The enzyme protein-glutamate methylesterase (EC 3.1.1.61) catalyzes the reaction :protein L-glutamate ''O''⁵-methyl ester + H₂O

\rightleftharpoons

protein L-glutamate + methanol This enzyme is a

demethylase Demethylases are enzymes that remove methyl (CH3) groups from nucleic acids, proteins (particularly histones), and other molecules. Demethylases are important epigenetic proteins, as they are responsible for transcriptional regulation of the genom ...

, and more specifically it belongs to the family of

hydrolase Hydrolase is a class of enzyme that commonly perform as biochemical catalysts that use water to break a chemical bond, which typically results in dividing a larger molecule into smaller molecules. Some common examples of hydrolase enzymes are este ...

s, specifically those acting on carboxylic

ester In chemistry, an ester is a compound derived from an oxoacid (organic or inorganic) in which at least one hydroxyl group () is replaced by an alkoxy group (), as in the substitution reaction of a carboxylic acid and an alcohol. Glycerides ar ...

bonds. The

systematic name A systematic name is a name given in a systematic way to one unique group, organism, object or chemical substance, out of a specific population or collection. Systematic names are usually part of a nomenclature. A semisystematic name or semitrivial ...

is protein-Lglutamate-''O''⁵-methyl-ester acylhydrolase. Other names in common use include chemotaxis-specific methylesterase, methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein methyl-esterase, CheB methylesterase, methylesterase CheB, protein methyl-esterase, protein carboxyl methylesterase, PME, protein methylesterase, and protein-L-glutamate-5-''O''-methyl-ester acylhydrolase. This enzyme participates in 3

metabolic pathways In biochemistry, a metabolic pathway is a linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell. The reactants, products, and intermediates of an enzymatic reaction are known as metabolites, which are modified by a sequence of chemical reac ...

: two-component system - general, bacterial chemotaxis - general, and bacterial chemotaxis - organism-specific. CheB is part of a two-component

signal transduction Signal transduction is the process by which a chemical or physical signal is transmitted through a cell as a series of molecular events, most commonly protein phosphorylation catalyzed by protein kinases, which ultimately results in a cellula ...

system. These systems enable

bacteria Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among ...

to sense, respond, and adapt to a wide range of environments, stressors, and growth conditions. Two-component systems are composed of a sensor

histidine kinase Histidine kinases (HK) are multifunctional, and in non-animal kingdoms, typically transmembrane, proteins of the transferase class of enzymes that play a role in signal transduction across the cellular membrane. The vast majority of HKs are homod ...

(HK) and its cognate response regulator (RR). The HK catalyses its own

autophosphorylation Autophosphorylation is a type of post-translational modification of proteins. It is generally defined as the phosphorylation of the kinase by itself. In eukaryotes, this process occurs by the addition of a phosphate group to serine, threonine or ...

followed by the transfer of the

phosphoryl {{unreferenced, date=May 2015 A phosphoryl group is the chemical ion or radical: P+O32−, containing phosphorus and oxygen. (The correct chemical name for this −PO32− group is phosphonato, and phosphono for −PO3H2; as ''phosphoryl'' in ch ...

group to the receiver domain on RR;

phosphorylation In chemistry, phosphorylation is the attachment of a phosphate group to a molecule or an ion. This process and its inverse, dephosphorylation, are common in biology and could be driven by natural selection. Text was copied from this source, wh ...

of the RR usually activates an attached output domain, in this case a methyltransferase domain. CheB is involved in

chemotaxis Chemotaxis (from '' chemo-'' + ''taxis'') is the movement of an organism or entity in response to a chemical stimulus. Somatic cells, bacteria, and other single-cell or multicellular organisms direct their movements according to certain chemica ...

. CheB methylesterase is responsible for removing the

methyl group In organic chemistry, a methyl group is an alkyl derived from methane, containing one carbon atom bonded to three hydrogen atoms, having chemical formula . In formulas, the group is often abbreviated as Me. This hydrocarbon group occurs in many ...

from the gamma-glutamyl methyl ester residues in the

methyl-accepting chemotaxis protein The Methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins (MCP, also aspartate receptor) are a family of transmembrane receptors that mediate chemotactic response in certain enteric bacteria, such as Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli. These methyl-a ...

s (MCP). CheB is regulated through phosphorylation by

CheA Chea is a surname in various cultures. Origins Chea may be a Cambodian surname ( km, ជា; ). That surname is derived from the Chinese surname Xiè (), specifically Southern Min pronunciations of that surname, e.g. Hokkien Chinese (). Other sp ...

. The ''N''-terminal region of the protein is similar to that of other regulatory components of sensory transduction systems.

Structural studies

As of late 2007, two

structures A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...

have been solved for this class of enzymes, with PDB accession codes and .

Structural studies

References

Further reading