Natural sesquiterpene synthases have evolved to make complex terpenoids by quenching reactive carbocations either by proton transfer or by hydroxylation (water capture), depending on their active site. Germacradien-11-ol synthase (Gd11olS) from Streptomyces coelicolor catalyzes the cyclization of farnesyl diphosphate (FDP) into the hydroxylated sesquiterpene germacradien-11-ol. Here, we combine experiment and simulation to guide the redesign of its active site pocket to avoid hydroxylation of the product. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate two regions between which water molecules can flow that are responsible for hydroxylation. Point mutations of selected residues result in variants that predominantly form a complex nonhydroxylated product, which we identify as isolepidozene. Our results indicate how these mutations subtly change the molecular choreography in the Gd11olS active site and thereby pave the way for the engineering of terpene synthases to make complex terpenoid products.

Classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and combined quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) calculations were used to investigate the origin of the enantioselectivity of the Candida antarctica lipase B (CalB) catalyzed O-acetylation of (R,S)-propranolol. The reaction is a two-step process. The initial step is the formation of a reactive acyl enzyme (AcCalB) via a tetrahedral intermediate (TI-1). The stereoselectivity originates from the second step, when AcCalB reacts with the racemic substrate via a second tetrahedral intermediate (TI-2). Reaction barriers for the conversion of (R)- and (S)-propranolol to O-acetylpropranolol were computed for several distinct conformations of TI-2. In QM/MM geometry optimizations and reaction path calculations the QM region was described by density functional theory (B3LYP/TZVP) and the MM region by the CHARMM force field. The QM/MM calculations show that the formation of TI-2 is the rate-determining step. The energy barrier for transformation of (R)-propranolol to O-acetylpropranolol is 4.5 kcal/mol lower than that of the reaction of (S)-propranolol. Enzyme–substrate interactions were identified that play an important role in the enantioselectivity of the reaction. Our QM/MM calculations reproduce and rationalize the experimentally observed enantioselectivity in favor of (R)-propranolol. Furthermore, in contrast to what is commonly suggested for lipase-catalyzed reactions, our results indicate that the tetrahedral intermediate is not a good approximation of the corresponding transition states

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been performed to study the dynamic behavior of noncovalent enzyme carbocation complexes involved in the cyclization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate to taxadiene catalyzed by taxadiene synthase (TXS). Taxadiene and the observed four side products originate from the deprotonation of carbocation intermediates. The MD simulations of the TXS carbocation complexes provide insights into potential deprotonation mechanisms of such carbocations. The MD results do not support a previous hypothesis that carbocation tumbling is a key factor in the deprotonation of the carbocations by pyrophosphate. Instead water bridges are identified which may allow the formation of side products via multiple proton transfer reactions. A novel reaction path for taxadiene formation is proposed on the basis of the simulations. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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Combined quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) calculations were used to investigate the reaction mechanism of taxadiene synthase (TXS). TXS catalyzes the cyclization of geranylgeranyl diphosphate (GGPP) to taxadiene (T) and four minor cyclic products. All these products originate from the deprotonation of carbocation intermediates. The reaction profiles for the conversion of GGPP to T as well as to minor products were calculated for different configurations of relevant TXS carbocation complexes. The QM region was treated at the M06-2X/TZVP level, while the CHARMM27 force field was used to describe the MM region. The QM/MM calculations suggest a reaction pathway for the conversion of GGPP to T, which slightly differs from previous proposals regarding the number of reaction steps and the conformation of the carbocations. The QM/MM results also indicate that the formation of minor products via water-assisted deprotonation of the carbocations is highly exothermic, by about −7 to −23 kcal/mol. Curiously, however, the computed barriers and reaction energies indicate that the formation of some of the minor products is more facile than the formation of T. Thus, the present QM/MM calculations provide detailed insights into possible reaction pathways and into the origin of the promiscuity of TXS, but they do not reproduce the product distribution observed experimentally.