Use of 5'-γ-ferrocenyl adenosine triphosphate (Fc-ATP) bioconjugates having poly(ethylene glycol) spacers in kinase-catalyzed phosphorylations

Bioconjug Chem. 2011 Aug 17;22(8):1663-72. doi: 10.1021/bc200229y. Epub 2011 Jul 8.

Abstract

The 5'-γ-ferrocenyl adenosine triphosphate (Fc-ATP) bioconjugates (3 and 4), containing the poly(ethylene glycol) spacers, were synthesized and compared to a hydrophobic analogue as co-substrates for the following protein kinases: sarcoma related kinase (Src), cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK), casein kinase II (CK2α), and protein kinase A (PKA). Electrochemical kinase assays indicate that the hydrophobic Fc-ATP analogue was an optimal co-substrate for which K(M) values were determined to be in the 30-200 μM range, depending on the particular protein kinase. The luminescence kinase assay demonstrated the kinase utility for all Fc-ATP conjugates, which is in line with the electrochemical data. Moreover, Fc-ATP bioconjugates exhibit competitive behavior with respect to ATP. Relatively poor performance of the polar Fc-ATP bioconjugates as co-substrates for protein kinases was presumably due to the additional H-bonding and electrostatic interactions of the poly(ethylene glycol) linkers of Fc-ATP with the kinase catalytic site and the target peptides. Phosphorylation of the full-length protein, His-tagged pro-caspase-3, was demonstrated through Fc-phosphoamide transfer to the Ser residues of the surface-bound protein by electrochemical means. These results suggest that electrochemical detection of the peptide and protein Fc-phosphorylation via tailored Fc-ATP co-substrates may be useful for probing protein-protein interactions.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adenosine Triphosphate / analogs & derivatives*
  • Caspase 3
  • Catalysis
  • Ferrous Compounds*
  • Hydrogen Bonding
  • Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions
  • Metallocenes
  • Molecular Probe Techniques*
  • Phosphorylation
  • Polyethylene Glycols
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Kinases / metabolism*
  • Substrate Specificity

Substances

  • Ferrous Compounds
  • Metallocenes
  • Polyethylene Glycols
  • Adenosine Triphosphate
  • Protein Kinases
  • Caspase 3
  • ferrocene