1
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Li Y, Perez-Gil J, Lois LM, Varejão N, Reverter D. Broad-spectrum ubiquitin/ubiquitin-like deconjugation activity of the rhizobial effector NopD from Bradyrhizobium (sp. XS1150). Commun Biol 2024; 7:644. [PMID: 38802699 PMCID: PMC11130253 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06344-w] [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: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
The post-translational modification of proteins by ubiquitin-like modifiers (UbLs), such as SUMO, ubiquitin, and Nedd8, regulates a vast array of cellular processes. Dedicated UbL deconjugating proteases families reverse these modifications. During bacterial infection, effector proteins, including deconjugating proteases, are released to disrupt host cell defenses and promote bacterial survival. NopD, an effector protein from rhizobia involved in legume nodule symbiosis, exhibits deSUMOylation activity and, unexpectedly, also deubiquitination and deNeddylation activities. Here, we present two crystal structures of Bradyrhizobium (sp. XS1150) NopD complexed with either Arabidopsis SUMO2 or ubiquitin at 1.50 Å and 1.94 Å resolution, respectively. Despite their low sequence similarity, SUMO and ubiquitin bind to a similar NopD interface, employing a unique loop insertion in the NopD sequence. In vitro binding and activity assays reveal specific residues that distinguish between deubiquitination and deSUMOylation. These unique multifaceted deconjugating activities against SUMO, ubiquitin, and Nedd8 exemplify an optimized bacterial protease that disrupts distinct UbL post-translational modifications during host cell infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Li
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina and Dept. de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain
- Qingdao University, 266071, Qingdao, China
| | - Jordi Perez-Gil
- Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics-CRAG, Edifici CRAG-Campus UAB, 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain
- ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology and Centre for Agriculture and the Bioeconomy, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, 4000, Australia
| | - L Maria Lois
- Center for Research in Agricultural Genomics-CRAG, Edifici CRAG-Campus UAB, 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Nathalia Varejão
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina and Dept. de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - David Reverter
- Institut de Biotecnologia i de Biomedicina and Dept. de Bioquímica i Biologia Molecular, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain.
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ICREA), Barcelona, Spain.
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2
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Lehman SS, Verhoeve VI, Driscoll TP, Beckmann JF, Gillespie JJ. Metagenome diversity illuminates the origins of pathogen effectors. mBio 2024; 15:e0075923. [PMID: 38564675 PMCID: PMC11077975 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00759-23] [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: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent metagenome-assembled genome (MAG) analyses have profoundly impacted Rickettsiology systematics. The discovery of basal lineages (novel families Mitibacteraceae and Athabascaceae) with predicted extracellular lifestyles exposed an evolutionary timepoint for the transition to host dependency, which seemingly occurred independent of mitochondrial evolution. Notably, these basal rickettsiae carry the Rickettsiales vir homolog (rvh) type IV secretion system and purportedly use rvh to kill congener microbes rather than parasitize host cells as described for later-evolving rickettsial pathogens. MAG analysis also substantially increased diversity for the genus Rickettsia and delineated a sister lineage (the novel genus Tisiphia) that stands to inform on the emergence of human pathogens from protist and invertebrate endosymbionts. Herein, we probed Rickettsiales MAG and genomic diversity for the distribution of Rickettsia rvh effectors to ascertain their origins. A sparse distribution of most Rickettsia rvh effectors outside of Rickettsiaceae lineages illuminates unique rvh evolution from basal extracellular species and other rickettsial families. Remarkably, nearly every effector was found in multiple divergent forms with variable architectures, indicating profound roles for gene duplication and recombination in shaping effector repertoires in Rickettsia pathogens. Lateral gene transfer plays a prominent role in shaping the rvh effector landscape, as evinced by the discovery of many effectors on plasmids and conjugative transposons, as well as pervasive effector gene exchange between Rickettsia and Legionella species. Our study exemplifies how MAGs can yield insight into pathogen effector origins, particularly how effector architectures might become tailored to the discrete host cell functions of different eukaryotic hosts.IMPORTANCEWhile rickettsioses are deadly vector-borne human diseases, factors distinguishing Rickettsia pathogens from the innumerable bevy of environmental rickettsial endosymbionts remain lacking. Recent metagenome-assembled genome (MAG) studies revealed evolutionary timepoints for rickettsial transitions to host dependency. The rvh type IV secretion system was likely repurposed from congener killing in basal extracellular species to parasitizing host cells in later-evolving pathogens. Our analysis of MAG diversity for over two dozen rvh effectors unearthed their presence in some non-pathogens. However, most effectors were found in multiple divergent forms with variable architectures, indicating gene duplication and recombination-fashioned effector repertoires of Rickettsia pathogens. Lateral gene transfer substantially shaped pathogen effector arsenals, evinced by the discovery of effectors on plasmids and conjugative transposons, as well as pervasive effector gene exchanges between Rickettsia and Legionella species. Our study exemplifies how MAGs yield insight into pathogen effector origins and evolutionary processes tailoring effectors to eukaryotic host cell biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie S. Lehman
- Division of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Victoria I. Verhoeve
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Timothy P. Driscoll
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
| | - John F. Beckmann
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, Alabama, USA
| | - Joseph J. Gillespie
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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3
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Wehrmann M, Vilchez D. The emerging role and therapeutic implications of bacterial and parasitic deubiquitinating enzymes. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1303072. [PMID: 38077335 PMCID: PMC10703165 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1303072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) are emerging as key factors for the infection of human cells by pathogens such as bacteria and parasites. In this review, we discuss the most recent studies on the role of deubiquitinase activity in exploiting and manipulating ubiquitin (Ub)-dependent host processes during infection. The studies discussed here highlight the importance of DUB host-pathogen research and underscore the therapeutic potential of inhibiting pathogen-specific DUB activity to prevent infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Markus Wehrmann
- Cologne Excellence Cluster for Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Institute for Integrated Stress Response Signaling, Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - David Vilchez
- Cologne Excellence Cluster for Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases (CECAD), University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Institute for Integrated Stress Response Signaling, Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
- Institute for Genetics, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
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4
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Negron Teron KI, Das C. Cocrystallization of ubiquitin-deubiquitinase complexes through disulfide linkage. Acta Crystallogr D Struct Biol 2023; 79:1044-1055. [PMID: 37877948 PMCID: PMC10619426 DOI: 10.1107/s2059798323008501] [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: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Structural characterization of the recognition of ubiquitin (Ub) by deubiquitinases (DUBs) has largely relied on covalent complexation of the DUB through its catalytic cysteine with a Ub C-terminal electrophile. The Ub electrophiles are accessed through intein chemistry in conjunction with chemical synthesis. Here, it was asked whether DUB-Ub covalent complexes could instead be accessed by simpler disulfide chemistry using a Ub cysteine mutant in which the last glycine has been replaced with a cysteine. The Ub cysteine mutant displayed a wide variability in disulfide formation across a panel of eukaryotic and prokaryotic DUBs, with some showing no detectable reaction while others robustly produced a disulfide complex. Using this approach, two disulfide-linked ubiquitin-bound complexes were crystallized, one involving the Legionella pneumophila effector SdeA DUB and the other involving the Orientia effector OtDUB. These DUBs had previously been crystallized in Ub-bound forms using the C-terminal electrophile strategy and noncovalent complexation, respectively. While the disulfide-linked SdeA DUB-Ub complex crystallized as expected, in the OtDUB complex the disulfide bond to the Ub mutant involved a cysteine that differed from the catalytic cysteine. Disulfide formation with the SdeA DUB catalytic cysteine was accompanied by local distortion of the helix carrying the active-site cysteine, whereas OtDUB reacted with the Ub mutant using a surface-exposed cysteine.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Chittaranjan Das
- Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
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5
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Roberts CG, Franklin TG, Pruneda JN. Ubiquitin-targeted bacterial effectors: rule breakers of the ubiquitin system. EMBO J 2023; 42:e114318. [PMID: 37555693 PMCID: PMC10505922 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2023114318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Revised: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Regulation through post-translational ubiquitin signaling underlies a large portion of eukaryotic biology. This has not gone unnoticed by invading pathogens, many of which have evolved mechanisms to manipulate or subvert the host ubiquitin system. Bacteria are particularly adept at this and rely heavily upon ubiquitin-targeted virulence factors for invasion and replication. Despite lacking a conventional ubiquitin system of their own, many bacterial ubiquitin regulators loosely follow the structural and mechanistic rules established by eukaryotic ubiquitin machinery. Others completely break these rules and have evolved novel structural folds, exhibit distinct mechanisms of regulation, or catalyze foreign ubiquitin modifications. Studying these interactions can not only reveal important aspects of bacterial pathogenesis but also shed light on unexplored areas of ubiquitin signaling and regulation. In this review, we discuss the methods by which bacteria manipulate host ubiquitin and highlight aspects that follow or break the rules of ubiquitination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cameron G Roberts
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & ImmunologyOregon Health & Science UniversityPortlandORUSA
| | - Tyler G Franklin
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & ImmunologyOregon Health & Science UniversityPortlandORUSA
| | - Jonathan N Pruneda
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & ImmunologyOregon Health & Science UniversityPortlandORUSA
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6
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Hochstrasser M. Molecular Biology of Cytoplasmic Incompatibility Caused by Wolbachia Endosymbionts. Annu Rev Microbiol 2023; 77:299-316. [PMID: 37285552 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-micro-041020-024616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Among endosymbiotic bacteria living within eukaryotic cells, Wolbachia is exceptionally widespread, particularly in arthropods. Inherited through the female germline, it has evolved ways to increase the fraction of bacterially infected offspring by inducing parthenogenesis, feminization, male killing, or, most commonly, cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI). In CI, Wolbachia infection of males causes embryonic lethality unless they mate with similarly infected females, creating a relative reproductive advantage for infected females. A set of related Wolbachia bicistronic operons encodes the CI-inducing factors. The downstream gene encodes a deubiquitylase or nuclease and is responsible for CI induction by males, while the upstream product when expressed in females binds its sperm-introduced cognate partner and rescues viability. Both toxin-antidote and host-modification mechanisms have been proposed to explain CI. Interestingly, male killing by either Spiroplasma or Wolbachia endosymbionts involves deubiquitylases as well. Interference with the host ubiquitin system may therefore be a common theme among endosymbiont-mediated reproductive alterations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Hochstrasser
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry and Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA;
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7
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Duncan-Lowey J, Crabill E, Jarret A, Reed SCO, Roy CR. The Coxiella burnetii effector EmcB is a deubiquitinase that inhibits RIG-I signaling. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2217602120. [PMID: 36893270 PMCID: PMC10089202 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2217602120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/25/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotes have cytosolic surveillance systems to detect invading microorganisms and initiate protective immune responses. In turn, host-adapted pathogens have evolved strategies to modulate these surveillance systems, which can promote dissemination and persistence in the host. The obligate intracellular pathogen Coxiella burnetii infects mammalian hosts without activating many innate immune sensors. The Defect in Organelle Trafficking/Intracellular Multiplication (Dot/Icm) protein secretion system is necessary for C. burnetii to establish a vacuolar niche inside of host cells, which sequesters these bacteria in a specialized organelle that could evade host surveillance systems. However, bacterial secretion systems often introduce agonists of immune sensors into the host cytosol during infection. For instance, nucleic acids are introduced to the host cytosol by the Dot/Icm system of Legionella pneumophila, which results in type I interferon production. Despite host infection requiring a homologous Dot/Icm system, C. burnetii does not induce type I interferon production during infection. Here, it was found that type I interferons are detrimental to C. burnetii infection and that C. burnetii blocks type I interferon production mediated by retionic acid inducible gene I (RIG-I) signaling. Two Dot/Icm effector proteins, EmcA and EmcB, are required for C. burnetii inhibition of RIG-I signaling. EmcB is sufficient to block RIG-I signaling and is a ubiquitin-specific cysteine protease capable of deconjugating ubiquitin chains from RIG-I that are necessary for signaling. EmcB preferentially cleaves K63-linked ubiquitin chains of three or more monomers, which represent ubiquitin chains that potently activate RIG-I signaling. Identification of a deubiquitinase encoded by C. burnetii provides insights into how a host-adapted pathogen antagonizes immune surveillance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Duncan-Lowey
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT06536
| | - Emerson Crabill
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT06536
- Department of Biology, Angelo State University, San Angelo, TX76909
| | - Abigail Jarret
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT06536
| | - Shawna C. O. Reed
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT06536
| | - Craig R. Roy
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT06536
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8
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Verhoeve VI, Lehman SS, Driscoll TP, Beckmann JF, Gillespie JJ. Metagenome diversity illuminates origins of pathogen effectors. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.26.530123. [PMID: 36909625 PMCID: PMC10002696 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.26.530123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
Abstract
Recent metagenome assembled genome (MAG) analyses have profoundly impacted Rickettsiology systematics. Discovery of basal lineages (Mitibacteraceae and Athabascaceae) with predicted extracellular lifestyles reveals an evolutionary timepoint for the transition to host dependency, which occurred independent of mitochondrial evolution. Notably, these basal rickettsiae carry the Rickettsiales vir homolog (rvh) type IV secretion system (T4SS) and purportedly use rvh to kill congener microbes rather than parasitize host cells as described for derived rickettsial pathogens. MAG analysis also substantially increased diversity for genus Rickettsia and delineated a basal lineage (Tisiphia) that stands to inform on the rise of human pathogens from protist and invertebrate endosymbionts. Herein, we probed Rickettsiales MAG and genomic diversity for the distribution of Rickettsia rvh effectors to ascertain their origins. A sparse distribution of most Rickettsia rvh effectors outside of Rickettsiaceae lineages indicates unique rvh evolution from basal extracellular species and other rickettsial families. Remarkably, nearly every effector was found in multiple divergent forms with variable architectures, illuminating profound roles for gene duplication and recombination in shaping effector repertoires in Rickettsia pathogens. Lateral gene transfer plays a prominent role shaping the rvh effector landscape, as evinced by the discover of many effectors on plasmids and conjugative transposons, as well as pervasive effector gene exchange between Rickettsia and Legionella species. Our study exemplifies how MAGs can provide incredible insight on the origins of pathogen effectors and how their architectural modifications become tailored to eukaryotic host cell biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria I Verhoeve
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Stephanie S Lehman
- Division of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA
| | - Timothy P Driscoll
- Department of Biology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA
| | - John F Beckmann
- Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, USA
| | - Joseph J Gillespie
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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9
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Pruneda JN, Nguyen JV, Nagai H, Kubori T. Bacterial usurpation of the OTU deubiquitinase fold. FEBS J 2023:10.1111/febs.16725. [PMID: 36636866 PMCID: PMC10338644 DOI: 10.1111/febs.16725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 12/10/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
The extensive cellular signalling events controlled by posttranslational ubiquitination are tightly regulated through the action of specialized proteases termed deubiquitinases. Among them, the OTU family of deubiquitinases can play very specialized roles in the regulation of discrete subtypes of ubiquitin signals that control specific cellular functions. To exert control over host cellular functions, some pathogenic bacteria have usurped the OTU deubiquitinase fold as a secreted virulence factor that interferes with ubiquitination inside infected cells. Herein, we provide a review of the function of bacterial OTU deubiquitinases during infection, the structural basis for their deubiquitinase activities and the bioinformatic approaches leading to their identification. Understanding bacterial OTU deubiquitinases holds the potential for discoveries not only in bacterial pathogenesis but in eukaryotic biology as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan N. Pruneda
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Justine V. Nguyen
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Hiroki Nagai
- Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
- Center for One Medicine Innovative Translational Research, Gifu University Institute for Advanced Study, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
| | - Tomoko Kubori
- Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
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10
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Warren GD, Kitao T, Franklin TG, Nguyen JV, Geurink PP, Kubori T, Nagai H, Pruneda JN. Mechanism of Lys6 poly-ubiquitin specificity by the L. pneumophila deubiquitinase LotA. Mol Cell 2023; 83:105-120.e5. [PMID: 36538933 PMCID: PMC9825671 DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2022.11.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Revised: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The versatility of ubiquitination to control vast domains of eukaryotic biology is due, in part, to diversification through differently linked poly-ubiquitin chains. Deciphering signaling roles for some chain types, including those linked via K6, has been stymied by a lack of specificity among the implicated regulatory proteins. Forged through strong evolutionary pressures, pathogenic bacteria have evolved intricate mechanisms to regulate host ubiquitin during infection. Herein, we identify and characterize a deubiquitinase domain of the secreted effector LotA from Legionella pneumophila that specifically regulates K6-linked poly-ubiquitin. We demonstrate the utility of LotA for studying K6 poly-ubiquitin signals. We identify the structural basis of LotA activation and poly-ubiquitin specificity and describe an essential "adaptive" ubiquitin-binding domain. Without LotA activity during infection, the Legionella-containing vacuole becomes decorated with K6 poly-ubiquitin as well as the AAA ATPase VCP/p97/Cdc48. We propose that LotA's deubiquitinase activity guards Legionella-containing vacuole components from ubiquitin-dependent extraction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gus D Warren
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Tomoe Kitao
- Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
| | - Tyler G Franklin
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Justine V Nguyen
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Paul P Geurink
- Oncode Institute, Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Tomoko Kubori
- Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan; G-CHAIN, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
| | - Hiroki Nagai
- Department of Microbiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan; G-CHAIN, Gifu University, Gifu, Gifu 501-1194, Japan
| | - Jonathan N Pruneda
- Department of Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA.
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Zhang X, Liang Y, Zheng K, Wang Z, Dong Y, Liu Y, Ren L, Wang H, Han Y, McMinn A, Sung YY, Mok WJ, Wong LL, He J, Wang M. Characterization and genomic analysis of phage vB_ValR_NF, representing a new viral family prevalent in the Ulva prolifera blooms. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1161265. [PMID: 37213492 PMCID: PMC10196503 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1161265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Vibrio is an important bacterial genus containing many pathogenic species. Although more and more Vibrio phages were isolated, the genome, ecology and evolution of Vibrio phages and their roles in bacteriophage therapy, have not been fully revealed. Methods Novel Vibrio phage vB_ValR_NF infecting Vibrio alginolyticus was isolated from the coastal waters of Qingdao during the Ulva prolifera blooms, Characterization and genomic feature of phage vB_ValR_NF has been analysed using phage isolation, sequencing and metagenome method. Results and Discussion Phage vB_ValR_NF has a siphoviral morphology (icosahedral head 114±1 nm in diameter; a tail length of 231±1 nm), a short latent period (30 minutes) and a large burst size (113 virions per cell), and the thermal/pH stability study showed that phage vB_ValR_NF was highly tolerant to a range of pHs (4-12) and temperatures (-20 - 45 °C), respectively. Host range analysis suggests that phage vB_ValR_NF not only has a high inhibitory ability against the host strain V. alginolyticus, but also can infect 7 other Vibrio strains. In addition, the phage vB_ValR_NF has a double-stranded 44, 507 bp DNA genome, with 43.10 % GC content and 75 open reading frames. Three auxiliary metabolic genes associated with aldehyde dehydrogenase, serine/threonine protein phosphatase and calcineurin-like phosphoesterase were predicted, might help the host V. alginolyticus occupy the survival advantage, thus improving the survival chance of phage vB_ValR_NF under harsh conditions. This point can be supported by the higher abundance of phage vB_ValR_NF during the U. prolifera blooms than in other marine environments. Further phylogenetic and genomic analysis shows that the viral group represented by Vibrio phage vB_ValR_NF is different from other well-defined reference viruses, and can be classified into a new family, named Ruirongviridae. In general, as a new marine phage infecting V. alginolyticus, phage vB_ValR_NF provides basic information for further molecular research on phage-host interactions and evolution, and may unravel a novel insight into changes in the community structure of organisms during the U. prolifera blooms. At the same time, its high tolerance to extreme conditions and excellent bactericidal ability will become important reference factors when evaluating the potential of phage vB_ValR_NF in bacteriophage therapy in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinran Zhang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
- Antarctic Great Wall Ecology National Observation and Research Station, MNR Key Laboratory for Polar Science, Polar Research Institute of China, Shanghai, China
| | - Yantao Liang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
- UMT-OUC Joint Centre for Marine Studies, Qingdao, China
- *Correspondence: Yantao Liang, ; Jianfeng He, ; Min Wang,
| | - Kaiyang Zheng
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Ziyue Wang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Yue Dong
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Yundan Liu
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Linyi Ren
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Hongmin Wang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Ying Han
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
| | - Andrew McMinn
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
- Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS, Australia
| | - Yeong Yik Sung
- UMT-OUC Joint Centre for Marine Studies, Qingdao, China
- Institute of Marine Biotechnology, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
| | - Wen Jye Mok
- UMT-OUC Joint Centre for Marine Studies, Qingdao, China
- Institute of Marine Biotechnology, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
| | - Li Lian Wong
- UMT-OUC Joint Centre for Marine Studies, Qingdao, China
- Institute of Marine Biotechnology, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia
| | - Jianfeng He
- Antarctic Great Wall Ecology National Observation and Research Station, MNR Key Laboratory for Polar Science, Polar Research Institute of China, Shanghai, China
- College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Yantao Liang, ; Jianfeng He, ; Min Wang,
| | - Min Wang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Institute of Evolution and Marine Biodiversity, Key Lab of Polar Oceanography and Global Ocean Change, Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, Center for Ocean Carbon Neutrality, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
- UMT-OUC Joint Centre for Marine Studies, Qingdao, China
- Haide College, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China
- The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
- *Correspondence: Yantao Liang, ; Jianfeng He, ; Min Wang,
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Orientia tsutsugamushi OtDUB Is Expressed and Interacts with Adaptor Protein Complexes during Infection. Infect Immun 2022; 90:e0046922. [PMID: 36374099 PMCID: PMC9753657 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00469-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Orientia tsutsugamushi is an etiologic agent of scrub typhus, a globally emerging rickettsiosis that can be fatal. The bacterium's obligate intracellular lifestyle requires its interaction with host eukaryotic cellular pathways. The proteins it employs to do so and their functions during infection are understudied. Recombinant versions of the recently characterized O. tsutsugamushi deubiquitylase (OtDUB) exhibit high-affinity ubiquitin binding, mediate guanine nucleotide exchange to activate Rho GTPases, bind clathrin adaptor protein complexes 1 and 2, and bind the phospholipid phosphatidylserine. Whether OtDUB is expressed and its function during O. tsutsugamushi infection have yet to be explored. Here, OtDUB expression, location, and interactome during infection were examined. O. tsutsugamushi transcriptionally and translationally expresses OtDUB throughout infection of epithelial, monocytic, and endothelial cells. Results from structured illumination microscopy, surface trypsinization of intact bacteria, and acetic acid extraction of non-integral membrane proteins indicate that OtDUB peripherally associates with the O. tsutsugamushi cell wall and is at least partially present on the bacterial surface. Analyses of the proteins with which OtDUB associates during infection revealed several known O. tsutsugamushi cell wall proteins and others. It also forms an interactome with adapter protein complex 2 and other endosomal membrane traffic regulators. This study documents the first interactors of OtDUB during O. tsutsugamushi infection and establishes a strong link between OtDUB and the host endocytic pathway.
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Luo J, Ruan X, Huang Z, Li Z, Ye L, Wu Y, Zhen X, Ouyang S. Structural basis for the dual catalytic activity of the Legionella pneumophila ovarian-tumor (OTU) domain deubiquitinase LotA. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:102414. [PMID: 36007613 PMCID: PMC9486567 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2021] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Legionella pneumophila, a bacterial pathogen that causes a severe pneumonia known as Legionnaires’ disease, extensively exploits the ubiquitin (Ub) pathway in the infected host cells through certain virulence effectors excreted by the Dot/Icm system. To date, several Dot/Icm effectors have been found to act as Ub ligases, and four effectors, including LotA, LotB, LotC, and Ceg7, have been identified as deubiquitinases (DUBs) from the ovarian tumor (OTU) domain family. LotA is unique among other OTU DUBs because it possesses two distinct DUB domains and exclusively exhibits catalytic activity against K6-linked diUb and polyUb chains. However, the structure of LotA and the molecular mechanism for the dual DUB activity remains elusive. In this study, we solved the structure of LotA in complex with proximally bound Ub and distal covalently bound Ub. Both Ub molecules are bound to the DUB1 domain and mimic a K6-linked diUb. Structural analysis reveals that the DUB1 domain utilizes a distinct mechanism for recognition of the K6-linked diUb within a large S1′ binding site that is uncommon to OTU DUBs. Structural fold of the LotA DUB2 domain closely resembles LotB and LotC, similarly containing an extra α-helix lobe that has been demonstrated to play an important role in Ub binding. Collectively, our study uncovers the structural basis for the dual catalytic activity of the unique OTU family DUB LotA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiwei Luo
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China
| | - Xinglin Ruan
- Department of Neurology, Fujian Medical University Union Hospital, 29 Xinquan Road Gulou District, Fuzhou 350001, China
| | - Zhijie Huang
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China
| | - Zekai Li
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China
| | - Le Ye
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China
| | - Yongyu Wu
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China
| | - Xiangkai Zhen
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China.
| | - Songying Ouyang
- Provincial University Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Response and Metabolic Regulation, the Key Laboratory of Innate Immune Biology of Fujian Province, Biomedical Research Center of South China, Key Laboratory of OptoElectronic Science and Technology for Medicine of the Ministry of Education, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, 350117, China.
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14
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Wang W, Cui W, Yang H. Toward an accurate mechanistic understanding of Wolbachia-induced cytoplasmic incompatibility. Environ Microbiol 2022; 24:4519-4532. [PMID: 35859330 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Revised: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 07/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Wolbachia are the most successful intracellular bacteria in arthropods. They can manipulate host reproduction to favour infected females, which transmit Wolbachia to their progeny and increase the presence of Wolbachia in the population. The reproductive alterations caused by Wolbachia include feminization, parthenogenesis, male killing and cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), among which CI is the most common. CI leads to embryonic lethality when Wolbachia-infected males mate with uninfected females or those infected with an incompatible strain. This lethality can be rescued if females are infected with a compatible strain. Although CI was described in the 1960s and its connection to Wolbachia was made in the 1970s, the genes responsible for CI, called CI factors, were not identified until recently. Since then, significant progress has been made in understanding the molecular mechanism of CI using a combination of genetic, phylogenetic, biochemical and structural approaches. The detailed molecular mechanisms behind this fascinating endosymbiotic bacteria-induced phenotype have begun to emerge. Here, we summarize recent progress in understanding the molecular mechanism of CI, especially focusing on the recently solved CI factor structures and discussing what these new structures brought in terms of CI mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Wang
- Institute of Life Sciences, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Wen Cui
- Institute of Life Sciences, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Haitao Yang
- Shanghai Institute for Advanced Immunochemical Studies and School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, China.,Tianjin International Joint Academy of Biotechnology and Medicine, Tianjin, China
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15
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Zhang M, Berk JM, Mehrtash AB, Kanyo J, Hochstrasser M. A versatile new tool derived from a bacterial deubiquitylase to detect and purify ubiquitylated substrates and their interacting proteins. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001501. [PMID: 35771886 PMCID: PMC9278747 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Protein ubiquitylation is an important posttranslational modification affecting a wide range of cellular processes. Due to the low abundance of ubiquitylated species in biological samples, considerable effort has been spent on methods to purify and detect ubiquitylated proteins. We have developed and characterized a novel tool for ubiquitin detection and purification based on OtUBD, a high-affinity ubiquitin-binding domain (UBD) derived from an Orientia tsutsugamushi deubiquitylase (DUB). We demonstrate that OtUBD can be used to purify both monoubiquitylated and polyubiquitylated substrates from yeast and human tissue culture samples and compare their performance with existing methods. Importantly, we found conditions for either selective purification of covalently ubiquitylated proteins or co-isolation of both ubiquitylated proteins and their interacting proteins. As proof of principle for these newly developed methods, we profiled the ubiquitylome and ubiquitin-associated proteome of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Combining OtUBD affinity purification with quantitative proteomics, we identified potential substrates for the E3 ligases Bre1 and Pib1. OtUBD provides a versatile, efficient, and economical tool for ubiquitin research with specific advantages over certain other methods, such as in efficiently detecting monoubiquitylation or ubiquitin linkages to noncanonical sites. This study presents OtUBD, a new tool derived from a bacterial deubiquitylase, for the purification and analysis of a broad range of endogenous ubiquitylated proteins, including monoubiquitylation, polyubiquitylation, non-lysine ubiquitylation and potentially other macromolecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengwen Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
| | - Jason M. Berk
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
| | - Adrian B. Mehrtash
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
| | - Jean Kanyo
- W.M. Keck Foundation Biotechnology Resource Laboratory, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
| | - Mark Hochstrasser
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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16
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OtDUB from the Human Pathogen Orientia tsutsugamushi Modulates Host Membrane Trafficking by Multiple Mechanisms. Mol Cell Biol 2022; 42:e0007122. [PMID: 35727026 PMCID: PMC9302166 DOI: 10.1128/mcb.00071-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Host cell membrane-trafficking pathways are often manipulated by bacterial pathogens to gain cell entry, avoid immune responses, or to obtain nutrients. The 1,369-residue OtDUB protein from the obligate intracellular human pathogen Orientia tsutsugamushi bears a deubiquitylase (DUB) and additional domains. Here we show that OtDUB ectopic expression disrupts membrane trafficking through multiple mechanisms. OtDUB binds directly to the clathrin adaptor-protein (AP) complexes AP-1 and AP-2, and the OtDUB275-675 fragment is sufficient for binding to either complex. To assess the impact of OtDUB interactions with AP-1 and AP-2, we examined trans-Golgi trafficking and endocytosis, respectively. Endocytosis is reduced by two separate OtDUB fragments: one contains the AP-binding domain (OtDUB1-675), and the other does not (OtDUB675-1369). OtDUB1-675 disruption of endocytosis requires its ubiquitin-binding capabilities. OtDUB675-1369 also fragments trans- and cis-Golgi structures. Using a growth-based selection in yeast, we identified viable OtDUB675-1369 point mutants that also no longer caused Golgi defects in human cells. In parallel, we found OtDUB675-1369 binds directly to phosphatidylserine, and this lipid binding is lost in the same mutants. Together these results show that OtDUB contains multiple activities capable of modulating membrane trafficking. We discuss how these activities may contribute to Orientia infections.
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Crystal Structures of Wolbachia CidA and CidB Reveal Determinants of Bacteria-induced Cytoplasmic Incompatibility and Rescue. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1608. [PMID: 35338130 PMCID: PMC8956670 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29273-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) results when Wolbachia bacteria-infected male insects mate with uninfected females, leading to embryonic lethality. “Rescue” of viability occurs if the female harbors the same Wolbachia strain. CI is caused by linked pairs of Wolbachia genes called CI factors (CifA and CifB). The co-evolution of CifA-CifB pairs may account in part for the incompatibility patterns documented in insects infected with different Wolbachia strains, but the molecular mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we use X-ray crystallography and AlphaFold to analyze the CI factors from Wolbachia strain wMel called CidAwMel and CidBwMel. Substituting CidAwMel interface residues with those from CidAwPip (from strain wPip) enables the mutant protein to bind CidBwPip and rescue CidBwPip-induced yeast growth defects, supporting the importance of CifA-CifB interaction in CI rescue. Sequence divergence in CidAwPip and CidBwPip proteins affects their pairwise interactions, which may help explain the complex incompatibility patterns of mosquitoes infected with different wPip strains. Wolbachia induced cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI) is caused by linked pairs of genes named cifA and cifB. Here, authors show that the residues at interfaces of the CidA-CidB complex is crucial for their binding and contribute to the diversity of CI.
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18
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van der Zee J, Lau A, Shenkin A. Understanding crown shyness from a 3-D perspective. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2021; 128:725-736. [PMID: 33713413 PMCID: PMC8557382 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcab035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Crown shyness describes the phenomenon whereby tree crowns avoid growing into each other, producing a puzzle-like pattern of complementary tree crowns in the canopy. Previous studies found that tree slenderness plays a role in the development of crown shyness. Attempts to quantify crown shyness have largely been confined to 2-D approaches. This study aimed to expand the current set of metrics for crown shyness by quantifying the characteristic of 3-D surface complementarity between trees displaying crown shyness, using LiDAR-derived tree point clouds. Subsequently, the relationship between crown surface complementarity and slenderness of trees was assessed. METHODS Fourteen trees were scanned using a laser scanning device. Individual tree points clouds were extracted semi-automatically and manually corrected where needed. A metric that quantifies the surface complementarity (Sc) of a pair of protein molecules is applied to point clouds of pairs of adjacent trees. Then 3-D tree crown surfaces were generated from point clouds by computing their α shapes. KEY RESULTS Tree pairs that were visually determined to have overlapping crowns scored significantly lower Sc values than pairs that did not overlap (n = 14, P < 0.01). Furthermore, average slenderness of pairs of trees correlated positively with their Sc score (R2 = 0.484, P < 0.01), showing agreement with previous studies on crown shyness. CONCLUSIONS The characteristic of crown surface complementarity present in trees displaying crown shyness was succesfully quantified using a 3-D surface complementarity metric adopted from molecular biology. Crown surface complementarity showed a positive relationship to tree slenderness, similar to other metrics used for measuring crown shyness. The 3-D metric developed in this study revealed how trees adapt the shape of their crowns to those of adjacent trees and how this is linked to the slenderness of the trees.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jens van der Zee
- Laboratory of Geo-Information Science and Remote Sensing, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Alvaro Lau
- Laboratory of Geo-Information Science and Remote Sensing, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Alexander Shenkin
- Environmental Change Institute, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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19
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Wangsanut T, Brann KR, Adcox HE, Carlyon JA. Orientia tsutsugamushi modulates cellular levels of NF-κB inhibitor p105. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021; 15:e0009339. [PMID: 33857149 PMCID: PMC8078813 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Revised: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Scrub typhus is a neglected tropical disease that threatens more than one billion people. If antibiotic therapy is delayed, often due to mis- or late diagnosis, the case fatality rate can increase considerably. Scrub typhus is caused by the obligate intracellular bacterium, Orientia tsutsugamushi, which invades phagocytes and endothelial cells in vivo and diverse tissue culture cell types in vitro. The ability of O. tsutsugamushi to replicate in the cytoplasm indicates that it has evolved to counter eukaryotic host cell immune defense mechanisms. The transcription factor, NF-κB, is a tightly regulated initiator of proinflammatory and antimicrobial responses. Typically, the inhibitory proteins p105 and IκBα sequester the NF-κB p50:p65 heterodimer in the cytoplasm. Canonical activation of NF-κB via TNFα involves IKKβ-mediated serine phosphorylation of IκBα and p105, which leads to their degradation and enables NF-κB nuclear translocation. A portion of p105 is also processed into p50. O. tsutsugamushi impairs NF-κB translocation into the nucleus, but how it does so is incompletely defined. Principal findings Western blot, densitometry, and quantitative RT-PCR analyses of O. tsutsugamushi infected host cells were used to determine if the pathogen’s ability to inhibit NF-κB is linked to modulation of p105. Results demonstrate that p105 levels are elevated several-fold in O. tsutsugamushi infected HeLa and RF/6A cells with only a nominal increase in p50. The O. tsutsugamushi-stimulated increase in p105 is bacterial dose- and protein synthesis-dependent, but does not occur at the level of host cell transcription. While TNFα-induced phosphorylation of p105 serine 932 proceeds unhindered in infected cells, p105 levels remain elevated and NF-κB p65 is retained in the cytoplasm. Conclusions O. tsutsugamushi specifically stabilizes p105 to inhibit the canonical NF-κB pathway, which advances understanding of how it counters host immunity to establish infection. Scrub typhus is a neglected disease that can be fatal and occurs predominantly in the Asia-Pacific, one of the most densely populated regions of the world. Notably, cases continue to emerge outside this area. The etiologic agent is Orientia tsutsugamushi, a bacterial pathogen that infects certain leukocytes and cells that line blood vessels in animals and humans. The success of O. tsutsugamushi to colonize these cells is at least partially attributable to its ability to counter host immunity. In this study, we demonstrate that O. tsutsugamushi stabilizes p105, a mammalian inhibitor of the transcription factor, NF-κB, which is otherwise key for activating proinflammatory and antimicrobial gene expression. O. tsutsugamushi is the first example of a bacterium that inhibits NF-κB by promoting elevated levels of p105 and impairing its degradation. Our findings provide fundamental information that helps explain how this important pathogen has evolved to stealthily establish infection in host cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanaporn Wangsanut
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, Unites States of America
| | - Katelynn R. Brann
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, Unites States of America
| | - Haley E. Adcox
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, Unites States of America
| | - Jason A. Carlyon
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, Unites States of America
- * E-mail:
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20
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Salje J. Cells within cells: Rickettsiales and the obligate intracellular bacterial lifestyle. Nat Rev Microbiol 2021; 19:375-390. [PMID: 33564174 DOI: 10.1038/s41579-020-00507-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The Rickettsiales are a group of obligate intracellular vector-borne Gram-negative bacteria that include many organisms of clinical and agricultural importance, including Anaplasma spp., Ehrlichia chaffeensis, Wolbachia, Rickettsia spp. and Orientia tsutsugamushi. This Review provides an overview of the current state of knowledge of the biology of these bacteria and their interactions with host cells, with a focus on pathogenic species or those that are otherwise important for human health. This includes a description of rickettsial genomics, bacterial cell biology, the intracellular lifestyles of Rickettsiales and the mechanisms by which they induce and evade the innate immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanne Salje
- Centre for Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. .,Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand. .,Public Health Research Institute, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, USA.
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21
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Lim C, Berk JM, Blaise A, Bircher J, Koleske AJ, Hochstrasser M, Xiong Y. Crystal structure of a guanine nucleotide exchange factor encoded by the scrub typhus pathogen Orientia tsutsugamushi. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:30380-30390. [PMID: 33184172 PMCID: PMC7720168 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2018163117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Rho family GTPases regulate an array of cellular processes and are often modulated by pathogens to promote infection. Here, we identify a cryptic guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) domain in the OtDUB protein encoded by the pathogenic bacterium Orientia tsutsugamushi A proteomics-based OtDUB interaction screen identified numerous potential host interactors, including the Rho GTPases Rac1 and Cdc42. We discovered a domain in OtDUB with Rac1/Cdc42 GEF activity (OtDUBGEF), with higher activity toward Rac1 in vitro. While this GEF bears no obvious sequence similarity to known GEFs, crystal structures of OtDUBGEF alone (3.0 Å) and complexed with Rac1 (1.7 Å) reveal striking convergent evolution, with a unique topology, on a V-shaped bacterial GEF fold shared with other bacterial GEF domains. Structure-guided mutational analyses identified residues critical for activity and a mechanism for nucleotide displacement. Ectopic expression of OtDUB activates Rac1 preferentially in cells, and expression of the OtDUBGEF alone alters cell morphology. Cumulatively, this work reveals a bacterial GEF within the multifunctional OtDUB that co-opts host Rac1 signaling to induce changes in cytoskeletal structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Lim
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Jason M Berk
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Alyssa Blaise
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Josie Bircher
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Anthony J Koleske
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Mark Hochstrasser
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Yong Xiong
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
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22
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Chen H, Zhang M, Hochstrasser M. The Biochemistry of Cytoplasmic Incompatibility Caused by Endosymbiotic Bacteria. Genes (Basel) 2020; 11:genes11080852. [PMID: 32722516 PMCID: PMC7465683 DOI: 10.3390/genes11080852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2020] [Revised: 07/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Many species of arthropods carry maternally inherited bacterial endosymbionts that can influence host sexual reproduction to benefit the bacterium. The most well-known of such reproductive parasites is Wolbachia pipientis. Wolbachia are obligate intracellular α-proteobacteria found in nearly half of all arthropod species. This success has been attributed in part to their ability to manipulate host reproduction to favor infected females. Cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI), a phenomenon wherein Wolbachia infection renders males sterile when they mate with uninfected females, but not infected females (the rescue mating), appears to be the most common. CI provides a reproductive advantage to infected females in the presence of a threshold level of infected males. The molecular mechanisms of CI and other reproductive manipulations, such as male killing, parthenogenesis, and feminization, have remained mysterious for many decades. It had been proposed by Werren more than two decades ago that CI is caused by a Wolbachia-mediated sperm modification and that rescue is achieved by a Wolbachia-encoded rescue factor in the infected egg. In the past few years, new research has highlighted a set of syntenic Wolbachia gene pairs encoding CI-inducing factors (Cifs) as the key players for the induction of CI and its rescue. Within each Cif pair, the protein encoded by the upstream gene is denoted A and the downstream gene B. To date, two types of Cifs have been characterized based on the enzymatic activity identified in the B protein of each protein pair; one type encodes a deubiquitylase (thus named CI-inducing deubiquitylase or cid), and a second type encodes a nuclease (named CI-inducing nuclease or cin). The CidA and CinA proteins bind tightly and specifically to their respective CidB and CinB partners. In transgenic Drosophila melanogaster, the expression of either the Cid or Cin protein pair in the male germline induces CI and the expression of the cognate A protein in females is sufficient for rescue. With the identity of the Wolbachia CI induction and rescue factors now known, research in the field has turned to directed studies on the molecular mechanisms of CI, which we review here.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongli Chen
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; (H.C.); (M.Z.)
| | - Mengwen Zhang
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; (H.C.); (M.Z.)
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Mark Hochstrasser
- Department of Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; (H.C.); (M.Z.)
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, & Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
- Correspondence:
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