Contribution of the FAD binding site residue tyrosine 308 to the stability of pea ferredoxin-NADP+ oxidoreductase.

The contribution made by tyrosine 308 to the stability of pea ferredoxin-NADP+ reductase was investigated using site-directed mutagenesis. The phenol side chain of the invariant carboxyl terminal tyrosine is stacked coplanar to the isoalloxazine moiety of the FAD cofactor. Fluorescence measurements indicate that this interaction plays a significant role in FAD fluorescent quenching by the reductase apoprotein. Replacement of the tyrosine by tryptophan or phenylalanine caused only a minor increase in the quantum yields of bound FAD, whereas nonaromatic substitutions to serine and glycine resulted in a large fluorescent rise. Results from NADP+ titration experiments support a recent hypothesis [Karplus et al. (1991) Science 251, 60-66], suggesting that the phenol ring of Tyr 308 may fill the nicotinamide binding pocket in the absence of the nucleotide. The stability of the site-directed mutants, judged by thermal- and urea-induced denaturation studies, was lowered with respect to the wild-type enzyme. FNR variants harboring nonaromatic substitutions displayed more extensive destabilization. The decrease in thermodynamic stability correlated with the impairment of catalytic activities [Orellano et al. (1993) J. Biol. Chem 268, 19267-19273]. The results indicate that the presence of the electron-rich aromatic side chain adjacent to the isoalloxazine ring is essential for maximum stabilization of the FNR holoenzyme, resulting in a flavin conformation which optimizes electron flow between the prosthetic group and its redox partners.