scholarly journals Bacillus subtilis Aconitase Is Required for Efficient Late-Sporulation Gene Expression

2006 ◽  
Vol 188 (17) ◽  
pp. 6396-6405 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alisa W. Serio ◽  
Kieran B. Pechter ◽  
Abraham L. Sonenshein
Keyword(s):  
Bacillus Subtilis ◽  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Regulatory Protein ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
High Catalytic Activity ◽  
Spore Coat ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift

ABSTRACT Bacillus subtilis aconitase, encoded by the citB gene, is homologous to the bifunctional eukaryotic protein IRP-1 (iron regulatory protein 1). Like IRP-1, B. subtilis aconitase is both an enzyme and an RNA binding protein. In an attempt to separate the two activities of aconitase, the C-terminal region of the B. subtilis citB gene product was mutagenized. The resulting strain had high catalytic activity but was defective in sporulation. The defect was at a late stage of sporulation, specifically affecting expression of σK-dependent genes, many of which are important for spore coat assembly and require transcriptional activation by GerE. Accumulation of gerE mRNA and GerE protein was delayed in the aconitase mutant strain. Pure B. subtilis aconitase bound to the 3′ untranslated region of gerE mRNA in in vitro gel mobility shift assays, strongly suggesting that aconitase RNA binding activity may stabilize gerE mRNA in order to allow efficient GerE synthesis and proper timing of spore coat assembly.

scholarly journals The CDK7-cycH-p36 complex of transcription factor IIH phosphorylates p53, enhancing its sequence-specific DNA binding activity in vitro.

1997 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. 5923-5934 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Lu ◽  
R P Fisher ◽  
P Bailey ◽  
A J Levine
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Excision Repair ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Trimeric Complex ◽  
Dna Binding Activity ◽  
Terminal Amino ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift ◽  
Kinase Phosphorylation

Phosphorylation is believed to be one of the mechanisms by which p53 becomes activated or stabilized in response to cellular stress. Previously, p53 was shown to interact with three components of transcription factor IIH (TFIIH): excision repair cross-complementing types 2 and 3 (ERCC2 and ERCC3) and p62. This communication demonstrates that p53 is phosphorylated by the TFIIH-associated kinase in vitro. The phosphorylation was found to be catalyzed by the highly purified kinase components of TFIIH, the CDK7-cycH-p36 trimeric complex. The phosphorylation sites were mapped to the C-terminal amino acids located between residues 311 and 393. Serines 371, 376, 378, and 392 may be the potential sites for this kinase. Phosphorylation of p53 by this kinase complex enhanced the ability of p53 to bind to the sequence-specific p53-responsive DNA element as shown by gel mobility shift assays. These results suggest that the CDK7-cycH-p36 trimeric complex of TFIIH may play a role in regulating p53 functions in cells.

scholarly journals Viroplasm Protein P9-1 ofRice Black-Streaked Dwarf VirusPreferentially Binds to Single-Stranded RNA in Its Octamer Form, and the Central Interior Structure Formed by This Octamer Constitutes the Major RNA Binding Site

2013 ◽  
Vol 87 (23) ◽  
pp. 12885-12899 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianyan Wu ◽  
Jia Li ◽  
Xiang Mao ◽  
Weiwu Wang ◽  
Zhaobang Cheng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nucleic Acids ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Structure And Function ◽  
Interior Structure ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Chromatography Analysis ◽  
Mobility Shift Assay ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift ◽  
And Function

The P9-1 protein ofRice black-streaked dwarf virus(RBSDV) is an essential part of the viroplasm. However, little is known about its nature or biological function in the viroplasm. In this study, the structure and function of P9-1 were analyzed forin vitrobinding to nucleic acids. We found that the P9-1 protein preferentially bound to single-stranded versus double-stranded nucleic acids; however, the protein displayed no preference for RBSDV versus non-RBSDV single-stranded ssRNA (ssRNA). A gel mobility shift assay revealed that the RNA gradually shifted as increasing amounts of P9-1 were added, suggesting that multiple subunits of P9-1 bind to ssRNA. By using discontinuous blue native gel and chromatography analysis, we found that the P9-1 protein was capable of forming dimers, tetramers, and octamers. Strikingly, we demonstrated that P9-1 preferentially bound to ssRNA in the octamer, rather than the dimer, form. Deletion of the C-terminal arm resulted in P9-1 no longer forming octamers; consequently, the deletion mutant protein bound to ssRNA with significantly lower affinity and with fewer copies bound per ssRNA. Alanine substitution analysis revealed that electropositive amino acids among residues 25 to 44 are important for RNA binding and map to the central interior structure that was formed only by P9-1 octamers. Collectively, our findings provide novel insights into the structure and function of RBSDV viroplasm protein P9-1 binding to RNA.

scholarly journals Characterization of the RNA-Binding Domains in the Replicase Proteins of Tomato Bushy Stunt Virus

2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (17) ◽  
pp. 9244-9258 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. S. Rajendran ◽  
Peter D. Nagy
Keyword(s):  
Rna Binding ◽  
Tomato Bushy Stunt Virus ◽  
Binding Motif ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Terminal Domain ◽  
Binding Domains ◽  
Replicase Proteins ◽  
Rna Binding Domains ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift

ABSTRACT Tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV), a tombusvirus with a nonsegmented, plus-stranded RNA genome, codes for two essential replicase proteins. The sequence of one of the replicase proteins, namely p33, overlaps with the N-terminal domain of p92, which contains the signature motifs of RNA-dependent RNA polymerases (RdRps) in its nonoverlapping C-terminal portion. In this work, we demonstrate that both replicase proteins bind to RNA in vitro based on gel mobility shift and surface plasmon resonance measurements. We also show evidence that the binding of p33 to single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) is stronger than binding to double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), ssDNA, or dsDNA in vitro. Competition experiments with ssRNA revealed that p33 binds to a TBSV-derived sequence with higher affinity than to other nonviral ssRNA sequences. Additional studies revealed that p33 could bind to RNA in a cooperative manner. Using deletion derivatives of the Escherichia coli-expressed recombinant proteins in gel mobility shift and Northwestern assays, we demonstrate that p33 and the overlapping domain of p92, based on its sequence identity with p33, contain an arginine- and proline-rich RNA-binding motif (termed RPR, which has the sequence RPRRRP). This motif is highly conserved among tombusviruses and related carmoviruses, and it is similar to the arginine-rich motif present in the Tat trans-activator protein of human immunodeficiency virus type 1. We also find that the nonoverlapping C-terminal domain of p92 contains additional RNA-binding regions. Interestingly, the location of one of the RNA-binding domains in p92 is similar to the RNA-binding domain of the NS5B RdRp protein of hepatitis C virus.

scholarly journals Transcriptional Pausing in the Bacillus subtilis pyr Operon In Vitro: a Role in Transcriptional Attenuation?

2003 ◽  
Vol 185 (16) ◽  
pp. 4764-4771 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hesheng Zhang ◽  
Robert L. Switzer
Keyword(s):  
Bacillus Subtilis ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Bacterial Species ◽  
Regulatory Protein ◽  
Stem Loop ◽  
Nucleotide Biosynthesis ◽  
Pyrimidine Nucleotide ◽  
Transcriptional Pausing

ABSTRACT The genes encoding the enzymes of pyrimidine nucleotide biosynthesis (pyr genes) are regulated in Bacillus subtilis and many other bacterial species by transcriptional attenuation. When UMP or UTP is bound to the PyrR regulatory protein, it binds to pyr mRNA at specific sequences and secondary structures in the RNA. Binding to this site prevents formation of an antiterminator stem-loop in the RNA and permits formation of a downstream terminator, leading to reduced expression of the pyr genes lying downstream from the terminator. The functioning of several other transcriptional attenuation systems has been shown to involve transcriptional pausing; this observation stimulated us to use single-round transcription of pyr genes to test for formation of paused transcripts in vitro. Using templates with each of the three known B. subtilis pyr attenuation sites, we identified one major pause site in each in which the half-life of the paused transcript was increased four- to sixfold by NusA. In each case pausing at the NusA-stimulated site prevented formation of a complete antiterminator stem-loop, while it resulted in increased time for a PyrR binding loop to form and for PyrR to bind to this loop. Thus, the pausing detected in vitro is potentially capable of playing a role in establishing the correct timing for pyr attenuation in vivo. With two of three pyr templates the combination of NusA with PyrR markedly stimulated termination of transcription at the normal termination sites. This suggests that NusA, by stabilizing pausing, plays a role in termination of pyr transcription in vivo.

scholarly journals Mechanism of action of a repressor of dioxin-dependent induction of Cyp1a1 gene transcription.

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2115-2123 ◽  
Author(s):  
A J Watson ◽  
K I Weir-Brown ◽  
R M Bannister ◽  
F F Chu ◽  
S Reisz-Porszasz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Interactions ◽  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
High Salt ◽  
In Vitro Assays ◽  
Ah Receptor ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Nuclear Extracts ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift

A dominant mutant of Hepa-1 cells, c31, expresses a repressor that prevents 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-dependent stimulation of Cyp1a1 transcription. The repressor acts via the xenobiotic-responsive elements (XREs), which are the DNA-binding sites for the aryl hydrocarbon (Ah) receptor-TCDD complex during transcriptional activation of the gene. High-salt nuclear extracts prepared from c31 cells grown with TCDD contained normal levels of the Ah receptor which bound the XRE with normal affinity, as judged by in vitro gel mobility shift assays. Furthermore, extracts prepared from these cells, grown either with or without TCDD, contained no novel XRE-binding proteins compared with extracts from wild-type Hepa-1 cells. However, in vivo genomic footprinting demonstrated that TCDD treatment leads to binding of the Ah receptor to the XREs in Hepa-1 but not mutant cells. This finding suggests that the repressor associates with the Ah receptor to prevent its binding to the XREs and that high-salt treatment either causes dissociation of the receptor/repressor complex or fails to extract the repressor from nuclei. The results underscore the importance of using both in vivo and in vitro assays for analyzing DNA-protein interactions.

scholarly journals MSY2 and MSY4 Bind a Conserved Sequence in the 3′ Untranslated Region of Protamine 1 mRNA In Vitro and In Vivo

2001 ◽  
Vol 21 (20) ◽  
pp. 7010-7019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Flaviano Giorgini ◽  
Holly G. Davies ◽  
Robert E. Braun
Keyword(s):  
Untranslated Region ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Conserved Sequence ◽  
Mobility Shift Assay ◽  
Protamine 1

ABSTRACT Y-box proteins are major constituents of ribonucleoprotein particles (RNPs) which contain translationally silent mRNAs in gametic cells. We have recently shown that a sequence-specific RNA binding activity present in spermatogenic cells contains the two Y-box proteins MSY2 and MSY4. We show here that MSY2 and MSY4 bind a sequence, 5′-UCCAUCA-3′, present in the 3′ untranslated region of the translationally repressed protamine 1 (Prm1) mRNA. Using pre- and post-RNase T1-digested substrate RNAs, it was determined that MSY2 and MSY4 can bind an RNA of eight nucleotides containing the MSY2 and MSY4 binding site. Single nucleotide mutations in the sequence eliminated the binding of MSY2 and MSY4 in an electrophoretic mobility shift assay, and the resulting mutants failed to compete for binding in a competition assay. A consensus site of UACCACAUCCACU(subscripts indicate nucleotides which do not disrupt YRS binding by MSY2 and MSY4), denoted the Y-box recognition site (YRS), was defined from this mutational analysis. These mutations in the YRS were further characterized in vivo using a novel application of the yeast three-hybrid system. Experiments with transgenic mice show that disruption of the YRS in vivo relieves Prm1-like repression of a reporter gene. The conservation of the RNA binding motifs among Y-box protein family members raises the possibility that other Y-box proteins may have previously unrecognized sequence-specific RNA binding activities.

scholarly journals Regulatory Interactions among Adhesin Gene Systems of Uropathogenic Escherichia coli

2007 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 771-780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stina Lindberg ◽  
Yan Xia ◽  
Berit Sondén ◽  
Mikael Göransson ◽  
Jörg Hacker ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Escherichia Coli ◽  
Regulatory Protein ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
E Coli ◽  
Fimbrial Adhesins ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift

ABSTRACT Uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain J96 carries multiple determinants for fimbrial adhesins. The regulatory protein PapB of P fimbriae has previously been implicated in potential coregulatory events. The focB gene of the F1C fimbria determinant is highly homologous to papB; the translated sequences share 81% identity. In this study we investigated the role of PapB and FocB in regulation of the F1C fimbriae. By using gel mobility shift assays, we showed that FocB binds to sequences in both the pap and foc operons in a somewhat different manner than PapB. The results of both in vitro cross-linking and in vivo oligomerization tests indicated that FocB could function in an oligomeric fashion. Furthermore, our results suggest that PapB and FocB can form heterodimers and that these complexes can repress expression of the foc operon. The effect of FocB on expression of type 1 fimbriae was also tested. Taken together, the results that we present expand our knowledge about a regulatory network for different adhesin gene systems in uropathogenic E. coli and suggest a hierarchy for expression of the fimbrial adhesins.

scholarly journals Oxalomalate, a competitive inhibitor of aconitase, modulates the RNA-binding activity of iron-regulatory proteins

2000 ◽  
Vol 348 (2) ◽  
pp. 315-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michela FESTA ◽  
Alfredo COLONNA ◽  
Concetta PIETROPAOLO ◽  
Alfredo RUFFO
Keyword(s):  
Iron Metabolism ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Competitive Inhibitor ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Regulatory Proteins ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Prolonged Incubation ◽  
Iron Regulatory Proteins

We investigated the effect of oxalomalate (OMA, α-hydroxy-β-oxalosuccinic acid), a competitive inhibitor of aconitase, on the RNA-binding activity of the iron-regulatory proteins (IRP1 and IRP2) that control the post-transcriptional expression of various proteins involved in iron metabolism. The RNA-binding activity of IRP was evaluated by electrophoretic mobility-shift assay of cell lysates from 3T3-L1 mouse fibroblasts, SH-SY5Y human cells and mouse livers incubated in vitro with OMA, with and without 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME). Analogous experiments were performed in vivo by prolonged incubation (72 h) of 3T3-L1 cells with OMA, and by injecting young mice with equimolar concentrations of oxaloacetate and glyoxylate, which are the precursors of OMA synthesis. OMA remarkably decreased the binding activity of IRP1 and, when present, of IRP2, in all samples analysed. In addition, the recovery of IRP1 by 2-ME in the presence of OMA was constantly lower versus control values. These findings suggest that the severe decrease in IRP1 RNA-binding activity depends on: (i) linking of OMA to the active site of aconitase, which prevents the switch to IRP1 and explains resistance to the reducing agents, and (ii) possible interaction of OMA with some functional amino acid residues in IRP that are responsible for binding to the specific mRNA sequences involved in the regulation of iron metabolism.

scholarly journals Transcriptional Regulation of theStreptococcus mutans gal Operon by the GalR Repressor

1998 ◽  
Vol 180 (21) ◽  
pp. 5727-5732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dragana Ajdić ◽  
Joseph J. Ferretti
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Initiation ◽  
Binding Activity ◽  
Regulatory Function ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Dna Binding Activity ◽  
Dnase I Footprinting ◽  
Vitro Binding ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift ◽  
Transcriptional Start Sites

ABSTRACT The galactose operon of Streptococcus mutans is transcriptionally regulated by a repressor protein (GalR) encoded by the galR gene, which is divergently oriented from the structural genes of the gal operon. To study the regulatory function of GalR, we partially purified the protein and examined its DNA binding activity by gel mobility shift and DNase I footprinting experiments. The protein specifically bound to thegalR-galK intergenic region at an operator sequence, the position of which would suggest that GalR plays a role in the regulation of the gal operon as well as autoregulation. To further examine this hypothesis, transcriptional start sites of the gal operon and thegalR gene were determined. Primer extension analysis showed that both promoters overlap the operator, indicating that GalR most likely represses transcription initiation of both promoters. Finally, the results from in vitro binding experiments with potential effector molecules suggest that galactose is a true intracellular inducer of the galactose operon.

Mechanism of action of a repressor of dioxin-dependent induction of Cyp1a1 gene transcription

1992 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2115-2123
Author(s):  
A J Watson ◽  
K I Weir-Brown ◽  
R M Bannister ◽  
F F Chu ◽  
S Reisz-Porszasz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Interactions ◽  
Transcriptional Activation ◽  
High Salt ◽  
In Vitro Assays ◽  
Ah Receptor ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Nuclear Extracts ◽  
Gel Mobility Shift

A dominant mutant of Hepa-1 cells, c31, expresses a repressor that prevents 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-dependent stimulation of Cyp1a1 transcription. The repressor acts via the xenobiotic-responsive elements (XREs), which are the DNA-binding sites for the aryl hydrocarbon (Ah) receptor-TCDD complex during transcriptional activation of the gene. High-salt nuclear extracts prepared from c31 cells grown with TCDD contained normal levels of the Ah receptor which bound the XRE with normal affinity, as judged by in vitro gel mobility shift assays. Furthermore, extracts prepared from these cells, grown either with or without TCDD, contained no novel XRE-binding proteins compared with extracts from wild-type Hepa-1 cells. However, in vivo genomic footprinting demonstrated that TCDD treatment leads to binding of the Ah receptor to the XREs in Hepa-1 but not mutant cells. This finding suggests that the repressor associates with the Ah receptor to prevent its binding to the XREs and that high-salt treatment either causes dissociation of the receptor/repressor complex or fails to extract the repressor from nuclei. The results underscore the importance of using both in vivo and in vitro assays for analyzing DNA-protein interactions.

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