Identification of Amino Acid Residues Responsible for C-H Activation in Type-III Copper Enzymes by Generating Tyrosinase Activity in a Catechol Oxidase.

Tyrosinases (TYRs) catalyze the hydroxylation of phenols and the oxidation of the resulting o-diphenols to o-quinones, while catechol oxidases (COs) exhibit only the latter activity. Aurone synthase (AUS) is not able to react with classical tyrosinase substrates, such as tyramine and l-tyrosine, while it can hydroxylate its natural substrate isoliquiritigenin. The structural difference of TYRs, COs, and AUS at the heart of their divergent catalytic activities is still a puzzle. Therefore, a library of 39 mutants of AUS from Coreopsis grandiflora (CgAUS) was generated and the activity studies showed that the reactivity of the three conserved histidines (HisA , HisB , and HisB ) is tuned by their adjacent residues (HisB +1, HisB +1, and waterkeeper residue) either to react as stronger bases or / and to stabilize a position permissive for substrate proton shuffling. This provides the understanding for C-H activation based on the type-III copper center to be used in future biotechnological processes.