Calnexin improves the folding efficiency of mutant rhodopsin in the presence of pharmacological chaperone 11-cis-retinal

The lectin chaperone calnexin (Cnx) is important for quality control of glycoproteins, and the chances of correct folding of a protein increase the longer the protein interacts with Cnx. Mutations in glycoproteins increase their association with Cnx, and these mutant proteins are retained in the endoplasmic reticulum. However, until now, the increased interaction with Cnx was not known to increase the folding of mutant glycoproteins. Because many human diseases result from glycoprotein misfolding, a Cnx-assisted folding of mutant glycoproteins could be beneficial. Mutations of rhodopsin, the glycoprotein pigment of rod photoreceptors, cause misfolding resulting in retinitis pigmentosa. Despite the critical role of Cnx in glycoprotein folding, surprisingly little is known about its interaction with rhodopsin or whether this interaction could be modulated to increase the folding of mutant rhodopsin. Here, we demonstrate that Cnx preferentially associates with misfolded mutant opsins associated with retinitis pigmentosa. Furthermore, the overexpression of Cnx leads to an increased accumulation of misfolded P23H opsin but not the correctly folded protein. Finally, we demonstrate that increased levels of Cnx in the presence of the pharmacological chaperone 11-cis-retinal increase the folding efficiency and result in an increase in correct folding of mutant rhodopsin. These results demonstrate that misfolded rather than correctly folded rhodopsin is a substrate for Cnx and that the interaction between Cnx and mutant, misfolded rhodopsin, can be targeted to increase the yield of folded mutant protein.

A high-throughput screening method for small-molecule pharmacologic chaperones of misfolded rhodopsin

PURPOSE

Many mutations in rhodopsin, including P23H, result in misfolding and mislocalization of the protein. It has been demonstrated that pharmacologic chaperones are effective in assisting the proper folding and targeting of P23H opsin. This study was designed to investigate a high-throughput screening strategy for identification of pharmacologic chaperones by using a combination of in silico, cell-based, and in vitro

METHODS

methods. A library of 24,000 drug-like small molecules was screened by in silico molecular docking with DOCK5.1. The top hits were assayed in an in vitro competition assay. The selected compound was then assayed for pharmacologic chaperoning activity in stable cell lines expressing wild-type and P23H opsin.

RESULTS

Beta-ionone was easily identified by the high-throughput screen. It strongly inhibits rhodopsin formation and, when incubated in cells expressing P23H opsin, resulted in a 2.5-fold rescue of P23H opsin. The screen also identified compound NSC45012 [1-(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-4-yl)ethanone], a weak inhibitor of opsin regeneration and resulted in a 40% rescue of the mutant opsin. The level of rescue correlated well with the extent of inhibition.

CONCLUSIONS

A combination of in silico and cell-based screening provides a useful tool for identifying pharmacologic chaperones for P23H opsin. This approach identified both potent and weak pharmacologic chaperones. Both types of molecules may be potential candidates for treatment of opsin-related RP.

Cortical visual function in the rd12 mouse model of Leber Congenital Amarousis (LCA) after gene replacement therapy to restore retinal function

One eye of rd12 mice received a sub-retinal injection of a vector carrying normal human RPE65 cDNA at post-natal day 18, and at 6- and 13-months of age. Electroretinograms (ERGs) and visual-evoked potentials (VEPs) were recorded to luminance, and to spatially and temporally modulated stimuli to assess the consequences of delayed treatment on visual pathway function. Early treatment resulted in better overall retinal rescue and better rescue of cone-mediated function. VEPs to low temporal frequency luminance modulation were well preserved at all but the oldest treatment age and corresponded to predictions based on the amount of retinal rescue. In contrast, VEPs to high frequency spatially and temporally modulated stimuli were impaired even at the earliest age. These results provide further support that early treatment in human LCA will have the most hope for optimal visual performance.

Gene Therapy Restores Vision-Dependent Behavior as Well as Retinal Structure and Function in a Mouse Model of RPE65 Leber Congenital Amaurosis

Retinal pigment epithelium-specific protein 65 kDa (RPE65) is a protein responsible for isomerization of all-trans-retinaldehyde to its photoactive 11-cis-retinaldehyde and is essential for the visual cycle. RPE65 mutations can cause severe, early onset retinal diseases such as Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA). A naturally occurring rodent model of LCA with a recessive nonsense Rpe65 mutation, the rd12 mouse, displays a profoundly diminished rod electroretinogram (ERG), an absence of 11-cis-retinaldehyde and rhodopsin, an overaccumulation of retinyl esters in retinal pigmented epithelial (RPE) cells, and photoreceptor degeneration. rd12 mice were injected subretinally at postnatal day 14 with rAAV5-CBA-hRPE65 vector. RPE65 expression was found over large areas of RPE soon after treatment. This led to improved rhodopsin levels with ERG signals restored to near normal. Retinyl ester levels were maintained at near normal, and fundus and retinal morphology remained normal. All parameters of restored retinal health remained stable for at least 7 months. The Morris water maze behavioral test was modified to test rod function under very dim light; rd12 mice treated in one eye performed similar to normally sighted C57BL/6J mice, while untreated rd12 mice performed very poorly, demonstrating that gene therapy can restore normal vision-dependent behavior in a congenitally blind animal.

Retinal degeneration 12 (rd12): a new, spontaneously arising mouse model for human Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA)

PURPOSE

To report the phenotype and characterization of a new, naturally occurring mouse model of hereditary retinal degeneration (rd12).

METHODS

The retinal phenotype of rd12 mice were studied using serial indirect ophthalmoscopy, fundus photography, electroretinography (ERG), genetic analysis including linkage studies and gene identification, immunohistochemistry, and biochemical analysis.

RESULTS

Mice homozygous for the rd12 mutation showed small punctate white spots on fundus examination at 5 months of age. The retina in the rd12 homozygote had a normal appearance at the light microscopic level until 6 weeks of age when occasional voids appeared in the outer segments (OS) of the photoreceptor (PR) cells. The outer nuclear layer (ONL) appeared normal until 3 months of age though more obvious voids were detected in the OS. By 7 months of age, 6 to 8 layers of ONL remained in the mutant retina, and the OS were obviously shorter. The first sign of retinal degeneration was detected at the electron microscopic level around 3 weeks of age when occasional small lipid-like droplets were detected in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). By 3 months of age, much larger, lipid-like droplets accumulated in RPE cells accompanied by some OS degeneration. While the histology indicated a relatively slow retinal degeneration in the rd12 homozygous mutant mice, the rod ERG response was profoundly diminished even at 3 weeks of age. Genetic analysis showed that rd12 was an autosomal recessive mutation and mapped to mouse chromosome 3 closely linked to D3Mit19, a location known to be near the mouse Rpe65 gene. Sequence analysis showed that the mouse retinal degeneration is caused by a nonsense mutation in exon 3 of the Rpe65 gene, and the gene symbol for the rd12 mutation has been updated to Rpe65rd12 to reflect this. No RPE65 expression, 11-cis retinal, or rhodopsin could be detected in retinas from rd12 homozygotes, while retinyl esters were found to accumulate in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE).

CONCLUSIONS

Mutations in the retinal pigment epithelium gene encoding RPE65 cause an early onset autosomal recessive form of human retinitis pigmentosa, known as Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), which results in blindness or severely impaired vision in children. A naturally arising mouse Rpe65 mutation provides a good model for studying the pathology of human RPE65 mutations and the effects of retinyl ester accumulation.

Development of an ideal starch saccharification process using amylolytic enzymes from thermophiles

The extensive efforts to screen thermophilic fungi and bacteria, isolated from various environmental samples, have resulted in the selection of Thermomucor indicae-seudaticae, Geobacillus thermoleovorans NP33 and G. thermoleovorans NP54 for the production of glucoamylase, amylopullulanase and alpha-amylase, respectively. Submerged and solid-state fermentation processes were optimized for maximizing the secretion of glucoamylase by T. indicae-seudaticae. The production of amylopullulanase and alpha-amylase by NP33 and NP54 in submerged fermentation was also optimized. Glucoamylase was optimally active at pH 7.0 and 60 degrees C and was shown to saccharify soluble as well as raw starches. Amylopullulanase and alpha-amylase exhibited optima at pH 7.0 and 100 degrees C and saccharified starch efficiently. Differential inhibition and action on mixed substrates clearly suggested that there are two separate active sites for alpha-amylase and pullulanase activities of amylopullulanase. Both alpha-amylase and amylopullulanase are high maltose-forming and Ca(2+)-independent. These amylolytic enzymes have been shown to be useful in starch saccharification alone and in combination.

Quality control of integral membrane proteins

Integral membrane proteins (IMPs) are essential components of the plasma and organellar membranes of the eukaryotic cell. Non-native IMPs, which can arise as a result of mutations, errors during biosynthesis or cellular stress, can disrupt these membranes and potentially lead to cell death. To protect against this outcome, the cell possesses quality control (QC) systems that detect and dispose of non-native IMPs from cellular membranes. Recent studies suggest that recognition of non-native IMPs by the QC machinery is correlated with the thermodynamic stability of these proteins. Consistent with this, small molecules known as chemical and pharmacological chaperones have been identified that stabilize non-native IMPs and enable them to evade QC. These findings have far-reaching implications for treating human diseases caused by defective IMPs.

Retinoids Assist the Cellular Folding of the Autosomal Dominant Retinitis Pigmentosa Opsin Mutant P23H

The clinically common mutant opsin P23H, associated with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa, yields low levels of rhodopsin when retinal is added following induction of the protein in stably transfected HEK-293 cells. We previously showed that P23H rhodopsin levels could be increased by providing a 7-membered ring, locked analog of 11-cis-retinal during expression of P23H opsin in vivo. Here we demonstrate that the mutant opsin is effectively rescued by 9- or 11-cis-retinal, the native chromophore. When retinal was added during expression, P23H rhodopsin levels were 5-fold (9-cis) and 6-fold (11-cis) higher than when retinal was added after opsin was expressed and cells were harvested. Levels of P23H opsin were increased approximately 3.5-fold with both compounds, but wild-type protein levels were only slightly increased. Addition of retinal during induction promoted the Golgi-specific glycosylation of P23H opsin and transport of the protein to the cell surface. P23H rhodopsins containing 9- or 11-cis-retinal had blue-shifted absorption maxima and altered photo-bleaching properties compared with the corresponding wild-type proteins. Significantly, P23H rhodopsins were more thermally unstable than the wild-type proteins and more rapidly bleached by hydroxylamine in the dark. We suggest that P23H opsin is similarly unstable and that retinal binds and stabilizes the protein early in its biogenesis to promote its cellular folding and trafficking. The implications of this study for treating retinitis pigmentosa and other protein conformational disorders are discussed.

Pharmacological chaperone-mediated in vivo folding and stabilization of the P23H-opsin mutant associated with autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa

Protein conformational disorders, which include certain types of retinitis pigmentosa, are a set of inherited human diseases in which mutant proteins are misfolded and often aggregated. Many opsin mutants associated with retinitis pigmentosa, the most common being P23H, are misfolded and retained within the cell. Here, we describe a pharmacological chaperone, 11-cis-7-ring retinal, that quantitatively induces the in vivo folding of P23H-opsin. The rescued protein forms pigment, acquires mature glycosylation, and is transported to the cell surface. Additionally, we determined the temperature stability of the rescued protein as well as the reactivity of the retinal-opsin Schiff base to hydroxylamine. Our study unveils novel properties of P23H-opsin and its interaction with the chromophore. These properties suggest that 11-cis-7-ring retinal may be a useful therapeutic agent for the rescue of P23H-opsin and the prevention of retinal degeneration.

Production and partial characterization of thermostable and calcium-independent alpha-amylase of an extreme thermophile Bacillus thermooleovorans NP54

AIM

An investigation was carried out on the production of alpha-amylase by Bacillus thermooleovorans NP54, its partial purification and characterization.

METHODS AND RESULTS

The thermophilic bacterium was grown in shake flasks and a laboratory fermenter containing 2% soluble starch, 0.3% tryptone, 0.3% yeast extract and 0.1% K2HPO4 at 70 degrees C and pH 7.0, agitated at 200 rev min(-1) with 6-h-old inoculum (2% v/v) for 12 h. When the enzyme was partially purified using acetone (80%[v/v] saturation), a 43.7% recovery of enzyme with 6.2-fold purification was recorded. The KM and Vmax (soluble starch) values were 0.83 mg ml(-1) and 250 micromol mg(-1) protein min(-1), respectively. The enzyme was optimally active at 100 degrees C and pH 8.0 with a half-life of 3 h at 100 degrees C. Both alpha-amylase activity and production were Ca2+ independent.

CONCLUSIONS

Bacillus thermooleovorans NP54 produced calcium-independent and thermostable alpha-amylase.

SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY

The calcium-independent and thermostable alpha-amylase of B. thermooleovorans NP54 will be extremely useful in starch saccharification since the alpha-amylases used in the starch industry are calcium dependent. The use of this enzyme in starch hydrolysis eliminates the use of calcium in starch liquefaction and subsequent removal by ion exchange.