Oxygen binding of single red blood cells of the annelid bloodwormGlycera dibranchiata

Globins in the marine annelid Platynereis dumerilii shed new light on hemoglobin evolution in bilaterians

BACKGROUND

How vascular systems and their respiratory pigments evolved is still debated. While many animals present a vascular system, hemoglobin exists as a blood pigment only in a few groups (vertebrates, annelids, a few arthropod and mollusk species). Hemoglobins are formed of globin sub-units, belonging to multigene families, in various multimeric assemblages. It was so far unclear whether hemoglobin families from different bilaterian groups had a common origin.

RESULTS

To unravel globin evolution in bilaterians, we studied the marine annelid Platynereis dumerilii, a species with a slow evolving genome. Platynereis exhibits a closed vascular system filled with extracellular hemoglobin. Platynereis genome and transcriptomes reveal a family of 19 globins, nine of which are predicted to be extracellular. Extracellular globins are produced by specialized cells lining the vessels of the segmental appendages of the worm, serving as gills, and thus likely participate in the assembly of a previously characterized annelid-specific giant hemoglobin. Extracellular globin mRNAs are absent in smaller juveniles, accumulate considerably in growing and more active worms and peak in swarming adults, as the need for O2 culminates. Next, we conducted a metazoan-wide phylogenetic analysis of globins using data from complete genomes. We establish that five globin genes (stem globins) were present in the last common ancestor of bilaterians. Based on these results, we propose a new nomenclature of globins, with five clades. All five ancestral stem-globin clades are retained in some spiralians, while some clades disappeared early in deuterostome and ecdysozoan evolution. All known bilaterian blood globin families are grouped in a single clade (clade I) together with intracellular globins of bilaterians devoid of red blood.

CONCLUSIONS

We uncover a complex "pre-blood" evolution of globins, with an early gene radiation in ancestral bilaterians. Circulating hemoglobins in various bilaterian groups evolved convergently, presumably in correlation with animal size and activity. However, all hemoglobins derive from a clade I globin, or cytoglobin, probably involved in intracellular O2 transit and regulation. The annelid Platynereis is remarkable in having a large family of extracellular blood globins, while retaining all clades of ancestral bilaterian globins.

Mitochondrial depolarization following hydrogen sulfide exposure in erythrocytes from a sulfide-tolerant marine invertebrate

Sulfide-tolerant marine invertebrates employ a variety of mechanisms to detoxify sulfide once it has entered their bodies, but their integumentary,respiratory epithelium and circulatory cells may still be exposed to toxic sulfide concentrations. To investigate whether sulfide exposure is toxic to mitochondria of a sulfide-tolerant invertebrate, we used the fluorescent dyes JC-1 and TMRM to determine the effect of sulfide exposure on mitochondrial depolarization in erythrocytes from the annelid Glycera dibranchiata. In erythrocytes exposed to 0.11-1.9 mmol l-1 sulfide for 1 h, the dyes showed fluorescence changes consistent with sulfide-induced mitochondrial depolarization. At the highest sulfide concentration, the extent of depolarization was equivalent to that caused by the mitochondrial uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). Even when induced by as little as 0.3 mmol l-1 sulfide, the depolarization was not reversible over a subsequent 5 h recovery period. The mechanism of toxicity was likely not via inhibition of cytochrome c oxidase (COX),since other COX inhibitors and other mitochondrial electron transport chain inhibitors did not produce similar effects. Furthermore, pharmacological inhibition of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore failed to prevent sulfide-induced depolarization. Finally, increased oxidation of the free radical indicators H2DCFDA and MitoSOX™ in erythrocytes exposed to sulfide suggests that sulfide oxidation increased oxidative stress and superoxide production, respectively. Together, these results indicate that sulfide exposure causes mitochondrial depolarization in cells of a sulfide-tolerant annelid, and that this effect, which differs from the actions of other COX inhibitors, may be via increased free radical damage.

Functional and biochemical properties of the hemoglobins of the burrowing brittle star Hemipholis elongata say (Echinodermata, Ophiuroidea)

The burrowing brittle star Hemipholis elongata (Say) possesses hemoglobin-containing coelomocytes (RBCs) in its water vascular system. The RBCs, which circulate between the arms and body, are thought to play a role in oxygen transport. The hemoglobin of adult animals has a moderate affinity for oxygen (P(50) = 11.4 mm Hg at pH 8, 20 degrees C, measured in cellulo) and exhibits cooperativity (Hill coefficient > 1.7). The hemoglobin of juveniles has a higher affinity (P(50) = 2.3 mmHg at pH 8.0, 20 degrees C) and also exhibits cooperativity. The oxygen-binding properties of the hemoglobin are relatively insensitive to pH, temperature, and hydrogen sulfide. Adult hemoglobin is a heterogeneous mixture composed of three major fractions. The combined results of electrospray mass spectrometry and oxygen-binding experiments performed on purified fractions indicate that the native hemoglobin is in the form of homopolymers. A partial amino acid sequence (about 40 amino acids) of adult hemoglobin reveals little homology with holothurian hemoglobins.

Oxygen binding by single red blood cells from the red-eared turtle Trachemys scripta

Oxygen-binding properties of single red blood cells from the red-eared turtle Trachemys scripta were measured by microspectrophotometry to describe the variation in oxygen affinity of red blood cells and to gain insight into the distribution of functionally different hemoglobins among red blood cells. Methodologically, this study represents the first report on the cell-to-cell variation in oxygen-binding properties based on oxygen-binding curves of single vertebrate red blood cells. The cells differed significantly with respect to oxygen affinity. Mean oxygen pressure at half saturation of the cells in a blood sample was found to be 20.1 +/- 3.3 (SD) Torr. The distribution of oxygen affinities among red blood cells is unimodal, indicating that the two hemoglobins found in turtle blood are not segregated in distinct cells. Therefore, the functional interaction shown by these hemoglobins in vitro is likely to take place in vivo. The considerable variation in oxygen affinity between individual red blood cells calls for its incorporation in models of tissue oxygenation.

Nonvertebrate hemoglobins: functions and molecular adaptations

Hemoglobin (Hb) occurs in all the kingdoms of living organisms. Its distribution is episodic among the nonvertebrate groups in contrast to vertebrates. Nonvertebrate Hbs range from single-chain globins found in bacteria, algae, protozoa, and plants to large, multisubunit, multidomain Hbs found in nematodes, molluscs and crustaceans, and the giant annelid and vestimentiferan Hbs comprised of globin and nonglobin subunits. Chimeric hemoglobins have been found recently in bacteria and fungi. Hb occurs intracellularly in specific tissues and in circulating red blood cells (RBCs) and freely dissolved in various body fluids. In addition to transporting and storing O(2) and facilitating its diffusion, several novel Hb functions have emerged, including control of nitric oxide (NO) levels in microorganisms, use of NO to control the level of O(2) in nematodes, binding and transport of sulfide in endosymbiont-harboring species and protection against sulfide, scavenging of O(2 )in symbiotic leguminous plants, O(2 )sensing in bacteria and archaebacteria, and dehaloperoxidase activity useful in detoxification of chlorinated materials. This review focuses on the extensive variation in the functional properties of nonvertebrate Hbs, their O(2 )binding affinities, their homotropic interactions (cooperativity), and the sensitivities of these parameters to temperature and heterotropic effectors such as protons and cations. Whenever possible, it attempts to relate the ligand binding properties to the known molecular structures. The divergent and convergent evolutionary trends evident in the structures and functions of nonvertebrate Hbs appear to be adaptive in extending the inhabitable environment available to Hb-containing organisms.

Adventitious variability? The amino acid sequences of nonvertebrate globins

1. The more than 140 amino acid sequences of non-vertebrate hemoglobins (Hbs) and myoglobins (Mbs) that are known at present, can be divided into several distinct groups: (1) single-chain globins, containing one heme-binding domain; (2) truncated, single-chain, one-domain globins; (3) chimeric, one-domain globins; (4) chimeric, two-domain globins; and (5) chimeric multi-domain globins. 2. The crystal structures of eight nonvertebrate Hbs and Mbs are known, all of them monomeric, one-domain globin chains. Although these molecules represent plants, prokaryotes and several metazoan groups, and although the inter-subunit interactions in the dimeric and tetrameric molecules differ from the ones observed in vertebrate Hbs, the secondary structures of all seven one-domain globins retain the characteristic vertebrate "myoglobin fold". No crystal structures of globins representing the other four groups have been determined. 3. Furthermore, a number of the one-, two- and multi-domain globin chains participate in a broad variety of quaternary structures, ranging from homo- and heterodimers to highly complex, multisubunit aggregates with M(r) > 3000 kDa (S. N. Vinogradov, Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 82B, 1-15, 1985). 4. (1) The single-chain, single-domain globins are comparable in size to the vertebrate globins and exhibit the widest distribution. (A) Intracellular Hbs include: (i) the monomeric and polymeric Hbs of the polychaete Glycera; (ii) the tetrameric Hb of the echiuran Urechis; (iii) the dimeric Hbs of echinoderms such as Paracaudina and Caudina; and (iv) the dimeric and tetrameric Hbs of molluscs, the bivalves Scapharca, Anadara, Barbatia and Calyptogena. (B) Extracellular Hbs include: (i) the multiple monomeric and dimeric Hbs of the larva of the insect Chironomus; (ii) the Hbs of nematodes such as Trichostrongylus and Caenorhabditis; (iii) the globin chains forming tetramers and dodecamers and comprising approximately 2/3 of the giant (approximately 3600 kDa), hexagonal bilayer (HBL) Hbs of annelids, e.g. the oligochaete Lumbricus and the polychaete Tylorrhynchus and of the vestimentiferan Lamellibrachia; and (iv) the globin chains comprising the ca 400 kDa Hbs of Lamellibrachia and the pogonophoran Oligobrachia. (C) Cytoplasmic Hbs include: (i) the Mbs of molluscs, the gastropods Aplysia, Bursatella, Cerithedea, Nassa and Dolabella and the chiton Liolophura; (ii) the three Hb of the symbiont-harboring bivalve Lucina; (iii) the dimeric Hb of the bacterium Vitreoscilla; and (iv) plant Hbs, including the Hbs of symbiont-containing legumes (Lgbs), the Hbs of symbiont-containing non-leguminous plants and the Hbs in the roots of symbiont-free plants.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

The heterogeneity of the polymeric intracellular hemoglobin of Glycera dibranchiata and the cDNA-derived amino acid sequence of one component

The erythrocytes of the marine polychaete Glycera dibranchiata contain a number of different, single-chain hemoglobins, some of which self-associate into a 'polymeric' fraction. An oligodeoxynucleotide probe was synthesized based on partial amino acid sequences determined by chemical methods, and used to screen a cDNA library constructed from the poly(A+)mRNA of Glycera erythrocytes (Simons, P.C. and Satterlee, J.D. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 8525-8530). The longest positive inserts found were sequenced using the dideoxy nucleotide chain termination method. One complete clone was obtained: clone 5A, 816 bases long, contained 59 bases of 5'-untranslated RNA, an open reading frame of 441 bases coding for 147 amino acids and a 3'-untranslated region of 316 bases. The derived amino acid sequence of Glycera globin P1 was in agreement with the partial amino acid sequences obtained by chemical methods. Three additional inserts obtained in the screening were also sequenced: the inferred amino acid sequences proved to be partial globin sequences which were different from each other and from the sequence of P1. Thus, the 'polymeric' fraction of the intracellular hemoglobin of Glycera probably consists of at least four different globin chains much like the 'monomeric' fraction. Comparison of the 'polymeric' sequence with the two known 'monomeric' sequences, M-II and M-IV, shows that they share 54 identical residues. At 74 positions, the identical residues in M-II and M-IV differ from the corresponding residue in P1, including at E-7, where P1 has a distal His, in contrast to Leu in M-II and M-IV. The alignment of Bashford et al. ((1987) J. Mol. Biol. 196, 199-216) and their templates were used to examine the principal differences between the two types of Glycera globin sequences. They appear to consist of uncommon surface amino acid residues at positions C6 (Phe vs. Ala), E10 (Val vs. Lys), E17 (Lys vs. Val), G1 (Arg vs. Lys), G10 (Met vs. Ala) and H5 (Arg vs. Lys). One or more of these residues could be responsible for the self-association exhibited by the 'polymeric' Glycera globins.