Folding of aspartokinase-homoserine dehydrogenase I is dominated by tertiary interactions

In the presence of guanidine hydrochloride concentrations above 2 M, aspartokinase-homoserine dehydrogenase I remains sufficiently soluble so that the fluorescence and circular dichroism of the protein can be measured. Both parameters show that, up to 3 M guanidine hydrochloride, the protein exists in a stable folded state which possesses a large amount of secondary structure and buried tryptophan residues. This intermediate species is probably monomeric; it is reversibly unfolded by guanidine hydrochloride concentrations between 3 and 4 M. This folded species is formed rapidly from unfolded protein when the denaturant is diluted out, and this rapid folding step precedes all the reactivation steps described previously. The existence of a stable monomeric and folded intermediate indicates that the tertiary interactions have a major contribution to the stability of the native structure of aspartokinase-homoserine dehydrogenase I. Similar measurements were performed on two complementary nonoverlapping fragments: a kinase fragment corresponding to the N-terminal third and a dehydrogenase fragment corresponding to the C-terminal two-thirds of the polypeptide chain. Both fragments exist in a stable folded state up to 2.5 M guanidine hydrochloride. Both fragments show cooperative unfolding transitions between 2.5 and 4 M denaturant. The stability of the folded state of a given region is about the same in an isolated fragment and in the entire chain of aspartokinase-homoserine dehydrogenase I: indeed, an equimolar mixture of these two fragments and the intact chain would give about the same results. This indicates that folding of the kinase and dehydrogenase regions occurs independent ly with a single subunit of the entire protein.