Dual activity at an enzyme active site: 3 beta,20 alpha-hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase from fetal blood

An enzyme exhibiting both 3 beta and 20 alpha steroid reductase activities from calf fetal red blood cells was purified to homogeneity as judged by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. 3 beta,20 alpha-Hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase (3 beta,20 alpha-HSD) was found to be a single-stranded polypeptide with a molecular weight of 55 000 +/- 1 000 by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Sephadex G-100 chromatography. The amino acid composition of 3 beta,20 alpha-HSD was obtained. 17 beta-Hydroxy-5 alpha-androstan-3-one and progesterone were substrates for the enzyme's 3 beta and 20 alpha reductase activities, respectively, which required NADPH for both 3 beta [Km = 9.4 microM; Vmax = 2.4 nmol min-1 (nmol of enzyme)-1] and 20 alpha [Km = 2.5 microM; Vmax = 2.4 nmol min-1 (nmol of enzyme)-1] reductase activities. 17 beta-Hydroxy-5 alpha-androstan-3-one competitively inhibited (Ki = 35 microM) 20 alpha reduction of progesterone. Incubating 3 beta,20 alpha-HSD with 19-nortestosterone 17-bromoacetate at pH 7.0 and 25 degrees C caused simultaneous, time-dependent, and irreversible losses of 3 beta and 20 alpha activities by a first-order kinetic process. Similar incubations with either of the 3 beta or 20 alpha substrates present at concentrations equal to their respective Km values practically doubled the time required for loss of 3 beta and 20 alpha enzyme activities. These data lead us to conclude that the active site of 3 beta,20 alpha-HSD contains 3 beta and 20 alpha dual activity.