Altered specificity of Hint-W123Q supports a role for Hint inhibition by ASW in avian sex determination

Hint is a universally conserved, dimeric AMP-lysine hydrolase encoded on the avian Z chromosome. Tandemly repeated on the female-specific W chromosome, Asw encodes a potentially sex-determining, dominant-negative Hint dimerization partner whose substrate-interacting residues were specifically altered in evolution. To test the hypothesis that Gln127 of Asw is responsible for depression and/or alteration of Hint enzyme activity, a corresponding mutant was created in the chicken Hint homodimer, and a novel substrate was developed that links reversal of AMP-lysine modification to aminomethylcoumarin release. Strikingly, the Hint-W123Q substitution reduced k(cat)/K-m for AMP-lysine hydrolysis 17-fold, while it increased specificity for AMP-paranitroaniline hydrolysis by 160-fold. The resulting 2,700-fold switch in enzyme specificity suggests that Gln127 could be the dominant component of Asw dominant negativity in avian feminization.