PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Fevzi Daldal

Publications and source records attributed to Fevzi Daldal.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Membrane targeting of a folded and cofactor-containing protein.

Targeting of proteins to and translocation across the membranes is a fundamental biological process in all organisms. In bacteria, the twin arginine translocation (Tat) system can transport folded proteins. Here, we demonstrate in vivo that the high potential iron-sulfur protein (HiPIP) from Allochromatium vinosum is translocated into the periplasmic space by the Tat system of Escherichia coli. In vitro, reconstituted HiPIP precursor (preHoloHiPIP) was targeted to inverted membrane vesicles from E. coli by a process requiring ATP when the Tat substrate was properly folded. During membrane targeting, the protein retained its cofactor, indicating that it was targeted in a folded state. Membrane targeting did not require a twin arginine motif and known Tat system components. On the basis of these findings, we propose that a pathway exists for the insertion of folded cofactor-containing proteins such as HiPIP into the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane.

Bacterial Proteins↗

The dithiol:disulfide oxidoreductases DsbA and DsbB of Rhodobacter capsulatus are not directly involved in cytochrome c biogenesis, but their inactivation restores the cytochrome c biogenesis defect of CcdA-null mutants.

The cytoplasmic membrane protein CcdA and its homologues in other species, such as DsbD of Escherichia coli, are thought to supply the reducing equivalents required for the biogenesis of c-type cytochromes that occurs in the periplasm of gram-negative bacteria. CcdA-null mutants of the facultative phototroph Rhodobacter capsulatus are unable to grow under photosynthetic conditions (Ps(-)) and do not produce any active cytochrome c oxidase (Nadi(-)) due to a pleiotropic cytochrome c deficiency. However, under photosynthetic or respiratory growth conditions, these mutants revert frequently to yield Ps(+) Nadi(+) colonies that produce c-type cytochromes despite the absence of CcdA. Complementation of a CcdA-null mutant for the Ps(+) growth phenotype was attempted by using a genomic library constructed with chromosomal DNA from a revertant. No complementation was observed, but plasmids that rescued a CcdA-null mutant for photosynthetic growth by homologous recombination were recovered. Analysis of one such plasmid revealed that the rescue ability was mediated by open reading frame 3149, encoding the dithiol:disulfide oxidoreductase DsbA. DNA sequence data revealed that the dsbA allele on the rescuing plasmid contained a frameshift mutation expected to produce a truncated, nonfunctional DsbA. Indeed, a dsbA ccdA double mutant was shown to be Ps(+) Nadi(+), establishing that in R. capsulatus the inactivation of dsbA suppresses the c-type cytochrome deficiency due to the absence of ccdA. Next, the ability of the wild-type dsbA allele to suppress the Ps(+) growth phenotype of the dsbA ccdA double mutant was exploited to isolate dsbA-independent ccdA revertants. Sequence analysis revealed that these revertants carried mutations in dsbB and that their Ps(+) phenotypes could be suppressed by the wild-type allele of dsbB. As with dsbA, a dsbB ccdA double mutant was also Ps(+) Nadi(+) and produced c-type cytochromes. Therefore, the absence of either DsbA or DsbB restores c-type cytochrome biogenesis in the absence of CcdA. Finally, it was also found that the DsbA-null and DsbB-null single mutants of R. capsulatus are Ps(+) and produce c-type cytochromes, unlike their E. coli counterparts, but are impaired for growth under respiratory conditions. This finding demonstrates that in R. capsulatus the dithiol:disulfide oxidoreductases DsbA and DsbB are not essential for cytochrome c biogenesis even though they are important for respiration under certain conditions.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Spectroscopic and oxidation-reduction properties of Rhodobacter capsulatus cytochrome c1 and its M183K and M183H variants.

Two variants of the cytochrome c1 component of the Rhodobacter capsulatus cytochrome bc1 complex, in which Met183 (an axial heme ligand) was replaced by lysine (M183K) or histidine (M183H), have been analyzed. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectra of the intact complex indicate that the histidine/methionine heme ligation of the wild-type cytochrome is replaced by histidine/lysine ligation in M183K and histidine/histidine ligation in M183H. Variable amounts of histidine/histidine axial heme ligation were also detected in purified wild-type cytochrome c1 and its M183K variant, suggesting that a histidine outside the CSACH heme-binding domain can be recruited as an alternative ligand. Oxidation-reduction titrations of the heme in purified cytochrome c1 revealed multiple redox forms. Titrations of the purified cytochrome carried out in the oxidative or reductive direction differ. In contrast, titrations of cytochrome c1 in the intact bc1 complex and in a subcomplex missing the Rieske iron-sulfur protein were fully reversible. An Em7 value of -330 mV was measured for the single disulfide bond in cytochrome c1. The origins of heme redox heterogeneity, and of the differences between reductive and oxidative heme titrations, are discussed in terms of conformational changes and the role of the disulfide in maintaining the native structure of cytochrome c1.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

Evolutionary domain fusion expanded the substrate specificity of the transmembrane electron transporter DsbD.

Modular organization of proteins has been postulated as a widely used strategy for protein evolution. The multidomain transmembrane protein DsbD catalyzes the transfer of electrons from the cytoplasm to the periplasm of Escherichia coli. Most bacterial species do not have DsbD, but instead their genomes encode a much smaller protein, CcdA, which resembles the central hydrophobic domain of DsbD. We used reciprocal heterologous complementation assays between E.coli and Rhodobacter capsulatus to show that, despite their differences in size and structure, DsbD and CcdA are functional homologs. While DsbD transfers reducing potential to periplasmic protein disulfide bond isomerases and to the cytochrome c thioreduction pathway, CcdA appears to be involved only in cytochrome c biogenesis. Our findings strongly suggest that, by the acquisition of additional thiol-redox active domains, DsbD expanded its substrate specificity.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Overexpression of ccl1-2 can bypass the need for the putative apocytochrome chaperone CycH during the biogenesis of c-type cytochromes.

In Gram-negative bacteria, including Rhodobacter capsulatus, the membrane protein CycH acts as a putative apocytochrome chaperone during the biogenesis of c-type cytochromes. CycH-null mutants are unable to produce various c-type cytochromes and sustain photosynthetic (Ps) growth that requires the cytochromes c1 and c2 or cy. However, Ps+ revertants are readily obtained only on minimal, but not on enriched, medium. To obtain further information about the biogenesis of c-type cytochromes, these suppressor mutants were studied. Complementation of a CycH-null mutant for Ps+ growth by a genomic library constructed using DNA from a Ps+ suppressor yielded a plasmid carrying the ccl1-2 operon, the products of which, Ccl1 and Ccl2, are also involved in the biogenesis of c-type cytochromes. DNA sequence analysis revealed that the complementing activity resulted from a single point mutation, G488A, located upstream of the coding region of ccl1-2. This mutation changed the -35 region of the ccl1-2 promoter from TTGGCC to TTGACC, improving its similarity to the consensus sequence of Escherichia colisigma 70-dependent promoters. That the G488A mutation indeed enhanced transcription of ccl1-2 was demonstrated by the use of reporter gene fusions. An appropriate ccl1-2::lacZ transcriptional-translational fusion carrying the G488A mutation produced in R. capsulatus over 30-fold higher beta-galactosidase activity than a wild-type construct. Immunoblot analyses confirmed that Ccl1 and Ccl2 were overproduced in the Ps+ suppressors. Deletion of either ccl1 or ccl2, from the ccl1-2 cluster carrying the G488A mutation abolished the complementing ability, indicating that overexpression of both ccl1 and ccl2 was required to confer the Ps+ phenotype on a CycH-null mutant. These findings therefore demonstrate that, during R. capsulatus growth on minimal medium, the requirement for CycH in c-type cytochrome biogenesis could be bypassed by overexpressing the ccl1-2 operon.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

The [2Fe-2S] cluster E(m) as an indicator of the iron-sulfur subunit position in the ubihydroquinone oxidation site of the cytochrome bc1 complex.

Recent crystallographic and kinetic data have revealed the crucial role of the large scale domain movement of the iron-sulfur subunit [2Fe-2S] cluster domain during the ubihydroquinone oxidation reaction catalyzed by the cytochrome bc(1) complex. Previously, the electron paramagnetic resonance signature of the [2Fe-2S] cluster and its redox midpoint potential (E(m)) value have been used extensively to characterize the interactions of the [2Fe-2S] cluster with the occupants of the ubihydroquinone oxidation (Q(o)) catalytic site. In this work we analyze these interactions in various iron-sulfur subunit mutants that carry mutations in its flexible hinge region. We show that the E(m) increases of the iron-sulfur subunit [2Fe-2S] cluster induced either by these mutations or by the addition of stigmatellin do not act synergistically. Moreover, the E(m) increases disappear in the presence of class I inhibitors like myxothiazol. Because various inhibitors are known to affect the location of the iron-sulfur subunit cluster domain, the measured E(m) value of the [2Fe-2S] cluster therefore reflects its equilibrium position in the Q(o) site. We also demonstrate the existence in this site of a location where the E(m) of the cluster is increased by about 150 mV and discuss its possible implications in term of Q(o) site catalysis and energetics.

Binding Sites↗

Movement of the iron-sulfur subunit beyond the ef loop of cytochrome b is required for multiple turnovers of the bc1 complex but not for single turnover Qo site catalysis.

Recent kinetics experiments using mutants of the bc(1) complex (ubihydroquinone-cytochrome c oxidoreductase) iron-sulfur subunit with modified hinge regions have revealed the crucial role played by the large scale movement of its [2Fe-2S] cluster domain during the activity of this enzyme. In particular, one of these mutants (+1Ala) with an insertion of one alanine residue in the hinge region is partially deficient in performing this movement. We found that this defect can be overcome by the appearance of a second mutation substituting the leucine at position 286 in the ef loop of cytochrome b with a phenylalanine. Detailed studies of these mutants and their derivatives revealed that the ef loop acts as a barrier that needs to be crossed for multiple turnovers of the enzyme but not for a single turnover ubihydroquinone oxidation site catalysis. These findings indicate that the movement of the iron-sulfur subunit is composed of two discrete parts: a "micro-movement" at the cytochrome b interface, during which the [2Fe-2S] cluster interacts with ubihydroquinone oxidation site occupants and catalyzes ubihydroquinone oxidation, and a "macro-movement," during which the cluster domain swings away from cytochrome b interface, crosses the ef loop, and reaches a position close to cytochrome c(1) heme, to which it ultimately transfers an electron.

Alanine↗