Isolation and characterisation of 5'-fluorodeoxyadenosine synthase, a fluorination enzyme from Streptomyces cattleya

5'-fluorodeoxyadenosine synthase, a C-F bond-forming enzyme, has been purified from Streptomyces cattleya. The enzyme mediates a reaction between inorganic fluoride and S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) to generate 5'-fluoro-5'-deoxyadenosine. The molecular weight of the monomeric protein is shown to be 32.2 kDa by electrospray mass spectrometry. The kinetic parameters for SAM (K(m) 0.42 mM, V(max) 1.28 U/mg) and fluoride ion (K(m) 8.56 mM, V(max) 1.59 U/mg) have been evaluated. Both S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine (SAH) and sinefungin were explored as inhibitors of the enzyme. SAH emerged as a potent competitive inhibitor (K(i) 29 microM) whereas sinefungin was only weakly inhibitory.