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Dampedoscillatoryhystereticbehaviourof butyrylcholinesterase
with benzoylcholineas substrate
Patrick Masson
1
, Boris N. Goldstein
2
, Jean-Claude Debouzy
3
, Marie-The
´
re
`
se Froment
1
, Oksana Lockridge
4
and Lawrence M. Schopfer
4
1
Centre de Recherches du Service de Sante
´
des Arme
´
es (CRSSA), De
´
partement de Toxicologie, Unite
´
d’Enzymologie, La Tronche,
France;
2
Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia;
3
CRSSA, Unite
´
de
Biophysique, La Tronche, France;
4
University of Nebraska Medical Center, Eppley Institute, Omaha, NE, USA
Steady-state kinetics for the hydrolysis of benzoylcholine
(BzCh) and benzoylthiocholine (BzSCh) by wild-type
human butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) and by the peripheral
anionic site mutant D70G were compared. k
cat
/K
m
for the
hydrolysis of BzSCh was 17-fold and 32-fold lower than that
for hydrolysis of BzCh by wild-type and D70G, respectively.
The rate-limiting step for hydrolysis of BzCh was deacyla-
tion, whereas acylation was rate-limiting for hydrolysis of
BzSCh. Wild-type enzyme and the D70G mutant were
found to reach steady-state velocity slowly with BzCh as the
substrate. At pH 6, the approach to steady-state for both
enzymes consisted of a mono-exponential acceleration upon
which a set ofdamped oscillations was superimposed. From
pH 7 to 8.5, the approach to steady-state consisted of a
simple exponential acceleration. The damped oscillations
were analyzed by both a numerical approximation and
simulation based on a theoretical model. BuChE-catalyzed
hydrolysis of the thiocholine analogue of BzCh showed
neither lags nor oscillations, under the same conditions.
The frequency and amplitude of the damped oscillations
decreased as the BzCh concentration increased. The appar-
ent induction time for the exponential portion of the lag was
calculated from the envelope of the damped oscillations or
from the smooth lag. Wild-type BuChE showed a hyperbolic
increase in induction time as the BzCh concentration
increased (s
max
¼ 210 s at pH 6.0). However, the induction
time for D70G was constant over the whole range of BzCh
concentrations (s
max
¼ 60 s at pH 6.0). Thus, the induction
time does not conform to a simple hysteretic model in
which there is a slow conformational transition of the
enzyme from an inactive form E to an active form E¢.No
pH-dependence of the induction time was found between
pH 6.0 and 8.5 in sodium phosphate buffers of various
concentrations (from 1 m
M
to 1
M
). However, increasing
the pH tended to abolish the oscillations (increase the
damping factor). This effect was more pronounced for
D70G than for wild-type. Although the lyotropic proper-
ties of phosphate change from chaotropic at pH 6.0 to
kosmotropic at pH > 8.0, no effect of phosphate con-
centration on the oscillations was noticed at the different
pH values, suggesting that the oscillations are not related
to a pH-dependent Hofmeister effect of phosphate ions.
Simulation and theoretical analysis of the oscillatory
behaviour of the approach to the steady-state for BuChE
led us to propose a model for the hysteresis of BuChE with
BzCh. In this model, the substrate-free enzyme is present as
an equilibrium mixture of two forms, E and E¢. Substrate
binds to E and E¢, but only E¢ S makes products. It is
proposed that oscillations originate from a time-dependent
change in the local concentration, solvation and/or con-
formation ofsubstrate in the bulk solution.
1
H-NMR
measurements provided evidence for a slow equilibrium
between two BzCh conformers. Binding of the conforma-
tionally preferred substrate conformer leads to products.
Keywords: benzoylcholine; butyrylcholinesterase; damped
oscillations; hysteresis; slow conformational change.
Butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE, EC 3.1.1.8) is a serine
esterase closely related to acetylcholinesterase (AChE,
EC 3.1.1.7). AChE plays a central role in the cholinergic
system by terminating the action of acetylcholine in
synapses, but so far no clear function has been assigned to
BuChE. However, several lines of evidence indicate that
BuChE could be involved in the development of the nervous
system and in neurodegeneratives diseases [1]. In addition,
studies on the tissue distribution of BuChE combined with
the fact that AChE knock-out mice survive in the complete
absence of AChE suggest that BuChE may function in
cholinergic nerve signal transmission as a surrogate esterase
for acetylcholine [2,3]. It is also a toxicologically and
pharmacologically relevant enzyme because it hydrolyzes
Correspondence to P. Masson, CRSSA, De
´
partement de Toxicologie,
Unite
´
d’Enzymologie, BP 87, 38702 La Tronche cedex, France.
Fax: + 33 4 76 63 69 62, Tel.: + 33 4 76 63 69 59,
E-mail: pymasson@compuserve.com and pmasson@unmc.edu
Abbreviations: AChE, acetylcholinesterase; BuChE, butyrylcho-
linesterase; BuSCh, butyrylthiocholine; BzCh, benzoylcholine;
BzSCh, benzoylthiocholine; NMIA, N-methylindoxyl acetate;
PAS, peripheral anionic site.
Enzymes: butyrylcholinesterase (EC 3.1.1.8); acetylcholinesterase
(EC 3.1.1.7).
(Received 14 September 2003, revised 7 November 2003,
accepted 14 November 2003)
Eur. J. Biochem. 271, 220–234 (2004) Ó FEBS 2003 doi:10.1046/j.1432-1033.2003.03924.x
various ester-containing drugs (e.g. cocaine, heroin, succi-
nylcholine, aspirin) [4], and scavenges poisonous carbamyl
and organophosphate esters [5]. A truncated, monomeric
form of human BuChE was recently crystallized [6]. Reso-
lution of its X-ray crystallographic structure at 2 A
˚
[7]
confirmed that its structure is very close to that of AChE
[8,9]. In addition, unexpected electronic density attached to
the catalytic serine (S198) of native BuChE was modelled as
a bound butyrate.
Cholinesterases have been known for a long time as
enzymes that do not follow Michaelis–Menten kinetics with
positively charged substrates such as choline and thiocholine
esters. Both enzymes display inhibition and/or activation by
excess substrate, depending on the pH [10–12] or medium
conditions [13]. There is evidence that a conformational
change induced by transient binding ofsubstrate on a
peripheral anionic site (PAS) causes these catalytic com-
plexities. Additional kinetic complexities such has a nonlin-
ear temperature dependence have also been shown [14,15].
Moreover, human BuChE [16] was found to reach steady-
state velocity (v
ss
) slowly with the neutral ester N-methyl-
indoxyl acetate (NMIA) as substrate. The time course for
release of product P
1
throughout the lag phase was
described by the simple, mono-exponential, integrated-rate
equation (Eqn 1):
½P
1
¼½v
ss
t Àðv
ss
À v
i
Þð1 À e
Àkt
Þ=k ð1Þ
1
where v
i
is the inititial velocity and k the induction rate
constant. The maximum induction time, s ¼ 1/k, for wild-
type BuChE was found to be 15 min [16]. This transient is
too slow to be involved in establishing the Michaelis–
Menten steady-state. Indeed, the transient pre-steady-state
half-time for hydrolysis of NMIA can be estimated to be
less than 0.38 ls (Appendix 1). Thus, the BuChE induction
period was interpreted in terms of hysteresis. The concept of
hysteresis in enzymology was developed by Frieden [17],
Neet & Ainslie [18] and Kurganov et al. [19]. The hysteresis
of BuChE with NMIA can be described by Scheme 1. In
Scheme 1, E and E¢ aretwostatesoftheenzyme,whichare
in slow equilibrium; k
0
and k
)0
are the first-order rate con-
stants for the reversible transition E
!
E¢. K¢
s
¼ k
)1
/k
1
is
the dissociation constant for substrate binding to E¢ (assu-
ming that k
1
[S] + k
)1
) k
0
+ k
)0
). E¢Sistheenzyme–
substrate complex that makes products P (P
1
and P
2
,cf.
Appendix 1) through acylation k
2
(E¢S fi E¢A+P
1
), and
deacylation k
3
(EA fi E¢ +P
2
). The substrate depend-
ence of the hysteretic rate constant is described by Eqn (2):
k ¼ k
0
þ k
À0
=ð1 þ½S=K
0
s
Þð2Þ
In Scheme 1, it is assumed that only E¢ canbindsubstrate
and make products and that the resting enyzme is essentially
all in the E form. These assumptions derive from the fact
that hysteresis with NMIA starts at zero activity [in Eqn (1),
v
i
¼ 0]. Slow transient kinetics of BuChE with NMIA were
therefore interpreted in terms of a slow conformational
transition from an inactive form E to an active form E¢
preceding substrate binding [16]. This scheme provides a
good description of the behaviourof BuChE with NMIA.
However, substrates such as butyrylthiocholine (BuSCh)
show no hysteresis. This observation can be accommodated
ifbothEandE¢ have the same affinity for BuSCh and make
products at the same rate; then the two enzyme forms would
be indistinguishable and no hysteresis would appear in
product accumulation curves.
The existence of two, active, interconvertible forms of the
enzyme may also explain nonlinearity in Arrhenius plots of
BuChE-catalyzed reactions [14] and thermal inactivation
kinetics [20] with wave-like transitions around the break
point [20,21]. Complex progressive inhibition processes may
also be explained by an equilibrium between two enzyme
forms. For example, photo-induced carbamoylation of
BuChE by N-methyl-N-(2-nitrophenyl)carbamoyl chloride
was found to follow biphasic kinetics. However, X-ray
diffraction data revealed that the active site serine was the
sole target of N-methyl-N-(2-nitrophenyl)carbamoyl chlor-
ide [22]. A similarscenario appears to exist forAChE. Results
from several groups indicate that this enzyme is composed of
two discrete forms in slow conformational equilibrium and
that ligands of the PAS bind only to one form [23,24].
Hysteresis of BuChE was accompanied by large negative
values of activation entropy and activation volume [25]. We
have provided evidence that hysteresis is not a property of the
PAS [16]. However, the hystereticbehaviourof the enzyme
can be altered by mutation in the PAS and by hydrostatic
pressure and lyotropic salts. These observations suggest that
the hydration status of the catalytic gorge modulates the
slow conformational transition that leads to hysteresis.
Hysteresis may originate from isomerization of the free
enzyme (E to E¢) and/or the enzyme–substrate complex (ES
to E¢S). Formation of E¢S by either pathway triggers the
catalytic cycle. Hysteresis of wild-type BuChE and certain
mutants has also been observed with other substrates [16,25].
In this report, the catalytic properties of human BuChE
with benzoylcholine (BzCh) and benzoylthiocholine
(BzSCh) are compared. The wild-type enzyme and its
D70G mutant display hystereticbehaviourwith BzCh but
not with BzSCh. A careful analysis of the hysteretic kinetics
of BzCh hydrolysis showed that for certain conditions of pH,
salt concentration, and substrate concentration, an oscilla-
tory lag (up to 4 min) precedes establishment of the steady-
state. Under these conditions, the induction process cannot
be described by a simple, mono-exponential kinetic model;
rather, the approach to steady-state follows an exponential
acceleration which is overlaid withdamped oscillations.
Materials and methods
Chemicals
Benzoylcholine chloride (BzCh) was purchased from Sigma
France (Saint-Quentin-Fallavier, France). Benzoylthiocho-
Scheme 1.
Ó FEBS 2003 Oscillations in butyrylcholinesterase hysteresis (Eur. J. Biochem. 271) 221
line iodide (BzSCh) was from NCI (Tokyo, Japan).
Chlorpyrifos-oxon was obtained as standard grade from
Cluzeau (Sainte-Foy-la-Grande, France). Heavy water
(D
2
O; 99.998 atom
2
H) was from Eurisotope (Saint-Aubin,
France). Other chemicals were of biochemical grade.
Enzyme sources
Wild-type human BuChE was from plasma or was
expressed in CHO K
1
cells [26]. Recombinant wild-type
enzyme and the PAS mutant, D70G, were made and
expressed in stably transfected CHO K
1
cells, as previously
described [26]. Tetrameric forms of natural and recombin-
ant wild-type enzyme and D70G mutant enzymes were
highly purified by ion-exchange chromatography and
affinity chromatography on procainamide gel, as described
[26].
Kinetic measurements
Hydrolysis of BzCh. BuChE-catalyzed hydrolysis of BzCh
was assayed at 25 °C in sodium phosphate buffer of various
molarities (from 1 m
M
to 1
M
) and different pH values
(from 6.0 to 8.5). The BzCh concentration ranged from 1 to
150 l
M
. The active site enzyme concentration in the assay
was 31.5 n
M
for wild-type enzyme and 25 n
M
for D70G.
The hydrolysis kinetics were followed by recording the
decrease in A
240
(De ¼ 6700
M
)1
Æcm
)1
in phosphate) for
5–10 min. Preliminary analysis showed that the induction
time, s, with BzCh assubstrate was much shorter than with
NMIA [16]. Moreover, with NMIA and BuSCh, it was
found that s increased with decreasing pH [25]. Therefore,
to make s observable for a longer period, most assays were
carried out in 67 m
M
phosphate, pH 6.0.
Hydrolysis of BzSCh. BzSCh hydrolysis by wild-type
enzyme and its D70G mutant was assayed at 25 °Cin
sodium phosphate (10, 67, 100 and 500 m
M
)atdifferentpH
values (6.0, 7.0, 7.4 and 8.0). The BzSCh concentration
range was 1 l
M
to 10 m
M
. Hydrolysis of BzSCh was
followed by the method of Ellman et al.[27]with0.33m
M
5,5¢-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) as the chromogenic rea-
gent. The increase in A
420
due to the appearance of 5-thio-
2-nitrobenzoate was recorded. 5-Thio-2-nitrobenzoate is the
product of reduction of 5,5¢-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid)
by thiocholine, the hydrolysis product P
1
.Themolar
absorption coefficient (e) of 5-thio-2-nitrobenzoate at
420 nm is 12 500
M
)1
Æcm
)1
at pH 6.0, 13 200
M
)1
Æcm
)1
at
pH 7.0, and 13 300
M
)1
Æcm
)1
at pH 8.0.
Determination of steady-state catalytic parameters. As
described in the Introduction, BuChE-catalyzed hydrolysis
of positively charged substrates such as BzCh and BzSCh
does not follow Michaelis–Menten kinetics. There is
inhibition or activation by excess substrate, depending on
the pH [11]. Steady-state kinetics of positively charged
substrates can be conveniently described by Scheme 2 and
Eqn (3). In Scheme 2, the complex S
p
E corresponds to S
bound to the PAS. When the first substrate molecule is
bound to the catalytic binding site, a second substrate
molecule can bind to the PAS to form the ternary complex
S
p
ES.
v ¼
k
cat
½E
1 þ K
m
=½S
1 þ b½S=K
ss
1 þ½S=K
ss
ð3Þ
with k
cat
¼
k
2
k
3
ðk
2
þ k
3
Þ
ð3
0
Þ
and K
m
¼
K
s
k
3
ðk
2
þ k
3
Þ
ð3
00
Þ
K
s
is the dissociation constant of the ES complex, k
2
is the
acylation rate constant, and k
3
is the deacylation rate
constant. In Eqn (3), K
ss
is the dissociation constant of
complexes S
p
E and S
p
ES(K
ss
> K
m
). The parameter
b reflects the efficiency by which S
p
ES forms products.
Substrate activation occurs when b >1;whenb <1there
is substrate inhibition; the enzyme obeys the Michaelis–
Menten model if b ¼ 1.
The steady-state catalytic parameters, K
m
, K
ss
, k
cat
and
b factor for hydrolysis of BzCh and BzSCh were determined
by nonlinear computer fitting of Eqn (3) using the
SIGMA
PLOT
4.16 program (Jandel Scientific, San Raphael, CA,
USA). The enzyme active site concentration, [E], was
determined by titration by the residual activity method,
using chlorpyrifos-oxon as titrant [28].
Analysis of transient kinetics for BuChE-catalyzed hydro-
lysis of BzCh. The transient kinetics ofsubstrate hydrolysis
were analyzed by following the slow exponential increase in
product P
1
release over 20–90 min. The induction rate
constant, k, was determined by nonlinear regression fitting
of the progress curves to Eqn (1), using the
SIGMA PLOT
4.16
software. Induction time s ¼ 1/k. The asymptote of the
curves, i.e. when the steady-state was reached, is [P
1
] ¼
v
ss
(t ) s). The effect ofsubstrate concentration, pH and the
molarity of the buffer salts on the induction time was
investigated at 25 °C. The pH was varied from 6.0 to 8.5.
The phosphate concentration in the buffers varied from
1m
M
to 1
M
. The BzCh concentration in the assays varied
from 2.5 to 125 l
M
; and the concentration in BzSCh varied
from 5 l
M
to 1 m
M
.
As the approach to the steady-state could not be explained
by the simple mono-exponential process described by Eqn
(1), under certain conditions of pH, substrate concentration
and buffer salt concentration, a numerical method was used
to fit the curves. The method is described in Appendix 2.
In addition, a kinetic analysis of the enzyme oscillatory
regimen was performed using the graph–theory method [29].
This method allowed us to predict oscillatory behaviour
by inspecting the structure of the kinetic scheme [30].
Scheme 2.
222 P. Masson et al.(Eur. J. Biochem. 271) Ó FEBS 2003
Nonlinearity in the system was necessary for oscillatory
behaviour to occur. A computer solution of the differential
kinetic equations was used to simulate the experimental data.
NMR measurements
1
H-NMR spectra of BzCh solutions (BzCh was in 0.1
M
phosphate buffer prepared in D
2
O, pD ¼ 6.4; pH ¼ pD )
0.4) were recorded at 25 °ConanAM400Brukerspectro-
meter with presaturation of the solvent. A total of 32 000
data points were acquired on a 10 p.p.m. spectral width.
The number of acquisition scans (% 2 s per scan) was
increased with dilution (from 32 for the 10 m
M
solution to
12 000 for the 10 l
M
solution).
Results and discussion
Steady-state hydrolysis of BzCh vs. BzSCh
BzCh has long been known as a good, positively charged
substrate for BuChE [4]. Steady-state kinetic analysis carried
out in 67 m
M
phosphate buffer, pH 7.4, at 25 °Cgave
K
m
¼ 3 l
M
, k
cat
¼ 245 s
)1
for wild-type enzyme,
and K
m
¼ 21 l
M
, k
cat
¼ 250 s
)1
for the D70G mutant
(Table 1). These values are in accordance with previously
reported data determined under similar conditions [26]. The
values of K
m
for BzSCh (2.8 l
M
for wild-type and 59 l
M
for
D70G) were very similar to those for BzCh. However,
BzSCh was hydrolyzed at a much lower rate than BzCh:
k
cat
¼ 13.3 s
)1
for wild-type and 21.6 s
)1
for D70G
(Table 1). Thus, compared with BzCh, BzSCh appears to
be a poor substrate. This conclusion is supported by the
specificity constants, k
cat
/K
m
¼ k
2
/K
s
, for wild-type and
D70G hydrolysis of BzSCh, which are smaller than those for
BzCh by 17-fold and 32-fold, respectively. These ratios are
similar to the ratio (k
cat
/K
m
)
ester/thioester
of 52 for the
hydrolysis of (–)-cocaine [31] and (–)-thiococaine [32] by
wild-type enzyme, at 25 °C. The cocaine esters are the
bulkiest benzoyl ester and thioester compounds hydrolyzed
by this enzyme.
At pH 7.4, wild-type BuChE is inhibited by excess BzCh
and BzSCh (b < 1). However, at pH < 7.0, both sub-
strates show substrate activation (b > 1) (Table 2). This
shift from substrate inhibition to substrate activation was
also seen by Kalow for the hydrolysis of BzCh by wild-type
human enzyme (Fig. 2 in [33]). Hydrolysis of BuSCh by
the human BuChE mutant A328W also showed this
pH-dependent shift [11], as did hydrolysis of acetylthiocho-
line by AChE from both human and Bungaras fasciatus [10].
Taken together, these observations support the idea that a
pH-dependent shift between substrate activation and sub-
strate inhibition is a general property of positively charged
substrates reacting with cholinesterases.
Rate-limiting step of BzCh and BzSCh hydrolysis
Krupka [34] and Froede & Wilson [35] have shown that for
AChE, the hydrolytic rate of good substrates is limited by
deacylation whereas that of poor substrates is limited by
acylation. This can also be demonstrated for BzCh and
BzSCh reacting with BuChE, as follows. BzCh and BzSCh
lead to the same benzoyl–enzyme intermediate (EA), there-
fore deacylation for both reactions occurs with the same rate
constant (k
3
). BzCh is the better substrateof the pair, based
on its better specificity constants (Table 1). Glaubiger [36]
has shown that deacylation is partly rate-limiting for
hydrolysis of BzCh by wild-type enzyme (k
3
¼ k
2
) and fully
rate-limiting (k
3
<< k
2
) for D70G, as predicted for a good
substrate. Indeed, with BuSCh, deacylation is partly rate
limiting for wild-type and fully rate-limiting for D70G [37].
With BzSCh, k
cat
is much lower than k
cat
for BzCh (18-fold
with wild-type and 12-fold with D70G). As k
3
did not
change, the decrease in k
cat
must reflect a decrease in k
2
.
From the large decreases in k
cat
, it follows that the rate-
limiting step has become acylation (k
2
<< k
3
) for both
enzymes, and, therefore, k
cat
¼ k
2
for BzSCh hydrolysis
with both enzymes, as expected for a poor substrate.
Table 1. Steady-state catalytic parameters and apparent induction times for hydrolysis of BzCh and BzSCh by wild-type human BuChE and its D70G
mutant in 67 m
M
sodium phosphate pH 7.4 at 25 °C. Values are mean ± SE from three independent determinations.
BzCh BzSCh
Wild-type D70G Wild-type D70G
K
m
(l
M
) 3.00 ± 0.3 21.1 ± 4.9 2.84 ± 0.3 59.2 ± 2.4
k
cat
(s
)1
) 245 ± 7 250 ± 16 13.3 ± 1.3 21.6 ± 0.83
10
6
· k
cat
/K
m
(
M
)1
Æs
)1
) 81.6 ± 10.3 11.8 ± 3.5 4.7 ± 0.9 0.366 ± 0.03
b 0.4 ± 0.1 1 0.3 ± 0.1 1
K
ss
(m
M
) 0.5 ± 0.1 – 3.7 ± 0.5 –
s
max
(s)
a
210 ± 15 60 ± 15 0
b
0
b
< DG
à
E fi E¢
> (kJÆmol
)1
)86 83 – –
[BzCh]-dependence of k Decrease No – –
a
s
max
¼ 1/k
lim
for [BzCh] > 40 m
M
;
b
Induction time was not detectable under current experimental conditions.
Table 2. pH-dependence of k
cat
and b factor for hydrolysis of BzCh and
BzSCh by wild-type BuChE in 0.1
M
sodium phosphate at 25 °C.
pH
BzCh BzSCh
k
cat
(s
)1
) bk
cat
(s
)1
) b
6 83 1.8 2.2 2.5
7 250
a
0.46
a
10.2 1.15
8 367 0.4 16.3 0.25
8.5 ND ND 23.3 0.1
a
Experimental values were taken from [26].
Ó FEBS 2003 Oscillations in butyrylcholinesterase hysteresis (Eur. J. Biochem. 271) 223
Values of k
2
and k
3
were calculated for the reactions of
BzCh with wild-type and D70G. These calculations used
Eqns (3¢)and(3¢¢) together with measured values for K
m
and
k
cat
, and estimated values for K
s
.AsestimatesofK
s
,theK
i
values for benzoylcholine amide, a competitive inhibitor
and steric analogue of BzCh, taken from Glaubiger [36]
(K
i
¼ 14.1 l
M
and 556 l
M
for wild-type and D70G,
respectively) were used. The resultant values were k
2
¼
980 s
)1
and k
3
¼ 330 s
)1
for wild-type and k
2
¼ 5830 s
)1
and k
3
¼ 270 s
)1
for D70G (Table 3). These values are
similar to those obtained by Glaubiger and support the
statement that k
3
is partially rate-limiting in the wild-type
enzyme reaction and completely rate-limiting in the D70G
reaction.
Next, values of k
2
, k
3
,andK
s
for the reactions of BzSCh
with wild-type and D70G were determined. The k
3
values
were taken to be the same as those for BzCh, as both
substrates generate the same benzoyl–enzyme intermediate.
The k
2
values were taken to be the same as k
cat
,ask
cat
was
much smaller than k
3
, and the decreases in k
cat
between
BzCh and BzSCh could only have resulted from decreases in
k
2
. Using these values for k
2
and k
3
, along with the
measured values for K
m
,Eqn(3¢¢) was used to calculate
reasonable estimates of K
s
. Calculated values of K
s
, k
2
and
k
3
for hydrolysis of BzCh and BzSCh by both enzymes are
giveninTable3.
Lower limit estimates for k
1
were also calculated. It was
assumed that substrate binding was rapid, therefore
k
)1
) k
2
.AsK
s
¼ k
1
/k
)1
, it followed that k
1
> k
2
/K
s
.
Using values of k
2
and K
s
from Table 3, estimates of k
1
for
BzCh were determined for wild-type enzyme, k
1
>70·
10
6
M
)1
Æs
)1
and for D70G, k
1
>10.5· 10
6
M
)1
Æs
)1
(Table 3). Similar calculations were made for BuSCh. The
actual values of k
1
have to be higher than the respective k
cat
/
K
m
values (Table 1). The minimum value of k
1
is about
7–10-fold higher for wild-type than for D70G. k
1
for wild-
type is high because of an initial interaction ofsubstrate with
the functional PAS. The lower k
1
for D70G reflects the
absence of that interaction in this mutant. Moreover, k
-1
for
D70G is thought to be faster than for wild-type because the
gorge entrance is larger and the conformational plasticity of
the gorge is better in the absence of a functional PAS [16,44].
The limiting values for k
1
and k
)1
are consistent with the
current understanding of the structure of the active-site
gorge of cholinesterases and with the mechanism of binding
of positively charged ligands/substrates by these enzymes
[7,8,26].
The large decrease in the k
2
/k
3
ratio on going from BzCh
to BzSCh is unprecedented. Earlier reports by Hillman &
Mautner [38], Bretskin
2
et al. [39], and Froede & Wilson [35]
have demonstrated that substituting sulfur for oxygen in the
ethereal position of acetylcholine, propionylcholine, and
butyrylcholine will cause the k
2
/k
3
ratio to decrease, but to a
much lower extent. The reported decrease becomes larger as
the size of the substrate increases [39], and is further
enhanced if selenium is substituted for oxygen instead of
sulfur [38]; but in none of the reported instances, does k
2
become rate limiting. It seems evident that the sulfur
(selenium) imposes constraints on the formation of the
acylation tetrahedral intermediate, and that those con-
straints become more restrictive as the size of the substrate
increases. With BzSCh, it would seem that the substrate is
large enough to reduce k
2
to the point where acylation
finally becomes rate limiting. It is likely that acylation is also
rate limiting in the formation of (–)-thiococaine, which is
even larger than BzSCh. This prediction is supported by the
large ratio of (k
cat
/K
m
)
ester/thioester
for the (–)-cocaine/(–)-
thiococaine couple.
What properties of sulfur might contribute to a decrease
in the acylation rate? The size of the sulfur atom is larger
than that of the oxygen atom: van der Waals radii are
0.18 nm and 0.14 nm, respectively. This should introduce a
steric constraint into the formation of the acylation
transition state. The Pauling electronegativity of sulfur is
less than that of oxygen: 2.5 and 3.4, respectively. Thus the
energy needed to break a C–O bond is % 350 kJÆmol
)1
compared with 260 kJÆmol
)1
for a C–S bond. This factor
should actually make acylation easier. Still, overall, the
atomic properties of sulfur are thought to slow down the
reactions leading to acylation of BuChE by BzSCh. This can
be attributed to the following factors: (a) steric factors may
radically affect the conformation of the BzSCh molecule
compared with that of BzCh; (b) steric and electronic effects
of the ethereal sulfur will perturb adjustment and hydrogen-
bonding of the carbonyl oxygen in the oxyanion hole (NH
groups of residues G115, G116 and G117 in human
enzyme), thus increasing the acylation reaction barrier.
(For more information on the role of the cholinesterase
oxyanion hole, see [40,41]; (c) both the tetrahedral transition
state and the tetrahedral adduct would be less stabilized.
Computational modelling of the acylation transition state
by quantum mechanical calculations should verify or
disprove these contentions.
Hysteresis with BzCh but not with BzSCh
As with NMIA, BuChE-catalyzed hydrolysis of BzCh was
found to present a slow hysteretic phase preceding the steady-
state. Thus, hysteresis of the enzyme is not restricted by
neutral substrates such as NMIA. The lag (s)withBzChwas
long enough to be seen under standard assay conditions.
However, the transient phase was more complex than with
NMIA. At selected substrate concentrations and/or pH
values, lags overlaid withdamped oscillations replaced the
simple lags normally seen. When oscillations were seen, there
were typically three to four damped oscillations with increas-
ing period (T ) over the whole induction time (Figs 1 and 2)
3
.
No lags or oscillations were seen for hydrolysis of the
homologous thioester, BzSCh, by either wild-type or the
Table 3. Estimates of constants involved in the hydrolyic turnover of
BzCh and BzSCh by wild-type BuChE and D70G mutant.
BzCh BzSCh
Wild-type D70G Wild-type D70G
K
s
(l
M
) 14.1
a
556
a
3.3 67
k
2
(s
)1
) 980 5800 13 22
k
3
(s
)1
) 330 270 330 270
10
6
· k
1
(
M
)1
Æs
)1
)
b
) 70 ) 10.5 ) 4 ) 0.3
a
Values taken from Glaubiger [36].
b
Substrate binding was
reduced to a single step and assuming k
)1
) k
2
.
224 P. Masson et al.(Eur. J. Biochem. 271) Ó FEBS 2003
D70G mutant, under the same conditions. It is also
noteworthy that BuChE-catalyzed hydrolysis of neither
butyrylcholine nor BuSCh presented a lag. However,
hysteresis was reported for hydrolysis of BuSCh by some
mutants of the active site [25]. This indicates that the
hysteretic behaviourof BuChE depends on both the structure
of the enzyme and the chemical structure of the substrate.
Modulation of hysteresis
Mutation in the peripheral anionic site. The PAS mutant,
D70G, displayed hystereticbehaviourwith BzCh, which
was similar to that found with wild-type. However, at
saturating substrate concentration, s
max
was about threefold
shorter for D70G than for wild-type (Table 1). These results
show that hysteresis does not require interaction of the
substrate with the PAS, but that mutation of that site can
affect the rate constants for hysteresis. This corroborates
previous results obtained from the hystereticbehaviour of
wild-type and PAS mutants with NMIA [16]. In general,
disruption of the PAS architecture by mutation tends to
increase the rate, k, of the hysteretic transition (k is the
reciprocal of s), probably by increasing the conformational
plasticity of the active-site gorge.
pH. The induction time of the hysteresis for BzCh with
wild-type and D70G mutant displayed no pH-dependence
between pH 6.0 and 8.5. This contrasts with the behaviour
of active-site mutants E197Q and A328C with BuSCh and
NMIA, which showed increases in induction time as the pH
was reduced to pH 4.0 [25]. The absence of effects in this pH
range implies that hysteresis of BzCh with wild-type does
not depend on ionization of a histidine. Increasing the pH
damped the oscillations; this effect was more pronounced
for D70G than for the wild-type enzyme. Oscillations in the
hysteresis of D70G were almost undetectable at pH > 7,
but still detectable with wild-type enzyme.
Concentration of buffer salts. We suggested previously
that the hystereticbehaviourof BuChE might be related to
the structure of water at the enzyme–solvent interface [16].
Indeed, high hydrostatic pressure and highly concentrated,
strong kosmotropic salts (water-structure makers) caused
decreases in the induction time for hysteresis with NMIA. In
addition, a large negative change in the entropy of
activation associated with the conversion E fiE¢was
calculated (DS
„
¼ )31.5 JÆK
)1
Æmol
)1
at 25 °C), which
may reflect the dominating contribution of a solvation
change (increase in local order and local density) to enzyme
ÔisomerizationÕ [25].
Additional hydrodynamic changes have been reported
for various dynamic processes involving cholinesterases.
Molecular dynamics simulations indicated that water mole-
cules are displaced from the active-site gorge of cholinest-
erases during the catalytic cycle [42,43]. A change in water
structure both around amino-acid residues lining the gorge
and around substrate/ligand molecules moving down the
gorge has been demonstrated using hydrostatic and osmotic
Fig. 1. Typical pre-steady-state kinetics curves of wild-type BuChE with BzCh. Reactions were performed at pH 6.0 and 25 °Catdifferentsubstrate
concentrations and at different buffer concentrations; (A) [BzCh] ¼ 3.5 l
M
,67m
M
phosphate; (B) [BzCh] ¼ 25 l
M
,0.2
M
phosphate; (C)
[BzCh] ¼ 50 l
M
,10m
M
phosphate; (D) [BzCh] ¼ 100 l
M
,0.75
M
phosphate.
Ó FEBS 2003 Oscillations in butyrylcholinesterase hysteresis (Eur. J. Biochem. 271) 225
methods [44]. Furthermore, motion of water molecules
along the pathway of different BuChE-catalyzed reactions
has been shown in high-pressure experiments [16,44,45].
To probe the effect of changes in water structure on the
hysteresis of BuChE-catalyzed hydrolysis of BzCh, we
varied the concentration and pH of the phosphate buffer
salts and monitored the hystereticbehaviourof the wild-
type enzyme and the D70G mutant. The lyotropic proper-
ties of phosphate ions change with the pH. At pH 6.0, 94%
of phosphate ions are H
2
PO
4
–
, whereas at pH 8.0, 86% of
phosphate ions are HPO
4
2–
.HPO
4
2–
, a large doubly charged
anion with high charge density, is one of the strongest
kosmotropic salts known, whereas H
2
PO
4
–
is a large singly
charged anion with low charge density, which has chao-
tropic properties (water-structure breaker). The counterion
in the buffer, Na
+
, is considered to be a lyotropically
neutral cation. The pH was varied from 6.0 to 8.5, and the
phosphate concentration was varied from 0.001 to 1.0
M
.
There was no significant effect of phosphate concentration
on the induction times, the frequency of the oscillations, or
the amplitude of the oscillations at any pH between 6 and
8.5. Thus, there were no stabilizing or destabilizing effects
on the hysteresis that could be related to a change in the
structure of water in the hydration shell of the enzyme active
surface. This indicates that the hystereticbehaviour of
BuChE with BzCh is not sensitive to changes in the chemical
potential of the medium.
Dependence of hysteresis on substrate concentration
A complete study of the dependence of the hysteretic lags on
BzCh concentration was carried out in 67 m
M
phosphate,
pH 6.0. Induction times were calculated from Eqn (1) or
Eqn (15) in Appendix 2. In Eqn (15), e
–t/a
1
is the envelope of
the damped oscillations and the coefficient a
1
is approxi-
mately equal to s (Fig. 2). As seen in Fig. 3A, s for wild-type
BuChE increased withsubstrate concentration to a maxi-
mum value of 3.5 min (210 s). However, s for D70G
appeared to be independent of BzCh concentration
(s ¼ 1 min). Owing to uncertainties in the measurement
of s for D70G at BzCh concentrations less than 20 l
M
,we
were unable to determine whether a decrease in s occurred
at these concentrations.
Scheme 1 adequately describes the hysteretic behaviour
of wild-type BuChE with NMIA [16]. However, in
Scheme 1, the equilibrium between E and E¢ is the sole
determinant of the kinetics of hysteresis. This predicts that
all substrates will show hysteresis. Furthermore, Eqn (2)
predicts that the limiting rates at high and low substrate
concentrations will be k
0
and k
0
+ k
)0
, respectively, for all
substrates. When these predictions were tested by studying
additional substrates, the expected results were not obser-
ved. For example, results from the current study showed
that the hysteretic rate constants for BzCh with wild-type
were larger (k
0
¼ 0.0048 s
)1
, k
0
+ k
)0
% 0.033 s
)1
than
those for NMIA (k
0
¼ 0.001 s
)1
, k
0
+ k
)0
% 0.003 s
)1
[16]). This is contrary to the prediction. The values at low
substrate concentration (k
0
+ k
)0
) are not reliable, because
of the steepness of the curve in that region, which makes
extrapolation to zero substrate concentration difficult.
Fig. 2. Damped oscillations in the approach to steady-state for D70G.
Thereactionwasperformedin0.2
M
phosphate, pH 6.0, [BzCh] ¼
25 l
M
. The damped oscillation curve fits the equation: Y ¼ )55
(e
)t/53
) 0.02e
)t/1000
){cosp[(t + 10)/(53.4 ) t/18)]}. d [P] is the differ-
ence in progress curves between steady-state and pre-steady-state for
the formation of choline, the product P
1
of BzCh hydrolysis. dOD is
the change in A
240
. The two exponential cuves are the envelopes of
damped oscillation curve.
Fig. 3. Dependence of the induction time and rate on the BzCh con-
centration for wild-type BuChE and the D70G mutant. (A) Dependence
of the induction time (s ¼ k
)1
) on the BzCh concentration for wild-
type BuChE (d) and the D70G mutant (m)in67m
M
sodium phos-
phate, pH 6.0, at 25 °C and (B) dependence of the induction rate
constant k on the BzCh concentration for wild-type BuChE (d)and
the D70G (m)mutant.
226 P. Masson et al.(Eur. J. Biochem. 271) Ó FEBS 2003
However, the values at high substrate concentration (k
0
)are
well established. This finding argues that the model in
Scheme 1 is too simple to explain all of the hysteretic
properties of BuChE. Support for this conclusion comes
from BuSCh hydrolysis, which showed no hysteresis at all
withthewild-typeenzyme.Thusthehystereticrate
constants for BuChE are dependent on the structure of
the substrate. To accommodate this fact, alternative mech-
anisms have to be considered.
The next more complicated hysteretic model is the
general model proposed by Frieden [17], which is shown
in Scheme 3. According to Scheme 3, different substrates
may bind exclusively to form E or E¢, or may bind to both
forms with equal or different affinities. This model provides
sufficient flexibility to accommodate all of the observations
for hysteresis with BuChE, as will be described below.
First, the Frieden model will be slightly modified to better
reflect the situation with this enzyme. In the original Frieden
model, substrate bound rapidly to E and E¢. As both ES and
E¢S were taken to be catalytically active, some degree of
product formation was predicted immediately on mixing
substrate with the enzyme. It has already been shown that
there is essentially no product formed from NMIA,
immediately after mixing [16]. This was attributed to a
selective binding of NMIA to the E¢ form, when most of the
resting enzyme was in the E form. Thus most of the enzyme
would have to undergo the slow, hysteretic transition before
becoming catalytically competent. It has also been shown
that there is essentially no product formation from BzCh
immediately after mixing [16]. However, exclusive binding
of BzCh to form E¢ is not consistent with the observed
hysteretic rate constants. It follows that BzCh must bind, at
least in part, to form E. If the ES complex were catalytically
active, this would predict a nonzero rate of product
formation immediately after mixing. This was not seen,
which indicates that ES is not catalytically active. If it is
assumed that only the E¢ form is catalytically active, then
Scheme 3 reduces to Scheme 4.
k ¼
k
0
þ
k
es
K
S
½S
1 þ
½S
K
S
0
@
1
A
þ
k
À0
þ
k
Àes
K
0
S
½S
1 þ
½S
K
0
S
0
@
1
A
ð4Þ
Scheme 4 is described by Eqn (4), which indicates that
hysteresis depends on the rate constants of equilibria
E
!
E¢ and ES
!
¢S. With the use of Eqn (4), the
hysteretic observations on BuChE reacting with NMIA [16],
BuSCh [25] and BzCh (present work) can all be accommo-
dated. For example (a) if substrate binds only to E¢,thenES
would not form and hysteresis would be controlled by rate
constants k
0
and k
)0
. This is the situation described in
Scheme 1. Hysteresis of BuChE with NMIA is consistent
with this model. (b) If substrate binds exclusively to E, and
the transition ES to E¢S is fast, then there would be no
hysteresis. This could be the case when wild-type enzyme
reacts with BuSCh and BzSCh. It is important to note here
that,astheEStoE¢S transition involves an enzyme form in
complex with substrate, the rate constants for this transition
may vary from substrate to substrate. (c) If substrate binds
exclusively to E, and if the ES to E¢S transition is slow, then
there would be hysteresis. And, the hysteretic behaviour
would be consistent with the previously proposed model
that incoporates an Ôinduced fitÕ step [26]. Under such
conditions, an increasing dependence of k on substrate
concentration from 0 to k ¼ k
es
+ k
)es
would be expected.
So far, such a dependence of k on substrate concentration
has only been observed for the A328C mutant with NMIA
(unpublished). (d) If substrate binds to both forms E and E¢,
thentherewouldbehysteresisandthedependenceofk on
substrate concentration would vary with the relative rates of
the transitions E to E¢ andEStoE¢S. At low substrate
concentrations, the apparent rate constant would approach
k
0
+ k
)0
, and at high substrate concentration the rate
constant would approach k
es
+ k
)es
.Ifk
0
+ k
)0
> k
es
+
k
)es
, there would be a positive, hyperbolic dependence; if
k
0
+ k
)0
< k
es
+ k
)es
, there would be a negative, hyper-
bolic dependence. Hysteresis of wild-type with BzCh could
be described by this latter condition. If k
0
+ k
)0
¼ k
es
+
k
)es
, there would be no dependence of k on substrate
concentration. The latter condition could describe the
hysteresis of the D70G mutant with BzCh.
Having established Scheme 4 as the hysteretic model for
BuChE, analysis of BzCh hysteresis can be undertaken.
Figure 3B shows the dependence of the induction rate
constants (k ¼ 1/s) on BzCh concentration. Analysis of the
wild-type data according to Eqn (4) yields: k
0
+ k
)0
%
0.033 s
)1
and k
es
+ k
)es
¼ 0.0042 s
)1
.ForD70G,k
0
+
k
)0
¼ k
es
+ k
)es
% 0.016 s
)1
. K¢
s
values should corres-
pond to K
s
taken from Glaubiger [32], which in Table 3 is
14.1 l
M
for wild-type and 556 l
M
for D70G. In the simplest
case, if K
s
¼ K¢
s
, it follows from Eqn (4) that k ¼ (k
0
+
k
)0
+ k
es
+ k
)es
)/2 when [S] ¼ K
s
¼ K¢
s
; then for wild-
type, k ¼ 0.019 s
)1
and the dissociation constant of ES and
E¢S can be estimated graphically from Fig. 3B to be % 5 l
M
.
Analysis ofdamped oscillations in the approach
to the steady-state
Oscillations in kinetic behaviourof isolated enzymes have
been known for a long time (for reviews see [46,47]).
Although damped oscillations in the approach to
Scheme 3.
Scheme 4.
Ó FEBS 2003 Oscillations in butyrylcholinesterase hysteresis (Eur. J. Biochem. 271) 227
the steady-state of single-enzyme systems have been predic-
ted and theoretically analyzed by several investigators
[29,46–49], so far there are only two experimental reports
of such behaviour: acid phosphatase [50] and horseradish
peroxidase [51]. Reports of sustained oscillations in enzyme
reactions, e.g. peroxidases [51,52], and ofoscillatory beha-
viour in complex systems are more common: glycolysis,
photosynthesis, mitochondrial ion transport, and synthesis
of cAMP (see [56] and references therein). The sparsity
of experimental observations ofdampedoscillatory beha-
viour makes the current study on BzCh/BuChE relatively
unique.
We used two methods to analyze the complex hysteretic
behaviour of BuChE with BzCh as substrate: numerical
approximation and simulation.
Numerical approximation. This method was used to
determine parameters, e.g. s, of the approach to steady-
state and of the damped oscillations (see Appendix 2). For
example, Fig. 2 shows damped oscillations in the approach
to the steady-state for D70G. The frequency of the first
oscillation m
1
(m ¼ x/2p; x is the pulsation factor 2p/T)was
0.012 s
)1
for wild-type and 0.019 s
)1
for D70G ([BzCh] ¼
25 l
M
,in67m
M
phosphate, pH 6.0). Interestingly, oscilla-
tions were maximal at % 20–25 l
M
BzCh for both wild-type
and D70G. This concentration is approximately equal to
K
m
for D70G and eightfold higher than K
m
for wild-type.
The frequency and amplitude of the oscillations decreased
with increasing substrate concentration.
Thedifference(d) in progress curves between steady-state
and pre-steady-state for the formation of product P
1
(d[P
1
])
is described by Eqn (15) in Appendix 2. A more convenient
form of this equation can be made by removing the
constants A, b, K¢ and u:
d½P
1
¼ðe
Àt=a
1
À ue
Àt=a
2
Þcosp½t=ðc À t=dÞ ð5Þ
This facilitates the analysis of the different contributions
to this equation. As shown in Fig. 2, the envelopes of the
curve can be fitted by the exponential term ± e
)t/a
1
.This
term was often sufficient to fit the envelope during the
0–400 s preceding establishment of the steady-state and to
estimate induction times at different substrate concentra-
tions (Fig. 3A). The second contribution deals with later
times, where the intensity decreases become smoother,
and a partial corrective term, ue
)t/a
2
(0<u<1), is
required. The significance of this second term remains
puzzling. The third contribution cosp(t/c) is related to the
periodic oscillation in lineshape. However, the overall
lengthening of the oscillation period (T) with time
required the introduction of a time-dependent factor
(– t/d). The possible significance of the increase in T is
discussed in the next sections.
Simulation of kinetic models describing damped oscilla-
tions. The transient kinetics for hysteretic enzymes are
usually described by models using the rapid equilibrium
supposition for enzyme–substrate interaction, with slow
conformational transitions between the other enzyme
forms. These kinetic models predict a simple exponential
time-dependence for the transient approach to steady-state.
Moreover, these models usually assume that substrate in
solution exists as a single species, at approximately constant
concentration.
The oscillations that overlay the exponential time course
for the hysteresis of BzCh reacting with wild-type BuChE
induced us to modify the latter assumption. This is because
a nonlinearizing factor must appear in the model for
oscillations to be observed, and one method of introducing
such nonlinearity is to control the rate at which substrate
enters the reaction [51]. Assubstrate molecules in solution
can be expected to exist in a variety of conformations, only
one of which is suitable for binding to a given enzyme, we
reasoned that a slow transition from an unsuitable confor-
mation to a suitable one would constitute slow introduction
of the substrate into the reaction. Therefore, we modified
Scheme 4 to include two different states of the substrate,
SandS¢, as shown in Scheme 5. This model is similar to the
models proposed by Roussel [51], but differs with regard to
the openness conditions for substrate and product, and the
presence of two enzyme forms that bind substrate.
Substrate form S¢ is assumed to be a minor fraction of the
total substrate concentration in the bulk solution. The rate
of its appearance in the reaction is controlled by the rate
constant k
s
.
We solved the kinetic equations, corresponding to
Scheme 5. The following differential equations correspond
to the four independent concentration variables:
d½E
dt
¼Àk
0
½Eþk
À0
½E
0
Àk
1
½S
0
½Eþk
À1
½ES
0
d½E
0
dt
¼ k
0
½EÀk
À0
½E
0
Àk
0
1
[S
0
½E
0
þðk
cat
þk
0
À1
Þ½E
0
S
0
d½E
0
S
0
dt
¼ k
0
1
[S
0
½E
0
Àðk
cat
þk
0
À1
Þ½E
0
S
0
Àk
Àes
[E
0
S
0
þk
es
½ES
0
d½S
0
dt
¼Àk
1
½S
0
½Eþk
0
À1
½ES
0
Àk
0
1
[S
0
½E
0
þk
0
À1
[E
0
S
0
þk
s
[SÀk
Às
½S
0
ð6Þ
Eqns (6) were solved with additional equality for the total
enzyme concentration
E
tot
¼½E
0
þ½E
0
S
0
þ½Eþ½ES
0
ð7Þ
Eqns (6) and (7) were variously normalized to have fewer
parameters by dividing all concentrations by E
tot
.Inthe
Scheme 5.
228 P. Masson et al.(Eur. J. Biochem. 271) Ó FEBS 2003
normalized equations, all parameters are the same as in Eqn
(6) but k
1
and k¢
1
are changed to k
1
E
tot
and k¢
1
E
tot
,
correspondingly. Other normalizations were obtained by
dividing concentrations of all enzyme forms by E
tot
and all
substrate forms by [S]. Concentration [S] is assumed to be
in excess and therefore to remain constant. All relative
concentrations were calculated with the same equations.
Normalization by dividing all substrate forms by [S] was
used for estimation of k
s
and k
)s
; normalization by dividing
all concentrations by E
tot
wasusedtoinvestigatethe
dependence of oscillations, i.e. [E¢S¢], on substrate concen-
tration. The concentration of E¢S¢ is proportional to the
reaction rate.
Figure 4 shows the dependence of [E¢S¢]/E
tot
on time,
calculated according to Eqns (6) and (7). The number of
periods observed is enhanced, if we diminish the rates of
enzyme isomerization. The simulation procedure was per-
formed by computer solution of the differential Eqn (6) with
parameter values taken as close as possible to the experi-
mentally found values. The calculations yield three to four
periods ofdamped oscillations similar to the experimental
observation (Figs 1 and 2). During the simulation we
constrained the parameter values using the principle of
detailed balance, i.e. the products of the parameters in both
directions of enzyme isomerization cycle are equal:
k
0
k
0
1
k
Àes
k
À1
¼ k
À0
k
1
k
es
k
0
À1
ð8Þ
Curve a in Fig. 4 shows a simulation using concentrations
and kinetic constants similar to experimental values. Curves
b and c in Fig. 4 show the effect on [E¢S¢]/E
tot
of increasing
k
)s
to 0.01 s
)1
and 0.05 s
)1
, respectively, while keeping the
other parameters constant. It is noteworthy that oscillations
tend to vanish as k
)s
is increased. Analysis of the pre-steady-
state kinetics showed that damping increased with substrate
concentration. Thus, simulations were carried out at various
substrate concentrations. Curves a, b, c and d in Fig. 5 show
the dependence of the oscillatorybehaviour on substrate
concentration, using k
)s
¼ 0.006 s
)1
and variable k
s
.Itcan
be seen that at high [S], or high k
s
as equivalent (as seen in
the non-normalized equation), there is a smooth lag, but
damping is so high that there are no oscillations.
The oscillation period changes slightly over the time
course (Figs 1A, B and 2) if we allow the substrate con-
centration [S] to change with time. It should be mentioned
that various types of period changes could be obtained, if we
introduced additional substrate states with different local
concentrations into Scheme 5.
Substrate transition S
!
S¢
As predicted by Strickland and Ackerman [48], any cyclic
reaction, e.g. enzymatic turnover, involving two or more
enzyme–substrate complexes as time-dependent variables
can theoretically exhibit damped oscillations if the kinetic
constants and substrate concentration satisfy certain condi-
tions. However, in a linear reaction system, e.g. a hysteretic
approach to steady-state such as Scheme 5, oscillations
damp out very rapidly and cannot be observed. Yet,
damped oscillations can be seen in the simplest hysteretic
mechanism if an additional time-dependent variable is
branched in the reaction path (S
!
S¢ in Scheme 5). Such
a situation was theoretically predicted [51]. Simulations of
Scheme 5 showed that the damping and period of the
oscillations can be modulated by tuning the different rate
constants of the equilibria. Oscillations are favoured if
enzyme–substrate complex formation is irreversible. The
existence of several enzyme–substrate complexes formed
along the descent ofsubstrate to its final position on the
active site [26] would thus favour oscillations. The principal
requirements for oscillations are that k
0
must be sufficiently
slow, that k
s
[S] be less than the turnover capacity k
cat
[E] [51],
and that k
)s
be less than 0.05 s
)1
. The existence of multiple
equilibria between substrate states S
!
S¢
!
S¢¢
!
…
can change (decrease or increase) the period of damped
oscillations with time.
To simulate the observed oscillations in the hysteretic
portion of the turnover time course, we introduced a model
that contained two populations of substrate, where the form
of the substrate capable of binding to the enzyme was
produced at a low rate. However, a physical description
of the nature of the transition between populations was
puzzling. Earlier work using molecular mechanics and
spectroscopic methods had shown that acetylcholine is
Fig. 4. Simulation ofdamped oscillations in the approach to steady-state
for hydrolysis of BzCh by human BuChE. Reaction rate (proportional
to [E¢S¢]/E
tot
) dependence on time calculated according to Scheme 5
andEqn(6)withparametervaluessetas[E]
0
/E
tot
¼ 0.98, [E¢]
0
/
E
tot
¼ 0.02, [S¢]
0
/E
tot
¼ 30, [S]
0
/[S¢] ¼ 1 and the following kinetic
constants: k
0
¼ 0.0015 s
)1
; k
)0
¼ 0.145 s
)1
; k
es
¼ 0.006 s
)1
; k
)es
¼
0.005 s
)1
; k
1
¼ 0.4 s
)1
; k
)1
¼ 140 s
)1
;k¢
1
E
tot
¼ 40 s
)1
;k¢
)1
¼
120 s
)1
: k
cat
¼ 250 s
)1
, k
s
[S]/E
tot
¼ 50 s
)1
, E
tot
¼ 30 n
M
. Parameter
k
)s
varied: a, k
)s
¼ 0.002 s
)1
;b,0.01s
)1
;c,0.05s
)1
.
Fig. 5. Dependence ofdamped oscillations on substrate concentration.
Parameters are as in Fig. 4 with fixed k
)s
¼ 0.006 s
)1
and variable
k
s
¼ 160, 80, 40, 20 s
)1
in curves a, b, c, and d, respectively.
Ó FEBS 2003 Oscillations in butyrylcholinesterase hysteresis (Eur. J. Biochem. 271) 229
[...]... thioester: synthesis, kinetics of base hydrolysis, and application to the assay of cocaine esterases Chem Res Toxicol 11, 895–901 Kalow, W (1964) The influence of pH on the hydrolysis ofbenzoylcholine by pseudocholinesterase of human plasma Can J Physiol Pharmacol 42, 161–168 Krupka, R.M (1966) Chemical structure and function of the active center of acetylcholinesterase Biochemistry 6, 1988– 1997 Froede,... be described by a box scheme such as Scheme 5 The complex oscillatoryhystereticbehaviour observed with BzCh can be reproduced by introducing a branched equilibrium involving substrate into the hysteretic model This substrate equilibrium has the effect of controlling the rate at which substrate converts between various unproductive forms and the specific form capable of binding to the enzyme Several... Bolger, M.B & Taylor, P (1979) Kinetics of association between bisquaternary ammonium ligands and acetylcholinesterase Evidence for two conformational states of the enzyme from stopped-flow measurements of fluorescence Biochemistry 18, 3622–3629 Masson, P., Froment, M-T., Nachon, F., Lockridge, O & Schopfer, L.M (2004) Hysteretic behavior of butyrylcholinesterase: kinetic curiosity or catalytically and... Yakovlev, V.A (1976) The theoretical analysis of kinetic behaviourofhysteretic allosteric enzymes J Theor Biol 60, 247–269 Masson, P & Laurentie, M (1988) Stability of butyrylcholinesterase: thermal inactivation in water and deuterium oxide Biochim Biophys Acta 957, 111–121 Masson, P., Adkins, S., Gouet, P & Lockridge, O (1993) Recombinant human butyrylcholinesterase G390V, the fluoride-2 variant, expressed... (2003) Unmasking tandem site interaction in human Ó FEBS 2003 232 P Masson et al (Eur J Biochem 271) 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 4 26 27 28 29 30 31 acetylcholinesterase Substrate activation with a cationic acetanilide substrate Biochemistry 42, 5438–5452 Levitsky, V., Xie, W., Froment, M.-T., Lockridge, O & Masson, P (1999) Polyol-induced activation by excess substrateof the D70G butyrylcholinesterase. .. the result of a combination of steric constraints and impaired electronic effects of the ethereal sulfur atom on stabilization of the acylation transition state The enzyme displays a hysteretic approach to steady-state with BzCh but not with BzSCh This behavioral difference may be related to binding of BzSCh to both enzyme states, E and E¢ The presence or absence of hysteresis in BuChE has been found... nature of the substrate, the concentration of the substrate, the structure of the enzyme, and the composition of the medium Although numerous studies have demonstrated the conformational plasticity of BuChE [45,60] and AChE [61], the molecular mechanisms underlying this plasticity, and therefore hysteresis are not yet known The differences between the E and E¢ enzyme states appeared to be the result of. .. Hormonal regulation of 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-biphosphatase: kinetic models FEBS Lett 217, 212–215 Xie, W., Varkey-Altamirano, C., Bartels, C.F., Speirs, R.J., Cashman, J.R & Lockridge, O (1999) An improved cocaine 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 hydrolase: the A328Y mutant of human butyrylcholinesterase is 4-fold more efficient Mol Pharmacol 55, 83–91 Cashman, J.R.,... general conformational diversity of proteins Indeed, the Ônew viewÕ of proteins assumes that they exist in an equilibrium between pre-existing conformers of discrete and similar free energy, and that binding of ligands shifts the equilibrium in favour of the functional conformer [62] If this view is correct, the hystereticbehaviourof enzymes must be more common than has so far been reported The steady-state... P.-L (1999) Hydration changes during the aging of phosphorylated human butyrylcholinesterase: importance of residues aspartate-70 and glutamate-197 in the water network as probed by hydrostatic and osmotic pressures Biochem J 343, 361–369 Masson, P & Balny, C (1990) Conformational plasticity ofbutyrylcholinesteraseas revealed by high pressure experiments Biochim Biophys Acta 1041, 223–231 Hess, B & . Damped oscillatory hysteretic behaviour of butyrylcholinesterase
with benzoylcholine as substrate
Patrick Masson
1
, Boris N. Goldstein
2
,. induction
time, s, with BzCh as substrate was much shorter than with
NMIA [16]. Moreover, with NMIA and BuSCh, it was
found that s increased with decreasing pH [25].