Xanthene dyes are common fluorophores which have been widely used as molecular probes. The xanthene fluorophores can be used as highly selective optical sensors to detect disease biomarkers. A new fluorogenic dye containing an alpha, beta-unsaturated aldehyde moiety exhibits selective fluorescent signal enhancement in the presence of cysteine or peptides containing N-terminal cysteine residues. The mechanism is based on synergistic covalent and supramolecular interactions. A unique rhodamine boronic acid indicator is used in an optimized data collection protocol for wavelength- and time-dependent selectivity of various saccharides and nucleosides. One indicator is thereby capable of selectively distinguishing structurally related analytes in mixtures. Moreover, the rhodamine-based boronic acid responds linearly to increasing riboside concentrations in urine samples, potentially enabling the screening for inborn purine metabolism disorders.

A previous study identified Enterococcus faecalis as one of two bacteria known to have the selD gene and other selenium related genes without having the genes necessary to make selenocysteine or selenouridine. EF2570, a gene in the cluster, was later shown to be upregulated during biofilm formation and also responsible for a selenite- and molybdate-dependent increase in biofilm formation in vitro. The protein encoded was identified as a selenium dependent molybdenum hydroxylase (SDMH), enzymes that contain a labile selenium atom required for activity. While the process of inserting selenocysteine into a protein is well known, the process by which a SDMH acquires a labile selenium atom has not yet been described. To begin unraveling this pathway, the nifS-like EF2568 from the gene cluster will be characterized. Some NifS-like proteins have been shown to have selenocysteine lyase activity, providing a source of selenium for selenophosphate synthetase, the selD gene product. Study of EF2568 has shown that it specifically reacts with L-selenocysteine to form selenide and alanine with L-cysteine inhibiting the reaction. Guided by homology to the well-characterized human and E. coli NifS-like proteins, mutants of the active site and substrate discerning residues were also characterized for activity with L-selenocysteine and L-cysteine. While mutation of the residue at position 112 thought to be responsible for substrate specificity did not affect reactivity of the enzyme with L-cysteine, it did affect reactivity with L-selenocysteine. Studying the characteristics of this novel group II selenocysteine lyase will provide a foundation for studying the remaining pathway.

Die Pektat-Lyasen gehören zu einer Proteinfamilie, die meistens von pflanzenpathogenen Mikroorganismen sekretiert werden. Die Enzyme katalysieren den Abbau von Polygalakturonsäure, einem Hauptbestandteil in <br /> pflanzlichen Mittellamellen und Primärzellwänden. Der Abbau der alpha-1,4-verbrückten Galakturonsäurereste erfogt durch eine beta-Eliminierungsreaktion, dabei entsteht ein Produkt mit einer ungesättigten C4-C5 Bindung am nicht reduzierenden Ende, das durch spektroskopische Messungen beobachtet werden kann. Für die enzymatische Reaktion der Pektat-Lyasen ist Calcium nötig und das pH-Optimum der Reaktion liegt bei pH 8.5. Alle bis jetzt bekannten Strukturen der Pektat- und Pektin-Lyasen haben das gleiche Strukturmotiv - eine rechtsgängige parallele beta-Helix. Die Struktur der Pektat-Lyase aus Bacillus subtilis (BsPel) ist im Komplex mit Calcium gelöst worden. BsPel ist ein monomeres Protein mit einer ungefähren Molekularmasse von 43 kDa, das keine Disulfidbrücken enthält. Dies erlaubte sowohl eine effiziente rekombinante Expression des Wildtypproteins, als auch von destabilisierten Mutanten im Cytoplasma von E. coli. Parallele beta-Helices sind relativ große, jedoch verhältnismäßig einfach aufgebaute Proteine. Um detailliertere Informationen über die kritischen Schritte bei der in vitro-Faltung von parallelen beta-Helices zu erhalten, sollte in der vorliegenden Arbeit versucht werden, den Faltungsmechanismus dieses Proteins näher zu charakterisieren. Dabei sollte vor allem die Frage geklärt werden, welche Wechselwirkungen für die Stabilität dieses Proteins einerseits und für die Stabilität von essentiellen Faltungsintermediaten andererseits besonders wichtig sind.<BR><br>Rückfaltung von BsPel, ausgehend vom guanidiniumchlorid-denaturierten Zustand, war bei kleinen Proteinkonzentrationen und niedrigen Temperaturen vollständig möglich. GdmCl-induzierte Faltungsübergänge waren aber nicht reversibel und zeigten eine apparente Hysterese. Kinetische Messungen des Fluoreszenz- und CD-Signals im fernen UV ergaben eine extreme Denaturierungsmittelabhängigkeit der Rückfaltungsrate im Bereich des Übergangmittelpunktes. Der extreme Abfall der Rückfaltungsraten mit steigender Denaturierungsmittelkonzentration kann als kooperative <br /> Entfaltung eines essentiellen Faltungsintermediats verstanden werden. Dieses Faltungsintermediat ist temperaturlabil und kann durch den Zusatz Glycerin im Renaturierungspuffer stabilisiert werden, wobei sich die Hysterese verringert, jedoch nicht vollständig aufgehoben wird. Durch reverse Doppelsprungexperimente konnten zwei transiente Faltungsintermediate nachgewiesen werden, die auf zwei parallelen Faltungswegen liegen und beide zum nativen Zustand weiterreagieren können. Fluoreszenzemissionsspektren der beiden Intermediate zeigten, daß beide schon nativähnliche Struktur aufweisen. Kinetische Daten von Prolin-Doppelsprungexperimenten zeigten, daß Prolinisomerisierung den geschwindigkeitsbestimmenden Schritt in der Reaktivierung des denaturierten Enzyms darstellt. Desweiteren konnte durch Prolin-Doppelsprungexperimenten an Mutanten mit Substitutionen im Prolinrest 281 gezeigt werden, daß die langsame Renaturierung von BsPel nicht durch die Isomerisierung der einzigen cis-Peptidbindung an Prolin 281 verursacht wird, sondern durch die Isomerisierung mehrerer trans-Proline. Die beiden beobachteten transienten Faltungsintermediate sind somit wahrscheinlich zwei Populationen von Faltungsintermediaten mit nicht-nativen X-Pro-Peptidbindungen, wobei sich die Populationen durch mindestens eine nicht-native X-Pro-Peptidbindung unterscheiden.<BR><br>Der Austausch des Prolinrestes 281 gegen verschiedene Aminosäuren (Ala, Ile, Leu, Phe, Gly) führte zu einer starken Destabilisierung des nativen Proteins und daneben auch zu einer Reduktion in der Aktivität, da die Mutationsstelle in der Nähe der putativen Substratbindetasche liegt. Die Rückfaltungskinetiken der Prolinmutanten war bei 10&#176;C annähernd gleich zum Wildtyp und die geschwindigkeitsbestimmenden Schritte der Faltung waren durch die Mutation nicht verändert. Die durch die Mutation verursachte drastische Destabilisierung des nativen Zustands führte zu einem reversiblen Entfaltungsgleichgewicht bei pH 7 und 10&#176;C. GdmCl-induzierte Faltungsübergänge der Mutante P281A zeigten bei Messungen der Tryptophanfluoreszenzemission und der Aktivität einen kooperativen Phasenübergang mit einem Übergangsmittelpunkt bei 1.1 M GdmCl. Durch die Übereinstimmung der Faltungsübergänge bei beiden Messparametern konnten die Faltungsübergänge nach dem Zwei-Zustandsmodell ausgewertet werden. Dabei wurde eine freie Sabilisierungsenthalpie der Faltung für die Mutante von <nobr>-&nbsp;64.2&nbsp;&#177;&nbsp;0.4&nbsp;kJ/mol</nobr> und eine Kooperativität des Übergangs <br /> von <nobr>-&nbsp;58.2&nbsp;&#177;&nbsp;0.3&nbsp;kJ/(mol&#183;M)</nobr> bestimmt.<BR> <br /> <br>BsPel enthält, wie die meisten monomeren rechtsgängigen parallelen beta-Helix-Proteine, einen internen Stapel wasserstoffverbrückter Asparagin-Seitenketten. Die Mehrheit der erzeugten Mutanten mit Substitutionen im Zentrum der Asn-Leiter (N271X) waren als enzymatisch aktives Protein zugänglich. Die Auswirkung der Mutation auf die Stabilität und Rückfaltung wurde an den Proteinen BsPel-N271T und BsPel-N271A näher analysiert. Dabei führte die Unterbrechung des Asparaginstapels im Inneren der beta-Helix zu keiner drastischen Destabilisierung des nativen Proteins. Allerdings führten diese Mutationen zu einem temperatur-sensitiven Faltungsphänotyp und die Hysterese im Denaturierungsübergang wurde verstärkt. Offenbar wird durch die Unterbrechung des Asparaginstapel ein essentielles, thermolabiles Faltungsintermediat destabilisiert. Der Asparaginstapel wird somit bei der Faltung sehr früh ausgebildet und ist wahrscheinlich schon im Übergangszustand vorhanden. / Pectate lyases belong to a family of proteins secreted by plant pathogenic microbes. The enzymes cleave alpha-1,4 linked galacturonic acid by a beta-elimination that results in an unsaturated product, which can be quantified spectrophotometrically. Calcium is essential for the activity and the pH-optimum is near 8.5. All known structures of pectate and pectin lyases have the same structural motif - a right handed parallel beta-helix. The structure of pectate lyase from Bacillus subtilis (BsPel) has been solved in complex with calcium. It is a monomeric protein, with a molecular mass of about 43 kDa and without disulfide bonds. This allows its high-yield recombinant expression in the cytoplasm of Escherichia coli. Parallel beta-helices are relative large proteins, however with a simple folding topology. The objective of this work was to characterize the folding mechanism of BsPel. In particular we investigated the role of the interactions of certain residues in the parallel beta-helix for the stability of the native protein and the stability of essential folding intermediates.<br /> <br /> Refolding of BsPel was possible at low protein concentrations and low temperature. However, denaturation of BsPel was not freely reversible. De- and renaturation curves showed a large apparent hysteresis. Furthermore, the folding rate constant deduced from fluorescence and circulardichroism measurements showed a very strong dependence on denaturant concentrations near the midpoint of the renaturation transition. This can be explained with a cooperative unfolding of an essential folding intermediate. Upon stabilisation of the temperature-sensitive intermediate by addition of glycerol in the renaturation buffer, the hysteresis is reduced, but does not disappear. Reverse double mixing kinetic experiments have shown that two transient folding intermediates are on the folding pathway. These intermediates are on parallel pathways and both can fold to the native state. Fluorescence emission spectra have shown the native-like structure of both intermediates. Furthermore, data from proline double mixing kinetic experiments revealed that isomerization of peptidyl-prolyl bonds was responsible for the slow kinetics in the reactivation of the enzyme. However, the isomerization of the single cis-peptidyl-prolyl bond at Pro281 was not responsible for the slowest folding phase observed, but rather the isomerization of other trans-peptidyl-prolyl bonds. Thus, both transient folding intermediates observed probably represent two populations of folding intermediates with non-native X-Pro-peptide bonds. The difference of the two populations is at least one non-native X-Pro-peptide bond.<br /> <br /> Mutations of the proline 281 against various residues (Ala, Ile, Leu, Phe, Gly) resulted in a strong destabilization of the native protein. Also, the activity of the mutant proteins was strong reduced due to the position of the mutation site near the putative active center of the protein. At 10&#176;C the kinetic folding behavior of the proline mutants was not significant changed. However, the strong destabilization of the native state in the proline mutants resulted in a reversible folding equilibrium at pH 7 and 10&#176;C. The unfolding of the P281A mutant was reversible as determined by fluorescence emission and enzyme activity measurements. The coincidence of these detected transitions is consistent with a two-state equilibrium transition. At pH 7 and 10&#176;C the delta G&#176;(H₂O) for folding of P281A was <nobr>-&nbsp;64.2&nbsp;&#177;&nbsp;0.4&nbsp;kJ/mol,</nobr> with a midpoint of the transition at 1.1 M GdmCl and a cooperativity of <nobr>-&nbsp;58.2&nbsp;&#177;&nbsp;0.3&nbsp;kJ/(mol&#183;M).</nobr><br /> <br /> BsPel has an asparagine ladder in turn 2 of the parallel beta-helix with extensive network of side-chain hydrogen bonds between the Asn residues. Such an Asn-ladder is a conserved feature of many monomeric beta-helices crystallized so far. The middle Asn residue (271) was selected and exchanged for various residues. Most of the mutants were expressed at 25&#176;C as soluble and active proteins but with a significant reduction in yield. Mutants N271T and N271A were selected to study the stability and refolding of these proteins in comparison with the wild-type protein. The substitution in the Asn-ladder did not drastically destabilize the native protein, but caused a temperature-sensitive-folding (tsf) phenotype with an increased hysteresis in the de- and renaturation transition curves. In addition, the disruption of the Asn-ladder resulted in destabilization of an essential, thermosensitive folding intermediate. Thus, the Asn-ladder is formed very early during the folding, probably well before the transition state of folding.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-07-24T19:37:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Robson Rodrigo Miranda.pdf: 3117830 bytes, checksum: 06e1c7195d09d214dbcc6eeb5412efe4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-03-10 / Chagas disease is one of the seventeen neglected tropical diseases according to the World Health Organization. In the recent decades, new parasite metabolic pathways were identified, what brings perspectives for the development of more specific and less toxic drugs, towards crucial target pathways. Once the therapeutic target is identified, a structural and biochemical characterization of the enzymes involved becomes necessary. It may be speculated that one possible therapeutic target to combat Chagas disease is the Histidine Ammonia-Lyase enzyme, which participates in the catabolic pathway of histidine. Therefore, in order to contribute to the structural and biochemical understanding of this enzyme, their heterologous production in E. coli was performed. The product protein was purified by affinity chromatography and used in various techniques for initial characterization. The activity was determined by kinect assay, the thermal stability and secondary structure content were investigated by Circular Dichroism (CD) and the oligomerization stated in solution was analyzed by Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS). The X ray diffraction technique was used to elucidate the three dimensional structure. TcHAL was expressed and purified satisfactorily. The activity proved adequate protein folding and the Circular Dichroism indicated a predominance of α-helix secondary structure and the start of the thermal denaturation at 68°C. TcHAL was crystallized and provided suitable diffraction patterns for the 3D structure elucidation. These biochemical and structural studies advanced the understanding of this enzyme and of the inhibition potentialities. / A Doença de Chagas é uma das dezessete doenças tropicais negligenciadas de acordo com a Organização Mundial da Saúde. Nas últimas décadas foram descritas novas vias metabólicas deste parasita, o que abre perspectivas para o desenvolvimento de medicamentos mais específicos e menos tóxicos, para vias cruciais como alvo. Uma vez identificado o alvo terapêutico, passa a ser necessária a caracterização estrutural e bioquímica das enzimas envolvidas. Especula-se como alvo terapêutico para combater a Doença de Chagas a enzima Histidina Amônio Liase, que participa da via catabólica da histidina. Sendo assim, visando contribuir com o entendimento estrutural e bioquímico desta, foi realizada a sua produção heteróloga em E. coli. Esta foi purificada por cromatografia de afinidade e utilizada em diversas técnicas para caracterização inicial. A atividade foi determinada em ensaio cinético, a estabilidade térmica e as estruturas secundárias foram investigadas por Dicroísmo Circular (CD) e o estado de oligomerização em solução foi analisado por Espalhamento Dinâmico de Luz (DLS). A técnica de difração de raios X foi empregada para elucidação da estrutura tridimensional. A TcHAL foi expressa e purificada de maneira satisfatória. A atividade revelou um adequado enovelamento protéico e o Dicroísmo Circular indicou predominância de estruturas secundárias hélices-α e início da desnaturação térmica próximo a 68 °C. A TcHAL foi cristalizada e forneceu padrões de difração suficientes para elucidação da estrutura 3D. Os estudos bioquímicos e estruturais avançaram o entendimento desta enzima e das possibilidades de sua inibição.

Pektatlyase (Pel-15) aus dem alkalophilen Bodenbakterium Bacillus spec. KSM-P15 ist mit 197 Aminosäuren eines der kleinsten, bekannten β-3-Solenoidproteine. Sie spaltet Polygalakturonsäurederivate in einem Ca2+-abhängigen β-Eliminierungsprozess. Wie bei allen Proteinen dieser Enzymfamilie ist auch die Polypeptidkette von Pel-15 zu einer einsträngigen, rechtsgängigen, parallelen β-Helix aufgewunden. In diesem Strukturmotiv enthält jede Windung drei β-Stränge, die jeweils durch flexible Schleifenbereiche miteinander verbunden sind. Insgesamt acht Windungen stapeln sich in Pel-15 übereinander und bilden entlang der Helixachse flächige, parallele β-Faltblätter aus. Im Bereich dieser β-Faltblätter existiert ein ausgedehntes Netzwerk von Wasserstoffbrückenbindungen, durch das der hydrophobe Kern, der sich im Inneren der β-Helix befindet, vom umgebenden Lösungsmittel abgeschirmt wird. Besondere Abschlussstrukturen an beiden Enden der β-Helix, wie sie typischerweise bei anderen Ver-tretern dieser Strukturklasse ausgeprägt werden, sind in Pel-15 nicht zu beobachten. Stattdessen sind die terminalen Bereiche der β-Helix über Salzbrücken und hydrophobe Seitenkettenkontakte stabilisiert. In der vorliegenden Dissertation wurde die Pektatlyase Pel-15 hinsichtlich ihres Faltungsgleichgewichtes, ihrer enzymatischen Aktivität und der Kinetik ihrer Strukturbildung charakterisiert. In eine evolutionär konservierte Helixwindung wurden destabilisierende Mutationen eingeführt, und deren Auswirkungen mittels spektroskopischer Methoden analysiert. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Pel-15 in Gegenwart des Denaturierungsmittels Guanidiniumhydrochlorid einen hyperfluoreszenten Gleichgewichtsustand (HF) populiert, der nach Messungen von Faltungs- und Entfaltungskinetiken ein konformationelles Ensemble aus den Zuständen HFslow und HFfast darstellt. Diese HF-Zustände sind durch eine hohe Aktivierungsbarriere voneinander getrennt. In Rückfaltungsexperimenten populieren nur etwa 80 % der faltenden Moleküle den Zwischenzustand HFslow, der mit einer Zeitkonstante von ca. 100 s zu HFfast weiterreagiert. Die Denaturierungsmittelabhängigkeit dieser Reaktion ist sehr gering, was eine trans-/cis-Prolylisomerisierung als geschwindigkeitslimitierenden Schritt nahelegt. Die Existenz eines cis-Peptides in der nativen Struktur macht es erforderlich, den denaturierten Zustand als ein Ensemble kinetisch separierter Konformationen, kurz: DSE, zu betrachten, das durch die Spezies Ufast und Uslow populiert wird. Nach dem in dieser Arbeit aufgestellten „Minimalmodell der Pel-15 Faltung“ stehen die HF-Spezies (HFslow, HFfast) mit den Konformationen des DSE in einem thermodynamischen Kreisprozess. Das Modell positioniert HFfast und die native Konformation N auf die „native Seite“ der Aktivierungsbarriere und trägt damit der Tatsache Rechnung, dass die Gleichgewichtseinstellung zwischen diesen Spezies zu schnell ist, um mit manuellen Techniken erfasst zu werden. Die hochaffine Bindung von Ca2+ (Kd = 10 μM) verschiebt sich das Faltungsgleichgewicht bereits in Gegenwart von 1 mM CaCl2 soweit auf die Seite des nativen Zustandes, das HFfast nicht länger nachweisbar ist. Entgegen anfänglicher Vermutungen kommt einer lokalen, evolutionär konservierten Disulfidbrücke im Zentrum der β-Helix eine wichtige Stabilisierungsfunktion zu. Die Disulfidbrücke befindet sich in einem kurzen Schleifenbereich der β-Helix nahe dem aktiven Zentrum. Obwohl ihr Austausch gegen die Reste Val und Ala die freie Stabilisierungsenthalpie des Proteins um ca. 10 kJ/mol reduziert, lässt die Struktur im Bereich der Mutationsstelle keine gravierende Veränderung erkennen. Auch die katalytisch relevante Ca2+-Bindungsaffinität bleibt unbeeinflusst; dennoch zeigen Enzymaktivitätstests für VA-Mutanten eine Reduktion der enzymatischen Aktivität um fast 50 % an. Die evolutionär konservierte Helixwindung im Allgemeinen und die in ihr enthaltene Disulfidbrücke im Besonderen müssen nach den vorliegenden Ergebnissen also eine zentrale Funktion sowohl für die Struktur des katalytischen Zentrums als auch für die Strukturbildung der β-Helix während der Faltungsreaktion besitzen. Die Ergebnisse dieser Arbeit finden in mehreren Punkten Anklang an Faltungseigenschaften, die für andere β -Helixproteine beschrieben wurden. Vor allem aber prädestinieren sie Pel-15 als ein neues, β-helikales Modellprotein. Aufgrund seiner einfachen Topologie, seiner niedrigen Windungszahl und seiner hohen thermodynamischen Stabilität ist Pel-15 sehr gut geeignet, die Determinanten von Stabilität und Strukturbildung des parallelen β-Helix-Motivs in einer Auflösung zu studieren, die aufgrund der Komplexität bestehender β-helikaler Modellsysteme bislang nicht zur Verfügung stand. / Pectate lyase Pel-15 was isolated from alcaliphlic Bacillus spec. strain KSM-P15. Like all pectate lyases Pel-15 binds and subsequently cleaves polygalacturonic acid, the main pectic compound in plant cell walls and middle lamellae, in a Ca2+ dependent beta-elimination reaction. With 197 amino acids and a molecular mass of only 21 kDa the protein is one of the smallest right-handed parallel beta-helical proteins known today. Polypeptide chains that are classified into this structural family adopt super-helical folds in which each “solenoid stack” consists of three beta-structured regions that are connected by flexible turn segments. Along its longitudinal axis the right-handed parallel beta-helix thus comprises three elongated parallel beta-sheets that are stabilized by an extensive network of hydrogen bonds wrapping around the densely packed hydrophobic core. Together with the shield-like arrangement of hydrogen bonds this hydrophobic core is considered as the main contributor to an exceptionally high stability that is a common feature of all beta-helical proteins. In contrast to most right-handed parallel beta-helices, Pel-15 is devoid of any terminal capping domains and laterally associated secondary structure. Therefore, this protein is considered to be a promising model protein of a pure beta-helix which will help to understand the determinants of both parallel beta-sheet formation and stability. In the dissertation at hand optical spectroscopic methods were used to assess the enzymatic activity, the folding/unfolding equilibrium and the kinetic mechanism of structure formation in neutral buffered solutions. Results indicate that Pel-15 populates a hyper-fluorescent equilibrium intermediate (HF) that is effectively populated in presence of the denaturing agent guanidinium hydrochloride (GdmCl). According to kinetic folding and unfolding experiments HF is not only an essential on-pathway intermediate but has to be considered as a conformational ensemble in which several hyperfluorescent states are in thermodynamic equilibrium with each other. According to their existence in kinetic folding trajectories these different HF-species were termed HFslow and HFfast. The activation energy between both states is remarkably high leading to a time constant of about 100 seconds for the reaction HFslow ⇆ HFfast. Since native Pel-15 contains an energetically disfavoured cis-prolyl peptide between A59 and P60 it is proposed that HFslow and HFfast differ in their prolyl peptide conformations. Two main results emerge from this dissertation. First, an extensive study of the Pel-15 folding- and unfolding behaviour facilitated the proposal of a “minimal folding model”. According to this model the HF-states and the according denatured species Uslow and Ufast are aligned into a thermodynamic circle. This implies that unfolded polypeptide chains reach the HF-ensemble via parallel folding trajectories. Since the native conformation N together with HFfast are on the same side of the activation barrier, it is the reaction HFslow ⇆ HFfast that is the rate limiting step in the folding reaction of Pel-15. Second, the importance of an evolutionarily conserved disulfide bond in the central region of Pel-15 was tested by site directed mutagenesis and subsequent spectroscopic characterization. The exchange of the disulfide against a hydrophobic pair of alanine and valine decreases the folding free energy by about 10 kJ/mol. Although this value is unexpectedly high, structural perturbations around both mutational positions are small as was deduced from X-Ray crystallography. Interestingly, the stability decrease is accompanied by a major loss of enzymatic activity while the Ca2+ binding affinity is not significantly affected. It is therefore concluded that the allosterically relevant disulfide bond stabilizes long-range interactions that stabilize several adjacent solenoid turns near the N-terminus of the protein. Indeed, planar stacking interactions are perturbed and flexibility of N-terminal loops is increased once the disulfide bond is removed. This dissertation establishes Pel-15 as a novel beta-helical model protein and – even more important – smoothes the way for a generally accepted perspective on the formation and stability of parallel beta-sheet proteins.

I formally joined Prof. M. R. N. Murthy’s laboratory at the Molecular Biophysics Unit, Indian institute of Science, on 1st August 2001. During that time, the interest in the laboratory was mainly focused on structural studies on a number of capsid mutants of two plant viruses, sesbania mosaic virus and physalis mottle virus, to gain an insight into the virus structure and its assembly. Besides these two projects, there were a few other collaborative projects running in the lab at that time such as NIa protease from pepper vein banding virus and diaminopropionate ammonia lyase from Escherichia coli with Prof. H. S. Savithri, triosephosphate isomerase from Plasmodium falciparum with Prof. P. Balaram and Prof. H. Balaram and a DNA binding protein (TP2) with Prof. M. R. S. Rao. During my first semester, along with my course work, I was assigned to make an attempt to purify and crystallize recombinant NIa protease and TP2 protein. I started with NIa protease which could be purified using one step Ni-NTA affinity column chromatography. Although the expression and protein yield were reasonably good, protein precipitated with in a couple of hours after purification. Attempts were made to prevent the precipitation of the purified enzyme and towards this end we were successful to some extent. However, during crystallization trials most of the crystallization drops precipitated completely even at low protein oncentration. TP2 protein was purified using three-step chromatographic techniques by one of the project assistant in Prof. M. R. S. Rao’s laboratory. Because of low expression level and three step purification protocol, protein yield was not good enough for complete crystallization screening. Hits obtained from our initial screening could not be confirmed because of low protein yield as well as batch to batch variation. My attempts to crystallize these two proteins remained unsuccessful but in due course I had learnt a great deal about the tips and tricks of expression, purification and mainly crystallization. To overcome the problems faced with these two proteins, we decided to make some changes in the gene construct and try different expression systems. By this time (beginning of 2002), I had finished my first semester and a major part of the course work, so we decided to start a new project focusing on some of the unknown enzymes from a metabolic pathway. Dr. Parthasarathy, who had finished his Ph. D. from the lab, helped me in literature work and in finding targets for structural studies. Finally, we decided to target enzymes involved in the propionate etabolism. The pathways for propionate metabolism in Escherichia coli as well as Salmonella typhimurium were just established and there were no structural information available for most of the enzymes involved in these pathways. Since, propionate metabolic pathways were well described in the case of Salmonella typhimurium, we decided to use this as the model organism. We first started with the enzymes present in the propionate catabolic pathway “2-methylcitrate pathway”, which converts propionate into pyruvate and succinate. 2-methylcitrate pathway resembles the well-studied glyoxylate and TCA cycle. Most of the enzymes involved in 2-methylcitrate pathway were not characterized biochemically as well as structurally. First, we cloned all the four enzymes PrpB, PrpC, PrpD and PrpE present in the prpBCDE operon along with PrpR, a transcription factor, with the help of Dr. P.S. Satheshkumar from Prof. H. S. Savithri’s laboratory. Since these five proteins were cloned with either N- or C-terminal hexa-histidine tag, they could be purified easily using one-step Ni-NTA affinity column chromatography. PrpB, PrpC and PrpD had good expression levels but with PrpE and PrpR, more than 50% of the expressed protein went into insoluble fraction, probably due to the presence of membrane spanning domains in these two enzymes. Around this time, crystallization report for the PrpD from Salmonella was published by Ivan Rayment’s group, so after that we focused only on the remaining four proteins leaving out PrpD. Our initial attempts to crystallize these proteins became successful in case of PrpB, 2-methylisocitrate lyase. We collected a complete diffraction data to a resolution of 2.5 Å which was later on extended to a resolution of 2.1 Å using another crystal. Repeated crystallization trials with PrpC also gave small protein crystals but they were not easy to reproduce and size and diffraction quality always remained a problem. Using one good crystal obtained for PrpC, data to a resolution of 3.5 Å could be collected. Unfortunately, during data collection due to failure of the cryo-system, a complete dataset could not be collected. Further attempts to crystallize this protein made by Nandashree, one of my colleagues in the lab at that time, was also without much success. Attempts to purify and crystallize PrpE and PrpR were made by me as well as one of my colleagues, Anupama. In this case, besides crystallization, low expression and precipitation of the protein after purification were major problems. Our attempt to phase the PrpB data using the closest search model (phosphoenolpyruvate mutase) by molecular replacement technique was unsuccessful,probably because of low sequence identity between them (24%). Further attempts were made to obtain heavy atom derivatives of PrpB crystal. We could obtain a mercury derivative using PCMBS. However, an electron density map based on this single derivative was not nterpretable. Around this time, the structure of 2-methylisocitrate lyase (PrpB) from E. coli was published by Grimm et. al. The structure of Salmonella PrpB could easily be determined using the E. coli PrpB enzyme as the starting model. We also solved the structure of PrpB in complex with pyruvate and Mg2+. Our attempts to crystallize PrpB with other ligands were not successful. Using the structures of PrpB and its complex with pyruvate and Mg2+, we carried out comparative studies with the well-studied structural and functional homologue, isocitrate lyase. These studies provided the plausible rationale for different substrate specificities of these two enzymes. Due to unavailability of PrpB substrate commercially and the extensive biochemical and mutational studies carried out by two different groups made us turn our attention to other enzymes in this metabolic pathway. Since our repeated attempts to obtain good diffraction quality crystals of PrpC, PrpE and PrpR continued to be unsuccessful, we decided to target other enzymes involved in propionate metabolism. We looked into the literature for the metabolic pathways by which propionate is synthesized in the Salmonella typhimurium and finally decided to target enzymes present in the metabolic pathway which converts L-threonine to propionate. Formation of propionate from L-threonine is the most direct route in many organisms. During February 2003, we initiated these studies with the last enzyme of this pathway, propionate kinase (TdcD), and within a couple of months we could obtain a well-diffracting crystal in complex with ADP and with a non-hydrolysable ATP analog, AMPPNP. TdcD structure was solved by molecular replacement using acetate kinase as a search model. Propionate kinase, like acetate kinase, contains a fold with the topology βββαβαβα, identical with that of glycerol kinase, hexokinase, heat shock cognate 70 (Hsc70) and actin, the superfamily of phosphotransferases. Examination of the active site pocket in propionate kinase revealed a plausible structural rationale for the greater specificity of the enzyme towards propionate than acetate. One of the datasets of TdcD obtained in the presence of ATP showed extra continuous density beyond the γ-phosphate. Careful examination of this extra electron density finally allowed us to build diadenosine tetraphosphate (Ap4A) into the active site pocket, which fitted the density very well. Since the data was collected at a synchrotron source to a resolution of 1.98 Å, we could identify the ligand in the active site pocket solely on the basis of difference Fourier map. Later on, co-crystallization trials of TdcD with commercially available Ap4A confirmed its binding to the enzyme. These studies suggested the presence of a novel Ap4A synthetic activity in TdcD, which is further being examined by biochemical experiments using mass-spectrometry as well as thin-layer chromatography experiments. By the end of 2004, we shifted our focus to the first enzyme involved in the anaerobic degradation of L-threonine to propionate, a biodegradative threonine deaminase (TdcB). Sagar Chittori, who had joined the lab as an integrated Ph. D student, helped me in cloning this enzyme. My attempt to crystallize this protein became finally successful and datasets in three different crystal forms were collected. Dataset for TdcB in complex with CMP was collected during a synchrotron trip to SPring8, Japan by my colleague P. Gayathri and Prof. Murthy. TdcB structure was solved by molecular replacement using the N-terminal domain of biosynthetic threonine deaminase as a search model. Structure of TdcB in the native form and in complex with CMP helped us to understand several unanswered questions related to ligand mediated oligomerization and enzyme activation observed in this enzyme. The structural studies carried out on these three enzymes have provided structural as well as functional insights into the catalytic process and revealed many unique features of these metabolic enzymes. All these have been possible mainly due to proper guidance and encouragement from Prof. Murthy and Prof. Savithri. Prof. Murthy’s teaching as well as discussions during the course of investigation has helped me in a great deal to learn and understand crystallography. Collaboration with Prof. Savithri kept me close to biochemistry and molecular biology, the background with which I entered the world of structural biology. The freedom to choose the project and carry forward some of my own ideas has given me enough confidence to enjoy doing research in future.

Pyridoxal 5’-phosphate (PLP), the active form of vitamin B6, is a cofactor for many enzymes involved in the metabolism of amino acids, amino acid derived metabolites and some amino sugars. PLP is one of the most versatile cofactors and the PLP-dependent enzymes catalyze a variety of reactions including transamination, decarboxylation, inter-conversion of L-and D-amino acids and removal or replacement of chemical groups bound at β or γ carbon of amino acids. The thesis describes the structural studies carried out on three PLP-dependent enzymes; N-acetylornithine aminotransferase (AcOAT), serine hydroxymethyltransferase (SHMT) and diaminopropionate ammonia lyase (DAPAL). Chapter 1 of the thesis begins with a brief introduction to PLP-dependent enzymes and their classification. This is followed by a review of structures of enzymes belonging to the subgroup II aminotransferases. The last section of chapter I contains a detailed description of the structures available till date for SHMT from various sources and the mutational studies carried out on SHMT. All the common experimental procedures and computational methods used for the current investigations are described in chapter II, as most of these are applicable to all structure determinations and analyses. The experimental procedures described include cloning, overexpression, purification, crystallization, and X-ray diffraction data collection. Computational methods include details of various programs used during data processing, structure determination, refinement, model building, structure validation and analysis. AcOAT is one of the key enzymes in arginine and lysine metabolism. AcOAT belongs to the fold type I (αfamily) subgroup II family of PLP dependent enzymes. Both S. typhimurium and E. coli have two genes each, one involved in the biosynthesis of arginine and another in the biodegradation of arginine. Biosynthetic AcOAT catalyzes the conversion of N-acetylglutamate semialdehyde to N-acetylornithine (AcOrn) in the presence of L-glutamate and the conversion of N-succinyl-L-2-amino-6-oxopimelate to N-succinyl-L,L-diaminopimelate in lysine biosynthesis. Meso-DAP and lysine, the products of lysine biosynthesis pathway, are known to function as cross-linking moieties in the peptidoglycan component of bacterial cell wall. Therefore N-acetylornithine aminotransferase could serve as a target for designing antibacterials. Chapter III gives the details of the work carried out on AcOAT. Two genes each from S. typhimurium and E. coli coding for biosynthetic and biodegradative AcOAT were cloned in E. coli, overexpressed and purified by Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. Of the four enzymes, biosynthetic AcOAT from S. typhimurium (sArgD) crystallized in the unliganded form and in the presence of the inhibitor gabaculine or one of the substrates L-glutamate, diffracted to a maximum resolution of 1.90 Å and contained a dimer in the asymmetric unit. The structure was determined by the molecular replacement method using human ornithine aminotransferase (hOAT) as the starting model. The structure of unliganded sAcOAT showed significant electron density for PLP in only one of the subunits (subunit A). The asymmetry in PLP binding could be attributed to the ordering of the loop Lαk-βm in only one subunit. The Km and kcat/Km values determined with the purified sArgD suggested that the enzyme could accept both acetylornithine (AcOrn) and ornithine (Orn) as the substrates and had much higher affinity for AcOrn than for Orn. However, OAT accepts only Orn as the substrate. Comparison of the structurte of sArgD with T. thermophilus AcOAT and hOAT suggested that the higher specificity of sArgD towards AcOrn may not be due to specific differences in the active site residues but could result from minor conformational changes in some of them. sArgD was inhibited by gabaculine with an inhibition constant (Ki) of 7 µM and a second order rate constant (k2) of 0.16 mM-1s-1. The crystal structure of sArgD obtained in the presence of gabaculine and the spectral studies of sArgD with gabaculine suggested that the enzyme might have a low affinity for the PLP-gabaculine complex. Biosynthetic AcOAT from E. coli (eArgD) crystallized in the presence of gabaculine in hanging drop vapor diffusion method and diffracted X-rays only to a resolution of 3.5 Å. Two data sets were collected for the eArgD crystals. One of the data sets belonged to P1 (data 1) and the other to P321 space group (data 2) with a solvent content of ~70%. Data 1 was twinned and the unit cell was unusually large and could accommodate ~24 molecules in the asymmetric unit where as data 2 had four molecules in the asymmetric unit. Biodegradataive AcOAT from E. coli also crystallized in presence of gabaculine in hanging drop vapor diffusion method and suffered from low diffraction quality, where as that from S. typhimurium did not yield crystals. In chapter IV, X-ray crystallographic studies on various site specific mutants of SHMT from Bacillus stereotherophilus (bs) and a detailed comparison of structural data with the biochemical results in relation to mechanism of catalysis are presented. SHMT is a member of the α-class of PLP-dependent enzymes and catalyzes the reversible conversion of L-Ser and THF to glycine and 5,10-methylene THF. 5,10-methylene THF serves as a major source of one-carbon units in the biosynthesis of nucleotides and a few amino acids. SHMT also catalyses the cleavage of β-hydroxy amino acids like L-allo-threonine, transamination, racemization and decarboxylation reactions. SHMT shows increased activity along with enhanced nucleotide synthesis and therefore is a potential target for cancer chemotherapy. The availability of structural and biochemical data on SHMT from different sources ranging from human to E. coli enabled the identification of active site residues and a more critical examination of the role of these residues in the different steps of catalysis. The important mutants studied in the present investigation are E53Q, Y51F, Y61F, Y61A, Y60A, N341A and F351G of bsSHMT. The crystal structures of all these mutants are solved in the presence of various ligands, which gave many interesting results. E53, one of the active residues, interacts with the side chain hydroxyl group of serine bound to PLP in the wild type serine complex and N10 and formyl oxygen in the wild type glycine-FTHF complex. In E53Q glycine and serine complexes, glycine carboxyl and serine side chain were in two conformations, respectively, the new conformation being stabilized by their interaction with the mutated residue Q53. The structure of E53Q-Gly complex obtained in the presence and absence of 5-formyl THF(FTHF) showed an interesting case of enzyme memory in which the final conformational state depends on the way it was obtained and suggested that E53 is crucial for FTHF/THF binding. Though the spectrum showed that FTHF binds to the mutant initially, no density was observed for FTHF in the final structure. FTHF is believed to dissociate from the active site with prolonged incubation leaving behind a few significant conformational changes. Y51, one of the highly conserved tyrosines in SHMT, has hydrogen bonding interactions with the phosphate group of PLP and the active site lysine (K226) in bsSHMT. Mutation of Y51 to F resulted in significant changes at the active site. In all the structures of Y51F complexes, the phosphate group is in two conformations and F51 has moved away from the phosphate and in turn changed the position of Y61, another tyrosine in the active site. The residue Y61 is hydrogen bonded to R357 in the internal aldimine complex of bsSHMT. Addition of glycine/serine to bsSHMT resulted in the conformational change of Y61 away from R357 and towards E53, allowing the added glycine/serine to interact with R357. Mutation of Y61 to A did not bring significant structural changes. Structures of Y51F and Y61A mutants complexed with L-allo-Thr (cleaved to Gly by the wild type enzyme) showed that L-allo-Thr was not cleaved to glycine and acetaldehyde and confirmed the biochemical observation that these two residues are essential even for the THF-independent reaction. Residues Y60 and N341 are also highly conserved residues among SHMTs. Y60 stacks over PABA ring of FTHF in the wild type glycine-FTHF ternary complex. N341 has strong hydrogen bonding interactions with N1 and N8 atoms of the pteridine ring of FTHF. Mutation of either Y60 or N341 to A destroys the binding ability of FTHF/THF to the enzyme according to the biochemical and structural observations. The residue F351 exhibits different conformations in the two subunits of wild type glycine-FTHF ternary complex and is thought to be an important residue in determining the asymmetric binding of FTHF. Mutation of F351 to G did not affect the catalytic activity. Surprisingly, in the crystal structure obtained in the presence of L-allo-Thr, the ligand did not get cleaved to glycine, though in solution, the mutant is as active as the wild type enzyme. Chapter V describes the preliminary structural studies carried out on DAPAL from E. coli and S. typhimurium. DAPAL catalyzes the α, βelimination of both L-and D-diaminopropionate (DAP). DAP is the immediate precursor of two neurotoxins 3oxalyl and 2,3-dioxalyl DAP present in Lathyrus sativus, a grain legume rich in proteins and capable of growing well in drought conditions. The presence of these two neurotoxins precludes its use as a source of protein rich food. This enzyme is present only in bacteria and few species of actinomycetes. Unlike many other PLP-dependent enzymes, DAPAL does not catalyze any side reaction and is the only enzyme known to remove an amino group from the βcarbon of the substrate. The enzymes from E. coli (eDAPAL) and S. typhimurium (sDAPAL) produced diffraction quality crystals. However, crystals of sDAPAL did not survive heavy atom soaking and eDAPAL crystals suffered from poor reproducibility and severe non-isomorphism making it difficult to obtain suitable heavy atom derivatives for structure determination. Production of selenomethionine labelled proteins for these enzymes was initiated and thin crystals were obtained for eDAPAL. Improvement of the quality of these crystals is necessary in order to solve the structure of DAPAL by MAD method.

Eine der für die biotechnologische Nutzung interessanten Eigenschaften der Hefe Yarrowia (Y.) lipolytica ist ihr Vermögen, unter bestimmten Kultivierungsbedingungen große Mengen an organischen Säuren, darunter auch Citronensäure (CS), ins extrazelluläre Medium zu sekretieren. Aufgrund ihrer Apathogenität, ihres breiten Substratspektrums und ihrer guten molekulargenetischen und verfahrenstechnischen Handhabbarkeit, stellt sie einen idealen Mikroorganismus zur biotechnologischen Gewinnung von Citronensäure dar. Bei der durch eine Stickstofflimitation ausgelösten Überproduktion von CS mit Y. lipolytica kommt es parallel auch zur Ausscheidung von Isocitronensäure (ICS), deren Anteil am Gesamtsäureprodukt in Abhängigkeit von der C-Quelle in Wildtypstämmen zwischen 10 % (Glucose, Saccharose, Glycerol) und 40-55 % (Pflanzenöle, Alkan) liegt. In der Literatur beschriebene Mutantenstämme von Y. lipolytica besitzen ein von Wildtypstämmen abweichendes Produktmuster und können sowohl weniger (2-5 % auf Glucose, 5-10 % Alkan und Pflanzenöl) als auch mehr ICS (15-35 % Glu¬cose, 65-75 % Alkan, Ethanol bzw. Pflanzenöl) sekretieren. Die gezielte Überexpression des für die Isocitratlyase codierenden Gens ICL1 durch die Erhöhung der Kopiezahl führte zu einer drastischen Erhöhung der Enzymaktivität in den entsprechenden ICL1 multicopy Transformanden (10-15fach gegenüber Wildtyp) aufgrund des Gen-Dosis-Effektes. Auf den getesteten hydrophilen C-Quellen Glucose, Glycerol und Saccharose verringerte sich der ICS-Anteil von durchschnittlich 10-12 % auf 3-5 %, auf den hydrophoben C-Quellen Hexadecan und Sonnenblumenöl sogar von durchschnittlich 40-55 % auf Werte um 5-10 %. Im Ergebnis dieser Untersuchungen entstand ein Patent (DE10333144A1), welches ein Verfahren zur Gewinnung von CS mit einer genetisch veränderten Hefe Y. lipolytica beschreibt. Die Zerstörung des Leserahmens des ICL1 Gens in Mutantenstämmen bewirkte das Ausbleiben der Synthese einer funktionell aktiven Isocitratlyase, was den Verlust der Fähigkeit zur Verwertung gluconeogenetischer C-Quellen wie Ethanol, Alkan und Pflanzenölen zur Folge hatte. Auf Glucose bzw. Glycerol zeigten diese Mutantenstämme im Vergleich zum Wildtypstamm jedoch nur eine geringe Erhöhung des ICS-Anteils um durchschnittlich 2-5 Prozentpunkte. Die Zerstörung des Leserahmens des IDP2 Gens, codierend für die NADP-abhängigen Isocitratdehydrogenase, führte zur Glutamat-Auxotrophie des entsprechenden Mutantenstammes auf allen getesteten C-Quellen. In der Produktbildung zeigte diese Mutante im Vergleich zum Wildtypstamm eine Verringerung des ICS-Anteils um durchschnittlich 2-4 Prozentpunkte. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass Saccharose ein geeignetes Substrat zur Gewinnung von CS mit rekombinanten Stämmen von Y. lipolytica darstellt, die das für die Invertase codierende SUC2 Gens aus Saccharomyces cerevisiae exprimieren. Natürlicherweise kann Y. lipolytica diesen Zucker aufgrund des Fehlens des Enzyms Invertase nicht verwerten. Im Schüttelkolben wurden aus 100 g/l Saccharose unter nicht optimierten Bedingungen bereits 56 g/l CS+ICS gewonnen. Nach der Optimierung durch die Reduktion des für die Invertaseexpression durch pXPR2 notwendigen Peptonanteils von 1,7 auf 0,4 g/l erhöhte sich die Produktkonzentration auf 77 g/l. Die Übertragung des Produktionsprozesses in den Bioreaktor hatte die Verdopplung der Produktbildungsraten (RZA von 0,4 auf 0,85 g/l*h, r von 46 auf 89 mg/g*h) zur Folge, bedingt durch die Aufhebung der Sauerstofflimitation. Die Steigerung der Invertaseaktivität, die sich unter Bioreaktorbedingungen als ein Limi¬tationsfaktor her¬ausstellte, konnte durch die Anhebung des pH-Wertes von 5,0 auf 6,0 bzw. 6,8 er¬reicht werden. Dadurch konnten die Produktbildungsrate RZA um bis zu 80 % von 0,42 auf 0,76 g/l*h, die biomassespezifische Produktbildungsge¬schwin¬digkeit r um bis zu 70 % von 0,06 auf 0,1 g/g*h und die Ausbeute um bis zu 64 % von 0,5 auf 0,82 g/g gesteigert werden. Einen weiteren Limitationsfaktor für den CS-Bildungsprozess aus Saccharose stellt bei ausreichender Invertaseexpression offenbar die Aufnahme von Glucose und Fructose dar. Die Hefe Y. lipolytica zeigte höchste Produktbildungsraten aus Pflanzenölen, wie Sonnenblumen- oder Rapsöl, als nachwachsende Rohstoffe. Um zu prüfen, ob die Produktivität der CS-Bildung aus Pflanzenölen mit Y. lipolytica gesteigert werden kann, sollte die Triglyceridverwertung durch die Erhöhung der extrazellulären Lipaseaktivität verbessert werden. Dazu wurden zum einen Insertionsmutantenstämme, die auf eine erhöhte extrazelluläre Lipaseaktivität im Plattentest hin selektiert wurden, charakterisiert. Zum anderen wurde das für die extrazelluläre Lipase codierende LIP2 Gen in Y. lipolytica überexprimiert. Die erhaltenen LIP2 multicopy Transformanden zeigten eine bis zu 400fach erhöhte Lipaseaktivität im Vergleich zum Wildtypstamm (von 400 U/l auf bis zu 150000 U/l). Eine Verbesserung der Triglyceridverwertung aufgrund der Erhöhung der extrazellulären Lipaseaktivität in den untersuchten Insertionsmutanten und LIP2 multicopy Transformanden wurde nicht festgestellt. Die erhaltenen Daten für die Produktbildungsrate RZA (0,9-1,1 g/l*h), die biomassespezifische Produktbildungsgeschwindigkeit r (0,08-0,14 g/g*h) und die Ausbeuten (1,3-1,5 g/g) waren innerhalb der untersuchten Stämme vergleichbar und ließen keine verbesserte Produktbildung erkennen. Der geschwindigkeitsbestimmende Schritt liegt offenbar nicht bei der Hydrolyse der Triglyceride durch Lipasen, sondern bei der Aufnahme und dem Transport der Fettsäuren und/oder deren Katabolismus.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-26T13:51:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 texto completo.pdf: 800491 bytes, checksum: 274cc18672a32ed45926e416e0de5305 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-02-15 / The homologue recombination in Kluyveromyces lactis is not the preferential way used as repair mechanism of DNA double strand, desirable in proteins expression construction dependent on gene-specific integration. In order to obtain K. lactis strains to recombinant protein expression efficient in homologue recombination way, KU80 gene was interrupted. The perfect running of non-homologue ends junctions (NHEJ) way depends on that gene and is responsible by exogenous DNA random integration in the host genome. KU80 gene deletion was made by Split-Marker. Two fragments were generated by PCR fusion, each one with a flanker sequence of KU80 coding region (5 and 3 ends) and part of geneticin resistance gene (KanMX). Deletion cassette resulting from in vivo recombination of two fragments had KanMX gene flanked by KU80 coding regions end sand was used for KU80 deletion by homologue recombination in the genome in two K. lactis strains, JA6 and HP108. The 3.7 Kb fragment obtained by PCR amplification with external primers to KU80 coding region confirmed deletion cassette integration in the target gene. Integration efficiency with Split-Marker resulting fragments was 100 %. pKLAC1 and pKLAC1/cStp vectors with streptavidin affinity domain by biotin were used to determine homologue recombination efficiency of KU80 (JA6&#916;KU80 and HP108&#916;KU80) mutant strains. Pectin lyase coding gene (plg1) from Penicillium griseoroseum was cloned in those vectors to evaluate the capacity of K. lactis strains to produce and secrete the recombinant protein. The transformation efficiency (transformants/&#956;g of DNA) of mutants JA6&#916;KU80 and HP108&#916;KU80 with pKLAC1/Plg1 and pKLAC1/cStp-Plg1 vectors was higher than to parental strains JA6 and HP108. Target gene integration efficiency was 100 % in most strains, except to strains JA6/Plg1and HP108&#916;KU80/Plg1 that showed an integration efficiency of 80 and 70 %, respectively. Although the high efficiency of specific-gene integration there was no pectin lyase (PL) or cStp-Plg1 secretion as expected for pKLAC1 vector. PL intracellular activity was significant when compared with parental strain HP108/Plg1, that presented specific activity of 9,525 U.mg-1 protein. / A recombinação homóloga em Kluyveromyces lactis não é a via preferencial usada como mecanismo de reparo de quebra de fita dupla de DNA, o que pode ser indesejado em construções de expressão de proteínas dependentes de integração gene-específico. Para obter linhagens de K. lactis hospedeiras para a expressão de proteínas recombinantes eficientes na via de recombinação homóloga realizou-se a mutação do gene KU80. Este gene é essencial para perfeito funcionamento da via de junções de extremidades não-homólogas (NHEJ), responsável pela integração aleatória do DNA exógeno no genoma hospedeiro. A deleção do gene KU80 foi feita utilizando a técnica Split-Marker. Dois fragmentos foram obtidos por fusão por PCR, cada um contendo uma sequência flanqueadora da região codificante do gene KU80 (extremidades 5 e 3 ) e uma parte do gene de resistência a geneticina (KanMX). O cassete de deleção resultante da recombinação in vivo dos dois fragmentos gerados continha o gene KanMX flanqueado pelas extremidades da região codificante do gene KU80, e foi utilizado para deleção do gene KU80 por recombinação homóloga no genoma de duas linhagens de K. lactis, JA6 e HP108. O fragmento de 3,7 Kb obtido por amplificação por PCR com oligonucleotídeos externos à região codificante do gene KU80 confirmou a integração do cassete de deleção no gene alvo. A eficiência de integração com os fragmentos resultantes do Split-Marker foi de 100 %. Os vetores pKLAC1, e pKLAC1/cStp contendo o domínio de afinidade da estreptavidina pela biotina, foram usados para determinar a eficiência de recombinação homóloga das linhagens mutantes KU80 (JA6&#916;KU80 e HP108&#916;KU80). O gene da pectina liase (plg1) de Penicillium griseoroseum foi clonado nesses vetores para avaliar a capacidade de linhagens de K. lactis em produzir e secretar a proteína recombinante. A eficiência de transformação (transformantes/&#956;g de DNA) dos mutantes JA6&#916;KU80 e HP108&#916;KU80 com os vetores pKLAC1/Plg1 e pKLAC1/cStp-Plg1, foi superior à das linhagens parentais JA6 e HP108. A eficiência de integração no gene alvo foi de 100% para maioria das linhagens, com exceção das linhagens JA6/Plg1e HP108&#916;KU80/Plg1 que apresentaram, respectivamente, eficiência de 80 e 70 % de integração geneespecífico. Apesar da eficiência de integração por recombinação homóloga, não houve secreção de PL e da fusão cStp-Plg1 como esperado ao se utilizar o vetor pKLAC1. A atividade intracelular de pectina liase (PL) só foi significativa em relação à parental para a cepa HP108/Plg1, que demonstrou atividade específica de 9,525 U.mg-1 proteína.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-26T13:51:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 texto completo.pdf: 952076 bytes, checksum: 7fbcb43414ecacd3439620826b6172cd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-07-20 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Colletotrichum lindemuthianum is the causal agent of common bean anthracnose. Genes that encode cell wall-degrading enzymes are essential for the development of this disease. The pectinases are characterized as the most important group of cell wall- degrading enzymes produced by phytopathogen fungi. The gene coding for pectate lyase, pecCl1, was previously identified in a suppressive subtractive library of bean infected with C. lindemuthianum. Isolation of the gene pecCl1 made it possible to obtain mutants and to analyze the regulation of this gene during development of anthracnose, determining whether the pectate lyase is a pathogenic factor. Thus, the aim of our study was structurally and functionally characterize the gene encoding pectate lyase in C. lindemuthianum. Initially, was performed the structural analysis of the gene pecCl1. The complete nucleotide sequence of the gene pecCl1 was deposited in Genbank with accession number JX270683. The analysis of the promoter region revealed some putative cis-elements and potential binding motifs of transcription factors involved in the regulation of pectate lyase gene expression. The deduced amino acid sequence of pecCl1 showed sequence identity with the pectate lyase F of Colletotrichum higginsianum and the pectate lyase C of Glomerella graminicola M1.001. Furthermore, it was found putative conserved domain pfam03211 of the pectate lyases superfamily. The gene pecCl1 is represented by a single copy in the C. lindemuthianum genome. However, into the genome of Colletotrichum graminicola, three sequences encoding pectate lyase showed sequence identity with the gene pecCl1 of C. lindemuthianum, and into the genome of C. higginsianum seven sequences encoding pectate lyase showed sequence identity with the gene pecCl1 of C. lindemuthianum, indicating that the C. lindemuthianum genome can possess other genes encoding pectate lyase. Phylogenetic analysis of pectate lyase amino acid sequences of filamentous fungi exhibited the formation of two distinct groups which are grouped on the basis of members of the pectate lyases multigene family. The Split-Marker technique was effective in C. lindemuthianum pecCl1 gene inactivation, allowing the study of pecCl1 function in a mutant by specific integrations and without ectopic integrations. The pecCl1 gene inactivation did not lead to complete loss of the pectate lyase activity, and consequently only decreased anthracnose symptoms in its host, which is consistent with the presence of other genes coding pectate lyase, allowing greater flexibility in pathogen aggressiveness. The analysis of differential expression of gene pecCl1 by qPCR was performed at different stages of bean infection and were observed expression levels of pecCl1 at all stages of development of the fungus in the plant, but a significant increase was observed five days after infection, in the onset of necrotrophic stage. At this stage, secondary hyphae cause extensive degradation of plant cell wall through the secretion of wide range of depolymerases, among these, the pectate lyase. Thus, the pectate lyase encoded by the gene pecCl1 is important to aggressiveness of C. lindemuthianum. The analysis of pectate lyases in C. lindemuthianum can not only assist in understanding the disease, but may also lead to discovery of one more target for disease control. / Colletotrichum lindemuthianum é o agente causal da antracnose do feijoeiro comum. Genes que codificam enzimas que degradam a parede celular são essenciais para o desenvolvimento dessa doença. As pectinases são caracterizadas como o grupo de enzimas que hidrolisam a parede celular mais importante produzidas por fungos fitopatogênicos. O gene pecCl1, que codifica pectato liase, foi previamente identificado em uma biblioteca subtrativa supressiva de feijoeiro infectado com C. lindemuthianum. O isolamento do gene tornou possível a obtenção de mutantes e análise da regulação deste gene durante o desenvolvimento da antracnose, visando determinar se a pectato liase é um fator de patogenicidade. Desta forma, o objetivo do nosso trabalho foi caracterizar estruturalmente e funcionalmente o gene que codifica pectato liase em C. lindemuthianum. Inicialmente, foi realizada a análise estrutural do gene pecCl1. A sequência completa de nucleotídeos do gene pecCl1 foi deposita no Genbank com número de acesso JX270683. A análise da região promotora revelou alguns possíveis cis-elementos e sítios de ligação a fatores de transcrição envolvidos na regulação da expressão gênica da pectato liase. A sequência de aminoácidos deduzida de pecCl1 apresentou identidade de sequências com a pectato liase F de Colletotrichum higginsianum e a pectato liase C de Glomerella graminicola M1.001. Além disso, detectou-se um possível domínio conservado pfam03211 da superfamília de pectato liases. O gene pecCl1 encontra-se representado por uma cópia única no genoma de C. lindemuthianum. No entanto, no genoma de Colletotrichum graminicola, três sequências que codificam pectato liase apresentaram identidade de sequências com o gene pecCl1 de C. lindemuthianum, e no genoma de C. higginsianum sete sequências que codificam pectato liase apresentaram identidade de sequências com o gene pecCl1 de C. lindemuthianum, indicando que o genoma de C. lindemuthianum pode possuir além do gene pecCl1 outros genes que codificam pectato liase. A análise filogenética de sequências de aminoácidos de pectato liases de fungos filamentosos mostrou a formação de dois grupos distintos, que se agruparam com base nos membros da família multigênica de pectato liases. A técnica de Split-Marker mostrou-se eficiente na inativação do gene pecCl1 de C. lindemuthianum, possibilitando o estudo da função do gene pecCl1, em um mutante com integração específica e livre de integrações ectópicas. A inativação do gene pecCl1 não levou a perda completa da atividade de pectato liase, e consequentemente, somente diminuiu os sintomas de antracnose em seu hospedeiro, o que é consistente com a presença de outros genes que codificam pectato liase no fungo, permitindo ao patógeno uma maior flexibilidade em sua agressividade. Foi realizada a análise da expressão diferencial do gene pecCl1 por qPCR nos diferentes estágios de infecção no feijoeiro e foram observados transcritos de pecCl1 em todas as fases de desenvolvimento do fungo na planta, mas houve um aumento significativo destes transcritos cinco dias após a infecção, no início da fase necrotrófica do fungo. Nesta fase, as hifas secundárias causam degradação extensiva da parede celular vegetal por meio da secreção de vasta gama de despolimerases, dentre estas, a pectato liase. Portanto, a pectato liase codificada pelo gene pecCl1 é importante para agressividade de C. lindemuthianum. A análise de pectato liases poderá não somente auxiliar na compreensão da antracnose em feijoeiro comum, mas também poderá levar a descoberta de mais um alvo para o controle dessa doença.