scholarly journals Lantibiotic Reductase LtnJ Substrate Selectivity Assessed with a Collection of Nisin Derivatives as Substrates

2015 ◽  
Vol 81 (11) ◽  
pp. 3679-3687 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongdong Mu ◽  
Manuel Montalbán-López ◽  
Jingjing Deng ◽  
Oscar P. Kuipers
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Posttranslational Modifications ◽  
Substrate Selectivity ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene Cluster ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hydrophobic Residues ◽  
Lacticin 3147 ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene ◽  
Biosynthetic Machinery

ABSTRACTLantibiotics are potent antimicrobial peptides characterized by the presence of dehydrated amino acids, dehydroalanine and dehydrobutyrine, and (methyl)lanthionine rings. In addition to these posttranslational modifications, some lantibiotics exhibit additional modifications that usually confer increased biological activity or stability on the peptide. LtnJ is a reductase responsible for the introduction ofd-alanine in the lantibiotic lacticin 3147. The conversion ofl-serine intod-alanine requires dehydroalanine as the substrate, which is producedin vivoby the dehydration of serine by a lantibiotic dehydratase, i.e., LanB or LanM. In this work, we probe the substrate specificity of LtnJ using a system that combines the nisin modification machinery (dehydratase, cyclase, and transporter) and the stereospecific reductase LtnJ inLactococcus lactis. We also describe an improvement in the production yield of this system by inserting a putative attenuator from the nisin biosynthesis gene cluster in front of theltnJgene. In order to clarify the sequence selectivity of LtnJ, peptides composed of truncated nisin and different mutated C-terminal tails were designed and coexpressed with LtnJ and the nisin biosynthetic machinery. In these tails, serine was flanked by diverse amino acids to determine the influence of the surrounding residues in the reaction. LtnJ successfully hydrogenated peptides when hydrophobic residues (Leu, Ile, Phe, and Ala) were flanking the intermediate dehydroalanine, while those in which dehydroalanine was flanked by one or two polar residues (Ser, Thr, Glu, Lys, and Asn) or Gly were either less prone to be modified by LtnJ or not modified at all. Moreover, our results showed that dehydrobutyrine cannot serve as a substrate for LtnJ.

scholarly journals Doripenem MICs andompK36Porin Genotypes of Sequence Type 258, KPC-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae May Predict Responses to Carbapenem-Colistin Combination Therapy among Patients with Bacteremia

2014 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 1797-1801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan K. Shields ◽  
M. Hong Nguyen ◽  
Brian A. Potoski ◽  
Ellen G. Press ◽  
Liang Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Combination Therapy ◽  
Klebsiella Pneumoniae ◽  
Sequence Type ◽  
Content Type

ABSTRACTTreatment failures of a carbapenem-colistin regimen among patients with bacteremia due to sequence type 258 (ST258), KPC-2-producingKlebsiella pneumoniaewere significantly more likely if both agents were inactivein vitro, as defined by a colistin MIC of >2 μg/ml and the presence of either a majorompK36porin mutation (guanine and alanine insertions at amino acids 134 and 135 [ins aa 134–135 GD], IS5promoter insertion [P= 0.007]) or a doripenem MIC of >8 μg/ml (P= 0.01). MajorompK36mutations among KPC-K. pneumoniaestrains are important determinants of carbapenem-colistin responsesin vitroandin vivo.

scholarly journals Extensive mutagenesis of a transcriptional activation domain identifies single hydrophobic and acidic amino acids important for activation in vivo.

1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
M B Sainz ◽  
S A Goff ◽  
V L Chandler
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
Carboxyl Terminus ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Activation Domain ◽  
Hydrophobic Residues ◽  
Transcriptional Activation Domain ◽  
Acidic Amino Acids

C1 is a transcriptional activator of genes encoding biosynthetic enzymes of the maize anthocyanin pigment pathway. C1 has an amino terminus homologous to Myb DNA-binding domains and an acidic carboxyl terminus that is a transcriptional activation domain in maize and yeast cells. To identify amino acids critical for transcriptional activation, an extensive random mutagenesis of the C1 carboxyl terminus was done. The C1 activation domain is remarkably tolerant of amino acid substitutions, as changes at 34 residues had little or no effect on transcriptional activity. These changes include introduction of helix-incompatible amino acids throughout the C1 activation domain and alteration of most single acidic amino acids, suggesting that a previously postulated amphipathic alpha-helix is not required for activation. Substitutions at two positions revealed amino acids important for transcriptional activation. Replacement of leucine 253 with a proline or glutamine resulted in approximately 10% of wild-type transcriptional activation. Leucine 253 is in a region of C1 in which several hydrophobic residues align with residues important for transcriptional activation by the herpes simplex virus VP16 protein. However, changes at all other hydrophobic residues in C1 indicate that none are critical for C1 transcriptional activation. The other important amino acid in C1 is aspartate 262, as a change to valine resulted in only 24% of wild-type transcriptional activation. Comparison of our C1 results with those from VP16 reveal substantial differences in which amino acids are required for transcriptional activation in vivo by these two acidic activation domains.

scholarly journals Characterization of the Amicetin Biosynthesis Gene Cluster from Streptomyces vinaceusdrappus NRRL 2363 Implicates Two Alternative Strategies for Amide Bond Formation

2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (7) ◽  
pp. 2393-2401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gaiyun Zhang ◽  
Haibo Zhang ◽  
Sumei Li ◽  
Ji Xiao ◽  
Guangtao Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Cluster ◽  
Acyl Carrier Protein ◽  
Bond Formation ◽  
Antiviral Agent ◽  
Amide Bond ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene Cluster ◽  
Alternative Strategies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Amide Bond Formation ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene

ABSTRACTAmicetin, an antibacterial and antiviral agent, belongs to a group of disaccharide nucleoside antibiotics featuring an α-(1→4)-glycoside bond in the disaccharide moiety. In this study, the amicetin biosynthesis gene cluster was cloned fromStreptomyces vinaceusdrappusNRRL 2363 and localized on a 37-kb contiguous DNA region. Heterologous expression of the amicetin biosynthesis gene cluster inStreptomyces lividansTK64 resulted in the production of amicetin and its analogues, thereby confirming the identity of theamigene cluster.In silicosequence analysis revealed that 21 genes were putatively involved in amicetin biosynthesis, including 3 for regulation and transportation, 10 for disaccharide biosynthesis, and 8 for the formation of the amicetin skeleton by the linkage of cytosine,p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA), and the terminal (+)-α-methylserine moieties. The inactivation of the benzoate coenzyme A (benzoate-CoA) ligase geneamiLand theN-acetyltransferase geneamiFled to two mutants that accumulated the same two compounds, cytosamine and 4-acetamido-3-hydroxybenzoic acid. These data indicated that AmiF functioned as an amide synthethase to link cytosine and PABA. The inactivation ofamiR, encoding an acyl-CoA-acyl carrier protein transacylase, resulted in the production of plicacetin and norplicacetin, indicating AmiR to be responsible for attachment of the terminal methylserine moiety to form another amide bond. These findings implicated two alternative strategies for amide bond formation in amicetin biosynthesis.

scholarly journals Neisseria meningitidis Polynucleotide Phosphorylase Affects Aggregation, Adhesion, and Virulence

2016 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. 1501-1513 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakob Engman ◽  
Aurel Negrea ◽  
Sara Sigurlásdóttir ◽  
Miriam Geörg ◽  
Jens Eriksson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neisseria Meningitidis ◽  
Posttranslational Modifications ◽  
Human Cells ◽  
Bacterial Attachment ◽  
Polynucleotide Phosphorylase ◽  
Gene Encoding ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Type Iv ◽  
Transcriptional Changes

Neisseria meningitidisautoaggregation is an important step during attachment to human cells. Aggregation is mediated by type IV pili and can be modulated by accessory pilus proteins, such as PilX, and posttranslational modifications of the major pilus subunit PilE. The mechanisms underlying the regulation of aggregation remain poorly characterized. Polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase) is a 3′–5′ exonuclease that is involved in RNA turnover and the regulation of small RNAs. In this study, we biochemically confirm that NMC0710 is theN. meningitidisPNPase, and we characterize its role inN. meningitidispathogenesis. We show that deletion of the gene encoding PNPase leads to hyperaggregation and increased adhesion to epithelial cells. The aggregation induced was found to be dependent on pili and to be mediated by excessive pilus bundling. PNPase expression was induced following bacterial attachment to human cells. Deletion of PNPase led to global transcriptional changes and the differential regulation of 469 genes. We also demonstrate that PNPase is required for full virulence in anin vivomodel ofN. meningitidisinfection. The present study shows that PNPase negatively affects aggregation, adhesion, and virulence inN. meningitidis.

scholarly journals Set2-Dependent K36 Methylation Is Regulated by Novel Intratail Interactions within H3

2009 ◽  
Vol 29 (24) ◽  
pp. 6413-6426 ◽  
Author(s):  
James N. Psathas ◽  
Suting Zheng ◽  
Song Tan ◽  
Joseph C. Reese
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Catalytic Activity ◽  
Chromatin Remodeling ◽  
Posttranslational Modifications ◽  
Active Site ◽  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Gene Activation ◽  
N Terminus

ABSTRACT Posttranslational modifications to histones have been studied extensively, but the requirement for the residues within the tails for different stages of transcription is less clear. Using RNR3 as a model, we found that the residues within the N terminus of H3 are predominantly required for steps after transcription initiation and chromatin remodeling. Specifically, deleting as few as 20 amino acids, or substituting glutamines for lysines in the tail, greatly impaired K36 methylation by Set2. The mutations to the tail described here preserve the residues predicted to fill the active site of Set2, and the deletion mimics the recently described cleavage of the H3 tail that occurs during gene activation. Importantly, maintaining the charge of the unmodified tail by arginine substitutions preserves Set2 function in vivo. The H3 tail is dispensable for Set2 recruitment to genes but is required for the catalytic activity of Set2 in vitro. We propose that Set2 activity is controlled by novel intratail interactions which can be influenced by modifications and changes to the structure of the H3 tail to control the dynamics and localization of methylation during elongation.

scholarly journals The C Terminus of Substrates Is Critical but Not Sufficient for Their Degradation by the Pseudomonas aeruginosa CtpA Protease

2020 ◽  
Vol 202 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sammi Chung ◽  
Andrew J. Darwin
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa ◽  
Cell Wall ◽  
Outer Membrane ◽  
Content Type ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Outer Membrane Lipoprotein ◽  
Membrane Lipoprotein ◽  
Carboxyl Terminal

ABSTRACT Bacterial carboxyl-terminal processing proteases (CTPs) are widely conserved and have been linked to important processes, including signal transduction, cell wall metabolism, and virulence. However, the features that target proteins for CTP-dependent cleavage are unclear. Studies of the Escherichia coli CTP Prc suggested that it cleaves proteins with nonpolar and/or structurally unconstrained C termini, but it is not clear if this applies broadly. Pseudomonas aeruginosa has a divergent CTP, CtpA, which is required for virulence. CtpA works in complex with the outer membrane lipoprotein LbcA to degrade cell wall hydrolases. In this study, we investigated if the C termini of two nonhomologous CtpA substrates are important for their degradation. We determined that these substrates have extended C termini compared to those of their closest E. coli homologs. Removing 7 amino acids from these extensions was sufficient to reduce their degradation by CtpA both in vivo and in vitro. Degradation of one truncated substrate was restored by adding the C terminus from the other but not by adding an unrelated sequence. However, modification of the C termini of nonsubstrates, by adding the C-terminal amino acids from a substrate, did not cause their degradation by CtpA. Therefore, the C termini of CtpA substrates are required but not sufficient for their efficient degradation. Although C-terminal truncated substrates were protected from degradation, they still associated with the LbcA-CtpA complex in vivo. Therefore, degradation of a protein by CtpA requires a C terminus-independent interaction with the LbcA-CtpA complex, followed by C terminus-dependent degradation, perhaps because CtpA normally initiates cleavage at a C-terminal site. IMPORTANCE Carboxyl-terminal processing proteases (CTPs) are found in all three domains of life, but exactly how they work is poorly understood, including how they recognize substrates. Bacterial CTPs have been associated with virulence, including CtpA of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which works in complex with the outer membrane lipoprotein LbcA to degrade potentially dangerous peptidoglycan hydrolases. We report an important advance by revealing that efficient degradation by CtpA requires at least two separable phenomena and that one of them depends on information encoded in the substrate C terminus. A C terminus-independent association with the LbcA-CtpA complex is followed by C terminus-dependent cleavage by CtpA. Increased understanding of how CTPs target proteins is significant, due to their links to virulence, peptidoglycan remodeling, and other important processes.

scholarly journals Analysis of Small Critical Regions of Swi1 Conferring Prion Formation, Maintenance, and Transmission

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (20) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Valtierra ◽  
Zhiqiang Du ◽  
Liming Li
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Nonsense Suppression ◽  
Protein Conformations ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Partial Loss ◽  
Poor Growth ◽  
Content Type ◽  
A Subunit ◽  
Critical Regions

ABSTRACT Saccharomyces cerevisiae contains several prion elements, which are epigenetically transmitted as self-perpetuating protein conformations. One such prion is [SWI + ], whose protein determinant is Swi1, a subunit of the SWI/SNF chromatin-remodeling complex. We previously reported that [SWI + ] formation results in a partial loss-of-function phenotype of poor growth in nonglucose medium and abolishment of multicellular features. We also showed that the first 38 amino acids of Swi1 propagated [SWI +]. We show here that a region as small as the first 32 amino acids of Swi1 (Swi11–32) can decorate [SWI +] aggregation and stably maintain and transmit [SWI +] independently of full-length Swi1. Regions smaller than Swi11–32 are either incapable of aggregation or unstably propagate [SWI +]. When fused to Sup35MC, the [PSI + ] determinant lacking its PrD, Swi11–31 and Swi11–32 can act as transferable prion domains (PrDs). The resulting fusions give rise to a novel chimeric prion, [SPS +], exhibiting [PSI +]-like nonsense suppression. Thus, an NH2-terminal region of ∼30 amino acids of Swi1 contains all the necessary information for in vivo prion formation, maintenance, and transmission. This PrD is unique in size and composition: glutamine free, asparagine rich, and the smallest defined to date. Our findings broaden our understanding of what features allow a protein region to serve as a PrD.

scholarly journals A Naturally Occurring Deletion in FliE from Salmonella enterica Serovar Dublin Results in an Aflagellate Phenotype and Defective Proinflammatory Properties

2017 ◽  
Vol 86 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastián Sasías ◽  
Adriana Martínez-Sanguiné ◽  
Laura Betancor ◽  
Arací Martínez ◽  
Bruno D'Alessandro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Salmonella Enterica ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Salmonella Enterica Serovar Dublin

ABSTRACTSalmonella entericaserovar Dublin is adapted to cattle but is able to infect humans with high invasiveness. An acute inflammatory response at the intestine helps to preventSalmonelladissemination to systemic sites. Flagella contribute to this response by providing motility and FliC-mediated signaling through pattern recognition receptors. In a previous work, we reported a high frequency (11 out of 25) ofS. Dublin isolates lacking flagella in a collection obtained from humans and cattle. The aflagellate strains were impaired in their proinflammatory propertiesin vitroandin vivo. The aim of this work was to elucidate the underlying cause of the absence of flagella inS. Dublin isolates. We report here that class 3 flagellar genes are repressed in the human aflagellate isolates, due to impaired secretion of FliA anti-sigma factor FlgM. This phenotype is due to an in-frame 42-nucleotide deletion in thefliEgene, which codes for a protein located in the flagellar basal body. The deletion is predicted to produce a protein lacking amino acids 18 to 31. The aflagellate phenotype was highly stable; revertants were obtained only whenfliAwas artificially overexpressed combined with several successive passages in motility agar. DNA sequence analysis revealed that motile revertants resulted from duplications of DNA sequences infliEadjacent to the deleted region. These duplications produced a FliE protein of similar length to the wild type and demonstrate that amino acids 18 to 31 of FliE are not essential. The same deletion was detected inS. Dublin isolates obtained from cattle, indicating that this mutation circulates in nature.

scholarly journals Phosphorylation-Regulated Transitions in an Oligomeric State Control the Activity of the Sae2 DNA Repair Enzyme

2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 778-793 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiong Fu ◽  
Julia Chow ◽  
Kara A. Bernstein ◽  
Nodar Makharashvili ◽  
Sucheta Arora ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Cycle ◽  
Dna Damage ◽  
Dna Repair ◽  
Posttranslational Modifications ◽  
Strand Break ◽  
Dna Double Strand Breaks ◽  
Oligomeric State ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Processing Enzymes

In the DNA damage response, many repair and signaling molecules mobilize rapidly at the sites of DNA double-strand breaks. This network of immediate responses is regulated at the level of posttranslational modifications that control the activation of DNA processing enzymes, protein kinases, and scaffold proteins to coordinate DNA repair and checkpoint signaling. Here we investigated the DNA damage-induced oligomeric transitions of the Sae2 protein, an important enzyme in the initiation of DNA double-strand break repair. Sae2 is a target of multiple phosphorylation events, which we identified and characterizedin vivoin the budding yeastSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Both cell cycle-dependent and DNA damage-dependent phosphorylation sites in Sae2 are important for the survival of DNA damage, and the cell cycle-regulated modifications are required to prime the damage-dependent events. We found that Sae2 exists in the form of inactive oligomers that are transiently released into smaller active units by this series of phosphorylations. DNA damage also triggers removal of Sae2 through autophagy and proteasomal degradation, ensuring that active Sae2 is present only transiently in cells. Overall, this analysis provides evidence for a novel type of protein regulation where the activity of an enzyme is controlled dynamically by posttranslational modifications that regulate its solubility and oligomeric state.

scholarly journals Whole-Genome Sequencing of the Fungus Penicillium citrinum Reveals the Biosynthesis Gene Cluster for the Mycotoxin Citrinin

2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus Schmidt-Heydt ◽  
Dominic Stoll ◽  
Rolf Geisen
Keyword(s):  
Antibiotic Resistance ◽  
Whole Genome Sequencing ◽  
Gene Cluster ◽  
Genome Sequencing ◽  
Penicillium Citrinum ◽  
Whole Genome ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene Cluster ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Biosynthesis Gene

Penicillium citrinum is a food-contaminating ascomycete that consistently produces large amounts of the mycotoxin citrinin. Citrinin exhibits, besides its toxicity, antibiotic effects and thus potentially forces antibiotic resistance.

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