The complete mitochondrial genome of Limnoria quadripunctata Holthuis (Isopoda: Limnoriidae).

The complete mitochondrial genome of Limnoria quadripunctata, a marine wood-eating isopod crustacean, was determined from whole genome sequence data. The mitogenome is 16,503 bp in length and contains 39 genes: 13 protein-coding, 2 ribosomal RNA, 22 tRNA, two of which are repeated and a control region. The start codon most commonly used by the Limnoria protein-coding genes is ATN, as is the case in the two other available complete isopod mitogenomes. The gene arrangement differs among these complete isopod mitogenomes, as does the AT-content of H-strand protein-coding genes. The latter observations, coupled with the considerable nucleotide diversity observed between the isopod mitogenomes, support the idea that each isopod species belongs to a distinct lineage as implied by their current placement in separate suborders.

Structural analysis of DNA-protein complexes regulating the restriction-modification system Esp1396I.

The controller protein of the type II restriction-modification (RM) system Esp1396I binds to three distinct DNA operator sequences upstream of the methyltransferase and endonuclease genes in order to regulate their expression. Previous biophysical and crystallographic studies have shown molecular details of how the controller protein binds to the operator sites with very different affinities. Here, two protein-DNA co-crystal structures containing portions of unbound DNA from native operator sites are reported. The DNA in both complexes shows significant distortion in the region between the conserved symmetric sequences, similar to that of a DNA duplex when bound by the controller protein (C-protein), indicating that the naked DNA has an intrinsic tendency to bend when not bound to the C-protein. Moreover, the width of the major groove of the DNA adjacent to a bound C-protein dimer is observed to be significantly increased, supporting the idea that this DNA distortion contributes to the substantial cooperativity found when a second C-protein dimer binds to the operator to form the tetrameric repression complex.

Structural characterization of a unique marine animal family 7 cellobiohydrolase suggests a mechanism of cellulase salt tolerance.

Nature uses a diversity of glycoside hydrolase (GH) enzymes to convert polysaccharides to sugars. As lignocellulosic biomass deconstruction for biofuel production remains costly, natural GH diversity offers a starting point for developing industrial enzymes, and fungal GH family 7 (GH7) cellobiohydrolases, in particular, provide significant hydrolytic potential in industrial mixtures. Recently, GH7 enzymes have been found in other kingdoms of life besides fungi, including in animals and protists. Here, we describe the in vivo spatial expression distribution, properties, and structure of a unique endogenous GH7 cellulase from an animal, the marine wood borer Limnoria quadripunctata (LqCel7B). RT-quantitative PCR and Western blot studies show that LqCel7B is expressed in the hepatopancreas and secreted into the gut for wood degradation. We produced recombinant LqCel7B, with which we demonstrate that LqCel7B is a cellobiohydrolase and obtained four high-resolution crystal structures. Based on a crystallographic and computational comparison of LqCel7B to the well-characterized Hypocrea jecorina GH7 cellobiohydrolase, LqCel7B exhibits an extended substrate-binding motif at the tunnel entrance, which may aid in substrate acquisition and processivity. Interestingly, LqCel7B exhibits striking surface charges relative to fungal GH7 enzymes, which likely results from evolution in marine environments. We demonstrate that LqCel7B stability and activity remain unchanged, or increase at high salt concentration, and that the L. quadripunctata GH mixture generally contains cellulolytic enzymes with highly acidic surface charge compared with enzymes derived from terrestrial microbes. Overall, this study suggests that marine cellulases offer significant potential for utilization in high-solids industrial biomass conversion processes.

Structural analysis of the genetic switch that regulates the expression of restriction-modification genes.

Controller (C) proteins regulate the timing of the expression of restriction and modification (R-M) genes through a combination of positive and negative feedback circuits. A single dimer bound to the operator switches on transcription of the C-gene and the endonuclease gene; at higher concentrations, a second dimer bound adjacently switches off these genes. Here we report the first structure of a C protein-DNA operator complex, consisting of two C protein dimers bound to the native 35 bp operator sequence of the R-M system Esp1396I. The structure reveals a role for both direct and indirect DNA sequence recognition. The structure of the DNA in the complex is highly distorted, with severe compression of the minor groove resulting in a 50 degrees bend within each operator site, together with a large expansion of the major groove in the centre of the DNA sequence. Cooperative binding between dimers governs the concentration-dependent activation-repression switch and arises, in part, from the interaction of Glu25 and Arg35 side chains at the dimer-dimer interface. Competition between Arg35 and an equivalent residue of the sigma(70) subunit of RNA polymerase for the Glu25 site underpins the switch from activation to repression of the endonuclease gene.