Functional characterization of replication protein A2 (RPA2) from Cryptosporidium parvum

Dysfunctions at human intestinal barrier by water-borne protozoan parasites: lessons from cultured human fully differentiated colon cancer cell lines

Some water-borne protozoan parasites induce diseases through their membrane-associated functional structures and virulence factors that hijack the host cellular molecules and signalling pathways leading to structural and functional lesions in the intestinal barrier. In this Microreview we analyse the insights on the mechanisms of pathogenesis of Entamoeba intestinalis, Giardia and Cryptosporidium observed in the human colon carcinoma fully differentiated colon cancer cell lines, cell subpopulations and clones expressing the structural and functional characteristics of highly specialized fully differentiated epithelial cells lining the intestinal epithelium and mimicking structurally and functionally an intestinal barrier.

Evidence for direct contact between the RPA3 subunit of the human replication protein A and single-stranded DNA

Replication Protein A is a single-stranded (ss) DNA-binding protein that is highly conserved in eukaryotes and plays essential roles in many aspects of nucleic acid metabolism, including replication, recombination, DNA repair and telomere maintenance. It is a heterotrimeric complex consisting of three subunits: RPA1, RPA2 and RPA3. It possesses four DNA-binding domains (DBD), DBD-A, DBD-B and DBD-C in RPA1 and DBD-D in RPA2, and it binds ssDNA via a multistep pathway. Unlike the RPA1 and RPA2 subunits, no ssDNA-RPA3 interaction has as yet been observed although RPA3 contains a structural motif found in the other DBDs. We show here using 4-thiothymine residues as photoaffinity probe that RPA3 interacts directly with ssDNA on the 3'-side on a 31 nt ssDNA.

Differential expression of the two distinct replication protein A subunits from Cryptosporidium parvum

Apicomplexan parasites differ from their host by possessing at least two distinct types (long and short) of replication protein A large subunits (RPA1). Different roles for the long and short types of RPA1 proteins have been implied in early biochemical studies, but certain details remained to be elucidated. In the present study, we have found that the Cryptosporidium parvum short-type RPA1 (CpRPA1A) was highly expressed at S-phase in parasites during the early stage of merogony (a cell multiplication process unique to this group of parasites), but otherwise present in the cytosol at a much lower level in other cell-cycle stages. This observation indicates that CpRPA1A is probably responsible for the general DNA replication of the parasite. On the other hand, the long-type CpRPA1B protein was present in a much lower level in the early life cycle stages, but elevated at later stages involved in sexual development, indicating that CpRPA1B may play a role in DNA recombination. Additionally, CpRPA1B could be up-regulated by UV exposure, indicating that this long-type RPA1 is probably involved in DNA repair. Collectively, our data implies that the two RPA1 proteins in C. parvum are performing different roles during DNA replication, repair and recombination in this parasite.

Structure of the full-length human RPA14/32 complex gives insights into the mechanism of DNA binding and complex formation

Replication protein A (RPA) is the ubiquitous, eukaryotic single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) binding protein and is essential for DNA replication, recombination, and repair. Here, crystal structures of the soluble RPA heterodimer, composed of the RPA14 and RPA32 subunits, have been determined for the full-length protein in multiple crystal forms. In all crystals, the electron density for the N-terminal (residues 1-42) and C-terminal (residues 175-270) regions of RPA32 is weak and of poor quality indicating that these regions are disordered and/or assume multiple positions in the crystals. Hence, the RPA32 N terminus, that is hyperphosphorylated in a cell-cycle-dependent manner and in response to DNA damaging agents, appears to be inherently disordered in the unphosphorylated state. The C-terminal, winged helix-loop-helix, protein-protein interaction domain adopts several conformations perhaps to facilitate its interaction with various proteins. Although the ordered regions of RPA14/32 resemble the previously solved protease-resistant core crystal structure, the quaternary structures between the heterodimers are quite different. Thus, the four-helix bundle quaternary assembly noted in the original core structure is unlikely to be related to the quaternary structure of the intact heterotrimer. An organic ligand binding site between subunits RPA14 and RPA32 was identified to bind dioxane. Comparison of the ssDNA binding surfaces of RPA70 with RPA14/32 showed that the lower affinity of RPA14/32 can be attributed to a shallower binding crevice with reduced positive electrostatic charge.

Functional characterization of a fatty acyl-CoA-binding protein (ACBP) from the apicomplexan Cryptosporidium parvum

In this paper, the identification and functional analysis of a fatty acyl-CoA-binding protein (ACBP) gene from the opportunistic protist Cryptosporidium parvum are described. The CpACBP1 gene encodes a protein of 268 aa that is three times larger than typical ACBPs (i.e. approximately 90 aa) of humans and animals. Sequence analysis indicated that the CpACBP1 protein consists of an N-terminal ACBP domain (approximately 90 aa) and a C-terminal ankyrin repeat sequence (approximately 170 aa). The entire CpACBP1 ORF was engineered into a maltose-binding protein fusion system and expressed as a recombinant protein for functional analysis. Acyl-CoA-binding assays clearly revealed that the preferred binding substrate for CpACBP1 is palmitoyl-CoA. RT-PCR, Western blotting and immunolabelling analyses clearly showed that the CpACBP1 gene is mainly expressed during the intracellular developmental stages and that the level increases during parasite development. Immunofluorescence microscopy showed that CpACBP1 is associated with the parasitophorous vacuole membrane (PVM), which implies that this protein may be involved in lipid remodelling in the PVM, or in the transport of fatty acids across the membrane.

The protozoan parasite Cryptosporidium parvum possesses two functionally and evolutionarily divergent replication protein A large subunits

Very little is known about protozoan replication protein A (RPA), a heterotrimeric complex critical for DNA replication and repair. We have discovered that in medically and economically important apicomplexan parasites, two unique RPA complexes may exist based on two different types of large subunit RPA1. In this study, we characterized the single-stranded DNA binding features of two distinct types (i.e. short and long) of RPA1 subunits from Cryptosporidium parvum (CpRPA1A and CpRPA1B). These two proteins differ from human RPA1 in their intrinsic single-stranded DNA binding affinity (K) and have significantly lower cooperativity (omega). We also identified the RPA2 and RPA3 subunits from C. parvum, the latter of which had yet to be reported to exist in any protozoan. Using fluorescence resonance energy transfer technology and pull-down assays, we confirmed that these two subunits interact with each other and with CpRPA1A and CpRPA1B. This suggests that the heterotrimeric structure of RPA complexes may be universally conserved from lower to higher eukaryotes. Bioinformatic analyses indicate that multiple types of RPA1 are present in the other apicomplexans Plasmodium and Toxoplasma. Apicomplexan RPA1 proteins are phylogenetically more related to plant homologues and probably arose from a single gene duplication event prior to the expansion of the apicomplexan lineage. Differential expression during the life cycle stages in three apicomplexan parasites suggests that the two RPA1 types exercise specialized biological functions.