The functional and structural characterization of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris core effector XopP revealed a new kinase activity.

Exo70B1 is a protein subunit of the exocyst complex with a crucial role in a variety of cell mechanisms, including immune responses against pathogens. The calcium-dependent kinase 5 (CPK5) of Arabidopsis thaliana (hereafter Arabidopsis), phosphorylates AtExo70B1 upon functional disruption. We previously reported that, the Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris effector XopP compromises AtExo70B1, while bypassing the host's hypersensitive response, in a way that is still unclear. Herein we designed an experimental approach, which includes biophysical, biochemical, and molecular assays and is based on structural and functional predictions, utilizing AplhaFold and DALI online servers, respectively, in order to characterize the in vivo XccXopP function. The interaction between AtExo70B1 and XccXopP was found very stable in high temperatures, while AtExo70B1 appeared to be phosphorylated at XccXopP-expressing transgenic Arabidopsis. XccXopP revealed similarities with known mammalian kinases and phosphorylated AtExo70B1 at Ser107, Ser111, Ser248, Thr309, and Thr364. Moreover, XccXopP protected AtExo70B1 from AtCPK5 phosphorylation. Together these findings show that XccXopP is an effector, which not only functions as a novel serine/threonine kinase upon its host target AtExo70B1 but also protects the latter from the innate AtCPK5 phosphorylation, in order to bypass the host's immune responses. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with the identifier PXD041405.

Probing Protein Folding with Sequence-Reversed α-Helical Bundles.

Recurrent protein folding motifs include various types of helical bundles formed by α-helices that supercoil around each other. While specific patterns of amino acid residues (heptad repeats) characterize the highly versatile folding motif of four-α-helical bundles, the significance of the polypeptide chain directionality is not sufficiently understood, although it determines sequence patterns, helical dipoles, and other parameters for the folding and oligomerization processes of bundles. To investigate directionality aspects in sequence-structure relationships, we reversed the amino acid sequences of two well-characterized, highly regular four-α-helical bundle proteins and studied the folding, oligomerization, and structural properties of the retro-proteins, using Circular Dichroism Spectroscopy (CD), Size Exclusion Chromatography combined with Multi-Angle Laser Light Scattering (SEC-MALS), and Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS). The comparison of the parent proteins with their retro-counterparts reveals that while the α-helical character of the parents is affected to varying degrees by sequence reversal, the folding states, oligomerization propensities, structural stabilities, and shapes of the new molecules strongly depend on the characteristics of the heptad repeat patterns. The highest similarities between parent and retro-proteins are associated with the presence of uninterrupted heptad patterns in helical bundles sequences.

Crystal structure of glutamate dehydrogenase 2, a positively selected novel human enzyme involved in brain biology and cancer pathophysiology.

INTRODUCTION: Mammalian glutamate dehydrogenase (hGDH1 in human cells) interconverts glutamate to α-ketoglutarate and ammonia while reducing NAD(P) to NAD(P)H. During primate evolution, humans and great apes have acquired hGDH2, an isoenzyme that underwent rapid evolutionary adaptation concomitantly with brain expansion, thereby acquiring unique catalytic and regulatory properties that permitted its function under conditions inhibitory to its ancestor hGDH1. Although the 3D-structures of GDHs, including hGDH1, have been determined, attempts to determine the hGDH2 structure were until recently unsuccessful. Comparison of the hGDH1/hGDH2 structures would enable a detailed understanding of their evolutionary differences. This work aimed at the determination of the hGDH2 crystal structure and the analysis of its functional implications. Recombinant hGDH2 was produced in the Spodoptera frugiperda ovarian cell line Sf21, using the Baculovirus expression system. Purification was achieved via a two-step chromatography procedure. hGDH2 was crystallized, X-ray diffraction data were collected using synchrotron radiation and the structure was determined by molecular replacement. The hGDH2 structure is reported at a resolution of 2.9 Å. The enzyme adopts a novel semi-closed conformation, which is an intermediate between known open and closed GDH1 conformations, differing from both. The structure enabled us to dissect previously reported biochemical findings and to structurally interpret the effects of evolutionary amino acid substitutions, including Arg470His, on ADP affinity. In conclusion, our data provide insights into the structural basis of hGDH2 properties, the functional evolution of hGDH isoenzymes, and open new prospects for drug design, especially for cancer therapeutics.

Unusual α-Carbon Hydroxylation of Proline Promotes Active-Site Maturation.

The full extent of proline (Pro) hydroxylation has yet to be established, as it is largely unexplored in bacteria. We describe here a so far unknown Pro hydroxylation activity which occurs in active sites of polysaccharide deacetylases (PDAs) from bacterial pathogens, modifying the protein backbone at the Cα atom of a Pro residue to produce 2-hydroxyproline (2-Hyp). This process modifies with high specificity a conserved Pro, shares with the deacetylation reaction the same active site and one catalytic residue, and utilizes molecular oxygen as source for the hydroxyl group oxygen of 2-Hyp. By providing additional hydrogen-bonding capacity, the Pro→2-Hyp conversion alters the active site and enhances significantly deacetylase activity, probably by creating a more favorable environment for transition-state stabilization. Our results classify this process as an active-site "maturation", which is highly atypical in being a protein backbone-modifying activity, rather than a side-chain-modifying one.

Expression, purification and crystallization of a protein resulting from the inversion of the amino-acid sequence of a helical bundle.

Earlier studies have found that the occurrence of inverse sequence identity in proteins is not indicative of three-dimensional similarity, but rather leads to different folds or unfolded proteins. Short helices, however, frequently keep their conformations when their sequences are inverted. To explore the impact of sequence inversion on long helices, revRM6, with the inverse amino-acid sequence relative to RM6, a highly stable variant of the ColE1 Rop protein, was engineered. RM6 is a highly regular four-α-helical bundle that serves as a model system for protein-folding studies. Here, the crystallization and preliminary crystallographic characterization of revRM6 are reported. The protein was overexpressed in Escherichia coli, purified to homogeneity and crystallized. The crystals belonged to space group P41212, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 44.98, c = 159.74 Å, and diffracted to a resolution of 3.45 Å.

Structural plasticity of 4-α-helical bundles exemplified by the puzzle-like molecular assembly of the Rop protein.

The dimeric Repressor of Primer (Rop) protein, a widely used model system for the study of coiled-coil 4-α-helical bundles, is characterized by a remarkable structural plasticity. Loop region mutations lead to a wide range of topologies, folding states, and altered physicochemical properties. A protein-folding study of Rop and several loop variants has identified specific residues and sequences that are linked to the observed structural plasticity. Apart from the native state, native-like and molten-globule states have been identified; these states are sensitive to reducing agents due to the formation of nonnative disulfide bridges. Pro residues in the loop are critical for the establishment of new topologies and molten globule states; their effects, however, can be in part compensated by Gly residues. The extreme plasticity in the assembly of 4-α-helical bundles reflects the capacity of the Rop sequence to combine a specific set of hydrophobic residues into strikingly different hydrophobic cores. These cores include highly hydrated ones that are consistent with the formation of interchain, nonnative disulfide bridges and the establishment of molten globules. Potential applications of this structural plasticity are among others in the engineering of bio-inspired materials.

Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of the C-terminal fragment of the MvfR protein from Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The LysR-type transcriptional regulator MvfR plays a critical role in Pseudomonas aeruginosa pathogenicity via the transcriptional regulation of multiple quorum-sensing-regulated virulence factors. The protein also controls pathogenic type VI secretion loci. MvfRC87, a 242-residue C-terminal segment of MvfR, was produced in Escherichia coli, purified and crystallized. X-ray diffraction data were collected using synchrotron radiation and crystallographic parameters were determined.

Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of a variant of the ColE1 Rop protein.

Rop is the paradigm of a canonical four-alpha-helical bundle. Its loop region has attracted considerable interest because a single alanine-to-proline substitution (A31P) in the loop is sufficient to change the topology of this small protein. In order to further analyse the loop region as a possible folding-control element, the double mutant D30P/A31G (RopPG) was produced, purified and crystallized. The crystals belonged to space group P2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 26.7, b = 38.8, c = 56.6 A, beta = 100.9 degrees and two molecules in the asymmetric unit. A complete data set was collected at 100 K to a resolution of 1.4 A using synchrotron radiation.

Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the peptidoglycan N-acetylglucosamine deacetylase BC1960 from Bacillus cereus in the presence of its substrate (GlcNAc)6.

The peptidoglycan N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) deacetylase BC1960 from Bacillus cereus (EC 3.5.1.33), an enzyme consisting of 275 amino acids, was crystallized in the presence of its substrate (GlcNAc)(6). The crystals belonged to the tetragonal space group P4(1)2(1)2, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 92.7, c = 242.9 A and four molecules in the asymmetric unit. A complete data set was collected at 100 K to a resolution of 2.38 A using synchrotron radiation.

Purification, crystallization, X-ray diffraction analysis and phasing of an engineered single-chain PvuII restriction endonuclease.

The restriction endonuclease PvuII from Proteus vulgaris has been converted from its wild-type homodimeric form into the enzymatically active single-chain variant scPvuII by tandemly joining the two subunits through the peptide linker Gly-Ser-Gly-Gly. scPvuII, which is suitable for the development of programmed restriction endonucleases for highly specific DNA cleavage, was purified and crystallized. The crystals diffract to a resolution of 2.35 A and belong to space group P4(2), with unit-cell parameters a = b = 101.92, c = 100.28 A and two molecules per asymmetric unit. Phasing was successfully performed by molecular replacement.

Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the BseCI DNA methyltransferase from Bacillus stearothermophilus in complex with its cognate DNA.

The DNA methyltransferase M.BseCI from Bacillus stearothermophilus (EC 2.1.1.72), a 579-amino-acid enzyme, methylates the N6 atom of the 3' adenine in the sequence 5'-ATCGAT-3'. M.BseCI was crystallized in complex with its cognate DNA. The crystals were found to belong to the hexagonal space group P6, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 87.0, c = 156.1 A, beta = 120.0 degrees and one molecule in the asymmetric unit. Two complete data sets were collected at wavelengths of 1.1 and 2.0 A to 2.5 and 2.8 A resolution, respectively, using synchrotron radiation at 100 K.

Loopless Rop: structure and dynamics of an engineered homotetrameric variant of the repressor of primer protein.

The repressor of primer (Rop) protein has become a steady source of surprises concerning the relationship between the sequences and the structures of several of its mutants and variants. Here we add another piece to the puzzle of Rop by showing that an engineered deletion mutant of the protein (corresponding to a deletion of residues 30-34 of the wild-type protein and designed to restore the heptad periodicity at the turn region) results in a complete reorganization of the bundle which is converted from a homodimer to a homotetramer. In contrast (and as previously shown), a two-residue insertion, which also restores the heptad periodicity, is essentially identical with wild-type Rop. The new deletion mutant structure is a canonical, left-handed, all-antiparallel bundle with a completely different hydrophobic core and distinct surface properties. The structure agrees and qualitatively explains the results from functional, thermodynamic, and kinetic studies which indicated that this deletion mutant is a biologically inactive hyperstable homotetramer. Additional insight into the stability and dynamics of the mutant structure has been obtained from extensive molecular dynamics simulations in explicit water and with full treatment of electrostatics.

Purification, crystallization and preliminary characterization of a putative LmbE-like deacetylase from Bacillus cereus.

The Bacillus cereus BC1534 protein, a putative deacetylase from the LmbE family, has been purified to homogeneity and crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. Crystals of the 26 kDa protein grown from MPD and acetate buffer belong to space group R32, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 76.7, c = 410.5 A (in the hexagonal setting). A complete native data set was collected to a resolution of 2.5 A from a single cryoprotected crystal using synchrotron radiation. As BC1534 shows significant sequence homology with an LmbE-like protein of known structure from Thermus thermophilus, molecular replacement will be used for crystal structure determination.

Ionic strength reducers: an efficient approach to protein purification and crystallization. Application to two Rop variants.

Detailed knowledge of the influence of various parameters on macromolecular solubility is essential for crystallization. The concept of so-called 'ionic strength reducers' provides insight into the changes in solubility induced by organic solvents and hydrophilic polymers in aqueous electrolytic solutions. A simple and efficient procedure is presented which exploits the properties of ionic strength reducers in the purification and crystallization of proteins. Using two designed variants of the Rop protein as model systems, superior crystals have been obtained compared with conventional techniques. This procedure is particularly useful in cases where excessive nucleation leads to the growth of a large number of tiny crystals that are useless for crystallographic analysis.