Transformers at the interface

Dissecting the Structural and Chemical Determinants of the "Open-to-Closed" Motion in the Mannosyltransferase PimA from Mycobacteria

The phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosyltransferase A (PimA) is an essential peripheral membrane glycosyltransferase that initiates the biosynthetic pathway of phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosides (PIMs), key structural elements and virulence factors of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. PimA undergoes functionally important conformational changes, including (i) α-helix-to-β-strand and β-strand-to-α-helix transitions and (ii) an "open-to-closed" motion between the two Rossmann-fold domains, a conformational change that is necessary to generate a catalytically competent active site. In previous work, we established that GDP-Man and GDP stabilize the enzyme and facilitate the switch to a more compact active state. To determine the structural contribution of the mannose ring in such an activation mechanism, we analyzed a series of chemical derivatives, including mannose phosphate (Man-P) and mannose pyrophosphate-ribose (Man-PP-RIB), and additional GDP derivatives, such as pyrophosphate ribose (PP-RIB) and GMP, by the combined use of X-ray crystallography, limited proteolysis, circular dichroism, isothermal titration calorimetry, and small angle X-ray scattering methods. Although the β-phosphate is present, we found that the mannose ring, covalently attached to neither phosphate (Man-P) nor PP-RIB (Man-PP-RIB), does promote the switch to the active compact form of the enzyme. Therefore, the nucleotide moiety of GDP-Man, and not the sugar ring, facilitates the "open-to-closed" motion, with the β-phosphate group providing the high-affinity binding to PimA. Altogether, the experimental data contribute to a better understanding of the structural determinants involved in the "open-to-closed" motion not only observed in PimA but also visualized and/or predicted in other glycosyltransfeases. In addition, the experimental data might prove to be useful for the discovery and/or development of PimA and/or glycosyltransferase inhibitors.

Structural basis of phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosides biosynthesis in mycobacteria

Phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosides (PIMs) are glycolipids of unique chemical structure found in the inner and outer membranes of the cell envelope of all Mycobacterium species. The PIM family of glycolipids comprises phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mono-, di-, tri-, tetra-, penta-, and hexamannosides with different degrees of acylation. PIMs are considered not only essential structural components of the cell envelope but also the precursors of lipomannan and lipoarabinomannan, two major lipoglycans implicated in host-pathogen interactions. Since the description of the complete chemical structure of PIMs, major efforts have been committed to defining the molecular bases of its biosynthetic pathway. The structural characterization of the integral membrane phosphatidyl-myo-inositol phosphate synthase (PIPS), and that of three enzymes working at the protein-membrane interface, the phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosyltransferases A and B, and the acyltransferase PatA, established the basis of the early steps of the PIM pathway at the molecular level. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Bacterial Lipids edited by Russell E. Bishop.

Molecular Basis of Membrane Association by the Phosphatidylinositol Mannosyltransferase PimA Enzyme from Mycobacteria

Phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosyltransferase A (PimA) is an essential glycosyltransferase that initiates the biosynthetic pathway of phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannoside, lipomannan, and lipoarabinomannan, which are key glycolipids/lipoglycans of the mycobacterial cell envelope. PimA belongs to a large family of membrane-associated glycosyltransferases for which the understanding of the molecular mechanism and conformational changes that govern substrate/membrane recognition and catalysis remains a major challenge. Here, we determined that PimA preferentially binds to negatively charged phosphatidyl-myo-inositol substrate and non-substrate membrane model systems (small unilamellar vesicle) through its N-terminal domain, inducing an important structural reorganization of anionic phospholipids. By using a combination of single-point mutagenesis, circular dichroism, and a variety of fluorescence spectroscopy techniques, we determined that this interaction is mainly mediated by an amphipathic α-helix (α2), which undergoes a substantial conformational change and localizes in the vicinity of the negatively charged lipid headgroups and the very first carbon atoms of the acyl chains, at the PimA-phospholipid interface. Interestingly, a flexible region within the N-terminal domain, which undergoes β-strand-to-α-helix and α-helix-to-β-strand transitions during catalysis, interacts with anionic phospholipids; however, the effect is markedly less pronounced to that observed for the amphipathic α2, likely reflecting structural plasticity/variability. Altogether, we propose a model in which conformational transitions observed in PimA might reflect a molten globule state that confers to PimA, a higher affinity toward the dynamic and highly fluctuating lipid bilayer.