scholarly journals Familial Relationships in Hyperthermo- and Acidophilic Archaeal Viruses

2010 ◽  
Vol 84 (9) ◽  
pp. 4747-4754 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lotta Johanna Happonen ◽  
Peter Redder ◽  
Xu Peng ◽  
Laila Johanne Reigstad ◽  
David Prangishvili ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Archaea often live in extreme, harsh environments such as acidic hot springs and hypersaline waters. To date, only two icosahedrally symmetric, membrane-containing archaeal viruses, SH1 and Sulfolobus turreted icosahedral virus (STIV), have been described in detail. We report the sequence and three-dimensional structure of a third such virus isolated from a hyperthermoacidophilic crenarchaeon, Sulfolobus strain G4ST-2. Characterization of this new isolate revealed it to be similar to STIV on the levels of genome and structural organization. The genome organization indicates that these two viruses have diverged from a common ancestor. Interestingly, the prominent surface turrets of the two viruses are strikingly different. By sequencing and mass spectrometry, we mapped several large insertions and deletions in the known structural proteins that could account for these differences and showed that both viruses can infect the same host. A combination of genomic and proteomic analyses revealed important new insights into the structural organization of these viruses and added to our limited knowledge of archaeal virus life cycles and host-cell interactions.

2017 ◽  
Vol 91 (20) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cassia Wagner ◽  
Vijay Reddy ◽  
Francisco Asturias ◽  
Maryam Khoshouei ◽  
John E. Johnson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Our understanding of archaeal virus diversity and structure is just beginning to emerge. Here we describe a new archaeal virus, tentatively named Metallosphaera turreted icosahedral virus (MTIV), that was isolated from an acidic hot spring in Yellowstone National Park, USA. Two strains of the virus were identified and were found to replicate in an archaeal host species closely related to Metallosphaera yellowstonensis. Each strain encodes a 9.8- to 9.9-kb linear double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome with large inverted terminal repeats. Each genome encodes 21 open reading frames (ORFs). The ORFs display high homology between the strains, but they are quite distinct from other known viral genes. The 70-nm-diameter virion is built on a T=28 icosahedral lattice. Both single particle cryo-electron microscopy and cryotomography reconstructions reveal an unusual structure that has 42 turret-like projections: 12 pentameric turrets positioned on the icosahedral 5-fold axes and 30 turrets with apparent hexameric symmetry positioned on the icosahedral 2-fold axes. Both the virion structural properties and the genome content support MTIV as the founding member of a new family of archaeal viruses. IMPORTANCE Many archaeal viruses are quite different from viruses infecting bacteria and eukaryotes. Initial characterization of MTIV reveals a virus distinct from other known bacterial, eukaryotic, and archaeal viruses; this finding suggests that viruses infecting Archaea are still an understudied group. As the first known virus infecting a Metallosphaera sp., MTIV provides a new system for exploring archaeal virology by examining host-virus interactions and the unique features of MTIV structure-function relationships. These studies will likely expand our understanding of virus ecology and evolution.


2006 ◽  
Vol 80 (15) ◽  
pp. 7636-7644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric T. Larson ◽  
Dirk Reiter ◽  
Mark Young ◽  
C. Martin Lawrence

ABSTRACT Sulfolobus turreted icosahedral virus (STIV) was the first icosahedral virus characterized from an archaeal host. It infects Sulfolobus species that thrive in the acidic hot springs (pH 2.9 to 3.9 and 72 to 92°C) of Yellowstone National Park. The overall capsid architecture and the structure of its major capsid protein are very similar to those of the bacteriophage PRD1 and eukaryotic viruses Paramecium bursaria Chlorella virus 1 and adenovirus, suggesting a viral lineage that predates the three domains of life. The 17,663-base-pair, circular, double-stranded DNA genome contains 36 potential open reading frames, whose sequences generally show little similarity to other genes in the sequence databases. However, functional and evolutionary information may be suggested by a protein's three-dimensional structure. To this end, we have undertaken structural studies of the STIV proteome. Here we report our work on A197, the product of an STIV open reading frame. The structure of A197 reveals a GT-A fold that is common to many members of the glycosyltransferase superfamily. A197 possesses a canonical DXD motif and a putative catalytic base that are hallmarks of this family of enzymes, strongly suggesting a glycosyltransferase activity for A197. Potential roles for the putative glycosyltransferase activity of A197 and their evolutionary implications are discussed.


1998 ◽  
Vol 79 (01) ◽  
pp. 104-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Osamu Takamiya

SummaryMurine monoclonal antibodies (designated hVII-B101/B1, hVIIDC2/D4 and hVII-DC6/3D8) directed against human factor VII (FVII) were prepared and characterized, with more extensive characterization of hVII-B101/B1 that did not bind reduced FVIIa. The immunoglobulin of the three monoclonal antibodies consisted of IgG1. These antibodies did not inhibit procoagulant activities of other vitamin K-dependent coagulation factors except FVII and did not cross-react with proteins in the immunoblotting test. hVII-DC2/D4 recognized the light chain after reduction of FVIIa with 2-mercaptoethanol, and hVIIDC6/3D8 the heavy chain. hVII-B101/B1 bound FVII without Ca2+, and possessed stronger affinity for FVII in the presence of Ca2+. The Kd for hVII-B101/B1 to FVII was 1.75 x 10–10 M in the presence of 5 mM CaCl2. The antibody inhibited the binding of FVII to tissue factor in the presence of Ca2+. hVII-B101/B1 also inhibited the activation of FX by the complex of FVIIa and tissue factor in the presence of Ca2+. Furthermore, immunoblotting revealed that hVII-B101/B1 reacted with non-reduced γ-carboxyglutaminic acid (Gla)-domainless-FVII and/or FVIIa. hVII-B101/B1 showed a similar pattern to that of non-reduced proteolytic fragments of FVII by trypsin with hVII-DC2/D4 on immunoblotting test. hVII-B101/B1 reacted differently with the FVII from the dysfunctional FVII variant, FVII Shinjo, which has a substitution of Gln for Arg at residue 79 in the first epidermal growth factor (1st EGF)-like domain (Takamiya O, et al. Haemosta 25, 89-97,1995) compared with normal FVII, when used as a solid phase-antibody for ELISA by the sandwich method. hVII-B101/B1 did not react with a series of short peptide sequences near position 79 in the first EGF-like domain on the solid-phase support for epitope scanning. These results suggested that the specific epitope of the antibody, hVII-B101/B1, was located in the three-dimensional structure near position 79 in the first EGF-like domain of human FVII.


Biochemistry ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 32 (47) ◽  
pp. 12812-12820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara L. Golden ◽  
David W. Hoffman ◽  
V. Ramakrishnan ◽  
Stephen W. White

Author(s):  
Vineela Balisetty ◽  
Kanamaluru Vidyasagar

The quaternary A 2W3SeO12 (A = NH4, Cs, Rb, K or Tl) selenites have been prepared in the form of single crystals by hydrothermal and novel solid-state reactions. They were characterized by X-ray diffraction, thermal and spectroscopic studies. All of them have a hexagonal tungsten oxide (HTO) related [W3SeO12]2− anionic framework with pyramidally coordinated Se4+ ions. The known A 2W3SeO12 (A = NH4, Cs or Rb) compounds are isostructural with the Cs2W3TeO12 compound and have a non-centrosymmetric layered structure containing intra-layer Se—O bonds. The new compound K2W3SeO12(α) is isostructural with the K2W3TeO12 compound and has a centrosymmetric three-dimensional structure containing interlayer Se—O bonds. It is inferred that the new Tl2W3SeO12 compound has the same three-dimensional structure as K2W3SeO12(α).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celestine N Chi ◽  
Ravi Teja Inturi ◽  
Sandra Martinez Lara ◽  
Mahmoud Darweesh

The emergence of the first eukaryotic cell was preceded by evolutionary events which are still highly debatable. Recently, comprehensive metagenomics analysis has uncovered that the Asgard super-phylum is the closest yet known archaea host of eukaryotes. However, it remains to be established if a large number of eukaryotic signature proteins predicated to be encoded by the Asgard super-phylum are functional at least, in the context of a eukaryotic cell. Here, we determined the three-dimensional structure of profilin from Thorarchaeota by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and show that this profilin has a rigid core with a flexible N-terminus which was previously implicated in polyproline binding. In addition, we also show that thorProfilin co-localizes with eukaryotic actin in cultured HeLa cells. This finding reaffirm the notion that Asgardean encoded proteins possess eukaryotic-like characteristics and strengthen likely existence of a complex cytoskeleton already in a last eukaryotic common ancestor


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A.E. Naas ◽  
A.K. MacKenzie ◽  
B. Dalhus ◽  
V.G.H. Eijsink ◽  
P.B. Pope

Abstract Previous gene-centric analysis of a cow rumen metagenome revealed the first potentially cellulolytic polysaccharide utilization locus, of which the main catalytic enzyme (AC2aCel5A) was identified as a glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 5 endo-cellulase. Here we present the 1.8 Å three-dimensional structure of AC2aCel5A and characterization of its enzymatic activities. The enzyme possesses the archetypical (β/α)8-barrel found throughout the GH5 family and contains the two strictly conserved catalytic glutamates located at the C-terminal ends of β-strands 4 and 7. The enzyme is active on insoluble cellulose and acts exclusively on linear β-(1,4)-linked glucans. Co-crystallization of a catalytically inactive mutant with substrate yielded a 2.4 Å structure showing cellotriose bound in the −3 to −1 subsites. Additional electron density was observed between Trp178 and Trp254, two residues that form a hydrophobic “clamp”, potentially interacting with sugars at the +1 and +2 subsites. The enzyme’s active-site cleft was narrower compared to the closest structural relatives, which in contrast to AC2aCel5A, are also active on xylans, mannans and/or xyloglucans. Interestingly, the structure and function of this enzyme seem adapted to less-substituted substrates such as cellulose, presumably due to the insufficient space to accommodate the side-chains of branched glucans in the active-site cleft.


2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. 3669-3679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caterina Trozzi ◽  
Linda Bartholomew ◽  
Alessandra Ceccacci ◽  
Gabriella Biasiol ◽  
Laura Pacini ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The hepatitis C virus (HCV) serine protease is necessary for viral replication and represents a valid target for developing new therapies for HCV infection. Potent and selective inhibitors of this enzyme have been identified and shown to inhibit HCV replication in tissue culture. The optimization of these inhibitors for clinical development would greatly benefit from in vitro systems for the identification and the study of resistant variants. We report the use HCV subgenomic replicons to isolate and characterize mutants resistant to a protease inhibitor. Taking advantage of the replicons' ability to transduce resistance to neomycin, we selected replicons with decreased sensitivity to the inhibitor by culturing the host cells in the presence of the inhibitor and neomycin. The selected replicons replicated to the same extent as those in parental cells. Sequence analysis followed by transfection of replicons containing isolated mutations revealed that resistance was mediated by amino acid substitutions in the protease. These results were confirmed by in vitro experiments with mutant enzymes and by modeling the inhibitor in the three-dimensional structure of the protease.


2020 ◽  
Vol 94 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Beibei Chen ◽  
Zhao Chen ◽  
Yuchen Wang ◽  
Han Gong ◽  
Linshan Sima ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Recent environmental and metagenomic studies have considerably increased the repertoire of archaeal viruses and suggested that they play important roles in nutrient cycling in the biosphere. However, very little is known about how they regulate their life cycles and interact with their hosts. Here, we report that the life cycle of the temperate haloarchaeal virus SNJ1 is controlled by the product ORF4, a small protein belonging to the antitoxin MazE superfamily. We show that ORF4 controls the lysis-lysogeny switch of SNJ1 and mediates superinfection immunity by repression of genomic DNA replication of the superinfecting viruses. Bioinformatic analysis shows that ORF4 is highly conserved in two SNJ1-like proviruses, suggesting that the mechanisms for lysis-lysogeny switch and superinfection immunity are conserved in this group of viruses. As the lysis-lysogeny switch and superinfection immunity of archaeal viruses have been poorly studied, we suggest that SNJ1 could serve as a model system to study these processes. IMPORTANCE Archaeal viruses are important parts of the virosphere. Understanding how they regulate their life cycles and interact with host cells provide crucial insights into their biological functions and the evolutionary histories of viruses. However, mechanistic studies of the life cycle of archaeal viruses are scarce due to a lack of genetic tools and demanding cultivation conditions. Here, we discover that the temperate haloarchaeal virus SNJ1, which infects Natrinema sp. strain J7, employs a lysis-lysogeny switch and establishes superinfection immunity like bacteriophages. We show that its ORF4 is critical for both processes and acts as a repressor of the replication of SNJ1. These results establish ORF4 as a master regulator of SNJ1 life cycle and provides novel insights on the regulation of life cycles by temperate archaeal viruses and on their interactions with host cells.


1999 ◽  
Vol 181 (14) ◽  
pp. 4397-4403 ◽  
Author(s):  
Casper Jørgensen ◽  
Gert Dandanell

ABSTRACT In this work, the LysR-type protein XapR has been subjected to a mutational analysis. XapR regulates the expression of xanthosine phosphorylase (XapA), a purine nucleoside phosphorylase inEscherichia coli. In the wild type, full expression of XapA requires both a functional XapR protein and the inducer xanthosine. Here we show that deoxyinosine can also function as an inducer in the wild type, although not to the same extent as xanthosine. We have isolated and characterized in detail the mutants that can be induced by other nucleosides as well as xanthosine. Sequencing of the mutants has revealed that two regions in XapR are important for correct interactions between the inducer and XapR. One region is defined by amino acids 104 and 132, and the other region, containing most of the isolated mutations, is found between amino acids 203 and 210. These regions, when modelled into the three-dimensional structure of CysB from Klebsiella aerogenes, are placed close together and are most probably directly involved in binding the inducer xanthosine.


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