Peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans-isomerase A1 (Pin1) is a target for modification by lipid electrophiles

Oxidation of membrane phospholipids is associated with inflammation, neurodegenerative disease, and cancer. Oxyradical damage to phospholipids results in the production of reactive aldehydes that adduct proteins and modulate their function. 4-Hydroxynonenal (HNE), a common product of oxidative damage to lipids, adducts proteins at exposed Cys, His, or Lys residues. Here, we demonstrate that peptidyl-prolyl cis/trans-isomerase A1 (Pin1), an enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of the peptide bond of pSer/pThr-Pro moieties in signaling proteins from cis to trans, is highly susceptible to HNE modification. Incubation of purified Pin1 with HNE followed by MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry resulted in detection of Michael adducts at the active site residues His-157 and Cys-113. Time and concentration dependencies indicate that Cys-113 is the primary site of HNE modification. Pin1 was adducted in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells treated with 8-alkynyl-HNE as judged by click chemistry conjugation with biotin followed by streptavidin-based pulldown and Western blotting with anti-Pin1 antibody. Furthermore, orbitrap MS data support the adduction of Cys-113 in the Pin1 active site upon HNE treatment of MDA-MB-231 cells. siRNA knockdown of Pin1 in MDA-MB-231 cells partially protected the cells from HNE-induced toxicity. Recent studies indicate that Pin1 is an important molecular target for the chemopreventive effects of green tea polyphenols. The present study establishes that it is also a target for electrophilic modification by products of lipid peroxidation.