Role of metal cations and oxyanions in the regulation of protein arginine phosphatase activity of YwlE from Bacillus subtilis

Abstract

Protein arginine phosphorylation (pArg) is a relatively novel posttranslational modification. Protein arginine phosphatase YwlE negatively regulates arginine phosphorylation and consequently induces the expression of stress-response genes that are crucial for bacterial stress tolerance and pathogenic homolog Staphylococcus aureus virulence. However, little is known about the factors that affect the enzymatic activity of YwlE with the exception of the effect of oxidative stress. Herein, based on the hydrolysis of the chromogenic substrate p-nitrophenyl phosphate (pNPP) by YwlE, we investigate the role of metal cations and oxyanions in the regulation of YwlE activity. Interestingly, among the various cations that we tested, Ca²⁺ activates YwlE, while other cations, including Ag⁺, Co²⁺, Cd²⁺, and Zn²⁺, are inhibitory. Furthermore, as chemical analogues of phosphate, oxyanions play multiple roles in phosphatase activity. The regulatory switch Cys within the catalytic site regulates YwlE activity. Specifically, the thiol of this Cys could be alkylated by IAM (iodoacetamide) or oxidized by H₂O₂, resulting in enzymatic inhibition. Conversely, reducing reagents, such as DTT (dithiothreitol), β-me (β-mercaptoethanol), and TCEP (tris(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine) enhance YwlE activity. Additionally, as a stable analogue to pArg, pAIE binds to YwlE with a K_d of 149.1 nM and a binding stoichiometry n of 1.2 and inhibits YwlE with an IC₅₀ of 316.3 ± 12.73 μM. The inhibition and activation of YwlE may have broad implications for the physiology, pharmacology and toxicology of metal cations and oxyanions.

Keywords: Metal cations; Oxyanions; Protein arginine phosphorylation; YwlE; pAIE.