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Rehn T, Lubiana P, Nguyen THT, Pansegrau E, Schmitt M, Roth LK, Brehmer J, Roeder T, Cadar D, Metwally NG, Bruchhaus I. Ectopic Expression of Plasmodium vivax vir Genes in P. falciparum Affects Cytoadhesion via Increased Expression of Specific var Genes. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10061183. [PMID: 35744701 PMCID: PMC9230084 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10061183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Plasmodium falciparum-infected erythrocytes (PfIEs) adhere to endothelial cell receptors (ECRs) of blood vessels mainly via PfEMP1 proteins to escape elimination via the spleen. Evidence suggests that P. vivax-infected reticulocytes (PvIRs) also bind to ECRs, presumably enabled by VIR proteins, as shown by inhibition experiments and studies with transgenic P. falciparum expressing vir genes. To test this hypothesis, our study investigated the involvement of VIR proteins in cytoadhesion using vir gene-expressing P. falciparum transfectants. Those VIR proteins with a putative transmembrane domain were present in Maurer's clefts, and some were also present in the erythrocyte membrane. The VIR protein without a transmembrane domain (PVX_050690) was not exported. Five of the transgenic P. falciparum cell lines, including the one expressing PVX_050690, showed binding to CD36. We observed highly increased expression of specific var genes encoding PfEMP1s in all CD36-binding transfectants. These results suggest that ectopic vir expression regulates var expression through a yet unknown mechanism. In conclusion, the observed cytoadhesion of P. falciparum expressing vir genes depended on PfEMP1s, making this experimental unsuitable for characterizing VIR proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Torben Rehn
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Pedro Lubiana
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Thi Huyen Trang Nguyen
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Eva Pansegrau
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Marius Schmitt
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Lisa Katharina Roth
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Jana Brehmer
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Thomas Roeder
- Molecular Physiology Department, Zoological Institute, Christian-Albrechts University Kiel, 24118 Kiel, Germany;
- Airway Research Center North (ARCN), German Center for Lung Research (DZL), 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Dániel Cadar
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Nahla Galal Metwally
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
| | - Iris Bruchhaus
- Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, 20359 Hamburg, Germany; (T.R.); (P.L.); (T.H.T.N.); (E.P.); (M.S.); (L.K.R.); (J.B.); (D.C.); (N.G.M.)
- Department of Biology, University of Hamburg, 22601 Hamburg, Germany
- Correspondence:
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102
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Febrianti RA, Narulita E. In-silico analysis of recombinant protein vaccines based on the spike protein of Indonesian SARS-CoV-2 through a reverse vaccinology approach. J Taibah Univ Med Sci 2022; 17:467-478. [PMID: 35250426 PMCID: PMC8881762 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtumed.2022.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Revised: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Objectives This study aimed to produce a recombinant protein vaccine candidate based on an epitope of spike protein from Indonesian SARS-CoV-2 to provide immunogenicity and protection against future infection. Methods A reverse vaccinology approach was used to identify potential vaccine candidates by screening the pathogen's genome through computational analyses. Results Epitope vaccine candidates with the amino acid sequence of FKNHTSPDV were selected. This peptide is hydrophilic, does not induce autoimmune and allergic reactions, is antigenic, is classified as a stable protein, and is predicted to be present in the cell membrane. The selected epitope sequences were inserted into the plasmid vector pcDNA3.1(+) N-GST (thrombin). Inclusion of additional features of the gene encoding glutathione-S transferase, which can increase antigen expression and solubility, and the genes encoding NSP 1-4 proteins, which are essential in replication, added value to the produced recombinant protein. Conclusion Recombinant protein vaccine candidates with the FKNHTSPDV epitope have parameters sufficient for production on a laboratory scale for further testing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riska A. Febrianti
- Department of Biotechnology, Postgraduate Program, University of Jember, Indonesia
| | - Erlia Narulita
- Department of Biotechnology, Postgraduate Program, University of Jember, Indonesia
- Department of Biology Education, University of Jember, Indonesia
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103
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Mao Z, Yang P, Liu H, Mao Y, Lei Y, Hou D, Ma H, Liao X, Jiang W. Whole-Genome Sequencing and Analysis of the White-Rot Fungus Ceriporia lacerata Reveals Its Phylogenetic Status and the Genetic Basis of Lignocellulose Degradation and Terpenoid Synthesis. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:880946. [PMID: 35685935 PMCID: PMC9171200 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.880946] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Ceriporia lacerata is an endophytic white-rot fungus that has lignocellulolytic and terpenoid-biosynthetic abilities. However, little is known about the genomic architecture of this fungus, even at the genus level. In this study, we present the first de novo genome assembly of C. lacerata (CGMCC No. 10485), based on PacBio long-read and Illumina short-read sequencing. The size of the C. lacerata genome is approximately 36 Mb (N50, 3.4 Mb). It encodes a total of 13,243 genes, with further functional analysis revealing that these genes are primarily involved in primary metabolism and host interactions in this strain's saprophytic lifestyle. Phylogenetic analysis based on ITS demonstrated a primary evolutionary position for C. lacerata, while the phylogenetic analysis based on orthogroup inference and average nucleotide identity revealed high-resolution phylogenetic details in which Ceriporia, Phlebia, Phlebiopsis, and Phanerochaete belong to the same evolutionary clade within the order Polyporales. Annotation of carbohydrate-active enzymes across the genome yielded a total of 806 genes encoding enzymes that decompose lignocellulose, particularly ligninolytic enzymes, lytic polysaccharides monooxygenases, and enzymes involved in the biodegradation of aromatic components. These findings illustrate the strain's adaptation to woody habitats, which requires the degradation of lignin and various polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The terpenoid-production potential of C. lacerata was evaluated by comparing the genes of terpenoid biosynthetic pathways across nine Polyporales species. The shared genes highlight the major part of terpenoid synthesis pathways, especially the mevalonic acid pathway, as well as the main pathways of sesquiterpenoid, monoterpenoid, diterpenoid, and triterpenoid synthesis, while the strain-specific genes illustrate the distinct genetic factors determining the synthesis of structurally diverse terpenoids. This is the first genomic analysis of a species from this genus that we are aware of, and it will help advance functional genome research and resource development of this important fungus for applications in renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhitao Mao
- Biodesign Center, Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Ping Yang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
| | - Huanhuan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Food Nutrition and Safety, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin, China
| | - Yufeng Mao
- Biodesign Center, Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Yu Lei
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
| | - Dongwei Hou
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
| | - Hongwu Ma
- Biodesign Center, Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Xiaoping Liao
- Biodesign Center, Key Laboratory of Systems Microbial Biotechnology, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
| | - Wenxia Jiang
- Tianjin Key Laboratory for Industrial Biological Systems and Bioprocessing Engineering, Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
- National Technology Innovation Center of Synthetic Biology, Tianjin, China
- Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Tianjin, China
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104
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First purified recombinant CYP75B including transmembrane helix with unexpected high substrate specificity to (2R)-naringenin. Sci Rep 2022; 12:8548. [PMID: 35595763 PMCID: PMC9122903 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-11556-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Anthochlor pigments (chalcones and aurones) play an important role in yellow flower colourization, the formation of UV-honey guides and show numerous health benefits. The B-ring hydroxylation of chalcones is performed by membrane bound cytochrome P450 enzymes. It was assumed that usual flavonoid 3′-hydroxlases (F3′Hs) are responsible for the 3,4- dihydroxy pattern of chalcones, however, we previously showed that a specialized F3′H, namely chalcone 3-hydroxylase (CH3H), is necessary for the hydroxylation of chalcones. In this study, a sequence encoding membrane bound CH3H from Dahlia variabilis was recombinantly expressed in yeast and a purification procedure was developed. The optimized purification procedure led to an overall recovery of 30% recombinant DvCH3H with a purity of more than 84%. The enzyme was biochemically characterized with regard to its kinetic parameters on various substrates, including racemic naringenin, as well as its enantiomers (2S)-, and (2R)-naringenin, apigenin and kaempferol. We report for the first time the characterization of a purified Cytochrome P450 enzyme from the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway, including the transmembrane helix. Further, we show for the first time that recombinant DvCH3H displays a higher affinity for (2R)-naringenin than for (2S)-naringenin, although (2R)-flavanones are not naturally formed by chalcone isomerase.
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105
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Zhang M, Liu J, Yin Z, Zhang L. Phylogenetic and protein prediction analysis reveals the taxonomically diverse distribution of virulence factors in Bacillus cereus strains. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0262974. [PMID: 35588435 PMCID: PMC9119529 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262974] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus cereus is a food contaminant with widely varying enterotoxic potential due to its virulence proteins. In this article, phylogenetic analysis of the amino acid sequences from the whole-genomes of 41 strains, evolutionary distance calculation of the amino acid sequences of the virulence genes, and functional and structural predictions of the virulence proteins were performed to reveal the taxonomically diverse distribution of virulence factors. The genome evolution of the strains showed a clustering trend based on the protein-coding virulence genes. The strains of B. cereus have evolved into non-toxic risk and toxic risk clusters with medium-high- and medium-low-risk subclusters. The evolutionary transfer distances of incomplete virulence genes relative to housekeeping genes were greater than those of complete virulence genes, and the distance values of HblACD were higher than those of nheABC and CytK among the complete virulence genes. Cytoplasmic localization was impossible for all the virulence proteins, and NheB, NheC, Hbl-B, and Hbl-L1 were predicted to be extracellular. Nhe and Hbl proteins except CytK had similar spatial structures. The predicted structures of Nhe and Hbl mainly showed ‘head’ and ‘tail’ domains. The ‘head’ of NheA and Hbl-B, including two α-helices separated by β-tongue strands, might play a special role in the formation of Nhe trimers and Hbl trimers, respectively. The ‘cap’ of CytK, which includes two ‘latches’ with many β-sheets, formed a β-barrel structure with pores, and a ‘rim’ balanced the structure. The evolution of B. cereus strains showed a clustering tendency based on the protein-coding virulence genes, and the complete virulence-gene operon combination had higher relative genetic stability. The beta-tongue or latch associated with β-sheet folding might play an important role in the binding of virulence structures and pore-forming toxins in B. cereus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming Zhang
- School of Yunkang Medicine and Health, Nanfang College, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Jun Liu
- School of Yunkang Medicine and Health, Nanfang College, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
| | - Zhenzhen Yin
- School of Yunkang Medicine and Health, Nanfang College, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
- * E-mail: (ZY); (LZ)
| | - Li Zhang
- School of Life Science, Liaoning University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
- * E-mail: (ZY); (LZ)
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106
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Yang H, Xue Y, Li B, Lin Y, Li H, Guo Z, Li W, Fu Z, Ding D, Tang J. The chimeric gene atp6c confers cytoplasmic male sterility in maize by impairing the assembly of the mitochondrial ATP synthase complex. MOLECULAR PLANT 2022; 15:872-886. [PMID: 35272047 DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2022.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Revised: 12/30/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) is a powerful tool for the exploitation of hybrid heterosis and the study of signaling and interactions between the nucleus and the cytoplasm. C-type CMS (CMS-C) in maize has long been used in hybrid seed production, but the underlying sterility factor and its mechanism of action remain unclear. In this study, we demonstrate that the mitochondrial gene atp6c confers male sterility in CMS-C maize. The ATP6C protein shows stronger interactions with ATP8 and ATP9 than ATP6 during the assembly of F1Fo-ATP synthase (F-type ATP synthase, ATPase), thereby reducing the quantity and activity of assembled F1Fo-ATP synthase. By contrast, the quantity and activity of the F1' component are increased in CMS-C lines. Reduced F1Fo-ATP synthase activity causes accumulation of excess protons in the inner membrane space of the mitochondria, triggering a burst of reactive oxygen species (ROS), premature programmed cell death of the tapetal cells, and pollen abortion. Collectively, our study identifies a chimeric mitochondrial gene (ATP6C) that causes CMS in maize and documents the contribution of ATP6C to F1Fo-ATP synthase assembly, thereby providing novel insights into the molecular mechanisms of male sterility in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huili Yang
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yadong Xue
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China.
| | - Bing Li
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yanan Lin
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Haochuan Li
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Zhanyong Guo
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Weihua Li
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Zhiyuan Fu
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Dong Ding
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Jihua Tang
- National Key Laboratory of Wheat and Maize Crop Science, College of Agronomy, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China; The Shennong Laboratory, Zhengzhou, China.
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107
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Mark Mondol S, Das D, Priom DM, Shaminur Rahman M, Rafiul Islam M, Rahaman MM. In Silico Identification and Characterization of a Hypothetical Protein From Rhodobacter capsulatus Revealing S-Adenosylmethionine-Dependent Methyltransferase Activity. Bioinform Biol Insights 2022; 16:11779322221094236. [PMID: 35478993 PMCID: PMC9036352 DOI: 10.1177/11779322221094236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 03/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Rhodobacter capsulatus is a purple non-sulfur bacteria widely used as a model organism to study bacterial photosynthesis. It exhibits extensive metabolic activities and demonstrates other distinctive characteristics such as pleomorphism and nitrogen-fixing capability. It can act as a gene transfer agent (GTA). The commercial importance relies on producing polyester polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), extracellular nucleic acids, and commercially critical single-cell proteins. These diverse features make the organism an exciting and environmentally and industrially important one to study. This study was aimed to characterize, model, and annotate the function of a hypothetical protein (Accession no. CAA71016.1) of R capsulatus through computational analysis. The urf7 gene encodes the protein. The tertiary structure was predicted through MODELLER and energy minimization and refinement by YASARA Energy Minimization Server and GalaxyRefine tools. Analysis of sequence similarity, evolutionary relationship, and exploration of domain, family, and superfamily inferred that the protein has S-adenosylmethionine (SAM)-dependent methyltransferase activity. This was further verified by active site prediction by CASTp server and molecular docking analysis through Autodock Vina tool and PatchDock server of the predicted tertiary structure of the protein with its ligands (SAM and SAH). Normally, as a part of the gene product of photosynthetic gene cluster (PGC), the established roles of SAM-dependent methyltransferases are bacteriochlorophyll and carotenoid biosynthesis. But the STRING database unveiled its association with NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase (Complex I). The assembly and regulation of this Complex I is mediated by the gene products of the nuo operon. As a part of this operon, the urf7 gene encodes SAM-dependent methyltransferase. As a consequence of these findings, it is reasonable to propose that the hypothetical protein of interest in this study is a SAM-dependent methyltransferase associated with bacterial NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase assembly. Due to conservation of Complex I from prokaryotes to eukaryotes, R capsulatus can be a model organism of study to understand the common disorders which are linked to the dysfunctions of complex I.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Depro Das
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | | | - M Shaminur Rahman
- Department of Microbiology, Jashore University of Science and Technology, Jashore, Bangladesh.,M Shaminur Rahman is now affiliated to Department of Microbiology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | - M Rafiul Islam
- Department of Microbiology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh
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108
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Li YY, Chen JJ, Liu MY, He WW, Reynolds JA, Wang YN, Wang MQ, Zhang LS. Enhanced Degradation of Juvenile Hormone Promotes Reproductive Diapause in the Predatory Ladybeetle Coccinella Septempunctata. Front Physiol 2022; 13:877153. [PMID: 35574499 PMCID: PMC9099232 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.877153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Improved knowledge on the regulation of reproductive diapause in Coccinella septempunctata, an important predator of aphids, is crucial for improving shelf-life and mass production of the ladybeetles. In many insects, the absence of juvenile hormone (JH) is a central regulator of reproductive diapause. JH is principally degraded by JH esterase (JHE) and JH epoxide hydrolase (JHEH). Previous studies have shown that genes encoding these enzymes were upregulated in early diapause of C. septempunctata, but whether increased JH degradation contributes to the reduction of JH levels and facilitates reproductive diapause remains unknown. Here, we investigate the role of JH and JH degradation genes during reproductive diapause in C. septempunctata females. Applying methoprene, a JH analogue, to the diapause preparation females clearly elevated JH signaling and reversed diapause program, suggesting that a lower level of JH is critical for the induction of reproductive diapause in the ladybeetle. Full-length cDNA sequences of JHE and JHEH were cloned and characterized, and their deduced proteins contain all the conserved active domains and typical motifs as identified in other insects. The expressions of JHE and JHEH were both significantly increased in diapause preparation and remained at a high level for a period throughout diapause, and then decreased after the termination of diapause. Knocking down these JH degradation genes clearly increased the expression levels of JH-inducible genes Krüppel-homolog 1 (Kr-h1) and vitellogenin (Vg), indicating an elevated JH level. Simultaneously, silencing JH degradation genes distinctly reduced diapause-related features and promotes reproduction, indicated by accelerated ovary growth, yolk deposition, and suppressed lipid accumulation. These results indicate that the enhanced JH degradation plays a critical role in regulating reproductive diapause of C. septempunctata.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Yan Li
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jun-Jie Chen
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Meng-Yao Liu
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Wei-Wei He
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Julie A Reynolds
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Evolutionary Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States
| | - Ya-Nan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Meng-Qing Wang
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Li-Sheng Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Natural Enemy Insects, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
- *Correspondence: Li-Sheng Zhang,
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109
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Hao B, Zhou W, Theg SM. Hydrophobic mismatch is a key factor in protein transport across lipid bilayer membranes via the Tat pathway. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:101991. [PMID: 35490783 PMCID: PMC9207671 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.101991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2021] [Revised: 04/13/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The twin-arginine translocation (Tat) pathway transports folded proteins across membranes in bacteria, thylakoids, plant mitochondria, and archaea. In most species, the active Tat machinery consists of three independent subunits: TatA, TatB, and TatC. TatA and TatB possess short transmembrane alpha helices (TMHs), both of which are only 15 residues long in Escherichia coli. Such short TMHs cause a hydrophobic mismatch between Tat subunits and the membrane bilayer, although the functional significance of this mismatch is unclear. Here, we sought to address the functional importance of the hydrophobic mismatch in the Tat transport mechanism in E. coli. We conducted three different assays to evaluate the effect of TMH length mutants on Tat activity and observed that the TMHs of TatA and TatB appear to be evolutionarily tuned to 15 amino acids, with activity dropping off following any modification of this length. Surprisingly, TatA and TatB with as few as 11 residues in their TMHs can still insert into the membrane bilayer, albeit with a decline in membrane integrity. These findings support a model of Tat transport utilizing localized toroidal pores that form when the membrane bilayer is thinned to a critical threshold. In this context, we conclude that the 15-residue length of the TatA and TatB TMHs can be seen as a compromise between the need for some hydrophobic mismatch to allow the membrane to reversibly reach the threshold thinness required for toroidal pore formation and the permanently destabilizing effect of placing even shorter helices into these energy-transducing membranes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Binhan Hao
- Plant Biology Department, University of California, Davis, CA 95616
| | - Wenjie Zhou
- Plant Biology Department, University of California, Davis, CA 95616
| | - Steven M Theg
- Plant Biology Department, University of California, Davis, CA 95616.
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110
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Huang L, Li Z, Sun C, Yin S, Wang B, Duan T, Liu Y, Li J, Pu G. Genome-wide identification, molecular characterization, and gene expression analyses of honeysuckle NHX antiporters suggest their involvement in salt stress adaptation. PeerJ 2022; 10:e13214. [PMID: 35462769 PMCID: PMC9029436 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.13214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2022] [Accepted: 03/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Ion homeostasis is an essential process for the survival of plants under salt stress. Na+/H+ antiporters (NHXs) are secondary ion transporters that regulate Na+ compartmentalization or efflux reduce Na+ toxicity and play a critical role during plant development and stress responses. Methods and Results To gain insight into the functional divergence of NHX genes in honeysuckle, a total of seven LjNHX genes were identified on the whole genome level and were renamed according to their chromosomal positions. All LjNHXs possessed the Na+/H+ exchanger domain and the amiloride-binding site was presented in all NHX proteins except LjNHX4. The phylogenetic analysis divided the seven NHX genes into Vac-clade (LjNHX1/2/3/4/5/7) and PM-clade (LjNHX6) based on their subcellular localization and validated by the distribution of conserved protein motifs and exon/intron organization analysis. The protein-protein interaction network showed that LjNHX4/5/6/7 shared the same putatively interactive proteins, including SOS2, SOS3, HKT1, and AVP1. Cis-acting elements and gene ontology (GO) analysis suggested that most LjNHXs involve in the response to salt stress through ion transmembrane transport. The expression profile analysis revealed that the expression levels of LjNHX3/7 were remarkably affected by salinity. These results suggested that LjNHXs play significant roles in honeysuckle development and response to salt stresses. Conclusions The theoretical foundation was established in the present study for the further functional characterization of the NHX gene family in honeysuckle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luyao Huang
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | | | - Chunyong Sun
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Shijie Yin
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Bin Wang
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Tongyao Duan
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Jia Li
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Gaobin Pu
- Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
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Kootery KP, Sarojini S. Structural and functional characterization of a hypothetical protein in the RD7 region in clinical isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis - an in silico approach to candidate vaccines. J Genet Eng Biotechnol 2022; 20:55. [PMID: 35394551 PMCID: PMC8993957 DOI: 10.1186/s43141-022-00340-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Background Mycobacterium tuberculosis has been ravaging humans by inflicting respiratory tuberculosis since centuries. Bacillus Calmette Guerine (BCG) is the only vaccine available for tuberculosis, and it is known to be poorly effective against adult tuberculosis. Proteins belonging to the ESAT-6 family and PE/PPE family show immune responses and are included in different vaccine trials. Herein, we study the functional and structural characterization of a 248 amino acid long putative protein novel hypothetical protein 1 (NHP1) present in the RD7 region of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (identified first by subtractive hybridization in the clinical isolate RGTB123) using bioinformatics tools. Results Physicochemical properties were studied using Expasy ProtParam and SMS software. We predicted different B-cell and T-cell epitopes by using the immune epitope database (IEDB) and also tested antigenicity, immunogenicity, and allergenicity. Secondary structure of the protein predicted 30% alpha helices, 20% beta strands, and 48% random coils. Tertiary structure of the protein was predicted using the Robetta server using the Mycobacterium smegmatis protein as the putative protein with homology. Structural evaluations were done with Ramachandran plot analysis, ProSA-web, and VERIFY3D, and with GalaxyWEB server, a more stable structure was validated with good stereo chemical properties. Conclusion The present study of a subtracted genomic locus using various bioinformatics tools indicated good immunological properties of the putative mycobacterial protein, NHP1. Evidence obtained from the analyses of NHP1 using structure prediction tools strongly point to the fact that NHP1 is an ancient protein having flavodoxin folding structure with ATP binding sites. Positive scores were obtained for antigenicity, immunogenicity, and virulence too, implying the possibility of NHP1 to be a potential vaccine candidate. Such computational studies might give clues for developing newer vaccines for tuberculosis, which is the need of the hour. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s43141-022-00340-5.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaviya Parambath Kootery
- Department of Lifesciences, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560029, India
| | - Suma Sarojini
- Department of Lifesciences, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560029, India.
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Identification of a protein responsible for the synthesis of archaeal membrane-spanning GDGT lipids. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1545. [PMID: 35318330 PMCID: PMC8941075 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29264-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) are archaeal monolayer membrane lipids that can provide a competitive advantage in extreme environments. Here, we identify a radical SAM protein, tetraether synthase (Tes), that participates in the synthesis of GDGTs. Attempts to generate a tes-deleted mutant in Sulfolobus acidocaldarius were unsuccessful, suggesting that the gene is essential in this organism. Heterologous expression of tes homologues leads to production of GDGT and structurally related lipids in the methanogen Methanococcus maripaludis (which otherwise does not synthesize GDGTs and lacks a tes homolog, but produces a putative GDGT precursor, archaeol). Tes homologues are encoded in the genomes of many archaea, as well as in some bacteria, in which they might be involved in the synthesis of bacterial branched glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers.
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Jeon J, Kim KT, Choi J, Cheong K, Ko J, Choi G, Lee H, Lee GW, Park SY, Kim S, Kim ST, Min CW, Kang S, Lee YH. Alternative splicing diversifies the transcriptome and proteome of the rice blast fungus during host infection. RNA Biol 2022; 19:373-385. [PMID: 35311472 PMCID: PMC8942408 DOI: 10.1080/15476286.2022.2043040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Alternative splicing (AS) contributes to diversifying and regulating cellular responses to environmental conditions and developmental cues by differentially producing multiple mRNA and protein isoforms from a single gene. Previous studies on AS in pathogenic fungi focused on profiling AS isoforms under a limited number of conditions. We analysed AS profiles in the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae, a global threat to rice production, using high-quality transcriptome data representing its vegetative growth (mycelia) and multiple host infection stages. We identified 4,270 AS isoforms derived from 2,413 genes, including 499 genes presumably regulated by infection-specific AS. AS appears to increase during infection, with 32.7% of the AS isoforms being produced during infection but absent in mycelia. Analysis of the isoforms observed at each infection stage showed that 636 AS isoforms were more abundant than corresponding annotated mRNAs, especially after initial hyphal penetration into host cell. Many such dominant isoforms were predicted to encode regulatory proteins such as transcription factors and phospho-transferases. We also identified the genes encoding distinct proteins via AS and confirmed the translation of some isoforms via a proteomic analysis, suggesting potential AS-mediated neo-functionalization of some genes during infection. Comprehensive profiling of the pattern of genome-wide AS during multiple stages of rice-M. oryzae interaction established a foundational resource that will help investigate the role and regulation of AS during rice infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jongbum Jeon
- Interdisciplinary Program in Agricultural Genomics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Plant Immunity Research Center, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Korea Bioinformation Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Daejeon, Korea
| | - Ki-Tae Kim
- Department of Agricultural Life Science, Sunchon National University, Suncheon, Korea
| | - Jaeyoung Choi
- Smart Farm Research Center, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Gangneung, Korea
| | - Kyeongchae Cheong
- Interdisciplinary Program in Agricultural Genomics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Jaeho Ko
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Gobong Choi
- Interdisciplinary Program in Agricultural Genomics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Hyunjun Lee
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | | | - Sook-Young Park
- Department of Agricultural Life Science, Sunchon National University, Suncheon, Korea
| | - Seongbeom Kim
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sun Tae Kim
- Department of Plant Bioscience, Pusan National University, Miryang, Korea
- Life and Energy Convergence Research Institute, Pusan National University, Miryang, Korea
| | - Cheol Woo Min
- Department of Plant Bioscience, Pusan National University, Miryang, Korea
| | - Seogchan Kang
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA USA
| | - Yong-Hwan Lee
- Interdisciplinary Program in Agricultural Genomics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Plant Immunity Research Center, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Center for Fungal Genetic Resources, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
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Capdeville C, Russo L, Penton D, Migliavacca J, Zecevic M, Gries A, Neuhauss SC, Grotzer MA, Baumgartner M. Spatial proteomics finds CD155 and Endophilin-A1 as mediators of growth and invasion in medulloblastoma. Life Sci Alliance 2022; 5:5/6/e202201380. [PMID: 35296518 PMCID: PMC8926928 DOI: 10.26508/lsa.202201380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Revised: 02/18/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The composition of the plasma membrane (PM)-associated proteome of tumor cells determines cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and the response to environmental cues. Whether the PM-associated proteome impacts the phenotype of Medulloblastoma (MB) tumor cells and how it adapts in response to growth factor cues is poorly understood. Using a spatial proteomics approach, we observed that hepatocyte growth factor (HGF)-induced activation of the receptor tyrosine kinase c-MET in MB cells changes the abundance of transmembrane and membrane-associated proteins. The depletion of MAP4K4, a pro-migratory effector kinase downstream of c-MET, leads to a specific decrease of the adhesion and immunomodulatory receptor CD155 and of components of the fast-endophilin-mediated endocytosis (FEME) machinery in the PM-associated proteome of HGF-activated MB cells. The decreased surface expression of CD155 or of the fast-endophilin-mediated endocytosis effector endophilin-A1 reduces growth and invasiveness of MB tumor cells in the tissue context. These data thus describe a novel function of MAP4K4 in the control of the PM-associated proteome of tumor cells and identified two downstream effector mechanisms controlling proliferation and invasiveness of MB cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles Capdeville
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Linda Russo
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - David Penton
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Jessica Migliavacca
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Milica Zecevic
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Alexandre Gries
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Stephan Cf Neuhauss
- Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Michael A Grotzer
- Department of Oncology, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Martin Baumgartner
- Pediatric Molecular Neuro-Oncology Lab, Children's Research Center, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
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Sethi G, Sethi S, Krishna R. Multi-epitope based vaccine design against Staphylococcus epidermidis: A subtractive proteomics and immunoinformatics approach. Microb Pathog 2022; 165:105484. [PMID: 35301068 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2022.105484] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 03/06/2022] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Staphylococcus epidermidis has emerged as a major contributor of nosocomial infections across the world. With the increased rate of emerging resistant and previously undefined infectious diseases, there is a growing need to develop a novel vaccine possessing required immunogenic properties. The adopted reverse vaccinology approach identified "IMPNQILTI" of LysM domain protein, "YSYTYTIDA" of staphylococcal secretory antigen SsaA, and "YNYDANTGQ" neutral metalloproteinaseas potential peptides for vaccine design. The 9-mer epitope of target proteins is antigenic, virulent, surface-exposed, non-allergenic, and conserved across various strains of S. epidermidis. Protein-protein interactions study indicated the involvement of target proteins in major biological pathways for S. epidermidis pathogenesis. Protein-peptide docking was performed, and population coverage analysis showed significant interactions of T-cell epitopes with the HLA-binding molecules while covering 90.58% of the world's population. Further, a multi-epitope vaccine of 177 amino acids long was constructed. Docking with Toll-like receptor (TLR-2) molecule confirmed the effective interaction of the vaccine with the receptor. The vaccine efficiency in generating an effective immune response in the host was evaluated by immune simulation. Finally, in silico cloning confirmed that the constructed vaccine can be efficiently expressed in E. coli. However, the designed vaccine needs experimental validation to determine the effectiveness and immunogenicity profile, which will ensure an active immunity against S. epidermidis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guneswar Sethi
- Department of Bioinformatics, Pondicherry University, Puducherry, 605014, India.
| | - Satyanarayan Sethi
- Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Research Institute, Bhubaneswar, 751002, India.
| | - Ramadas Krishna
- Department of Bioinformatics, Pondicherry University, Puducherry, 605014, India.
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Reddy PS, Dhaware MG, Sivasakthi K, Divya K, Nagaraju M, Sri Cindhuri K, Kavi Kishor PB, Bhatnagar-Mathur P, Vadez V, Sharma KK. Pearl Millet Aquaporin Gene PgPIP2;6 Improves Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Transgenic Tobacco. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:820996. [PMID: 35356115 PMCID: PMC8959815 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.820996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L) R. Br.] is an important cereal crop of the semiarid tropics, which can withstand prolonged drought and heat stress. Considering an active involvement of the aquaporin (AQP) genes in water transport and desiccation tolerance besides several basic functions, their potential role in abiotic stress tolerance was systematically characterized and functionally validated. A total of 34 AQP genes from P. glaucum were identified and categorized into four subfamilies, viz., plasma membrane intrinsic proteins (PIPs), tonoplast intrinsic proteins (TIPs), nodulin-26-like intrinsic proteins (NIPs), and small basic intrinsic proteins (SIPs). Sequence analysis revealed that PgAQPs have conserved characters of AQP genes with a closer relationship to sorghum. The PgAQPs were expressed differentially under high vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and progressive drought stresses where the PgPIP2;6 gene showed significant expression under high VPD and drought stress. Transgenic tobacco plants were developed by heterologous expression of the PgPIP2;6 gene and functionally characterized under different abiotic stresses to further unravel their role. Transgenic tobacco plants in the T2 generations displayed restricted transpiration and low root exudation rates in low- and high-VPD conditions. Under progressive drought stress, wild-type (WT) plants showed a quick or faster decline of soil moisture than transgenics. While under heat stress, PgPIP2;6 transgenics showed better adaptation to heat (40°C) with high canopy temperature depression (CTD) and low transpiration; under low-temperature stress, they displayed lower transpiration than their non-transgenic counterparts. Cumulatively, lower transpiration rate (Tr), low root exudation rate, declined transpiration, elevated CTD, and lower transpiration indicate that PgPIP2;6 plays a role under abiotic stress tolerance. Since the PgPIP2;6 transgenic plants exhibited better adaptation against major abiotic stresses such as drought, high VPD, heat, and cold stresses by virtue of enhanced transpiration efficiency, it has the potential to engineer abiotic stress tolerance for sustained growth and productivity of crops.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mahamaya G. Dhaware
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Kaliamoorthy Sivasakthi
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Kummari Divya
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Marka Nagaraju
- Department of Biochemistry, ICMR – National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad, India
| | - Katamreddy Sri Cindhuri
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Polavarapu Bilhan Kavi Kishor
- Department of Biotechnology, Vignan’s Foundation for Science, Technology & Research (Deemed to be University), Vadlamudi, India
| | - Pooja Bhatnagar-Mathur
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Vincent Vadez
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
| | - Kiran K. Sharma
- International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, India
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Kader MA, Ahammed A, Khan MS, Ashik SAA, Islam MS, Hossain MU. Hypothetical protein predicted to be tumor suppressor: a protein functional analysis. Genomics Inform 2022; 20:e6. [PMID: 35399005 PMCID: PMC9002001 DOI: 10.5808/gi.21073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Litorilituus sediminis is a Gram-negative, aerobic, novel bacterium under the family of Colwelliaceae, has a stunning hypothetical protein containing domain called von Hippel-Lindau that has significant tumor suppressor activity. Therefore, this study was designed to elucidate the structure and function of the biologically important hypothetical protein EMK97_00595 (QBG34344.1) using several bioinformatics tools. The functional annotation exposed that the hypothetical protein is an extracellular secretory soluble signal peptide and contains the von Hippel-Lindau (VHL; VHL beta) domain that has a significant role in tumor suppression. This domain is conserved throughout evolution, as its homologs are available in various types of the organism like mammals, insects, and nematode. The gene product of VHL has a critical regulatory activity in the ubiquitous oxygen-sensing pathway. This domain has a significant role in inhibiting cell proliferation, angiogenesis progression, kidney cancer, breast cancer, and colon cancer. At last, the current study depicts that the annotated hypothetical protein is linked with tumor suppressor activity which might be of great interest to future research in the higher organism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Md Abdul Kader
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh
| | - Akash Ahammed
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh
| | - Md Sharif Khan
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh
| | - Sheikh Abdullah Al Ashik
- Department of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Tangail 1902, Bangladesh
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Abstract
Membrane proteins, particularly those that are α-helical, such as transporters and G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), have significant biological relevance. However, their expression and purification pose difficulties because of their poor water solubilities, which impedes progress in this field. The QTY method, a code-based protein-engineering approach, was recently developed to produce soluble transmembrane proteins. Here, we describe a comprehensive Web server built for QTY design and its relevance for in silico analyses. Typically, the simple design model is expected to require only 2 to 4 min of computer time, and the library design model requires 2 to 5 h, depending on the target protein size and the number of transmembrane helices. Detailed protocols for using the server with both the simple design and library design modules are provided. Methods for experiments following the QTY design are also included to facilitate the implementation of this approach. The design pipeline was further evaluated using microbial transmembrane proteins and structural alignment between the designed proteins and their origins by employing AlphaFold2. The results reveal that mutants generated by the developed pipeline were highly identical to their origins in terms of three-dimensional (3D) structures. In summary, the utilization of our Web server and associated protocols will enable QTY-based protein engineering to be implemented in a convenient, fast, accurate, and rational manner. The Protein Solubilizing Server (PSS) is publicly available at http://pss.sjtu.edu.cn. IMPORTANCE Water-soluble expression and purification are of considerable importance for protein identification and characterization. However, there has been a lack of an effective method for water-soluble expression of membrane proteins, which has severely hampered their studies. Here, an enabling comprehensive Web server, PSS, was developed for designing water-soluble mutants of α-helical membrane proteins, based on QTY design, a code-based protein-engineering approach. With microbial transmembrane proteins and GPCRs as examples, we systematically evaluated the server and demonstrated its successful performance. PSS is readily available for worldwide users as a Web-based tool, rendering QTY-based protein engineering convenient, efficient, accurate, and rational.
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Hu XL, Zhang J, Kaundal R, Kataria R, Labbé JL, Mitchell JC, Tschaplinski TJ, Tuskan GA, Cheng ZM(M, Yang X. Diversity and conservation of plant small secreted proteins associated with arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis. HORTICULTURE RESEARCH 2022; 9:uhac043. [PMID: 35184190 PMCID: PMC8985099 DOI: 10.1093/hr/uhac043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis (AMS) is widespread mutualistic association between plants and fungi, which plays an essential role in nutrient exchange, enhancement in plant stress resistance, development of host, and ecosystem sustainability. Previous studies have shown that plant small secreted proteins (SSPs) are involved in beneficial symbiotic interactions. However, the role of SSPs in the evolution of AMS has not been well studied yet. In this study, we performed computational analysis of SSPs in 60 plant species and identified three AMS-specific ortholog groups containing SSPs only from at least 30% of the AMS species in this study and three AMS-preferential ortholog groups containing SSPs from both AMS and non-AMS species, with AMS species containing significantly more SSPs than non-AMS species. We found that independent lineages of monocot and eudicot plants contained genes in the AMS-specific ortholog groups and had significant expansion in the AMS-preferential ortholog groups. Also, two AMS-preferential ortholog groups showed convergent changes, between monocot and eudicot species, in gene expression in response to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Rhizophagus irregularis. Furthermore, conserved cis-elements were identified in the promoter regions of the genes showing convergent gene expression. We found that the SSPs, and their closely related homologs, in each of three AMS-preferential ortholog groups, had some local variations in the protein structural alignment. We also identified genes co-expressed with the Populus trichocarpa SSP genes in the AMS-preferential ortholog groups. This first plant kingdom-wide analysis on SSP provides insights on plant-AMS convergent evolution with specific SSP gene expression and local diversification of protein structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Li Hu
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Jin Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Subtropical Silviculture, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 311300, China
| | - Rakesh Kaundal
- Department of Plants, Soils and Climate, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Raghav Kataria
- Department of Plants, Soils and Climate, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Jesse L Labbé
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Julie C Mitchell
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Timothy J Tschaplinski
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
- The Center for Bioenergy Innovation, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Gerald A Tuskan
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
- The Center for Bioenergy Innovation, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
| | - Zong-Ming (Max) Cheng
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
- College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210095 China
| | - Xiaohan Yang
- Department of Plant Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
- Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
- The Center for Bioenergy Innovation, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37831, USA
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Lin Y, Li P, Zhang Y, Akhter D, Pan R, Fu Z, Huang M, Li X, Feng Y. Unprecedented organelle genomic variations in morning glories reveal independent evolutionary scenarios of parasitic plants and the diversification of plant mitochondrial complexes. BMC Biol 2022; 20:49. [PMID: 35172831 PMCID: PMC8851834 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01250-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2021] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The morning glories (Convolvulaceae) are distributed worldwide and produce economically important crops, medicinal herbs, and ornamentals. Members of this family are diverse in morphological characteristics and trophic modes, including the leafless parasitic Cuscuta (dodders). Organelle genomes were generally used for studying plant phylogeny and genomic variations. Notably, plastomes in parasitic plants always show non-canonical features, such as reduced size and accelerated rates. However, few organelle genomes of this group have been sequenced, hindering our understanding of their evolution, and dodder mitogenome in particular. Results We assembled 22 new mitogenomes and 12 new plastomes in Convolvulaceae. Alongside previously known ones, we totally analyzed organelle genomes of 23 species in the family. Our sampling includes 16 leafy autotrophic species and 7 leafless parasitic dodders, covering 8 of the 12 tribes. Both the plastid and mitochondrial genomes of these plants have encountered variations that were rarely observed in other angiosperms. All of the plastomes possessed atypical IR boundaries. Besides the gene and IR losses in dodders, some leafy species also showed gene and intron losses, duplications, structural variations, and insertions of foreign DNAs. The phylogeny reconstructed by plastid protein coding sequences confirmed the previous relationship of the tribes. However, the monophyly of ‘Merremieae’ and the sister group of Cuscuta remained uncertain. The mitogenome was significantly inflated in Cuscuta japonica, which has exceeded over 800 kb and integrated massive DNAs from other species. In other dodders, mitogenomes were maintained in small size, revealing divergent evolutionary strategies. Mutations unique to plants were detected in the mitochondrial gene ccmFc, which has broken into three fragments through gene fission and splicing shift. The unusual changes likely initially happened to the common ancestor of the family and were caused by a foreign insertion from rosids followed by double-strand breaks and imprecise DNA repairs. The coding regions of ccmFc expanded at both sides after the fission, which may have altered the protein structure. Conclusions Our family-scale analyses uncovered unusual scenarios for both organelle genomes in Convolvulaceae, especially in parasitic plants. The data provided valuable genetic resources for studying the evolution of Convolvulaceae and plant parasitism. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12915-022-01250-1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanxiang Lin
- College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, 350122, Fujian, China
| | - Pan Li
- MOE Laboratory of Biosystem Homeostasis and Protection, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yuchan Zhang
- Institute of Crop Science, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang, China
| | - Delara Akhter
- Institute of Crop Science, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang, China.,Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Sylhet Agricultural University, Sylhet Division 3100, Sylhet, Bangladesh
| | - Ronghui Pan
- Institute of Crop Science, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang, China.,ZJU-Hangzhou Global Scientific and Technological Innovation Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027, China
| | - Zhixi Fu
- College of Life Science, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610101, Sichuan, China
| | - Mingqing Huang
- College of Pharmacy, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, 350122, Fujian, China
| | - Xiaobo Li
- Key Laboratory of Growth Regulation and Translational Research of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, 310024, Zhejiang, China.,Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yanlei Feng
- Key Laboratory of Growth Regulation and Translational Research of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, 310024, Zhejiang, China. .,Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, Zhejiang, China.
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The ACE genes in Aphelenchoides besseyi isolates and their expression correlation to the fenamiphos treatment. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1975. [PMID: 35132122 PMCID: PMC8821594 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05998-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Aphelenchoides besseyi could cause great yield losses of rice and many economically important crops. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors were commonly used to manage plant-parasitic nematodes. However, nematodes resistant to AChE inhibitors have been increasingly reported due to the extensive use of these chemicals. The current study was aimed to establish the correlation between fenamiphos (an AChE-inhibitor) sensitivities and acetylcholinesterase genes (ace) by analyzing two isolates of A. besseyi (designated Rl and HSF), which displayed differential sensitivities to fenamiphos. The concentrations of fenamiphos that led to the death of 50% (LD50) of Rl and HSF were 572.2 ppm and 129.4 ppm, respectively. Three ace genes were cloned from A. besseyi and sequenced. Sequence searching and phylogenic analyses revealed that AChEs of R1 and HSF shared strong similarities with those of various vertebrate and invertebrate species. Molecular docking analysis indicated that AChEs-HSF had much higher affinities to fenamiphos than AChEs-R1. Quantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR analyses revealed that expression of three ace genes were downregulated in HSF but were upregulated in Rl after exposure to 100 ppm fenamiphos for 12 h. The results indicated that the expression of the ace genes was modulated in response to fenamiphos in different nematode strains. An increased expression of the ace genes might contribute to fenamiphos-insensitivity as seen in the Rl isolate.
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Ramdass AC, Rampersad SN. Detection and diversity of the mannosylerythritol lipid (MEL) gene cluster and lipase A and B genes of Moesziomyces antarcticus isolated from terrestrial sites chronically contaminated with crude oil in Trinidad. BMC Microbiol 2022; 22:43. [PMID: 35120442 PMCID: PMC8815271 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-021-02419-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Mannosylerythritol lipids (MELs) belong to the class of glycolipid biosurfactants and are produced by members of the Ustilago and Moesziomyces genera. Production of MELs is regulated by a biosynthetic gene cluster (MEL BGC). Extracellular lipase activity is also associated with MEL production. Most microbial glycolipid-producers are isolated from oil-contaminated environments. MEL-producing yeast that are capable of metabolizing crude oil are understudied, and there is very limited data on indigenous strains from tropical climates. Analysis of the MEL BGC and lipase genes in Trinidad M. antarcticus strains, using a gene-targeted approach, revealed a correlation between their intrinsic capability to degrade crude oil and their adaptation to survive in a chronically polluted terrestrial environment. RESULTS M. antarcticus was isolated from naturally-occurring crude oil seeps and an asphaltic mud volcano in Trinidad; these are habitats that have not been previously reported for this species. Genus identification was confirmed by the large-subunit (LSU) and the small-subunit (SSU) sequence comparisons and species identification was confirmed by ITS sequence comparisons and phylogenetic inference. The essential genes (Emt1, Mac1, Mac2, Mmf1) of the MEL BGC were detected with gene-specific primers. Emt1p, Mac1p and Mmf1p sequence analyses confirmed that the Trinidad strains harboured novel synonymous amino acid (aa) substitutions and structural comparisons revealed different regions of disorder, specifically for the Emt1p sequence. Functionality of each protein sequence was confirmed through motif mining and mutation prediction. Phylogenetic relatedness was inferred for Emt1p, Mac1p and Mmf1p sequences. The Trinidad strains clustered with other M. antarcticus sequences, however, the representative Trinidad M. antarcticus sequences consistently formed a separate, highly supported branch for each protein. Similar phylogenetic placement was indicated for LipA and LipB nucleotide and protein sequences. The Trinidad strains also demonstrated lipolytic activity in culture, with an ability to utilize different carbon sources. Comparative evolution of MEL BGC and LipA gene suggested early and late duplication events, depending on the gene, followed by a number of speciation events within Ustilaginaceae. M. antarcticus and M. aphidis were separated from all other members of Ustilaginaceae and two gene homologues were detected, one for each species. CONCLUSIONS Sequence analyses was based on a novel gene-targeted approach to analyze the essential genes of the MEL BGC and LipA and LipB genes of M. antarcticus strains from Trinidad. The findings indicated that these strains accumulated nucleotide mutations to a threshold level that did not affect the function of specific proteins encoded by the MEL BGC and LipA and LipB genes. The biosurfactant and lipase enzymes secreted by these Trinidad M. antarcticus strains facilitated their survival in oil-contaminated terrestrial environments. These findings suggest that the Trinidad strains should be explored as promising candidates for the commercial production of MEL biosurfactants and lipase enzymes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda C. Ramdass
- Biochemistry Research Laboratory (Rm216), Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, West Indies Trinidad and Tobago
| | - Sephra N. Rampersad
- Biochemistry Research Laboratory (Rm216), Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, West Indies Trinidad and Tobago
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123
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Overway EM, Bosma KJ, Claxton DP, Oeser JK, Singh K, Breidenbach LB, Mchaourab HS, Davis LK, O'Brien RM. Nonsynonymous single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the G6PC2 gene affect protein expression, enzyme activity, and fasting blood glucose. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:101534. [PMID: 34954144 PMCID: PMC8800118 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.101534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2021] [Revised: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
G6PC2 encodes a glucose-6-phosphatase (G6Pase) catalytic subunit that modulates the sensitivity of insulin secretion to glucose and thereby regulates fasting blood glucose (FBG). A common single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in G6PC2, rs560887 is an important determinant of human FBG variability. This SNP has a subtle effect on G6PC2 RNA splicing, which raises the question as to whether nonsynonymous SNPs with a major impact on G6PC2 stability or enzyme activity might have a broader disease/metabolic impact. Previous attempts to characterize such SNPs were limited by the very low inherent G6Pase activity and expression of G6PC2 protein in islet-derived cell lines. In this study, we describe the use of a plasmid vector that confers high G6PC2 protein expression in islet cells, allowing for a functional analysis of 22 nonsynonymous G6PC2 SNPs, 19 of which alter amino acids that are conserved in mouse G6PC2 and the human and mouse variants of the related G6PC1 isoform. We show that 16 of these SNPs markedly impair G6PC2 protein expression (>50% decrease). These SNPs have variable effects on the stability of human and mouse G6PC1, despite the high sequence homology between these isoforms. Four of the remaining six SNPs impaired G6PC2 enzyme activity. Electronic health record-derived phenotype analyses showed an association between high-impact SNPs and FBG, but not other diseases/metabolites. While homozygous G6pc2 deletion in mice increases the risk of hypoglycemia, these human data reveal no evidence that the beneficial use of partial G6PC2 inhibitors to lower FBG would be associated with unintended negative consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily M Overway
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Karin J Bosma
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Derek P Claxton
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - James K Oeser
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Kritika Singh
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Lindsay B Breidenbach
- Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Hassane S Mchaourab
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Lea K Davis
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Richard M O'Brien
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
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124
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Yasuda M, Yamamoto T, Nagakubo T, Morinaga K, Obana N, Nomura N, Toyofuku M. Phage Genes Induce Quorum Sensing Signal Release through Membrane Vesicle Formation. Microbes Environ 2022; 37. [PMID: 35082176 PMCID: PMC8958291 DOI: 10.1264/jsme2.me21067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Membrane vesicles (MVs) released from the bacterium Paracoccus denitrificans Pd1222 are enriched with the quorum sensing (QS) signaling molecule N-hexadecanoyl-l-homoserine lactone (C16-HSL). However, the biogenesis of MVs in Pd1222 remains unclear. Investigations on MV formation are crucial for obtaining a more detailed understanding of the dynamics of MV-assisted signaling. In the present study, live-cell imaging showed that P. denitrificans Pd1222 produced MVs through cell lysis under DNA-damaging conditions. DNA sequencing of MVs and a transcriptome ana-lysis of cells indicated that the expression of a prophage region was up-regulated at the onset of MV formation under DNA-damaging conditions. A further sequence ana-lysis identified a putative endolysin (Pden_0381) and holin (Pden_0382) in the prophage region. The expression of these genes was regulated by RecA. Using gene knockout mutants, we showed that prophage-encoded endolysin was critical for MV formation by P. denitrificans Pd1222 under DNA-damaging conditions. MV triggering by endolysin was dependent on the putative holin, which presumably transported endolysin to the periplasmic space. C16-HSL quantification revealed that more signals were released into the milieu as a consequence of the effects of endolysin. Using a QS reporter strain, we found that the QS response in P. denitrificans was stimulated by inducing the expression of endolysin. Collectively, these results provide novel insights into the mechanisms by which a bacterial cell-to-cell communication system is manipulated by phage genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Yasuda
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
| | - Tatsuya Yamamoto
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
| | - Toshiki Nagakubo
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
| | - Kana Morinaga
- Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba
| | - Nozomu Obana
- Transborder Medical Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba.,Microbiology Research Center for Sustainability, University of Tsukuba
| | - Nobuhiko Nomura
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba.,Microbiology Research Center for Sustainability, University of Tsukuba
| | - Masanori Toyofuku
- Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba.,Microbiology Research Center for Sustainability, University of Tsukuba.,Suntory Rising Stars Encouragement Program in Life Sciences (SunRiSE)
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125
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van Gils JHM, Gogishvili D, van Eck J, Bouwmeester R, van Dijk E, Abeln S. How sticky are our proteins? Quantifying hydrophobicity of the human proteome. BIOINFORMATICS ADVANCES 2022; 2:vbac002. [PMID: 36699344 PMCID: PMC9710682 DOI: 10.1093/bioadv/vbac002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Summary Proteins tend to bury hydrophobic residues inside their core during the folding process to provide stability to the protein structure and to prevent aggregation. Nevertheless, proteins do expose some 'sticky' hydrophobic residues to the solvent. These residues can play an important functional role, e.g. in protein-protein and membrane interactions. Here, we first investigate how hydrophobic protein surfaces are by providing three measures for surface hydrophobicity: the total hydrophobic surface area, the relative hydrophobic surface area and-using our MolPatch method-the largest hydrophobic patch. Secondly, we analyze how difficult it is to predict these measures from sequence: by adapting solvent accessibility predictions from NetSurfP2.0, we obtain well-performing prediction methods for the THSA and RHSA, while predicting LHP is more challenging. Finally, we analyze implications of exposed hydrophobic surfaces: we show that hydrophobic proteins typically have low expression, suggesting cells avoid an overabundance of sticky proteins. Availability and implementation The data underlying this article are available in GitHub at https://github.com/ibivu/hydrophobic_patches. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics Advances online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juami Hermine Mariama van Gils
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands,To whom correspondence should be addressed. or
| | - Dea Gogishvili
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands
| | - Jan van Eck
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands
| | - Robbin Bouwmeester
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands
| | - Erik van Dijk
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands
| | - Sanne Abeln
- Computer Science Department, Center for Integrative Bioinformatics (IBIVU), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Noord-Holland, The Netherlands,To whom correspondence should be addressed. or
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Zhu F, Alseekh S, Koper K, Tong H, Nikoloski Z, Naake T, Liu H, Yan J, Brotman Y, Wen W, Maeda H, Cheng Y, Fernie AR. Genome-wide association of the metabolic shifts underpinning dark-induced senescence in Arabidopsis. THE PLANT CELL 2022; 34:557-578. [PMID: 34623442 PMCID: PMC8774053 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koab251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/05/2021] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Dark-induced senescence provokes profound metabolic shifts to recycle nutrients and to guarantee plant survival. To date, research on these processes has largely focused on characterizing mutants deficient in individual pathways. Here, we adopted a time-resolved genome-wide association-based approach to characterize dark-induced senescence by evaluating the photochemical efficiency and content of primary and lipid metabolites at the beginning, or after 3 or 6 days in darkness. We discovered six patterns of metabolic shifts and identified 215 associations with 81 candidate genes being involved in this process. Among these associations, we validated the roles of four genes associated with glycine, galactinol, threonine, and ornithine levels. We also demonstrated the function of threonine and galactinol catabolism during dark-induced senescence. Intriguingly, we determined that the association between tyrosine contents and TYROSINE AMINOTRANSFERASE 1 influences enzyme activity of the encoded protein and transcriptional activity of the gene under normal and dark conditions, respectively. Moreover, the single-nucleotide polymorphisms affecting the expression of THREONINE ALDOLASE 1 and the amino acid transporter gene AVT1B, respectively, only underlie the variation in threonine and glycine levels in the dark. Taken together, these results allow us to present a very detailed model of the metabolic aspects of dark-induced senescence, as well as the process itself.
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Affiliation(s)
- Feng Zhu
- National R&D Center for Citrus Preservation, Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology, Ministry of Education, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
| | - Saleh Alseekh
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
- Center of Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology, Plovdiv 4000, Bulgaria
| | - Kaan Koper
- Department of Botany, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
| | - Hao Tong
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
- Center of Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology, Plovdiv 4000, Bulgaria
- Bioinformatics, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam 14476, Germany
| | - Zoran Nikoloski
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
- Center of Plant Systems Biology and Biotechnology, Plovdiv 4000, Bulgaria
- Bioinformatics, Institute of Biochemistry and Biology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam 14476, Germany
| | - Thomas Naake
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
| | - Haijun Liu
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
- Gregor Mendel Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1030, Austria
| | - Jianbing Yan
- National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Yariv Brotman
- Max-Planck-Institut für Molekulare Pflanzenphysiologie, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba, Israel
| | - Weiwei Wen
- National R&D Center for Citrus Preservation, Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology, Ministry of Education, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Hiroshi Maeda
- Department of Botany, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
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Ogawa H, Fujikura D, Namba H, Yamashita N, Honda T, Yamada M. Nectin-2 Acts as a Viral Entry Mediated Molecule That Binds to Human Herpesvirus 6B Glycoprotein B. Viruses 2022; 14:v14010160. [PMID: 35062364 PMCID: PMC8779676 DOI: 10.3390/v14010160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2021] [Revised: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Human herpesvirus 6B (HHV-6B) is a T-lymphotropic virus and the etiological agent of exanthem subitum. HHV-6B is present in a latent or persistent form after primary infection and is produced in the salivary glands or transmitted to this organ. Infected individuals continue to secrete the virus in their saliva, which is thus considered a source for virus transmission. HHV-6B primarily propagates in T cells because its entry receptor, CD134, is mainly expressed by activated T cells. The virus then spreads to the host’s organs, including the salivary glands, nervous system, and liver. However, CD134 expression is not detected in these organs. Therefore, HHV-6B may be entering cells via a currently unidentified cell surface molecule, but the mechanisms for this have not yet been investigated. In this study, we investigated a CD134-independent virus entry mechanism in the parotid-derived cell line HSY. First, we confirmed viral infection in CD134-membrane unanchored HSY cells. We then determined that nectin cell adhesion molecule 2 (nectin-2) mediated virus entry and that HHV-6B-insensitive T-cells transduced with nectin-2 were transformed into virus-permissive cells. We also found that virus entry was significantly reduced in nectin-2 knockout parotid-derived cells. Furthermore, we showed that HHV-6B glycoprotein B (gB) interacted with the nectin-2 V-set domain. The results suggest that nectin-2 acts as an HHV-6B entry-mediated protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hirohito Ogawa
- Department of Virology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8558, Japan; (H.N.); (N.Y.); (T.H.)
- Correspondence: (H.O.); (M.Y.)
| | - Daisuke Fujikura
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Kitasato University, Higashi 23-35-1, Towada 034-8628, Japan;
| | - Hikaru Namba
- Department of Virology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8558, Japan; (H.N.); (N.Y.); (T.H.)
| | - Nobuko Yamashita
- Department of Virology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8558, Japan; (H.N.); (N.Y.); (T.H.)
| | - Tomoyuki Honda
- Department of Virology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8558, Japan; (H.N.); (N.Y.); (T.H.)
| | - Masao Yamada
- Department of Virology, Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2-5-1 Shikata-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8558, Japan; (H.N.); (N.Y.); (T.H.)
- Correspondence: (H.O.); (M.Y.)
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128
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Carvalho-Costa TM, Tiveron RDR, Mendes MT, Barbosa CG, Nevoa JC, Roza GA, Silva MV, Figueiredo HCP, Rodrigues V, Soares SDC, Oliveira CJF. Salivary and Intestinal Transcriptomes Reveal Differential Gene Expression in Starving, Fed and Trypanosoma cruzi-Infected Rhodnius neglectus. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 11:773357. [PMID: 34988032 PMCID: PMC8722679 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2021.773357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Rhodnius neglectus is a potential vector of Trypanosoma cruzi (Tc), the causative agent of Chagas disease. The salivary glands (SGs) and intestine (INT) are actively required during blood feeding. The saliva from SGs is injected into the vertebrate host, modulating immune responses and favoring feeding for INT digestion. Tc infection significantly alters the physiology of these tissues; however, studies that assess this are still scarce. This study aimed to gain a better understanding of the global transcriptional expression of genes in SGs and INT during fasting (FA), fed (FE), and fed in the presence of Tc (FE + Tc) conditions. In FA, the expression of transcripts related to homeostasis maintenance proteins during periods of stress was predominant. Therefore, the transcript levels of Tret1-like and Hsp70Ba proteins were increased. Blood appeared to be responsible for alterations found in the FE group, as most of the expressed transcripts, such as proteases and cathepsin D, were related to digestion. In FE + Tc group, there was a decreased expression of blood processing genes for insect metabolism (e.g., Antigen-5 precursor, Pr13a, and Obp), detoxification (Sult1) in INT and acid phosphatases in SG. We also found decreased transcriptional expression of lipocalins and nitrophorins in SG and two new proteins, pacifastin and diptericin, in INT. Several transcripts of unknown proteins with investigative potential were found in both tissues. Our results also show that the presence of Tc can change the expression in both tissues for a long or short period of time. While SG homeostasis seems to be re-established on day 9, changes in INT are still evident. The findings of this study may be used for future research on parasite-vector interactions and contribute to the understanding of food physiology and post-meal/infection in triatomines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamires Marielem Carvalho-Costa
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Rafael Destro Rosa Tiveron
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Maria Tays Mendes
- Biomedical Research Center, The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, United States
| | - Cecília Gomes Barbosa
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Jessica Coraiola Nevoa
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Guilherme Augusto Roza
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Marcos Vinícius Silva
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | | | - Virmondes Rodrigues
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Siomar de Castro Soares
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
| | - Carlo José Freire Oliveira
- Laboratory of Immunology and Bioinformatics, Institute of Biological and Natural Sciences, Federal University of Triangulo Mineiro, Uberaba, Brazil
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129
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Characterization and Modification of Light-Sensitive Phosphodiesterases from Choanoflagellates. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12010088. [PMID: 35053236 PMCID: PMC8774190 DOI: 10.3390/biom12010088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2021] [Revised: 12/27/2021] [Accepted: 12/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Enzyme rhodopsins, including cyclase opsins (Cyclops) and rhodopsin phosphodiesterases (RhoPDEs), were recently discovered in fungi, algae and protists. In contrast to the well-developed light-gated guanylyl/adenylyl cyclases as optogenetic tools, ideal light-regulated phosphodiesterases are still in demand. Here, we investigated and engineered the RhoPDEs from Salpingoeca rosetta, Choanoeca flexa and three other protists. All the RhoPDEs (fused with a cytosolic N-terminal YFP tag) can be expressed in Xenopus oocytes, except the AsRhoPDE that lacks the retinal-binding lysine residue in the last (8th) transmembrane helix. An N296K mutation of YFP::AsRhoPDE enabled its expression in oocytes, but this mutant still has no cGMP hydrolysis activity. Among the RhoPDEs tested, SrRhoPDE, CfRhoPDE1, 4 and MrRhoPDE exhibited light-enhanced cGMP hydrolysis activity. Engineering SrRhoPDE, we obtained two single point mutants, L623F and E657Q, in the C-terminal catalytic domain, which showed ~40 times decreased cGMP hydrolysis activity without affecting the light activation ratio. The molecular characterization and modification will aid in developing ideal light-regulated phosphodiesterase tools in the future.
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Cui LH, Min HJ, Yu SG, Byun MY, Oh TR, Lee A, Yang HW, Kim WT. OsATL38 mediates mono-ubiquitination of the 14-3-3 protein OsGF14d and negatively regulates the cold stress response in rice. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2022; 73:307-323. [PMID: 34436579 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erab392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
One of the major regulatory pathways that permits plants to convert an external stimulus into an internal cellular response within a short period of time is the ubiquitination pathway. In this study, OsATL38 was identified as a low temperature-induced gene that encodes a rice homolog of Arabidopsis Tóxicos en Levadura RING-type E3 ubiquitin (Ub) ligase, which was predominantly localized to the plasma membrane. OsATL38-overexpressing transgenic rice plants exhibited decreased tolerance to cold stress as compared with wild-type rice plants. In contrast, RNAi-mediated OsATL38 knockdown transgenic progeny exhibited markedly increased tolerance to cold stress relative to that of wild-type plants, which indicated a negative role of OsATL38 in response to cold stress. Yeast two-hybrid, in vitro pull-down, and co-immunoprecipitation assays revealed that OsATL38 physically interacted with OsGF14d, a rice 14-3-3 protein. An in vivo target ubiquitination assay indicated that OsGF14d was mono-ubiquitinated by OsATL38. osgf14d knockout mutant plants were more sensitive to cold stress than wild-type rice plants, indicating that OsGF14d is a positive factor in the response to cold stress. These results provide evidence that the RING E3 Ub ligase OsATL38 negatively regulates the cold stress response in rice via mono-ubiquitination of OsGF14d 14-3-3 protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Hua Cui
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Hye Jo Min
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Seong Guan Yu
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Mi Young Byun
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Tae Rin Oh
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Andosung Lee
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Hee Woong Yang
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
| | - Woo Taek Kim
- Department of Systems Biology and Division of Life Science, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
- Institute of Life Science and Biotechnology, Yonsei University, Seoul 03722, Korea
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131
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Bai L, Li H. Cryo-EM structures of the endoplasmic reticulum membrane complex. FEBS J 2022; 289:102-112. [PMID: 33629497 PMCID: PMC8382784 DOI: 10.1111/febs.15786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Revised: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
The transmembrane α-helices of membrane proteins are in general highly hydrophobic, and they enter the lipid bilayer through a lateral gate in the Sec61 translocon. However, some transmembrane α-helices are less hydrophobic and form membrane channels or substrate-binding pockets. Insertion of these amphipathic transmembrane α-helices into the membrane requires the specific membrane-embedded insertase called the endoplasmic reticulum membrane complex (EMC), which is a multi-subunit chaperone distinct from the GET insertase complex. Four recent cryo-electron microscopy studies on the eukaryotic EMC have revealed their remarkable architectural conservation from yeast to humans; a general consensus on the substrate transmembrane helix-binding pocket; and the evolutionary link to the prokaryotic insertases of the tail-anchored membrane proteins. These structures provide a solid framework for future mechanistic investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lin Bai
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100083, China
| | - Huilin Li
- Department of Structural Biology, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49503, United States
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132
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Tian Y, Gao S, Nagel G. In Vivo and In Vitro Characterization of Cyclase and Phosphodiesterase Rhodopsins. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2501:325-338. [PMID: 35857236 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2329-9_16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Rhodopsins with enzymatic activity were found in microbes, in 2004 hypothetically from sequence data and since 2014 by experimental proof. So far three different types are known: light-activated guanylyl cyclase opsins (Cyclop) in fungi, light-inhibited two-component guanylyl cyclase opsins (2c-Cyclop) in green algae, and rhodopsin phosphodiesterases (RhoPDE) in choanoflagellates. They are integral membrane proteins with eight transmembrane helices (TM), different to the other microbial (type I) rhodopsins with 7 TM. Therefore, we propose a classification as type Ib rhodopsins for opsins with 8 TM and type Ia for the ones with 7 TM. To characterize those rhodopsins or their mutants, the expression in Xenopus laevis oocytes proved to be an efficient strategy. Functional analysis was initially performed "in oocyte" (in vivo), but more detailed characterization can be obtained with an in vitro assay. In this chapter, we describe procedures how to extract membranes from oocytes after cRNA microinjection and heterologous protein expression. Enzymatic activity of these membranes is then analyzed under different illumination conditions. In addition, fluorescent labeling of the rhodopsins is employed to quantify the expression level and the absolute activity of designed mutants. We discuss strengths and pitfalls, associated with this expression system, and strategies for selecting potentially useful optogenetic tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuehui Tian
- Department of Neurophysiology, Institute of Physiology, Biocenter, University of Wuerzburg, Wuerzburg, Germany
- Environmental Microbiomics Research Center, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shiqiang Gao
- Department of Neurophysiology, Institute of Physiology, Biocenter, University of Wuerzburg, Wuerzburg, Germany
| | - Georg Nagel
- Department of Neurophysiology, Institute of Physiology, Biocenter, University of Wuerzburg, Wuerzburg, Germany.
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Application of reverse vaccinology for designing of an mRNA vaccine against re-emerging marine birnavirus affecting fish species. INFORMATICS IN MEDICINE UNLOCKED 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.imu.2022.100948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
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134
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Peng W, Zeng F, Wu Z, Jin Z, Li W, Zhu M, Wang Q, Tong Y, Chen L, Bai Q. Isolation and genomic analysis of temperate phage 5W targeting multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. Arch Microbiol 2021; 204:58. [DOI: 10.1007/s00203-021-02618-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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135
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Wimberly K, Choe KP. An extracellular matrix damage sensor signals through membrane-associated kinase DRL-1 to mediate cytoprotective responses in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics 2021; 220:6444994. [PMID: 34849856 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyab217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Accepted: 11/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We and others previously identified circumferential bands of collagen named annular furrows as key components of a damage sensor in the cuticle of Caenorhabditis elegans that regulates cytoprotective genes. Mutation or loss of non-collagen secreted proteins OSM-7, OSM-8, and OSM-11 activate the same cytoprotective responses without obvious changes to the cuticle indicating that other extracellular proteins are involved. Here, we used RNAi screening to identify protein kinase DRL-1 as a key modulator of cytoprotective gene expression and stress resistance in furrow and extracellular OSM protein mutants. DRL-1 functions downstream from furrow disruption and is expressed in cells that induce cytoprotective genes. DRL-1 is not required for expression of cytoprotective genes under basal or oxidative stress conditions consistent with specificity to extracellular signals. DRL-1 was previously shown to regulate longevity via a 'Dietary Restriction-Like' state, but it functions downstream from furrow disruption by a distinct mechanism. The kinase domain of DRL-1 is related to mammalian MEKK3, and MEKK3 is recruited to a plasma membrane osmosensor complex by a scaffold protein. In C. elegans, DRL-1 contains an atypical hydrophobic C-terminus with predicted transmembrane domains and is constitutively expressed at or near the plasma membrane where it could function to receive extracellular damage signals for cells that mount cytoprotective responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keon Wimberly
- Department of Biology and Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Keith P Choe
- Department of Biology and Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
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136
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Improved bactericidal efficacy and thermostability of Staphylococcus aureus-specific bacteriophage SA3821 by repeated sodium pyrophosphate challenges. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22951. [PMID: 34824363 PMCID: PMC8616913 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02446-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
As antibiotic resistance is being a threat to public health worldwide, bacteriophages are re-highlighted as alternative antimicrobials to fight with pathogens. Various wild-type phages isolated from diverse sources have been tested, but potential mutant phages generated by genome engineering or random mutagenesis are drawing increasing attention. Here, we applied a chelating agent, sodium pyrophosphate, to the staphylococcal temperate Siphoviridae phage SA3821 to introduce random mutations. Through 30 sequential sodium pyrophosphate challenges and random selections, the suspected mutant phage SA3821M was isolated. SA3821M maintained an intact virion morphology, but exhibited better bactericidal activity against its host Staphylococcous aureus CCARM 3821 for up to 17 h and thermostability than its parent, SA3821. Sodium pyrophosphate-mediated mutations in SA3821M were absent in lysogenic development genes but concentrated (83.9%) in genes related to the phage tail, particularly in the tail tape measure protein, indicating that changes in the tail module might have been responsible for the altered traits. This intentional random mutagenesis through controlled treatments with sodium pyrophosphate could be applied to other phages as a simple but potent method to improve their traits as alternative antimicrobials.
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137
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Lee J, Wacholder A, Carvunis AR. Evolutionary Characterization of the Short Protein SPAAR. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12121864. [PMID: 34946813 PMCID: PMC8702040 DOI: 10.3390/genes12121864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2021] [Revised: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Microproteins (<100 amino acids) are receiving increasing recognition as important participants in numerous biological processes, but their evolutionary dynamics are poorly understood. SPAAR is a recently discovered microprotein that regulates muscle regeneration and angiogenesis through interactions with conserved signaling pathways. Interestingly, SPAAR does not belong to any known protein family and has known homologs exclusively among placental mammals. This lack of distant homology could be caused by challenges in homology detection of short sequences, or it could indicate a recent de novo emergence from a noncoding sequence. By integrating syntenic alignments and homology searches, we identify SPAAR orthologs in marsupials and monotremes, establishing that SPAAR has existed at least since the emergence of mammals. SPAAR shows substantial primary sequence divergence but retains a conserved protein structure. In primates, we infer two independent evolutionary events leading to the de novo origination of 5' elongated isoforms of SPAAR from a noncoding sequence and find evidence of adaptive evolution in this extended region. Thus, SPAAR may be of ancient origin, but it appears to be experiencing continual evolutionary innovation in mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiwon Lee
- Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; (J.L.); (A.W.)
- Pittsburgh Center for Evolutionary Biology and Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Joint CMU-Pitt Ph.D. Program in Computational Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Aaron Wacholder
- Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; (J.L.); (A.W.)
- Pittsburgh Center for Evolutionary Biology and Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Anne-Ruxandra Carvunis
- Department of Computational and Systems Biology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; (J.L.); (A.W.)
- Pittsburgh Center for Evolutionary Biology and Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-412-648-3335
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High-Throughput Mutagenesis and Cross-Complementation Experiments Reveal Substrate Preference and Critical Residues of the Capsule Transporters in Streptococcus pneumoniae. mBio 2021; 12:e0261521. [PMID: 34724815 PMCID: PMC8561386 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.02615-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
MOP (Multidrug/Oligosaccharidyl-lipid/Polysaccharide) family transporters are found in almost all life forms. They are responsible for transporting lipid-linked precursors across the cell membrane to support the synthesis of various glycoconjugates. While significant progress has been made in elucidating their transport mechanism, how these transporters select their substrates remains unclear. Here, we systematically tested the MOP transporters in the Streptococcus pneumoniae capsule pathway for their ability to translocate noncognate capsule precursors. Sequence similarity cannot predict whether these transporters are interchangeable. We showed that subtle changes in the central aqueous cavity of the transporter are sufficient to accommodate a different cargo. These changes can occur naturally, suggesting a potential mechanism of expanding substrate selectivity. A directed evolution experiment was performed to identify gain-of-function variants that translocate a noncognate cargo. Coupled with a high-throughput mutagenesis and sequencing (Mut-seq) experiment, residues that are functionally important for the capsule transporter were revealed. Lastly, we showed that the expression of a flippase that can transport unfinished precursors resulted in an increased susceptibility to bacitracin and mild cell shape defects, which may be a driving force to maintain transporter specificity. IMPORTANCE All licensed pneumococcal vaccines target the capsular polysaccharide (CPS). This layer is highly variable and is important for virulence in many bacterial pathogens. Most of the CPSs are produced by the Wzx/Wzy mechanism. In this pathway, CPS repeating units are synthesized in the cytoplasm, which must be flipped across the cytoplasmic membrane before polymerization. This step is mediated by the widely conserved MOP (Multidrug/Oligosaccharidyl-lipid/Polysaccharide) family transporters. Here, we systematically evaluated the interchangeability of these transporters and identified the residues important for substrate specificity and function. Understanding how CPS is synthesized will inform glycoengineering, vaccine development, and antimicrobial discovery.
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139
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Liu G, Yang C, Liu J, Huang T, Lin L, Gu L, Li Z, Chen M. Functional characterization of a putative tumor necrosis factor superfamily member 10 in blood clam (Tegillarca granosa). DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2021; 124:104172. [PMID: 34271064 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2021.104172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2021] [Revised: 06/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Tumor necrosis factor superfamily member 10 (TNFSF10), also known as tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) or Apo-2L, is one of the important members of the TNF superfamily. It is well demonstrated that TNFSF10 preferentially induces a variety of tumor cell apoptosis, and therefore exerts an important role in tumor immune surveillance. However, the function of TNFSF10 in pathogen defense is poorly understood, especially in invertebrates. The blood clam (Tegillarca granosa), an important commercial marine bivalve, plays an important ecological role in the marine ecosystem. The identification of immune genes will provide new perspective for disease control in the blood clam (T. granosa) farming. To better understand the biological function of TNFSF10 protein, the full-length cDNA of TNFSF10 homologous gene of T. granosa (TgTNFSF10) was cloned and identified for the first time, which was found to contain 1239 base pairs and encode 254 amino acids with a molecular weight of 29.5 kDa and a conserved TNF domain in the C-terminal. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis showed that TgTNFSF10 gene was constitutively expressed in all tested tissues, with the highest expression in hemocytes. LPS, Vibrio alginolyticus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus stimulations dramatically increased the expression of TgTNFSF10 in T. granosa (11.47-fold, 3.71-fold and 8.29-fold compared with the control respectively). In vitro experiments showed that recombinant TgTNFSF10 protein strongly inhibited the proliferation of HepG2 cells. Further confocal microscopy and flow cytometry analysis showed that obvious apoptosis occurred in TgTNFSF10-treated hemocytes and HepG2 cells. To sum up, our study demonstrated that TgTNFSF10 had strong apoptosis-inducing activity, which may participate in the innate immune response of T. granosa to pathogen invasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guosheng Liu
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China
| | - Chunyan Yang
- School of Life Science, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, PR China
| | - Jinqiang Liu
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China
| | - Tengda Huang
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China
| | - Linjun Lin
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China
| | - Li Gu
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China
| | - Zengpeng Li
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China.
| | - Mingliang Chen
- State Key Laboratory Breeding Base of Marine Genetic Resources, Third Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, PR China; Co-Innovation Center of Jiangsu Marine Bio-industry Technology, Jiangsu Ocean University, Lianyungang, 222005, PR China.
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140
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In Silico Characterization of a Transcript Code Based Screening of Antimicrobial Peptide from Trichogramma chilonis. Int J Pept Res Ther 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s10989-021-10295-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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141
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Fadaka AO, Sibuyi NRS, Martin DR, Goboza M, Klein A, Madiehe AM, Meyer M. Immunoinformatics design of a novel epitope-based vaccine candidate against dengue virus. Sci Rep 2021; 11:19707. [PMID: 34611250 PMCID: PMC8492693 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-99227-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Dengue poses a global health threat, which will persist without therapeutic intervention. Immunity induced by exposure to one serotype does not confer long-term protection against secondary infection with other serotypes and is potentially capable of enhancing this infection. Although vaccination is believed to induce durable and protective responses against all the dengue virus (DENV) serotypes in order to reduce the burden posed by this virus, the development of a safe and efficacious vaccine remains a challenge. Immunoinformatics and computational vaccinology have been utilized in studies of infectious diseases to provide insight into the host-pathogen interactions thus justifying their use in vaccine development. Since vaccination is the best bet to reduce the burden posed by DENV, this study is aimed at developing a multi-epitope based vaccines for dengue control. Combined approaches of reverse vaccinology and immunoinformatics were utilized to design multi-epitope based vaccine from the sequence of DENV. Specifically, BCPreds and IEDB servers were used to predict the B-cell and T-cell epitopes, respectively. Molecular docking was carried out using Schrödinger, PATCHDOCK and FIREDOCK. Codon optimization and in silico cloning were done using JCAT and SnapGene respectively. Finally, the efficiency and stability of the designed vaccines were assessed by an in silico immune simulation and molecular dynamic simulation, respectively. The predicted epitopes were prioritized using in-house criteria. Four candidate vaccines (DV-1-4) were designed using suitable adjuvant and linkers in addition to the shortlisted epitopes. The binding interactions of these vaccines against the receptors TLR-2, TLR-4, MHC-1 and MHC-2 show that these candidate vaccines perfectly fit into the binding domains of the receptors. In addition, DV-1 has a better binding energies of - 60.07, - 63.40, - 69.89 kcal/mol against MHC-1, TLR-2, and TLR-4, with respect to the other vaccines. All the designed vaccines were highly antigenic, soluble, non-allergenic, non-toxic, flexible, and topologically assessable. The immune simulation analysis showed that DV-1 may elicit specific immune response against dengue virus. Moreover, codon optimization and in silico cloning validated the expressions of all the designed vaccines in E. coli. Finally, the molecular dynamic study shows that DV-1 is stable with minimum RMSF against TLR4. Immunoinformatics tools are now applied to screen genomes of interest for possible vaccine target. The designed vaccine candidates may be further experimentally investigated as potential vaccines capable of providing definitive preventive measure against dengue virus infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adewale Oluwaseun Fadaka
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa.
| | - Nicole Remaliah Samantha Sibuyi
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
| | - Darius Riziki Martin
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
| | - Mediline Goboza
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
| | - Ashwil Klein
- Plant Omics Laboratory, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Private Bag X17, Bellville, 7535, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Abram Madimabe Madiehe
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
- Nanobiotechnology Research Group, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa
| | - Mervin Meyer
- Department of Science and Innovation/Mintek Nanotechnology Innovation Centre, Biolabels Node, Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa.
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142
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Rahman S, Das AK. Integrated Multi-omics, Virtual Screening and Molecular Docking Analysis of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus USA300 for the Identification of Potential Therapeutic Targets: An In-Silico Approach. Int J Pept Res Ther 2021; 27:2735-2755. [PMID: 34548853 PMCID: PMC8446483 DOI: 10.1007/s10989-021-10287-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Staphylococcus aureus infection is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity in community, hospital and live-stock sectors, especially with the widespread emergence of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains. To identify new drug molecules to treat MRSA patients, we have undertaken to search essential proteins that are indispensable for their survival but non-homologous to human host proteins. The current study utilizes a subtractive genome and proteome approach to screen the possible therapeutic targets against S. aureus USA300. Bacterial essential genes are obtained from the DEG database and are compared to avoid cross-reactivity with human host genes. In silico analysis shows 198 proteins that may be considered as therapeutic candidates. Depending on their sub-cellular localization, proteins are grouped as either vaccine or drug targets or both. Extracellular proteins such as cell division proteins (Q2FZ91, Q2FZ95), penicillin-binding proteins (Q2FZ94, Q2FYI0) of the bacterial cell wall, phosphoglucomutase (Q2FE11) and lipoteichoic acid synthase (Q2FIS2) are considered as vaccine targets, and their epitopes have been mapped. Altogether, 53 drug targets are identified, which have shown similarity with the drug targets available in the DrugBank database. Predicted drug targets belong to the common metabolic pathways of MRSA, such as fatty acid biosynthesis, folate biosynthesis, peptidoglycan biosynthesis, ribosome, etc. Protein-protein interaction analysis emphasizing peptidoglycan biosynthesis reveals the connection between penicillin-binding proteins, mur-family proteins and FemXAB proteins. In this study, staphylococcal FemA protein (P0A0A5) is subjected to structure-based virtual screening for the drug repurposing approach. There are 20 residues missing in the crystal structure of FemA, and 12 of these residues are located at the catalytic site. The missing residues are modelled, and stereochemistry is checked. FDA approved drugs available in the DrugBank database have been used in virtual screening with FemA in search of potential repurposed molecules. This approach provides us with 10 drugs that may be used in the treatment of methicillin-resistant staphylococcal mediated diseases. AutoDock 4.2 is used for in silico screening and shows a comparable inhibition constant (Ki) for all 10 FDA-approved drugs towards FemA. Most of these drugs are used in the treatment of various cancers, migraines and leukaemia. Protein-drug interaction analysis shows that the drugs mostly interact with hydrophobic residues of FemA. Moreover, Tyr328 and Lys383 contribute largely to hydrogen bondings during interactions. All interacting amino acids that bind to the drugs are part of the active site cavity of FemA. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10989-021-10287-9.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakilur Rahman
- Department of Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 721302 India
| | - Amit Kumar Das
- Department of Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 721302 India
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143
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Miyata N, Kuge O. Topology of phosphatidylserine synthase 1 in the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. Protein Sci 2021; 30:2346-2353. [PMID: 34516042 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Phosphatidylserine (PS) synthase 1 (PSS1) of mammalian cells is a multiple membrane-spanning protein of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and regulated by inhibition with the product PS. Alanine-scanning mutagenesis of PSS1 has revealed eight amino acid residues as those crucial for its activity and six as those important for its regulation. Furthermore, three missense mutations in the human PSS1 gene, which lead to regulatory dysfunctions of PSS1 and are causative of Lenz-Majewski syndrome, have been identified. In this study, we investigated the membrane topology of PSS1 by means of epitope insertion and immunofluorescence. According to a 10-transmembrane segment model supported by topology analysis of PSS1, all the 8 amino acid residues crucial for the enzyme activity were localized to the luminal side of the lipid bilayer or the lumen of the ER, whereas all the 9 amino acid residues involved in the enzyme regulation were localized to the cytosol or the cytoplasmic side of the lipid bilayer of the ER. This localization of the functional amino acid residues suggests that PSS1 is regulated by inhibition with PS in the cytoplasmic leaflet of the ER membrane and synthesizes PS at the luminal leaflet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Non Miyata
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
| | - Osamu Kuge
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
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144
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Chen Q, Li Z, Liu S, Chi Y, Jia D, Wei T. Infection and distribution of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus in citrus plants and psyllid vectors at the cellular level. Microb Biotechnol 2021; 15:1221-1234. [PMID: 34469634 PMCID: PMC8966020 DOI: 10.1111/1751-7915.13914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Huanglongbing (HLB) is currently considered the most destructive disease of citrus worldwide. In the major citrus‐growing areas in Asia and the US, the major causal agent of HLB is the bacterial pathogen Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas). CLas is vectored by the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri, in a persistent propagative manner. CLas cannot be cultured in vitro because of its unclear growth factors, leading to uncertainty in the infection mechanism of CLas at the cellular level in citrus and in D. citri. To characterize the detailed infection of CLas in the host and vector, the incidence of HLB was first investigated in citrus‐growing fields in Fujian Province, China. It was found that the positive association of the level of CLas infection in the leaves correlated with the symptoms. Then antibodies against peptides of the outer membrane protein (OMP) of CLas were prepared and tested. The antibodies OMP‐225, OMP‐333 and OMP724 showed specificity to citrus plants in western blot analyses, whereas the antibodies OMP‐47 and OMP‐225 displayed specificity to the D. citri vector. The application of OMP‐225 in the immunofluorescence assay indicated that CLas was located in and distributed throughout the phloem sieve cells of the leaf midribs and axile placenta of the fruit. CLas also infected the epithelial cells and visceral muscles of the alimentary canal of D. citri. The application of OMP‐333 in immunoelectron microscopy indicated the round or oval CLas in the sieve cells of leaf midribs and axile placenta of fruit as well as in the epithelial cells and reticular tissue of D. citri alimentary canal. These results provide a reliable means for HLB detection, and enlighten a strategy via neutralizing OMP to control HLB. These findings also provide insight for the further investigation on CLas infection and pathogenesis, as well as CLas–vector interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Chen
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
| | - Zhiqiang Li
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
| | - Shulin Liu
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
| | - Yunhua Chi
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
| | - Dongsheng Jia
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
| | - Taiyun Wei
- Vector-borne Virus Research Center, Fujian Province Key Laboratory of Plant Virology, Institute of Plant Virology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350002, China
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145
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Liu Y, Ma L, Cao D, Gong Z, Fan J, Hu H, Jin X. Investigation of cell wall proteins of C. sinensis leaves by combining cell wall proteomics and N-glycoproteomics. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2021; 21:384. [PMID: 34416854 PMCID: PMC8377857 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-021-03166-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND C. sinensis is an important economic crop with fluoride over-accumulation in its leaves, which poses a serious threat to human health due to its leaf consumption as tea. Recently, our study has indicated that cell wall proteins (CWPs) probably play a vital role in fluoride accumulation/detoxification in C. sinensis. However, there has been a lack in CWP identification and characterization up to now. This study is aimed to characterize cell wall proteome of C. sinensis leaves and to develop more CWPs related to stress response. A strategy of combined cell wall proteomics and N-glycoproteomics was employed to investigate CWPs. CWPs were extracted by sequential salt buffers, while N-glycoproteins were enriched by hydrophilic interaction chromatography method using C. sinensis leaves as a material. Afterwards all the proteins were subjected to UPLC-MS/MS analysis. RESULTS A total of 501 CWPs and 195 CWPs were identified respectively by cell wall proteomics and N-glycoproteomics profiling with 118 CWPs in common. Notably, N-glycoproteomics is a feasible method for CWP identification, and it can enhance CWP coverage. Among identified CWPs, proteins acting on cell wall polysaccharides constitute the largest functional class, most of which might be involved in cell wall structure remodeling. The second largest functional class mainly encompass various proteases related to CWP turnover and maturation. Oxidoreductases represent the third largest functional class, most of which (especially Class III peroxidases) participate in defense response. As expected, identified CWPs are mainly related to plant cell wall formation and defense response. CONCLUSION This was the first large-scale investigation of CWPs in C. sinensis through cell wall proteomics and N-glycoproteomics. Our results not only provide a database for further research on CWPs, but also an insight into cell wall formation and defense response in C. sinensis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanli Liu
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Linlong Ma
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Dan Cao
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Ziming Gong
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Jing Fan
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Hongju Hu
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaofang Jin
- Fruit and Tea Research Institute, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 10 Nanhu Road, Wuhan, 430064, Hubei, People's Republic of China.
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146
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Genetic and phenotypic analysis of the pathogenic potential of two novel Chlamydia gallinacea strains compared to Chlamydia psittaci. Sci Rep 2021; 11:16516. [PMID: 34389764 PMCID: PMC8363750 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95966-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia gallinacea is an obligate intracellular bacterium that has recently been added to the family of Chlamydiaceae. C. gallinacea is genetically diverse, widespread in poultry and a suspected cause of pneumonia in slaughterhouse workers. In poultry, C. gallinacea infections appear asymptomatic, but studies about the pathogenic potential are limited. In this study two novel sequence types of C. gallinacea were isolated from apparently healthy chickens. Both isolates (NL_G47 and NL_F725) were closely related to each other and have at least 99.5% DNA sequence identity to C. gallinacea Type strain 08-1274/3. To gain further insight into the pathogenic potential, infection experiments in embryonated chicken eggs and comparative genomics with Chlamydia psittaci were performed. C. psittaci is a ubiquitous zoonotic pathogen of birds and mammals, and infection in poultry can result in severe systemic illness. In experiments with embryonated chicken eggs, C. gallinacea induced mortality was observed, potentially strain dependent, but lower compared to C. psittaci induced mortality. Comparative analyses confirmed all currently available C. gallinacea genomes possess the hallmark genes coding for known and potential virulence factors as found in C. psittaci albeit to a reduced number of orthologues or paralogs. The presence of potential virulence factors and the observed mortality in embryonated eggs indicates C. gallinacea should rather be considered as an opportunistic pathogen than an innocuous commensal.
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147
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Mattiola I, Mantovani A, Locati M. The tetraspan MS4A family in homeostasis, immunity, and disease. Trends Immunol 2021; 42:764-781. [PMID: 34384709 DOI: 10.1016/j.it.2021.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Revised: 07/05/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The membrane-spanning 4A (MS4A) family includes 18 members with a tetraspan structure in humans. They are differentially and selectively expressed in immunocompetent cells, such as B cells (CD20/MS4A1) and macrophages (MS4A4A), and associate with, and modulate the signaling activity of, different classes of immunoreceptor, including pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) and Ig receptors. Evidence from preclinical models and genetic evidence from humans suggest that members of the MS4A family have key roles in different pathological settings, including cancer, infectious diseases, and neurodegeneration. Therefore, MS4A family members might serve as candidate biomarkers and therapeutic targets for various conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Mattiola
- Humanitas Clinical and Research Center IRCCS, Rozzano, Italy; Laboratory of Innate Immunity, Department of Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Charitè - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany; Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany; Mucosal and Developmental Immunology, Deutsches Rheuma-Forschungszentrum, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Alberto Mantovani
- Humanitas Clinical and Research Center IRCCS, Rozzano, Italy; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Rozzano, Italy; The William Harvey Research Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
| | - Massimo Locati
- Humanitas Clinical and Research Center IRCCS, Rozzano, Italy; Department of Medical Biotechnologies and Translation Medicine, University of Milan, Italy.
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148
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Radin I, Richardson RA, Coomey JH, Weiner ER, Bascom CS, Li T, Bezanilla M, Haswell ES. Plant PIEZO homologs modulate vacuole morphology during tip growth. Science 2021; 373:586-590. [PMID: 34326243 DOI: 10.1126/science.abe6310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2020] [Revised: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
In animals, PIEZOs are plasma membrane-localized cation channels involved in diverse mechanosensory processes. We investigated PIEZO function in tip-growing cells in the moss Physcomitrium patens and the flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana PpPIEZO1 and PpPIEZO2 redundantly contribute to the normal growth, size, and cytoplasmic calcium oscillations of caulonemal cells. Both PpPIEZO1 and PpPIEZO2 localized to vacuolar membranes. Loss-of-function, gain-of-function, and overexpression mutants revealed that moss PIEZO homologs promote increased complexity of vacuolar membranes through tubulation, internalization, and/or fission. Arabidopsis PIEZO1 also localized to the tonoplast and is required for vacuole tubulation in the tips of pollen tubes. We propose that in plant cells the tonoplast has more freedom of movement than the plasma membrane, making it a more effective location for mechanosensory proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Radin
- Department of Biology and NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Ryan A Richardson
- Department of Biology and NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Joshua H Coomey
- Department of Biology and NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Ethan R Weiner
- Department of Biology and NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | | | - Ting Li
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth S Haswell
- Department of Biology and NSF Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
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149
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Chen L, Guo X, Wang L, Geng J, Wu J, Hu B, Wang T, Li J, Liu C, Wang H. In silico identification and experimental validation of cellular uptake by a new cell penetrating peptide P1 derived from MARCKS. Drug Deliv 2021; 28:1637-1648. [PMID: 34338123 PMCID: PMC8330795 DOI: 10.1080/10717544.2021.1960922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Viral vectors for vaccine delivery are challenged by recently reported safety issues like immunogenicity and risk for cancer development, and thus there is a growing need for the development of non-viral vectors. Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) are non-viral vectors that can enter plasma membranes efficiently and deliver a broad range of cargoes. Our bioinformatic prediction and wet-lab validation data suggested that peptide P1 derived from MARCKS protein phosphorylation site domain is a new potential CPP candidate. We found that peptide P1 can efficiently internalize into various cell lines in a concentration-dependent manner. Receptor-mediated endocytosis pathway is the major mechanism of P1 penetration, although P1 also directly penetrates the plasma membrane. We also found that peptide P1 has low cytotoxicity in cultured cell lines as well as mouse red blood cells. Furthermore, peptide P1 not only can enter into cultured cells itself, but it also can interact with plasmid DNA and mediate the functional delivery of plasmid DNA into cultured cells, even in hard-to-transfect cells. Combined, these findings indicate that P1 may be a promising vector for efficient intracellular delivery of bioactive cargos.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linlin Chen
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Affiliated Ren He Hospital of China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Xiangli Guo
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Lidan Wang
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Jingping Geng
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Jiao Wu
- Affiliated Ren He Hospital of China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Bin Hu
- Affiliated Ren He Hospital of China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Tao Wang
- The First Clinical Medical College of China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Jason Li
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Changbai Liu
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China.,Hubei Key Laboratory of Tumor Microenvironment and Immunotherapy, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
| | - Hu Wang
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Medical School, China Three Gorges University, Yichang, China
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150
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dos Santos GRRM, Leite ACR, Lander N, Chiurillo MA, Vercesi AE, Docampo R. Trypanosoma cruzi Letm1 is involved in mitochondrial Ca 2+ transport, and is essential for replication, differentiation, and host cell invasion. FASEB J 2021; 35:e21685. [PMID: 34085343 PMCID: PMC10437107 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202100120rr] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 05/06/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Leucine zipper-EF-hand containing transmembrane protein 1 (Letm1) is a mitochondrial inner membrane protein involved in Ca2+ and K+ homeostasis in mammalian cells. Here, we demonstrate that the Letm1 orthologue of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, is important for mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake and release. The results show that both mitochondrial Ca2+ influx and efflux are reduced in TcLetm1 knockdown (TcLetm1-KD) cells and increased in TcLetm1 overexpressing cells, without alterations in the mitochondrial membrane potential. Remarkably, TcLetm1 knockdown or overexpression increases or does not affect mitochondrial Ca2+ levels in epimastigotes, respectively. TcLetm1-KD epimastigotes have reduced growth, and both overexpression and knockdown of TcLetm1 cause a defect in metacyclogenesis. TcLetm1-KD also affected mitochondrial bioenergetics. Invasion of host cells by TcLetm1-KD trypomastigotes and their intracellular replication is greatly impaired. Taken together, our findings indicate that TcLetm1 is important for Ca2+ homeostasis and cell viability in T cruzi.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ana Catarina Rezende Leite
- Laboratório de Bioenergética, Instituto de Química e Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal de Alagoas, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil
| | - Noelia Lander
- Center of Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Miguel Angel Chiurillo
- Center of Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
| | - Aníbal Eugênio Vercesi
- Departamento de Patologia Clínica, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Roberto Docampo
- Departamento de Patologia Clínica, Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
- Center of Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases and Department of Cellular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
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