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Keiko Momma

Publications and source records attributed to Keiko Momma.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

Engineered membrane superchannel improves bioremediation potential of dioxin-degrading bacteria.

Sphingomonas sp. A1 possesses specialized membrane structures termed 'superchannels' that enable the direct incorporation of macromolecules into the cell. We have engineered two related sphingomonads, the dioxin-degrading S. wittichii RW1 and the polypropylene glycol-degrading S. subarctica IFO 16058(T), to incorporate this superchannel into their cell membranes. In both cases the bioremediation capability of the organisms was substantially increased pointing at the potential of this approach as a general strategy to improve bacterial degradation of hazardous compounds in the environment.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

Direct evidence for Sphingomonas sp. A1 periplasmic proteins as macromolecule-binding proteins associated with the ABC transporter: molecular insights into alginate transport in the periplasm.

A Gram-negative bacterium, Sphingomonas sp. A1, has a macromolecule (alginate) import system consisting of a pit on the cell surface and an alginate-specific ATP-binding cassette importer in the inner membrane. Transport of alginate from the pit to the ABC importer is probably mediated by two periplasmic binding protein homologues (AlgQ1 and AlgQ2). Here we describe characteristics of binding of AlgQ1 and AlgQ2 to alginate and its oligosaccharides through surface plasmon resonance biosensor analysis, UV absorption difference spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography. Both AlgQ1 and AlgQ2 were inducibly expressed in the periplasm of alginate-grown cells of strain A1. Biosensor analysis indicated that both proteins specifically bind alginate with a high degree of polymerization (>100) and that dissociation constants for alginate with an average molecular mass of 26 kDa are 2.3 x 10(-)(7) M for AlgQ1 and 1.5 x 10(-)(7) M for AlgQ2. An in vitro ATPase assay using the membrane complex, including the alginate ABC importer, suggested that both alginate-bound forms of AlgQ1 and AlgQ2 are closely associated with the importer. X-ray crystallography showed that AlgQ1 consisted of two domains separated by a deep cleft that binds alginate oligosaccharides through a conformational change in the two domains. These results directly show that alginate-binding proteins play an important role in the efficient transport of alginate macromolecules with different degrees of polymerization in the periplasm.

ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters↗

NAD-binding mode and the significance of intersubunit contact revealed by the crystal structure of Mycobacterium tuberculosis NAD kinase-NAD complex.

NAD kinase is a key enzyme in NADP biosynthesis. We solved the crystal structure of polyphosphate/ATP-NAD kinase from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Ppnk) complexed with NAD (Ppnk-NAD) at 2.6A resolution using apo-Ppnk structure solved in this work, and revealed the details of the structure and NAD-binding site. Superimposition of tertiary structures of apo-Ppnk and Ppnk-NAD demonstrated a substantial conformational difference in a loop (Ppnk-flexible loop). As a quaternary structure, these Ppnk structures exhibited tetramer as in solution condition. Notably, the Ppnk-flexible loop was involved in the intersubunit contact and probably related to the NAD-binding of the other subunit. Furthermore, the two residues (Asp189, His226) substantially contributed to creating NAD-binding site on the other subunit. The two residues and the residues involved in NAD-binding were conserved. However, residues corresponding to the Ppnk-flexible loop were not conserved, making us to speculate that the Ppnk-flexible loop may be Ppnk-specific.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Structure and function of bacterial super-biosystem responsible for import and depolymerization of macromolecules.

Generally, when microbes assimilate macromolecules, they incorporate low-molecular-weight products derived from macromolecules through the actions of extracellular degrading enzymes. However, a Gram-negative bacterium, Sphingomonas sp. A1, has a smart biosystem for the import and depolymerization of macromolecules. The bacterial cells directly incorporate a macromolecule, alginate, into the cytoplasm through a "superchannel", as we named it. The superchannel consists of a pit on the cell surface, alginate-binding proteins in the periplasm, and an ATP-binding cassette transporter in the inner membrane. Cytoplasmic polysaccharide lyases depolymerize alginate into the constituent monosaccharides. Other than the proteins characterized so far, novel proteins (e.g., flagellin homologs) have been found to be crucial for the import and depolymerization of alginate through genomics- and proteomics-based identification, thus indicating that the biosystem is precisely constructed and regulated by diverse proteins. In this review, we focus on the structure and function of the bacterial biosystem together with the evolution of related proteins.

Bacterial Proteins↗

Super-channel in bacteria: structural and functional aspects of a novel biosystem for the import and depolymerization of macromolecules.

Cells of Sphingomonas sp. A1 directly incorporate a macromolecule, alginate, into the cytoplasm through a biosystem, super-channel, consisting of a pit on the cell surface, alginate-binding proteins in the periplasm, and an ATP-binding cassette transporter in the inner membrane. The alginate is finally depolymerized into constituent monosaccharides by polysaccharide lyases present in the cytoplasm. The fundamental frame of the biosystem for alginate transport, and the functions of the pit, binding proteins, and ABC transporter have already been reviewed together with those of alginate-depolymerization processes [Hashimoto et al., J. Biosci. Bioeng., 87, 123-136 (1999)]. In this review, we have attempted to demonstrate the three-dimensional structure and evolution features of the super-channel, and alginate-depolymerization processes by using information obtained mainly through genomics, proteomics, and X-ray crystallography.

Journal Article↗

Crystal structure of AlgQ2, a macromolecule (alginate)-binding protein of Sphingomonas sp. A1, complexed with an alginate tetrasaccharide at 1.6-A resolution.

Sphingomonas sp. A1 possesses a high molecular weight (HMW) alginate uptake system composed of a novel pit formed on the cell surface and a pit-dependent ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter in the inner membrane. The transportation of HMW alginate from the pit to the ABC transporter is mediated by the periplasmic HMW alginate-binding proteins AlgQ1 and AlgQ2. We determined the crystal structure of AlgQ2 complexed with an alginate tetrasaccharide using an alginate-free (apo) form as a search model and refined it at 1.6-A resolution. One tetrasaccharide was found between the N and C-terminal domains, which are connected by three extended hinge loops. The tetrasaccharide complex took on a closed domain form, in contrast to the open domain form of the apo form. The tetrasaccharide was bound in the cleft between the domains through van der Waals interactions and the formation of hydrogen bonds. Among the four sugar residues, the nonreducing end residue was located at the bottom of the cleft and exhibited the largest number of interactions with the surrounding amino acid residues, suggesting that AlgQ2 mainly recognizes and binds to the nonreducing part of a HMW alginate and delivers the polymer to the ABC transporter through conformational changes (open and closed forms) of the two domains.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Crystal structure of AlgQ2, a macromolecule (alginate)-binding protein of Sphingomonas sp. A1 at 2.0A resolution.

Sphingomonas sp. A1 possesses a high molecular mass (average 25,700 Da) alginate uptake system mediated by a novel pit-dependent ABC transporter. The X-ray crystallographic structure of AlgQ2 (57,200 Da), an alginate-binding protein in the system, was determined by the multiple isomorphous replacement method and refined at 2.0 A resolution with a final R-factor of 18.3% for 15 to 2.0 A resolution data. The refined structure of AlgQ2 was comprised of 492 amino acid residues, 172 water molecules, and one calcium ion. AlgQ2 was composed of two globular domains with a deep cleft between them, which is expected to be the alginate-binding site. The overall structure is basically similar to that of maltose/maltodextrin-binding protein, except for the presence of an N2-subdomain. The entire calcium ion-binding site is similar to the site in the EF-hand motif, but comprises a ten residue loop. This calcium ion-binding site is about 40 A away from the alginate-binding site.

Alginates↗

Functional tolerance of Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitor toward conformational and stability changes caused by single-point mutations in the hydrophobic core.

Single amino acid mutations of Met103 in the hydrophobic core of a serine protease inhibitor, Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitor, caused little change in the inhibitory activity, as measured by the inhibitor constant, although some altered the thermodynamic stability of the protein considerably. (1)H NMR investigations showed that the conformational stress caused by the replacement of Met103 with Gly, Ala, Val, and Ile, namely, the effects of the cavities generated by replacements with smaller side-chains and of the steric distortions generated by beta-branched side-chains, caused considerable changes in the structural arrangement of the side-chains within the core. However, these structural changes were absorbed within the hydrophobic core, without distorting the structure of the reactive site essential for the protein function. These results provide an excellent example of the conformational flexibility of a protein core and the degree of its tolerance of an amino acid replacement. The results also reveal the crucially designed structural relationship between the core of the inhibitor and the enzyme-binding segment with the reactive site in a serine protease inhibitor.

Methionine↗