Alternate pathways for NADH oxidation in Thermus thermophilus using type 2 NADH dehydrogenases

2013 ◽  
Vol 394 (5) ◽  
pp. 667-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
Padmaja Venkatakrishnan ◽  
Andrea M. Lencina ◽  
Lici A. Schurig-Briccio ◽  
Robert B. Gennis

Abstract Type 2 NADH dehydrogenase (NDH-2) is a single-subunit membrane-associated flavoenzyme that is part of the respiratory chain of many prokaryotes. The enzyme catalyzes the electron transfer from NADH to quinone but is not directly coupled to the generation of a proton motive force. The purpose of the current work is to compare two different NDH-2s that are encoded in strains of Thermus thermophilus. The aerobic T. thermophilus HB27 strain expresses one NDH-2 that has been previously isolated and characterized. In this work it is shown that a gene, which is misannotated as an NADH oxidase, encodes this enzyme. Unlike HB27, strain NAR1 of T. thermophilus is capable of partial denitrification, and in addition its genome contains the nrcN gene that encodes a second putative NDH-2. Of particular interest is the fact that nrcN is part of an operon (nrcDEFN) that is proposed to encode a protein complex specifically required for nitrate reduction. In this work, the nrcN gene has the activity expected of a NDH-2, and functions independently of other components of the putative Nrc complex. The biochemical properties of the two NDH-2 enzymes are compared. Efforts to demonstrate that NrcN is part of a multiprotein complex were not successful. However, the NrcE protein was expressed in Escherichia coli and shown to be a membrane-bound protein containing heme B.

1975 ◽  
Vol 152 (3) ◽  
pp. 561-569 ◽  
Author(s):  
B J Wilkinson ◽  
J A Deans ◽  
D J Ellar

Measurement of certain membrane-bound enzymic activities was used to study the orientation of the outer membrane of the double-membraned forespore of Bacillus megaterium KM. 2. Adenosine triphosphatase, NADH dehydrogenase and L-malate intact protoplasts, but were readily detected in intact stage II or IV forespores, consistent with reversed polarity of the outer forespore membrane relative to the mother-cell plasma membrane. 3. Measurement of NADH oxidase activity revealed that intact stage III forespores had the same high affinity for NADH as protoplast membrane preparations and protoplast lystates, consistent with ready access of NADH to oxidation sites on the outer forespores membrane. 4. Forespores and protoplasts showed osmometric behaviour in solutions of non-permanent solutes consistent with the presence of an intact permeability barrier in these structures.


2020 ◽  
Vol 86 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Salome C. Nies ◽  
Robert Dinger ◽  
Yan Chen ◽  
Gossa G. Wordofa ◽  
Mette Kristensen ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Obligate aerobic organisms rely on a functional electron transport chain for energy conservation and NADH oxidation. Because of this essential requirement, the genes of this pathway are likely constitutively and highly expressed to avoid a cofactor imbalance and energy shortage under fluctuating environmental conditions. We here investigated the essentiality of the three NADH dehydrogenases of the respiratory chain of the obligate aerobe Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120 and the impact of the knockouts of corresponding genes on its physiology and metabolism. While a mutant lacking all three NADH dehydrogenases seemed to be nonviable, the single or double knockout mutant strains displayed no, or only a weak, phenotype. Only the mutant deficient in both type 2 dehydrogenases showed a clear phenotype with biphasic growth behavior and a strongly reduced growth rate in the second phase. In-depth analyses of the metabolism of the generated mutants, including quantitative physiological experiments, transcript analysis, proteomics, and enzyme activity assays revealed distinct responses to type 2 and type 1 dehydrogenase deletions. An overall high metabolic flexibility enables P. taiwanensis to cope with the introduced genetic perturbations and maintain stable phenotypes, likely by rerouting of metabolic fluxes. This metabolic adaptability has implications for biotechnological applications. While the phenotypic robustness is favorable in large-scale applications with inhomogeneous conditions, the possible versatile redirecting of carbon fluxes upon genetic interventions can thwart metabolic engineering efforts. IMPORTANCE While Pseudomonas has the capability for high metabolic activity and the provision of reduced redox cofactors important for biocatalytic applications, exploitation of this characteristic might be hindered by high, constitutive activity of and, consequently, competition with the NADH dehydrogenases of the respiratory chain. The in-depth analysis of NADH dehydrogenase mutants of Pseudomonas taiwanensis VLB120 presented here provides insight into the phenotypic and metabolic response of this strain to these redox metabolism perturbations. This high degree of metabolic flexibility needs to be taken into account for rational engineering of this promising biotechnological workhorse toward a host with a controlled and efficient supply of redox cofactors for product synthesis.


Metabolites ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 515
Author(s):  
Mark Germanos ◽  
Andy Gao ◽  
Matthew Taper ◽  
Belinda Yau ◽  
Melkam A. Kebede

The pancreatic β-cell is purpose-built for the production and secretion of insulin, the only hormone that can remove glucose from the bloodstream. Insulin is kept inside miniature membrane-bound storage compartments known as secretory granules (SGs), and these specialized organelles can readily fuse with the plasma membrane upon cellular stimulation to release insulin. Insulin is synthesized in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) as a biologically inactive precursor, proinsulin, along with several other proteins that will also become members of the insulin SG. Their coordinated synthesis enables synchronized transit through the ER and Golgi apparatus for congregation at the trans-Golgi network, the initiating site of SG biogenesis. Here, proinsulin and its constituents enter the SG where conditions are optimized for proinsulin processing into insulin and subsequent insulin storage. A healthy β-cell is continually generating SGs to supply insulin in vast excess to what is secreted. Conversely, in type 2 diabetes (T2D), the inability of failing β-cells to secrete may be due to the limited biosynthesis of new insulin. Factors that drive the formation and maturation of SGs and thus the production of insulin are therefore critical for systemic glucose control. Here, we detail the formative hours of the insulin SG from the luminal perspective. We do this by mapping the journey of individual members of the SG as they contribute to its genesis.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1308
Author(s):  
Mercedes Sánchez-Costa ◽  
Alba Blesa ◽  
José Berenguer

Genes coding for enzymes of the denitrification pathway appear randomly distributed among isolates of the ancestral genus Thermus, but only in few strains of the species Thermus thermophilus has the pathway been studied to a certain detail. Here, we review the enzymes involved in this pathway present in T. thermophilus NAR1, a strain extensively employed as a model for nitrate respiration, in the light of its full sequence recently assembled through a combination of PacBio and Illumina technologies in order to counteract the systematic errors introduced by the former technique. The genome of this strain is divided in four replicons, a chromosome of 2,021,843 bp, two megaplasmids of 370,865 and 77,135 bp and a small plasmid of 9799 pb. Nitrate respiration is encoded in the largest megaplasmid, pTTHNP4, within a region that includes operons for O2 and nitrate sensory systems, a nitrate reductase, nitrate and nitrite transporters and a nitrate specific NADH dehydrogenase, in addition to multiple insertion sequences (IS), suggesting its mobility-prone nature. Despite nitrite is the final product of nitrate respiration in this strain, the megaplasmid encodes two putative nitrite reductases of the cd1 and Cu-containing types, apparently inactivated by IS. No nitric oxide reductase genes have been found within this region, although the NorR sensory gene, needed for its expression, is found near the inactive nitrite respiration system. These data clearly support that partial denitrification in this strain is the consequence of recent deletions and IS insertions in genes involved in nitrite respiration. Based on these data, the capability of this strain to transfer or acquire denitrification clusters by horizontal gene transfer is discussed.


Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 246
Author(s):  
Daiji Kawanami ◽  
Yuichi Takashi ◽  
Hiroyuki Takahashi ◽  
Ryoko Motonaga ◽  
Makito Tanabe

Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) worldwide. Dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP)-4 inhibitors are widely used in the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). DPP-4 inhibitors reduce glucose levels by inhibiting degradation of incretins. DPP-4 is a ubiquitous protein with exopeptidase activity that exists in cell membrane-bound and soluble forms. It has been shown that an increased renal DPP-4 activity is associated with the development of DKD. A series of clinical and experimental studies showed that DPP-4 inhibitors have beneficial effects on DKD, independent of their glucose-lowering abilities, which are mediated by anti-fibrotic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidative stress properties. In this review article, we highlight the current understanding of the clinical efficacy and the mechanisms underlying renoprotection by DPP-4 inhibitors under diabetic conditions.


2000 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.D. Offner ◽  
R.F. Troxler

The existence of high-molecular-weight glycoproteins in saliva and salivary secretions has been recognized for nearly 30 years. These proteins, called mucins, are essential for oral health and perform many diverse functions in the oral cavity. Mucins have been intensively studied, and much has been learned about their biochemical properties and their interactions with oral micro-organisms and other salivary proteins. In the past several years, the major high-molecular-weight mucin in salivary secretions has been identified as MUC5B, one of a family of 11 human mucin gene products expressed in tissue-specific patterns in the gastrointestinal, respiratory, and reproductive tracts. MUC5B is one of four gel-forming mucins which exist as multimeric proteins with molecular weights greater than 20-40 million daltons. The heavily glycosylated mucin multimers form viscous layers which protect underlying epithelial surfaces from microbial, mechanical, and chemical assault. Another class of mucin molecules, the membrane-bound mucins, is structurally and functionally distinct from the gel-forming mucins. These proteins do not form multimers and can exist as both secreted and membrane-bound forms, with the latter anchored to epithelial cell membranes through a short membrane-spanning domain. In the present work, we show that two of the membrane-bound mucins, MUC1 and MUC4, are expressed in all major human salivary glands as well as in buccal epithelial cells. While the functions of these mucins in the oral environment are not understood, it is possible that they form a structural framework on the cell surface which not only is cytoprotective, but also may serve as a scaffold upon which MUC5B, and possibly other salivary proteins, assemble.


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