Crystal Structure of Cytoplasmic 5'-Methylthioadenosine/-Adenosylhomocysteine Nucleosidase.

5'-Methylthioadenosine/-adenosyl-l-homocysteine (MTA/SAH) nucleosidase (MTAN) is an important enzyme in a number of critical biological processes. Mammals do not express MtaN, making this enzyme an attractive antibacterial drug target. In pathogen , two MtnN subfamily genes (MtaN-1 and MtaN-2) play important roles in the periplasm and cytosol, respectively. We previously reported structural and functional analyses of MtaN-1, but little is known regarding MtaN-2 due to the lack of a crystal structure. Here, we determined the crystal structure of cytosolic MtaN-2 in complex with adenine (ADE), which is a cleavage product of adenosine. MtaN-1 and MtaN-2 exhibit a high degree of similarity in the α-β-α sandwich fold of the core structural motif. However, there is a structural difference in the nonconserved extended loop between β7 and α3 that is associated with the channel depth of the substrate-binding pocket and dimerization. The ADE molecules in the substrate-binding pockets of MtaN-1 and MtaN-2 are stabilized with π-π stacking by Trp199 and Phe152, respectively, and the hydrophobic residues surrounding the ribose-binding sites differ. A structural comparison of MtaN-2 with other MtaN proteins showed that MtnN subfamily proteins exhibit a unique substrate-binding surface and dimerization interface.