Effects of two mutations detected in medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCAD)-deficient patients on folding, oligomer assembly, and stability of MCAD enzyme.

We have used expression of human medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase (MCAD) in Escherichia coli as a model system for dissecting the molecular effects of two mutations detected in patients with MCAD deficiency. We demonstrate that the R28C mutation predominantly affects polypeptide folding. The amounts of active R28C mutant enzyme produced could be modulated between undetectable to 100% of the wild-type control by manipulating the level of available chaperonins and the growth temperature. For the prevalent K304E mutation, however, the amounts of active mutant enzyme could be modulated only in a range from undetectable to approximately 50% of the wild-type, and the assembled mutant enzyme displayed a decreased thermal stability. Two artificially constructed mutants (K304Q and K304E/D346K) yielded clearly higher amounts of active MCAD enzyme than the K304E mutant but were also responsive to chaperonin co-overexpression and growth at low temperature. The thermal stability profile of the K304E/D346K double mutant was shifted to even lower temperatures than that of the K304E mutant, whereas that of the K304Q mutant was closely similar to the wild-type. Taken together, the results show that the K304E mutation affects (i) polypeptide folding due to elimination of the positively charged lysine and (ii) oligomer assembly and stability due to replacement of lysine 304 with the negatively charged glutamic acid.