Optimized chromatographic and bioluminescent methods for inorganic pyrophosphate based on its conversion to ATP by firefly luciferase.

Two new methods for inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi) quantification are described. They are based on the enzymatic conversion of PPi into ATP by firefly luciferase (Luc, E.C. 1.13.12.7) in the presence of dehydroluciferyl-adenylate (L-AMP) followed by the determination of ATP by one of two different procedures, either UV-monitored (260 nm) ion-pair-HPLC (IP-HPLC) (method A) or luciferase-dependent bioluminescence in the presence of its substrate, firefly luciferin (D-LH(2)) (method B). These methods were subjected to optimization using experimental design methodologies to obtain optimum values for the selected factors: method A-incubation time (t(inc)=15 min), inactivation time of the enzyme (t(inac)=2 min), pH of the reaction mixture (pH 7.50) and the concentrations of L-AMP ([L-AMP]=40 microM) and luciferase ([Luc]=0.1 microM); method B-concentrations of L-AMP ([L-AMP]=2 microM), luciferase ([Luc]=50 nM) and luciferin ([LH(2)]=30 microM). Method A has a linear response over the range of 0.1-20 microM of PPi, with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.5 microM and a limit of quantitation (LOQ) of 1.8 microM. Precision, expressed as relative standard deviation (R.S.D.), is 7.4% at 1 microM PPi and 5.9% at 8 microM PPi. Method B has a linear response over the range of 0.75-6.0 microM of PPi, with LOD and LOQ of 0.624 and 2.23 microM, respectively, and a R.S.D. of 5.1% at 2.5 microM PPi and 4.9% at 5 microM PPi. Under optimized conditions sensitive and robust methods can be obtained for the analysis of PPi impurities in commercial nucleotides and tripolyphosphate (P(3)).

Pyrophosphate and tripolyphosphate affect firefly luciferase luminescence because they act as substrates and not as allosteric effectors.

The activating and stabilizing effects of inorganic pyrophosphate, tripolyphosphate and nucleoside triphosphates on firefly luciferase bioluminescence were studied. The results obtained show that those effects are a consequence of the luciferase-catalyzed splitting of dehydroluciferyl-adenylate, a powerful inhibitor formed as a side product in the course of the bioluminescence reaction. Inorganic pyrophosphate, tripolyphosphate, CTP and UTP antagonize the inhibitory effect of dehydroluciferyl-adenylate because they react with it giving rise to products that are, at least, less powerful inhibitors. Moreover, we demonstrate that the antagonizing effects depended on the rate of the splitting reactions being higher in the cases of inorganic pyrophosphate and tripolyphosphate and lower in the cases of CTP and UTP. In the case of inorganic pyrophosphate, the correlation between the rate of dehydroluciferyl-adenylate pyrophosphorolysis and the activating effect on bioluminescence only occurs for low concentrations because inorganic pyrophosphate is, simultaneously, an inhibitor of the bioluminescence reaction. Our results demonstrate that previous reports concerning the activating effects of several nucleotides (including some that do not react with dehydroluciferyl-adenylate) on bioluminescence were caused by the presence of inorganic pyrophosphate contamination in the preparations used.