Biomedical subjects

Eric Turk

Publications and source records attributed to Eric Turk.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Molecular interactions between dipeptides, drugs and the human intestinal H+ -oligopeptide cotransporter hPEPT1.

The human intestinal proton-coupled oligopeptide transporter hPEPT1 has been implicated in the absorption of pharmacologically active compounds. We have investigated the interactions between a comprehensive selection of drugs, and wild-type and variant hPEPT1s expressed in Xenopus oocytes, using radiotracer uptake and electrophysiological methods. The beta-lactam antibiotics ampicillin, amoxicillin, cephalexin and cefadroxil, the antineoplastics delta-aminolevulinic acid (delta-ALA) and bestatin, and the neuropeptide N-acetyl-Asp-Glu (NAAG), were transported, as judged by their ability to evoke inward currents. When the drugs were added in the presence of the typical substrate glycylsarcosine (Gly-Sar), the inward currents were equal or less than that induced by Gly-Sar alone. This suggests that the drugs are transported at a lower turnover rate than Gly-Sar, but may also point towards complex interactions between dipeptides, drugs and the transporter. Gly-Sar and the drugs also modified the kinetics of hPEPT1 presteady-state charge movement, by causing a reduction in maximum charge (Qmax) and a shift of the midpoint voltage (V0.5) to more negative potentials. Our results indicate that the substrate selectivity of hPEPT1 is: Gly-Sar > NAAG, delta-ALA, bestatin > cefadroxil, cephalexin > ampicillin, amoxicillin. Based on steady-state and presteady-state analysis of Gly-Sar and cefadroxil transport, we proposed an extension of the 6-state kinetic model for hPEPT1 function that globally accounts for the observed presteady-state and steady-state kinetics of neutral dipeptide and drug transport. Our model suggests that, under saturating conditions, the rate-limiting step of the hPEPT1 transport cycle is the reorientation of the empty carrier within the membrane. Variations in rates of drug cotransport are predicted to be due to differences in affinity and turnover rate. Oral availability of drugs may be reduced in the presence of physiological concentrations of dietary dipeptides in the gut, suggesting that oral delivery drugs should be taken on an empty stomach. The common hPEPT1 single-nucleotide polymorphisms Ser117Asn and Gly419Ala retained the essential kinetic and drug recognition characteristics of the wild type, suggesting that neither variant is likely to have a major impact on oral absorption of drugs.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

A reinvestigation of the secondary structure of functionally active vSGLT, the vibrio sodium/galactose cotransporter.

The bacterial Na(+)/galactose cotransporter vSGLT of Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a member of the sodium:solute symporter family (SSS). Previous studies using electron microscopy have shown that vSGLT is a monomeric protein. Computational and experimental topological analyses have consistently indicated that this protein possesses 14 transmembrane alpha-helices. Our previous study using attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) to quantitate secondary structure content had indicated, in contrast, an alpha-helical content of only 35%, too little to be consistent with the 14-span model [le Coutre, J., et al. (2002) Biochemistry 41, 8082-6]. ATR-FTIR had also indicated that upon binding of Na(+) and d-galactose, the alpha-helical content increased to 53%. Here we revisit the vSGLT secondary structural distribution using an alternative approach, ultraviolet circular dichroism spectropolarimetry (CD), which is highly accurate in determining the alpha-helical content of a protein in solution. CD spectra were obtained from actively functional, soluble vSGLT and, as an internal check, from a fusion protein of vSGLT and the beta-barrel green fluorescent protein (GFP). Far-UV CD of vSGLT indicates a predominating 85% alpha-helical content, and an absence of beta-strands. Far-UV CD of the vSGLT-GFP fusion corroborates this profile, indicating an equivalent alpha-helical content, and a beta-strand content consistent with the GFP contribution. No detectable substrate-induced macroscopic changes in secondary structure are apparent in the far UV. In the near UV, increases in positive CD intensity occur in a stepwise manner with added substrates, implying changing environments of aromatic amino acid residues. CD thus confirms the current 14-transmembrane span model of vSGLT and reveals distinct substrate-induced conformational changes. The high percentage of alpha-helical structure found requires, when considered in the context of membrane topology, that nearly a third of the total alpha-helical fraction lies in extramembrane domains, which distinguishes this cotransporter from the unrelated lactose and glycerol 3-phosphate transporters.

Circular Dichroism↗

PubMed2004

Local conformational changes in the Vibrio Na+/galactose cotransporter.

Na(+) and sugar transport by cotransporters (symporters) is thought to occur as a series of ordered ligand-induced conformational changes. To localize these conformational changes in a bacterial Na(+)/galactose cotransporter, we have employed a combination of cysteine-scanning and fluorescence techniques. Single or pairs of cysteine residues were introduced into the external face of a cysteine-less Vibrio parahaemolyticus sodium/glucose cotransporter for expression in Escherichia coli, and each transporter was purified using affinity chromatography. All the mutant proteins retained transport activity in bacteria and proteoliposomes. Each mutant was exposed to two different fluorescence reagents, ThioGlo3 or pyrene maleimide, that are essentially nonfluorescent until they react with a thiol. Fluorescence was recorded as a function of time and ligand concentrations. The reagents specifically labeled six of the seven cysteine mutants, but only in Cysteine 423 was the fluorescence affected by ligands. The rate of labeling of Cys423 by ThioGlo3 or pyrene maleimide was reduced by D-galactose in Na(+) buffer. Furthermore, the fluorescence of Thioglo3-labeled Cys423 was quenched by D-galactose, but only in the presence of Na(+). This quench was not accompanied by a Stokes shift and was not produced by nontransported sugars, e.g., L-glucose. Reducing the sodium concentration from 200 to 10 mM decreased the apparent affinity for d-galactose without altering the maximum quench with saturating D-galactose. Reducing the galactose concentration from 20 to 0.5 mM reduced both the apparent affinity for Na(+) and the maximum quench at saturating Na(+). These results suggest an ordered reaction scheme with Na(+) binding first. The fluorescence results with ThioGlo3-labeled Cys423 indicate that conformational changes underlying Na(+)/galactose cotransport occur at or near the extracellular domain between transmembrane helices 10 and 11.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2004

Surprising versatility of Na+-glucose cotransporters: SLC5.

SLC5 is an ancient gene family with 11 members in the human genome. These membrane proteins have diverse, multiple functions ranging from actively transporting solutes, ions, and water, to channeling water and urea, to sensing glucose in cholinergic neurons. Metabolic disorders have been identified that are associated with congenital mutations in two of the human genes.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

The sodium/glucose cotransport family SLC5.

The sodium/glucose cotransporter family (SLCA5) has 220 or more members in animal and bacterial cells. There are 11 human genes expressed in tissues ranging from epithelia to the central nervous system. The functions of nine have been revealed by studies using heterologous expression systems: six are tightly coupled plasma membrane Na(+)/substrate cotransporters for solutes such as glucose, myo-inositol and iodide; one is a Na(+)/Cl(-)/choline cotransporter; one is an anion transporter; and another is a glucose-activated ion channel. The exon organization of eight genes is similar in that each comprises 14-15 exons. The choline transporter (CHT) is encoded in eight exons and the Na(+)-dependent myo-inositol transporter (SMIT) in one exon. Mutations in three genes produce genetic diseases (glucose-galactose malabsorption, renal glycosuria and hypothyroidism). Members of this family are multifunctional membrane proteins in that they also behave as uniporters, urea and water channels, and urea and water cotransporters. Consequently it is a challenge to determine the role(s) of these genes in human physiology and pathology.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2003

Structure of functional single AQP0 channels in phospholipid membranes.

Aquaporin-0 (AQP0) is the most prevalent intrinsic protein in the plasma membrane of lens fiber cells where it functions as a water selective channel and also participates in fiber-fiber adhesion. We report the 3D envelope of purified AQP0 reconstituted with random orientation in phospholipid bilayers as single particles. The envelope was obtained by combining freeze-fracture, shadowing and random conical tilt electron microscopy followed by single particle image processing. Two-dimensional analysis of 2547 untilted images produced eight class averages exhibiting "square" and "octagonal" shapes with a continuum of variation. We reconstructed in 3D five class averages that best described the data set. The reconstructions ("molds") appeared as metal cups exhibiting external and internal surfaces. We used the internal surface of the mold to calculate the "imprints" that represent the AQP0 particles protruding from the hydrophobic core of the phospholipid bilayer. The complete envelope of the channel, formed by joining the square and octagonal imprints, described accurately the size, shape, oligomeric state, orientation, and molecular weight of the AQP0 channel inserted in the phospholipid bilayer. Rigid body docking of the atomic model of the aquaporin-1 (AQP1) tetramer showed that the freeze-fracture envelope accounted for the conserved transmembrane domain (approximately 73% similarity between AQP0 and AQP1) but not for the amino and carboxyl termini. We suggest that the discrepancy might reflect differences in the location of the amino and carboxyl termini in the crystal and in the phospholipid bilayer.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Intestinal absorption in health and disease--sugars.

Carbohydrates are mostly digested to glucose, fructose and galactose before absorption by the small intestine. Absorption across the brush border and basolateral membranes of enterocytes is mediated by sodium-dependent and -independent membrane proteins. Glucose and galactose transport across the brush border occurs by a Na(+)/glucose (galactose) co-transporter (SGLT1), whereas passive fructose transport is mediated by a uniporter (GLUT5). The passive exit of all three sugars out of the cell across the basolateral membrane occurs through two uniporters (GLUT2 and GLUT5). Mutations in SGLT1 cause a major defect in glucose and galactose absorption (glucose-galactose Malabsorption), but mutations in GLUT2 do not appear to disrupt glucose and galactose absorption. Studies on GLUT1 null mice and Fanconi-Bickel patients suggest that there is another exit pathway for glucose and galactose that may involve exocytosis. There are no known defects of fructose absorption.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Ligand-induced differences in secondary structure of the Vibrio parahaemolyticus Na+/galactose cotransporter.

A detailed structural study of the prokaryotic sodium/galactose transporter (vSGLT) from Vibrio parahaemolyticus using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy reveals stepwise increases in alpha-helicity upon binding of sodium and D-galactose. These increases in helicity correlate with decreases in beta-structural elements. The changes are accompanied by stepwise reductions in the degree of H/D exchange (HDX), suggesting reduced accessibility of water to the protein backbone. The data demonstrate discrete conformational changes from one intermediate to the next during the catalytic cycle of the protein and are interpreted in a model of the symport reaction mechanism.

Amides↗

PubMed2002

Molecular basis for glucose-galactose malabsorption.

Glucose-galactose malabsorption (GGM) is an autosomal recessive disease that presents in newborn infants as a life-threatening diarrhea. The diarrhea ceases within 1 h of removing oral intake of lactose, glucose, and galactose, but promptly returns with the introduction of one or more of the offending sugars into the diet. Our goal is to determine whether or not mutations in the sodium-glucose cotransporter gene (SGLT1) are responsible for GGM. We first isolated the human cDNA (hSGLT1), mapped the gene, and identified its chromosomal location (22q13.1). Our approach was then to screen GGM patients for mutations in hSGLT1 and then determine if these caused defects in sugar transport using the Xenopus laevis oocyte expression system. In 46 patients we have identified the mutations responsible for GGM. These included missense, nonsense, frame shift, splice site, and promoter mutations. In 30 patients, the same mutations were on both alleles, and the remaining 16 had different mutations on each allele (compound heterozygotes). Several mutations (e.g., C355S) were found in unrelated patients. The nonsense, frame shift, and splice site mutations all produce nonfunctional truncated proteins. In 22 out of the 23 missense mutations tested in the oocyte expression system, the proteins were translated and were stable in the cell, but did not reach the plasma membrane. In four of these mutants, an alanine residue was replaced by a valine, and in two, the trafficking defect was rescued by changing the valine to cysteine. One mutant protein (Q457R) did reach the plasma membrane, but it was unable to transport the sugar across the cell membrane. We conclude that mutations in the SGLT1 gene are the cause of glucose-galactose malabsorption, and sugar transport is impaired mainly because the mutant proteins are either truncated or are not targeted properly to the cell membrane.

Carbohydrate Metabolism, Inborn Errors↗