1
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He S, Taher NM, Hvorecny KL, Ragusa MJ, Bahl CD, Hickman AB, Dyda F, Madden DR. Molecular basis for the transcriptional regulation of an epoxide-based virulence circuit in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. bioRxiv 2024:2024.01.16.572601. [PMID: 38293063 PMCID: PMC10827105 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.16.572601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa infects cystic fibrosis (CF) patient airways and produces a virulence factor Cif that is associated with worse outcomes. Cif is an epoxide hydrolase that reduces cell-surface abundance of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and sabotages pro-resolving signals. Its expression is regulated by a divergently transcribed TetR family transcriptional repressor. CifR represents the first reported epoxide-sensing bacterial transcriptional regulator, but neither its interaction with cognate operator sequences nor the mechanism of activation has been investigated. Using biochemical and structural approaches, we uncovered the molecular mechanisms controlling this complex virulence operon. We present here the first molecular structures of CifR alone and in complex with operator DNA, resolved in a single crystal lattice. Significant conformational changes between these two structures suggest how CifR regulates the expression of the virulence gene cif. Interactions between the N-terminal extension of CifR with the DNA minor groove of the operator play a significant role in the operator recognition of CifR. We also determined that cysteine residue Cys107 is critical for epoxide sensing and DNA release. These results offer new insights into the stereochemical regulation of an epoxide-based virulence circuit in a critically important clinical pathogen.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susu He
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
| | - Noor M. Taher
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
| | - Kelli L. Hvorecny
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
| | - Michael J. Ragusa
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
- Department of Chemistry, Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
| | - Alison B. Hickman
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, NIDDK, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Fred Dyda
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, NIDDK, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892 USA
| | - Dean R. Madden
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
- Department of Chemistry, Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755 USA
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2
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Colom MS, Vucinic J, Adolf-Bryfogle J, Bowman JW, Verel S, Moczygemba I, Schiex T, Simoncini D, Bahl CD. Complete Combinatorial Mutational Enumeration of a protein functional site enables sequence-landscape mapping and identifies highly-mutated variants that retain activity. Res Sq 2023:rs.3.rs-2248327. [PMID: 36482980 PMCID: PMC9727770 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2248327/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Understanding how proteins evolve under selective pressure is a longstanding challenge. The immensity of the search space has limited efforts to systematically evaluate the impact of multiple simultaneous mutations, so mutations have typically been assessed individually. However, epistasis, or the way in which mutations interact, prevents accurate prediction of combinatorial mutations based on measurements of individual mutations. Here, we use artificial intelligence to define the entire functional sequence landscape of a protein binding site in silico, and we call this approach Complete Combinatorial Mutational Enumeration (CCME). By leveraging CCME, we are able to construct a comprehensive map of the evolutionary connectivity within this functional sequence landscape. As a proof of concept, we applied CCME to the ACE2 binding site of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein receptor binding domain. We selected representative variants from across the functional sequence landscape for testing in the laboratory. We identified variants that retained functionality to bind ACE2 despite changing over 40% of evaluated residue positions, and the variants now escape binding and neutralization by monoclonal antibodies. This work represents a crucial initial stride towards achieving precise predictions of pathogen evolution, opening avenues for proactive mitigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mireia Solà Colom
- Institute for Protein Innovation; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
| | - Jelena Vucinic
- Université Fédérale de Toulouse; ANITI, IRIT-CNRS UMR 5505, Université Toulouse Capitole, 31000 Toulouse, France
| | - Jared Adolf-Bryfogle
- Institute for Protein Innovation; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
| | - James W. Bowman
- Institute for Protein Innovation; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
| | - Sébastien Verel
- Université Littoral Côte d’Opale; UR 4491, LISIC, F-62100 Calais, France
| | - Isabelle Moczygemba
- Institute for Protein Innovation; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
| | - Thomas Schiex
- Université Fédérale de Toulouse; ANITI, INRAE-UR 875, 31000 Toulouse, France
| | - David Simoncini
- Université Fédérale de Toulouse; ANITI, IRIT-CNRS UMR 5505, Université Toulouse Capitole, 31000 Toulouse, France
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, Massachusetts, 02115, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, Massachusetts, 02215, USA
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3
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Fram B, Truebridge I, Su Y, Riesselman AJ, Ingraham JB, Passera A, Napier E, Thadani NN, Lim S, Roberts K, Kaur G, Stiffler M, Marks DS, Bahl CD, Khan AR, Sander C, Gauthier NP. Simultaneous enhancement of multiple functional properties using evolution-informed protein design. bioRxiv 2023:2023.05.09.539914. [PMID: 37214973 PMCID: PMC10197589 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.09.539914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Designing optimized proteins is important for a range of practical applications. Protein design is a rapidly developing field that would benefit from approaches that enable many changes in the amino acid primary sequence, rather than a small number of mutations, while maintaining structure and enhancing function. Homologous protein sequences contain extensive information about various protein properties and activities that have emerged over billions of years of evolution. Evolutionary models of sequence co-variation, derived from a set of homologous sequences, have proven effective in a range of applications including structure determination and mutation effect prediction. In this work we apply one of these models (EVcouplings) to computationally design highly divergent variants of the model protein TEM-1 β-lactamase, and characterize these designs experimentally using multiple biochemical and biophysical assays. Nearly all designed variants were functional, including one with 84 mutations from the nearest natural homolog. Surprisingly, all functional designs had large increases in thermostability and most had a broadening of available substrates. These property enhancements occurred while maintaining a nearly identical structure to the wild type enzyme. Collectively, this work demonstrates that evolutionary models of sequence co-variation (1) are able to capture complex epistatic interactions that successfully guide large sequence departures from natural contexts, and (2) can be applied to generate functional diversity useful for many applications in protein design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Fram
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ian Truebridge
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, MA, USA
| | - Yang Su
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Adam J. Riesselman
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Program in Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - John B. Ingraham
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alessandro Passera
- Department of Data Sciences, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- current address: Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna BioCenter (VBC), Campus-Vienna-Biocenter 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Eve Napier
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Nicole N. Thadani
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Samuel Lim
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kristen Roberts
- Selux Diagnostics, Inc., 56 Roland Street, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Gurleen Kaur
- Selux Diagnostics, Inc., 56 Roland Street, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Michael Stiffler
- Department of Data Sciences, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Debora S. Marks
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School; Boston, MA, USA
- current address: AI Proteins; Boston, MA, USA
| | - Amir R. Khan
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Chris Sander
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Nicholas P. Gauthier
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Data Sciences, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
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4
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Uzunҫayır S, Vera‐Rodriguez A, Regenthal P, Åbacka H, Emanuelsson C, Bahl CD, Lindkvist‐Petersson K. Analyses of the complex formation of staphylococcal enterotoxin A and the human gp130 cytokine receptor. FEBS Lett 2022; 596:910-923. [DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.14292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sibel Uzunҫayır
- Department of Experimental Medical Science Lund University BMC C13 22 184 Lund Sweden
| | - Arturo Vera‐Rodriguez
- Institute for Protein Innovation Boston USA
- Division of Hematology‐Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston USA
| | - Paulina Regenthal
- Department of Experimental Medical Science Lund University BMC C13 22 184 Lund Sweden
| | - Hannah Åbacka
- Department of Experimental Medical Science Lund University BMC C13 22 184 Lund Sweden
| | - Cecilia Emanuelsson
- Department of Chemistry Division for Biochemistry and Structural Biology Lund University Lund Sweden
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation Boston USA
- Division of Hematology‐Oncology, Boston Children’s Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston USA
| | - Karin Lindkvist‐Petersson
- Department of Experimental Medical Science Lund University BMC C13 22 184 Lund Sweden
- LINXS ‐ Lund Institute of Advanced Neutron and X‐ray Science Scheelevägen 19 SE‐223 70 Lund Sweden
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5
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Koehler Leman J, Lyskov S, Lewis SM, Adolf-Bryfogle J, Alford RF, Barlow K, Ben-Aharon Z, Farrell D, Fell J, Hansen WA, Harmalkar A, Jeliazkov J, Kuenze G, Krys JD, Ljubetič A, Loshbaugh AL, Maguire J, Moretti R, Mulligan VK, Nance ML, Nguyen PT, Ó Conchúir S, Roy Burman SS, Samanta R, Smith ST, Teets F, Tiemann JKS, Watkins A, Woods H, Yachnin BJ, Bahl CD, Bailey-Kellogg C, Baker D, Das R, DiMaio F, Khare SD, Kortemme T, Labonte JW, Lindorff-Larsen K, Meiler J, Schief W, Schueler-Furman O, Siegel JB, Stein A, Yarov-Yarovoy V, Kuhlman B, Leaver-Fay A, Gront D, Gray JJ, Bonneau R. Ensuring scientific reproducibility in bio-macromolecular modeling via extensive, automated benchmarks. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6947. [PMID: 34845212 PMCID: PMC8630030 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27222-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Each year vast international resources are wasted on irreproducible research. The scientific community has been slow to adopt standard software engineering practices, despite the increases in high-dimensional data, complexities of workflows, and computational environments. Here we show how scientific software applications can be created in a reproducible manner when simple design goals for reproducibility are met. We describe the implementation of a test server framework and 40 scientific benchmarks, covering numerous applications in Rosetta bio-macromolecular modeling. High performance computing cluster integration allows these benchmarks to run continuously and automatically. Detailed protocol captures are useful for developers and users of Rosetta and other macromolecular modeling tools. The framework and design concepts presented here are valuable for developers and users of any type of scientific software and for the scientific community to create reproducible methods. Specific examples highlight the utility of this framework, and the comprehensive documentation illustrates the ease of adding new tests in a matter of hours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Koehler Leman
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, Simons Foundation, New York, NY, 10010, USA.
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
| | - Sergey Lyskov
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Steven M Lewis
- Cyrus Biotechnology, 1201 Second Ave, Suite 900, Seattle, WA, 98101, USA
| | - Jared Adolf-Bryfogle
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Rebecca F Alford
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Kyle Barlow
- Graduate Program in Bioinformatics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Ziv Ben-Aharon
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Hebrew University, Hadassah Medical School, POB 12272, Jerusalem, 91120, Israel
| | - Daniel Farrell
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Jason Fell
- Genome Center, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - William A Hansen
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
- Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
| | - Ameya Harmalkar
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Jeliazko Jeliazkov
- Program in Molecular Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Georg Kuenze
- Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Institute for Drug Discovery, Medical School, Leipzig University, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Justyna D Krys
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biological and Chemical Research Center, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Ajasja Ljubetič
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Amanda L Loshbaugh
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
- Biophysics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Jack Maguire
- Program in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Rocco Moretti
- Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
| | - Vikram Khipple Mulligan
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, Simons Foundation, New York, NY, 10010, USA
| | - Morgan L Nance
- Program in Molecular Biophysics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Phuong T Nguyen
- Department of Physiology and Membrane Biology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Shane Ó Conchúir
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Shourya S Roy Burman
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Rituparna Samanta
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Shannon T Smith
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Chemical and Physical Biology Program, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
| | - Frank Teets
- Department of Bioochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27516, USA
| | - Johanna K S Tiemann
- Linderstrøm-Lang Centre for Protein Science, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200, Copenhagen N., Denmark
| | - Andrew Watkins
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Hope Woods
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Chemical and Physical Biology Program, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
| | - Brahm J Yachnin
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
- Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | | | - David Baker
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Rhiju Das
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Frank DiMaio
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
| | - Sagar D Khare
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
- Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, 08904, USA
| | - Tanja Kortemme
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
- Biophysics Graduate Program, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Jason W Labonte
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA
| | - Kresten Lindorff-Larsen
- Linderstrøm-Lang Centre for Protein Science, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200, Copenhagen N., Denmark
| | - Jens Meiler
- Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Center for Structural Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 37235, USA
- Institute for Drug Discovery, Medical School, Leipzig University, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - William Schief
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Ora Schueler-Furman
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Hebrew University, Hadassah Medical School, POB 12272, Jerusalem, 91120, Israel
| | - Justin B Siegel
- Genome Center, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Amelie Stein
- Linderstrøm-Lang Centre for Protein Science, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200, Copenhagen N., Denmark
| | - Vladimir Yarov-Yarovoy
- Department of Physiology and Membrane Biology, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Brian Kuhlman
- Department of Bioochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27516, USA
| | - Andrew Leaver-Fay
- Department of Bioochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27516, USA
| | - Dominik Gront
- Faculty of Chemistry, Biological and Chemical Research Center, University of Warsaw, Pasteura 1, 02-093, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Jeffrey J Gray
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA.
| | - Richard Bonneau
- Center for Computational Biology, Flatiron Institute, Simons Foundation, New York, NY, 10010, USA.
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
- Department of Computer Science, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
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6
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Meinen BA, Bahl CD. Breakthroughs in computational design methods open up new frontiers for de novo protein engineering. Protein Eng Des Sel 2021; 34:6243354. [DOI: 10.1093/protein/gzab007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Proteins catalyze the majority of chemical reactions in organisms, and harnessing this power has long been the focus of the protein engineering field. Computational protein design aims to create new proteins and functions in silico, and in doing so, accelerate the process, reduce costs and enable more sophisticated engineering goals to be accomplished. Challenges that very recently seemed impossible are now within reach thanks to several landmark advances in computational protein design methods. Here, we summarize these new methods, with a particular emphasis on de novo protein design advancements occurring within the past 5 years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben A Meinen
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Harvard Institutes of Medicine 4 Blackfan Circle, Room 941 Boston, MA 02115-5701 Boston, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Harvard Institutes of Medicine 4 Blackfan Circle, Room 941 Boston, MA 02115-5701 Boston, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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7
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Taher NM, Hvorecny KL, Burke CM, Gilman MS, Heussler GE, Adolf-Bryfogle J, Bahl CD, O'Toole GA, Madden DR. Biochemical and structural characterization of two cif-like epoxide hydrolases from Burkholderia cenocepacia. Curr Res Struct Biol 2021; 3:72-84. [PMID: 34235487 PMCID: PMC8244358 DOI: 10.1016/j.crstbi.2021.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 02/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Epoxide hydrolases catalyze the conversion of epoxides to vicinal diols in a range of cellular processes such as signaling, detoxification, and virulence. These enzymes typically utilize a pair of tyrosine residues to orient the substrate epoxide ring in the active site and stabilize the hydrolysis intermediate. A new subclass of epoxide hydrolases that utilize a histidine in place of one of the tyrosines was established with the discovery of the CFTR Inhibitory Factor (Cif) from Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Although the presence of such Cif-like epoxide hydrolases was predicted in other opportunistic pathogens based on sequence analyses, only Cif and its homolog aCif from Acinetobacter nosocomialis have been characterized. Here we report the biochemical and structural characteristics of Cfl1 and Cfl2, two Cif-like epoxide hydrolases from Burkholderia cenocepacia. Cfl1 is able to hydrolyze xenobiotic as well as biological epoxides that might be encountered in the environment or during infection. In contrast, Cfl2 shows very low activity against a diverse set of epoxides. The crystal structures of the two proteins reveal quaternary structures that build on the well-known dimeric assembly of the α/β hydrolase domain, but broaden our understanding of the structural diversity encoded in novel oligomer interfaces. Analysis of the interfaces reveals both similarities and key differences in sequence conservation between the two assemblies, and between the canonical dimer and the novel oligomer interfaces of each assembly. Finally, we discuss the effects of these higher-order assemblies on the intra-monomer flexibility of Cfl1 and Cfl2 and their possible roles in regulating enzymatic activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noor M. Taher
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Kelli L. Hvorecny
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Cassandra M. Burke
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Morgan S.A. Gilman
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Gary E. Heussler
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Jared Adolf-Bryfogle
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA, USA
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - George A. O'Toole
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Dean R. Madden
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
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8
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Taher NM, Hvorecny KL, Burke CM, Gilman MS, Heussler GE, Adolf-Bryfogle J, Bahl CD, O’Toole GA, Madden DR. Biochemical and Structural Characterization of Two Cif-Like Epoxide Hydrolases from Burkholderia Cenocepacia. Biophys J 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2020.11.938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
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9
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Adolf-Bryfogle J, Teets FD, Bahl CD. Toward complete rational control over protein structure and function through computational design. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2020; 66:170-177. [PMID: 33276237 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2020.10.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Revised: 10/08/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The grand challenge of protein design is a general method for producing a polypeptide with arbitrary functionality, conformation, and biochemical properties. To that end, a wide variety of methods have been developed for the improvement of native proteins, the design of ideal proteins de novo, and the redesign of suboptimal proteins with better-performing substructures. These methods employ informatic comparisons of function-structure-sequence relationships as well as knowledge-based evaluation of protein properties to narrow the immense protein sequence search space down to an enumerable and often manually evaluable set of structures that meet specified criteria. While arbitrary manipulation of protein-protein interfaces and molecular catalysis remains an unsolved problem, and no protein shape or behavior manipulation algorithm is universally applicable, the promising results thus far are a strong indicator that a general approach to the arbitrary manipulation of polypeptides is within reach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jared Adolf-Bryfogle
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Frank D Teets
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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10
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Gao M, Mackley IGP, Mesbahi-Vasey S, Bamonte HA, Struyvenberg SA, Landolt L, Pederson NJ, Williams LI, Bahl CD, Brooks L, Amacher JF. Structural characterization and computational analysis of PDZ domains in Monosiga brevicollis. Protein Sci 2020; 29:2226-2244. [PMID: 32914530 DOI: 10.1002/pro.3947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Identification of the molecular networks that facilitated the evolution of multicellular animals from their unicellular ancestors is a fundamental problem in evolutionary cellular biology. Choanoflagellates are recognized as the closest extant nonmetazoan ancestors to animals. These unicellular eukaryotes can adopt a multicellular-like "rosette" state. Therefore, they are compelling models for the study of early multicellularity. Comparative studies revealed that a number of putative human orthologs are present in choanoflagellate genomes, suggesting that a subset of these genes were necessary for the emergence of multicellularity. However, previous work is largely based on sequence alignments alone, which does not confirm structural nor functional similarity. Here, we focus on the PDZ domain, a peptide-binding domain which plays critical roles in myriad cellular signaling networks and which underwent a gene family expansion in metazoan lineages. Using a customized sequence similarity search algorithm, we identified 178 PDZ domains in the Monosiga brevicollis proteome. This includes 11 previously unidentified sequences, which we analyzed using Rosetta and homology modeling. To assess conservation of protein structure, we solved high-resolution crystal structures of representative M. brevicollis PDZ domains that are homologous to human Dlg1 PDZ2, Dlg1 PDZ3, GIPC, and SHANK1 PDZ domains. To assess functional conservation, we calculated binding affinities for mbGIPC, mbSHANK1, mbSNX27, and mbDLG-3 PDZ domains from M. brevicollis. Overall, we find that peptide selectivity is generally conserved between these two disparate organisms, with one possible exception, mbDLG-3. Overall, our results provide novel insight into signaling pathways in a choanoflagellate model of primitive multicellularity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melody Gao
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Iain G P Mackley
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Samaneh Mesbahi-Vasey
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Haley A Bamonte
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Sarah A Struyvenberg
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Louisa Landolt
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Nick J Pederson
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Lucy I Williams
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Lionel Brooks
- Department of Biology, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
| | - Jeanine F Amacher
- Department of Chemistry, Western Washington University, Bellingham, Washington, USA
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11
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Ford AS, Weitzner BD, Bahl CD. Integration of the Rosetta suite with the python software stack via reproducible packaging and core programming interfaces for distributed simulation. Protein Sci 2019; 29:43-51. [PMID: 31495995 DOI: 10.1002/pro.3721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2019] [Revised: 08/30/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
The Rosetta software suite for macromolecular modeling is a powerful computational toolbox for protein design, structure prediction, and protein structure analysis. The development of novel Rosetta-based scientific tools requires two orthogonal skill sets: deep domain-specific expertise in protein biochemistry and technical expertise in development, deployment, and analysis of molecular simulations. Furthermore, the computational demands of molecular simulation necessitate large scale cluster-based or distributed solutions for nearly all scientifically relevant tasks. To reduce the technical barriers to entry for new development, we integrated Rosetta with modern, widely adopted computational infrastructure. This allows simplified deployment in large-scale cluster and cloud computing environments, and effective reuse of common libraries for simulation execution and data analysis. To achieve this, we integrated Rosetta with the Conda package manager; this simplifies installation into existing computational environments and packaging as docker images for cloud deployment. Then, we developed programming interfaces to integrate Rosetta with the PyData stack for analysis and distributed computing, including the popular tools Jupyter, Pandas, and Dask. We demonstrate the utility of these components by generating a library of a thousand de novo disulfide-rich miniproteins in a hybrid simulation that included cluster-based design and interactive notebook-based analyses. Our new tools enable users, who would otherwise not have access to the necessary computational infrastructure, to perform state-of-the-art molecular simulation and design with Rosetta.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander S Ford
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Brian D Weitzner
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.,Lyell Immunopharma, Inc., Seattle, Washington
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts.,Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
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12
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Buchko GW, Pulavarti SVSRK, Ovchinnikov V, Shaw EA, Rettie SA, Myler PJ, Karplus M, Szyperski T, Baker D, Bahl CD. Cytosolic expression, solution structures, and molecular dynamics simulation of genetically encodable disulfide-rich de novo designed peptides. Protein Sci 2019; 27:1611-1623. [PMID: 30152054 DOI: 10.1002/pro.3453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2018] [Revised: 06/01/2018] [Accepted: 06/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Disulfide-rich peptides represent an important protein family with broad pharmacological potential. Recent advances in computational methods have made it possible to design new peptides which adopt a stable conformation de novo. Here, we describe a system to produce disulfide-rich de novo peptides using Escherichia coli as the expression host. The advantage of this system is that it enables production of uniformly 13 C- and 15 N-labeled peptides for solution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies. This expression system was used to isotopically label two previously reported de novo designed peptides, and to determine their solution structures using NMR. The ensemble of NMR structures calculated for both peptides agreed well with the design models, further confirming the accuracy of the design protocol. Collection of NMR data on the peptides under reducing conditions revealed a dependency on disulfide bonds to maintain stability. Furthermore, we performed long-time molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with tempering to assess the stability of two families of de novo designed peptides. Initial designs which exhibited a stable structure during simulations were more likely to adopt a stable structure in vitro, but attempts to utilize this method to redesign unstable peptides to fold into a stable state were unsuccessful. Further work is therefore needed to assess the utility of MD simulation techniques for de novo protein design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Garry W Buchko
- Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Diseases, Seattle, Washington.,Earth and Biological Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington, 99352.,School of Molecular Biosciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, 99164
| | | | - Victor Ovchinnikov
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
| | - Elizabeth A Shaw
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, 14260
| | - Stephen A Rettie
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195
| | - Peter J Myler
- Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Diseases, Seattle, Washington.,Center for Infectious Disease Research, Seattle, Washington, 98109.,Department of Global Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98165.,Department of Biomedical Informatics and Health Education, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195
| | - Martin Karplus
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts.,Laboratoire de Chimie Biophysique, ISIS, Universite de Strasbourg, 67000, Strasbourg, France
| | - Thomas Szyperski
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, 14260
| | - David Baker
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195.,Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, 98195.,Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115
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13
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Lau YTK, Baytshtok V, Howard TA, Fiala BM, Johnson JM, Carter LP, Baker D, Lima CD, Bahl CD. Discovery and engineering of enhanced SUMO protease enzymes. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:13224-13233. [PMID: 29976752 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.004146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2018] [Revised: 06/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) is commonly used as a protein fusion domain to facilitate expression and purification of recombinant proteins, and a SUMO-specific protease is then used to remove SUMO from these proteins. Although this protease is highly specific, its limited solubility and stability hamper its utility as an in vitro reagent. Here, we report improved SUMO protease enzymes obtained via two approaches. First, we developed a computational method and used it to re-engineer WT Ulp1 from Saccharomyces cerevisiae to improve protein solubility. Second, we discovered an improved SUMO protease via genomic mining of the thermophilic fungus Chaetomium thermophilum, as proteins from thermophilic organisms are commonly employed as reagent enzymes. Following expression in Escherichia coli, we found that these re-engineered enzymes can be more thermostable and up to 12 times more soluble, all while retaining WT-or-better levels of SUMO protease activity. The computational method we developed to design solubility-enhancing substitutions is based on the RosettaScripts application for the macromolecular modeling suite Rosetta, and it is broadly applicable for the improvement of solution properties of other proteins. Moreover, we determined the X-ray crystal structure of a SUMO protease from C. thermophilum to 1.44 Å resolution. This structure revealed that this enzyme exhibits structural and functional conservation with the S. cerevisiae SUMO protease, despite exhibiting only 28% sequence identity. In summary, by re-engineering the Ulp1 protease and discovering a SUMO protease from C. thermophilum, we have obtained proteases that are more soluble, more thermostable, and more efficient than the current commercially available Ulp1 enzyme.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - David Baker
- From the Institute for Protein Design.,Department of Biochemistry, and.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Christopher D Lima
- the Structural Biology Program and.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Sloan Kettering Institute, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York 10065, and
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- From the Institute for Protein Design, .,Department of Biochemistry, and.,the Institute for Protein Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
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14
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Correnti CE, Gewe MM, Mehlin C, Bandaranayake AD, Johnsen WA, Rupert PB, Brusniak MY, Clarke M, Burke SE, De Van Der Schueren W, Pilat K, Turnbaugh SM, May D, Watson A, Chan MK, Bahl CD, Olson JM, Strong RK. Screening, large-scale production and structure-based classification of cystine-dense peptides. Nat Struct Mol Biol 2018; 25:270-278. [PMID: 29483648 PMCID: PMC5840021 DOI: 10.1038/s41594-018-0033-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2017] [Accepted: 01/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
Peptides folded through interwoven disulfides display extreme biochemical properties and unique medicinal potential. However, their exploitation has been hampered by the limited amounts isolatable from natural sources and the expense of chemical synthesis. We developed reliable biological methods for high-throughput expression, screening and large-scale production of these peptides: 46 were successfully produced in multimilligram quantities, and >600 more were deemed expressible through stringent screening criteria. Many showed extreme resistance to temperature, proteolysis and/or reduction, and all displayed inhibitory activity against at least 1 of 20 ion channels tested, thus confirming their biological functionality. Crystal structures of 12 confirmed proper cystine topology and the utility of crystallography to study these molecules but also highlighted the need for rational classification. Previous categorization attempts have focused on limited subsets featuring distinct motifs. Here we present a global definition, classification and analysis of >700 structures of cystine-dense peptides, providing a unifying framework for these molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin E Correnti
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Mesfin M Gewe
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Christopher Mehlin
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ashok D Bandaranayake
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - William A Johnsen
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Peter B Rupert
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Mi-Youn Brusniak
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Midori Clarke
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Skyler E Burke
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - Kristina Pilat
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Shanon M Turnbaugh
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Damon May
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Alex Watson
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Man Kid Chan
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - James M Olson
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Roland K Strong
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA.
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15
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Hvorecny KL, Dolben E, Moreau-Marquis S, Hampton TH, Shabaneh TB, Flitter BA, Bahl CD, Bomberger JM, Levy BD, Stanton BA, Hogan DA, Madden DR. An epoxide hydrolase secreted by Pseudomonas aeruginosa decreases mucociliary transport and hinders bacterial clearance from the lung. Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol 2017; 314:L150-L156. [PMID: 28982736 DOI: 10.1152/ajplung.00383.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonizes the lungs of susceptible individuals by deploying virulence factors targeting host defenses. The secreted factor Cif (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator inhibitory factor) dysregulates the endocytic recycling of CFTR and thus reduces CFTR abundance in host epithelial membranes. We have postulated that the decrease in ion secretion mediated by Cif would slow mucociliary transport and decrease bacterial clearance from the lungs. To test this hypothesis, we explored the effects of Cif in cultured epithelia and in the lungs of mice. We developed a strategy to interpret the "hurricane-like" motions observed in reconstituted cultures and identified a Cif-mediated decrease in the velocity of mucus transport in vitro. Presence of Cif also increased the number of bacteria recovered at two time points in an acute mouse model of pneumonia caused by P. aeruginosa. Furthermore, recent work has demonstrated an inverse correlation between the airway concentrations of Cif and 15-epi-lipoxin A4, a proresolving lipid mediator important in host defense and the resolution of pathogen-initiated inflammation. Here, we observe elevated levels of 15-epi-lipoxin A4 in the lungs of mice infected with a strain of P. aeruginosa that expresses only an inactive form of cif compared with those mice infected with wild-type P. aeruginosa. Together these data support the inclusion of Cif on the list of virulence factors that assist P. aeruginosa in colonizing and damaging the airways of compromised patients. Furthermore, this study establishes techniques that enable our groups to explore the underlying mechanisms of Cif effects during respiratory infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelli L Hvorecny
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Emily Dolben
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Sophie Moreau-Marquis
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Thomas H Hampton
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Tamer B Shabaneh
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Becca A Flitter
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Jennifer M Bomberger
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Bruce D Levy
- Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Bruce A Stanton
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Deborah A Hogan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Dean R Madden
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth , Hanover, New Hampshire
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16
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Chevalier A, Silva DA, Rocklin GJ, Hicks DR, Vergara R, Murapa P, Bernard SM, Zhang L, Lam KH, Yao G, Bahl CD, Miyashita SI, Goreshnik I, Fuller JT, Koday MT, Jenkins CM, Colvin T, Carter L, Bohn A, Bryan CM, Fernández-Velasco DA, Stewart L, Dong M, Huang X, Jin R, Wilson IA, Fuller DH, Baker D. Massively parallel de novo protein design for targeted therapeutics. Nature 2017; 550:74-79. [PMID: 28953867 DOI: 10.1038/nature23912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 268] [Impact Index Per Article: 38.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2017] [Accepted: 08/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
De novo protein design holds promise for creating small stable proteins with shapes customized to bind therapeutic targets. We describe a massively parallel approach for designing, manufacturing and screening mini-protein binders, integrating large-scale computational design, oligonucleotide synthesis, yeast display screening and next-generation sequencing. We designed and tested 22,660 mini-proteins of 37-43 residues that target influenza haemagglutinin and botulinum neurotoxin B, along with 6,286 control sequences to probe contributions to folding and binding, and identified 2,618 high-affinity binders. Comparison of the binding and non-binding design sets, which are two orders of magnitude larger than any previously investigated, enabled the evaluation and improvement of the computational model. Biophysical characterization of a subset of the binder designs showed that they are extremely stable and, unlike antibodies, do not lose activity after exposure to high temperatures. The designs elicit little or no immune response and provide potent prophylactic and therapeutic protection against influenza, even after extensive repeated dosing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron Chevalier
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Daniel-Adriano Silva
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Gabriel J Rocklin
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Derrick R Hicks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Renan Vergara
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Ciudad Universitaria, México City 04510, Mexico
| | - Patience Murapa
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Steffen M Bernard
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.,The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA
| | - Lu Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Structural Chemistry, Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Fuzhou, Fujian 350002, China.,Department of Chemistry and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
| | - Kwok-Ho Lam
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA
| | - Guorui Yao
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Shin-Ichiro Miyashita
- Department of Urology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.,Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology and Department of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Inna Goreshnik
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - James T Fuller
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Merika T Koday
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA.,Virvio Inc., Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Cody M Jenkins
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Tom Colvin
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Lauren Carter
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Alan Bohn
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Cassie M Bryan
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - D Alejandro Fernández-Velasco
- Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Ciudad Universitaria, México City 04510, Mexico
| | - Lance Stewart
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Min Dong
- Department of Urology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.,Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology and Department of Surgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
| | - Xuhui Huang
- Department of Chemistry and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong, China
| | - Rongsheng Jin
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA
| | - Ian A Wilson
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.,The Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, USA
| | - Deborah H Fuller
- Department of Microbiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - David Baker
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA.,Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
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17
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Hvorecny KL, Bahl CD, Kitamura S, Lee KSS, Hammock BD, Morisseau C, Madden DR. Active-Site Flexibility and Substrate Specificity in a Bacterial Virulence Factor: Crystallographic Snapshots of an Epoxide Hydrolase. Structure 2017; 25:697-707.e4. [PMID: 28392259 DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2017.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2016] [Revised: 02/20/2017] [Accepted: 03/09/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Pseudomonas aeruginosa secretes an epoxide hydrolase with catalytic activity that triggers degradation of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) and perturbs other host defense networks. Targets of this CFTR inhibitory factor (Cif) are largely unknown, but include an epoxy-fatty acid. In this class of signaling molecules, chirality can be an important determinant of physiological output and potency. Here we explore the active-site chemistry of this two-step α/β-hydrolase and its implications for an emerging class of virulence enzymes. In combination with hydrolysis data, crystal structures of 15 trapped hydroxyalkyl-enzyme intermediates reveal the stereochemical basis of Cif's substrate specificity, as well as its regioisomeric and enantiomeric preferences. The structures also reveal distinct sets of conformational changes that enable the active site to expand dramatically in two directions, accommodating a surprising array of potential physiological epoxide targets. These new substrates may contribute to Cif's diverse effects in vivo, and thus to the success of P. aeruginosa and other pathogens during infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelli L Hvorecny
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Seiya Kitamura
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Kin Sing Stephen Lee
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Bruce D Hammock
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Dean R Madden
- Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
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Bahl CD, St. Laurent JD, Karthikeyan RSG, Priya JL, Prajna L, Zegans ME, Madden DR. The cif Virulence Factor Gene Is Present in Isolates From Patients With Pseudomonas aeruginosa Keratitis. Cornea 2017; 36:358-362. [PMID: 28079684 PMCID: PMC5290206 DOI: 10.1097/ico.0000000000001132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE To determine whether the cif gene is present in pathogenic Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from patients with bacterial keratitis at Aravind Eye Hospital, a referral eye care center in southern India, and from corresponding environmental isolates. METHODS Polymerase chain reaction amplification was performed on strains of P. aeruginosa isolated from ocular infections and environmental soil samples were collected from the area surrounding Aravind Eye Hospital. DNA sequencing of 16S ribosomal DNA amplicons was performed to verify strain identity. RESULTS We determined that 45 of 48 patient isolates carry a genomic copy of cif. Analysis of a catalog of environmental strains previously isolated from the surrounding area revealed that only 4 of 10 P. aeruginosa strains and 1 of 14 strains of related species carry the cif gene. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study to show that P. aeruginosa strains with ocular pathogenicity carry the cif gene and that the presence of this gene may be enriched over its prevalence in the environment. Taken together, these results suggest a potential role for Cif in acute bacterial keratitis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D. Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Geisel School of
Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Jessica D. St. Laurent
- Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Geisel School of
Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - R. Siva Ganesa Karthikeyan
- Department of Ocular Microbiology, Dr G. Venkatasamy Eye Research
Institute, Aravind Medical Research Foundation, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - J. Lakshmi Priya
- Department of Ocular Microbiology, Dr G. Venkatasamy Eye Research
Institute, Aravind Medical Research Foundation, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Lalitha Prajna
- Department of Ocular Microbiology, Dr G. Venkatasamy Eye Research
Institute, Aravind Medical Research Foundation, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Michael E. Zegans
- Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology), Geisel School of Medicine at
Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Geisel School of
Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Dean R. Madden
- Department of Biochemistry & Cell Biology, Geisel School of
Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH, USA
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Bhardwaj G, Mulligan VK, Bahl CD, Gilmore JM, Harvey PJ, Cheneval O, Buchko GW, Pulavarti SV, Kaas Q, Eletsky A, Huang PS, Johnsen WA, Greisen P, Rocklin GJ, Song Y, Linsky TW, Watkins A, Rettie SA, Xu X, Carter LP, Bonneau R, Olson JM, Coutsias E, Correnti CE, Szyperski T, Craik DJ, Baker D. Accurate de novo design of hyperstable constrained peptides. Nature 2016; 538:329-335. [PMID: 27626386 PMCID: PMC5161715 DOI: 10.1038/nature19791] [Citation(s) in RCA: 260] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2016] [Accepted: 08/18/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Naturally occurring, pharmacologically active peptides constrained with covalent crosslinks generally have shapes that have evolved to fit precisely into binding pockets on their targets. Such peptides can have excellent pharmaceutical properties, combining the stability and tissue penetration of small-molecule drugs with the specificity of much larger protein therapeutics. The ability to design constrained peptides with precisely specified tertiary structures would enable the design of shape-complementary inhibitors of arbitrary targets. Here we describe the development of computational methods for accurate de novo design of conformationally restricted peptides, and the use of these methods to design 18-47 residue, disulfide-crosslinked peptides, a subset of which are heterochiral and/or N-C backbone-cyclized. Both genetically encodable and non-canonical peptides are exceptionally stable to thermal and chemical denaturation, and 12 experimentally determined X-ray and NMR structures are nearly identical to the computational design models. The computational design methods and stable scaffolds presented here provide the basis for development of a new generation of peptide-based drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaurav Bhardwaj
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Vikram Khipple Mulligan
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Christopher D. Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Jason M. Gilmore
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Peta J. Harvey
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Olivier Cheneval
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Garry W. Buchko
- Seattle Structural Genomics Center for Infectious Diseases, Earth, and Biological Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington 99352, USA
| | | | - Quentin Kaas
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Alexander Eletsky
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, USA
| | - Po-Ssu Huang
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - William A. Johnsen
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Per Greisen
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Global Research, Novo Nordisk A/S, DK-2760 Måløv, Denmark
| | - Gabriel J. Rocklin
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Yifan Song
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Cyrus Biotechnology, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Thomas W. Linsky
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Andrew Watkins
- Department of Chemistry, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Stephen A. Rettie
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Xianzhong Xu
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, USA
| | - Lauren P. Carter
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Richard Bonneau
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
- Center for Computational Biology, Simons Foundation, NY, NY 10010
| | - James M. Olson
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Evangelos Coutsias
- Applied Mathematics and Statistics and Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794, USA
| | - Colin E. Correnti
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington 98109, USA
| | - Thomas Szyperski
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 14260, USA
| | - David J. Craik
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland QLD 4072, Australia
| | - David Baker
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
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20
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Bahl CD, Hvorecny KL, Morisseau C, Gerber SA, Madden DR. Visualizing the Mechanism of Epoxide Hydrolysis by the Bacterial Virulence Enzyme Cif. Biochemistry 2016; 55:788-97. [PMID: 26752215 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.5b01229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The CFTR inhibitory factor (Cif) is an epoxide hydrolase (EH) virulence factor secreted by the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Sequence alignments reveal a pattern of Cif-like substitutions that proved to be characteristic of a new subfamily of bacterial EHs. At the same time, crystallographic and mutagenetic data suggest that EH activity is required for virulence and that Cif's active site remains generally compatible with a canonical two-step EH mechanism. A hallmark of this mechanism is the formation of a covalent hydroxyalkyl-enzyme intermediate by nucleophilic attack. In several well-studied EHs, this intermediate has been captured at near stoichiometric levels, presumably reflecting rate-limiting hydrolysis. Here we show by mass spectrometry that only minimal levels of the expected intermediate can be trapped with WT Cif. In contrast, substantial amounts of intermediate are recovered from an active-site mutant (Cif-E153Q) that selectively targets the second, hydrolytic release step. Utilizing Cif-E153Q and a previously reported nucleophile mutant (Cif-D129S), we then captured Cif in the substrate-bound, hydroxyalkyl-intermediate, and product-bound states for 1,2-epoxyhexane, yielding the first crystallographic snapshots of an EH at these key stages along the reaction coordinate. Taken together, our data illuminate the proposed two-step hydrolytic mechanism of a new class of bacterial virulence factor. They also suggest that the failure of WT Cif to accumulate a covalent hydroxyalkyl-enzyme intermediate reflects an active-site chemistry in which hydrolysis is no longer the rate-limiting step, a noncanonical kinetic regime that may explain similar observations with a number of other EHs.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UCD Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis , One Shields Ave., Davis, California 95616, United States
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21
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Bahl CD, Hvorecny KL, Bomberger JM, Stanton BA, Hammock BD, Morisseau C, Madden DR. Inhibiting an Epoxide Hydrolase Virulence Factor from Pseudomonas aeruginosaProtects CFTR. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2015. [DOI: 10.1002/ange.201503983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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22
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Bahl CD, Hvorecny KL, Bomberger JM, Stanton BA, Hammock BD, Morisseau C, Madden DR. Inhibiting an Epoxide Hydrolase Virulence Factor from Pseudomonas aeruginosa Protects CFTR. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2015; 54:9881-5. [PMID: 26136396 DOI: 10.1002/anie.201503983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2015] [Revised: 05/29/2015] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Opportunistic pathogens exploit diverse strategies to sabotage host defenses. Pseudomonas aeruginosa secretes the CFTR inhibitory factor Cif and thus triggers loss of CFTR, an ion channel required for airway mucociliary defense. However, the mechanism of action of Cif has remained unclear. It catalyzes epoxide hydrolysis, but there is no known role for natural epoxides in CFTR regulation. It was demonstrated that the hydrolase activity of Cif is strictly required for its effects on CFTR. A small-molecule inhibitor that protects this key component of the mucociliary defense system was also uncovered. These results provide a basis for targeting the distinctive virulence chemistry of Cif and suggest an unanticipated role of physiological epoxides in intracellular protein trafficking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7200 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755 (USA) http://www.dartmouth.edu/∼madden
| | - Kelli L Hvorecny
- Department of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7200 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755 (USA) http://www.dartmouth.edu/∼madden
| | - Jennifer M Bomberger
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7560 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755 (USA)
| | - Bruce A Stanton
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7560 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755 (USA)
| | - Bruce D Hammock
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UCD Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616 (USA)
| | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UCD Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California at Davis, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616 (USA)
| | - Dean R Madden
- Department of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, 7200 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755 (USA) http://www.dartmouth.edu/∼madden.
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23
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Bahl CD, Hvorecny KL, Bridges AA, Ballok AE, Bomberger JM, Cady KC, O'Toole GA, Madden DR. Signature motifs identify an Acinetobacter Cif virulence factor with epoxide hydrolase activity. J Biol Chem 2014; 289:7460-9. [PMID: 24474692 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.518092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Endocytic recycling of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) is blocked by the CFTR inhibitory factor (Cif). Originally discovered in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Cif is a secreted epoxide hydrolase that is transcriptionally regulated by CifR, an epoxide-sensitive repressor. In this report, we investigate a homologous protein found in strains of the emerging nosocomial pathogens Acinetobacter nosocomialis and Acinetobacter baumannii ("aCif"). Like Cif, aCif is an epoxide hydrolase that carries an N-terminal secretion signal and can be purified from culture supernatants. When applied directly to polarized airway epithelial cells, mature aCif triggers a reduction in CFTR abundance at the apical membrane. Biochemical and crystallographic studies reveal a dimeric assembly with a stereochemically conserved active site, confirming our motif-based identification of candidate Cif-like pathogenic EH sequences. Furthermore, cif expression is transcriptionally repressed by a CifR homolog ("aCifR") and is induced in the presence of epoxides. Overall, this Acinetobacter protein recapitulates the essential attributes of the Pseudomonas Cif system and thus may facilitate airway colonization in nosocomial lung infections.
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Hvorecny KL, Bahl CD, Morisseau CH, Bomberger JM, Stanton BA, Hammock BD, Madden DR. Exploring the substrate profile of CFTR Inhibitory Factor. FASEB J 2013. [DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.27.1_supplement.559.7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Christopher D Bahl
- BiochemistryGeisel School of Medicine at DartmouthHanoverNH
- Molecular Engineering and SciencesUniversity of WashingtonSeattleWA
| | | | - Jennifer M Bomberger
- Physiology and NeurobiologyGeisel School of Medicine at DartmouthHanoverNH
- Microbiology and Molecular GeneticsUniversity of Pittsburgh School of MedicinePittsburghPA
| | - Bruce A Stanton
- Physiology and NeurobiologyGeisel School of Medicine at DartmouthHanoverNH
| | | | - Dean R Madden
- BiochemistryGeisel School of Medicine at DartmouthHanoverNH
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25
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Amacher JF, Cushing PR, Bahl CD, Beck T, Madden DR. Stereochemical determinants of C-terminal specificity in PDZ peptide-binding domains: a novel contribution of the carboxylate-binding loop. J Biol Chem 2012; 288:5114-26. [PMID: 23243314 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m112.401588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
PDZ (PSD-95/Dlg/ZO-1) binding domains often serve as cellular traffic engineers, controlling the localization and activity of a wide variety of binding partners. As a result, they play important roles in both physiological and pathological processes. However, PDZ binding specificities overlap, allowing multiple PDZ proteins to mediate distinct effects on shared binding partners. For example, several PDZ domains bind the cystic fibrosis (CF) transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR), an epithelial ion channel mutated in CF. Among these binding partners, the CFTR-associated ligand (CAL) facilitates post-maturational degradation of the channel and is thus a potential therapeutic target. Using iterative optimization, we previously developed a selective CAL inhibitor peptide (iCAL36). Here, we investigate the stereochemical basis of iCAL36 specificity. The crystal structure of iCAL36 in complex with the CAL PDZ domain reveals stereochemical interactions distributed along the peptide-binding cleft, despite the apparent degeneracy of the CAL binding motif. A critical selectivity determinant that distinguishes CAL from other CFTR-binding PDZ domains is the accommodation of an isoleucine residue at the C-terminal position (P(0)), a characteristic shared with the Tax-interacting protein-1. Comparison of the structures of these two PDZ domains in complex with ligands containing P(0) Leu or Ile residues reveals two distinct modes of accommodation for β-branched C-terminal side chains. Access to each mode is controlled by distinct residues in the carboxylate-binding loop. These studies provide new insights into the primary sequence determinants of binding motifs, which in turn control the scope and evolution of PDZ interactomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeanine F Amacher
- Department of Biochemistry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, USA
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26
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Bahl CD, Madden DR. Pseudomonas aeruginosa Cif defines a distinct class of α/β epoxide hydrolases utilizing a His/Tyr ring-opening pair. Protein Pept Lett 2012; 19:186-93. [PMID: 21933119 DOI: 10.2174/092986612799080392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2010] [Revised: 12/08/2010] [Accepted: 12/09/2010] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
The Gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that secretes a multitude of virulence factors during the course of infection. Among these is Cif, an epoxide hydrolase (EH) that reduces the functional localization of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator in epithelial cells. In addition to being the first reported EH virulence factor, Cif possesses unique sequence deviations from canonical EH motifs. Foremost among these is the substitution of a histidine for the first epoxide ring-opening tyrosine in the active site. To test the functional equivalence of Tyr and His side chains at this position, we have generated the mutant Cif-H177Y. Structural analysis confirms that both the WT His and mutant Tyr side chains can be accommodated without large-scale conformational changes. However, the Tyr mutant is functionally inactive. Based on a detailed analysis of the structure of the Tyr mutant, it appears that Cif's main-chain conformation imposes a functional requirement for a His at this position. Comparison with canonical EH structures reveals additional conformational differences, which are coupled to divergent sequence characteristics. When used to probe the genomes of other opportunistic pathogens, these sequence-structure criteria uncover candidate sequences that appear to form a distinct subfamily of Cif-like epoxide hydrolases characterized by a conserved His/Tyr ring-opening pair.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D Bahl
- Dept. of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, 7200 Vail Building Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
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Bahl CD, Morisseau C, Bomberger JM, Stanton BA, Hammock BD, O'Toole GA, Madden DR. Crystal structure of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator inhibitory factor Cif reveals novel active-site features of an epoxide hydrolase virulence factor. J Bacteriol 2010; 192:1785-95. [PMID: 20118260 PMCID: PMC2838060 DOI: 10.1128/jb.01348-09] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2009] [Accepted: 01/15/2010] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) inhibitory factor (Cif) is a virulence factor secreted by Pseudomonas aeruginosa that reduces the quantity of CFTR in the apical membrane of human airway epithelial cells. Initial sequence analysis suggested that Cif is an epoxide hydrolase (EH), but its sequence violates two strictly conserved EH motifs and also is compatible with other alpha/beta hydrolase family members with diverse substrate specificities. To investigate the mechanistic basis of Cif activity, we have determined its structure at 1.8-A resolution by X-ray crystallography. The catalytic triad consists of residues Asp129, His297, and Glu153, which are conserved across the family of EHs. At other positions, sequence deviations from canonical EH active-site motifs are stereochemically conservative. Furthermore, detailed enzymatic analysis confirms that Cif catalyzes the hydrolysis of epoxide compounds, with specific activity against both epibromohydrin and cis-stilbene oxide, but with a relatively narrow range of substrate selectivity. Although closely related to two other classes of alpha/beta hydrolase in both sequence and structure, Cif does not exhibit activity as either a haloacetate dehalogenase or a haloalkane dehalogenase. A reassessment of the structural and functional consequences of the H269A mutation suggests that Cif's effect on host-cell CFTR expression requires the hydrolysis of an extended endogenous epoxide substrate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D. Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Jennifer M. Bomberger
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Bruce A. Stanton
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Bruce D. Hammock
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - George A. O'Toole
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Dean R. Madden
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755, Department of Entomology and Cancer Center, University of California, Davis, California 95616, Department of Physiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
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Bahl CD, MacEachran DP, O’Toole GA, Madden DR. Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of Cif, a virulence factor secreted by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Acta Crystallogr Sect F Struct Biol Cryst Commun 2010; 66:26-8. [PMID: 20057063 PMCID: PMC2805529 DOI: 10.1107/s1744309109047599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2009] [Accepted: 11/11/2009] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa secretes a protein that triggers the accelerated degradation of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) in airway epithelial cells. This protein, which is known as the CFTR inhibitory factor (Cif), acts as a virulence factor and may facilitate airway colonization by P. aeruginosa. Based on sequence similarity Cif appears to be an epoxide hydrolase (EH), but it lacks several of the conserved features found in the active sites of canonical members of the EH family. Here, the crystallization of purified recombinant Cif by vapor diffusion is reported. The crystals formed in space group C2, with unit-cell parameters a = 167.4, b = 83.6, c = 88.3 A, beta = 100.6 degrees . The crystals diffracted to 2.39 A resolution on a rotating-anode source. Based on the calculated Matthews coefficient (2.2 A(3) Da(-1)), it appears that the asymmetric unit contains four molecules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D. Bahl
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, 7200 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Daniel P. MacEachran
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, 7550 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - George A. O’Toole
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth Medical School, 7550 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
| | - Dean R. Madden
- Department of Biochemistry, Dartmouth Medical School, 7200 Vail Building, Hanover, NH 03755, USA
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