Acetohydroxy acid synthetase with a pH optimum of 7.5 from Neurospora crassa mitochondria: characterization and partial purification.

An acetohydroxy acid synthetase (AAS) has been found associated with the mitochondrial fraction of wild-type Neurospora crassa. It has a pH optimum of 7.5 and is presumed to be homologous to the pH 8.0 AAS that synthesizes the valine and isoleucine precursors in bacteria and yeast. The enzyme was characterized and purified 30- to 60-fold. The AAS activity of intact mitochondria requires thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP), Mn(2+) or Mg(2+), and flavine adenine dinucleotide (FAD), and is sensitive to end product inhibition by l-valine. This inhibition is pH-dependent and noncompetitive with respect to pyruvate. Activity is slightly repressed during exponential growth in the presence of valine, isoleucine, and leucine. Extraction of the AAS from the mitochondria has a profound influence on the following properties: pH optimum, sensitivity to l-valine, response to FAD, binding of TPP, apparent K(m), and stability at 0 to 4 C. The catalytic properties of the partially purified enzyme are described. Two forms of the partially purified AAS can be isolated from preparative Sephadex G-200 chromatographic columns. Both forms are electrophoretically and antigenically similar but one form has an estimated molecular weight of 110,000 to 120,000 whereas the predominant form is a much larger and more buoyant molecule.