Three classes of tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent enzymes

Current knowledge distinguishes three classes of tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent enzymes as based on protein sequence similarity. These three protein sequence clusters hydroxylate three types of substrate atoms and use three different forms of iron for catalysis. The first class to be discovered was the aromatic amino acid hydroxylases, which, in mammals, include phenylalanine hydroxylase, tyrosine hydroxylase, and two isoforms of tryptophan hydroxylases. The protein sequences of these tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent aromatic amino acid hydroxylases are significantly similar, and all mammalian aromatic amino acid hydroxylases require a non-heme-bound iron atom in the active site of the enzyme for catalysis. The second classes of tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent enzymes to be characterized were the nitric oxide synthases, which in mammals occur as three isoforms. Nitric oxide synthase protein sequences form a separate cluster of homologous sequences with no similarity to aromatic amino acid hydroxylase protein sequences. In contrast to aromatic amino acid hydroxylases, nitric oxide synthases require a heme-bound iron for catalysis. The alkylglycerol monooxygenase protein sequence was the most recent to be characterized. This sequence shares no similarity with aromatic amino acid hydroxylases and nitric oxide synthases. Motifs contained in the alkylglycerol monooxygenase protein sequence suggest that this enzyme may use a di-iron center for catalysis.