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catalytic domains and the amino acid used in the catalytic reaction,
PTPs are subdivided into four evolutionarily distinct classes: I, II, III
(cysteine-based PTPs) and IV (aspartate-based PTPs). Despite the
three-dimensional structures of the catalytic domains of the cys-
teine-based PTPs are strikingly similar, they possess different
topologies and their regulatory domains vary significantly.10
In spite of relatively limited sequence similarity, the most sig-
nificant feature of the protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP) super-
family is the conservation of the signature motif CX5R, which
forms the phosphate-binding loop in the active site (known as
the P-loop). This structurally conserved arrangement ensures an
identical catalytic mechanism where the cysteine and the con-
served arginine residues at catalytic site remain in close proximity
to hold the phosphate group of the substrate in a position for
nucleophilic attack by the cysteine thiol nucleophile.11
Low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatases (LMW-
PTP, EC 3.1.3.48) are a family of enzymes expressed in different tis-
sues with molecular weight up to 18 kDa. They are single-domain
enzymes and have been identified in a wide variety of organisms
including rat, human, bovine, bacteria, yeast and plants.12–19 In
humans, Class II cysteine-based PTPs are represented by the mem-
bers of LMW-PTP family (also known as acid phosphatase locus 1,
ACP1), which are widely expressed with no particular tissue-
specific expression. Four different human LMW-PTP messenger
RNA, derived by alternative splicing of a single transcript, have
been characterized. Two of them correspond to the classical active
35), in which water molecules are observed in the active site
pocket and a molecule of 1-naphtylacetic acid (NLA) is bound to
a surface region of the protein.
In the present study, a series of compounds was characterized,
and three new crystal structures of the isoform A (IF1) of LMW-PTP
were determined. These structures comprise one apo LMW-PTP
structure and two complexes with small molecule—one with the
hydrolysis product of the protease inhibitor PMSF (phenylmethyl-
sulfonyl fluoride) and other in complex with the PMSF analogous
benzylphosphonic acid. In both cases, the structures revealed that
these compounds bind non-covalently to the LMW-PTP catalytic
site, in a very similar fashion as predicted for the natural pTyr sub-
strate, therefore, acting as pTyr mimetic. Further, both in the apo
structure and in the complex with benzylphosphonic acid, an
unexpected crystallographic site diverse from the known active
site is occupied by amino acid residues from the construct expres-
sion tag.
2. Results and discussion
2.1. Sulfonic and phosphonic acids as LMW-PTP inhibitors
In the course of the first attempts to crystallize LMW-PTP in our
laboratory, we obtained the crystal structure of the enzyme in
complex with the hydrolysis product of the protease inhibitor
PMSF present in the protein lysis buffer. In an aqueous environ-
ment, PMSF can be easily hydrolyzed and the fluorine replaced
by a hydroxyl group, yielding benzylsulfonic acid, from now on
referred to as PMS (Fig. 1, compound 1). An additional structure
was also available in the literature, in which the active site was
occupied by a molecule of 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid
(MES buffering agent; PDB ID 5PNT3). The presence of a sulfonic
acid moiety both in PMS and MES molecules, which can mimic,
at some extent, the phosphate group of natural substrates, gave
us an initial clue about LMW-PTP and prompted us to design the
inhibitors based on phosphonic acids shown in Figure 1, com-
pounds 2 to 7.
isoforms
1 (IF1, PTPfast/isoform F or HCPTPA) and 2 (IF2,
PTPslow/isoform S or HCPTPB).20 Both isoforms are single polypep-
tide chains of equal length which display difference only in a short
sequence segment that corresponds to amino acid residues 40–73
in the mature protein. However, these isoforms present divergence
in their physical chemistry properties, especially with respect to
kinetics and consequently physiological functions.20–23
In recent years, PTPs have gained considerable attention as
important drug targets.24 However, despite potential inhibitors
have been designed, there are challenges in developing successful
LMW-PTP inhibitors. Firstly, the low bioavailability and it is very
common the observation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) produc-
tion by reported PTPase inhibitors, with a consequent PTP inhibi-
tion occurring by indirect and nonspecific ways.4,6,10,12,25–27 Since
LMW-PTP is proposed as a pharmacological target for cancer
chemotherapy,9,28 it is important to better understand the mecha-
nism and mode of binding of its inhibitors.
LMW-PTP (wild type or mutated) crystallographic structures of
a wide range of organisms were reported, most of them presenting
ions or other chemical substances contained in the sample buffer,
or the synthetic substrate p-nitrophenyl phosphate (pNPP).3,13,29–34
In the case of isoform A human enzyme, structural data are scarce,
with two crystal structures of isoform A reported to date, one in
which a molecule of 2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid (MES
buffering agent) was observed in the active site (PDB ID 5PNT3)
and another deposited under the PDB ID 3N8I (unpublished Ref.
Phosphonic acids are a good choice for the design of phos-
phatase inhibitors since the replacement of the phenolic oxygen-
phosphorus bond in the natural substrate by a non-hydrolysable
carbon-phosphorus bond in the phosphonic acid do not alter sig-
nificantly the geometry or the electric charge distribution, afford-
ing appreciable inhibitory activities against these enzymes.36–38
Benzylphosphonic acid (Fig. 1, compound 2), in particular, was pre-
viously described as a weak inhibitor of phosphatases.36,37,39–41
Zhang and Van Etten reported that it is a competitive inhibitor of
bovine heart acid phosphatase, presenting an apparent inhibition
constant of 4.6 mM.42 Also, it inhibits a human placental alkaline
phosphatase (PLAP) and a bovine intestinal 50-nucleotide phospho-
diesterase with inhibition constants of 0.58 mM36 and 1.4 mM43
,
respectively. Benzylphosphonic acid has also been reported as an
inhibitor of Yersinia protein tyrosine phosphatase (YopH) and
Figure 1. Chemical structure of benzylsulfonic acid (PMS; 1) and the series of small molecules 2–7 designed and synthesized to probe phosphatase inhibitor recognition:
benzylphosphonic acid (2), 4-nitrobenzylphosphonic acid (3), 4-(chloromethyl)benzylphosphonic acid (4), diethyl 4-(chloromethyl)benzylphosphonate (5), diethyl
benzylphosphonate (6), diethyl (4-nitrobenzyl)phosphonate (7).