scholarly journals Specific Binding Sites for an Antifungal Plant Defensin from Dahlia (Dahlia merckii) on Fungal Cells Are Required for Antifungal Activity

2000 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karin Thevissen ◽  
Rupert W. Osborn ◽  
David P. Acland ◽  
Willem F. Broekaert

Dm-AMP1, an antifungal plant defensin from seeds of dahlia (Dahlia merckii), was radioactively labeled with t-butoxycarbonyl-[35S]-L-methionine N-hydroxy-succinimi-dylester. This procedure yielded a 35S-labeled peptide with unaltered antifungal activity. [35S]Dm-AMP1 was used to assess binding on living cells of the filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa and the unicellular fungus Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Binding of [35S]Dm-AMP1 to fungal cells was saturable and could be competed for by preincubation with excess, unlabeled Dm-AMP1 as well as with Ah-AMP1 and Ct-AMP1, two plant defensins that are highly homologous to Dm-AMP1. In contrast, binding could not be competed for by more distantly related plant defensins or structurally unrelated antimicrobial peptides. Binding of [35S]Dm-AMP1 to either N. crassa or S. cerevisiae cells was apparently irreversible. In addition, whole cells and microsomal membrane fractions from two independently obtained S. cerevisiae mutants selected for resistance to Dm-AMP1 exhibited severely reduced binding affinity for [35S]Dm-AMP1, compared with wild-type yeast. This finding suggests that binding of Dm-AMP1 to S. cerevisiae plasma membranes is required for antifungal activity of this protein.

1999 ◽  
Vol 65 (12) ◽  
pp. 5451-5458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karin Thevissen ◽  
Franky R. G. Terras ◽  
Willem F. Broekaert

ABSTRACT We used an assay based on the uptake of SYTOX Green, an organic compound that fluoresces upon interaction with nucleic acids and penetrates cells with compromised plasma membranes, to investigate membrane permeabilization in fungi. Membrane permeabilization induced by plant defensins in Neurospora crassa was biphasic, depending on the plant defensin dose. At high defensin levels (10 to 40 μM), strong permeabilization was detected that could be strongly suppressed by cations in the medium. This permeabilization appears to rely on direct peptide-phospholipid interactions. At lower defensin levels (0.1 to 1 μM), a weaker, but more cation-resistant, permeabilization occurred at concentrations that correlated with the inhibition of fungal growth. Rs-AFP2(Y38G), an inactive variant of the plant defensin Rs-AFP2 from Raphanus sativus, failed to induce cation-resistant permeabilization in N. crassa. Dm-AMP1, a plant defensin from Dahlia merckii, induced cation-resistant membrane permeabilization in yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) which correlated with its antifungal activity. However, Dm-AMP1 could not induce cation-resistant permeabilization in the Dm-AMP1-resistantS. cerevisiae mutant DM1, which has a drastically reduced capacity for binding Dm-AMP1. We think that cation-resistant permeabilization is binding site mediated and linked to the primary cause of fungal growth inhibition induced by plant defensins.


1987 ◽  
Vol 252 (4) ◽  
pp. G535-G542 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Viguerie ◽  
J. P. Esteve ◽  
C. Susini ◽  
N. Vaysse ◽  
A. Ribet

We have previously demonstrated the presence of specific binding sites for somatostatin on plasma membranes from pancreatic acinar cells. In the present study we attempted to characterize the fate of receptor-bound 125I-[Tyr11]somatostatin. Internalization of somatostatin was rapid (reaching a plateau at 20% of the cell-associated specific radioactivity) and temperature dependent. To follow the processing of bound somatostatin, acini were incubated with 125I-[Tyr11]somatostatin at 5 degrees C during 16 h then, after washing, incubated at 37 degrees C for 90 min in fresh medium. Surface-bound somatostatin decreased rapidly, whereas radioactivity increased in the cell interior and the incubation medium. Intracellular and membrane-bound radioactivity was mainly intact 125I-[Tyr11]somatostatin. Degradation occurred at the plasma membrane level and led to iodotyrosine production. After 15 min of incubation, 15% of the initially surface-bound 125I-[Tyr11]somatostatin was compartmentalized within the cell, mainly in the microsomal fraction. After 30 min, a significant increase in radioactivity appeared in the nuclear fraction. These results indicate that the major part of somatostatin cellular degradation takes place at the plasma membrane level. Within the cell, somatostatin is routed to the nucleus via particular fractions sedimenting with microsomal vesicles.


1993 ◽  
Vol 264 (3) ◽  
pp. G541-G552
Author(s):  
Y. Hiramatsu ◽  
R. Kawai ◽  
R. C. Reba ◽  
T. R. Simon ◽  
B. J. Baum ◽  
...  

(RR)- and (SS)-quinuclidinyl iodobenzilate enantiomers [(RR)- and (SS)-IQNB, active and inert, respectively] have been synthesized for quantitative evaluation of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) binding. Pharmacokinetic approaches have not been used previously to assess in vivo IQNB binding in nonexcitable tissues. We have applied this method to examine mAChRs in rat parotid gland in comparison to those in brain and heart. Short-term infusion studies in vivo showed that the "instantaneous" reversible binding of (RR)- and (SS)-IQNB was high in the parotid (greater nonspecific binding potential), intermediate in the heart, and lowest in cortex and cerebellum. Long-term bolus injection experiments showed that the parotid gland mAChRs possessed a binding potential for receptor specific sites (380), which was intermediate between that of parietal cortex (930) and cerebellum (10) and greater than that of heart (165). In vitro binding to plasma membranes was generally consistent with the in vivo findings. In aggregate, these studies show that mAChRs can be evaluated in vivo in a nonexcitable tissue with the use of stereospecific ligands and a pharmacokinetic approach. The data suggest that IQNB, a mAChR antagonist, can identify characteristics of specific binding sites, which may reflect tissue differences.


1989 ◽  
Vol 108 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Trueba ◽  
Ana I. Vallejo ◽  
Isabel Rodriguez ◽  
Iñaki Ibarrola ◽  
María J. Sancho ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Álan Chrisleyr Maracahipes ◽  
Gabriel Bonan Taveira ◽  
Lorran Yves Sousa-Machado ◽  
Olga Lima Tavares Machado ◽  
Rosana Rodrigues ◽  
...  

Abstract Plant defensins are low molecular weight basic peptides ranging from 5 to 7 kDa, with capacity of inhibiting various pathogens, including fungi. They are present in different tissues of plants, including floral parts and fruits of Capsicum sp. The IIF48 extract, present in immature fruits of Capsicum annuum inoculated with C. gloeosporioides, was able to inhibit up to 100% growth ‘in vitro’ of the fungus Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. The main objective of this work was the purification and antifungal activity characterization of a defense-related plant defensin-like isolated of the IIF48 immature fruits extract. The IIF48 extract was subjected to HPLC purification and 13 fractions were obtained, followed by a tricine gel electrophoresis to obtain the protein profile. The different fractions were submitted to a growth inhibition assay against C. gloeosporioides fungus. Fraction 7 (F7) was the most active causing 73% inhibition. Because of the higher F7 activity and the presence of only a peptide of approximately 5 kDa this fraction was subjected to N-terminal sequencing. F7 fraction was carried out plasma membrane permeabilization assays, induction of intracellular ROS production analysis and investigated mitochondrial membrane potential. The F7 fraction showed significant inhibitory activity on the tested fungus, besides promoting membrane permeabilization, induction of endogenous ROS production in Colletotrichum cells and impairing mitochondrial functionality. The first 18 amino acid sequence of the F7 fraction peptide suggests homology to plant-like defensin and was named IIFF7Ca. We also concluded that IIFF7Ca peptide has an effective antimicrobial action against the fungus C. gloeosporioides.


1994 ◽  
Vol 298 (3) ◽  
pp. 739-742 ◽  
Author(s):  
P J Cullen ◽  
Y Patel ◽  
V V Kakkar ◽  
R F Irvine ◽  
K S Authi

In the present study we describe the characterization and localization of Ins(1,3,4,5)P4-binding sites in human platelet membranes. Specific binding sites for Ins(1,3,4,5)P4 have been identified on mixed, plasma and intracellular membranes from neuraminidase-treated platelets using highly purified carrier-free [32P]Ins(1,3,4,5)P4. The displacement of Ins(1,3,4,5)P4 from these sites by Ins(1,4,5)P3 and InsP6 occurs at greater than two orders of magnitude higher concentrations and with Ins(1,3,4,5,6)P5 at about 40-fold higher concentrations than with Ins(1,3,4,5)P4. The membranes were further separated by free-flow electrophoresis into plasma and intracellular membranes. The Ins(1,3,4,5)P4-binding sites separated with plasma membranes, and showed similar affinities and specificities as mixed membranes, whereas Ins(1,4,5)P3-binding sites were predominantly in the intracellular membranes. These results suggest a predominantly plasma membrane location for putative Ins(1,3,4,5)P4 receptors in human platelets.


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