Hydrogen exchane at the beta-carbon of amino acids during transamination

The hydrogen exchange at the Beta-carbon of L-alanine, L-glutamate and L-asparate with water has been examined during transamination catalyzed by glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and by glutamic-pyruvic transaminase. A significant hydrogen exchange at the Beta-carbon has been demonstrated during incubation of L-[3-3H]alanine + glutamic-pyruvic transaminase, L-[3-3H]alanine + alpha-oxo-glutarate + glutamic-pyruvic transaminase, L-[3-3H]glutamate + glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase, L-[3-3H]glutamate + oxaloacetate +glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase, and L-[3-3H]glutamate + pyruvate + glutamic-pyruvic transaminase as shown by the appearance of 3H2O. No hydrogen exchange at the Beta-carbon of L-glutamate occurred during incubation of L-[3-3H]-glutamate with glutamic-pyruvic transaminase alone. The hydrogen exchaned at the Beta-carbon of L-glutamate coincides with transamination as demonstrated by nuclear magnetic resonance studies of 2H2O-L-glutamate exchange during transamination by glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase. No hydrogen exchange at the Beta-carbon occurred during transamination of L-aspartate by glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase as shown by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance simulation studies. The results are discussed with special reference to the different equilibria between the pyridoxal form and the pyridoxamine form of glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and of glutamic-pyruvic transaminase.