Inactivation of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase and other acyl- CoA-utilizing enzymes by 3-oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA

3-Oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA has been produced by oxidation of S-3-oxobutyl- CoA, the thioether analog of acetoacetyl-CoA. Avian hydroxymethylglutaryl- CoA (HMG-CoA) synthase is inactivated by oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA in a time- dependent fashion. Protection against inactivation is afforded by the substrate, acetyl-CoA, suggesting that inactivation involves modification of the enzyme's active site. Pretreatment of HMG-CoA synthase with the inactivator blocks the enzyme's ability to form Michaelis and acetyl-S- enzyme intermediates, supporting the hypothesis that modification is active- site directed. Incubation of enzyme with oxobutylsulfoxyl-[³²P]CoA followed by precipitation with trichloroacetic acid indicates that inactivation correlates with stoichiometric formation of a covalent adduct between enzyme and a portion of the inactivator that includes the CoA nucleotide. The observation of reagent partitioning suggests that HMG-CoA synthase catalyzes conversion of oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA into a reactive species that modifies the protein. Treatment of inactivated enzyme with DTT or other mercaptans restores enzyme activity and reverses the covalent modification with release of CoASH. Oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA inactivates β-ketothiolase and HMG-CoA lyase in a process that is also reversed by DTT. These three enzymes all contain active site cysteines, suggesting that inactivation results from disulfide formation between a cysteine and the CoA moiety of the inhibitor. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that enzymatic cleavage of oxobutylsulfoxyl-CoA results in the transient formation of a sulfenic acid derivative of CoA which subsequently reacts to form a stable disulfide linkage to protein.