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Williamson G, Bizior A, Harris T, Pritchard L, Hoskisson P, Javelle A. Biological ammonium transporters from the Amt/Mep/Rh superfamily: mechanism, energetics, and technical limitations. Biosci Rep 2024; 44:BSR20211209. [PMID: 38131184 PMCID: PMC10794816 DOI: 10.1042/bsr20211209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Revised: 12/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The exchange of ammonium across cellular membranes is a fundamental process in all domains of life and is facilitated by the ubiquitous Amt/Mep/Rh transporter superfamily. Remarkably, despite a high structural conservation in all domains of life, these proteins have gained various biological functions during evolution. It is tempting to hypothesise that the physiological functions gained by these proteins may be explained at least in part by differences in the energetics of their translocation mechanisms. Therefore, in this review, we will explore our current knowledge of energetics of the Amt/Mep/Rh family, discuss variations in observations between different organisms, and highlight some technical drawbacks which have hampered effects at mechanistic characterisation. Through the review, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of current understanding of the mechanism of transport of this unique and extraordinary Amt/Mep/Rh superfamily of ammonium transporters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gordon Williamson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
| | - Adriana Bizior
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
| | - Thomas Harris
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
| | - Leighton Pritchard
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
| | - Paul A. Hoskisson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
| | - Arnaud Javelle
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, U.K
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2
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Habenicht T, Weidenbach K, Velazquez-Campoy A, Buey RM, Balsera M, Schmitz RA. Small protein mediates inhibition of ammonium transport in Methanosarcina mazei-an ancient mechanism? Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0281123. [PMID: 37909787 PMCID: PMC10714827 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.02811-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Small proteins containing fewer than 70 amino acids, which were previously disregarded due to computational prediction and biochemical detection challenges, have gained increased attention in the scientific community in recent years. However, the number of functionally characterized small proteins, especially in archaea, is still limited. Here, by using biochemical and genetic approaches, we demonstrate a crucial role of the small protein sP36 in the nitrogen metabolism of M. mazei, which modulates the ammonium transporter AmtB1 according to nitrogen availability. This modulation might represent an ancient archaeal mechanism of AmtB1 inhibition, in contrast to the well-studied uridylylation-dependent regulation in bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Habenicht
- Institut für allgemeine Mikrobiologie, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Katrin Weidenbach
- Institut für allgemeine Mikrobiologie, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany
| | - Adrian Velazquez-Campoy
- Institute of Biocomputation and Physics of Complex Systems (BIFI), Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Celular, Universidad de Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain
- Instituto de Investigaciones Sanitarias de Aragón (IIS Aragón), Zaragoza, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Hepáticas y Digestivas (CIBEREHD), Madrid, Spain
| | - Ruben M. Buey
- Departamento de Microbiología y Genética, Universidad de Salamanca, Salamanca, Spain
| | - Monica Balsera
- Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Salamanca, Spanish National Research Council (IRNASA-CSIC), Salamanca, Spain
| | - Ruth A. Schmitz
- Institut für allgemeine Mikrobiologie, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany
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3
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Jordan B, Weidenbach K, Schmitz RA. The power of the small: the underestimated role of small proteins in bacterial and archaeal physiology. Curr Opin Microbiol 2023; 76:102384. [PMID: 37776678 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2023.102384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2023] [Revised: 09/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/02/2023]
Abstract
Small proteins encoded by small open-reading frames (sORFs) (≤70 aa) were overlooked for decades due to methodological reasons and are thus often missing in genome annotations. Novel detection methods such as ribosome profiling (Ribo-Seq) and mass spectrometry optimized for small proteins (peptidomics) have opened up a new field of interest and several catalogs of small proteins in bacteria and archaea have been recently reported. Many translated sORFs have been discovered in genomic locations previously thought to be noncoding, such as 5' or 3' untranslated regions or well-studied regulatory small RNAs (sRNAs). Even within longer ORFs, additional functional sORFs have been detected. Today, only a small proportion is characterized, but those small proteins indicate important and diverse functions in cellular physiology. Here, we summarize recently characterized small proteins involved in microbial metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Britta Jordan
- Institute for General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-University, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Katrin Weidenbach
- Institute for General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-University, 24118 Kiel, Germany
| | - Ruth A Schmitz
- Institute for General Microbiology, Christian-Albrechts-University, 24118 Kiel, Germany.
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4
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Pérez-Alfaro JE, Villaseca A, Gaytán R, Martínez-Jardines MA, Buitrón G, Texier AC, Cuervo-López FM. Nitrification activity in the presence of 2-chlorophenol using whole nitrifying cells and cell-free extracts: batch and SBR assays. 3 Biotech 2023; 13:364. [PMID: 37840880 PMCID: PMC10575828 DOI: 10.1007/s13205-023-03764-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Kinetic assays with a nitrifying consortium with whole nitrifying cells amended with 5 mg 2-CP-C/L and 100, 200, 300, or 500 mg NH4+-N/L were carried out in batch and nitrifying sequencing batch reactor (SBR) cultures. No nitrification activity was observed in batch assays with 100 mg NH4+-N/L and 5 mg 2-CP-C/L. Nevertheless, increasing the ammonium concentration from 200 to 500 mg NH4+-N/L allowed simultaneous ammonium and nitrite oxidation even in the presence of 5 mg 2-CP-C/L plus the halogenated compound consumption. Under these conditions, the ammonium monooxygenase enzyme participated in 2-CP consumption. Complete nitrification and simultaneous elimination of 5 mg 2-CP-C/L were achieved in the SBR amended with 200-500 mg NH4+-N/L. The inhibitory effect of 2-CP on the nitrite oxidation process completely disappeared under these conditions. Assays with nitrifying cell-free extracts, ammonium (100 mg NH4+-N/L), and 2-CP (5 mg 2-CP-C/L) were also conducted. In the absence of 2-CP, the nitrifying cell-free extracts maintained up to 60% of the nitrifying activity compared to whole-cells. Contrary to whole-cell assays, cell-free extracts were capable of simultaneously oxidizing ammonium and consuming 2-CP. However, the inhibitory effect of 2-CP on nitrification was still present as lower specific rates of ammonium consumption and nitrate production were obtained. Thus, these assays indicate that the presence of 2-CP affects both, the ammonium transport mechanism and the activity of nitrifying enzymes. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-023-03764-z.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. E. Pérez-Alfaro
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
| | - A. Villaseca
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
| | - Raúl Gaytán
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
| | - M. A. Martínez-Jardines
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
| | - G. Buitrón
- Unidad Académica del Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 76230 Querétaro, Querétaro México
| | - A.-C. Texier
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
| | - F. M. Cuervo-López
- Department of Biotechnology, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Iztapalapa, Iztapalapa, CP 09310 Mexico City, México
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Bizior A, Williamson G, Harris T, Hoskisson PA, Javelle A. Prokaryotic ammonium transporters: what has three decades of research revealed? MICROBIOLOGY (READING, ENGLAND) 2023; 169:001360. [PMID: 37450375 PMCID: PMC10433425 DOI: 10.1099/mic.0.001360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 06/24/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
The exchange of ammonium across cellular membranes is a fundamental process in all domains of life. In plants, bacteria and fungi, ammonium represents a vital source of nitrogen, which is scavenged from the external environment. In contrast, in animal cells ammonium is a cytotoxic metabolic waste product and must be excreted to prevent cell death. Transport of ammonium is facilitated by the ubiquitous Amt/Mep/Rh transporter superfamily. In addition to their function as transporters, Amt/Mep/Rh proteins play roles in a diverse array of biological processes and human physiopathology. Despite this clear physiological importance and medical relevance, the molecular mechanism of Amt/Mep/Rh proteins has remained elusive. Crystal structures of bacterial Amt/Rh proteins suggest electroneutral transport, whilst functional evidence supports an electrogenic mechanism. Here, focusing on bacterial members of the family, we summarize the structure of Amt/Rh proteins and what three decades of research tells us concerning the general mechanisms of ammonium translocation, in particular the possibility that the transport mechanism might differ in various members of the Amt/Mep/Rh superfamily.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriana Bizior
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, UK
| | - Gordon Williamson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, UK
| | - Thomas Harris
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, UK
| | - Paul A. Hoskisson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, UK
| | - Arnaud Javelle
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, G4 0RE, UK
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6
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Bao YQ, Zhang MT, Feng BY, Jieensi W, Xu Y, Xu LR, Han YY, Chen YP. Construction, Characterization, and Application of an Ammonium Transporter (AmtB) Deletion Mutant of the Nitrogen-Fixing Bacterium Kosakonia radicincitans GXGL-4A in Cucumis sativus L. Seedlings. Curr Microbiol 2023; 80:58. [PMID: 36588112 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-022-03160-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Nitrogen is an important factor affecting crop yield, but excessive use of chemical nitrogen fertilizer has caused decline in nitrogen utilization and soil and water pollution. Reducing the utilization of chemical nitrogen fertilizers by biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is feasible for green production of crops. However, there are few reports on how to have more ammonium produced by nitrogen-fixing bacteria (NFB) flow outside the cell. In the present study, the amtB gene encoding an ammonium transporter (AmtB) in the genome of NFB strain Kosakonia radicincitans GXGL-4A was deleted and the △amtB mutant was characterized. The results showed that deletion of the amtB gene had no influence on the growth of bacterial cells. The extracellular ammonium nitrogen (NH4+) content of the △amtB mutant under nitrogen-free culture conditions was significantly higher than that of the wild-type strain GXGL-4A (WT-GXGL-4A), suggesting disruption of NH4+ transport. Meanwhile, the plant growth-promoting effect in cucumber seedlings was visualized after fertilization using cells of the △amtB mutant. NFB fertilization continuously increased the cucumber rhizosphere soil pH. The nitrate nitrogen (NO3-) content in soil in the △amtB treatment group was significantly higher than that in the WT-GXGL-4A treatment group in the short term but there was no difference in soil NH4+ contents between groups. Soil enzymatic activities varied during a 45-day assessment period, indicating that △amtB fertilization influenced soil nitrogen cycling in the cucumber rhizosphere. The results will provide a solid foundation for developing the NFB GXGL-4A into an efficient biofertilizer agent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Qing Bao
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, China
| | - Meng-Ting Zhang
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Bao-Yun Feng
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Wulale Jieensi
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Yu Xu
- College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, 321004, China
| | - Lu-Rong Xu
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China
| | - Ying-Ying Han
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, 200093, China
| | - Yun-Peng Chen
- Department of Resources and Environment, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
- Ministry of Science and Technology, Shanghai Yangtze River Delta Eco-Environmental Change and Research Station, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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7
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López de Felipe F, de las Rivas B, Muñoz R. Molecular Responses of Lactobacilli to Plant Phenolic Compounds: A Comparative Review of the Mechanisms Involved. Antioxidants (Basel) 2021; 11:antiox11010018. [PMID: 35052520 PMCID: PMC8772861 DOI: 10.3390/antiox11010018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Lactobacilli are well-studied bacteria that can undergo oxidative selective pressures by plant phenolic compounds (PPCs) in plants, during some food fermentations or in the gastrointestinal tract of animals via dietary inputs. Lactobacilli are known to be more tolerant to PPCs than other bacterial groups and, therefore, must have mechanisms to cope with the effects of these metabolites. In this review, we intend to present what is currently known about the basics beyond the responses of Lactobacillus spp. to individual PPCs. We review the molecular mechanisms that are engaged in the PPC-modulated responses studied to date in these bacteria that have been mainly characterized by system-based strategies, and we discuss their differences and similarities. A wide variety of mechanisms are induced to increase the oxidative stress response highlighting the antimicrobial nature of PPCs. However other uncovered mechanisms that are involved in the response to these compounds are reviewed, including the capacity of PPCs to modulate the expression of molecular functions used by lactobacilli to adapt to host environments. This shows that these phytochemicals can act as more than just antimicrobial agents in the dual interaction with lactobacilli.
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8
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Perin G, Fletcher T, Sagi-Kiss V, Gaboriau DCA, Carey MR, Bundy JG, Jones PR. Calm on the surface, dynamic on the inside. Molecular homeostasis of Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 nitrogen metabolism. PLANT, CELL & ENVIRONMENT 2021; 44:1885-1907. [PMID: 33608943 DOI: 10.1111/pce.14034] [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: 09/11/2020] [Revised: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Nitrogen sources are all converted into ammonium/ia as a first step of assimilation. It is reasonable to expect that molecular components involved in the transport of ammonium/ia across biological membranes connect with the regulation of both nitrogen and central metabolism. We applied both genetic (i.e., Δamt mutation) and environmental treatments to a target biological system, the cyanobacterium Anabaena sp PCC 7120. The aim was to both perturb nitrogen metabolism and induce multiple inner nitrogen states, respectively, followed by targeted quantification of key proteins, metabolites and enzyme activities. The absence of AMT transporters triggered a substantial whole-system response, affecting enzyme activities and quantity of proteins and metabolites, spanning nitrogen and carbon metabolisms. Moreover, the Δamt strain displayed a molecular fingerprint indicating nitrogen deficiency even under nitrogen replete conditions. Contrasting with such dynamic adaptations was the striking near-complete lack of an externally measurable altered phenotype. We conclude that this species evolved a highly robust and adaptable molecular network to maintain homeostasis, resulting in substantial internal but minimal external perturbations. This analysis provides evidence for a potential role of AMT transporters in the regulatory/signalling network of nitrogen metabolism and the existence of a novel fourth regulatory mechanism controlling glutamine synthetase activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgio Perin
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Tyler Fletcher
- Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Chemistry, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Virag Sagi-Kiss
- Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - David C A Gaboriau
- Facility for Imaging by Light Microscopy, NHLI, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Mathew R Carey
- Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Jacob G Bundy
- Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Patrik R Jones
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK
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9
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Williamson G, Tamburrino G, Bizior A, Boeckstaens M, Dias Mirandela G, Bage MG, Pisliakov A, Ives CM, Terras E, Hoskisson PA, Marini AM, Zachariae U, Javelle A. A two-lane mechanism for selective biological ammonium transport. eLife 2020; 9:57183. [PMID: 32662768 PMCID: PMC7447429 DOI: 10.7554/elife.57183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The transport of charged molecules across biological membranes faces the dual problem of accommodating charges in a highly hydrophobic environment while maintaining selective substrate translocation. This has been the subject of a particular controversy for the exchange of ammonium across cellular membranes, an essential process in all domains of life. Ammonium transport is mediated by the ubiquitous Amt/Mep/Rh transporters that includes the human Rhesus factors. Here, using a combination of electrophysiology, yeast functional complementation and extended molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal a unique two-lane pathway for electrogenic NH4+ transport in two archetypal members of the family, the transporters AmtB from Escherichia coli and Rh50 from Nitrosomonas europaea. The pathway underpins a mechanism by which charged H+ and neutral NH3 are carried separately across the membrane after NH4+ deprotonation. This mechanism defines a new principle of achieving transport selectivity against competing ions in a biological transport process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gordon Williamson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Tamburrino
- Computational Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom.,Physics, School of Science and Engineering, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Adriana Bizior
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Mélanie Boeckstaens
- Biology of Membrane Transport Laboratory, Department of Molecular Biology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Gosselies, Belgium
| | - Gaëtan Dias Mirandela
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Marcus G Bage
- Computational Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom.,Physics, School of Science and Engineering, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Andrei Pisliakov
- Computational Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom.,Physics, School of Science and Engineering, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Callum M Ives
- Computational Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Eilidh Terras
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Paul A Hoskisson
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Maria Marini
- Biology of Membrane Transport Laboratory, Department of Molecular Biology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Gosselies, Belgium
| | - Ulrich Zachariae
- Computational Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom.,Physics, School of Science and Engineering, University of Dundee, Dundee, United Kingdom
| | - Arnaud Javelle
- Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
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10
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Ganz P, Ijato T, Porras-Murrilo R, Stührwohldt N, Ludewig U, Neuhäuser B. A twin histidine motif is the core structure for high-affinity substrate selection in plant ammonium transporters. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:3362-3370. [PMID: 31988244 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra119.010891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2019] [Revised: 01/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Ammonium transporters (AMT), methylamine permeases (Mep), and the more distantly related rhesus factors (Rh) are trimeric membrane proteins present in all domains of life. AMT/Mep/Rhs are highly selective membrane proteins required for ammonium uptake or release, and they efficiently exclude the similarly sized K+ ion. Previously reported crystal structures have revealed that each transporter subunit contains a unique hydrophobic but occluded central pore, but it is unclear whether the base (NH3) or NH3 coupled with an H+ are transported. Here, using expression of two plant AMTs (AtAMT1;2 and AMT2) in budding yeast, we found that systematic replacements in the conserved twin-histidine motif, a hallmark of most AMT/Mep/Rh, alter substrate recognition, transport capacities, N isotope selection, and selectivity against K+ AMT-specific differences were found for histidine variants. Variants that completely lost ammonium N isotope selection, a feature likely associated with NH4 + deprotonation during passage, substantially transported K+ in addition to NH4 + Of note, the twin-histidine motif was not essential for ammonium transport. However, it conferred key AMT features, such as high substrate affinity and selectivity against alkali cations via an NH4 + deprotonation mechanism. Our findings indicate that the twin-His motif is the core structure responsible for substrate deprotonation and isotopic preferences in AMT pores and that decreased deprotonation capacity is associated with reduced selectivity against K+ We conclude that optimization for ammonium transport in plant AMT represents a compromise between substrate deprotonation for optimal selectivity and high substrate affinity and transport rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pascal Ganz
- Institute of Crop Science, Nutritional Crop Physiology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Toyosi Ijato
- Institute of Crop Science, Nutritional Crop Physiology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Romano Porras-Murrilo
- Institute of Crop Science, Nutritional Crop Physiology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Nils Stührwohldt
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Biotechnology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Uwe Ludewig
- Institute of Crop Science, Nutritional Crop Physiology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Benjamin Neuhäuser
- Institute of Crop Science, Nutritional Crop Physiology, University of Hohenheim, 70593 Stuttgart, Germany.
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11
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Maeda K, Westerhoff HV, Kurata H, Boogerd FC. Ranking network mechanisms by how they fit diverse experiments and deciding on E. coli's ammonium transport and assimilation network. NPJ Syst Biol Appl 2019; 5:14. [PMID: 30993002 PMCID: PMC6461619 DOI: 10.1038/s41540-019-0091-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The complex ammonium transport and assimilation network of E. coli involves the ammonium transporter AmtB, the regulatory proteins GlnK and GlnB, and the central N-assimilating enzymes together with their highly complex interactions. The engineering and modelling of such a complex network seem impossible because functioning depends critically on a gamut of data known at patchy accuracy. We developed a way out of this predicament, which employs: (i) a constrained optimization-based technology for the simultaneous fitting of models to heterogeneous experimental data sets gathered through diverse experimental set-ups, (ii) a 'rubber band method' to deal with different degrees of uncertainty, both in experimentally determined or estimated parameter values and in measured transient or steady-state variables (training data sets), (iii) integration of human expertise to decide on accuracies of both parameters and variables, (iv) massive computation employing a fast algorithm and a supercomputer, (v) an objective way of quantifying the plausibility of models, which makes it possible to decide which model is the best and how much better that model is than the others. We applied the new technology to the ammonium transport and assimilation network, integrating recent and older data of various accuracies, from different expert laboratories. The kinetic model objectively ranked best, has E. coli's AmtB as an active transporter of ammonia to be assimilated with GlnK minimizing the futile cycling that is an inevitable consequence of intracellular ammonium accumulation. It is 130 times better than a model with facilitated passive transport of ammonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kazuhiro Maeda
- Frontier Research Academy for Young Researchers, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan
- Department of Bioscience and Bioinformatics, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Iizuka, Fukuoka Japan
| | - Hans V. Westerhoff
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, VU University Amsterdam, O|2 building, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Manchester Centre for Integrative Systems Biology, Manchester Interdisciplinary Biocentre, School of Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
- Synthetic Systems Biology and Nuclear Organization, Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Hiroyuki Kurata
- Department of Bioscience and Bioinformatics, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Iizuka, Fukuoka Japan
- Biomedical Informatics R&D Center, Kyushu Institute of Technology, Iizuka, Fukuoka Japan
| | - Fred C. Boogerd
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, VU University Amsterdam, O|2 building, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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12
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Ariz I, Boeckstaens M, Gouveia C, Martins AP, Sanz-Luque E, Fernández E, Soveral G, von Wirén N, Marini AM, Aparicio-Tejo PM, Cruz C. Nitrogen isotope signature evidences ammonium deprotonation as a common transport mechanism for the AMT-Mep-Rh protein superfamily. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2018; 4:eaar3599. [PMID: 30214933 PMCID: PMC6135547 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aar3599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2017] [Accepted: 07/27/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Ammonium is an important nitrogen (N) source for living organisms, a key metabolite for pH control, and a potent cytotoxic compound. Ammonium is transported by the widespread AMT-Mep-Rh membrane proteins, and despite their significance in physiological processes, the nature of substrate translocation (NH3/NH4+) by the distinct members of this family is still a matter of controversy. Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells expressing representative AMT-Mep-Rh ammonium carriers and taking advantage of the natural chemical-physical property of the N isotopic signature linked to NH4+/NH3 conversion, this study shows that only cells expressing AMT-Mep-Rh proteins were depleted in 15N relative to 14N when compared to the external ammonium source. We observed 15N depletion over a wide range of external pH, indicating its independence of NH3 formation in solution. On the basis of inhibitor studies, ammonium transport by nonspecific cation channels did not show isotope fractionation but competition with K+. We propose that kinetic N isotope fractionation is a common feature of AMT-Mep-Rh-type proteins, which favor 14N over 15N, owing to the dissociation of NH4+ into NH3 + H+ in the protein, leading to 15N depletion in the cell and allowing NH3 passage or NH3/H+ cotransport. This deprotonation mechanism explains these proteins' essential functions in environments under a low NH4+/K+ ratio, allowing organisms to specifically scavenge NH4+. We show that 15N isotope fractionation may be used in vivo not only to determine the molecular species being transported by ammonium transport proteins, but also to track ammonium toxicity and associated amino acids excretion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Idoia Ariz
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Mélanie Boeckstaens
- Biology of Membrane Transport, Department of Molecular Biology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 6041 Gosselies, Belgium
| | - Catarina Gouveia
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Ana Paula Martins
- iMed.ULisboa–Research Institute for Medicines, Faculdade de Farmácia da Universidade de Lisboa, 1649-003 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Emanuel Sanz-Luque
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Univeristy of Córdoba, 14071 Cordoba, Spain
| | - Emilio Fernández
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Univeristy of Córdoba, 14071 Cordoba, Spain
| | - Graça Soveral
- iMed.ULisboa–Research Institute for Medicines, Faculdade de Farmácia da Universidade de Lisboa, 1649-003 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Nicolaus von Wirén
- Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, Leibniz Institute for Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research, Seeland, 06466 OT Gatersleben, Germany
| | - Anna M. Marini
- Biology of Membrane Transport, Department of Molecular Biology, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 6041 Gosselies, Belgium
| | | | - Cristina Cruz
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
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Kok J, van Gijtenbeek LA, de Jong A, van der Meulen SB, Solopova A, Kuipers OP. The Evolution of gene regulation research in Lactococcus lactis. FEMS Microbiol Rev 2018; 41:S220-S243. [PMID: 28830093 DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fux028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2017] [Accepted: 06/15/2017] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Lactococcus lactis is a major microbe. This lactic acid bacterium (LAB) is used worldwide in the production of safe, healthy, tasteful and nutritious milk fermentation products. Its huge industrial importance has led to an explosion of research on the organism, particularly since the early 1970s. The upsurge in the research on L. lactis coincided not accidentally with the advent of recombinant DNA technology in these years. The development of methods to take out and re-introduce DNA in L. lactis, to clone genes and to mutate the chromosome in a targeted way, to control (over)expression of proteins and, ultimately, the availability of the nucleotide sequence of its genome and the use of that information in transcriptomics and proteomics research have enabled to peek deep into the functioning of the organism. Among many other things, this has provided an unprecedented view of the major gene regulatory pathways involved in nitrogen and carbon metabolism and their overlap, and has led to the blossoming of the field of L. lactis systems biology. All of these advances have made L. lactis the paradigm of the LAB. This review will deal with the exciting path along which the research on the genetics of and gene regulation in L. lactis has trodden.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Kok
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Lieke A van Gijtenbeek
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Anne de Jong
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Sjoerd B van der Meulen
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Ana Solopova
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Oscar P Kuipers
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, 9747 AG Groningen, the Netherlands
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14
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Role of metabolic spatiotemporal dynamics in regulating biofilm colony expansion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2018; 115:4288-4293. [PMID: 29610314 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1706920115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell fate determination is typically regulated by biological networks, yet increasing evidences suggest that cell-cell communication and environmental stresses play crucial roles in the behavior of a cell population. A recent microfluidic experiment showed that the metabolic codependence of two cell populations generates a collective oscillatory dynamic during the expansion of a Bacillus subtilis biofilm. We develop a modeling framework for the spatiotemporal dynamics of the associated metabolic circuit for cells in a colony. We elucidate the role of metabolite diffusion and the need of two distinct cell populations to observe oscillations. Uniquely, this description captures the onset and thereafter stable oscillatory dynamics during expansion and predicts the existence of damping oscillations under various environmental conditions. This modeling scheme provides insights to understand how cells integrate the information from external signaling and cell-cell communication to determine the optimal survival strategy and/or maximize cell fitness in a multicellular system.
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15
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Gonzalez E, Pitre FE, Pagé AP, Marleau J, Guidi Nissim W, St-Arnaud M, Labrecque M, Joly S, Yergeau E, Brereton NJB. Trees, fungi and bacteria: tripartite metatranscriptomics of a root microbiome responding to soil contamination. MICROBIOME 2018; 6:53. [PMID: 29562928 PMCID: PMC5863371 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-018-0432-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2016] [Accepted: 03/02/2018] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND One method for rejuvenating land polluted with anthropogenic contaminants is through phytoremediation, the reclamation of land through the cultivation of specific crops. The capacity for phytoremediation crops, such as Salix spp., to tolerate and even flourish in contaminated soils relies on a highly complex and predominantly cryptic interacting community of microbial life. METHODS Here, Illumina HiSeq 2500 sequencing and de novo transcriptome assembly were used to observe gene expression in washed Salix purpurea cv. 'Fish Creek' roots from trees pot grown in petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated or non-contaminated soil. All 189,849 assembled contigs were annotated without a priori assumption as to sequence origin and differential expression was assessed. RESULTS The 839 contigs differentially expressed (DE) and annotated from S. purpurea revealed substantial increases in transcripts encoding abiotic stress response equipment, such as glutathione S-transferases, in roots of contaminated trees as well as the hallmarks of fungal interaction, such as SWEET2 (Sugars Will Eventually Be Exported Transporter). A total of 8252 DE transcripts were fungal in origin, with contamination conditions resulting in a community shift from Ascomycota to Basidiomycota genera. In response to contamination, 1745 Basidiomycota transcripts increased in abundance (the majority uniquely expressed in contaminated soil) including major monosaccharide transporter MST1, primary cell wall and lamella CAZy enzymes, and an ectomycorrhiza-upregulated exo-β-1,3-glucanase (GH5). Additionally, 639 DE polycistronic transcripts from an uncharacterised Enterobacteriaceae species were uniformly in higher abundance in contamination conditions and comprised a wide spectrum of genes cryptic under laboratory conditions but considered putatively involved in eukaryotic interaction, biofilm formation and dioxygenase hydrocarbon degradation. CONCLUSIONS Fungal gene expression, representing the majority of contigs assembled, suggests out-competition of white rot Ascomycota genera (dominated by Pyronema), a sometimes ectomycorrhizal (ECM) Ascomycota (Tuber) and ECM Basidiomycota (Hebeloma) by a poorly characterised putative ECM Basidiomycota due to contamination. Root and fungal expression involved transcripts encoding carbohydrate/amino acid (C/N) dialogue whereas bacterial gene expression included the apparatus necessary for biofilm interaction and direct reduction of contamination stress, a potential bacterial currency for a role in tripartite mutualism. Unmistakable within the metatranscriptome is the degree to which the landscape of rhizospheric biology, particularly the important but predominantly uncharacterised fungal genetics, is yet to be discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Gonzalez
- Canadian Center for Computational Genomics, McGill University and Genome Quebec Innovation Center, Montréal, H3A 1A4, Canada
- Department of Human Genetics, McGill University, Montreal, H3A 1B1, Canada
| | - F E Pitre
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
- Montreal Botanical Garden, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
| | - A P Pagé
- Aquatic and Crop Resource Development (ACRD), National Research Council Canada, Montréal, QC, H4P 2R2, Canada
| | - J Marleau
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
| | - W Guidi Nissim
- Department of Agri-food and Environmental Science, University of Florence, Viale delle Idee, Sesto Fiorentino, FI, Italy
| | - M St-Arnaud
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
- Montreal Botanical Garden, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
| | - M Labrecque
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
- Montreal Botanical Garden, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
| | - S Joly
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
- Montreal Botanical Garden, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada
| | - E Yergeau
- Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique, Centre INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier, Laval, QC, Canada
| | - N J B Brereton
- Institut de recherche en biologie végétale, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, H1X 2B2, Canada.
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Learning to read and write in evolution: from static pseudoenzymes and pseudosignalers to dynamic gear shifters. Biochem Soc Trans 2017; 45:635-652. [PMID: 28620026 DOI: 10.1042/bst20160281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2017] [Revised: 02/16/2017] [Accepted: 02/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
We present a systems biology view on pseudoenzymes that acknowledges that genes are not selfish: the genome is. With network function as the selectable unit, there has been an evolutionary bonus for recombination of functions of and within proteins. Many proteins house a functionality by which they 'read' the cell's state, and one by which they 'write' and thereby change that state. Should the writer domain lose its cognate function, a 'pseudoenzyme' or 'pseudosignaler' arises. GlnK involved in Escherichia coli ammonia assimilation may well be a pseudosignaler, associating 'reading' the nitrogen state of the cell to 'writing' the ammonium uptake activity. We identify functional pseudosignalers in the cyclin-dependent kinase complexes regulating cell-cycle progression. For the mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway, we illustrate how a 'dead' pseudosignaler could produce potentially selectable functionalities. Four billion years ago, bioenergetics may have shuffled 'electron-writers', producing various networks that all served the same function of anaerobic ATP synthesis and carbon assimilation from hydrogen and carbon dioxide, but at different ATP/acetate ratios. This would have enabled organisms to deal with variable challenges of energy need and substrate supply. The same principle might enable 'gear-shifting' in real time, by dynamically generating different pseudo-redox enzymes, reshuffling their coenzymes, and rerouting network fluxes. Non-stationary pH gradients in thermal vents together with similar such shuffling mechanisms may have produced a first selectable proton-motivated pyrophosphate synthase and subsequent ATP synthase. A combination of functionalities into enzymes, signalers, and the pseudo-versions thereof may offer fitness in terms of plasticity, both in real time and in evolution.
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Löffler M, Simen JD, Müller J, Jäger G, Laghrami S, Schäferhoff K, Freund A, Takors R. Switching between nitrogen and glucose limitation: Unraveling transcriptional dynamics in Escherichia coli. J Biotechnol 2017; 258:2-12. [PMID: 28412516 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2017.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2017] [Revised: 04/09/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Transcriptional control under nitrogen and carbon-limitation conditions have been well analyzed for Escherichia coli. However, the transcriptional dynamics that underlie the shift in regulatory programs from nitrogen to carbon limitation is not well studied. In the present study, cells were cultivated at steady state under nitrogen (ammonia)-limited conditions then shifted to carbon (glucose) limitation to monitor changes in transcriptional dynamics. Nitrogen limitation was found to be dominated by sigma 54 (RpoN) and sigma 38 (RpoS), whereas the "housekeeping" sigma factor 70 (RpoD) and sigma 38 regulate cellular status under glucose limitation. During the transition, nitrogen-mediated control was rapidly redeemed and mRNAs that encode active uptake systems, such as ptsG and manXYZ, were quickly amplified. Next, genes encoding facilitators such as lamB were overexpressed, followed by high affinity uptake systems such as mglABC and non-specific porins such as ompF. These regulatory programs are complex and require well-equilibrated and superior control. At the metabolome level, 2-oxoglutarate is the likely component that links carbon- and nitrogen-mediated regulation by interacting with major regulatory elements. In the case of dual glucose and ammonia limitation, sigma 24 (RpoE) appears to play a key role in orchestrating these complex regulatory networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Löffler
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Joana Danica Simen
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Jan Müller
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Günter Jäger
- University of Tübingen, Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, Calwerstr. 7, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Salaheddine Laghrami
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Karin Schäferhoff
- University of Tübingen, Institute of Medical Genetics and Applied Genomics, Calwerstr. 7, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Freund
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany
| | | | - Ralf Takors
- University of Stuttgart, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, Allmandring 31, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
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18
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Braakman R, Follows MJ, Chisholm SW. Metabolic evolution and the self-organization of ecosystems. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:E3091-E3100. [PMID: 28348231 PMCID: PMC5393222 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1619573114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Metabolism mediates the flow of matter and energy through the biosphere. We examined how metabolic evolution shapes ecosystems by reconstructing it in the globally abundant oceanic phytoplankter Prochlorococcus To understand what drove observed evolutionary patterns, we interpreted them in the context of its population dynamics, growth rate, and light adaptation, and the size and macromolecular and elemental composition of cells. This multilevel view suggests that, over the course of evolution, there was a steady increase in Prochlorococcus' metabolic rate and excretion of organic carbon. We derived a mathematical framework that suggests these adaptations lower the minimal subsistence nutrient concentration of cells, which results in a drawdown of nutrients in oceanic surface waters. This, in turn, increases total ecosystem biomass and promotes the coevolution of all cells in the ecosystem. Additional reconstructions suggest that Prochlorococcus and the dominant cooccurring heterotrophic bacterium SAR11 form a coevolved mutualism that maximizes their collective metabolic rate by recycling organic carbon through complementary excretion and uptake pathways. Moreover, the metabolic codependencies of Prochlorococcus and SAR11 are highly similar to those of chloroplasts and mitochondria within plant cells. These observations lead us to propose a general theory relating metabolic evolution to the self-amplification and self-organization of the biosphere. We discuss the implications of this framework for the evolution of Earth's biogeochemical cycles and the rise of atmospheric oxygen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rogier Braakman
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139;
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Michael J Follows
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
| | - Sallie W Chisholm
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139;
- Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
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Abstract
The metabolite 2-oxoglutarate (also known as α-ketoglutarate, 2-ketoglutaric acid, or oxoglutaric acid) lies at the intersection between the carbon and nitrogen metabolic pathways. This compound is a key intermediate of one of the most fundamental biochemical pathways in carbon metabolism, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. In addition, 2-oxoglutarate also acts as the major carbon skeleton for nitrogen-assimilatory reactions. Experimental data support the conclusion that intracellular levels of 2-oxoglutarate fluctuate according to nitrogen and carbon availability. This review summarizes how nature has capitalized on the ability of 2-oxoglutarate to reflect cellular nutritional status through evolution of a variety of 2-oxoglutarate-sensing regulatory proteins. The number of metabolic pathways known to be regulated by 2-oxoglutarate levels has increased significantly in recent years. The signaling properties of 2-oxoglutarate are highlighted by the fact that this metabolite regulates the synthesis of the well-established master signaling molecule, cyclic AMP (cAMP), in Escherichia coli.
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21
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Ion channels enable electrical communication in bacterial communities. Nature 2015; 527:59-63. [PMID: 26503040 DOI: 10.1038/nature15709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 408] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2015] [Accepted: 09/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The study of bacterial ion channels has provided fundamental insights into the structural basis of neuronal signalling; however, the native role of ion channels in bacteria has remained elusive. Here we show that ion channels conduct long-range electrical signals within bacterial biofilm communities through spatially propagating waves of potassium. These waves result from a positive feedback loop, in which a metabolic trigger induces release of intracellular potassium, which in turn depolarizes neighbouring cells. Propagating through the biofilm, this wave of depolarization coordinates metabolic states among cells in the interior and periphery of the biofilm. Deletion of the potassium channel abolishes this response. As predicted by a mathematical model, we further show that spatial propagation can be hindered by specific genetic perturbations to potassium channel gating. Together, these results demonstrate a function for ion channels in bacterial biofilms, and provide a prokaryotic paradigm for active, long-range electrical signalling in cellular communities.
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Reverón I, de las Rivas B, Matesanz R, Muñoz R, López de Felipe F. Molecular adaptation of Lactobacillus plantarum WCFS1 to gallic acid revealed by genome-scale transcriptomic signature and physiological analysis. Microb Cell Fact 2015; 14:160. [PMID: 26453568 PMCID: PMC4600210 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-015-0345-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2015] [Accepted: 09/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Gallic acid (GA) is a model hydroxybenzoic acid that occurs esterified in the lignocellulosic biomass of higher plants. GA displays relevant biological activities including anticancer properties. Owing to its antimicrobial and cellulase-inhibiting activities, GA also imposes constraints to the fermentability of lignocellulosic hydrolysates. In depth-knowledge of the mechanisms used by tolerant microorganisms to adapt to hydroxybenzoic acids would be a step forward to improve the bioavailability of GA or select/engineer production hosts with improved metabolic traits for the bioconversion of pretreated lignocellulosic biomass. Results Whole genome transcriptional profiling using DNA microarrays was used to characterize the molecular response of Lactobacillus plantarum WCFS1 to GA. Expression levels of 14 and 40 genes were differentially regulated at 1.5 and 15 mM GA, respectively. The transcriptomic analysis identified a marked induction of genes with confirmed or related roles to gastrointestinal survival, the repression of genes coding for certain ABC-type transporters and modulation of genes involved in the control of intracellular ammonia levels, among other responses. Most notably, a core set of genes dedicated to produce GA from polyphenols (tanBLp), decarboxylate GA to pyrogallol (lpdB, lpdC and lpdD) and transport functions (lp_2943) was highly overexpressed at both GA concentrations. Correspondingly, resting cells of strain WCFS1 induced by GA, but not their non-induced controls, produced pyrogallol. Gene expression and organization of genes involved in GA metabolism suggested a chemiosmotic mechanism of energy generation. Resting cells of L. plantarum induced by GA generated a membrane potential and a pH gradient across the membrane immediately upon addition of GA. Altogether, transcriptome profiling correlated with physiological observations indicating that a proton motive force could be generated during GA metabolism as a result of electrogenic GA uptake coupled with proton consumption by the intracellular gallate decarboxylase. Conclusions The combination of transcriptome and physiological analyses revealed versatile molecular mechanisms involved in the adaptation of L. plantarum to GA. These data provide a platform to improve the survival of Lactobacillus in the gut. Our data may also guide the selection/engineering of microorganisms that better tolerate phenolic inhibitors present in pretreated lignocellulosic feedstocks. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12934-015-0345-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inés Reverón
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Bacteriana, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de los Alimentos y Nutrición (ICTAN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Blanca de las Rivas
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Bacteriana, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de los Alimentos y Nutrición (ICTAN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Ruth Matesanz
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (CIB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Rosario Muñoz
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Bacteriana, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de los Alimentos y Nutrición (ICTAN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Félix López de Felipe
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Bacteriana, Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de los Alimentos y Nutrición (ICTAN-CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
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Abstract
Cells that reside within a community can cooperate and also compete with each other for resources. It remains unclear how these opposing interactions are resolved at the population level. Here we investigate such an internal conflict within a microbial (Bacillus subtilis) biofilm community: cells in the biofilm periphery not only protect interior cells from external attack but also starve them through nutrient consumption. We discover that this conflict between protection and starvation is resolved through emergence of long-range metabolic co-dependence between peripheral and interior cells. As a result, biofilm growth halts periodically, increasing nutrient availability for the sheltered interior cells. We show that this collective oscillation in biofilm growth benefits the community in the event of a chemical attack. These findings indicate that oscillations support population-level conflict resolution by coordinating competing metabolic demands in space and time, suggesting new strategies to control biofilm growth.
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Westerhoff HV, Brooks AN, Simeonidis E, García-Contreras R, He F, Boogerd FC, Jackson VJ, Goncharuk V, Kolodkin A. Macromolecular networks and intelligence in microorganisms. Front Microbiol 2014; 5:379. [PMID: 25101076 PMCID: PMC4106424 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2014.00379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2014] [Accepted: 07/05/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Living organisms persist by virtue of complex interactions among many components organized into dynamic, environment-responsive networks that span multiple scales and dimensions. Biological networks constitute a type of information and communication technology (ICT): they receive information from the outside and inside of cells, integrate and interpret this information, and then activate a response. Biological networks enable molecules within cells, and even cells themselves, to communicate with each other and their environment. We have become accustomed to associating brain activity - particularly activity of the human brain - with a phenomenon we call "intelligence." Yet, four billion years of evolution could have selected networks with topologies and dynamics that confer traits analogous to this intelligence, even though they were outside the intercellular networks of the brain. Here, we explore how macromolecular networks in microbes confer intelligent characteristics, such as memory, anticipation, adaptation and reflection and we review current understanding of how network organization reflects the type of intelligence required for the environments in which they were selected. We propose that, if we were to leave terms such as "human" and "brain" out of the defining features of "intelligence," all forms of life - from microbes to humans - exhibit some or all characteristics consistent with "intelligence." We then review advances in genome-wide data production and analysis, especially in microbes, that provide a lens into microbial intelligence and propose how the insights derived from quantitatively characterizing biomolecular networks may enable synthetic biologists to create intelligent molecular networks for biotechnology, possibly generating new forms of intelligence, first in silico and then in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans V. Westerhoff
- Department of Molecular Cell Physiology, Vrije Universiteit AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Manchester Centre for Integrative Systems Biology, The University of ManchesterManchester, UK
- Synthetic Systems Biology, University of AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Aaron N. Brooks
- Institute for Systems BiologySeattle, WA, USA
- Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of WashingtonSeattle, WA, USA
| | - Evangelos Simeonidis
- Institute for Systems BiologySeattle, WA, USA
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of LuxembourgEsch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | | | - Fei He
- Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, The University of SheffieldSheffield, UK
| | - Fred C. Boogerd
- Department of Molecular Cell Physiology, Vrije Universiteit AmsterdamAmsterdam, Netherlands
| | | | - Valeri Goncharuk
- Netherlands Institute for NeuroscienceAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Russian Cardiology Research CenterMoscow, Russia
- Department of Medicine, Center for Alzheimer and Neurodegenerative Research, University of AlbertaEdmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Alexey Kolodkin
- Institute for Systems BiologySeattle, WA, USA
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of LuxembourgEsch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
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25
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Direct observation of electrogenic NH4(+) transport in ammonium transport (Amt) proteins. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:9995-10000. [PMID: 24958855 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1406409111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Ammonium transport (Amt) proteins form a ubiquitous family of integral membrane proteins that specifically shuttle ammonium across membranes. In prokaryotes, archaea, and plants, Amts are used as environmental NH4(+) scavengers for uptake and assimilation of nitrogen. In the eukaryotic homologs, the Rhesus proteins, NH4(+)/NH3 transport is used instead in acid-base and pH homeostasis in kidney or NH4(+)/NH3 (and eventually CO2) detoxification in erythrocytes. Crystal structures and variant proteins are available, but the inherent challenges associated with the unambiguous identification of substrate and monitoring of transport events severely inhibit further progress in the field. Here we report a reliable in vitro assay that allows us to quantify the electrogenic capacity of Amt proteins. Using solid-supported membrane (SSM)-based electrophysiology, we have investigated the three Amt orthologs from the euryarchaeon Archaeoglobus fulgidus. Af-Amt1 and Af-Amt3 are electrogenic and transport the ammonium and methylammonium cation with high specificity. Transport is pH-dependent, with a steep decline at pH values of ∼5.0. Despite significant sequence homologies, functional differences between the three proteins became apparent. SSM electrophysiology provides a long-sought-after functional assay for the ubiquitous ammonium transporters.
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van Heeswijk WC, Westerhoff HV, Boogerd FC. Nitrogen assimilation in Escherichia coli: putting molecular data into a systems perspective. Microbiol Mol Biol Rev 2013; 77:628-95. [PMID: 24296575 PMCID: PMC3973380 DOI: 10.1128/mmbr.00025-13] [Citation(s) in RCA: 159] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
We present a comprehensive overview of the hierarchical network of intracellular processes revolving around central nitrogen metabolism in Escherichia coli. The hierarchy intertwines transport, metabolism, signaling leading to posttranslational modification, and transcription. The protein components of the network include an ammonium transporter (AmtB), a glutamine transporter (GlnHPQ), two ammonium assimilation pathways (glutamine synthetase [GS]-glutamate synthase [glutamine 2-oxoglutarate amidotransferase {GOGAT}] and glutamate dehydrogenase [GDH]), the two bifunctional enzymes adenylyl transferase/adenylyl-removing enzyme (ATase) and uridylyl transferase/uridylyl-removing enzyme (UTase), the two trimeric signal transduction proteins (GlnB and GlnK), the two-component regulatory system composed of the histidine protein kinase nitrogen regulator II (NRII) and the response nitrogen regulator I (NRI), three global transcriptional regulators called nitrogen assimilation control (Nac) protein, leucine-responsive regulatory protein (Lrp), and cyclic AMP (cAMP) receptor protein (Crp), the glutaminases, and the nitrogen-phosphotransferase system. First, the structural and molecular knowledge on these proteins is reviewed. Thereafter, the activities of the components as they engage together in transport, metabolism, signal transduction, and transcription and their regulation are discussed. Next, old and new molecular data and physiological data are put into a common perspective on integral cellular functioning, especially with the aim of resolving counterintuitive or paradoxical processes featured in nitrogen assimilation. Finally, we articulate what still remains to be discovered and what general lessons can be learned from the vast amounts of data that are available now.
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Yuzbashev TV, Vybornaya TV, Larina AS, Gvilava IT, Voyushina NE, Mokrova SS, Yuzbasheva EY, Manukhov IV, Sineoky SP, Debabov VG. Directed modification of Escherichia coli metabolism for the design of threonine-producing strains. APPL BIOCHEM MICRO+ 2013. [DOI: 10.1134/s0003683813090056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Hall JA, Yan D. The molecular basis of K+ exclusion by the Escherichia coli ammonium channel AmtB. J Biol Chem 2013; 288:14080-14086. [PMID: 23546877 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.457952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Members of the Amt family of channels mediate the transport of ammonium. The form of ammonium, NH3 or NH4(+), carried by these proteins remains controversial, and the mechanism by which they select against K(+) ions is unclear. We describe here a set of Escherichia coli AmtB proteins carrying mutations at the conserved twin-histidine site within the conduction pore that have altered substrate specificity and now transport K(+). Subsequent work established that AmtB-mediated K(+) uptake occurred against a concentration gradient and was membrane potential-dependent. These findings indicate that the twin-histidine element serves as a filter to prevent K(+) conduction and strongly support the notion that Amt proteins transport cations (NH4(+) or, in mutant proteins, K(+)) rather than NH3 gas molecules through their conduction pores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason A Hall
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0374.
| | - Dalai Yan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202-5120
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Gallo G, Baldi F, Renzone G, Gallo M, Cordaro A, Scaloni A, Puglia AM. Adaptative biochemical pathways and regulatory networks in Klebsiella oxytoca BAS-10 producing a biotechnologically relevant exopolysaccharide during Fe(III)-citrate fermentation. Microb Cell Fact 2012; 11:152. [PMID: 23176641 PMCID: PMC3539929 DOI: 10.1186/1475-2859-11-152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2012] [Accepted: 11/06/2012] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A bacterial strain previously isolated from pyrite mine drainage and named BAS-10 was tentatively identified as Klebsiella oxytoca. Unlikely other enterobacteria, BAS-10 is able to grow on Fe(III)-citrate as sole carbon and energy source, yielding acetic acid and CO2 coupled with Fe(III) reduction to Fe(II) and showing unusual physiological characteristics. In fact, under this growth condition, BAS-10 produces an exopolysaccharide (EPS) having a high rhamnose content and metal-binding properties, whose biotechnological applications were proven as very relevant. RESULTS Further phylogenetic analysis, based on 16S rDNA sequence, definitively confirmed that BAS-10 belongs to K. oxytoca species. In order to rationalize the biochemical peculiarities of this unusual enterobacteriun, combined 2D-Differential Gel Electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) analysis and mass spectrometry procedures were used to investigate its proteomic changes: i) under aerobic or anaerobic cultivation with Fe(III)-citrate as sole carbon source; ii) under anaerobic cultivations using Na(I)-citrate or Fe(III)-citrate as sole carbon source. Combining data from these differential studies peculiar levels of outer membrane proteins, key regulatory factors of carbon and nitrogen metabolism and enzymes involved in TCA cycle and sugar biosynthesis or required for citrate fermentation and stress response during anaerobic growth on Fe(III)-citrate were revealed. The protein differential regulation seems to ensure efficient cell growth coupled with EPS production by adapting metabolic and biochemical processes in order to face iron toxicity and to optimize energy production. CONCLUSION Differential proteomics provided insights on the molecular mechanisms necessary for anaeorobic utilization of Fe(III)-citrate in a biotechnologically promising enterobacteriun, also revealing genes that can be targeted for the rational design of high-yielding EPS producer strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Gallo
- Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Molecolari e Biomolecolari (STEMBIO), Università di Palermo Viale delle Scienze, ed, 16, Parco d'Orleans II, Palermo, 90128, Italy.
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Ullmann RT, Andrade SLA, Ullmann GM. Thermodynamics of transport through the ammonium transporter Amt-1 investigated with free energy calculations. J Phys Chem B 2012; 116:9690-703. [PMID: 22804733 DOI: 10.1021/jp305440f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Amt-1 from Archaeoglobus fulgidus (AfAmt-1) belongs to the Amt/Rh family of ammonium/ammonia transporting membrane proteins. The transport mode and the precise microscopic permeation mechanism utilized by these proteins are intensely debated. Open questions concern the identity of the transported substrate (ammonia and/or ammonium) and whether the transport is passive or active. To address these questions, we studied the overall thermodynamics of the different transport modes as a function of the environmental conditions. Then, we investigated the thermodynamics of the underlying microscopic transport mechanisms with free energy calculations within a continuum electrostatics model. The formalism developed for this purpose is of general utility in the calculation of binding free energies for ligands with multiple protonation forms or other binding forms. The results of our calculations are compared to the available experimental and theoretical data on Amt/Rh proteins and discussed in light of the current knowledge on the physiological conditions experienced by microorganisms and plants. We found that microscopic models of electroneutral and electrogenic transport modes are in principle thermodynamically viable. However, only the electrogenic variants have a net thermodynamic driving force under the physiological conditions experienced by microorganisms and plants. Thus, the transport mechanism of AfAmt-1 is most likely electrogenic.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Thomas Ullmann
- Structural Biology/Bioinformatics, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstrasse 30, BGI, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany.
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Kolodkin A, Simeonidis E, Balling R, Westerhoff HV. Understanding complexity in neurodegenerative diseases: in silico reconstruction of emergence. Front Physiol 2012; 3:291. [PMID: 22934043 PMCID: PMC3429063 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2012.00291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2012] [Accepted: 07/04/2012] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Healthy functioning is an emergent property of the network of interacting biomolecules that comprise an organism. It follows that disease (a network shift that causes malfunction) is also an emergent property, emerging from a perturbation of the network. On the one hand, the biomolecular network of every individual is unique and this is evident when similar disease-producing agents cause different individual pathologies. Consequently, a personalized model and approach for every patient may be required for therapies to become effective across mankind. On the other hand, diverse combinations of internal and external perturbation factors may cause a similar shift in network functioning. We offer this as an explanation for the multi-factorial nature of most diseases: they are "systems biology diseases," or "network diseases." Here we use neurodegenerative diseases, like Parkinson's disease (PD), as an example to show that due to the inherent complexity of these networks, it is difficult to understand multi-factorial diseases with simply our "naked brain." When describing interactions between biomolecules through mathematical equations and integrating those equations into a mathematical model, we try to reconstruct the emergent properties of the system in silico. The reconstruction of emergence from interactions between huge numbers of macromolecules is one of the aims of systems biology. Systems biology approaches enable us to break through the limitation of the human brain to perceive the extraordinarily large number of interactions, but this also means that we delegate the understanding of reality to the computer. We no longer recognize all those essences in the system's design crucial for important physiological behavior (the so-called "design principles" of the system). In this paper we review evidence that by using more abstract approaches and by experimenting in silico, one may still be able to discover and understand the design principles that govern behavioral emergence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexey Kolodkin
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of LuxembourgEsch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
- Institute for Systems Biology, SeattleWA, USA
| | - Evangelos Simeonidis
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of LuxembourgEsch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
- Institute for Systems Biology, SeattleWA, USA
| | - Rudi Balling
- Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of LuxembourgEsch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Hans V. Westerhoff
- Department of Molecular Cell Physiology, VU UniversityAmsterdam, Netherlands
- Manchester Centre for Integrative Systems Biology, FALW, NISB, The University of ManchesterUK
- Synthetic Systems Biology, SILS, NISB, University of AmsterdamNetherlands
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Gunka K, Commichau FM. Control of glutamate homeostasis in Bacillus subtilis: a complex interplay between ammonium assimilation, glutamate biosynthesis and degradation. Mol Microbiol 2012; 85:213-24. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2958.2012.08105.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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Groot Kormelink T, Koenders E, Hagemeijer Y, Overmars L, Siezen RJ, de Vos WM, Francke C. Comparative genome analysis of central nitrogen metabolism and its control by GlnR in the class Bacilli. BMC Genomics 2012; 13:191. [PMID: 22607086 PMCID: PMC3412718 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-13-191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2011] [Accepted: 03/20/2012] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The assimilation of nitrogen in bacteria is achieved through only a few metabolic conversions between alpha-ketoglutarate, glutamate and glutamine. The enzymes that catalyze these conversions are glutamine synthetase, glutaminase, glutamate dehydrogenase and glutamine alpha-ketoglutarate aminotransferase. In low-GC Gram-positive bacteria the transcriptional control over the levels of the related enzymes is mediated by four regulators: GlnR, TnrA, GltC and CodY. We have analyzed the genomes of all species belonging to the taxonomic families Bacillaceae, Listeriaceae, Staphylococcaceae, Lactobacillaceae, Leuconostocaceae and Streptococcaceae to determine the diversity in central nitrogen metabolism and reconstructed the regulation by GlnR. RESULTS Although we observed a substantial difference in the extent of central nitrogen metabolism in the various species, the basic GlnR regulon was remarkably constant and appeared not affected by the presence or absence of the other three main regulators. We found a conserved regulatory association of GlnR with glutamine synthetase (glnRA operon), and the transport of ammonium (amtB-glnK) and glutamine/glutamate (i.e. via glnQHMP, glnPHQ, gltT, alsT). In addition less-conserved associations were found with, for instance, glutamate dehydrogenase in Streptococcaceae, purine catabolism and the reduction of nitrite in Bacillaceae, and aspartate/asparagine deamination in Lactobacillaceae. CONCLUSIONS Our analyses imply GlnR-mediated regulation in constraining the import of ammonia/amino-containing compounds and the production of intracellular ammonia under conditions of high nitrogen availability. Such a role fits with the intrinsic need for tight control of ammonia levels to limit futile cycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tom Groot Kormelink
- Kluyver Centre for Genomics of Industrial Fermentation, Delft, The Netherlands
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Waldvogel E, Herbig A, Battke F, Amin R, Nentwich M, Nieselt K, Ellingsen TE, Wentzel A, Hodgson DA, Wohlleben W, Mast Y. The PII protein GlnK is a pleiotropic regulator for morphological differentiation and secondary metabolism in Streptomyces coelicolor. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2011; 92:1219-36. [PMID: 22033567 DOI: 10.1007/s00253-011-3644-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2011] [Revised: 09/26/2011] [Accepted: 10/12/2011] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
GlnK is an important nitrogen sensor protein in Streptomyces coelicolor. Deletion of glnK results in a medium-dependent failure of aerial mycelium and spore formation and loss of antibiotic production. Thus, GlnK is not only a regulator of nitrogen metabolism but also of morphological differentiation and secondary metabolite production. Through a comparative transcriptomic approach between the S. coelicolor wild-type and a S. coelicolor glnK mutant strain, 142 genes were identified that are differentially regulated in both strains. Among these are genes of the ram and rag operon, which are involved in S. coelicolor morphogenesis, as well as genes involved in gas vesicle biosynthesis and ectoine biosynthesis. Surprisingly, no relevant nitrogen genes were found to be differentially regulated, revealing that GlnK is not an important nitrogen sensor under the tested conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Waldvogel
- Microbiology/Biotechnology, Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine, Faculty of Science, University of Tübingen, Germany
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Maier S, Schleberger P, Lü W, Wacker T, Pflüger T, Litz C, Andrade SLA. Mechanism of disruption of the Amt-GlnK complex by P(II)-mediated sensing of 2-oxoglutarate. PLoS One 2011; 6:e26327. [PMID: 22039461 PMCID: PMC3198391 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0026327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2011] [Accepted: 09/24/2011] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
GlnK proteins regulate the active uptake of ammonium by Amt transport proteins by inserting their regulatory T-loops into the transport channels of the Amt trimer and physically blocking substrate passage. They sense the cellular nitrogen status through 2-oxoglutarate, and the energy level of the cell by binding both ATP and ADP with different affinities. The hyperthermophilic euryarchaeon Archaeoglobus fulgidus possesses three Amt proteins, each encoded in an operon with a GlnK ortholog. One of these proteins, GlnK2 was recently found to be incapable of binding 2-OG, and in order to understand the implications of this finding we conducted a detailed structural and functional analysis of a second GlnK protein from A. fulgidus, GlnK3. Contrary to Af-GlnK2 this protein was able to bind both ATP/2-OG and ADP to yield inactive and functional states, respectively. Due to the thermostable nature of the protein we could observe the exact positioning of the notoriously flexible T-loops and explain the binding behavior of GlnK proteins to their interaction partner, the Amt proteins. A thermodynamic analysis of these binding events using microcalorimetry evaluated by microstate modeling revealed significant differences in binding cooperativity compared to other characterized PII proteins, underlining the diversity and adaptability of this class of regulatory signaling proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Maier
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Paula Schleberger
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Wei Lü
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Tobias Wacker
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Tobias Pflüger
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Claudia Litz
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Susana L. A. Andrade
- Institut für organische Chemie und Biochemie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- * E-mail:
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Ortiz-Ramirez C, Mora SI, Trejo J, Pantoja O. PvAMT1;1, a highly selective ammonium transporter that functions as H+/NH4(+) symporter. J Biol Chem 2011; 286:31113-22. [PMID: 21757699 PMCID: PMC3173114 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m111.261693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2011] [Revised: 07/04/2011] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
One of the main forms of nitrogen assimilated by microorganisms and plants is ammonium, despite its toxicity at low millimolar concentrations. Ammonium absorption has been demonstrated to be carried out by highly selective plasma membrane-located transporters of the AMT/MEP/Rh family and characterized by the presence of a well conserved hydrophobic pore through which ammonia is proposed to move. However, uncertainties exist regarding the exact chemical species transported by these membrane proteins, which can be in the form of either hydrophobic ammonia or charged ammonium. Here, we present the characterization of PvAMT1;1 from the common bean and demonstrate that it mediates the high affinity (micromolar), rapidly saturating (1 mM) electrogenic transport of ammonium. Activity of the transporter is enhanced by low extracellular pH, and associated with this acidic pH stimulation are changes in the reversal potential and cytoplasm acidification, indicating that PvAMT1;1 functions as an H(+)/NH(4)(+) symporter. Mutation analysis of a unique histidine present in PvAMT1;1 (H125R) leads to the stimulation of ammonium transport by decreasing the K(m) value by half and by increasing the V(max) 3-fold, without affecting the pH dependence of the symporter. In contrast, mutation of the first conserved histidine within the channel modifies the properties of PvAMT1;1, increasing its K(m) and V(max) values and transforming it into a pH-independent mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Ortiz-Ramirez
- From the Departamento de Biología Molecular de Plantas, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, A. P. 510-3, Colonia Miraval, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62250, México
| | - Silvia I. Mora
- From the Departamento de Biología Molecular de Plantas, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, A. P. 510-3, Colonia Miraval, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62250, México
| | - Jorge Trejo
- From the Departamento de Biología Molecular de Plantas, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, A. P. 510-3, Colonia Miraval, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62250, México
| | - Omar Pantoja
- From the Departamento de Biología Molecular de Plantas, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, A. P. 510-3, Colonia Miraval, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62250, México
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Emergence of the silicon human and network targeting drugs. Eur J Pharm Sci 2011; 46:190-7. [PMID: 21704158 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejps.2011.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2011] [Accepted: 06/07/2011] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The development of disease may be characterized as a pathological shift of homeostasis; the main goal of contemporary drug treatment is, therefore, to return the pathological homeostasis back to the normal physiological range. From the view point of systems biology, homeostasis emerges from the interactions within the network of biomolecules (e.g. DNA, mRNA, proteins), and, hence, understanding how drugs impact upon the entire network should improve their efficacy at returning the network (body) to physiological homeostasis. Large, mechanism-based computer models, such as the anticipated human whole body models (silicon or virtual human), may help in the development of such network-targeting drugs. Using the philosophical concept of weak and strong emergence, we shall here take a more general look at the paradigm of network-targeting drugs, and propose our approaches to scale the strength of strong emergence. We apply these approaches to several biological examples and demonstrate their utility to reveal principles of bio-modeling. We discuss this in the perspective of building the silicon human.
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Rodrigues TE, Souza VEP, Monteiro RA, Gerhardt ECM, Araújo LM, Chubatsu LS, Souza EM, Pedrosa FO, Huergo LF. In vitro interaction between the ammonium transport protein AmtB and partially uridylylated forms of the P(II) protein GlnZ. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-PROTEINS AND PROTEOMICS 2011; 1814:1203-9. [PMID: 21645649 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2011.05.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2011] [Revised: 04/28/2011] [Accepted: 05/13/2011] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The ammonium transport family Amt/Rh comprises ubiquitous integral membrane proteins that facilitate ammonium movement across biological membranes. Besides their role in transport, Amt proteins also play a role in sensing the levels of ammonium in the environment, a process that depends on complex formation with cytosolic proteins of the P(II) family. Trimeric P(II) proteins from a variety of organisms undergo a cycle of reversible posttranslational modification according to the prevailing nitrogen supply. In proteobacteria, P(II) proteins are subjected to reversible uridylylation of each monomer. In this study we used the purified proteins from Azospirillum brasilense to analyze the effect of P(II) uridylylation on the protein's ability to engage complex formation with AmtB in vitro. Our results show that partially uridylylated P(II) trimers can interact with AmtB in vitro, the implication of this finding in the regulation of nitrogen metabolism is discussed. We also report an improved expression and purification protocol for the A. brasilense AmtB protein that might be applicable to AmtB proteins from other organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thiago E Rodrigues
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Universidade Federal do Parana, Curitiba, Brazil
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Lunshof JE, Chadwick R. Editorial: genetic and genomic research-changing patterns of accountability. Account Res 2011; 18:121-31. [PMID: 21574069 DOI: 10.1080/08989621.2011.575031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Debates about genomic science have raised questions about the implications for ethics and accountability. Accountability has external and internal aspects. Whereas ethical review, including attention to appropriate consent procedures, has been central to 'giving an account' externally, there are also issues internal to the practice of science itself. The pursuit of truth is central to the scientific endeavour, but truths can sometimes be 'inconvenient', leading to complex questions of accountability that go beyond the issues of consent. This is illustrated by the case of the Havasupai.
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Adamczyk M, van Eunen K, Bakker BM, Westerhoff HV. Enzyme Kinetics for Systems Biology. Methods Enzymol 2011; 500:233-57. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-385118-5.00013-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
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