scholarly journals Expression of precursor and mature carnitine palmitoyltransferase II in Escherichia coli and in vitro: differential behaviour of rat and human isoforms

1993 ◽  
Vol 294 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-86 ◽  
Author(s):  
N F Brown ◽  
A Sen ◽  
D A Soltis ◽  
B Jones ◽  
D W Foster ◽  
...  

cDNAs corresponding to the precursor and mature forms of rat carnitine palmitoyltransferase II (CPT II) were found to be readily expressed in Escherichia coli. In both cases, catalytically active immunoreactive protein was produced and became largely membrane-associated. The precursor form of the enzyme was not proteolytically processed. Removal of 126 bp from the 5′ end of the cDNA coding region allowed expression of a truncated CPT II (lacking the N-terminal 17 residues of the mature protein), but this product was inactive. cDNAs encoding the precursor and mature forms of human CPT II resisted direct expression in E. coli. However, the impediment was overcome when the latter cDNA was ligated in-frame 3′ to sequence encoding a glutathione S-transferase. This construct yielded abundant quantities of the corresponding fusion protein, a portion of which was soluble and catalytically active. In vitro transcription and translation of the various cDNAs established that the lower mobility on SDS/PAGE of rat CPT II compared with its human counterpart (despite their identical numbers of amino acids) is an intrinsic property of the primary sequences of the proteins themselves. Also, the human cDNA was found to contain an artifactual termination signal for T3 RNA polymerase that could be bypassed by the T7 polymerase. Thus rat CPT II can be expressed in active form in E. coli with characteristics similar to those of the enzyme in mitochondria, opening the way to future location of active sites within the molecule. An alternative expression system will be needed for similar studies on human CPT II.

1998 ◽  
Vol 334 (1) ◽  
pp. 219-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. LAWTON ◽  
Shawn DOONAN

Mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase is inactivated irreversibly on heating. The inactivated protein aggregates, but aggregation is prevented by the presence of the chaperonin 60 from Escherichia coli (GroEL). The chaperonin increases the rate of thermal inactivation in the temperature range 55–65 °C but not at lower temperatures. It has previously been shown [Twomey and Doonan (1997) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1342, 37–44] that the enzyme switches to a modified, but catalytically active, conformation at approx. 55–60 °C and the present results show that this conformation is recognized by and binds to GroEL. The thermally inactivated protein can be released from GroEL in an active form by the addition of chaperonin 10 from E. coli (GroES)/ATP, showing that inactivation is not the result of irreversible chemical changes. These results suggest that the irreversibility of thermal inactivation is due to the formation of an altered conformation with a high kinetic barrier to refolding rather than to any covalent changes. In the absence of chaperonin the unfolded molecules aggregate but this is a consequence, rather than the cause, of irreversible inactivation.


1998 ◽  
Vol 64 (12) ◽  
pp. 4891-4896 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji Qiu ◽  
James R. Swartz ◽  
George Georgiou

ABSTRACT The formation of native disulfide bonds in complex eukaryotic proteins expressed in Escherichia coli is extremely inefficient. Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is a very important thrombolytic agent with 17 disulfides, and despite numerous attempts, its expression in an active form in bacteria has not been reported. To achieve the production of active tPA in E. coli, we have investigated the effect of cooverexpressing native (DsbA and DsbC) or heterologous (rat and yeast protein disulfide isomerases) cysteine oxidoreductases in the bacterial periplasm. Coexpression of DsbC, an enzyme which catalyzes disulfide bond isomerization in the periplasm, was found to dramatically increase the formation of active tPA both in shake flasks and in fermentors. The active protein was purified with an overall yield of 25% by using three affinity steps with, in sequence, lysine-Sepharose, immobilized Erythrina caffra inhibitor, and Zn-Sepharose resins. After purification, approximately 180 μg of tPA with a specific activity nearly identical to that of the authentic protein can be obtained per liter of culture in a high-cell-density fermentation. Thus, heterologous proteins as complex as tPA may be produced in an active form in bacteria in amounts suitable for structure-function studies. In addition, these results suggest the feasibility of commercial production of extremely complex proteins inE. coli without the need for in vitro refolding.


2011 ◽  
Vol 345 ◽  
pp. 134-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Hui Lv ◽  
Xue Gang Luo ◽  
Meng Ni ◽  
Xiao Lan Jing ◽  
Nan Wang ◽  
...  

Plectasin, a novel antimicrobial peptide, is isolated from a saprophytic fungus Pseudoplectania nigrella. Plectasin showed potent antibacterial activity in vitro against Gram-positive, especially the Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus pneumoniae, including strains resistant to conventional antibiotics. In our previous study, plectasin had been expressed at a high yield as a thioredoxin (Trx) – fused protein in Escherichia coli. However, it couldn’t exhibit the antimicrobial activity unless the Trx-tag had been cleaved, which made the producing process be complicated. Concerning that plectasin has no complex post-translational modification and toxicity on E. coli, on the basis of the former works, we further establish the independent and tandem expression system of plectasin in E. coli. In the present study, the coding sequence of plectasin was obtained from pET32a-PLEC with four primers to amplify the independent and tandem plectasin fragments by overlapping PCR-based gene synthesis, and then cloned into pET22b (+) vector. The recombinant protein was expressed successfully in E. coli with IPTG induction. These works might throw light on the production or study of plectasin, and contribute to the development of novel anti-infectious drugs in the future.


2022 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vanessa S. Terra ◽  
Marta Mauri ◽  
Thippeswamy H. Sannasiddappa ◽  
Alexander A. Smith ◽  
Mark P. Stevens ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Campylobacter is an animal and zoonotic pathogen of global importance, and a pressing need exists for effective vaccines, including those that make use of conserved polysaccharide antigens. To this end, we adapted Protein Glycan Coupling Technology (PGCT) to develop a versatile Escherichia coli strain capable of generating multiple glycoconjugate vaccine candidates against Campylobacter jejuni. Results We generated a glycoengineering E. coli strain containing the conserved C. jejuni heptasaccharide coding region integrated in its chromosome as a model glycan. This methodology confers three advantages: (i) reduction of plasmids and antibiotic markers used for PGCT, (ii) swift generation of many glycan-protein combinations and consequent rapid identification of the most antigenic proteins or peptides, and (iii) increased genetic stability of the polysaccharide coding-region. In this study, by using the model glycan expressing strain, we were able to test proteins from C. jejuni, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (both Gram-negative), and Clostridium perfringens (Gram-positive) as acceptors. Using this pgl integrant E. coli strain, four glycoconjugates were readily generated. Two glycoconjugates, where both protein and glycan are from C. jejuni (double-hit vaccines), and two glycoconjugates, where the glycan antigen is conjugated to a detoxified toxin from a different pathogen (single-hit vaccines). Because the downstream application of Live Attenuated Vaccine Strains (LAVS) against C. jejuni is to be used in poultry, which have a higher body temperature of 42 °C, we investigated the effect of temperature on protein expression and glycosylation in the E. coli pgl integrant strain. Conclusions We determined that glycosylation is temperature dependent and that for the combination of heptasaccharide and carriers used in this study, the level of PglB available for glycosylation is a step limiting factor in the glycosylation reaction. We also demonstrated that temperature affects the ability of PglB to glycosylate its substrates in an in vitro glycosylation assay independent of its transcriptional level.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (16) ◽  
pp. 5752
Author(s):  
Wenju Shu ◽  
Hongchen Zheng ◽  
Xiaoping Fu ◽  
Jie Zhen ◽  
Ming Tan ◽  
...  

Steviol glycosides (SGs) with zero calories and high-intensity sweetness are the best substitutes of sugar for the human diet. Uridine diphosphate dependent glycosyltransferase (UGT) UGT76G1, as a key enzyme for the biosynthesis of SGs with a low heterologous expression level, hinders its application. In this study, a suitable fusion partner, Smt3, was found to enhance the soluble expression of UGT76G1 by 60%. Additionally, a novel strategy to improve the expression of Smt3-UGT76G1 was performed, which co-expressed endogenous genes prpD and malK in Escherichia coli. Notably, this is the first report of constructing an efficient E. coli expression system by regulating prpD and malK expression, which remarkably improved the expression of Smt3-UGT76G1 by 200% as a consequence. Using the high-expression strain E. coli BL21 (DE3) M/P-3-S32U produced 1.97 g/L of Smt3-UGT76G1 with a yield rate of 61.6 mg/L/h by fed-batch fermentation in a 10 L fermenter. The final yield of rebadioside A (Reb A) and rebadioside M (Reb M) reached 4.8 g/L and 1.8 g/L, respectively, when catalyzed by Smt3-UGT76G1 in the practical UDP-glucose regeneration transformation system in vitro. This study not only carried out low-cost biotransformation of SGs but also provided a novel strategy for improving expression of heterologous proteins in E. coli.


1995 ◽  
Vol 306 (2) ◽  
pp. 385-397 ◽  
Author(s):  
T R Hawkes ◽  
P G Thomas ◽  
L S Edwards ◽  
S J Rayner ◽  
K W Wilkinson ◽  
...  

The HIS3+ gene of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was overexpressed in Escherichia coli and the recombinant imidazoleglycerol-phosphate dehydratase (IGPD) purified to homogeneity. Laser-desorption and electrospray m.s. indicated a molecular ion within 2 units of that expected (23833.3) on the basis of the protein sequence, with about half of the polypeptide lacking the N-terminal formylmethionine residue. IGPD initially purified as an apoprotein was catalytically inactive and mainly a trimer of M(r) 70,000. Addition of Mn2+ (but not Mg2+) caused this to assemble to an active (40 units/mg) enzyme (Mn-IGPD) comprising of 24 subunits (M(r) 573,000) and containing 1.35 +/- 0.1 Mn atoms/polypeptide subunit. An enzyme with an identical activity and metal content was also obtained when the fermenter growth medium of recombinant Escherichia coli was supplemented with MnCl2, and IGPD was purified through as Mn-IGPD rather than as the apoenzyme and assembled in vitro. Inhibition by EDTA indicated that the intrinsic Mn2+ was essential for activity. The retention of activity over time after dilution to very low concentrations of enzyme (< 20 nM) indicated that the metal remained in tight association with the protein. A novel continuous assay method was developed to facilitate the kinetic characterization of Mn-IGPD. At pH 7.0, the Km for IGP was 0.10 +/- 0.02 mM and the Ki value for inhibition by 1,2,4-triazole, 0.12 +/- 0.02 mM. In contrast with other reports, thiols had no influence on catalytic activity. The activity of Mn-IGPD varied with enzyme concentration in such a way as to suggest that it dissociates to a less active form at very low concentrations. Significant inhibition by the product, imidazole acetol phosphate, was inferred from the shape of the progress curve. Titration with, the potent competitive inhibitor, 2-hydroxy-3-(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)propyl phosphonate indicated that Mn-IGPD contained 0.9 +/- 0.1 catalytic sites/protomer. The activity nearly doubled in the presence of high concentrations of Mn2+; the apparent Ks for stimulation was 20 microM. The basis of this effect was obscure, since there was no corresponding increase in the titre of active sites. Neither was there a discernable shift in the values of Km or Ki (above), although exogenous Mn2+ did reduce the optimum pH for kcat, from 7.2 to 6.8. On the basis of a single site/subunit, the maximum rate of catalytic turnover at 30 degrees C was 32 s-1.


2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (19) ◽  
pp. 2272-2282
Author(s):  
Vu Ngoc Toan ◽  
Nguyen Minh Tri ◽  
Nguyen Dinh Thanh

Several 6- and 7-alkoxy-2-oxo-2H-chromene-4-carbaldehydes were prepared from corresponding alkyl ethers of 6- and 7-hydroxy-4-methyl-2-oxo-2H-chromen-2-ones by oxidation using selenium dioxide. 6- and 7-Alkoxy-4-methyl-2H-chromenes were obtained with yields of 57-85%. Corresponding 4-carbaldehyde derivatives were prepared with yields of 41-67%. Thiosemicarbazones of these aldehydes with D-galactose moiety were synthesized by reaction of these aldehydes with N-(2,3,4,6-tetra-O-acetyl-β-Dgalactopyranosyl) thiosemicarbazide with yields of 62-74%. These thiosemicarbazones were screened for their antibacterial and antifungal activities in vitro against bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and fungi, such as Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans. Several compounds exhibited strong inhibitory activity with MIC values of 0.78- 1.56 μM, including 8a (against S. aureus, E. coli, and C. albicans), 8d (against E. coli and A. niger), 9a (against S. aureus), and 9c (against S. aureus and C. albicans).


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (9) ◽  
pp. 2604-2610 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gillian Newman ◽  
Elliott Crooke

ABSTRACT Given the lack of a nucleus in prokaryotic cells, the significance of spatial organization in bacterial chromosome replication is only beginning to be fully appreciated. DnaA protein, the initiator of chromosomal replication in Escherichia coli, is purified as a soluble protein, and in vitro it efficiently initiates replication of minichromosomes in membrane-free DNA synthesis reactions. However, its conversion from a replicatively inactive to an active form in vitro occurs through its association with acidic phospholipids in a lipid bilayer. To determine whether the in situ residence of DnaA protein is cytoplasmic, membrane associated, or both, we examined the cellular location of DnaA using immunogold cryothin-section electron microscopy and immunofluorescence. Both of these methods revealed that DnaA is localized at the cell membrane, further suggesting that initiation of chromosomal replication in E. coli is a membrane-affiliated event.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Masuzu Kikuchi ◽  
Keiichi Kojima ◽  
Shin Nakao ◽  
Susumu Yoshizawa ◽  
Shiho Kawanishi ◽  
...  

AbstractMicrobial rhodopsins are photoswitchable seven-transmembrane proteins that are widely distributed in three domains of life, archaea, bacteria and eukarya. Rhodopsins allow the transport of protons outwardly across the membrane and are indispensable for light-energy conversion in microorganisms. Archaeal and bacterial proton pump rhodopsins have been characterized using an Escherichia coli expression system because that enables the rapid production of large amounts of recombinant proteins, whereas no success has been reported for eukaryotic rhodopsins. Here, we report a phylogenetically distinct eukaryotic rhodopsin from the dinoflagellate Oxyrrhis marina (O. marina rhodopsin-2, OmR2) that can be expressed in E. coli cells. E. coli cells harboring the OmR2 gene showed an outward proton-pumping activity, indicating its functional expression. Spectroscopic characterization of the purified OmR2 protein revealed several features as follows: (1) an absorption maximum at 533 nm with all-trans retinal chromophore, (2) the possession of the deprotonated counterion (pKa = 3.0) of the protonated Schiff base and (3) a rapid photocycle through several distinct photointermediates. Those features are similar to those of known eukaryotic proton pump rhodopsins. Our successful characterization of OmR2 expressed in E. coli cells could build a basis for understanding and utilizing eukaryotic rhodopsins.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaitlin S. Witherell ◽  
Jason Price ◽  
Ashok D. Bandaranayake ◽  
James Olson ◽  
Douglas R. Call

AbstractMultidrug-resistant bacteria are a growing global concern, and with increasingly prevalent resistance to last line antibiotics such as colistin, it is imperative that alternative treatment options are identified. Herein we investigated the mechanism of action of a novel antimicrobial peptide (CDP-B11) and its effectiveness against multidrug-resistant bacteria including Escherichia coli #0346, which harbors multiple antibiotic-resistance genes, including mobilized colistin resistance gene (mcr-1). Bacterial membrane potential and membrane integrity assays, measured by flow cytometry, were used to test membrane disruption. Bacterial growth inhibition assays and time to kill assays measured the effectiveness of CDP-B11 alone and in combination with colistin against E. coli #0346 and other bacteria. Hemolysis assays were used to quantify the hemolytic effects of CDP-B11 alone and in combination with colistin. Findings show CDP-B11 disrupts the outer membrane of E. coli #0346. CDP-B11 with colistin inhibits the growth of E. coli #0346 at ≥ 10× lower colistin concentrations compared to colistin alone in Mueller–Hinton media and M9 media. Growth is significantly inhibited in other clinically relevant strains, such as Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. In rich media and minimal media, the drug combination kills bacteria at a lower colistin concentration (1.25 μg/mL) compared to colistin alone (2.5 μg/mL). In minimal media, the combination is bactericidal with killing accelerated by up to 2 h compared to colistin alone. Importantly, no significant red blood hemolysis is evident for CDP-B11 alone or in combination with colistin. The characteristics of CDP-B11 presented here indicate that it can be used as a potential monotherapy or as combination therapy with colistin for the treatment of multidrug-resistant infections, including colistin-resistant infections.


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