS activity. However, they did not have any effects on glutathione reductase activity. These results suggest that GCS and GS activities in S. pombe are up-regulated by oxidative stress.

• Toxicological Research
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• 제22권1호
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• pp.39-45
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• 2006

As the antioxidant and free radical scavenger, glutathione (GSH) participates in the preservation of cellular redox status and defense against reactive oxygen species and xenobiotics. Glutamate-cysteine ligase (GCL; also known as ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine synthetase, EC 6.3.2.2) is the rate limiting enzyme in GSH synthesis. In the present study, the accurate method for determination of GCL activity in crude liver extracts was developed by measuring both ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine and GSH from cysteine in the presence of glutamate, glycine and an ATP-generating system. We added glycine to promote the conversion of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine to GSH, and to minimize the possibility of ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine metabolism to cysteine and oxoproline by ${\gamma}$-glutamylcyclotransferase. We established optimal conditions and substrate concentrations for the enzyme assay, and verified that inhibition of GCL by GSH did not interfere with this assay. Therefore, this assay of hepatic GCL under optimal conditions could provide a more accurate measurement of this enzyme activity in the crude liver extracts.

• KSBB Journal
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• 제10권3호
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• pp.249-256
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• 1995

${\gamma}$-Glutamylcysteine 생산에 있어서 재조합 대장 균 HB101/pGH501만을 이용한 단일세포반응계가 재조합 대장균과 효모를 이용한 흔합서l포반응계보다 반응시간이 짧고 생산농도가 높은 것으로 나타났다. 그러나 생산경제성 측면에서 ATP 재생공정을 위하 여 훈합세포반응계를 사용하였다. 재조합 대장균과 효모를 이용한 혼합세포반응계에서 대장균과 효모의 비율은 1:4가 적합함을 보였고, ATP 재생공정에 사용되는 glucose는 O.5M의 농도에서 가장 효율적 으로 나타났다. 재조합 대장균과 효모를 alginate를 이용하여 고정화하여 반응계로 사용하였을 경우 반 응에 필요한 시간이 걸어지고 생산놓도도 감소되냐 반응계의 안정성은 10% 정도 증가됨을 알 수 있었다. 실험결과 alginate로 고정화된 흔합세포반응계 를 사용하여 ${\gamma}$-glutamylcysteine를 연속 생산할 수 있음을 확인하였다.