Stereochemical features of the hydrolysis of 9,10-epoxystearic acid catalysed by plant and mammalian epoxide hydrolases

cis-9,10-Epoxystearic acid was used as a tool to probe the active sites of epoxide hydrolases (EHs) of mammalian and plant origin. We have compared the stereochemical features of the hydrolysis of this substrate catalysed by soluble and membrane-bound rat liver EHs, by soluble EH (purified to apparent homogeneity) obtained from maize seedlings or celeriac roots, and by recombinant soybean EH expressed in yeast. Plant EHs were found to differ in their enantioselectivity, i.e. their ability to discriminate between the two enantiomers of 9,10-epoxystearic acid. For example, while the maize enzyme hydrated both enantiomers at the same rate, the EH from soybean exhibited very high enantioselecti…