Mitochondrial protein import

Isolation of a gene for a regulatory 15-kDa subunit of mitochondrial F1F0-ATPase and construction of mutant yeast lacking the protein

A gene coding for yeast 15-kDa protein, a regulatory factor of mitochondrial F1F0-ATPase, was isolated. The cloned gene was disrupted in vitro and mutant strains that did not contain the 15-kDa protein were constructed by transformation of yeast cells with the disrupted gene. The ATP-synthesizing activity of the mutant mitochondria was the same as that of wild-type cells, suggesting that the 15-kDa protein is not required for mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation. Collapse of the membrane potential induced ATP-hydrolyzing activity of F1F0-ATPase of the mutant mitochondria but not of normal mitochondria. Activation of the enzyme was also observed during incubation of submitochondrial particles from mutant cells, but not of those from wild-type cells. Thus, it is inferred that the 15-kDa protein supports the action of an intrinsic ATPase inhibitor of the ATP-hydrolyzing activity of the enzyme upon de-energization of mitochondrial membranes.

Import into mitochondria of precursors containing hydrophobic passenger proteins: pretreatment of precursors with urea inhibits import

We have studied the import into isolated yeast mitochondria of three hydrophobic passenger proteins attached to the N-terminal cleavable presequence of mitochondrial ATPase subunit 9 from Neurospora crassa. One natural precursor (pN9) contained N. crassa subunit 9; two chimaeric precursors, N9L/Y8-1 and N9L/Y9-2, respectively contained yeast mitochondrial ATPase subunits 8 and 9. In the absence of urea, pN9 and N9L/Y8-1 are imported efficiently but N9L/Y9-2 is not imported. After pretreatment of precursors in 4 M urea, binding of pN9 to mitochondria is marginally affected while its import is substantially inhibited; the binding to mitochondria of chimaeric proteins, N9L/Y8-1 and N9L/Y9-2, is greatly enhanced but no import is observed. This behaviour of import precursors containing hydrophobic passenger proteins is contrasted with that of a hydrophilic chimaeric precursor pCOXIV-DHFR, whose binding and import are enhanced by pretreatment with a high concentration of urea (8 M). The import of N9L/Y8-1 is very sensitive to the presence of low concentrations of urea in the import reaction mixture, and is abolished above 0.5 M urea although precursor binding to mitochondria is increased. By contrast, neither the import nor binding of pCOXIV-DHFR is affected directly by urea up to 0.8 M. These deleterious effects of urea on import of the chimaeric precursors N9L/Y8-1 and N9L/Y9-2 are interpreted in terms of a non-productive binding of these precursors to mitochondria, brought about by exposure of their hydrophobic domains resulting from urea unfolding. The generalization that membrane translocation of mitochondrial import precursors is enhanced by their prior unfolding in urea thus does not apply in the case of these precursors containing hydrophobic passenger proteins.

Structure and regulation of KGD2, the structural gene for yeast dihydrolipoyl transsuccinylase

Yeast mutants assigned to the pet complementation group G104 were found to lack alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity as a result of mutations in the dihydrolipoyl transsuccinylase (KE2) component of the complex. The nuclear gene KGD2, coding for yeast KE2, was cloned by transformation of E250/U6, a G104 mutant, with a yeast genomic library. Analysis of the KGD2 sequence revealed an open reading frame encoding a protein with a molecular weight of 52,375 and 42% identities to the KE2 component of Escherichia coli alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex. Disruption of the chromosomal copy of KGD2 in a respiratory-competent haploid yeast strain elicited a growth phenotype similar to that of G104 mutants and abolished the ability to mitochondria to catalyze the reduction of NAD+ by alpha-ketoglutarate. The expression of KGD2 was transcriptionally regulated by glucose. Northern (RNA) analysis of poly(A)+ RNA indicated the existence of two KGD2 transcripts differing in length by 150 nucleotides. The concentrations of both RNAs were at least 10 times lower in glucose (repressed)- than in galactose (derepressed)-grown cells. Different 5'-flanking regions of KGD2 were fused to the lacZ gene of E. coli in episomal plasmids, and the resultant constructs were tested for expression of beta-galactosidase in wild-type yeast cells and in hap2 and hap3 mutants. Results of the lacZ fusion assays indicated that transcription of KGD2 is activated by the HAP2 and HAP3 proteins. The regulated expression of KGD2 was found to depend on sequences that map to a region 244 to 484 nucleotides upstream of the structural gene. This region contains two short sequence elements that differ by one nucleotide from the consensus core (5'-TN[A/G]TTGGT-3') that has been proposed to be essential for binding of the HAP activation complex. These data together with earlier reports on the regulation of the KGD1 and LPD1 genes for the alpha-ketoglutarate and dihydrolipoyl dehydrogenases indicate that all three enzyme components of the complex are catabolite repressed and subject to positive regulation by the HAP2 and HAP3 proteins.

Amino acid sequence requirements for the association of apocytochrome c with mitochondria

To examine the amino acid sequence requirements for the biphasic association of Drosophila melanogaster apocytochrome c with mouse liver mitochondria in vitro, recombinant constructs of the protein were prepared. Removal of the C-terminal sequence to residue 58 had little influence, but truncation to residue 50 decreased the association to low levels and removal to residue 36 was even more effective. However, a mutant missing the segment between residues 35 and 66 was fully functional, but, when the C-terminal segment from residue 36 was replaced with a noncytochrome c sequence, the high-affinity phase of the association was lost. A mutant in which residues 90, 91, 92, 96, and 100 were replaced by lysine, leucine, proline, proline, and proline, respectively, to prevent the possible formation of the C-terminal alpha-helix and another mutant in which the C-terminal segment from residue 90 to residue 120 was a noncytochrome c sequence had normal association. In contrast, replacing lysine-5, -7, and -8 by glutamine, glutamic acid, and asparagine, respectively, resulted in loss of the high-affinity phase. The same mutations in the apoprotein lacking the segment between residues 35 and 66 caused, in addition, a decrease of the low-affinity phase association. Thus, the N-terminal region is most critical for apocytochrome c association, but alternative segments of the central and/or C-terminal region can be utilized, where noncytochrome c sequences are ineffective. These results emphasize the wide disparity between the structural requirements for association with mitochondria and for the production of a functional holoprotein.

Structure and regulation of KGD2, the structural gene for yeast dihydrolipoyl transsuccinylase

Yeast mutants assigned to the pet complementation group G104 were found to lack alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase activity as a result of mutations in the dihydrolipoyl transsuccinylase (KE2) component of the complex. The nuclear gene KGD2, coding for yeast KE2, was cloned by transformation of E250/U6, a G104 mutant, with a yeast genomic library. Analysis of the KGD2 sequence revealed an open reading frame encoding a protein with a molecular weight of 52,375 and 42% identities to the KE2 component of Escherichia coli alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex. Disruption of the chromosomal copy of KGD2 in a respiratory-competent haploid yeast strain elicited a growth phenotype similar to that of G104 mutants and abolished the ability to mitochondria to catalyze the reduction of NAD+ by alpha-ketoglutarate. The expression of KGD2 was transcriptionally regulated by glucose. Northern (RNA) analysis of poly(A)+ RNA indicated the existence of two KGD2 transcripts differing in length by 150 nucleotides. The concentrations of both RNAs were at least 10 times lower in glucose (repressed)- than in galactose (derepressed)-grown cells. Different 5'-flanking regions of KGD2 were fused to the lacZ gene of E. coli in episomal plasmids, and the resultant constructs were tested for expression of beta-galactosidase in wild-type yeast cells and in hap2 and hap3 mutants. Results of the lacZ fusion assays indicated that transcription of KGD2 is activated by the HAP2 and HAP3 proteins. The regulated expression of KGD2 was found to depend on sequences that map to a region 244 to 484 nucleotides upstream of the structural gene. This region contains two short sequence elements that differ by one nucleotide from the consensus core (5'-TN[A/G]TTGGT-3') that has been proposed to be essential for binding of the HAP activation complex. These data together with earlier reports on the regulation of the KGD1 and LPD1 genes for the alpha-ketoglutarate and dihydrolipoyl dehydrogenases indicate that all three enzyme components of the complex are catabolite repressed and subject to positive regulation by the HAP2 and HAP3 proteins.

Purification and identification of a cytosolic factor required for import of precursors of mitochondrial proteins into mitochondria

A cytosolic factor required for import of the precursor of mitochondrial protein into mitochondria was purified to homogeneity from a rabbit reticulocyte lysate by affinity column chromatography using a synthetic peptide containing the presequence of ornithine amino-transferase as a ligand. The molecular mass of the purified protein was estimated as 28 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The import of precursors of ornithine aminotransferase and sulfite oxidase into mitochondria was inhibited by anti-28-kDa protein IgG raised in guinea pigs. This antibody also blocked the binding of these precursors to mitochondria. These results suggest that the 28-kDa protein is an essential component of the import machinery in the cytosol and that anti-28-kDa protein IgG blocked the binding of the precursor of ornithine aminotransferase to mitochondria, but not the penetration step. Therefore, the 28-kDa protein may be a factor that should be named the "targeting factor" for import of mitochondrial protein.

Sequence analysis and protein import studies of an outer chloroplast envelope polypeptide

A chloroplast outer envelope membrane protein was cloned and sequenced and from the sequence it was possible to deduce a polypeptide of 6.7 kDa. It has only one membrane-spanning region; the C terminus extends into the cytosol, whereas the N terminus is exposed to the space between the two envelope membranes. The protein was synthesized in an in vitro transcription-translation system to study its routing into isolated chloroplasts. The import studies revealed that the 6.7-kDa protein followed a different and heretofore undescribed translocation pathway in the respect that (i) it does not have a cleavable transit sequence, (ii) it does not require ATP hydrolysis for import, and (iii) protease-sensitive components that are responsible for recognition of precursor proteins destined for the inside of the chloroplasts are not involved in routing the 6.7-kDa polypeptide to the outer chloroplast envelope.

Insertion and translocation of proteins into and through membranes

In prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms, proteins are efficiently sorted to reach their final destinations in a whole range of subcellular compartments. Targeting is mediated by hydrophobic signal sequences or hydrophilic targeting sequences depending upon the compartment, these sequences being often processed. Proteins cannot be translocated through a membrane in a tightly folded stage, they must have a loose conformation, the so-called 'translocation competent state', which is usually kept through interactions with chaperones. In addition to these cytosolic receptor-like components, receptors are also present on the target membranes. Depending upon the organelles and organisms, two different energy sources have been identified, energy rich phosphate bonds (ATP and GTP) and a potential across the target membrane. Besides the signal peptides, various classes of signals have been identified to account for topologies of membrane proteins. Protein secretion in bacterial organisms has been extensively studied. Various classes of proteins use different strategies, some of these may also be used in eukaryotic cells.

Glyoxysomal malate dehydrogenase from watermelon is synthesized with an amino-terminal transit peptide

The isolation and sequence of a cDNA clone encoding the complete glyoxysomal malate dehydrogenase [gMDH; (S)-malate:NAD+ oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.1.37] of watermelon cotyledons are presented. Partial cDNA clones were synthesized in a three part strategy, taking advantage of the polymerase chain reaction technology with oligonucleotides based on directly determined amino acid sequences. Subsequently, the complete clone for gMDH was synthesized with a sense primer corresponding to the nucleotide sequence of the N-terminal end of pre-gMDH and an antisense primer corresponding to the adenylylation site found in the mRNA. The amino acids for substrate and cofactor binding identified by x-ray crystallography for pig heart cytoplasmic malate dehydrogenase are conserved in the 319-amino-acid-long mature plant enzyme. The pre-gMDH contains an N-terminal transit peptide of 37 residues. It has a net positive charge, lacks a long stretch of hydrophobic residues, and contains besides acidic amino acids a cluster of serine residues. This N-terminal extension is cleaved off upon association with or import into glyoxysomes. It contains a putative AHL topogenic signal for microbody import and has no sequence similarity to the 27-residue-long presequence of the watermelon mitochondrial malate dehydrogenase precursor.

The molecular pathology of respiratory-chain dysfunction in human mitochondrial myopathies

Some of the different molecular pathologies of respiratory-chain dysfunction in human mitochondrial myopathies will be reviewed in relation to the findings in 58 cases. Deletions of mitochondrial DNA were identified in 21 cases [36%]. There was some correlation between the sites of the deletion and the mitochondrial biochemistry in patients with defects of Complex I but not in cases with more extensive loss of respiratory chain activity. Complex I and Complex IV polypeptides were usually normal in deleted cases. Non-deleted cases, however, often showed specific subunit deficiencies which involved the products of both nuclear and mitochondrial genes. Immunoblots of respiratory-chain polypeptides in one case pointed to defective translocation of the Rieske precursor from the cytosol into the mitochondria. The pathogenic role of circulating autoantibodies to specific matrix proteins and the nature of the target antigens in two patients with mitochondrial encephalomyopathies and respiratory-chain dysfunction will also be discussed.

Contact sites between inner and outer membranes: structure and role in protein translocation into the mitochondria

Contact sites between both mitochondrial membranes play a predominant role in the transport of nuclear-coded precursor proteins into mitochondria. The characterization of contact sites was greatly advanced by the reversible accumulation of precursor proteins in transit (translocation intermediates). It was found that the sites are saturable, apparently contain proteinaceous components and mediate extensive unfolding of the polypeptide chain in translocation. Some components of mitochondrial contact sites are currently being identified.

The role of contact sites between inner and outer mitochondrial membrane in energy transfer

Three functions have been suggested to be localized in contact sites between the inner and the outer membrane of mitochondria from mammalian cells: (i) transfer of energy from matrix to cytosol through the action of peripheral kinases; (ii) import of mitochondrial precursor proteins; and (iii) transfer of lipids between outer and inner membrane. In the contact site-related energy transfer a number of kinases localized in the periphery of the mitochondrion play a crucial role. Two examples of such kinases are relevant here: (i) hexokinase isoenzyme I which is capable of binding to the outer aspect of the outer membrane; and (ii) the mitochondrial isoenzyme of creatine kinase which is localized in the intermembrane space. Recently, evidence was presented that both hexokinase and creatine kinase are preferentially localized in contact sites (Adams, V. et al. (1989) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 981, 213-225). The aim of the present experiments was two-fold. First, to establish methods which enable the bioenergetic aspects of energy transfer mediated by kinases in contact sites to be measured. In these experiments emphasis was on hexokinase, while 31P-NMR was the major experimental technique. Second, we wanted to develop methods which can give insight into factors playing a role in the formation of contact sites involved in energy transfer. In the latter approach, mitochondrial creatine kinase was studied using monolayer techniques.

A mitochondrial import receptor for the ADP/ATP carrier

We have identified a mitochondrial outer membrane protein of 72 kd (MOM72) that exhibits the properties of an import receptor for the ADP/ATP carrier (AAC), the most abundant mitochondrial protein. Monospecific antibodies and Fab fragments against MOM72 selectively inhibit import of AAC at the level of specific binding to the mitochondria. AAC bound to the mitochondrial surface is coprecipitated with antibodies against MOM72 after lysis of mitochondria with detergent. MOM72 thus has a complementary function to that of MOM19, which acts as an import receptor for the majority of mitochondrial proteins studied so far but not for the AAC. The import pathway of the precursor of MOM72 appears to involve MOM19 as receptor.

Apo forms of cytochrome c550 and cytochrome cd1 are translocated to the periplasm of Paracoccus denitrificans in the absence of haem incorporation caused either mutation or inhibition of haem synthesis

An apo form of cytochrome c550 can be detected by immunoblotting cell-free extracts of a mutant of Paracoccus denitrificans that is deficient in c-type cytochromes. This apoprotein is found predominantly in the periplasm, the location of the holocytochrome in the wild-type organism, indicating that translocation of the polypeptide occurs in the absence of haem attachment. The polypeptide molecular weight, as judged by sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, is indistinguishable from that of the holoprotein and the chemically prepared apoprotein; this suggests that the N-terminal signal sequence is removed in the mutant as in the wild-type organism. In the presence of levulinic acid, an inhibitor of haem biosynthesis, apocytochrome c550 and aponitrite reductase (cytochrome cd1) accumulated in the periplasm of wild-type cells. Synthesis of these apoproteins was blocked by chloramphenicol. Thus in P. denitrificans the synthesis of these polypeptides is neither autoregulated nor regulated by the availability of haem. That the apoproteins appear in the periplasm argues against the possibility of polypeptide/haem co-transport from cytoplasm to periplasm. These observations are related to, and contrasted with, the biosynthesis of c-type cytochromes in eukaryotic cells.

Giant mitochondria distinct from enlarged mitochondria in secretory and ciliated cells of gerbil trachea and bronchioles

Numerous mitochondria ranging from slightly larger than normal to several micrometers in diameter (giant) were found in about one-half the serous secretory cells in the surface epithelium of the normal gerbil trachea and proximal bronchi. Tracheal serous cells of mice also were found to contain numerous giant mitochondria. Clara cells of gerbil bronchioles contained abundant giant mitochondria in addition to normal tubular mitochondria and the second population of enlarged spherical mitochondria that have been described in Clara cells of several genera. In contrast, mouse Clara cells revealed the normal tubular and the enlarged spherical mitochondria but no giant mitochondria. A survey of a number of cell types in gerbils failed to disclose hypertrophied mitochondria outside tracheobronchial surface epithelium and bronchioles. The mitochondrial enlargement resulted from an increase of matrix but not cristae. The expansion of matrix displaced the relatively sparse cristae into small collections compressed against the outer membrane. The prevalence of giant mitochondria and of granular endoplasmic reticulum is similar among cells, and these two organelles are codistributed within cells. The megamitochondria and granular reticulum occupy a central stratum, whereas normal mitochondria occur in the apical and basal regions. The giant mitochondria are considered related to a normal biologic activity that is characteristic of respiratory tract epithelium of mice and gerbils selectively and is more prominent in secretory cells than in ciliated cells.

The 49 K subunit of NADH: ubiquinone reductase (complex I) from Neurospora crassa mitochondria: primary structure of the gene and the protein

The primary structure of the 49 K subunit of the respiratory chain NADH:ubiquinone reductase (complex I) from Neurospora crassa was determined by sequencing cDNA, genomic DNA and the N-terminus of the mature protein. The sequence lengths correlate to a molecular mass of 54,002 daltons for the preprotein and 49,239 daltons for the mature protein. The presequence consists of 42 amino acids of typical composition for sequences which target nuclear-encoded proteins into mitochondria. The mature protein consists of 436 amino acids and shows 64% similarity to a 49 K subunit of bovine heart NADH:ubiquinone reductase and 33% to a predicted translation product of an open reading frame in the chloroplast DNAs of Marchantia polymorpha and Nicotiana tabacum. Evidence for an iron-sulfur cluster in the subunit is discussed.

Reversible import of apocytochrome c into mitochondria

35S-labeled Drosophila melanogaster apocytochrome c was made by in vitro transcription/translation of the gene and purified to the monomeric, fully reduced form. It was found that in the presence of a wheat germ extract factor there was a high-affinity phase of the uptake into mouse liver mitochondria at 10-300 pM apocytochrome c, and a lower-affinity phase through 4000 pM. Without the factor, the high-affinity phase was absent. The stimulatory effect of the factor could not be elicited with various reductants, such as NADH, FMN, and ferrous protoheme IX. Conversely, when mitochondria loaded with apocytochrome c were resuspended in fresh medium, the protein readily reequilibrated. Successive washings depleted greater than 95% of the associated apoprotein but removed no holoprotein. Proteases (proteinase K or trypsin) added to a suspension of mitochondria loaded with apoprotein digested an amount of apoprotein similar to that which would have been dissociated during the same time, as measured by successive washings in the absence of protease. Mitochondria loaded with apoprotein and similarly treated with protease continued exporting the apoprotein, even after the protease was inhibited and removed, suggesting that most of the apoprotein associated with the organelle was in a protease-resistant compartment. Apocytochrome c mutants in which serines or alanines replaced cysteines 14 and 17, which bind the prosthetic group, behaved like the cysteine-containing protein, indicating that the covalent attachment of the heme is unrelated to the translocation of the apoprotein.

cDNA cloning, primary structure and gene expression for H-protein, a component of the glycine-cleavage system (glycine decarboxylase) of pea (Pisum sativum) leaf mitochondria

We have isolated and characterized cDNA clones encoding the H-protein of the glycine-cleavage system of pea (Pisum sativum) leaf mitochondria. The deduced primary structure revealed that the 131-amino-acid polypeptide is cytoplasmically synthesized with a 34-amino-acid mitochondrial targeting peptide. The lipoate-binding site was assigned to be lysine-63, as deduced from a sequence comparison with several lipoate-bearing proteins. The expression of the gene encoding H-protein was shown to occur specifically in the leaf tissue, with light exerting an additional effect by increasing the mRNA levels severalfold. Two polyadenylation sites were found in the mRNA, and a single-copy gene encoding the H-protein was detected in pea genome.

Processing of precursor proteins by plant mitochondria

Precursor proteins from Neurospora crassa were correctly processed by a matrix extract from Vicia faba and cauliflower mitochondria. Processing yielded mature protein of the same molecular mass as mature Neurospora protein. The processing activity has two components. One is antigenically related to and of the same molecular mass as the processing enhancing protein of Neurospora. The second component was not recognized by antibody to the matrix processing protease from Neurospora mitochondria. The second component also houses the protease activity. Similar results were obtained using precursors to both the F1 beta subunit of the mitochondrial F0F1 ATPase and subunit V of the Rieske FeS complex from Neurospora. The beta subunit of the F0F1 ATPASE was processed to the mature form. Subunit V of the Rieske FeS complex was processed to the intermediate form only. Additional processing seen during import into plant mitochondria is not catalyzed by these proteins.

Signal peptidases and signal peptide hydrolases

Signal peptidases, the endoproteases that remove the amino-terminal signal sequence from many secretory proteins, have been isolated from various sources. Seven signal peptidases have been purified, two from E. coli, two from mammalian sources, and three from mitochondrial matrix. The mitochondrial enzymes are soluble and function as a heterogeneous dimer. The mammalian enzymes are isolated as a complex and share a common glycosylated subunit. The bacterial enzymes are isolated as monomers and show no sequence homology with each other or the mammalian enzymes. The membrane-bound enzymes seem to require a substrate containing a consensus sequence following the -3, -1 rule of von Heijne at the cleavage site; however, processing of the substrate is strongly influenced by the hydrophobic region of the signal peptide. The enzymes appear to recognize an unknown three-dimensional motif rather than a specific amino acid sequence around the cleavage site. The matrix mitochondrial enzymes are metallo-endopeptidases; however, the other signal peptidases may belong to a unique class of proteases as they are resistant to chelators and most protease inhibitors. There are no data concerning the substrate binding site of these enzymes. In vivo, the signal peptide is rapidly degraded. Three different enzymes in Escherichia coli that can degrade a signal peptide in vitro have been identified. The intact signal peptide is not accumulated in mutants lacking these enzymes, which suggests that these peptidases individually are not responsible for the degradation of an intact signal peptide in vivo. It is speculated that signal peptidases and signal peptide hydrolases are integral components of the secretory pathway and that inhibition of the terminal steps can block translocation.

Sorting of precursor proteins between isolated spinach leaf mitochondria and chloroplasts

The precursors of the F1-ATPase beta-subunits from Nicotiana plumbaginifolia and Neurospora crassa were imported into isolated spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) leaf mitochondria. Both F1 beta precursors were imported and processed to mature size products. No import of the mitochondrial precursor proteins into isolated intact spinach chloroplasts was seen. Moreover, the precursor of the 33 kDa protein of photosynthetic water-splitting enzyme was not imported into the leaf mitochondria. This study provides the first experimental report of in vitro import of precursor proteins into plant mitochondria isolated from photosynthetic tissue and enables studies of protein sorting between mitochondria and chloroplasts in a system which is homologous with respect to organelles. The results suggest a high organellar specificity in the plant cell for the cytoplasmically synthesized precursor proteins.

Cytochrome bc1 complexes of microorganisms

The cytochrome bc1 complex is the most widely occurring electron transfer complex capable of energy transduction. Cytochrome bc1 complexes are found in the plasma membranes of phylogenetically diverse photosynthetic and respiring bacteria, and in the inner mitochondrial membrane of all eucaryotic cells. In all of these species the bc1 complex transfers electrons from a low-potential quinol to a higher-potential c-type cytochrome and links this electron transfer to proton translocation. Most bacteria also possess alternative pathways of quinol oxidation capable of circumventing the bc1 complex, but these pathways generally lack the energy-transducing, protontranslocating activity of the bc1 complex. All cytochrome bc1 complexes contain three electron transfer proteins which contain four redox prosthetic groups. These are cytochrome b, which contains two b heme groups that differ in their optical and thermodynamic properties; cytochrome c1, which contains a covalently bound c-type heme; and a 2Fe-2S iron-sulfur protein. The mechanism which links proton translocation to electron transfer through these proteins is the proton motive Q cycle, and this mechanism appears to be universal to all bc1 complexes. Experimentation is currently focused on understanding selected structure-function relationships prerequisite for these redox proteins to participate in the Q-cycle mechanism. The cytochrome bc1 complexes of mitochondria differ from those of bacteria, in that the former contain six to eight supernumerary polypeptides, in addition to the three redox proteins common to bacteria and mitochondria. These extra polypeptides are encoded in the nucleus and do not contain redox prosthetic groups. The functions of the supernumerary polypeptides of the mitochondrial bc1 complexes are generally not known and are being actively explored by genetically manipulating these proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Removal of a hydrophobic domain within the mature portion of a mitochondrial inner membrane protein causes its mislocalization to the matrix

We have examined the import and intramitochondrial localization of the precursor to yeast cytochrome c oxidase subunit Va, a protein of the mitochondrial inner membrane. The results of studies on the import of subunit Va derivatives carrying altered presequences suggest that the uptake of this protein is highly efficient. We found that a presequence of only 5 amino acids (Met-Leu-Ser-Leu-Arg) could direct the import and localization of subunit Va with wild-type efficiency, as judged by several different assays. We also found that subunit Va could be effectively targeted to the mitochondrial inner membrane with a heterologous presequence that failed to direct import of its cognate protein. The results presented here confirmed those of an earlier study and showed clearly that the information required to "sort" subunit Va to the inner membrane resides in the mature protein sequence, not within the presequence per se. We present additional evidence that the aforementioned sorting information is contained, at least in part, in a hydrophobic stretch of 22 amino acids residing within the C-terminal third of the protein. Removal of this domain caused subunit Va to be mislocalized to the mitochondrial matrix.

Complementation of the Aspergillus nidulans arg B1 mutation by ornithine transcarbamylase cDNA from rat liver

An Aspergillus nidulans strain which is deficient in ornithine transcarbamylase due to the arg B1 mutation was transformed with a plasmid containing the ornithine transcarbamylase cDNA from rat liver under the control of the amd S promoter. Stable transformants were obtained by selection on arginine free medium indicating complementation of the arg B mutation. Proof of expression of the rat enzyme in transformants was obtained by immunoprecipitation of all ornithine transcarbamylase activity from cell extracts with antibodies specific for the rat enzyme. The presence of catalytically active rat ornithine transcarbamylase in the transformants indicated that it is capable of being imported into mitochondria in A. nidulans, proteolytically processed and assembled into its homotrimeric form. In vitro uptake experiments using isolated A. nidulans mitochondria demonstrate that processing of the precursor of rat ornithine transcarbamylase occurs in two temporally separated steps as it does in rat liver mitochondria suggesting evolutionary conservation of the processing machinery. Up to 560 ng of active rat enzyme was produced per gm wet weight mycelia. Use of beta-D-alanine, an inducer of amd S, as sole N-source resulted in increased levels of active rat ornithine transcarbamylase relative to uninduced cultures.

A 36-kDa mitochondrial protein is responsible for cyanide-resistant respiration in Hansenula anomala

Antimycin A-dependent induction of cyanide-resistant respiration in Hansenula anomala was reversibly blocked by carbonylcyanide-m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). When the cells were pulse-labeled with [35S]methionine in the presence of both antimycin A and CCCP, the radioactivity was incorporated into a 39 kDa mitochondrial protein. Upon removal of CCCP, this protein was processed into a 36 kDa form. The increase in the 36 kDa protein completely paralleled that in cyanide-resistant respiration activity, suggesting that the 39 kDa protein is the precursor of the 36 kDa protein, which is responsible for cyanide-resistant respiration.

Cloning and characterization of a gene coding for a protein (KAP) associated with the kinetoplast of epimastigotes and amastigotes of Trypanosoma cruzi

We have cloned and characterized a gene of Trypanosoma cruzi which encodes a protein, KAP (kinetoplasts-associated protein), expressed in the kinetoplasts of epimastigotes and amastigotes, the replicative stages of the parasite, but not in kinetoplasts of trypomastigotes. The single-copy gene is transcribed into a 3900-nt polyadenylated mRNA. Its trans-splicing acceptor site is preceded by a run of 15 adenosine residues. An open reading frame of 1052 codons is followed by a 3' untranslated region containing short sequences characteristic of rapidly degradable RNAs. The potential translation product of the KAP gene contains a central region composed of four blocks of repeats of a 9-amino-acid motif. Rabbit antibodies raised against three synthetic peptides containing KAP sequence recognized a 175-kDa protein in epimastigotes and amastigotes which appears by indirect immunofluorescence to be associated with their kinetoplasts. The antibodies do not recognize the kinetoplast of trypomastigotes. The amino terminus of KAP contains features compatible with mitochondrial topogenic sequences.

The alcohol dehydrogenase system in the yeast, Kluyveromyces lactis

We have studied the alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) system in the yeast Kluyveromyces lactis. Southern hybridization to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae ADH2 gene indicates four probable structural ADH genes in K. lactis. Two of these genes have been isolated from a genomic bank by hybridization to ADH2. The nucleotide sequence of one of these genes shows 80% and 50% sequence identity to the ADH genes of S. cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe respectively. One K. lactis ADH gene is preferentially expressed in glucose-grown cells and, in analogy to S. cerevisiae, was named K1ADH1. The other gene, homologous to K1ADH1 in sequence, shows an amino-terminal extension which displays all of the characteristics of a mitochondrial targeting presequence. We named this gene K1ADH3. The two genes have been localized on different chromosomes by Southern hybridization to an orthogonal-field-alternation gel electrophoresis-resolved K. lactis genome. ADH activities resolved by gel electrophoresis revealed several ADH isozymes which are differently expressed in K. lactis cells depending on the carbon source.

Removal of a hydrophobic domain within the mature portion of a mitochondrial inner membrane protein causes its mislocalization to the matrix

We have examined the import and intramitochondrial localization of the precursor to yeast cytochrome c oxidase subunit Va, a protein of the mitochondrial inner membrane. The results of studies on the import of subunit Va derivatives carrying altered presequences suggest that the uptake of this protein is highly efficient. We found that a presequence of only 5 amino acids (Met-Leu-Ser-Leu-Arg) could direct the import and localization of subunit Va with wild-type efficiency, as judged by several different assays. We also found that subunit Va could be effectively targeted to the mitochondrial inner membrane with a heterologous presequence that failed to direct import of its cognate protein. The results presented here confirmed those of an earlier study and showed clearly that the information required to "sort" subunit Va to the inner membrane resides in the mature protein sequence, not within the presequence per se. We present additional evidence that the aforementioned sorting information is contained, at least in part, in a hydrophobic stretch of 22 amino acids residing within the C-terminal third of the protein. Removal of this domain caused subunit Va to be mislocalized to the mitochondrial matrix.

Assembly of imported subunit 8 into the ATP synthase complex of isolated yeast mitochondria

This study concerns the assembly into a multisubunit enzyme complex of a small hydrophobic protein imported into isolated mitochondria. Subunit 8 of yeast mitochondrial ATPase (normally a mitochondrial gene product) was expressed in vitro as a chimaeric precursor N9L/Y8-1, which includes an N-terminal-cleavable transit peptide to direct its import into mitochondria. Assembly into the enzyme complex of the imported subunit 8 was monitored by immunoadsorption using an immobilized anti-F1-beta monoclonal antibody. Preliminary experiments showed that N9L/Y8-1 imported into normal rho+ mitochondria, with its complement of fully assembled ATPase, did not lead to an appreciable assembly of the exogenous subunit 8. With the expectation that mitochondria previously depleted of subunit 8 could allow such assembly in vitro, target mitochondria were prepared from genetically modified yeast cells in which synthesis of subunit 8 was specifically blocked. Initially, mitochondria were prepared from strain M31, a mit- mutant completely incapable of intramitochondrial biosynthesis of subunit 8. These mit- mitochondria however were unsuitable for assembly studies because they could not import protein in vitro. A controlled depletion strategy was then evolved. An artificial nuclear gene encoding N9L/Y8-1 was brought under the control of a inducible promoter GAL1. This regulated gene construct, in a low copy number yeast expression vector, was introduced into strain M31 to generate strain YGL-1. Galactose control of the expression of N9L/Y8-1 was demonstrated by the ability of strain YGL-1 to grow vigorously on galactose as a carbon source, and by the inability to utilize ethanol alone for prolonged periods of growth. The measurement of bioenergetic parameters in mitochondria from YGL-1 cells experimentally depleted of subunit 8, by transferring growing cells from galactose to ethanol, was consistent with the presence in mitochondria of a mosaic of ATPase, namely fully assembled functional ATPase complexes and partially assembled complexes with defective F0 sectors. These mitochondria demonstrated very efficient import of N9L/Y8-1 and readily incorporated the imported processed subunit 8 protein into ATPase. Comparison of the kinetics of import and assembly of subunit 8 showed that assembly was noticeably delayed with respect to import. These findings open the way to a new systematic analysis of the assembly of imported proteins into multisubunit mitochondrial enzyme complexes.