scholarly journals Induction of substrate specificity shifts by placement of alanine insertions within the consensus amphipathic region of the Escherichia coli GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) transporter encoded by gabP

2003 ◽  
Vol 376 (3) ◽  
pp. 645-653 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven C. KING ◽  
Liaoyuan A. HU ◽  
Amy PUGH
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Opposite Effect ◽  
Hydrophobic Surface ◽  
Aminobutyric Acid ◽  
Insertion Mutagenesis ◽  
Nipecotic Acid ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Gaba Accumulation ◽  
Thermodynamic Basis ◽  
Specificity Determinants

The Escherichia coli GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) permease GabP is a prototypical APC (amine/polyamine/choline) super-family transporter that has a CAR (consensus amphipathic region) containing multiple specificity determinants, ostensibly organized on two helical surfaces, one hydrophobic [SHS (sensitive hydrophobic surface)] and the other hydrophilic [SPS (sensitive polar surface)]. To gauge the functional effects of placing alanine insertions at close intervals across the entire GabP CAR, 64 insertion variants were constructed. Insertions, particularly those in the SHS and the SPS, were highly detrimental to steady-state [3H]GABA accumulation. TSR (transport specificity ratio) analysis, employing [3H]nipecotic acid and [14C]GABA, showed that certain alanine insertions were associated with a specificity shift (i.e. a change in kcat/Km). An insertion (INS Ala-269) located N-terminal to the SHS increased specificity for [3H]nipecotic acid relative to [14C]GABA, whereas an insertion (INS Ala-321) located C-terminal to the SPS had the opposite effect. Overall, the results are consistent with a working hypothesis that the GabP CAR contains extensive functional surfaces that may be manipulated by insertion mutagenesis to alter the specificity (kcat/Km) phenotype. The thermodynamic basis of TSR analysis provides generality, suggesting that amino acid insertions could affect specificity in many other transporters, particularly those such as the E. coli phenylalanine permease PheP [Pi, Chow and Pittard (2002) J. Bacteriol. 184, 5842–5847] that have a functionally significant CAR-like domain.

scholarly journals Use of the transport specificity ratio and cysteine-scanning mutagenesis to detect multiple substrate specificity determinants in the consensus amphipathic region of the Escherichia coli GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) transporter encoded by gabP

2003 ◽  
Vol 376 (3) ◽  
pp. 633-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven C. KING ◽  
Lisa BROWN-ISTVAN
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Substrate Specificity ◽  
Chemical Potential ◽  
Hydrophobic Surface ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Aminobutyric Acid ◽  
Cysteine Scanning ◽  
Cysteine Scanning Mutagenesis ◽  
Specificity Determinants ◽  
Substrate Discrimination

The Escherichia coli GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) permease, GabP, and other members of the APC (amine/polyamine/choline) transporter superfamily share a CAR (consensus amphipathic region) that probably contributes to solute translocation. If true, then the CAR should contain structural features that act as determinants of substrate specificity (kcat/Km). In order to address this question, we have developed a novel, expression-independent TSR (transport specificity ratio) analysis, and applied it to a series of 69 cysteine-scanning (single-cysteine) variants. The results indicate that GabP has multiple specificity determinants (i.e. residues at which an amino acid substitution substantially perturbs the TSR). Specificity determinants were found: (i) on a hydrophobic surface of the CAR (from Leu-267 to Ala-285), (ii) on a hydrophilic surface of the CAR (from Ser-299 to Arg-318), and (iii) in a cytoplasmic loop (His-233) between transmembrane segments 6 and 7. Overall, these observations show that (i) structural features within the CAR have a role in substrate discrimination (as might be anticipated for a transport conduit) and, interestingly, (ii) the substrate discrimination task is shared among specificity determinants that appear too widely dispersed across the GabP molecule to be in simultaneous contact with the substrates. We conclude that GabP exhibits behaviour consistent with a broadly applicable specificity delocalization principle, which is demonstrated to follow naturally from the classical notion that translocation occurs synchronously with conformational transitions that change the chemical potential of the bound ligand [Tanford (1982) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 79, 2882–2884].

scholarly journals Acetate and Formate Stress: Opposite Responses in the Proteome of Escherichia coli

2001 ◽  
Vol 183 (21) ◽  
pp. 6466-6477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Kirkpatrick ◽  
Lisa M. Maurer ◽  
Nikki E. Oyelakin ◽  
Yuliya N. Yoncheva ◽  
Russell Maurer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Opposite Effect ◽  
Stress Proteins ◽  
Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis ◽  
Sodium Dodecyl ◽  
Acid Resistance ◽  
Luria Broth ◽  
Acetyl Coa ◽  
Fermentation Products ◽  
E Coli

ABSTRACT Acetate and formate are major fermentation products ofEscherichia coli. Below pH 7, the balance shifts to lactate; an oversupply of acetate or formate retards growth. E. coli W3110 was grown with aeration in potassium-modified Luria broth buffered at pH 6.7 in the presence or absence of added acetate or formate, and the protein profiles were compared by two-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Acetate increased the steady-state expression levels of 37 proteins, including periplasmic transporters for amino acids and peptides (ArtI, FliY, OppA, and ProX), metabolic enzymes (YfiD and GatY), the RpoS growth phase regulon, and the autoinducer synthesis protein LuxS. Acetate repressed 17 proteins, among them phosphotransferase (Pta). An ackA-pta deletion, which nearly eliminates interconversion between acetate and acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA), led to elevated basal levels of 16 of the acetate-inducible proteins, including the RpoS regulon. Consistent with RpoS activation, the ackA-pta strain also showed constitutive extreme-acid resistance. Formate, however, repressed 10 of the acetate-inducible proteins, including the RpoS regulon. Ten of the proteins with elevated basal levels in the ackA-ptastrain were repressed by growth of the mutant with formate; thus, the formate response took precedence over the loss of theackA-pta pathway. The similar effects of exogenous acetate and the ackA-pta deletion, and the opposite effect of formate, could have several causes; one possibility is that the excess buildup of acetyl-CoA upregulates stress proteins but excess formate depletes acetyl-CoA and downregulates these proteins.

scholarly journals A previously uncharacterized gene, yjfO (bsmA), influences Escherichia coli biofilm formation and stress response

Microbiology ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 156 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary M. Weber ◽  
Christa L. French ◽  
Mary B. Barnes ◽  
Deborah A. Siegele ◽  
Robert J. C. McLean
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Stress Response ◽  
Mutant Strain ◽  
Cell Surface Hydrophobicity ◽  
Surface Hydrophobicity ◽  
Insertion Mutagenesis ◽  
Flagellar Motility ◽  
Biofilm Growth ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Uncharacterized Gene

Bacteria growing as surface-adherent biofilms are better able to withstand chemical and physical stresses than their unattached, planktonic counterparts. Using transcriptional profiling and quantitative PCR, we observed a previously uncharacterized gene, yjfO to be upregulated during Escherichia coli MG1655 biofilm growth in a chemostat on serine-limited defined medium. A yjfO mutant, developed through targeted-insertion mutagenesis, and a yjfO-complemented strain, were obtained for further characterization. While bacterial surface colonization levels (c.f.u. cm−2) were similar in all three strains, the mutant strain exhibited reduced microcolony formation when observed in flow cells, and greatly enhanced flagellar motility on soft (0.3 %) agar. Complementation of yjfO restored microcolony formation and flagellar motility to wild-type levels. Cell surface hydrophobicity and twitching motility were unaffected by the presence or absence of yjfO. In contrast to the parent strain, biofilms from the mutant strain were less able to resist acid and peroxide stresses. yjfO had no significant effect on E. coli biofilm susceptibility to alkali or heat stress. Planktonic cultures from all three strains showed similar responses to these stresses. Regardless of the presence of yjfO, planktonic E. coli withstood alkali stress better than biofilm populations. Complementation of yjfO restored viability following exposure to peroxide stress, but did not restore acid resistance. Based on its influence on biofilm maturation and stress response, and effects on motility, we propose renaming the uncharacterized gene, yjfO, as bsmA (biofilm stress and motility).

scholarly journals O Acetylation of the Enterobacterial Common Antigen Polysaccharide Is Catalyzed by the Product of the yiaH Gene of Escherichia coli K-12

2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (21) ◽  
pp. 7542-7550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junko Kajimura ◽  
Arifur Rahman ◽  
James Hsu ◽  
Matthew R. Evans ◽  
Kevin H. Gardner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Water Soluble ◽  
Hydroxyl Group ◽  
Insertion Mutagenesis ◽  
Amino Sugars ◽  
Common Antigen ◽  
Putative Gene ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Enterobacterial Common Antigen ◽  
K 12

ABSTRACT The carbohydrate component of the enterobacterial common antigen (ECA) of Escherichia coli K-12 occurs primarily as a water-soluble cyclic polysaccharide located in the periplasm (ECACYC) and as a phosphoglyceride-linked linear polysaccharide located on the cell surface (ECAPG). The polysaccharides of both forms are comprised of the amino sugars N-acetyl-d-glucosamine (GlcNAc), N-acetyl-d-mannosaminuronic acid (ManNAcA), and 4-acetamido-4,6-dideoxy-d-galactose (Fuc4NAc). These amino sugars are linked to one another to form trisaccharide repeat units with the structure →3-α-d-Fuc4NAc-(1→4)-β-d-ManNAcA-(1→4)-α-d-GlcNAc-(1→. The hydroxyl group in the 6 position of the GlcNAc residues of both ECACYC and ECAPG are nonstoichiometrically esterified with acetyl groups. Random transposon insertion mutagenesis of E. coli K-12 resulted in the generation of a mutant defective in the incorporation of O-acetyl groups into both ECACYC and ECAPG. This defect was found to be due to an insertion of the transposon into the yiaH locus, a putative gene of unknown function located at 80.26 min on the E. coli chromosomal map. Bioinformatic analyses of the predicted yiaH gene product indicate that it is an integral inner membrane protein that is a member of an acyltransferase family of enzymes found in a wide variety of organisms. The results of biochemical and genetic experiments presented here strongly support the conclusion that yiaH encodes the O-acetyltransferase responsible for the incorporation of O-acetyl groups into both ECACYC and ECAPG. Accordingly, we propose that this gene be designated wecH.

scholarly journals Characterization of the Novel Factor Paa Involved in the Early Steps of the Adhesion Mechanism of Attaching and Effacing Escherichia coli

2003 ◽  
Vol 71 (8) ◽  
pp. 4516-4525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Batisson ◽  
Marie-Pierre Guimond ◽  
Francis Girard ◽  
Hongyan An ◽  
Chengru Zhu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Insertion Mutagenesis ◽  
Intestinal Epithelial ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Reading Frame ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Transposon Insertion ◽  
Gene Sequence Analysis ◽  
Highly Correlated ◽  
K 12

ABSTRACT Nonenterotoxigenic porcine Escherichia coli strains belonging to the serogroup O45 have been associated with postweaning diarrhea in swine and adhere to intestinal epithelial cells in a characteristic attaching and effacing (A/E) pattern. O45 porcine enteropathogenic E. coli (PEPEC) strain 86-1390 induces typical A/E lesions in a pig ileal explant model. Using TnphoA transposon insertion mutagenesis on strain 86-1390, we found a mutant that did not induce A/E lesions. The insertion was identified in a gene designated paa (porcine A/E-associated gene). Sequence analysis of paa revealed an open reading frame of 753 bp encoding a 27.6-kDa protein which displayed 100, 51.8, and 49% homology with Paa of enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7 strains (EDL933 and Sakai), PEB3 of Campylobacter jejuni, and AcfC of Vibrio cholerae, respectively. Chromosomal localization studies indicated that the region containing paa was inserted between the yciD and yciE genes at about 28.3 min of the E. coli K-12 chromosome. The presence of paa and eae sequences in the porcine O45 strains is highly correlated with the A/E phenotype. However, the observation that three eae-positive but paa-negative PEPEC O45 strains were A/E negative provides further evidence for the importance of the paa gene in the A/E activity of O45 strains. As well, the complementation of the paa mutant restored the A/E activity of the 86-1390 strain, showing the involvement of Paa in PEPEC pathogenicity. These observations suggest that Paa contributes to the early stages of A/E E. coli virulence.

scholarly journals Modulation of AggR levels reveals features of virulence regulation in enteroaggregative E. coli

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alejandro Prieto ◽  
Manuel Bernabeu ◽  
José Francisco Sánchez-Herrero ◽  
Anna Pérez-Bosque ◽  
Lluïsa Miró ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Metabolic Pathways ◽  
Aminobutyric Acid ◽  
Virulence Plasmid ◽  
Virulence Determinants ◽  
Gamma Aminobutyric Acid ◽  
Structural Alterations ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Transcript Stability ◽  
Virulence Regulation

AbstractEnteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) strains are one of the diarrheagenic pathotypes. EAEC strains harbor a virulence plasmid (pAA2) that encodes, among other virulence determinants, the aggR gene. The expression of the AggR protein leads to the expression of several virulence determinants in both plasmids and chromosomes. In this work, we describe a novel mechanism that influences AggR expression. Because of the absence of a Rho-independent terminator in the 3′UTR, aggR transcripts extend far beyond the aggR ORF. These transcripts are prone to PNPase-mediated degradation. Structural alterations in the 3′UTR result in increased aggR transcript stability, leading to increased AggR levels. We therefore investigated the effect of increased AggR levels on EAEC virulence. Upon finding the previously described AggR-dependent virulence factors, we detected novel AggR-regulated genes that may play relevant roles in EAEC virulence. Mutants exhibiting high AggR levels because of structural alterations in the aggR 3′UTR show increased mobility and increased pAA2 conjugation frequency. Furthermore, among the genes exhibiting increased fold change values, we could identify those of metabolic pathways that promote increased degradation of arginine, fatty acids and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), respectively. In this paper, we discuss how the AggR-dependent increase in specific metabolic pathways activity may contribute to EAEC virulence.

Sites of Adsorption of the Bacteriophages T3 and T5 on the Wall of Escherichia Coli B.

1967 ◽  
Vol 25 ◽  
pp. 96-97
Author(s):  
Manfred E. Bayer
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Cell Wall ◽  
Electron Microscope ◽  
Uranyl Acetate ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Receptor Sites ◽  
Rigid Cell Wall ◽  
Host Cell Surface ◽  
Bacterial Viruses ◽  
Escherichia Coli B

Bacterial viruses adsorb specifically to receptors on the host cell surface. Although the chemical composition of some of the cell wall receptors for bacteriophages of the T-series has been described and the number of receptor sites has been estimated to be 150 to 300 per E. coli cell, the localization of the sites on the bacterial wall has been unknown.When logarithmically growing cells of E. coli are transferred into a medium containing 20% sucrose, the cells plasmolize: the protoplast shrinks and becomes separated from the somewhat rigid cell wall. When these cells are fixed in 8% Formaldehyde, post-fixed in OsO4/uranyl acetate, embedded in Vestopal W, then cut in an ultramicrotome and observed with the electron microscope, the separation of protoplast and wall becomes clearly visible, (Fig. 1, 2). At a number of locations however, the protoplasmic membrane adheres to the wall even under the considerable pull of the shrinking protoplast. Thus numerous connecting bridges are maintained between protoplast and cell wall. Estimations of the total number of such wall/membrane associations yield a number of about 300 per cell.

The Influence of Glycosylation on the Catalytic and Fibrinolytic Properties of Pro-Urokinase

1992 ◽  
Vol 68 (05) ◽  
pp. 539-544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Catherine Lenich ◽  
Ralph Pannell ◽  
Jack Henkin ◽  
Victor Gurewich
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Mammalian Cell ◽  
Human Gene ◽  
Culture Media ◽  
Mammalian Cell Culture ◽  
Glycosylation Site ◽  
Clot Lysis ◽  
Cell Culture Media ◽  
E Coli ◽  
The Uk

SummaryWe previously found that human pro-UK expressed in Escherichia coli is more active in fibrinolysis than recombinant human pro-UK obtained from mammalian cell culture media. To determine whether this difference is related to the lack of glycosylation of the E. coli product, we compared the activity of E. coli-derived pro-UK [(-)pro-UK] with that of a glycosylated pro-UK [(+)pro-UK] and of a mutant of pro-UK missing the glycosylation site at Asn-302 [(-) (302) pro-UK]. The latter two pro-UKs were obtained by expression of the human gene in a mammalian cell. The nonglycosylated pro-UKs were activated by plasmin more efficiently (≈2-fold) and were more active in clot lysis (1.5-fold) than the (+)pro-UK. Similarly, the nonglycosylated two-chain derivatives (UKs) were more active against plasminogen and were more rapidly inactivated by plasma inhibitors than the (+)UK.These findings indicate that glycosylation at Asn-302 influences the activity of pro-UK/UK and could be the major factor responsible for the enhanced activity of E. coli-derived pro-UK.

Usefulness of a Multiplex PCR for Detection of Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli in a Diagnostic Microbiology Laboratory Setting

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 38-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khairun Nessa ◽  
Dilruba Ahmed ◽  
Johirul Islam ◽  
FM Lutful Kabir ◽  
M Anowar Hossain
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Multiplex Pcr ◽  
Clinical Laboratory ◽  
Proteinase K ◽  
Microbiology Laboratory ◽  
Pcr Assay ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Diarrheagenic Escherichia Coli ◽  
Multiplex Pcr Assay ◽  
Diagnostic Microbiology

A multiplex PCR assay was evaluated for diagnosis of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli in stool samples of patients with diarrhoea submitted to a diagnostic microbiology laboratory. Two procedures of DNA template preparationproteinase K buffer method and the boiling method were evaluated to examine isolates of E. coli from 150 selected diarrhoeal cases. By proteinase K buffer method, 119 strains (79.3%) of E. coli were characterized to various categories by their genes that included 55.5% enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC), 18.5% enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), 1.7% enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC), and 0.8% Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). Although boiling method was less time consuming (<24 hrs) and less costly (<8.0 US $/ per test) but was less efficient in typing E. coli compared to proteinase K method (41.3% vs. 79.3% ; p<0.001). The sensitivity and specificity of boiling method compared to proteinase K method was 48.7% and 87.1% while the positive and negative predictive value was 93.5% and 30.7%, respectively. The majority of pathogenic E. coli were detected in children (78.0%) under five years age with 53.3% under one year, and 68.7% of the children were male. Children under 5 years age were frequently infected with EAEC (71.6%) compared to ETEC (24.3%), EPEC (2.7%) and STEC (1.4%). The multiplex PCR assay could be effectively used as a rapid diagnostic tool for characterization of diarrheagenic E. coli using a single reaction tube in the clinical laboratory setting.Bangladesh J Med Microbiol 2007; 01 (02): 38-42

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