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Guido Guidotti

Publications and source records attributed to Guido Guidotti.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

Bilayer mechanical properties regulate the transmembrane helix mobility and enzymatic state of CD39.

CD39 can exist in at least two distinct functional states depending on the presence and intact membrane integration of its two transmembrane helices. In native membranes, the transmembrane helices undergo dynamic rotational motions that are required for enzymatic activity and are regulated by substrate binding. In this study, we show that bilayer mechanical properties regulate conversion between the two enzymatic functional states by modulating transmembrane helix dynamics. Alteration of membrane properties by insertion of cone-shaped or inverse cone-shaped amphiphiles or by cholesterol removal switches CD39 to the same enzymatic state that removal or solubilization of the transmembrane domains does. The same membrane alterations increase the propensity of both transmembrane helices to rotate within the packed structure, resulting in a structure with greater mobility but not an altered primary conformation. Membrane alteration also abolishes the ability of the substrate to stabilize the helices in their primary conformation, indicating a loss of coupling between substrate binding and transmembrane helix dynamics. Removal of either transmembrane helix mimics the effect of membrane alteration on the mobility and substrate sensitivity of the remaining helix, suggesting that the ends of the extracellular domain have intrinsic flexibility. We suggest that a mechanical bilayer property, potentially elasticity, regulates CD39 by altering the balance between the stability and flexibility of its transmembrane helices and, in turn, of its active site.

Antigens, CD↗

A eukaryotic carboxyl-terminal signal sequence translocating large hydrophilic domains across membranes.

Yeast Golgi ecto-ATPase Ynd1p is an unusual type III membrane protein with the longest translocated N-terminus reported. Sequential deletion analysis reveals that translocation of this 500-residue-long hydrophilic domain across the membranes requires the C-terminal transmembrane domain of Ynd1p and its flanking regions. Additional studies indicate that the topogenic sequence of Ynd1p overrides the effect of a reverse signal-anchor sequence present at the N-terminus of Ynd1p, while it is not affected by a classic signal sequence at the N-terminus. When placed at the C-terminal end, the sequence can translocate large extracellular domains of two membrane proteins across the membranes. The data demonstrate the existence of a true eukaryotic C-terminal signal sequence.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Distinctive roles of endoplasmic reticulum and golgi glycosylation in functional surface expression of mammalian E-NTPDase1, CD39.

CD39 is a membrane-bound ecto-nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase that is involved in the regulation of purinergic signaling. It has been previously reported that N-linked glycosylation is essential for the surface localization of CD39 and for its cellular activity. Here we have addressed the roles of different stages of N-linked glycosylation on CD39's activity and surface expression by using various glycosylation inhibitors, glycosylation deficient CHO cells, and oligosaccharide removal enzymes. The results demonstrate that endoplasmic reticulum glycosylation is required for protein folding and essential for functional surface expression of CD39, while Golgi glycosylation is less important. The study has also shown that N-linked glycosylation of CD39 is dispensable for the activity after the protein is properly folded and targeted.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

N-linked oligosaccharides affect the enzymatic activity of CD39: diverse interactions between seven N-linked glycosylation sites.

Rat CD39, a membrane-bound ectonucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase that hydrolyzes extracellular nucleoside tri- and diphosphates, has seven potential N-glycosylation sites at asparagine residues 73, 226, 291, 333, 375, 429, and 458. To determine their roles in the structure and function of CD39, we mutated these sites individually or in combination by replacing asparagine with serine or glutamine and analyzed the surface expression and the enzymatic activity of the mutants. The results indicate that rat CD39 can be glycosylated at all seven sites when expressed in COS7 cells. Glycosylation sites 73 at the N terminus, 333 in the middle, and 429 and 458 at the C terminus were principally required for cell surface appearance of enzymatically active CD39. Whereas deletion of these sites individually had modest effects on surface ATPase activity, some double deletions of these sites had major effects on both surface activity and expression. The importance of these N-glycosylation sites is recognizable in other members of the ectonucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase family.

Animals↗

Dynamic motions of CD39 transmembrane domains regulate and are regulated by the enzymatic active site.

The two transmembrane domains flanking the active site of CD39 regulate its activity, but little is known about the structural and dynamic features underlying their importance. Here we use a disulfide crosslinking strategy to examine transmembrane helix interactions and dynamics and to correlate these features with activity and substrate binding. We find strong intrasubunit TM1-TM2 interactions, as well as TM1-TM1' and TM2-TM2' interactions between dimer subunits, near the extracellular side of the membrane but only weak interactions near the cytoplasmic end. The specific helix faces that constitute each interface are highly flexible, indicating a significant degree of rotational mobility within the packed structure. Analysis of activity after locking the helices in various orientations via disulfide bonds suggests that not only the arrangement but also the ability of the helices to move relative to each other is crucial for enzyme function. Helix mobility is in turn modulated by substrate binding. These results suggest that rather than playing a static structural role to support an optimal active site conformation, the transmembrane domains undergo dynamic motions that underlie their functional relationship with the active site.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗

Proreceptor dimerization is required for insulin receptor post-translational processing.

The insulin receptor is a transmembrane protein dimer composed of two alphabeta monomers held together by inter-alpha-chain disulfide bonds. In a previous report we described a monomeric insulin receptor obtained by replacing Cys-524, -682, -683, and -685 with serine. The membrane-bound monomeric insulin receptors could be cross-linked to dimers in the presence of insulin, indicating that although covalent interactions had been abolished, noncovalent dimerization could still occur in the membrane. To eliminate noncovalent dimerization, we replaced all or some of Cys-524, -682, -683, and -685 with arginine or aspartic acid with the expectation that the electrostatic repulsion at these contact sites would prevent noncovalent dimerization. The results indicate that mutant insulin receptors that are able to form covalent dimers are expressed at the wild type level; mutants that can form noncovalent dimers are expressed at half the level of the wild type receptor, whereas insulin receptor mutants that cannot dimerize are expressed at less than 10% of the wild type level. To elucidate the mechanism of the decrease in expression of the mutant insulin receptors, we examined their subcellular localization and biosynthesis. The results suggest that the extent of expression of these mutant receptors is related to their ability to form covalent or noncovalent dimers at the proreceptor stage.

Animals↗

ATP uptake in the Golgi and extracellular release require Mcd4 protein and the vacuolar H+-ATPase.

Extracellular nucleotides signal via a large group of purinergic receptors. Although much is known about these receptors, the mechanism of nucleotide transport out of the cytoplasm is unknown. We developed a functional screen for ATP release to the extracellular space and identified Mcd4p, a 919-amino acid membrane protein with 14 putative transmembrane domains, as a participant in glucose-dependent ATP release from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This release occurred through the vesicular trafficking pathway initiated by ATP uptake into the Golgi compartment. Both the compartmental uptake and the extracellular release of ATP were regulated by the activity of the vacuolar H+-ATPase. It is likely that the Mcd4p pathway is generally involved in non-mitochondrial ATP movement across membranes, it is essential for Golgi and endoplasmic reticulum function, and its occurrence led to the appearance of P2 purinergic receptors.

Adenine↗

Construction and characterization of a monomeric insulin receptor.

A mutant insulin receptor was constructed by replacing cysteine residues Cys(524), Cys(682), Cys(683), and Cys(685) with serine. The mutant was expressed in COS7 and Chinese hamster ovary cells, did not form covalently linked dimers, and was present at the cell surface. There was half as much insulin binding activity at the cell surface in cells expressing the mutant compared with that in cells expressing the wild type receptor. The intracellular processing of the mutant receptor was affected, since its beta-subunit migrated more slowly than that of the wild type receptor on SDS-PAGE. The mutant was capable of insulin-dependent autophosphorylation and phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate-1 in vivo and could be cross-linked into receptor dimers when membrane-bound. The amount of insulin-dependent autophosphorylation of the mutant receptor was half that of the wild type receptor. However, after solubilization the monomeric insulin receptor had minimal autophosphorylation activity, and, unlike the naturally occurring monomeric receptor tyrosine kinases, the solubilized monomeric insulin receptor did not dimerize in response to insulin binding as determined by sucrose density gradient centrifugation.

Amino Acid Substitution↗

Transmembrane domains confer different substrate specificities and adenosine diphosphate hydrolysis mechanisms on CD39, CD39L1, and chimeras.

Members of the ecto-nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase (eNTPDase) family exhibit distinctive substrate specificities, but how such specificities are achieved by enzymes with identical putative catalytic domains is unknown. Previously we showed that H59G substitution changes CD39 from an apyrase to an adenosine diphosphatase (ADPase) in a manner that depends on intact associations of both transmembrane domains with the membrane. Here we show that the extracellular domain of CD39L1 ecto-adenosine triphosphatase (ecto-ATPase) has the same 3:1 ATP:ADP hydrolysis ratio as the extracellular domain of CD39, suggesting that the transmembrane domains are required to confer the native substrate specificities on each enzyme. As in CD39, H50G substitution has little effect on the activity of the CD39L1 extracellular domain or solubilized monomers. However, H50G substitution diminishes both ATPase and ADPase activities of native CD39L1, in contrast to its selective effect on ATPase activity in CD39, suggesting that the transmembrane domains confer different ADP hydrolysis mechanisms on CD39 and CD39L1. We then show that the transmembrane domains of CD39L1 can substitute for those of CD39 in conferring native CD39 substrate specificity and regulation of H59 but that the transmembrane domains of CD39 confer neither CD39 nor CD39L1 properties on the CD39L1 extracellular domain. These results suggest that non-apyrase conserved region residues in the extracellular domain contain the information specifying CD39 native properties but have a nonspecific requirement for two transmembrane domains to manifest the information.

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

Glucose-dependent, cAMP-mediated ATP efflux from Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Extracellular ATP plays an important role in the physiology of multicellular organisms; however, it is unknown whether unicellular organisms such as yeast also release ATP extracellularly. Experiments are described here which show that Saccharomyces cerevisiae releases ATP to the extracellular fluid. This efflux required glucose and the rate was increased dramatically by the proton ionophores nigericin, monensin, carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone and carbonyl cyanide p-(trifluoromethoxy)-phenylhydrazone; ATP efflux was also increased by the plasma membrane proton pump inhibitor diethylstilbestrol. The increase in the concentration of extracellular ATP was not due to cell lysis or general disruption of plasma membrane integrity as measured by colony-forming and methylene-blue-staining assays. ATP efflux was strictly correlated with a rise in intracellular cAMP; therefore, the cAMP pathway is likely to be involved in triggering ATP efflux. These results demonstrate that yeast cells release ATP in a regulated manner.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗