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Bacteriophage Sf6 tailspike protein is functionally equivalent to the well characterized tailspike ofSalmonella phage P22, mediating attachment of the viral particle to host cell-surface polysaccharide. However, there is significant sequence similarity between the two 70-kDa polypeptides only in the N-terminal putative capsid-binding domains. The major, central part of P22 tailspike protein, which forms a parallel ;-helix and is responsible for saccharide binding and hydrolysis, lacks detectable sequence homology to the Sf6 protein. After recombinant expression in Escherichia coli as a soluble protein, the Sf6 protein was purified to homogeneity. As shown by circular dichroism and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, the secondary structure contents of Sf6 and P22 tailspike proteins are very similar. Both tailspikes are thermostable homotrimers and resist denaturation by SDS at room temperature. The specific endorhamnosidase activities of Sf6 tailspike protein toward fluorescence-labeled dodeca-, deca-, and octasaccharide fragments of Shigella O-antigen suggest a similar active site topology of both proteins. Upon deletion of the N-terminal putative capsid-binding domain, the protein still forms a thermostable, SDS-resistant trimer that has been crystallized. The observations strongly suggest that the tailspike of phage Sf6 is a trimeric parallel ;-helix protein with high structural similarity to its functional homolog from phage P22.
Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) constitute a substantial part of cellular proteomes. Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are mostly predicted to be IDPs associated with dehydration tolerance in many plant, animal and bacterial species. Their functions, however, are largely unexplored and also their structure and interactions with potential target molecules have only recently been experimentally investigated in a small number of proteins. Here, we report on the structure and interactions with membranes of the Pfam LEA_1 protein LEA18 from the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This functionally uncharacterized positively charged protein specifically aggregated and destabilized negatively charged liposomes. Isothermal titration calorimetry showed binding of the protein to both charged and uncharged membranes. LEA18 alone was largely unstructured in solution. While uncharged membranes had no influence on the secondary structure of LEA18, the protein partially folded into ;-sheet structure in the presence of negatively charged liposomes. These data suggest that LEA18 does not function as a membrane stabilizing protein, as suggested for other LEA proteins. Instead, a possible function of LEA18 could be the composition-dependent modulation of membrane stability, e.g., during signaling or vesicle-mediated transport. Research Highlights
Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) constitute a substantial part of cellular proteomes. late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are mostly predicted to be IDPs associated with dehydration tolerance in many plant, animal and bacterial species. Their functions, however, are largely unexplored and also their structure and interactions with potential target molecules have only recently been experimentally investigated in a small number of proteins. Here, we report on the structure and interactions with membranes of the Pfam LEA_1 protein LEA18 from the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This functionally uncharacterized positively charged protein specifically aggregated and destabilized negatively charged liposomes. Isothermal titration calorimetry showed binding of the protein to both charged and uncharged membranes. LEA18 alone was largely unstructured in solution. While uncharged membranes had no influence on the secondary structure of LEA18, the protein partially folded into beta-sheet structure in the presence of negatively charged liposomes. These data suggest that LEA18 does not function as a membrane stabilizing protein, as suggested for other LEA proteins. Instead, a possible function of LEA18 could be the composition-dependent modulation of membrane stability, e.g., during signaling or vesicle-mediated transport.
Tailspike interactions with lipopolysaccharide effect DNA ejection from phage P22 particles in vitro
(2010)
Initial attachment of bacteriophage P22 to the Salmonella host cell is known to be mediated by interactions between lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the phage tailspike proteins (TSP), but the events that subsequently lead to DNA injection into the bacterium are unknown. We used the binding of a fluorescent dye and DNA accessibility to DNase and restriction enzymes to analyze DNA ejection from phage particles in vitro. Ejection was specifically triggered by aggregates of purified Salmonella LPS but not by LPS with different O-antigen structure, by lipid A, phospholipids, or soluble O-antigen polysaccharide. This suggests that P22 does not use a secondary receptor at the bacterial outer membrane surface. Using phage particles reconstituted with purified mutant TSP in vitro, we found that the endorhamnosidase activity of TSP degrading the O-antigen polysaccharide was required prior to DNA ejection in vitro and DNA replication in vivo. If, however, LPS was pre-digested with soluble TSP, it was no longer able to trigger DNA ejection, even though it still contained five O-antigen oligosaccharide repeats. Together with known data on the structure of LPS and phage P22, our results suggest a molecular model. In this model, tail-spikes position the phage particles on the outer membrane surface for DNA ejection. They force gp26, the central needle and plug protein of the phage tail machine, through the core oligosaccharide layer and into the hydrophobic portion of the outer membrane, leading to refolding of the gp26 lazo-domain, release of the plug, and ejection of DNA and pilot proteins.
Bacteriophages use specific tail proteins to recognize host cells. It is still not understood to molecular detail how the signal is transmitted over the tail to initiate infection. We have analysed in vitro DNA ejection in long-tailed siphovirus 9NA and short-tailed podovirus P22 upon incubation with Salmonella typhimurium lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We showed for the first time that LPS alone was sufficient to elicit DNA release from a siphovirus in vitro. Crystal structure analysis revealed that both phages use similar tailspike proteins for LPS recognition. Tailspike proteins hydrolyse LPS O antigen to position the phage on the cell surface. Thus we were able to compare in vitro DNA ejection processes from two phages with different morphologies with the same receptor under identical experimental conditions. Siphovirus 9NA ejected its DNA about 30 times faster than podovirus P22. DNA ejection is under control of the conformational opening of the particle and has a similar activation barrier in 9NA and P22. Our data suggest that tail morphology influences the efficiencies of particle opening given an identical initial receptor interaction event.
Dehydration stress-related late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins have been found in plants, invertebrates and bacteria. Most LEA proteins are unstructured in solution, but some fold into amphipathic a-helices during drying. The Pfam LEA_4 (Group 3) protein LEA7 from the higher plant Arabidopsis thaliana was predicted to be 87% alpha-helical, while CD spectroscopy showed it to be largely unstructured in solution and only 35% alpha-helical in the dry state. However, the dry protein contained 15% beta-sheets. FTIR spectroscopy revealed the (beta-sheets to be largely due to aggregation. beta-Sheet content was reduced and alpha-helix content increased when LEA7 was dried in the presence of liposomes with secondary structure apparently influenced by lipid composition. Secondary structure was also affected by the presence of membranes in the fully hydrated state. A temperature-induced increase in the flexibility of the dry protein was also only observed in the presence of membranes. Functional interactions of LEA7 with membranes in the dry state were indicated by its influence on the thermotropic phase transitions of the lipids and interactions with the lipid headgroup phosphates.
Bacteriophage HK620 recognizes and cleaves the O-antigen polysaccharide of Escherichia coli serogroup O18A1 with its tailspike protein (TSP). HK620TSP binds hexasaccharide fragments with low affinity, but single amino acid exchanges generated a set of high-affinity mutants with submicromolar dissociation constants. Isothermal titration calorimetry showed that only small amounts of heat were released upon complex formation via a large number of direct and solvent-mediated hydrogen bonds between carbohydrate and protein. At room temperature, association was both enthalpy- and entropy-driven emphasizing major solvent rearrangements upon complex formation. Crystal structure analysis showed identical protein and sugar conformers in the TSP complexes regardless of their hexasaccharide affinity. Only in one case, a TSP mutant bound a different hexasaccharide conformer. The extended sugar binding site could be dissected in two regions: first, a hydrophobic pocket at the reducing end with minor affinity contributions. Access to this site could be blocked by a single aspartate to asparagine exchange without major loss in hexasaccharide affinity. Second, a region where the specific exchange of glutamate for glutamine created a site for an additional water molecule. Side-chain rearrangements upon sugar binding led to desolvation and additional hydrogen bonding which define this region of the binding site as the high-affinity scaffold.
The P22 tailspike endorhamnosidase confers the high specificity of bacteriophage P22 for some serogroups of Salmonella differing only slightly in their O-antigen polysaccharide. We used several biophysical methods to study the binding and hydrolysis of O-antigen fragments of different lengths by P22 tailspike protein. O-Antigen saccharides of defined length labeled with fluorophors could be purified with higher resolution than previously possible. Small amounts of naturally occurring variations of 0antigen fragments missing the nonreducing terminal galactose could be used to determine the contribution of this part to the free energy of binding to be similar to 7 kJ/mol. We were able to show via several independent lines of evidence that an unproductive binding mode is highly favored in binding over all other possible binding modes leading to hydrolysis. This is true even under circumstances under which the O-antigen fragment is long enough to be cleaved efficiently by the enzyme. The high-affinity unproductive binding mode results in a strong self-competitive inhibition in addition to product inhibition observed for this system. Self-competitive inhibition is observed for all substrates that have a free reducing end rhamnose. Naturally occurring O-antigen, while still attached to the bacterial outer membrane, does not have a free reducing end and therefore does not perform self-competitive inhibition.
Dual glucagon-like peptide-1/glucagon receptor agonists have emerged as promising candidates for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. Issues of degradation sensitivity and rapid renal clearance are addressed, for example, by the conjugation of peptides to fatty acid chains, promoting reversible albumin binding. We use combined dynamic and static light scattering to directly measure the self-assembly of a set of dual peptide agonists based on the exendin-4 structure with varying fatty acid chain lengths in terms of apparent molecular mass and hydrodynamic radius (R-S). We use NMR spectroscopy to gain an insight into the molecular architecture of the assembly. We investigate conformational changes of the monomeric subunits resulting from peptide self-assembly and assembly stability as a function of the fatty acid chain length using circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy. Our results demonstrate that self-assembly of the exendin-4-derived dual agonist peptides is essentially driven by hydrophobic interactions involving the conjugated acyl chains. The fatty acid chain length affects assembly equilibria and the assembly stability, although the peptide subunits in the assembly retain a dynamic secondary structure. The assembly architecture is characterized by juxtaposition of the fatty acyl side chains and a hydrophobic cluster of the peptide moiety. This cluster experiences local conformational changes in the assembly compared to the monomeric unit leading to a reduction in solvent exposure. The N-terminal half of the peptide and a C-terminal loop are not in contact with neighboring peptide subunits in the assemblies. Altogether, our study contributes to a thorough understanding of the association characteristics and the tendency toward self-assembly in response to lipidation. This is important not only to achieve the desired bioavailability but also with respect to the physical stability of peptide solutions.
Dual glucagon-like peptide-1/glucagon receptor agonists have emerged as promising candidates for the treatment of diabetes and obesity. Issues of degradation sensitivity and rapid renal clearance are addressed, for example, by the conjugation of peptides to fatty acid chains, promoting reversible albumin binding. We use combined dynamic and static light scattering to directly measure the self-assembly of a set of dual peptide agonists based on the exendin-4 structure with varying fatty acid chain lengths in terms of apparent molecular mass and hydrodynamic radius (R-S). We use NMR spectroscopy to gain an insight into the molecular architecture of the assembly. We investigate conformational changes of the monomeric subunits resulting from peptide self-assembly and assembly stability as a function of the fatty acid chain length using circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy. Our results demonstrate that self-assembly of the exendin-4-derived dual agonist peptides is essentially driven by hydrophobic interactions involving the conjugated acyl chains. The fatty acid chain length affects assembly equilibria and the assembly stability, although the peptide subunits in the assembly retain a dynamic secondary structure. The assembly architecture is characterized by juxtaposition of the fatty acyl side chains and a hydrophobic cluster of the peptide moiety. This cluster experiences local conformational changes in the assembly compared to the monomeric unit leading to a reduction in solvent exposure. The N-terminal half of the peptide and a C-terminal loop are not in contact with neighboring peptide subunits in the assemblies. Altogether, our study contributes to a thorough understanding of the association characteristics and the tendency toward self-assembly in response to lipidation. This is important not only to achieve the desired bioavailability but also with respect to the physical stability of peptide solutions.
Comparison of the dissociation kinetics of rapid-acting insulins lispro, aspart, glulisine and human insulin under physiologically relevant conditions. Dissociation kinetics after dilution were monitored directly in terms of the average molecular mass using combined static and dynamic light scattering. Changes in tertiary structure were detected by near-UV circular dichroism. Glulisine forms compact hexamers in formulation even in the absence of Zn2+. Upon severe dilution, these rapidly dissociate into monomers in less than 10 s. In contrast, in formulations of lispro and aspart, the presence of Zn2+ and phenolic compounds is essential for formation of compact R6 hexamers. These slowly dissociate in times ranging from seconds to one hour depending on the concentration of phenolic additives. The disadvantage of the long dissociation times of lispro and aspart can be diminished by a rapid depletion of the concentration of phenolic additives independent of the insulin dilution. This is especially important in conditions similar to those after subcutaneous injection, where only minor dilution of the insulins occurs. Knowledge of the diverging dissociation mechanisms of lispro and aspart compared to glulisine will be helpful for optimizing formulation conditions of rapid-acting insulins.
Summary Using five different steps, ;-Galactosidase has been purified from kidney beans to apparent electrophoretic homogeniety with approximately 90-fold purificationwith a specific activity of 281 units mg;1 protein. A single bandwas observed in native PAGE. Activity staining of the native gel with 5-bromo4-chloro 3-indoxyl ;-D-galactopyranoside (X-Gal) at pH 4.0 also produceda single band. Analytical gel filtration in Superdex G-75 revealed the molecularmass of the native protein to be approximately 75 kD. 10 percnt; SDS-PAGE under reducingconditions showed two subunits of molecular masses, 45 and 30 kD, respectively.Hence, ;-galactosidase from kidney beans is a heterodimer. A typical proteinprofile with ;max at 280 nm was observed and A280/A260ratio was 1.52. The N-terminal sequence of the 45 kD band showed 86 percnt; sequencehomology with an Arabidopsis thaliana and 85 percnt; with Lycopersiconesculentum putative ;-galactosidase sequences. The Electrospray MassSpectrometric analysis of this band also revealed a peptide fragment that had90 percnt; sequence homology with an Arabidopsis thaliana putative ;- galactosidasesequence. The N-terminal sequencing of the 30 kD band as well as mass spectrometricanalysis both by MALDI- TOF and ES MS revealed certain sequences that matchedwith phytohemagglutinin of kidney beans. The optimum pH of the enzyme was 4.0and it hydrolysed o- and p-nitrophenyl ;-D galactopyranosidewith a Km value of 0.63 mmol/L and 0.74 mmol/L, respectively.The energy of activation calculated from the Arrhenius equation was 14.8 kcal/molenzyme site. The enzyme was found to be comparatively thermostable showing maximumactivity at 67 °C. Thermal denaturation of the enzyme at 65 °C obeyssingle exponential decay with first order-rate constant 0.105 min;1.Galactose, a hydrolytic product of this enzyme was a competitive inhibitor witha Ki of 2.7 mmol/L.
Plasticity and steric strain in a parallel beta-helix: Rational mutations in P22 tailspike protein
(2000)
By means of genetic screens, a great number of mutations that affect the folding and stability of the tailspike protein from Salmonella phage P22 have been identified. Temperature-sensitive folding (tsf) mutations decrease folding yields at high temperature, but hardly affect thermal stability of the native trimeric structure when assembled at low temperature. Global suppressor (su) mutations mitigate this phenotype. Virtually all of these mutations are located in the central domain of tailspike, a large parallel beta-helix. We modified tailspike by rational single amino acid replacements at three sites in order to investigate the influence of mutations of two types: (1) mutations expected to cause a tsf phenotype by increasing the side-chain volume of a core residue, and (2) mutations in a similar structural context as two of the four known su mutations, which have been suggested to stabilize folding intermediates and the native structure by the release of backbone strain, an effect well known for residues that are primarily evolved for function and not for stability or folding of the protein. Analysis of folding yields, refolding kinetics and thermal denaturation kinetics in vitro show that the tsf phenotype can indeed be produced rationally by increasing the volume of side chains in the beta-helix core. The high-resolution crystal structure of mutant T326F proves that structural rearrangements only take place in the remarkably plastic lumen of the beta-helix, leaving the arrangement of the hydrogen-bonded backbone and thus the surface of the protein unaffected. This supports the notion that changes in the stability of an intermediate, in which the beta-helix domain is largely formed, are the essential mechanism by which tsf mutations affect tailspike folding. A rational design of su mutants, on the other hand, appears to be more difficult. The exchange of two residues in the active site expected to lead to a drastic release of steric strain neither enhanced the folding properties nor the stability of tailspike. Apparently, side-chain interactions in these cases overcompensate for backbone strain, illustrating the extreme optimization of the tailspike protein for conformational stability. The result exemplifies the view arising from the statistical analysis of the distribution of backbone dihedral angles in known three-dimensional protein structures that the adoption of straight phi/psi angles other than the most favorable ones is often caused by side-chain interactions.
Phage tailspike proteins with beta-solenoid fold as thermostable carbohydrate binding materials
(2009)
We have investigated the stability of three tailspike proteins (TSPs) from bacteriophages Sf6, P22, and HK620. Tailspikes are rod-like homotrimers with comparable beta-solenoid folds and similarly high kinetic stability in spite of different amino acid sequences. As tailspikes bind polysaccharides to recognize the bacterial host cell, their stability is required for maintenance of bacteriophage infectivity under harsh extracellular conditions. They resist denaturation by SDS at ambient temperature and their unfolding is slow even in 6 m guanidinium hydrochloride (GdmHCl). This makes them interesting candidates for very stable carbohydrate binding protein materials.
Large oligomeric proteins are usually thought to fold and assemble hierarchically: Domains fold and coalesce to form the subunits, and folded subunits can then associate to form the multimeric structure. We have investigated the refolding pathway of the ;-sheet protein pea seed lectin using spectroscopic and hydrodynamic techniques. In vivo, it is proteolytically processed post-translationally, so that the single-domain subunits of the initial homodimer themselves become heterodimers of intertwined fragment polypeptide chains. Despite this complex topology, mature pea seed lectin reassembles with considerable efficiency at low total protein concentration (10 ;g/mL) and low temperature (10 °C), albeit very slowly (t1/2 ; 2 days). Contrary to expectations, the primary assembly product is not the intact ;-sheet domain, but the larger fragment chains first dimerize to form the native-like subunit interface. The smaller fragment chains then associate with this preformed dimer.
The glycosphingolipid globoside (globotetraosylceramide, Gb4Cer) has been proposed to be the cellular receptor of human parvovirus B19. Quantitative measurements of the binding of parvovirus B19 to Gb4Cer were performed to explore the molecular basis of the virus tropism. Solid-phase assays with fluorescence-labeled liposomes or (125)iodine-labeled empty capsids were used to characterize the specificity of binding. In addition, surface plasmon resonance on lipid layers, as well as isothermal titration microcalorimetry, was utilized for real-time analysis of the virus-receptor interaction. These studies did not confirm binding of Gb4Cer to recombinant B19 VP2 capsids, suggesting that Gb4Cer does not function on its own as the cellular receptor of human parvovirus B19, but might be involved in a more complex recognition event. The biochemical results were further confirmed by cryo-electron microscopy image reconstructions at 10 A resolution, in which the structures of empty capsids were compared with empty capsids incubated with Gb4Cer. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved
Mutations improving the folding of phage P22 tailspike protein affect its receptor binfing activity
(1999)
We have developed a microfluidic mixer optimized for rapid measurements of protein folding kinetics using synchrotron radiation circular dichroism (SRCD) spectroscopy. The combination of fabrication in fused silica and synchrotron radiation allows measurements at wavelengths below 220 nm, the typical limit of commercial instrumentation. At these wavelengths, the discrimination between the different types of protein secondary structure increases sharply. The device was optimized for rapid mixing at moderate sample consumption by employing a serpentine channel design, resulting in a dead time of less than 200 ;s. Here, we discuss the design and fabrication of the mixer and quantify the mixing efficiency using wide-field and confocal epi-fluorescence microscopy. We demonstrate the performance of the device in SRCD measurements of the folding kinetics of cytochrome c, a small, fast-folding protein. Our results show that the combination of SRCD with microfluidic mixing opens new possibilities for investigating rapid conformational changes in biological macromolecules that have previously been inaccessible.
COR15A and COR15B form a tandem repeat of highly homologous genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. Both genes are highly cold induced and the encoded proteins belong to the Pfam LEA_4 group (group 3) of the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins. Both proteins were predicted to be intrinsically disordered in solution. Only COR15A has previously been characterized and it was shown to be localized in the soluble stroma fraction of chloroplasts. Ectopic expression of COR15A in Arabidopsis resulted in increased freezing tolerance of both chloroplasts after freezing and thawing of intact leaves and of isolated protoplasts frozen and thawed in vitro. In the present study we have generated recombinant mature COR15A and COR15B for a comparative study of their structure and possible function as membrane protectants. CD spectroscopy showed that both proteins are predominantly unstructured in solution and mainly a-helical after drying. Both proteins showed similar effects on the thermotropic phase behavior of dry liposomes. A decrease in the gel to liquid-crystalline phase transition temperature depended on both the unsaturation of the fatty acyl chains and lipid headgroup structure. FTIR spectroscopy indicated no strong interactions between the proteins and the lipid phosphate and carbonyl groups, but significant interactions with the galactose headgroup of the chloroplast lipid monogalactosyldiacylglycerol. These findings were rationalized by modeling the secondary structure of COR15A and COR15B. Helical wheel projection indicated the presence of amphipathic a-helices in both proteins. The helices lacked a clear separation of positive and negative charges on the hydrophilic face, but contained several hydroxylated amino acids.
The tailspike protein P22 recognizes an octasaccharide derived from the O-antigen polysaccharide of Salmonella enteritidis in a shallow groove and molecular docking successfully identifies this binding region on the protein surface. Analysis by 2D 1H,1H-T-ROESY and transferred NOESY NMR experiments indicate that the bound octasaccharide ligand has a conformation similar to that observed in solution. The results from a saturation transfer difference NMR experiment show that a large number of protons in the octasaccharide are in close contact with the protein as a result of binding. A comparison of the crystal structure of the complex and a molecular dynamics simulation of the octasaccharide with explicit water molecules suggest that only minor conformational changes are needed upon binding to the tailspike protein.
Influence of drying on the secondary structure of intrinsically disordered and globular proteins
(2012)
Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy of five Arabidopsis late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins constituting the plant specific families LEA_5 and LEA_6 showed that they are intrinsically disordered in solution and partially fold during drying. Structural predictions were comparable to these results for hydrated LEA_6, but not for LEA_5 proteins. FTIR spectroscopy showed that verbascose, but not sucrose, strongly affected the structure of the dry proteins. The four investigated globular proteins were only mildly affected by drying in the absence, but strongly in the presence of sugars. These data highlight the larger structural flexibility of disordered compared to globular proteins and the impact of sugars on the structure of both disordered and globular proteins during drying.
Parallel A-helices are among the simplest repetitive structural elements in proteins. The folding behavior of A- helix proteins has been studied intensively, also to gain insight on the formation of amyloid fibrils, which share the parallel beta-helix as a central structural motif. An important system for investigating beta-helix folding is the tailspike protein from the Salmonella bacteriophage P22. The central domain of this protein is a right-handed parallel beta-helix with 13 windings. Extensive mutational analyses of the P22 tailspike protein have revealed two main phenotypes: temperature-sensitive-folding (tsf) mutations that reduce the folding efficiency at elevated temperatures, and global suppressor (su) mutations that increase the tailspike folding efficiency. A central question is whether these phenotypes can be understood from changes in the protein stability induced by the mutations. Experimental determination of the protein stability is complicated by the nearly irreversible trimerization of the folded tailspike protein. Here, we present calculations of stability changes with the program FoldX, focusing on a recently published extensive data set of 145 singe-residue alanine mutants. We find that the calculated stability changes are correlated with the experimentally measured in vivo folding efficiencies. In addition, we determine the free-energy landscape of the P22 tailspike protein in a nucleation-propagation model to explore the folding mechanism of this protein, and obtain a processive folding route on which the protein nucleates in the N-terminal region of the helix.
Folding and stability of the leucine-rich repeat domain of internalin B from Listeria monocytogenes
(2004)
Internalin B (InlB), a surface protein of the human pathogen Listeria monocytogenes, promotes invasion into various host cell types by inducing phagocytosis of the entire bacterium. The N-terminal half of InlB (residues 36-321, InlB(321)), which is sufficient for this process, contains a central leucine-rich repeat (LRR) domain that is flanked by a small a-helical cap 2 and an immunoglobulin (Ig)-like domain. Here we investigated the variant lacking the Ig-like domain (lnlB(248)). The circular dichroism spectra of both protein variants in the far ultraviolet region are very similar, with a characteristic minimum found at similar to200 nm, possibly resulting from the high 3(10)-helical content in the LRR domain. Upon addition of chemical denaturants, both variants unfold in single transitions with unusually high cooperativity that are fully reversible and best described by two-state equilibria. The free energies of GdmCl-induced unfolding determined from transitions at 20degreesC are 9.9(+/- 0.8)kcal/mol for InlB(321) and 5.4(+/- 0.4) kcal/mol for InlB(248). InlB(321) is also more stable against thermal denaturation, as observed by scanning calorimetry. This suggests, that the Ig-like domain, which presumably does not directly interact with the host cell receptor during bacterial invasion, plays a critical role for the in vivo stability of InlB. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
Folding and function of repetitive structure in the homotrimetric phage P22 tailspike protein
(1998)
Enthalpic barriers to the hydrophobic binding of oligosaccharides to phage P22 tailspike protein
(2001)
Efficient refolding of proteins and prevention of their aggregation during folding are of vital importance in recombinant protein production and in finding cures for several diseases. We have used citrate synthase ( CS) as a model to understand the mechanism of aggregation during refolding and its prevention using several known structure-stabilizing cosolvent additives of the polyol series. Interestingly, no parallel correlation between the folding effect and the general stabilizing effect exerted by polyols was observed. Although increasing concentrations of polyols increased protein stability in general, the refolding yields for CS decreased at higher polyol concentrations, with erythritol reducing the folding yields at all concentrations tested. Among the various polyols used, glycerol was the most effective in enhancing the CS refolding yield, and a complete recovery of enzymatic activity was obtained at 7 M glycerol and 10 mu g/ml protein, a result superior to the action of the molecular chaperones GroEL and GroES in vitro. A good correlation between the refolding yields and the suppression of protein aggregation by glycerol was observed, with no aggregation detected at 7 M. The polyols prevented the aggregation of CS depending on the number of hydroxyl groups in them. Stopped-flow fluorescence kinetics experiments suggested that polyols, including glycerol, act very early in the refolding process, as no fast and slow phases were detectable. The results conclusively demonstrate that both the thermodynamic and kinetic aspects are critical in the folding process and that all structure-stabilizing molecules need not always help in productive folding to the native state. These findings are important for the rational design of small molecules for efficient refolding of various aggregation-prone proteins of commercial and medical relevance
Bacteriophage HK620 infects Escherichia coli H and is closely related to Shigella phage Sf6 and Salmonella phage P22. All three Podoviridae recognize and cleave their respective host cell receptor polysaccharide by homotrimeric tailspike proteins. The three proteins exhibit high sequence identity in the 110 residues of their N-terminal particle- binding domains, but no apparent sequence similarity in their major, receptor-binding parts. We have biochemically characterized the receptor-binding part of HK620 tailspike and determined its crystal structure to 1.38 Å resolution. Its major domain is a right-handed parallel ;-helix, as in Sf6 and P22 tailspikes. HK620 tailspike has endo-N- acetylglucosaminidase activity and produces hexasaccharides of an O18A1-type O-antigen. As indicated by the structure of a hexasaccharide complex determined at 1.6 Å resolution, the endoglycosidase-active sites are located intramolecularly, as in P22, and not between subunits, as in Sf6 tailspike. In contrast, the extreme C-terminal domain of HK620 tailspike forms a ;-sandwich, as in Sf6 and unlike P22 tailspike. Despite the different folds, structure-based sequence alignments of the C-termini reveal motifs conserved between the three proteins. We propose that the tailspike genes of P22, Sf6 and HK620 have a common precursor and are not mosaics of unrelated gene fragments.
TSPs (tailspike proteins) are essential infection organelles of bacteriophage P22. Upon infection, P22TSP binds to and cleaves the O-antigen moiety of the LPS (lipopolysaccharide) of its Salmonella host To elucidate the role of TSP during infection, we have studied binding to oligosaccharides and polysaccharides of Salmonella enteric Typhimurium and Enteritidis in vitro. P22TSP is a trimeric beta-helical protein with a carbohydrate-binding site on each subunit. Octasaccharide O-antigen fragments bind to P22TSP with micromolar dissociation constants. Moreover, P22TSP is an endorhamnosidase and cleaves the host O-antigen. Catalytic residues lie at the periphery of the high-affinity binding site, which enables unproductive binding modes, resulting in slow hydrolysis. However, the role of this hydrolysis function during infection remains unclear. Binding of polysaccharide to P22TSP is of high avidity with slow dissociation rates when compared with oligosaccharides. In vivo, the infection of Salmonella with phage P22 can be completely inhibited by the addition of LPS, indicating that binding of phage to its host via TSP is an essential step for infection.
Attachment of phages to host cells, followed by phage DNA ejection, represents the first stage of viral infection of bacteria. Salmonella phage P22 has been extensively studied, serving as an experimental model for bacterial infection by phages. P22 engages bacteria by binding to the sugar moiety of lipopolysaccharides using the viral tailspike protein for attachment. While the structures of the N-terminal particle-binding domain and the major receptor-binding domain of the tailspike have been analyzed individually, the three-dimensional organization of the intact protein, including the highly conserved linker region between the two domains, remained unknown. A single amino-acid exchange in the linker sequence made it possible to crystallize the full-length protein. Two crystal structures of the linker region are presented: one attached to the N-terminal domain and the other present within the complete tailspike protein. Both retain their biological function, but the mutated full-length tailspike displays a retarded folding pathway. Fitting of the full-length tailspike into a published cryo-electron microscopy map of the P22 virion requires an elastic distortion of the crystal structure. The conservation of the linker suggests a role in signal transmission from the distal tip of the molecule to the phage head, eventually leading to DNA ejection.
Sf6 belongs to the Podoviridae family of temperate bacteriophages that infect gram-negative bacteria by insertion of their double-stranded DNA. They attach to their hosts specifically via their tailspike proteins. The 1.25 Å crystal structure of Shigella phage Sf6 tailspike protein (Sf6 TSP) reveals a conserved architecture with a central, right-handed ; helix. In the trimer of Sf6 TSP, the parallel ; helices form a left-handed, coiled;; coil with a pitch of 340 Å. The C-terminal domain consists of a ; sandwich reminiscent of viral capsid proteins. Further crystallographic and biochemical analyses show a Shigella cell wall O-antigen fragment to bind to an endorhamnosidase active site located between two ;-helix subunits each anchoring one catalytic carboxylate. The functionally and structurally related bacteriophage, P22 TSP, lacks sequence identity with Sf6 TSP and has its active sites on single subunits. Sf6 TSP may serve as an example for the evolution of different host specificities on a similar general architecture.
Bacteriophage P22 recognizes O-antigen polysaccharides of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica (S.) with its tailspike protein (TSP). In the serovars S. Typhimurium, S. Enteritidis, and S. Paratyphi A, the tetrasaccharide repeat units of the respective O-antigens consist of an identical main chain trisaccharide but different 3,6-dideoxyhexose substituents. Here, the epimers abequose, tyvelose and paratose determine the specific serotype. P22 TSP recognizes O-antigen octasaccharides in an extended binding site with a single 3,6-dideoxyhexose binding pocket. We have isolated S. Paratyphi A octasaccharides which were not available previously and determined the crystal structure of their complex with P22 TSP. We discuss our data together with crystal structures of complexes with S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis octasaccharides determined earlier. Isothermal titration calorimetry showed that S. Paratyphi A octasaccharide binds P22 TSP less tightly, with a difference in binding free energy of similar to 7 kJ mol(-1) at 20 degrees C compared with S. Typhimurium and S. Enteritidis octasaccharides. Individual protein-carbohydrate contacts were probed by amino acid replacements showing that the dideoxyhexose pocket contributes to binding of all three serotypes. However, S. Paratyphi A octasaccharides bind in a conformation with an energetically unfavorable phi/epsilon glycosidic bond angle combination. In contrast, octasaccharides from the other serotypes bind as solution-like conformers. Two water molecules are conserved in all P22 TSP complexes with octasaccharides of different serotypes. They line the dideoxyhexose binding pocket and force the S. Paratyphi A octasaccharides to bind as nonsolution conformers. This emphasizes the role of solvent as part of carbohydrate binding sites.
The preparation of proteins for structural and functional analysis using the Escherichia coli expression system is often hampered by the formation of insoluble intracellular protein aggregates (inclusion bodies). Transferring those proteins into their native states by in vitro protein folding requires screening for the best buffer conditions and suitable additives. However, it is difficult to assess the success of such a screen if no biological assay is available. We established a fully automated folding screen and a system to detect folded protein that is based on analytical hydrophobic interaction chromatography and tryptophan fluorescence spectroscopy. The system was evaluated with two model enzymes (carbonic anhydrase II and malate dehydrogenase), and was successfully applied to the folding of the p22 subunit of human dynactin, which is expressed in inclusion bodies in E. coli. The described screen allows for high-throughput folding analysis of inclusion body proteins for structural and functional analyses
Exendin-4 is a pharmaceutical peptide used in the control of insulin secretion. Structural information on exendin-4 and related peptides especially on the level of quaternary structure is scarce. We present the first published association equilibria of exendin-4 directly measured by static and dynamic light scattering. We show that exendin-4 oligomerization is pH dependent and that these oligomers are of low compactness. We relate our experimental results to a structural hypothesis to describe molecular details of exendin-4 oligomers. Discussion of the validity of this hypothesis is based on NMR, circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy, and light scattering data on exendin-4 and a set of exendin-4 derived peptides. The essential forces driving oligomerization of exendin-4 are helix–helix interactions and interactions of a conserved hydrophobic moiety. Our structural hypothesis suggests that key interactions of exendin-4 monomers in the experimentally supported trimer take place between a defined helical segment and a hydrophobic triangle constituted by the Phe22 residues of the three monomeric subunits. Our data rationalize that Val19 might function as an anchor in the N-terminus of the interacting helix-region and that Trp25 is partially shielded in the oligomer by C-terminal amino acids of the same monomer. Our structural hypothesis suggests that the Trp25 residues do not interact with each other, but with C-terminal Pro residues of their own monomers.