Correlation of structure and function in the human hotdog-fold enzyme hTHEM4.

Human THEM4 (hTHEM4) is comprised of a catalytically active hotdog-fold acyl-CoA thioesterase domain and an N-terminal domain of unknown fold and function. hTHEM4 has been linked to Akt1 regulation and cell apoptosis. Herein, we report the X-ray structure of hHTEM4 bound with undecan-2-one-CoA. Structure guided mutagenesis was carried out to confirm the catalytic residues. The N-terminal domain is shown to be partially comprised of irregular and flexible secondary structure, reminiscent of a protein-binding domain. We demonstrate direct hTHEM4-Akt1 binding by immuno-precipitation and by inhibition of Aktl kinase activity, thus providing independent evidence that hTHEM4 is an Akt1 negative regulator.