Anaerobic respiration coupled with mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis in wax ester fermentation by Euglena gracilis.

In Euglena gracilis, wax ester fermentation produces ATP during anaerobiosis. Here, we report that anaerobic wax ester production is suppressed when the mitochondrial electron transport chain complex I is inhibited by rotenone, whereas it is increased by the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP). The ADP/ATP ratio in anaerobic cells is elevated by treatment with either rotenone or CCCP. Gene silencing experiments indicate that acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF), and rhodoquinone (RQ) participate in wax ester production. These results suggest that fatty acids are synthesized in mitochondria by the reversal of ß-oxidation, where trans-2-enoyl-CoA is reduced mainly by acyl-CoA dehydrogenase using the electrons provided by NADH via the electron transport chain complex I, RQ, and ETF, and that ATP production is highly supported by anaerobic respiration utilizing trans-2-enoyl-CoA as a terminal electron acceptor.

Physiological functions of pyruvate:NADP+ oxidoreductase and 2-oxoglutarate decarboxylase in Euglena gracilis under aerobic and anaerobic conditions.

In Euglena gracilis, pyruvate:NADP+ oxidoreductase, in addition to the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, functions for the oxidative decarboxylation of pyruvate in the mitochondria. Furthermore, the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complex is absent, and instead 2-oxoglutarate decarboxylase is found in the mitochondria. To elucidate the central carbon and energy metabolisms in Euglena under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, physiological significances of these enzymes involved in 2-oxoacid metabolism were examined by gene silencing experiments. The pyruvate dehydrogenase complex was indispensable for aerobic cell growth in a glucose medium, although its activity was less than 1% of that of pyruvate:NADP+ oxidoreductase. In contrast, pyruvate:NADP+ oxidoreductase was only involved in the anaerobic energy metabolism (wax ester fermentation). Aerobic cell growth was almost completely suppressed when the 2-oxoglutarate decarboxylase gene was silenced, suggesting that the tricarboxylic acid cycle is modified in Euglena and 2-oxoglutarate decarboxylase takes the place of the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complex in the aerobic respiratory metabolism.

Production and Purification of Polyclonal Antibodies.

Polyclonal antibodies consist of a mixture of antibodies produced by multiple B-cell clones that have differentiated into antibody-producing plasma cells in response to an immunogen. Polyclonal antibodies raised against an antigen recognize multiple epitopes on a target molecule, which results in a signal amplification in indirect immunoassays including immune-electron microscopy. In this chapter, we present a basic procedure to generate polyclonal antibodies in rabbits.

Alteration of Wax Ester Content and Composition in Euglena gracilis with Gene Silencing of 3-ketoacyl-CoA Thiolase Isozymes.

Euglena gracilis produces wax ester under hypoxic and anaerobic culture conditions with a net synthesis of ATP. In wax ester fermentation, fatty acids are synthesized by reversing beta-oxidation in mitochondria. A major species of wax ester produced by E. gracilis is myristyl myristate (14:0-14:0Alc). Because of its shorter carbon chain length with saturated compounds, biodiesel produced from E. gracilis wax ester may have good cold flow properties with high oxidative stability. We reasoned that a slight metabolic modification would enable E. gracilis to produce a biofuel of ideal composition. In order to produce wax ester with shorter acyl chain length, we focused on isozymes of the enzyme 3-ketoacyl-CoA thiolase (KAT), a condensing enzyme of the mitochondrial fatty acid synthesis pathway in E. gracilis. We performed a gene silencing study of KAT isozymes in E. gracilis. Six KAT isozymes were identified in the E. gracilis EST database, and silencing any three of them (EgKAT1-3) altered the wax ester amount and composition. In particular, silencing EgKAT1 induced a significant compositional shift to shorter carbon chain lengths in wax ester. A model fuel mixture inferred from the composition of wax ester in EgKAT1-silenced cells showed a significant decrease in melting point compared to that of the control cells.

Cloning and expression of the cold-adapted endo-1,4-ß-glucanase gene from Eisenia fetida.

Biofuel production from plant-derived lignocellulosic material using fungal cellulases is facing cost-effective challenges related to high temperature requirements. The present study identified a cold-adapted cellulase named endo-1,4-ß-glucanase (EF-EG2) from the earthworm Eisenia fetida. The gene was cloned in the cold-shock expression vector (pCold I) and functionally expressed in Escherichia coli ArcticExpress RT (DE3). The gene consists of 1,368 bp encoding 456 amino acid residues. The amino acid sequence shares sequence homology with the endo-1,4-ß-glucanases of Eisenia andrei (98%), Pheretima hilgendorfi (79%), Perineresis brevicirris (63%), and Strongylocentrotus nudus (58%), which all belong to glycoside hydrolase family 9. Purified recombinant EF-EG2 hydrolyzed soluble cellulose (carboxymethyl cellulose), but not insoluble (powdered cellulose) or crystalline (Avicel) cellulose substrates. Thin-layer chromatography analysis of the reaction products from 1,4-ß-linked oligosaccharides of various lengths revealed a cleavage mechanism consistent with endoglucanases (not exoglucanases). The enzyme exhibited significant activity at 10°C (38% of the activity at optimal 40°C) and was stable at pH 5.0-9.0, with an optimum pH of 5.5. This new cold-adapted cellulase could potentially improve the cost effectiveness of biofuel production.

Crystal structures of the catalytic domain of a novel glycohydrolase family 23 chitinase from Ralstonia sp. A-471 reveals a unique arrangement of the catalytic residues for inverting chitin hydrolysis.

Chitinase C from Ralstonia sp. A-471 (Ra-ChiC) has a catalytic domain sequence similar to goose-type (G-type) lysozymes and, unlike other chitinases, belongs to glycohydrolase (GH) family 23. Using NMR spectroscopy, however, Ra-ChiC was found to interact only with the chitin dimer but not with the peptidoglycan fragment. Here we report the crystal structures of wild-type, E141Q, and E162Q of the catalytic domain of Ra-ChiC with or without chitin oligosaccharides. Ra-ChiC has a substrate-binding site including a tunnel-shaped cavity, which determines the substrate specificity. Mutation analyses based on this structural information indicated that a highly conserved Glu-141 acts as a catalytic acid, and that Asp-226 located at the roof of the tunnel activates a water molecule as a catalytic base. The unique arrangement of the catalytic residues makes a clear contrast to the other GH23 members and also to inverting GH19 chitinases.

A protein from Pleurotus eryngii var. tuoliensis C.J. Mou with strong removal activity against the natural steroid hormone, estriol: purification, characterization, and identification as a laccase.

A protein with strong removal activity against the natural estrogen estriol was purified from a culture supernatant of Pleurotus eryngii var. tuoliensis C.J. Mou. The protein was characterized as a laccase and had a molecular mass of 60kDa on SDS-PAGE. The enzyme was most active at pH 7.0 and 50°C. The partial N-terminal amino acid sequence of the enzyme showed homology with laccases from mushrooms, such as Pleurotus ostreatus, Coriolus versicolor (current name: Trametes versicolor), Pycnoporus cinnabarinus, and P. eryngii. A recombinant yeast assay confirmed that laccase treatment was very efficient for removing the estrogenic activity of steroid estrogens. Our results suggest that the enzyme may be applicable as a potential factor for removing natural steroid hormones.

Generation, characterization, and docking studies of DNA-hydrolyzing recombinant F(ab) antibodies.

Previously we established a series of catalytic antibodies (catAbs) capable of hydrolyzing DNA prepared by hybridoma technology. A group of these catAbs exhibited high reactivity and substrate specificity. To determine the molecular basis for these catAbs, we cloned, sequenced, and expressed the variable regions of this group of antibodies as functional F(ab) fragments. The nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences of the expressed light chain (Vκ) germline gene assignments confidently belonged to germline family Vκ1A, gene bb1.1 and GenBank accession number EF672207 while heavy chain variable region V(H) genes belonged to V(H) 1/V(H) J558, gene V130.3 and GenBank accession number EF672221. A well-established expression system based on the pARA7 vector was examined for its ability to produce catalytically active antibodies. Recombinant F(ab) (rF(ab) ) fragments were purified and their hydrolyzing activity was analyzed against supercoiled pUC19 plasmid DNA (scDNA). The study of rF(ab) provides important information about the potential catalytic activities of antibodies whose structure allows us to understand their basis of catalysis. Molecular surface analysis and docking studies were performed on the molecular interactions between the antibodies and poly(dA9), poly(dG9), poly(dT9), and poly(dC9) oligomers. Surface analysis identified the important sequence motifs at the binding sites, and different effects exerted by arginine and tyrosine residues at different positions in the light and heavy chains. This study demonstrates the potential usefulness of the protein DNA surrogate in the investigation of the origin of anti-DNA antibodies. These studies may define important features of DNA catAbs.

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction studies of the catalytic domain of a novel chitinase, a member of GH family 23, from the moderately thermophilic bacterium Ralstonia sp. A-471.

Chitinase from the moderately thermophilic bacterium Ralstonia sp. A-471 (Ra-ChiC) is divided into two domains: a chitin-binding domain (residues 36-80) and a catalytic domain (residues 103-252). Although the catalytic domain of Ra-ChiC has homology to goose-type lysozyme, Ra-ChiC does not show lysozyme activity but does show chitinase activity. The catalytic domain with part of an interdomain loop (Ra-ChiC(89-252)) was crystallized under several different conditions using polyethylene glycol as a precipitant. The crystals diffracted to 1.85 Šresolution and belonged to space group P6(1)22 or P6(5)22, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 100, c = 243 Å. The calculated Matthews coefficient was approximately 3.2, 2.4 or 1.9 Å(3) Da(-1) assuming the presence of three, four or five Ra-ChiC(89-252) molecules in the asymmetric unit, respectively.

Characterization of a bifunctional glyoxylate cycle enzyme, malate synthase/isocitrate lyase, of Euglena gracilis.

The glyoxylate cycle is a modified form of the tricarboxylic acid cycle, which enables organisms to synthesize carbohydrates from C2 compounds. In the protozoan Euglena gracilis, the key enzyme activities of the glyoxylate cycle, isocitrate lyase (ICL) and malate synthase (MS), are conferred by a single bifunctional protein named glyoxylate cycle enzyme (Euglena gracilis glyoxylate cycle enzyme [EgGCE]). We analyzed the enzymatic properties of recombinant EgGCE to determine the functions of its different domains. The 62-kDa N-terminal domain of EgGCE was sufficient to provide the MS activity as expected from an analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence. In contrast, expression of the 67-kDa C-terminal domain of EgGCE failed to yield ICL activity even though this domain was structurally similar to ICL family enzymes. Analyses of truncation mutants suggested that the N-terminal residues of EgGCE are critical for both the ICL and MS activities. The ICL activity of EgGCE increased in the presence of micro-molar concentrations of acetyl-coenzyme A (CoA). Acetyl-CoA also increased the activity in a mutant type EgGCE with a mutation at the acetyl-CoA binding site in the MS domain of EgGCE. This suggests that acetyl-CoA regulates the ICL reaction by binding to a site other than the catalytic center of the MS reaction.

Production and purification of polyclonal antibodies.

Polyclonal antibodies are derived from multiple B-cell clones that have differentiated into antibody-producing plasma cells in response to an immunogen. Polyclonal antibodies raised against a single molecular species of antigen recognize multiple epitopes on a target molecule resulting in signal amplification in indirect immunoassays, including immuno-electron microscopy. In this chapter, we present a basic procedure to generate polyclonal antibodies in rabbits.

Production and purification of monoclonal antibodies.

Monoclonal antibodies (mAb's) have been used extensively in biochemical and biomedical studies, including immunoelectron microscopy. Production of mAb's consists of four steps: immunizing the animal usually a mouse, obtaining immune cells from the spleen of the immunized mouse, fusing the spleen cells with myeloma cells to obtain hybridomas, and selecting the hybridoma cell line producing the desired mAb. In this chapter, we present a general method for monoclonal antibody production.

A novel cold-adapted cellulase complex from Eisenia foetida: characterization of a multienzyme complex with carboxymethylcellulase, beta-glucosidase, beta-1,3 glucanase, and beta-xylosidase.

Clostridium sp. and some bacterial cellulases exist as an enzyme complex with cellulolytic, and hemicellulolytic enzymes, so called "cellulosome". In this article, we report that EF-CMCase25 occurs as a complex with beta-glucosidase, beta-1,3 glucanase, and beta-xylosidase. The multienzyme complex had a molecular mass of 150 kDa on gel filtration under non-reducing condition. After the gel filtration, the enzyme complex was purified to homogeneous state on BN-PAGE. The SDS-PAGE demonstrated that the purified protein is a complex with at least one CMCase (25 kDa), one beta-glucosidase (32 kDa), and one beta-1,3 glucanase (40 kDa) components. The CMCase activity in the purified enzyme complex at 15 degrees C was 44% of that obtained at the optimal temperature. The optimum pH of the EF-CMCase25 in the purified enzyme complex was pH 5.0 and stable at pH 7.0-9.0.

Molecular analysis of multicatalytic monoclonal antibodies.

Recently, our first report demonstrated that Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV)-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) possess DNase-like activity against DNA. In the present study, we show for the first time ever how one mAb (mAb-5) has polyreactive (protease, DNase, and RNase) catalytic activities (catAbs). Amino acid sequence analysis of the encoded variable-genes showed that the light chains of the hybridomas expressed the germline family genes V kappa 1A, bb1.1 and V kappa II, bd2, whose protease and DNase catalytic activities have been reported, while the heavy chain genes were expressed in several germline families (eight of V(H)1/J558, three of V(H)5/V(H)7183, and three of V(H)8/V(H)3609). Interestingly, these germline genes have been well studied in esterolytic antibodies. Here we present for the first time convincing evidence showing that highly purified mAb-5 catalyze both single- and double-stranded DNA and exhibit RNase and protease activity. The greatest therapeutic potential of catAbs could lie in selective prodrug activation. Furthermore, catAbs offer excellent or unique specificity for individual and defined antigenic targets. Therefore, the phenomenon of autoantibody catalysis can potentially be applied to isolate efficient catalytic domains directed against pathogenetically and clinically relevant autoimmune epitopes.

Structure-function analysis and molecular modeling of DNase catalytic antibodies.

There is great interest in the antibodies-to-DNA transformation, since this change is characteristic of autoimmune diseases and contributes to its pathology. After immunization and fusions, 14 hybridomas bearing DNA-hydrolysis activity against pUC19 plasmid DNA were obtained. Genes coding for V(H) and V(L) regions of the 14 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) were cloned and sequenced. The sequences were compared with sequences of the Ig-Blast database to determine their germline and to identify potential mutations responsible for DNA binding and DNase activity. V genes of the H chains' genes expressed four genes of the V(H)1/J558 family, three of V(H)5/V(H)7183, and three of V(H)8/V(H)3609. The genetic repertoire of these mAbs was examined by determining the nucleotide sequences of their H chain V regions. This V(H) and V(L) domain was most similar to an anti-ssDNA (DNA-1) antibody as well as to catalytic autoimmune mAb (m3D8). Computer-generated models of the three-dimensional structures of V(H) and V(L) (VHL4) of the IgG4 combinations were used to define the positions occupied by the important sequence motifs at the binding sites. The modeling structure showed that VHL4 binds to oligo (dT3) primarily by sandwiching thymine bases between Tyr L32, Tyr L49 and Tyr H97 side-chains. Superposing VHL4 with anti-nucleic acid m3D8 catAbs revealed a common ssDNA recognition module consisting of His L93, His H35 residues which are critical for DNA-hydrolyzing antibodies. This study demonstrates the potential usefulness of the protein DNA surrogate in the investigation of the origin of anti-DNA antibodies' hydrolyzing activities.

Antigenic properties of the coat of Cucumber mosaic virus using monoclonal antibodies.

The coat protein (CP) of Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) was characterized by antigen-capture-ELISA using a panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) which were produced against Pepo-CMV-CP. Comparative analysis of three mAbs with four different strains by competitive ELISA revealed that the binding affinity of the mAb decreased about 10-fold with both MY17- and Y-CMV than with Pepo-CMV. The CP of these three strains showed high homology (approximately 98%) following comparison in the GenBank database. CMV has a negatively charged loop structure, the betaH-betaI loop, although the amino acid at position 193 is not conserved. In addition, an amino acid residue identified within the variable region spanning amino acids 191-198, specifically at position 194, showed significant changes in Threonine, Alanine, Alanine, and Lysine of the Pepo-, MY17-, Y-, and M2-CMV strains, respectively. Evidence from competitive ELISA and GenBank database amino acid residues, when taken together, provide strong support suggesting that the dominant epitope site of CMV-CP-specific mAbs is the betaH-betaI loop 191-198. The four mAbs were chosen because they represent distinct, overlapping epitopes within the group-specific determinant located on the CMV-CP and because they all recognize linear epitopes. Knowledge of specific immunoglobulin genes for a common epitope may lead to insight on pathogen-host co-evolution and may help prevent virus infection in plants.

Monoclonal antibodies specific to Cucumber mosaic virus coat protein possess DNA-hydrolyzing activity.

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) specific to Cucumber mosaic virus coat protein (CMV-CP) were designed from cDNA and deduced amino acid sequences of the light chain genes of 10 out of 14 different hybridoma cell lines. Ten of these mAbs revealed a very restricted germline family VkappaII, within which gene bd2 has identical amino acid sequences with VIPase and an i41SL 1-2 catalytic antibody light chain, both of which possess peptidase activity. Four out of the 14 mAbs illustrated another germline family VkappaIA, within which gene bb1.1 had high homology with BV04-01 light chain mAb, which hydrolyses ssDNA. Interestingly, our mAbs showed DNA-hydrolytic activity at an optimum pH of 4-5, which is a typical pattern of autoimmune diseases in which autoantibodies hydrolyze supercoiled plasmid DNA. This is the first evidence ever that CMV-CP could stimulate catalytic antibodies, which have an identical sequence homology with autoantibodies. Furthermore, the CMV-CP-specific mAbs will be important for isolating antibodies specific to the CPs of bacteria, viruses, cancer cells, etc. that could be used for medical therapy.

A novel goose-type lysozyme gene with chitinolytic activity from the moderately thermophilic bacterium Ralstonia sp. A-471: cloning, sequencing, and expression.

In this study, we cloned the gene encoding goose-type (G-type) lysozyme with chitinase (Ra-ChiC) activity from Ralstonia sp. A-471 genomic DNA library. This is the first report of another type of chitinase after the previously reported chitinases ChiA (Ra-ChiA) and ChiB (Ra-ChiB) in the chitinase system of the moderately thermophilic bacterium, Ralstonia sp. A-471 and also the first such data in Ralstonia sp. G-type lysozyme gene. It consisted of 753 bp nucleotides, which encodes 251 amino acids including a putative signal peptide. This ORF was modular enzyme composed of a signal sequence, chitin-binding domain, linker, and catalytic domain. The catalytic domain of Ra-ChiC showed homologies to those of G-type lysozyme (glycoside hydrolases (GH) family 23, 16.8%) and lysozyme-like enzyme from Clostridium beijerincki (76.1%). Ra-ChiC had activities against ethylene glycol chitin, carboxyl methyl chitin, and soluble chitin but not against the cell wall of Micrococcus lysodeikticus. The enzyme produced alpha-anomer by hydrolyzing beta-1,4-glycosidic linkage of the substrate, indicating that the enzyme catalyzes the hydrolysis through an inverting mechanism. When N-acetylglucosamine hexasaccharide [(GlcNAc)6] was hydrolyzed by the enzyme, the second and third glycosidic linkage from the non-reducing end were split producing (GlcNAc)2 + (GlcNAc)4 and (GlcNAc)3 + (GlcNAc)3 of almost the same concentration in the early stage of the reaction. The G-type lysozyme hydrolyzed (GlcNAc)6 in an endo-splitting manner, which produced (GlcNAc)3 + (GlcNAc)3 predominating over that to (GlcNAc)2 + (GlcNAc)4. Thus, Ra-ChiC was found to be a novel enzyme in its structural and functional properties.

A novel anti-plant viral protein from coelomic fluid of the earthworm Eisenia foetida: purification, characterization and its identification as a serine protease.

A novel protein showing strong antiviral activities against cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) and tomato mosaic virus (TMV) was purified from the coelomic fluid of the earthworm Eisenia foetida. The protein was characterized as a cold-adapted serine protease. Its molecular weight was estimated to be 27,000 by SDS-PAGE. The enzyme was most active at pH 9.5 and 40-50 degrees C. The protease activity at 4 degrees C was 60% of that obtained at the optimal temperature. The activity was suppressed by various serine protease inhibitors. Partial N-terminal amino acid sequence of the enzyme showed homology with serine proteases of earthworms, E. foetida and Lumbricus rubellus previously studied. Our results suggest that the enzyme can be applicable as a potential antiviral factor against CMV, TMV, and other plant viruses.

Purification and characterization of novel raw-starch-digesting and cold-adapted alpha-amylases from Eisenia foetida.

Novel raw-starch-digesting and cold-adapted alpha-amylases (Amy I and Amy II) from the earthworm Eisenia foetida were purified to electrophoretically homogeneous states. The molecular weights of both purified enzymes were estimated to be 60,000 by SDS-PAGE. The enzymes were most active at pH 5.5 and 50 degrees C and stable at pH 7.0-9.0 and 50-60 degrees C. Both Amy I and II exhibited activities at 10 degrees C. The enzymes were inhibited by metal ions Cu(2+), Fe(2+), and Hg(2+), and hydrolyzed raw starch into glucose, maltose and maltotriose as end products.