Regulatory properties of pigeon heart muscle AMP deaminase

The kinetic and regulatory properties of purified pigeon heart muscle AMP deaminase were investigated. In the presence of 100 mM potassium chloride, the enzyme exhibited a slightly sigmoidal type of kinetics. Addition of ATP to the incubation medium changed the reaction rate versus substrate concentration plot into a hyperbolic one, and caused a decrease of the half-saturation constant (S0.5). ADP presence caused the change of both the S0.5 and Vmax parameters, exerting either an activating or inhibitory effect, depending upon the substrate concentration. Orthophosphate inhibited the enzyme at all substrate concentrations, increasing the value of the S0.5 parameter. In the presence of ATP, ADP and orthophosphate, added to the incubation medium at approximately physiological concentrations, pigeon heart AMP deaminase still seems to preserve its activated form. Active long chain fatty acids clearly inhibited enzyme activity even at micromolar concentrations. Interpretation of the kinetic data in terms of the allosteric theory of Monod et al. (1965, J. Mol. Biol. 12, 88-118) indicates that heart muscle AMP deaminase may operate as a functionally active dimer.