1
|
Marshall LK, Fahrenbach AC, Thordarson P. RNA-Binding Peptides Inspired by the RNA Recognition Motif. ACS Chem Biol 2024; 19:243-248. [PMID: 38314708 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.3c00694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
β-Hairpin peptides with RNA-binding sequences mimicking the central two β-strands of the RNA recognition motif (RRM) protein domain have been observed to bind in a 2:1 fashion to a series of RNA homooligonucleotides in aqueous solution (PBS buffer, pH 7.40) with binding energies (-27 to -35 kJ mol-1) similar to those of full-size protein RRMs. The peptides display mild selectivities with respect to the binding of the different homooligomers. Binding studies in 500 mM magnesium chloride suggest that the complex formation is not predominantly driven by Coulombic attraction. These peptides represent a starting point for further studies of non-Coulombic binding of RNA by peptides and proteins, which is important in the context of contemporary biology, potential therapeutic applications, and prebiotic peptide-RNA interactions.
Collapse
|
2
|
Wright Z, Seymour M, Paszczak K, Truttmann T, Senn K, Stilp S, Jansen N, Gosz M, Goeden L, Anantharaman V, Aravind L, Waters LS. The small protein MntS evolved from a signal peptide and acquired a novel function regulating manganese homeostasis in Escherichia coli. Mol Microbiol 2024; 121:152-166. [PMID: 38104967 PMCID: PMC10842292 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.15206] [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: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Small proteins (<50 amino acids) are emerging as ubiquitous and important regulators in organisms ranging from bacteria to humans, where they commonly bind to and regulate larger proteins during stress responses. However, fundamental aspects of small proteins, such as their molecular mechanism of action, downregulation after they are no longer needed, and their evolutionary provenance, are poorly understood. Here, we show that the MntS small protein involved in manganese (Mn) homeostasis binds and inhibits the MntP Mn transporter. Mn is crucial for bacterial survival in stressful environments but is toxic in excess. Thus, Mn transport is tightly controlled at multiple levels to maintain optimal Mn levels. The small protein MntS adds a new level of regulation for Mn transporters, beyond the known transcriptional and post-transcriptional control. We also found that MntS binds to itself in the presence of Mn, providing a possible mechanism of downregulating MntS activity to terminate its inhibition of MntP Mn export. MntS is homologous to the signal peptide of SitA, the periplasmic metal-binding subunit of a Mn importer. Remarkably, the homologous signal peptide regions can substitute for MntS, demonstrating a functional relationship between MntS and these signal peptides. Conserved gene neighborhoods support that MntS evolved from the signal peptide of an ancestral SitA protein, acquiring a life of its own with a distinct function in Mn homeostasis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary Wright
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Mackenzie Seymour
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Kalista Paszczak
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Taylor Truttmann
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Katherine Senn
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Samuel Stilp
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Nickolas Jansen
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Magdalyn Gosz
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Lindsay Goeden
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| | - Vivek Anantharaman
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894, USA
| | - L. Aravind
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20894, USA
| | - Lauren S. Waters
- Department of Chemistry, 800 Algoma Blvd, University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh, WI 54901, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Wright Z, Seymour M, Paszczak K, Truttmann T, Senn K, Stilp S, Jansen N, Gosz M, Goeden L, Anantharaman V, Aravind L, Waters LS. The small protein MntS evolved from a signal peptide and acquired a novel function regulating manganese homeostasis in Escherichia coli. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.02.543501. [PMID: 37398132 PMCID: PMC10312517 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.02.543501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
Small proteins (< 50 amino acids) are emerging as ubiquitous and important regulators in organisms ranging from bacteria to humans, where they commonly bind to and regulate larger proteins during stress responses. However, fundamental aspects of small proteins, such as their molecular mechanism of action, downregulation after they are no longer needed, and their evolutionary provenance are poorly understood. Here we show that the MntS small protein involved in manganese (Mn) homeostasis binds and inhibits the MntP Mn transporter. Mn is crucial for bacterial survival in stressful environments, but is toxic in excess. Thus, Mn transport is tightly controlled at multiple levels to maintain optimal Mn levels. The small protein MntS adds a new level of regulation for Mn transporters, beyond the known transcriptional and post-transcriptional control. We also found that MntS binds to itself in the presence of Mn, providing a possible mechanism of downregulating MntS activity to terminate its inhibition of MntP Mn export. MntS is homologous to the signal peptide of SitA, the periplasmic metal-binding subunit of a Mn importer. Remarkably, the homologous signal peptide regions can substitute for MntS, demonstrating a functional relationship between MntS and these signal peptides. Conserved gene-neighborhoods support that MntS evolved from an ancestral SitA, acquiring a life of its own with a distinct function in Mn homeostasis. Significance This study demonstrates that the MntS small protein binds and inhibits the MntP Mn exporter, adding another layer to the complex regulation of Mn homeostasis. MntS also interacts with itself in cells with Mn, which could prevent it from regulating MntP. We propose that MntS and other small proteins might sense environmental signals and shut off their own regulation via binding to ligands (e.g., metals) or other proteins. We also provide evidence that MntS evolved from the signal peptide region of the Mn importer, SitA. Homologous SitA signal peptides can recapitulate MntS activities, showing that they have a second function beyond protein secretion. Overall, we establish that small proteins can emerge and develop novel functionalities from gene remnants.
Collapse
|
4
|
Zhao F, Akanuma S. Ancestral Sequence Reconstruction of the Ribosomal Protein uS8 and Reduction of Amino Acid Usage to a Smaller Alphabet. J Mol Evol 2023; 91:10-23. [PMID: 36396786 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-022-10078-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 11/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the origin and early evolution of proteins is important for unveiling how the RNA world developed into an RNA-protein world. Because the composition of organic molecules in the Earth's primitive environment was plausibly not as diverse as today, the number of different amino acids used in early protein synthesis is likely to be substantially less than the current 20 proteinogenic residues. In this study, we have explored the thermal stability and RNA binding of ancestral variants of the ribosomal protein uS8 constructed from a reduced-alphabet of amino acids. First, we built a phylogenetic tree based on the amino acid sequences of uS8 from multiple extant organisms and used the tree to infer two plausible amino acid sequences corresponding to the last bacterial common ancestor of uS8. Both ancestral proteins were thermally stable and bound to an RNA fragment. By eliminating individual amino acid letters and monitoring thermal stability and RNA binding in the resulting proteins, we reduced the size of the amino acid set constituting one of the ancestral proteins, eventually finding that convergent sequences consisting of 15- or 14-amino acid alphabets still folded into stable structures that bound to the RNA fragment. Furthermore, a simplified variant reconstructed from a 13-amino-acid alphabet retained affinity for the RNA fragment, although it lost conformational stability. Collectively, RNA-binding activity may be achieved with a subset of the current 20 amino acids, raising the possibility of a simpler composition of RNA-binding proteins in the earliest stage of protein evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fangzheng Zhao
- Faculty of Human Sciences, Waseda University, 2-579-15, Mikajima, Tokorozawa, Saitama, 359-1192, Japan
| | - Satoshi Akanuma
- Faculty of Human Sciences, Waseda University, 2-579-15, Mikajima, Tokorozawa, Saitama, 359-1192, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
A Short Tale of the Origin of Proteins and Ribosome Evolution. Microorganisms 2022; 10:microorganisms10112115. [DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10112115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2022] [Revised: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Proteins are the workhorses of the cell and have been key players throughout the evolution of all organisms, from the origin of life to the present era. How might life have originated from the prebiotic chemistry of early Earth? This is one of the most intriguing unsolved questions in biology. Currently, however, it is generally accepted that amino acids, the building blocks of proteins, were abiotically available on primitive Earth, which would have made the formation of early peptides in a similar fashion possible. Peptides are likely to have coevolved with ancestral forms of RNA. The ribosome is the most evident product of this coevolution process, a sophisticated nanomachine that performs the synthesis of proteins codified in genomes. In this general review, we explore the evolution of proteins from their peptide origins to their folding and regulation based on the example of superoxide dismutase (SOD1), a key enzyme in oxygen metabolism on modern Earth.
Collapse
|
6
|
Tretyachenko V, Vymětal J, Neuwirthová T, Vondrášek J, Fujishima K, Hlouchová K. Modern and prebiotic amino acids support distinct structural profiles in proteins. Open Biol 2022; 12:220040. [PMID: 35728622 PMCID: PMC9213115 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.220040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The earliest proteins had to rely on amino acids available on early Earth before the biosynthetic pathways for more complex amino acids evolved. In extant proteins, a significant fraction of the 'late' amino acids (such as Arg, Lys, His, Cys, Trp and Tyr) belong to essential catalytic and structure-stabilizing residues. How (or if) early proteins could sustain an early biosphere has been a major puzzle. Here, we analysed two combinatorial protein libraries representing proxies of the available sequence space at two different evolutionary stages. The first is composed of the entire alphabet of 20 amino acids while the second one consists of only 10 residues (ASDGLIPTEV) representing a consensus view of plausibly available amino acids through prebiotic chemistry. We show that compact conformations resistant to proteolysis are surprisingly similarly abundant in both libraries. In addition, the early alphabet proteins are inherently more soluble and refoldable, independent of the general Hsp70 chaperone activity. By contrast, chaperones significantly increase the otherwise poor solubility of the modern alphabet proteins suggesting their coevolution with the amino acid repertoire. Our work indicates that while both early and modern amino acids are predisposed to supporting protein structure, they do so with different biophysical properties and via different mechanisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vyacheslav Tretyachenko
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague 12843, Czech Republic,Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague 12843, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Vymětal
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Tereza Neuwirthová
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague 12843, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Vondrášek
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Kosuke Fujishima
- Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo 1528550, Japan,Graduate School of Media and Governance, Keio University, Fujisawa 2520882 Japan
| | - Klára Hlouchová
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague 12843, Czech Republic,Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 16610, Czech Republic
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Fried SD, Fujishima K, Makarov M, Cherepashuk I, Hlouchova K. Peptides before and during the nucleotide world: an origins story emphasizing cooperation between proteins and nucleic acids. J R Soc Interface 2022; 19:20210641. [PMID: 35135297 PMCID: PMC8833103 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2021.0641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent developments in Origins of Life research have focused on substantiating the narrative of an abiotic emergence of nucleic acids from organic molecules of low molecular weight, a paradigm that typically sidelines the roles of peptides. Nevertheless, the simple synthesis of amino acids, the facile nature of their activation and condensation, their ability to recognize metals and cofactors and their remarkable capacity to self-assemble make peptides (and their analogues) favourable candidates for one of the earliest functional polymers. In this mini-review, we explore the ramifications of this hypothesis. Diverse lines of research in molecular biology, bioinformatics, geochemistry, biophysics and astrobiology provide clues about the progression and early evolution of proteins, and lend credence to the idea that early peptides served many central prebiotic roles before they were encodable by a polynucleotide template, in a putative 'peptide-polynucleotide stage'. For example, early peptides and mini-proteins could have served as catalysts, compartments and structural hubs. In sum, we shed light on the role of early peptides and small proteins before and during the nucleotide world, in which nascent life fully grasped the potential of primordial proteins, and which has left an imprint on the idiosyncratic properties of extant proteins.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Stephen D Fried
- Department of Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21212, USA.,Department of Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21212, USA
| | - Kosuke Fujishima
- Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo 1528550, Japan.,Graduate School of Media and Governance, Keio University, Fujisawa 2520882, Japan
| | - Mikhail Makarov
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Ivan Cherepashuk
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Klara Hlouchova
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague 12800, Czech Republic.,Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 16610, Czech Republic
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Giacobelli VG, Fujishima K, Lepšík M, Tretyachenko V, Kadavá T, Makarov M, Bednárová L, Novák P, Hlouchová K. In vitro evolution reveals non-cationic protein-RNA interaction mediated by metal ions. Mol Biol Evol 2022; 39:6524634. [PMID: 35137196 PMCID: PMC8892947 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msac032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
RNA–peptide/protein interactions have been of utmost importance to life since its earliest forms, reaching even before the last universal common ancestor (LUCA). However, the ancient molecular mechanisms behind this key biological interaction remain enigmatic because extant RNA–protein interactions rely heavily on positively charged and aromatic amino acids that were absent (or heavily under-represented) in the early pre-LUCA evolutionary period. Here, an RNA-binding variant of the ribosomal uL11 C-terminal domain was selected from an approximately 1010 library of partially randomized sequences, all composed of ten prebiotically plausible canonical amino acids. The selected variant binds to the cognate RNA with a similar overall affinity although it is less structured in the unbound form than the wild-type protein domain. The variant complex association and dissociation are both slower than for the wild-type, implying different mechanistic processes involved. The profile of the wild-type and mutant complex stabilities along with molecular dynamics simulations uncovers qualitative differences in the interaction modes. In the absence of positively charged and aromatic residues, the mutant uL11 domain uses ion bridging (K+/Mg2+) interactions between the RNA sugar-phosphate backbone and glutamic acid residues as an alternative source of stabilization. This study presents experimental support to provide a new perspective on how early protein–RNA interactions evolved, where the lack of aromatic/basic residues may have been compensated by acidic residues plus metal ions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Valerio G Giacobelli
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague, 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Kosuke Fujishima
- Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, 1528550, Japan.,Graduate School of Media and Governance, Keio University, Fujisawa, 2520882, Japan
| | - Martin Lepšík
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Vyacheslav Tretyachenko
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague, 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Tereza Kadavá
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Mikhail Makarov
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague, 12800, Czech Republic
| | - Lucie Bednárová
- Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, 16610, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Novák
- Institute of Microbiology, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Vestec, 25250, Czech Republic
| | - Klára Hlouchová
- Department of Cell Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, BIOCEV, Prague, 12800, Czech Republic.,Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, 16610, Czech Republic
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
TwinCons: Conservation score for uncovering deep sequence similarity and divergence. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1009541. [PMID: 34714829 PMCID: PMC8580257 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1009541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 11/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
We have developed the program TwinCons, to detect noisy signals of deep ancestry of proteins or nucleic acids. As input, the program uses a composite alignment containing pre-defined groups, and mathematically determines a 'cost' of transforming one group to the other at each position of the alignment. The output distinguishes conserved, variable and signature positions. A signature is conserved within groups but differs between groups. The method automatically detects continuous characteristic stretches (segments) within alignments. TwinCons provides a convenient representation of conserved, variable and signature positions as a single score, enabling the structural mapping and visualization of these characteristics. Structure is more conserved than sequence. TwinCons highlights alternative sequences of conserved structures. Using TwinCons, we detected highly similar segments between proteins from the translation and transcription systems. TwinCons detects conserved residues within regions of high functional importance for the ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and demonstrates that signatures are not confined to specific regions but are distributed across the rRNA structure. The ability to evaluate both nucleic acid and protein alignments allows TwinCons to be used in combined sequence and structural analysis of signatures and conservation in rRNA and in ribosomal proteins (rProteins). TwinCons detects a strong sequence conservation signal between bacterial and archaeal rProteins related by circular permutation. This conserved sequence is structurally colocalized with conserved rRNA, indicated by TwinCons scores of rRNA alignments of bacterial and archaeal groups. This combined analysis revealed deep co-evolution of rRNA and rProtein buried within the deepest branching points in the tree of life.
Collapse
|
10
|
Alvarez-Carreño C, Penev PI, Petrov AS, Williams LD. Fold Evolution before LUCA: Common Ancestry of SH3 Domains and OB Domains. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:5134-5143. [PMID: 34383917 PMCID: PMC8557408 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
SH3 and OB are the simplest, oldest, and most common protein domains within the translation system. SH3 and OB domains are β-barrels that are structurally similar but are topologically distinct. To transform an OB domain to a SH3 domain, β-strands must be permuted in a multistep and evolutionarily implausible mechanism. Here, we explored relationships between SH3 and OB domains of ribosomal proteins, initiation, and elongation factors using a combined sequence- and structure-based approach. We detect a common core of SH3 and OB domains, as a region of significant structure and sequence similarity. The common core contains four β-strands and a loop, but omits the fifth β-strand, which is variable and is absent from some OB and SH3 domain proteins. The structure of the common core immediately suggests a simple permutation mechanism for interconversion between SH3 and OB domains, which appear to share an ancestor. The OB domain was formed by duplication and adaptation of the SH3 domain core, or vice versa, in a simple and probable transformation. By employing the folding algorithm AlphaFold2, we demonstrated that an ancestral reconstruction of a permuted SH3 sequence folds into an OB structure, and an ancestral reconstruction of a permuted OB sequence folds into a SH3 structure. The tandem SH3 and OB domains in the universal ribosomal protein uL2 share a common ancestor, suggesting that the divergence of these two domains occurred before the last universal common ancestor.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Alvarez-Carreño
- NASA Center for the Origin of Life, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Petar I Penev
- NASA Center for the Origin of Life, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Anton S Petrov
- NASA Center for the Origin of Life, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- NASA Center for the Origin of Life, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Vallée Y, Youssef-Saliba S. Sulfur Amino Acids: From Prebiotic Chemistry to Biology and Vice Versa. SYNTHESIS-STUTTGART 2021. [DOI: 10.1055/a-1472-7914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
AbstractTwo sulfur-containing amino acids are included in the list of the 20 classical protein amino acids. A methionine residue is introduced at the start of the synthesis of all current proteins. Cysteine, thanks to its thiol function, plays an essential role in a very large number of catalytic sites. Here we present what is known about the prebiotic synthesis of these two amino acids and homocysteine, and we discuss their introduction into primitive peptides and more elaborate proteins.1 Introduction2 Sulfur Sources3 Prebiotic Synthesis of Cysteine4 Prebiotic Synthesis of Methionine5 Homocysteine and Its Thiolactone6 Methionine and Cystine in Proteins7 Prebiotic Scenarios Using Sulfur Amino Acids8 Introduction of Cys and Met in the Genetic Code9 Conclusion
Collapse
|
12
|
Helicase-like functions in phosphate loop containing beta-alpha polypeptides. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2016131118. [PMID: 33846247 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2016131118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The P-loop Walker A motif underlies hundreds of essential enzyme families that bind nucleotide triphosphates (NTPs) and mediate phosphoryl transfer (P-loop NTPases), including the earliest DNA/RNA helicases, translocases, and recombinases. What were the primordial precursors of these enzymes? Could these large and complex proteins emerge from simple polypeptides? Previously, we showed that P-loops embedded in simple βα repeat proteins bind NTPs but also, unexpectedly so, ssDNA and RNA. Here, we extend beyond the purely biophysical function of ligand binding to demonstrate rudimentary helicase-like activities. We further constructed simple 40-residue polypeptides comprising just one β-(P-loop)-α element. Despite their simplicity, these P-loop prototypes confer functions such as strand separation and exchange. Foremost, these polypeptides unwind dsDNA, and upon addition of NTPs, or inorganic polyphosphates, release the bound ssDNA strands to allow reformation of dsDNA. Binding kinetics and low-resolution structural analyses indicate that activity is mediated by oligomeric forms spanning from dimers to high-order assemblies. The latter are reminiscent of extant P-loop recombinases such as RecA. Overall, these P-loop prototypes compose a plausible description of the sequence, structure, and function of the earliest P-loop NTPases. They also indicate that multifunctionality and dynamic assembly were key in endowing short polypeptides with elaborate, evolutionarily relevant functions.
Collapse
|
13
|
Searching protein space for ancient sub-domain segments. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2021; 68:105-112. [PMID: 33476896 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2020.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2020] [Accepted: 11/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Evolutionary processes that formed the current protein universe left their traces, among them homologous segments that recur, or are 'reused,' in multiple proteins. These reused segments, called 'themes,' can be found at various scales, the best known of which is the domain. Yet, recent studies have begun to focus on the evolutionary insights that can be derived from sub-domain-scale themes, which are candidates for traces of more ancient events. Characterizing these may provide clues to the emergence of domains. Particularly interesting are themes that are reused across dissimilar contexts, that is, where the rest of the protein domain differs. We survey computational studies identifying reused themes within different contexts at the sub-domain level.
Collapse
|
14
|
Chu XY, Zhang HY. Cofactors as Molecular Fossils To Trace the Origin and Evolution of Proteins. Chembiochem 2020; 21:3161-3168. [PMID: 32515532 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202000027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2020] [Revised: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Due to their early origin and extreme conservation, cofactors are valuable molecular fossils for tracing the origin and evolution of proteins. First, as the order of protein folds binding with cofactors roughly coincides with protein-fold chronology, cofactors are considered to have facilitated the origin of primitive proteins by selecting them from pools of random amino acid sequences. Second, in the subsequent evolution of proteins, cofactors still played an important role. More interestingly, as metallic cofactors evolved with geochemical variations, some geochemical events left imprints in the chronology of protein architecture; this provides further evidence supporting the coevolution of biochemistry and geochemistry. In this paper, we attempt to review the molecular fossils used in tracing the origin and evolution of proteins, with a special focus on cofactors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xin-Yi Chu
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics College of Informatics, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| | - Hong-Yu Zhang
- Hubei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Bioinformatics College of Informatics, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Longo LM, Despotović D, Weil-Ktorza O, Walker MJ, Jabłońska J, Fridmann-Sirkis Y, Varani G, Metanis N, Tawfik DS. Primordial emergence of a nucleic acid-binding protein via phase separation and statistical ornithine-to-arginine conversion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:15731-15739. [PMID: 32561643 PMCID: PMC7355028 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2001989117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
De novo emergence demands a transition from disordered polypeptides into structured proteins with well-defined functions. However, can polypeptides confer functions of evolutionary relevance, and how might such polypeptides evolve into modern proteins? The earliest proteins present an even greater challenge, as they were likely based on abiotic, spontaneously synthesized amino acids. Here we asked whether a primordial function, such as nucleic acid binding, could emerge with ornithine, a basic amino acid that forms abiotically yet is absent in modern-day proteins. We combined ancestral sequence reconstruction and empiric deconstruction to unravel a gradual evolutionary trajectory leading from a polypeptide to a ubiquitous nucleic acid-binding protein. Intermediates along this trajectory comprise sequence-duplicated functional proteins built from 10 amino acid types, with ornithine as the only basic amino acid. Ornithine side chains were further modified into arginine by an abiotic chemical reaction, improving both structure and function. Along this trajectory, function evolved from phase separation with RNA (coacervates) to avid and specific double-stranded DNA binding. Our results suggest that phase-separating polypeptides may have been an evolutionary resource for the emergence of early proteins, and that ornithine, together with its postsynthesis modification to arginine, could have been the earliest basic amino acids.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Liam M Longo
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Dragana Despotović
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Orit Weil-Ktorza
- Institute of Chemistry, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Matthew J Walker
- Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Jagoda Jabłońska
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Yael Fridmann-Sirkis
- Life Sciences Core Facility, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Gabriele Varani
- Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Norman Metanis
- Institute of Chemistry, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel;
| | - Dan S Tawfik
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel;
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Bowman JC, Petrov AS, Frenkel-Pinter M, Penev PI, Williams LD. Root of the Tree: The Significance, Evolution, and Origins of the Ribosome. Chem Rev 2020; 120:4848-4878. [PMID: 32374986 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.9b00742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The ribosome is an ancient molecular fossil that provides a telescope to the origins of life. Made from RNA and protein, the ribosome translates mRNA to coded protein in all living systems. Universality, economy, centrality and antiquity are ingrained in translation. The translation machinery dominates the set of genes that are shared as orthologues across the tree of life. The lineage of the translation system defines the universal tree of life. The function of a ribosome is to build ribosomes; to accomplish this task, ribosomes make ribosomal proteins, polymerases, enzymes, and signaling proteins. Every coded protein ever produced by life on Earth has passed through the exit tunnel, which is the birth canal of biology. During the root phase of the tree of life, before the last common ancestor of life (LUCA), exit tunnel evolution is dominant and unremitting. Protein folding coevolved with evolution of the exit tunnel. The ribosome shows that protein folding initiated with intrinsic disorder, supported through a short, primitive exit tunnel. Folding progressed to thermodynamically stable β-structures and then to kinetically trapped α-structures. The latter were enabled by a long, mature exit tunnel that partially offset the general thermodynamic tendency of all polypeptides to form β-sheets. RNA chaperoned the evolution of protein folding from the very beginning. The universal common core of the ribosome, with a mass of nearly 2 million Daltons, was finalized by LUCA. The ribosome entered stasis after LUCA and remained in that state for billions of years. Bacterial ribosomes never left stasis. Archaeal ribosomes have remained near stasis, except for the superphylum Asgard, which has accreted rRNA post LUCA. Eukaryotic ribosomes in some lineages appear to be logarithmically accreting rRNA over the last billion years. Ribosomal expansion in Asgard and Eukarya has been incremental and iterative, without substantial remodeling of pre-existing basal structures. The ribosome preserves information on its history.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica C Bowman
- Center for the Origins of Life, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Anton S Petrov
- Center for the Origins of Life, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Moran Frenkel-Pinter
- Center for the Origins of Life, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Petar I Penev
- Center for the Origins of Life, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- Center for the Origins of Life, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Ferruz N, Lobos F, Lemm D, Toledo-Patino S, Farías-Rico JA, Schmidt S, Höcker B. Identification and Analysis of Natural Building Blocks for Evolution-Guided Fragment-Based Protein Design. J Mol Biol 2020; 432:3898-3914. [PMID: 32330481 PMCID: PMC7322520 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2019] [Revised: 04/12/2020] [Accepted: 04/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Natural evolution has generated an impressively diverse protein universe via duplication and recombination from a set of protein fragments that served as building blocks. The application of these concepts to the design of new proteins using subdomain-sized fragments from different folds has proven to be experimentally successful. To better understand how evolution has shaped our protein universe, we performed an all-against-all comparison of protein domains representing all naturally existing folds and identified conserved homologous protein fragments. Overall, we found more than 1000 protein fragments of various lengths among different folds through similarity network analysis. These fragments are present in very different protein environments and represent versatile building blocks for protein design. These data are available in our web server called F(old P)uzzle (fuzzle.uni-bayreuth.de), which allows to individually filter the dataset and create customized networks for folds of interest. We believe that our results serve as an invaluable resource for structural and evolutionary biologists and as raw material for the design of custom-made proteins.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Noelia Ferruz
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Francisco Lobos
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany; Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Dominik Lemm
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Saacnicteh Toledo-Patino
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany; Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | | | - Steffen Schmidt
- Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany; Computational Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany.
| | - Birte Höcker
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, Germany; Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Short and simple sequences favored the emergence of N-helix phospho-ligand binding sites in the first enzymes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:5310-5318. [PMID: 32079722 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1911742117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The ubiquity of phospho-ligands suggests that phosphate binding emerged at the earliest stage of protein evolution. To evaluate this hypothesis and unravel its details, we identified all phosphate-binding protein lineages in the Evolutionary Classification of Protein Domains database. We found at least 250 independent evolutionary lineages that bind small molecule cofactors and metabolites with phosphate moieties. For many lineages, phosphate binding emerged later as a niche functionality, but for the oldest protein lineages, phosphate binding was the founding function. Across some 4 billion y of protein evolution, side-chain binding, in which the phosphate moiety does not interact with the backbone at all, emerged most frequently. However, in the oldest lineages, and most characteristically in αβα sandwich enzyme domains, N-helix binding sites dominate, where the phosphate moiety sits atop the N terminus of an α-helix. This discrepancy is explained by the observation that N-helix binding is uniquely realized by short, contiguous sequences with reduced amino acid diversity, foremost Gly, Ser, and Thr. The latter two amino acids preferentially interact with both the backbone amide and the side-chain hydroxyl (bidentate interaction) to promote binding by short sequences. We conclude that the first αβα sandwich domains emerged from shorter and simpler polypeptides that bound phospho-ligands via N-helix sites.
Collapse
|
19
|
Dila G, Ripp R, Mayer C, Poch O, Michel CJ, Thompson JD. Circular code motifs in the ribosome: a missing link in the evolution of translation? RNA (NEW YORK, N.Y.) 2019; 25:1714-1730. [PMID: 31506380 PMCID: PMC6859856 DOI: 10.1261/rna.072074.119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 09/06/2019] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
The origin of the genetic code remains enigmatic five decades after it was elucidated, although there is growing evidence that the code coevolved progressively with the ribosome. A number of primordial codes were proposed as ancestors of the modern genetic code, including comma-free codes such as the RRY, RNY, or GNC codes (R = G or A, Y = C or T, N = any nucleotide), and the X circular code, an error-correcting code that also allows identification and maintenance of the reading frame. It was demonstrated previously that motifs of the X circular code are significantly enriched in the protein-coding genes of most organisms, from bacteria to eukaryotes. Here, we show that imprints of this code also exist in the ribosomal RNA (rRNA). In a large-scale study involving 133 organisms representative of the three domains of life, we identified 32 universal X motifs that are conserved in the rRNA of >90% of the organisms. Intriguingly, most of the universal X motifs are located in rRNA regions involved in important ribosome functions, notably in the peptidyl transferase center and the decoding center that form the original "proto-ribosome." Building on the existing accretion models for ribosome evolution, we propose that error-correcting circular codes represented an important step in the emergence of the modern genetic code. Thus, circular codes would have allowed the simultaneous coding of amino acids and synchronization of the reading frame in primitive translation systems, prior to the emergence of more sophisticated start codon recognition and translation initiation mechanisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gopal Dila
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
| | - Raymond Ripp
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
| | - Claudine Mayer
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
- Unité de Microbiologie Structurale, Institut Pasteur, CNRS, 75724 Paris Cedex 15, France
- Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, 75724 Paris Cedex 15, France
| | - Olivier Poch
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
| | - Christian J Michel
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
| | - Julie D Thompson
- Department of Computer Science, ICube, CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg 67000, France
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Pereira J, Lupas AN. The ancestral KH peptide at the root of a domain family with three different folds. Bioinformatics 2019; 34:3961-3965. [PMID: 29912332 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/bty480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2018] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Motivation The direct ancestor of the DNA-protein world of today is considered to have been an RNA-peptide world, in which peptides were co-factors of RNA-mediated catalysis and replication. Evidence for these ancestral peptides, from which folded proteins evolved, can be derived even today from regions of local sequence similarity within globally dissimilar folds. One of these is the 45-residue motif common to both folds of the hnRNP K homology (KH) domain. Results In a survey of KH domains, we found a third fold that contains the KH motif at its core. This corresponds to the Small Domain of bacterial Ribonucleases G/E and, like type I and type II KH domains, it cannot be related to the others by a single genetic event, providing further support for the KH motif as an ancestral peptide predating folded proteins. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joana Pereira
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max-Planck-Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andrei N Lupas
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max-Planck-Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Afanasieva E, Chaudhuri I, Martin J, Hertle E, Ursinus A, Alva V, Hartmann MD, Lupas AN. Structural diversity of oligomeric β-propellers with different numbers of identical blades. eLife 2019; 8:49853. [PMID: 31613220 PMCID: PMC6805158 DOI: 10.7554/elife.49853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2019] [Accepted: 09/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
β-Propellers arise through the amplification of a supersecondary structure element called a blade. This process produces toroids of between four and twelve repeats, which are almost always arranged sequentially in a single polypeptide chain. We found that new propellers evolve continuously by amplification from single blades. We therefore investigated whether such nascent propellers can fold as homo-oligomers before they have been fully amplified within a single chain. One- to six-bladed building blocks derived from two seven-bladed WD40 propellers yielded stable homo-oligomers with six to nine blades, depending on the size of the building block. High-resolution structures for tetramers of two blades, trimers of three blades, and dimers of four and five blades, respectively, show structurally diverse propellers and include a novel fold, highlighting the inherent flexibility of the WD40 blade. Our data support the hypothesis that subdomain-sized fragments can provide structural versatility in the evolution of new proteins.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Evgenia Afanasieva
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Indronil Chaudhuri
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jörg Martin
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Eva Hertle
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Astrid Ursinus
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Vikram Alva
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Marcus D Hartmann
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andrei N Lupas
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Palacios-Pérez M, José MV. The evolution of proteome: From the primeval to the very dawn of LUCA. Biosystems 2019; 181:1-10. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2019.04.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2019] [Revised: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 04/10/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
|
23
|
Bernier CR, Petrov AS, Kovacs NA, Penev PI, Williams LD. Translation: The Universal Structural Core of Life. Mol Biol Evol 2019; 35:2065-2076. [PMID: 29788252 PMCID: PMC6063299 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msy101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The Universal Gene Set of Life (UGSL) is common to genomes of all extant organisms. The UGSL is small, consisting of <100 genes, and is dominated by genes encoding the translation system. Here we extend the search for biological universality to three dimensions. We characterize and quantitate the universality of structure of macromolecules that are common to all of life. We determine that around 90% of prokaryotic ribosomal RNA (rRNA) forms a common core, which is the structural and functional foundation of rRNAs of all cytoplasmic ribosomes. We have established a database, which we call the Sparse and Efficient Representation of the Extant Biology (the SEREB database). This database contains complete and cross-validated rRNA sequences of species chosen, as far as possible, to sparsely and efficiently sample all known phyla. Atomic-resolution structures of ribosomes provide data for structural comparison and validation of sequence-based models. We developed a similarity statistic called pairing adjusted sequence entropy, which characterizes paired nucleotides by their adherence to covariation and unpaired nucleotides by conventional conservation of identity. For canonically paired nucleotides the unit of structure is the nucleotide pair. For unpaired nucleotides, the unit of structure is the nucleotide. By quantitatively defining the common core of rRNA, we systematize the conservation and divergence of the translational system across the tree of life, and can begin to understand the unique evolutionary pressures that cause its universality. We explore the relationship between ribosomal size and diversity, geological time, and organismal complexity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chad R Bernier
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332
| | - Anton S Petrov
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332
| | - Nicholas A Kovacs
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332
| | - Petar I Penev
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Majerle A, Schmieden DT, Jerala R, Meyer AS. Synthetic Biology for Multiscale Designed Biomimetic Assemblies: From Designed Self-Assembling Biopolymers to Bacterial Bioprinting. Biochemistry 2019; 58:2095-2104. [PMID: 30957491 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.8b00922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Nature is based on complex self-assembling systems that span from the nanoscale to the macroscale. We have already begun to design biomimetic systems with properties that have not evolved in nature, based on designed molecular interactions and regulation of biological systems. Synthetic biology is based on the principle of modularity, repurposing diverse building modules to design new types of molecular and cellular assemblies. While we are currently able to use techniques from synthetic biology to design self-assembling molecules and re-engineer functional cells, we still need to use guided assembly to construct biological assemblies at the macroscale. We review the recent strategies for designing biological systems ranging from molecular assemblies based on self-assembly of (poly)peptides to the guided assembly of patterned bacteria, spanning 7 orders of magnitude.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andreja Majerle
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology , National Institute of Chemistry , Hajdrihova 19 , 1000 Ljubljana , Slovenia
| | - Dominik T Schmieden
- Department of Bionanoscience, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience , Delft University of Technology , 2629 HZ Delft , The Netherlands
| | - Roman Jerala
- Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology , National Institute of Chemistry , Hajdrihova 19 , 1000 Ljubljana , Slovenia
| | - Anne S Meyer
- Department of Biology , University of Rochester , Rochester , New York 14627 , United States
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Chatterjee S, Yadav S. The Origin of Prebiotic Information System in the Peptide/RNA World: A Simulation Model of the Evolution of Translation and the Genetic Code. Life (Basel) 2019; 9:E25. [PMID: 30832272 PMCID: PMC6463137 DOI: 10.3390/life9010025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2018] [Revised: 01/09/2019] [Accepted: 02/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Information is the currency of life, but the origin of prebiotic information remains a mystery. We propose transitional pathways from the cosmic building blocks of life to the complex prebiotic organic chemistry that led to the origin of information systems. The prebiotic information system, specifically the genetic code, is segregated, linear, and digital, and it appeared before the emergence of DNA. In the peptide/RNA world, lipid membranes randomly encapsulated amino acids, RNA, and peptide molecules, which are drawn from the prebiotic soup, to initiate a molecular symbiosis inside the protocells. This endosymbiosis led to the hierarchical emergence of several requisite components of the translation machine: transfer RNAs (tRNAs), aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS), messenger RNAs (mRNAs), ribosomes, and various enzymes. When assembled in the right order, the translation machine created proteins, a process that transferred information from mRNAs to assemble amino acids into polypeptide chains. This was the beginning of the prebiotic information age. The origin of the genetic code is enigmatic; herein, we propose an evolutionary explanation: the demand for a wide range of protein enzymes over peptides in the prebiotic reactions was the main selective pressure for the origin of information-directed protein synthesis. The molecular basis of the genetic code manifests itself in the interaction of aaRS and their cognate tRNAs. In the beginning, aminoacylated ribozymes used amino acids as a cofactor with the help of bridge peptides as a process for selection between amino acids and their cognate codons/anticodons. This process selects amino acids and RNA species for the next steps. The ribozymes would give rise to pre-tRNA and the bridge peptides to pre-aaRS. Later, variants would appear and evolution would produce different but specific aaRS-tRNA-amino acid combinations. Pre-tRNA designed and built pre-mRNA for the storage of information regarding its cognate amino acid. Each pre-mRNA strand became the storage device for the genetic information that encoded the amino acid sequences in triplet nucleotides. As information appeared in the digital languages of the codon within pre-mRNA and mRNA, and the genetic code for protein synthesis evolved, the prebiotic chemistry then became more organized and directional with the emergence of the translation and genetic code. The genetic code developed in three stages that are coincident with the refinement of the translation machines: the GNC code that was developed by the pre-tRNA/pre-aaRS /pre-mRNA machine, SNS code by the tRNA/aaRS/mRNA machine, and finally the universal genetic code by the tRNA/aaRS/mRNA/ribosome machine. We suggest the coevolution of translation machines and the genetic code. The emergence of the translation machines was the beginning of the Darwinian evolution, an interplay between information and its supporting structure. Our hypothesis provides the logical and incremental steps for the origin of the programmed protein synthesis. In order to better understand the prebiotic information system, we converted letter codons into numerical codons in the Universal Genetic Code Table. We have developed a software, called CATI (Codon-Amino Acid-Translator-Imitator), to translate randomly chosen numerical codons into corresponding amino acids and vice versa. This conversion has granted us insight into how the genetic code might have evolved in the peptide/RNA world. There is great potential in the application of numerical codons to bioinformatics, such as barcoding, DNA mining, or DNA fingerprinting. We constructed the likely biochemical pathways for the origin of translation and the genetic code using the Model-View-Controller (MVC) software framework, and the translation machinery step-by-step. While using AnyLogic software, we were able to simulate and visualize the entire evolution of the translation machines, amino acids, and the genetic code.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sankar Chatterjee
- Department of Geosciences, Museum of Texas Tech University, Box 43191, 3301 4th Street, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA.
| | - Surya Yadav
- Rawls College of Business, Texas Tech University, Box 42101, 703 Flint Avenue, Lubbock, TX 79409, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Kovacs NA, Penev PI, Venapally A, Petrov AS, Williams LD. Circular Permutation Obscures Universality of a Ribosomal Protein. J Mol Evol 2018; 86:581-592. [PMID: 30306205 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-018-9869-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2018] [Accepted: 09/28/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Functions, origins, and evolution of the translation system are best understood in the context of unambiguous and phylogenetically based taxonomy and nomenclature. Here, we map ribosomal proteins onto the tree of life and provide a nomenclature for ribosomal proteins that is consistent with phylogenetic relationships. We have increased the accuracy of homology relationships among ribosomal proteins, providing a more informative picture of their lineages. We demonstrate that bL33 (bacteria) and eL42 (archaea/eukarya) are homologs with common ancestry and acute similarities in sequence and structure. Their similarities were previously obscured by circular permutation. The most likely mechanism of permutation between bL33 and eL42 is duplication followed by fusion and deletion of both the first and last β-hairpins. bL33 and eL42 are composed of zinc ribbon protein folds, one of the most common zinc finger fold-groups of, and most frequently observed in translation-related domains. Bacterial-specific ribosomal protein bL33 and archaeal/eukaryotic-specific ribosomal protein eL42 are now both assigned the name of uL33, indicating a universal ribosomal protein. We provide a phylogenetic naming scheme for all ribosomal proteins that is based on phylogenetic relationships to be used as a tool for studying the systemics, evolution, and origins of the ribosome.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas A Kovacs
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA
| | - Petar I Penev
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA
| | - Amitej Venapally
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA
| | - Anton S Petrov
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA.
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA.
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, 30332-0400, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Abstract
Biologists would be mistaken if they relegated living fossils to paleontological inquiry or assumed that the concept is dead. It is now used to describe entities ranging from viruses to higher taxa, despite recent warnings of misleading inferences. Current work on character evolution illustrates how analyzing living fossils and stasis in terms of parts (characters) and wholes (e.g., organisms and lineages) advances our understanding of prolonged stasis at many hierarchical levels. Instead of viewing the concept's task as categorizing living fossils, we show how its primary role is to mark out what is in need of explanation, accounting for the persistence of both molecular and morphological traits. Rethinking different conceptions of living fossils as specific hypotheses reveals novel avenues for research that integrate phylogenetics, ecological and evolutionary modeling, and evo-devo to produce a more unified theoretical outlook.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Scott Lidgard
- Integrative Research Center, Field Museum, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Alan C Love
- Department of Philosophy and the Minnesota Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Vitas M, Dobovišek A. In the Beginning was a Mutualism - On the Origin of Translation. ORIGINS LIFE EVOL B 2018; 48:223-243. [PMID: 29713988 DOI: 10.1007/s11084-018-9557-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2017] [Accepted: 04/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The origin of translation is critical for understanding the evolution of life, including the origins of life. The canonical genetic code is one of the most dominant aspects of life on this planet, while the origin of heredity is one of the key evolutionary transitions in living world. Why the translation apparatus evolved is one of the enduring mysteries of molecular biology. Assuming the hypothesis, that during the emergence of life evolution had to first involve autocatalytic systems which only subsequently acquired the capacity of genetic heredity, we propose and discuss possible mechanisms, basic aspects of the emergence and subsequent molecular evolution of translation and ribosomes, as well as enzymes as we know them today. It is possible, in this sense, to view the ribosome as a digital-to-analogue information converter. The proposed mechanism is based on the abilities and tendencies of short RNA and polypeptides to fold and to catalyse biochemical reactions. The proposed mechanism is in concordance with the hypothesis of a possible chemical co-evolution of RNA and proteins in the origin of the genetic code or even more generally at the early evolution of life on Earth. The possible abundance and availability of monomers at prebiotic conditions are considered in the mechanism. The hypothesis that early polypeptides were folding on the RNA scaffold is also considered and mutualism in molecular evolutionary development of RNA and peptides is favoured.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marko Vitas
- , Laze pri Borovnici 38, Borovnica, Slovenia.
| | - Andrej Dobovišek
- Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, University of Maribor, Koroška cesta 160, 2000, Maribor, Slovenia
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Alva V, Lupas AN. From ancestral peptides to designed proteins. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2017; 48:103-109. [PMID: 29195087 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2017.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2017] [Accepted: 11/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The diversity of modern proteins arose through the combinatorial shuffling and differentiation of a limited number of autonomously folding domain prototypes, but the origin of these prototypes themselves has long remained poorly understood. In recent years, the proposal that they originated by repetition, accretion, and recombination from an ancestral set of peptides, which evolved as cofactors of RNA-based replication and catalysis, has gained wide acceptance, supported by the systematic identification of such ancestral peptides and the experimental recapitulation of the mechanisms by which they could have yielded the first folded proteins. Inspired by this evolutionary process, protein engineers have seized on design from pre-optimized peptide components as a powerful approach to generating proteins with novel topology and functionality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vikram Alva
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andrei N Lupas
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Ljubetič A, Lapenta F, Gradišar H, Drobnak I, Aupič J, Strmšek Ž, Lainšček D, Hafner-Bratkovič I, Majerle A, Krivec N, Benčina M, Pisanski T, Veličković TĆ, Round A, Carazo JM, Melero R, Jerala R. Design of coiled-coil protein-origami cages that self-assemble in vitro and in vivo. Nat Biotechnol 2017; 35:1094-1101. [DOI: 10.1038/nbt.3994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 105] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2016] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
|
31
|
Lanier KA, Petrov AS, Williams LD. The Central Symbiosis of Molecular Biology: Molecules in Mutualism. J Mol Evol 2017; 85:8-13. [PMID: 28785970 PMCID: PMC5579163 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-017-9804-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2017] [Accepted: 07/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
As illustrated by the mitochondrion and the eukaryotic cell, little in biology makes sense except in light of mutualism. Mutualisms are persistent, intimate, and reciprocal exchanges; an organism proficient in obtaining certain benefits confers those on a partner, which reciprocates by conferring different benefits. Mutualisms (i) increase fitness, (ii) inspire robustness, (iii) are resilient and resistant to change, (iv) sponsor co-evolution, (v) foster innovation, and (vi) involve partners that are distantly related with contrasting yet complementary proficiencies. Previous to this work, mutualisms were understood to operate on levels of cells, organisms, ecosystems, and even societies and economies. Here, the concepts of mutualism are extended to molecules and are seen to apply to the relationship between RNA and protein. Polynucleotide and polypeptide are Molecules in Mutualism. RNA synthesizes protein in the ribosome and protein synthesizes RNA in polymerases. RNA and protein are codependent, and trade proficiencies. Protein has proficiency in folding into complex three-dimensional states, contributing enzymes, fibers, adhesives, pumps, pores, switches, and receptors. RNA has proficiency in direct molecular recognition, achieved by complementary base pairing interactions, which allow it to maintain, record, and transduce information. The large phylogenetic distance that characterizes partnerships in organismal mutualism has close analogy with large distance in chemical space between RNA and protein. The RNA backbone is anionic and self-repulsive and cannot form hydrophobic structural cores. The protein backbone is neutral and cohesive and commonly forms hydrophobic cores. Molecules in Mutualism extends beyond RNA and protein. A cell is a consortium of molecules in which nucleic acids, proteins, polysaccharides, phospholipids, and other molecules form a mutualism consortium that drives metabolism and replication. Analogies are found in systems such as stromatolites, which are large consortia of symbiotic organisms. It seems reasonable to suggest that 'polymers in mutualism relationships' is a useful and predictive definition of life.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn A. Lanier
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332-0400 USA
| | - Anton S. Petrov
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332-0400 USA
| | - Loren Dean Williams
- School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332-0400 USA
| |
Collapse
|