scholarly journals STRUCTURAL DIFFERENTIATION OF STACKED AND UNSTACKED CHLOROPLAST MEMBRANES

1971 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 594-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ursula W. Goodenough ◽  
L. Andrew Staehelin

Wild-type chloroplast membranes from Chlamydomonas reinhardi exhibit four faces in freeze-etchreplicas: the complementary Bs and Cs faces are found where the membranes are stacked together; the complementary Bu and Cu faces are found in unstacked membranes. The Bs face carries a dense population of regularly spaced particles containing the large, 160 ± 10 A particles that appear to be unique to chloroplast membranes. Under certain growth conditions, membrane stacking does not occur in the ac-5 strain. When isolated, these membranes remain unstacked, exhibit only Bu and Cu faces, and retain the ability to carry out normal photosynthesis. Membrane stacking is also absent in the ac-31 strain, and, when isolated in a low-salt medium, these membranes remain unstacked and exhibit only Bu and Cu faces. When isolated in a high-salt medium, however, they stack normally, and Bs and Cs faces are produced by this in vitro stacking process. We conclude that certain particle distributions in the chloroplast membrane are created as a consequence of the stacking process, and that the ability of membranes to stack can be modified both by gene mutation and by the ionic environment in which the membranes are found.

2002 ◽  
Vol 184 (17) ◽  
pp. 4846-4856 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yilei Qian ◽  
John H. Lee ◽  
Randall K. Holmes

ABSTRACT The diphtheria toxin repressor (DtxR) uses Fe2+ as a corepressor and inhibits transcription from iron-regulated promoters (IRPs) in Corynebacterium diphtheriae. A new IRP, designated IRP6, was cloned from C. diphtheriae by a SELEX-like procedure. DtxR bound to IRP6 in vitro only in the presence of appropriate divalent metal ions, and repression of IRP6 by DtxR in an Escherichia coli system was iron dependent. The open reading frames (ORFs) downstream from IRP6 and previously described promoter IRP1 were found to encode proteins homologous to components of ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transport systems involved in high-affinity iron uptake in other bacteria. IRP1 and IRP6 were repressed under high-iron conditions in wild-type C. diphtheriae C7(β), but they were expressed constitutively in C7(β) mutant strains HC1, HC3, HC4, and HC5, which were shown previously to be defective in corynebactin-dependent iron uptake. A clone of the wild-type irp6 operon (pCM6ABC) complemented the constitutive corynebactin production phenotype of HC1, HC4, and HC5 but not of HC3, whereas a clone of the wild-type irp1 operon failed to complement any of these strains. Complementation by subclones of pCM6ABC demonstrated that mutant alleles of irp6A, irp6C, and irp6B were responsible for the phenotypes of HC1, HC4, and HC5, respectively. The irp6A allele in HC1 and the irp6B allele in HC5 encoded single amino acid substitutions in their predicted protein products, and the irp6C allele in HC4 caused premature chain termination of its predicted protein product. Strain HC3 was found to have a chain-terminating mutation in dtxR in addition to a missense mutation in its irp6B allele. These findings demonstrated that the irp6 operon in C. diphtheriae encodes a putative ABC transporter, that specific mutant alleles of irp6A, irp6B, and irp6C are associated with defects in corynebactin-dependent iron uptake, and that complementation of these mutant alleles restores repression of corynebactin production under high-iron growth conditions, most likely as a consequence of restoring siderophore-dependent iron uptake mediated by the irp6 operon.


Microbiology ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 156 (6) ◽  
pp. 1824-1835 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Meehan ◽  
Fiona M. Burke ◽  
Susan Macken ◽  
Peter Owen

Streptococcus equi possesses a haem-uptake system homologous to that of Streptococcus pyogenes and Streptococcus zooepidemicus. The system consists of two ligand-binding proteins (Shr and Shp) and proteins (HtsA–C) with homology to an ABC transporter. The haem-uptake system of S. equi differs from that of S. pyogenes and S. zooepidemicus in that Shr is truncated by two-thirds. This study focused on the SeShr, SeShp and SeHtsA proteins of S. equi. Analysis of shr, shp and shphtsA knockout mutants showed that all three proteins were expressed in vitro and that expression was upregulated under conditions of iron limitation. SeShr possesses no membrane-/cell wall-spanning sequences and was shown to be secreted. Both SeShp and SeHtsA were confirmed to be envelope-associated. Recombinant SeShp and SeHtsA proteins have been previously shown to bind haem and SeHtsA could capture haem from SeShp. This report extends these studies and shows that both SeShp and SeHtsA can sequester haem from haemoglobin but not from haemoglobin–haptoglobin complexes. Like full-length Shr, SeShr possesses haemoglobin and haemoglobin–haptoglobin binding ability but unlike full-length Shr, it lacks haem- or fibronectin-binding capabilities. Analysis of SeShr truncates showed that residues within and upstream of the near transporter (NEAT) domain are required for this ligand binding. Structural predictions suggest that truncation of NEAT1 in SeShr accounts for its impaired ability to bind haem. Haem and haemoglobin restored to almost normal the impaired growth rates of wild-type S. equi cultured under iron-limiting conditions. However, no difference in the growth rates of wild-type and mutants could be detected under the in vitro growth conditions tested.


1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (12) ◽  
pp. 10551-10555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armin Ensser ◽  
André Pfinder ◽  
Ingrid Müller-Fleckenstein ◽  
Bernhard Fleckenstein

ABSTRACT The herpesvirus saimiri strain C488 genome contains five genes for small nuclear RNAs, termed herpesvirus saimiri URNAs (or HSURs). Using a cosmid-based approach, all HSURs were precisely deleted from the genome. The mutant virus replicated at levels that were similar to those of wild-type viruses in OMK cells. Although the HSURs are expressed in wild-type virus-transformed human T-cell lines, the deletion does not affect viral transformation in cell culture.


2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. e01948-20
Author(s):  
Dalin Rifat ◽  
Si-Yang Li ◽  
Thomas Ioerger ◽  
Keshav Shah ◽  
Jean-Philippe Lanoix ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe nitroimidazole prodrugs delamanid and pretomanid comprise one of only two new antimicrobial classes approved to treat tuberculosis (TB) in 50 years. Prior in vitro studies suggest a relatively low barrier to nitroimidazole resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, but clinical evidence is limited to date. We selected pretomanid-resistant M. tuberculosis mutants in two mouse models of TB using a range of pretomanid doses. The frequency of spontaneous resistance was approximately 10−5 CFU. Whole-genome sequencing of 161 resistant isolates from 47 mice revealed 99 unique mutations, of which 91% occurred in 1 of 5 genes previously associated with nitroimidazole activation and resistance, namely, fbiC (56%), fbiA (15%), ddn (12%), fgd (4%), and fbiB (4%). Nearly all mutations were unique to a single mouse and not previously identified. The remaining 9% of resistant mutants harbored mutations in Rv2983 (fbiD), a gene not previously associated with nitroimidazole resistance but recently shown to be a guanylyltransferase necessary for cofactor F420 synthesis. Most mutants exhibited high-level resistance to pretomanid and delamanid, although Rv2983 and fbiB mutants exhibited high-level pretomanid resistance but relatively small changes in delamanid susceptibility. Complementing an Rv2983 mutant with wild-type Rv2983 restored susceptibility to pretomanid and delamanid. By quantifying intracellular F420 and its precursor Fo in overexpressing and loss-of-function mutants, we provide further evidence that Rv2983 is necessary for F420 biosynthesis. Finally, Rv2983 mutants and other F420H2-deficient mutants displayed hypersusceptibility to some antibiotics and to concentrations of malachite green found in solid media used to isolate and propagate mycobacteria from clinical samples.


2020 ◽  
Vol 117 (32) ◽  
pp. 19245-19253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soumyadip Sahu ◽  
Zhenzhen Wang ◽  
Xinfu Jiao ◽  
Chunfang Gu ◽  
Nikolaus Jork ◽  
...  

Regulation of enzymatic 5′ decapping of messenger RNA (mRNA), which normally commits transcripts to their destruction, has the capacity to dynamically reshape the transcriptome. For example, protection from 5′ decapping promotes accumulation of mRNAs into processing (P) bodies—membraneless, biomolecular condensates. Such compartmentalization of mRNAs temporarily removes them from the translatable pool; these repressed transcripts are stabilized and stored until P-body dissolution permits transcript reentry into the cytosol. Here, we describe regulation of mRNA stability and P-body dynamics by the inositol pyrophosphate signaling molecule 5-InsP7(5-diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate). First, we demonstrate 5-InsP7inhibits decapping by recombinant NUDT3 (Nudix [nucleoside diphosphate linked moiety X]-type hydrolase 3) in vitro. Next, in intact HEK293 and HCT116 cells, we monitored the stability of a cadre of NUDT3 mRNA substrates following CRISPR-Cas9 knockout ofPPIP5Ks(diphosphoinositol pentakisphosphate 5-kinases type 1 and 2, i.e.,PPIP5KKO), which elevates cellular 5-InsP7levels by two- to threefold (i.e., within the physiological rheostatic range). ThePPIP5KKO cells exhibited elevated levels of NUDT3 mRNA substrates and increased P-body abundance. Pharmacological and genetic attenuation of 5-InsP7synthesis in the KO background reverted both NUDT3 mRNA substrate levels and P-body counts to those of wild-type cells. Furthermore, liposomal delivery of a metabolically resistant 5-InsP7analog into wild-type cells elevated levels of NUDT3 mRNA substrates and raised P-body abundance. In the context that cellular 5-InsP7levels normally fluctuate in response to changes in the bioenergetic environment, regulation of mRNA structure by this inositol pyrophosphate represents an epitranscriptomic control process. The associated impact on P-body dynamics has relevance to regulation of stem cell differentiation, stress responses, and, potentially, amelioration of neurodegenerative diseases and aging.


2007 ◽  
Vol 20 (11) ◽  
pp. 1421-1430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Sohlenkamp ◽  
Kanaan A. Galindo-Lagunas ◽  
Ziqiang Guan ◽  
Pablo Vinuesa ◽  
Sally Robinson ◽  
...  

Lysyl-phosphatidylglycerol (LPG) is a well-known membrane lipid in several gram-positive bacteria but is almost unheard of in gram-negative bacteria. In Staphylococcus aureus, the gene product of mprF is responsible for LPG formation. Low pH-inducible genes, termed lpiA, have been identified in the gram-negative α-proteobacteria Rhizobium tropici and Sinorhizobium medicae in screens for acid-sensitive mutants and they encode homologs of MprF. An analysis of the sequenced bacterial genomes reveals that genes coding for homologs of MprF from S. aureus are present in several classes of organisms throughout the bacterial kingdom. In this study, we show that the expression of lpiA from R. tropici in the heterologous hosts Escherichia coli and Sinorhizobium meliloti causes formation of LPG. A wild-type strain of R. tropici forms LPG (about 1% of the total lipids) when the cells are grown in minimal medium at pH 4.5 but not when grown in minimal medium at neutral pH or in complex tryptone yeast (TY) medium at either pH. LPG biosynthesis does not occur when lpiA is deleted and is restored upon complementation of lpiA-deficient mutants with a functional copy of the lpiA gene. When grown in the low-pH medium, lpiA-deficient rhizobial mutants are over four times more susceptible to the cationic peptide polymyxin B than the wild type.


2009 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hassan Safi ◽  
Robert D. Fleischmann ◽  
Scott N. Peterson ◽  
Marcus B. Jones ◽  
Behnam Jarrahi ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Mutations within codon 306 of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis embB gene modestly increase ethambutol (EMB) MICs. To identify other causes of EMB resistance and to identify causes of high-level resistance, we generated EMB-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates in vitro and performed allelic exchange studies of embB codon 406 (embB406) and embB497 mutations. In vitro selection produced mutations already identified clinically in embB306, embB397, embB497, embB1024, and embC13, which result in EMB MICs of 8 or 14 μg/ml, 5 μg/ml, 12 μg/ml, 3 μg/ml, and 4 μg/ml, respectively, and mutations at embB320, embB324, and embB445, which have not been identified in clinical M. tuberculosis isolates and which result in EMB MICs of 8 μg/ml, 8 μg/ml, and 2 to 8 μg/ml, respectively. To definitively identify the effect of the common clinical embB497 and embB406 mutations on EMB susceptibility, we created a series of isogenic mutants, exchanging the wild-type embB497 CAG codon in EMB-susceptible M. tuberculosis strain 210 for the embB497 CGG codon and the wild-type embB406 GGC codon for either the embB406 GCC, embB406 TGC, embB406 TCC, or embB406 GAC codon. These new mutants showed 6-fold and 3- to 3.5-fold increases in the EMB MICs, respectively. In contrast to the embB306 mutants, the isogenic embB497 and embB406 mutants did not have preferential growth in the presence of isoniazid or rifampin (rifampicin) at their MICs. These results demonstrate that individual embCAB mutations confer low to moderate increases in EMB MICs. Discrepancies between the EMB MICs of laboratory mutants and clinical M. tuberculosis strains with identical mutations suggest that clinical EMB resistance is multigenic and that high-level EMB resistance requires mutations in currently unknown loci.


1993 ◽  
Vol 268 (13) ◽  
pp. 9629-9635
Author(s):  
T. Kang ◽  
T. Martins ◽  
I. Sadowski
Keyword(s):  

Biomolecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 27
Author(s):  
Iwona Sadura ◽  
Dariusz Latowski ◽  
Jana Oklestkova ◽  
Damian Gruszka ◽  
Marek Chyc ◽  
...  

Plants have developed various acclimation strategies in order to counteract the negative effects of abiotic stresses (including temperature stress), and biological membranes are important elements in these strategies. Brassinosteroids (BR) are plant steroid hormones that regulate plant growth and development and modulate their reaction against many environmental stresses including temperature stress, but their role in modifying the properties of the biological membrane is poorly known. In this paper, we characterise the molecular dynamics of chloroplast membranes that had been isolated from wild-type and a BR-deficient barley mutant that had been acclimated to low and high temperatures in order to enrich the knowledge about the role of BR as regulators of the dynamics of the photosynthetic membranes. The molecular dynamics of the membranes was investigated using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy in both a hydrophilic and hydrophobic area of the membranes. The content of BR was determined, and other important membrane components that affect their molecular dynamics such as chlorophylls, carotenoids and fatty acids in these membranes were also determined. The chloroplast membranes of the BR-mutant had a higher degree of rigidification than the membranes of the wild type. In the hydrophilic area, the most visible differences were observed in plants that had been grown at 20 °C, whereas in the hydrophobic core, they were visible at both 20 and 5 °C. There were no differences in the molecular dynamics of the studied membranes in the chloroplast membranes that had been isolated from plants that had been grown at 27 °C. The role of BR in regulating the molecular dynamics of the photosynthetic membranes will be discussed against the background of an analysis of the photosynthetic pigments and fatty acid composition in the chloroplasts.


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