1
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Majekodunmi T, Britton D, Montclare JK. Engineered Proteins and Materials Utilizing Residue-Specific Noncanonical Amino Acid Incorporation. Chem Rev 2024; 124:9113-9135. [PMID: 39008623 PMCID: PMC11327963 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00855] [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: 07/17/2024]
Abstract
The incorporation of noncanonical amino acids into proteins and protein-based materials has significantly expanded the repertoire of available protein structures and chemistries. Through residue-specific incorporation, protein properties can be globally modified, resulting in the creation of novel proteins and materials with diverse and tailored characteristics. In this review, we highlight recent advancements in residue-specific incorporation techniques as well as the applications of the engineered proteins and materials. Specifically, we discuss their utility in bio-orthogonal noncanonical amino acid tagging (BONCAT), fluorescent noncanonical amino acid tagging (FUNCAT), threonine-derived noncanonical amino acid tagging (THRONCAT), cross-linking, fluorination, and enzyme engineering. This review underscores the importance of noncanonical amino acid incorporation as a tool for the development of tailored protein properties to meet diverse research and industrial needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Temiloluwa Majekodunmi
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
| | - Dustin Britton
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
| | - Jin Kim Montclare
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, Brooklyn, New York 11201, United States
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, New York 10016, United States
- Department of Chemistry, New York University, New York, New York 10012, United States
- Department of Biomaterials, New York University College of Dentistry, New York, New York 10010, United States
- Department of Radiology, New York University Langone Health, New York, New York 10016, United States
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2
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Sigal M, Matsumoto S, Beattie A, Katoh T, Suga H. Engineering tRNAs for the Ribosomal Translation of Non-proteinogenic Monomers. Chem Rev 2024; 124:6444-6500. [PMID: 38688034 PMCID: PMC11122139 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2023] [Revised: 02/21/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
Ribosome-dependent protein biosynthesis is an essential cellular process mediated by transfer RNAs (tRNAs). Generally, ribosomally synthesized proteins are limited to the 22 proteinogenic amino acids (pAAs: 20 l-α-amino acids present in the standard genetic code, selenocysteine, and pyrrolysine). However, engineering tRNAs for the ribosomal incorporation of non-proteinogenic monomers (npMs) as building blocks has led to the creation of unique polypeptides with broad applications in cellular biology, material science, spectroscopy, and pharmaceuticals. Ribosomal polymerization of these engineered polypeptides presents a variety of challenges for biochemists, as translation efficiency and fidelity is often insufficient when employing npMs. In this Review, we will focus on the methodologies for engineering tRNAs to overcome these issues and explore recent advances both in vitro and in vivo. These efforts include increasing orthogonality, recruiting essential translation factors, and creation of expanded genetic codes. After our review on the biochemical optimizations of tRNAs, we provide examples of their use in genetic code manipulation, with a focus on the in vitro discovery of bioactive macrocyclic peptides containing npMs. Finally, an analysis of the current state of tRNA engineering is presented, along with existing challenges and future perspectives for the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxwell Sigal
- Department of Chemistry,
Graduate School of Science, The University
of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Satomi Matsumoto
- Department of Chemistry,
Graduate School of Science, The University
of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Adam Beattie
- Department of Chemistry,
Graduate School of Science, The University
of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Takayuki Katoh
- Department of Chemistry,
Graduate School of Science, The University
of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Suga
- Department of Chemistry,
Graduate School of Science, The University
of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
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3
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Guo QR, Cao YJ. Applications of genetic code expansion technology in eukaryotes. Protein Cell 2024; 15:331-363. [PMID: 37847216 PMCID: PMC11074999 DOI: 10.1093/procel/pwad051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Unnatural amino acids (UAAs) have gained significant attention in protein engineering and drug development owing to their ability to introduce new chemical functionalities to proteins. In eukaryotes, genetic code expansion (GCE) enables the incorporation of UAAs and facilitates posttranscriptional modification (PTM), which is not feasible in prokaryotic systems. GCE is also a powerful tool for cell or animal imaging, the monitoring of protein interactions in target cells, drug development, and switch regulation. Therefore, there is keen interest in utilizing GCE in eukaryotic systems. This review provides an overview of the application of GCE in eukaryotic systems and discusses current challenges that need to be addressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiao-ru Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Oncogenomic, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Genomics, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Yu J Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Oncogenomic, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Chemical Genomics, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China
- Institute of Chemical Biology, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen 518132, China
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4
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Reese A, de Moliner F, Mendive-Tapia L, Benson S, Kuru E, Bridge T, Richards J, Rittichier J, Kitamura T, Sachdeva A, McSorley HJ, Vendrell M. Inserting "OFF-to-ON" BODIPY Tags into Cytokines: A Fluorogenic Interleukin IL-33 for Real-Time Imaging of Immune Cells. ACS CENTRAL SCIENCE 2024; 10:143-154. [PMID: 38292608 PMCID: PMC10823590 DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.3c01125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
The essential functions that cytokine/immune cell interactions play in tissue homeostasis and during disease have prompted the molecular design of targeted fluorophores to monitor their activity in real time. Whereas activatable probes for imaging immune-related enzymes are common, many immunological functions are mediated by binding events between cytokines and their cognate receptors that are hard to monitor by live-cell imaging. A prime example is interleukin-33 (IL-33), a key cytokine in innate and adaptive immunity, whose interaction with the ST2 cell-surface receptor results in downstream signaling and activation of NF-κB and AP-1 pathways. In the present work, we have designed a chemical platform to site-specifically introduce OFF-to-ON BODIPY fluorophores into full cytokine proteins and generate the first nativelike fluorescent analogues of IL-33. Among different incorporation strategies, chemical aminoacylation followed by bioorthogonal derivatization led to the best labeling results. Importantly, the BODIPY-labeled IL-33 derivatives-unlike IL-33-GFP constructs-exhibited ST2-specific binding and downstream bioactivity profiles comparable to those of the wild-type interleukin. Real-time fluorescence microscopy assays under no wash conditions confirmed the internalization of IL-33 through ST2 receptors and its intracellular trafficking through the endosomal pathway. We envision that the modularity and versatility of our BODIPY labeling platform will facilitate the synthesis of minimally tagged fluorogenic cytokines as the next generation of imaging reagents for real-time visualization of signaling events in live immune cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abigail
E. Reese
- Centre
for Inflammation Research, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- IRR
Chemistry Hub, Institute for Regeneration and Repair, The University of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Fabio de Moliner
- Centre
for Inflammation Research, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- IRR
Chemistry Hub, Institute for Regeneration and Repair, The University of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Lorena Mendive-Tapia
- Centre
for Inflammation Research, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- IRR
Chemistry Hub, Institute for Regeneration and Repair, The University of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Sam Benson
- Centre
for Inflammation Research, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- IRR
Chemistry Hub, Institute for Regeneration and Repair, The University of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Erkin Kuru
- Department
of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
- Wyss
Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United States
| | - Thomas Bridge
- School
of Chemistry, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Josh Richards
- Division
of Cell Signaling and Immunology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 4HN, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan Rittichier
- Department
of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, United States
| | - Takanori Kitamura
- Centre
for Reproductive Health, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Amit Sachdeva
- School
of Chemistry, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom
| | - Henry J. McSorley
- Division
of Cell Signaling and Immunology, School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 4HN, United Kingdom
| | - Marc Vendrell
- Centre
for Inflammation Research, The University
of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- IRR
Chemistry Hub, Institute for Regeneration and Repair, The University of Edinburgh, EH16 4UU, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
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5
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Perera SM, Aikawa T, Shaner SE, Moran SD, Wang L. Effects of the Intramolecular Group and Solvent on Vibrational Coupling Modes and Strengths of Fermi Resonances in Aryl Azides: A DFT Study of 4-Azidotoluene and 4-Azido- N-phenylmaleimide. J Phys Chem A 2023; 127:8911-8921. [PMID: 37819373 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.3c06312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
The high transition dipole strength of the azide asymmetric stretch makes aryl azides good candidates as vibrational probes (VPs). However, aryl azides have complex absorption profiles due to Fermi resonances (FRs). Understanding the origin and the vibrational modes involved in FRs of aryl azides is critically important toward developing them as VPs for studies of protein structures and structural changes in response to their surroundings. As such, we studied vibrational couplings in 4-azidotoluene and 4-azido-N-phenylmaleimide in two solvents, N,N-dimethylacetamide and tetrahydrofuran, to explore the origin and the effects of intramolecular group and solvent on the FRs of aryl azides using density functional theory (DFT) calculations with the B3LYP functional and seven basis sets, 6-31G(d,p), 6-31+G(d,p), 6-31++G(d,p), 6-311G(d,p), 6-311+G(d,p), 6-311++G(d,p), and 6-311++G(df,pd). Two combination bands consisting of the azide symmetric stretch and another mode form strong FRs with the azide asymmetric stretch for both molecules. The FR profile was altered by replacing the methyl group with maleimide. Solvents change the relative peak position and intensity more significantly for 4-azido-N-phenylmaleimide, which makes it a more sensitive VP. Furthermore, the DFT results indicate that a comparison among the results from different basis sets can be used as a means to predict more reliable vibrational spectra.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sathya M Perera
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
| | - Tenyu Aikawa
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
| | - Sarah E Shaner
- Department of Chemistry and Physics, Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, Missouri 63701, United States
| | - Sean D Moran
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
| | - Lichang Wang
- School of Chemical and Biomolecular Sciences, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
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6
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Calvert SH, McGouran JF. Rapid capture of small peptide binders. Nat Rev Chem 2023; 7:534-535. [PMID: 37434011 DOI: 10.1038/s41570-023-00517-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/13/2023]
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7
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Grasso K, Singha Roy SJ, Osgood AO, Yeo MJR, Soni C, Hillenbrand CM, Ficaretta ED, Chatterjee A. A Facile Platform to Engineer Escherichia coli Tyrosyl-tRNA Synthetase Adds New Chemistries to the Eukaryotic Genetic Code, Including a Phosphotyrosine Mimic. ACS CENTRAL SCIENCE 2022; 8:483-492. [PMID: 35559426 PMCID: PMC9088295 DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.1c01465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The Escherichia coli tyrosyl-tRNA synthetase (EcTyrRS)/tRNAEcTyr pair offers an attractive platform for genetically encoding new noncanonical amino acids (ncAA) in eukaryotes. However, challenges associated with a eukaryotic selection system, which is needed to engineer the platform, have impeded its success in the past. Recently, using a facile E. coli-based selection system, we showed that EcTyrRS could be engineered in a strain where the endogenous tyrosyl pair was substituted with an archaeal counterpart. However, significant cross-reactivity between the UAG-suppressing tRNACUA EcTyr and the bacterial glutaminyl-tRNA synthetase limited the scope of this strategy, preventing the selection of moderately active EcTyrRS mutants. Here we report an engineered tRNACUA EcTyr that overcomes this cross-reactivity. Optimized selection systems based on this tRNA enabled the efficient enrichment of both strongly and weakly active ncAA-selective EcTyrRS mutants. We also developed a wide dynamic range (WiDR) antibiotic selection to further enhance the activities of the weaker first-generation EcTyrRS mutants. We demonstrated the utility of our platform by developing several new EcTyrRS mutants that efficiently incorporated useful ncAAs in mammalian cells, including photoaffinity probes, bioconjugation handles, and a nonhydrolyzable mimic of phosphotyrosine.
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8
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Lateef OM, Akintubosun MO, Olaoba OT, Samson SO, Adamczyk M. Making Sense of "Nonsense" and More: Challenges and Opportunities in the Genetic Code Expansion, in the World of tRNA Modifications. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:938. [PMID: 35055121 PMCID: PMC8779196 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23020938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2021] [Revised: 01/10/2022] [Accepted: 01/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolutional development of the RNA translation process that leads to protein synthesis based on naturally occurring amino acids has its continuation via synthetic biology, the so-called rational bioengineering. Genetic code expansion (GCE) explores beyond the natural translational processes to further enhance the structural properties and augment the functionality of a wide range of proteins. Prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomal machinery have been proven to accept engineered tRNAs from orthogonal organisms to efficiently incorporate noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) with rationally designed side chains. These side chains can be reactive or functional groups, which can be extensively utilized in biochemical, biophysical, and cellular studies. Genetic code extension offers the contingency of introducing more than one ncAA into protein through frameshift suppression, multi-site-specific incorporation of ncAAs, thereby increasing the vast number of possible applications. However, different mediating factors reduce the yield and efficiency of ncAA incorporation into synthetic proteins. In this review, we comment on the recent advancements in genetic code expansion to signify the relevance of systems biology in improving ncAA incorporation efficiency. We discuss the emerging impact of tRNA modifications and metabolism in protein design. We also provide examples of the latest successful accomplishments in synthetic protein therapeutics and show how codon expansion has been employed in various scientific and biotechnological applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olubodun Michael Lateef
- Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-664 Warsaw, Poland; (O.M.L.); (M.O.A.); (S.O.S.)
| | | | - Olamide Tosin Olaoba
- Laboratory of Functional and Structural Biochemistry, Federal University of Sao Carlos, Sao Carlos 13565-905, SP, Brazil;
| | - Sunday Ocholi Samson
- Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-664 Warsaw, Poland; (O.M.L.); (M.O.A.); (S.O.S.)
| | - Malgorzata Adamczyk
- Faculty of Chemistry, Warsaw University of Technology, 00-664 Warsaw, Poland; (O.M.L.); (M.O.A.); (S.O.S.)
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9
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Abstract
The encoded biosynthesis of proteins provides the ultimate paradigm for high-fidelity synthesis of long polymers of defined sequence and composition, but it is limited to polymerizing the canonical amino acids. Recent advances have built on genetic code expansion - which commonly permits the cellular incorporation of one type of non-canonical amino acid into a protein - to enable the encoded incorporation of several distinct non-canonical amino acids. Developments include strategies to read quadruplet codons, use non-natural DNA base pairs, synthesize completely recoded genomes and create orthogonal translational components with reprogrammed specificities. These advances may enable the genetically encoded synthesis of non-canonical biopolymers and provide a platform for transforming the discovery and evolution of new materials and therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jason W Chin
- Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK.
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10
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Park JY, Mondal S, Kwon HJ, Sahu PK, Han H, Kwak K, Cho M. Effect of isotope substitution on the Fermi resonance and vibrational lifetime of unnatural amino acids modified with IR probe: A 2D-IR and pump-probe study of 4-azido-L-phenyl alanine. J Chem Phys 2020; 153:164309. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0025289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jun Young Park
- Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Saptarsi Mondal
- Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Hyeok-Jun Kwon
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Prabhat Kumar Sahu
- Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Hogyu Han
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Kyungwon Kwak
- Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Minhaeng Cho
- Center for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics, Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
- Department of Chemistry, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
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11
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Abstract
Within the broad field of synthetic biology, genetic code expansion (GCE) techniques enable creation of proteins with an expanded set of amino acids. This may be invaluable for applications in therapeutics, bioremediation, and biocatalysis. Central to GCE are aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs) as they link a non-canonical amino acid (ncAA) to their cognate tRNA, allowing ncAA incorporation into proteins on the ribosome. The ncAA-acylating aaRSs and their tRNAs should not cross-react with 20 natural aaRSs and tRNAs in the host, i.e., they need to function as an orthogonal translating system. All current orthogonal aaRS•tRNA pairs have been engineered from naturally occurring molecules to change the aaRS's amino acid specificity or assign the tRNA to a liberated codon of choice. Here we discuss the importance of orthogonality in GCE, laboratory techniques employed to create designer aaRSs and tRNAs, and provide an overview of orthogonal aaRS•tRNA pairs for GCE purposes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Krahn
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Jeffery M Tharp
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Ana Crnković
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Dieter Söll
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States.
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12
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Kwok HS, Vargas-Rodriguez O, Melnikov SV, Söll D. Engineered Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetases with Improved Selectivity toward Noncanonical Amino Acids. ACS Chem Biol 2019; 14:603-612. [PMID: 30933556 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.9b00088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
A wide range of noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) can be incorporated into proteins in living cells by using engineered aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase/tRNA pairs. However, most engineered tRNA synthetases are polyspecific; that is, they can recognize multiple rather than one ncAA. Polyspecificity of engineered tRNA synthetases imposes a limit to the use of genetic code expansion because it prevents specific incorporation of a desired ncAA when multiple ncAAs are present in the growth media. In this study, we employed directed evolution to improve substrate selectivity of polyspecific tRNA synthetases by developing substrate-selective readouts for flow-cytometry-based screening with the simultaneous presence of multiple ncAAs. We applied this method to improve the selectivity of two commonly used tRNA synthetases, p-cyano-l-phenylalanyl aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase ( pCNFRS) and Nε-acetyl-lysyl aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (AcKRS), with broad specificity. Evolved pCNFRS and AcKRS variants exhibit significantly improved selectivity for ncAAs p-azido-l-phenylalanine ( pAzF) and m-iodo-l-phenylalanine ( mIF), respectively. To demonstrate the utility of our approach, we used the newly evolved tRNA synthetase variant to produce highly pure proteins containing the ncAA mIF, in the presence of multiple ncAAs present in the growth media. In summary, our new approach opens up a new avenue for engineering the next generation of tRNA synthetases with improved selectivity toward a desired ncAA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Si Kwok
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Oscar Vargas-Rodriguez
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Sergey V. Melnikov
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
| | - Dieter Söll
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520, United States
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13
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Tippmann EM, Culpepper S, Bunnel W, Appel N. New perspectives on aryl azide noncanonical amino acid use in yeast. Photochem Photobiol Sci 2019; 18:253-258. [DOI: 10.1039/c8pp00243f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
A photochemically chemically active noncanonical amino acidpara-azido-l-phenylalanine widely used in biology was found to be metabolized bySaccharomyces cerevisiae.
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14
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Huang Y, Liu T. Therapeutic applications of genetic code expansion. Synth Syst Biotechnol 2018; 3:150-158. [PMID: 30345400 PMCID: PMC6190509 DOI: 10.1016/j.synbio.2018.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2018] [Revised: 09/16/2018] [Accepted: 09/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
In nature, a limited, conservative set of amino acids are utilized to synthesize proteins. Genetic code expansion technique reassigns codons and incorporates noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) through orthogonal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS)/tRNA pairs. The past decade has witnessed the rapid growth in diversity and scope for therapeutic applications of this technology. Here, we provided an update on the recent progress using genetic code expansion in the following areas: antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), bispecific antibodies (BsAb), immunotherapies, long-lasting protein therapeutics, biosynthesized peptides, engineered viruses and cells, as well as other therapeutic related applications, where the technique was used to elucidate the mechanisms of biotherapeutics and drug targets.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100191, China
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15
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Pokhrel N, Origanti S, Davenport EP, Gandhi D, Kaniecki K, Mehl RA, Greene EC, Dockendorff C, Antony E. Monitoring Replication Protein A (RPA) dynamics in homologous recombination through site-specific incorporation of non-canonical amino acids. Nucleic Acids Res 2017; 45:9413-9426. [PMID: 28934470 PMCID: PMC5766198 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkx598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
An essential coordinator of all DNA metabolic processes is Replication Protein A (RPA). RPA orchestrates these processes by binding to single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) and interacting with several other DNA binding proteins. Determining the real-time kinetics of single players such as RPA in the presence of multiple DNA processors to better understand the associated mechanistic events is technically challenging. To overcome this hurdle, we utilized non-canonical amino acids and bio-orthogonal chemistry to site-specifically incorporate a chemical fluorophore onto a single subunit of heterotrimeric RPA. Upon binding to ssDNA, this fluorescent RPA (RPAf) generates a quantifiable change in fluorescence, thus serving as a reporter of its dynamics on DNA in the presence of multiple other DNA binding proteins. Using RPAf, we describe the kinetics of facilitated self-exchange and exchange by Rad51 and mediator proteins during various stages in homologous recombination. RPAf is widely applicable to investigate its mechanism of action in processes such as DNA replication, repair and telomere maintenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nilisha Pokhrel
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Sofia Origanti
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | | | - Disha Gandhi
- Department of Chemistry, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Kyle Kaniecki
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA.,Department of Genetics and Development, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Ryan A Mehl
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA
| | - Eric C Greene
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Chris Dockendorff
- Department of Chemistry, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
| | - Edwin Antony
- Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI 53201, USA
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16
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George A, Krishna Priya G, Ilamaran M, Kamini NR, Ganesh S, Easwaramoorthi S, Ayyadurai N. Accelerated Strain-Promoted and Oxidation-Controlled Cyclooctyne-Quinone Cycloaddition for Cell Labeling. ChemistrySelect 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/slct.201700581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Augustine George
- Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Council of Scientific; Industrial Research (CSIR)-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI); Chennai India
| | - Gnanasekar Krishna Priya
- Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Council of Scientific; Industrial Research (CSIR)-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI); Chennai India
| | - Meganathan Ilamaran
- Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Council of Scientific; Industrial Research (CSIR)-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI); Chennai India
| | - Numbi Ramudu Kamini
- Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Council of Scientific; Industrial Research (CSIR)-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI); Chennai India
| | | | | | - Niraikulam Ayyadurai
- Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Council of Scientific; Industrial Research (CSIR)-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI); Chennai India
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17
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Reynolds NM, Vargas-Rodriguez O, Söll D, Crnković A. The central role of tRNA in genetic code expansion. Biochim Biophys Acta Gen Subj 2017; 1861:3001-3008. [PMID: 28323071 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbagen.2017.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2017] [Accepted: 03/14/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The development of orthogonal translation systems (OTSs) for genetic code expansion (GCE) has allowed for the incorporation of a diverse array of non-canonical amino acids (ncAA) into proteins. Transfer RNA, the central molecule in the translation of the genetic message into proteins, plays a significant role in the efficiency of ncAA incorporation. SCOPE OF REVIEW Here we review the biochemical basis of OTSs for genetic code expansion. We focus on the role of tRNA and discuss strategies used to engineer tRNA for the improvement of ncAA incorporation into proteins. MAJOR CONCLUSIONS The engineering of orthogonal tRNAs for GCE has significantly improved the incorporation of ncAAs. However, there are numerous unintended consequences of orthogonal tRNA engineering that cannot be predicted ab initio. GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE Genetic code expansion has allowed for the incorporation of a great diversity of ncAAs and novel chemistries into proteins, making significant contributions to our understanding of biological molecules and interactions. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled "Biochemistry of Synthetic Biology - Recent Developments" Guest Editor: Dr. Ilka Heinemann and Dr. Patrick O'Donoghue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah M Reynolds
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA.
| | - Oscar Vargas-Rodriguez
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA
| | - Dieter Söll
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA; Department of Chemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA
| | - Ana Crnković
- Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520-8114, USA.
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Yang ST, Lim SI, Kiessling V, Kwon I, Tamm LK. Site-specific fluorescent labeling to visualize membrane translocation of a myristoyl switch protein. Sci Rep 2016; 6:32866. [PMID: 27605302 PMCID: PMC5015116 DOI: 10.1038/srep32866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2016] [Accepted: 08/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Fluorescence approaches have been widely used for elucidating the dynamics of protein-membrane interactions in cells and model systems. However, non-specific multi-site fluorescent labeling often results in a loss of native structure and function, and single cysteine labeling is not feasible when native cysteines are required to support a protein's folding or catalytic activity. Here, we develop a method using genetic incorporation of non-natural amino acids and bio-orthogonal chemistry to site-specifically label with a single fluorescent small molecule or protein the myristoyl-switch protein recoverin, which is involved in rhodopsin-mediated signaling in mammalian visual sensory neurons. We demonstrate reversible Ca(2+)-responsive translocation of labeled recoverin to membranes and show that recoverin favors membranes with negative curvature and high lipid fluidity in complex heterogeneous membranes, which confers spatio-temporal control over down-stream signaling events. The site-specific orthogonal labeling technique is promising for structural, dynamical, and functional studies of many lipid-anchored membrane protein switches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sung-Tae Yang
- Center for Membrane and Cell Physiology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
| | - Sung In Lim
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - Volker Kiessling
- Center for Membrane and Cell Physiology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
| | - Inchan Kwon
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, and Department of Biomedical Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju 61005, Republic of Korea
| | - Lukas K. Tamm
- Center for Membrane and Cell Physiology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
- Department of Molecular Physiology and Biological Physics, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
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