Concentration-dependent association of delta5-3-ketosteroid isomerase of Pseudomonas testosteroni

Gel chromatography and ultracentrifugation studies show that delta5-3-ketosteroid isomerase of Pseudomonas testosteroni a dimer with a molecular weight of 26,800 at concentrations below 1 mg per ml, undergoes reversible, concentration-dependent association at higher enzyme concentrations. In the concentration range between 0.04 and 15.6 mg per ml, apparent molecular radii of 23 A to 36 A and molecular weights of 26,000 to 69,000 were observed. The latter value represents the weight average molecular weight of two or more ploymerization species in rapid equilibrium, rather than a discrete polymeric form of the enzyme. The isomerase dimer has been found to be unusually stable to dissociation upon dilution, even at concentrations in the nanogram per ml range. Evidence is presented which suggests that the enzyme is present as a dimer in P. testosteroni cells and that this is a catalytically active species. The isomerase monomer has been obtained and its molecular weight studied by gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. A new determination of the extinction coefficient of the isomerase gives the value of 0.336 for the absorbance at 280 nm in a 1-cm light path of a solution containing 1 mg of the isomerase per ml.