Full-length Recombinant Protein Research Articles

LRRK2 Facilitates tau Phosphorylation through Strong Interaction with tau and cdk5.

Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) and tau have been identified as risk factors of Parkinson's disease (PD). As LRRK2 is a kinase and tau is hyperphosphorylated in some LRRK2 mutation carriers of PD patients, the obvious hypothesis is that tau could be a substrate of LRRK2. Previous reports that LRRK2 phosphorylates free tau or tubulin-associated tau provide direct support for this proposition. By comparing LRRK2 with cdk5, we show that wild-type LRRK2 and the G2019S mutant phosphorylate free recombinant full-length tau protein with specific activity 480- and 250-fold lower than cdk5, respectively. More strikingly tau binds to wt LRRK2 or the G2019S mutant 140- or 200-fold more strongly than cdk5. The extremely low activity of LRRK2 but strong binding affinity with tau suggests that LRRK2 may facilitate tau phosphorylation as a scaffold protein rather than as a major tau kinase. This hypothesis is further supported by the observation that (i) cdk5 or tau coimmunoprecipitates with endogenous LRRK2 in SH-SY5Y cells, in mouse brain tissue, and in human PBMCs; (ii) knocking down endogenous LRRK2 by its siRNA in SH-SY5Y cells reduces tau phosphorylation at Ser396 and Ser404; (iii) inhibiting LRRK2 kinase activity by its inhibitors has no effect on tau phosphorylation at these two sites; and (iv) overexpressing wt LRRK2, the G2019S mutant, or the D1994A kinase-dead mutant in SH-SY5Y cells has no effect on tau phosphorylation. Our results suggest that LRRK2 facilitates tau phosphorylation indirectly by recruiting tau or cdk5 rather than by directly phosphorylating tau.

Recombinant H7 hemagglutinin forms subviral particles that protect mice and ferrets from challenge with H7N9 influenza virus

A novel avian-origin influenza A H7N9 virus emerged in China in 2013 and continues to cause sporadic human infections with mortality rates approaching 35%. Currently there are no approved human vaccines for H7N9 virus. Recombinant approaches including hemagglutinin (HA) and virus-like particles (VLPs) have resulted in experimental vaccines with advantageous safety and manufacturing characteristics. While high immunogenicity of VLP vaccines has been attributed to the native conformation of HA arranged in the regular repeated patterns within virus-like structures, there is limited data regarding molecular organization of HA within recombinant HA vaccine preparations. In this study, the full-length recombinant H7 protein (rH7) of A/Anhui/1/2013 (H7N9) virus was expressed in Sf9 cells. We showed that purified full-length rH7 retained functional ability to agglutinate red blood cells and formed oligomeric pleomorphic subviral particles (SVPs) of ∼20nm in diameter composed of approximately 10 HA0 molecules. No significant quantities of free monomeric HA0 were observed in rH7 preparation by size exclusion chromatography. Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of rH7 SVPs was confirmed in the mouse and ferret challenge models suggesting that SVPs can be used for vaccination against H7N9 virus.

Immunocapture-Selected Reaction Monitoring Screening Facilitates the Development of ELISA for the Measurement of Native TEX101 in Biological Fluids*

Monoclonal antibodies that bind the native conformation of proteins are indispensable reagents for the development of immunoassays, production of therapeutic antibodies and delineating protein interaction networks by affinity purification-mass spectrometry. Antibodies generated against short peptides, protein fragments, or even full length recombinant proteins may not bind the native protein form in biological fluids, thus limiting their utility. Here, we report the application of immunocapture coupled with selected reaction monitoring measurements (immunocapture-SRM), in the rapid screening of hybridoma culture supernatants for monoclonal antibodies that bind the native protein conformation. We produced mouse monoclonal antibodies, which detect in human serum or seminal plasma the native form of the human testis-expressed sequence 101 (TEX101) protein-a recently proposed biomarker of male infertility. Pairing of two monoclonal antibodies against unique TEX101 epitopes led to the development of an ELISA for the measurement of TEX101 in seminal plasma (limit of detection: 20 pg/ml) and serum (limit of detection: 40 pg/ml). Measurements of matched seminal plasma samples, obtained from men pre- and post-vasectomy, confirmed the absolute diagnostic specificity and sensitivity of TEX101 for noninvasive identification of physical obstructions in the male reproductive tract. Measurement of male and female serum samples revealed undetectable levels of TEX101 in the systemic circulation of healthy individuals. Immunocapture-SRM screening may facilitate development of monoclonal antibodies and immunoassays against native forms of challenging protein targets.

Evolution of a novel nuclear receptor subfamily with emphasis on the member from the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas

Nuclear receptors (NRs) belong to the transcription factor superfamily that regulates development, homeostasis, differentiation, and reproduction in metazoans via control of gene expression. Recently, rapid advances in genome projects on various metazoans have provided new opportunities for studying the evolution and function of NRs. Typically structured NRs are divided into six subfamilies. Here, the gene for a typically structured NR (CgNR8A1) was cloned from the Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas. However, this novel receptor could not be assigned to a known NR subfamily. By data mining, nine other CgNR8A1 gene homologs were identified in metazoans such as cnidarians, mollusks, annelids, echinoderms, hemichordates, and cephalochordates. Phylogenetic analysis showed that these receptors belonged to a novel NR subfamily, hereafter designated as NR8. Evolutionary analysis revealed that the NR8 subfamily was phylogenetically the third-oldest NR subfamily, and it originated from a common ancestor of Eumetazoa; several gene loss events occurred independently in ancestors of vertebrates, ecdysozoans, and platyhelminths, which do not have NR8 members. Furthermore, the function of CgNR8A1 was investigated to provide an insight into the functions of this novel NR subfamily. A nuclear localization signal peptide, GKHRNKKPRLD, was identified in CgNR8A1, and a recombinant full-length protein of CgNR8A1 was localized in the nuclei of HeLa cells. The mRNA expression profile of CgNR8A1 suggested that it might be involved in the embryogenesis of C. gigas. The electrophoretic mobility shift assay showed that CgNR8A1 binds strongly to conserved DNA core motifs DR0, DR2, and DR4 and weakly to DR1, DR3, DR5, Half, and Pal0. In summary, the novel NR8 subfamily identified in this study improves our understanding of NR evolution, and the functional analysis of CgNR8A1 provided further insights into the functions of NR8A1s.

Whole Tumor Antigen Vaccines: Where Are We?

With its vast amount of uncharacterized and characterized T cell epitopes available for activating CD4+ T helper and CD8+ cytotoxic lymphocytes simultaneously, whole tumor antigen represents an attractive alternative source of antigens as compared to tumor-derived peptides and full-length recombinant tumor proteins for dendritic cell (DC)-based immunotherapy. Unlike defined tumor-derived peptides and proteins, whole tumor lysate therapy is applicable to all patients regardless of their HLA type. DCs are essentially the master regulators of immune response, and are the most potent antigen-presenting cell population for priming and activating naïve T cells to target tumors. Because of these unique properties, numerous DC-based immunotherapies have been initiated in the clinics. In this review, we describe the different types of whole tumor antigens that we could use to pulse DCs ex vivo and in vivo. We also discuss the different routes of delivering whole tumor antigens to DCs in vivo and activating them with toll-like receptor agonists.

Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum TP0136 protein is heterogeneous among isolates and binds cellular and plasma fibronectin via its NH2-terminal end.

Adherence-mediated colonization plays an important role in pathogenesis of microbial infections, particularly those caused by extracellular pathogens responsible for systemic diseases, such as Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (T. pallidum), the agent of syphilis. Among T. pallidum adhesins, TP0136 is known to bind fibronectin (Fn), an important constituent of the host extracellular matrix. To deepen our understanding of the TP0136-Fn interaction dynamics, we used two naturally-occurring sequence variants of the TP0136 protein to investigate which region of the protein is responsible for Fn binding, and whether TP0136 would adhere to human cellular Fn in addition to plasma Fn and super Fn as previously reported. Fn binding assays were performed with recombinant proteins representing the two full-length TP0136 variants and their discrete regions. As a complementary approach, we tested inhibition of T. pallidum binding to Fn by recombinant full-length TP0136 proteins and fragments, as well as by anti-TP0136 immune sera. Our results show that TP0136 adheres more efficiently to cellular Fn than to plasma Fn, that the TP0136 NH2-terminal conserved region of the protein is primarily responsible for binding to plasma Fn but that binding sites for cellular Fn are also present in the protein’s central and COOH-terminal regions. Additionally, message quantification studies show that tp0136 is highly transcribed during experimental infection, and that its message level increases in parallel to the host immune pressure on the pathogen, which suggests a possible role for this protein in T. pallidum persistence. In a time where syphilis incidence is high, our data will help in the quest to identify suitable targets for development of a much needed vaccine against this important disease.

Quantification of cellular NEMO content and its impact on NF-κB activation by genotoxic stress.

NF-κB essential modulator, NEMO, plays a key role in canonical NF-κB signaling induced by a variety of stimuli, including cytokines and genotoxic agents. To dissect the different biochemical and functional roles of NEMO in NF-κB signaling, various mutant forms of NEMO have been previously analyzed. However, transient or stable overexpression of wild-type NEMO can significantly inhibit NF-κB activation, thereby confounding the analysis of NEMO mutant phenotypes. What levels of NEMO overexpression lead to such an artifact and what levels are tolerated with no significant impact on NEMO function in NF-κB activation are currently unknown. Here we purified full-length recombinant human NEMO protein and used it as a standard to quantify the average number of NEMO molecules per cell in a 1.3E2 NEMO-deficient murine pre-B cell clone stably reconstituted with full-length human NEMO (C5). We determined that the C5 cell clone has an average of 4 x 105 molecules of NEMO per cell. Stable reconstitution of 1.3E2 cells with different numbers of NEMO molecules per cell has demonstrated that a 10-fold range of NEMO expression (0.6–6x105 molecules per cell) yields statistically equivalent NF-κB activation in response to the DNA damaging agent etoposide. Using the C5 cell line, we also quantified the number of NEMO molecules per cell in several commonly employed human cell lines. These results establish baseline numbers of endogenous NEMO per cell and highlight surprisingly normal functionality of NEMO in the DNA damage pathway over a wide range of expression levels that can provide a guideline for future NEMO reconstitution studies.

Characterization of ATPase activity of the AAA ARC from Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis.

Bifidobacteria are considered to be probiotics that exist in the large intestine and are helpful to maintain human health. Oral administration of bifidobacteria may be effective in improving the intestinal flora and environment, stimulating the immune response and possibly preventing cancer. However, for consistent and positive results, further well-controlled studies are urgently needed to describe the basic mechanisms of this microorganism. Analysis of the proteasome-lacking Bifidobacterium longum genome reveals that it possesses a gene, IPR003593 AAA ATPase core, which codes a 56 kDa protein containing one AAA ATPase domain. Phylogenetic classification made by CLANS, positioned this sequence into the ARC divergent branch of the AAA ATPase family of proteins. N-terminal analysis of the sequence indicates this protein is closely related to other ATPases such as the Rhodococcus erythropolis ARC, Archaeoglobus fulgidus PAN, Mycobacterium tuberculosis Mpa and the human proteasomal Rpt1 subunit. This gene was cloned, the full-length recombinant protein was overexpressed in Escherichia coli, purified as a high-molecular size complex and named Bl-ARC. Enzymatic characterization showed that Bl-ARC ATPase is active, Mg(+2)-dependent and sensitive to N-ethylmaleimide. Gene organization positions bl-arc in a region flanked by a cluster of genes that includes pup, dop and pafA genes. These findings point to a possible function as a chaperone in the degradation pathway via pupylation.

Recombinant MAG1 Protein of Toxoplasma gondii as a Diagnostic Antigen

The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential diagnostic usefulness of the full-length recombinant Toxoplasma gondii MAG1 protein by determining the levels of specific IgM and IgG antibodies in mouse and human sera obtained from individuals with acute and chronic toxoplasmosis. The obtained results revealed that IgG antibodies against MAG1 are a sensitive and specific marker of T. gondii infection since the protein was recognized by both mouse and human sera, 100% and 94.3%, respectively, rendering the full-length rMAG1 a prospective alternative for the polyvalent native antigen (TLA).

Molecular characterization of a homolog of the ferric-uptake regulator, Fur, from the marine bacterium Marinobacter algicola DG893.

Full length recombinant iron regulatory protein, Fur, has been isolated and characterized from the algal-associated marine bacterium Marinobacter algicola DG893. Under nondenaturing conditions the Fur protein behaves on size exclusion chromatography as a dimer while it is monomeric under SDS PAGE conditions. ICP-MS and fluorescence quenching experiments show that Mb-Fur binds a single metal ion (Zn, Mn, or Co) per monomer. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays were used to probe the interaction of Mb-Fur with the purported Fur box in the promoter region upstream of the vibrioferrin biosynthetic operon. Interaction of Mb-Fur with a 100 bp DNA fragment containing the Fur box in the presence of 10 µM Mn, Co or Zn(II) resulted in decreased migration of DNA on a 7.5% polyacrylamide gel. In the absence of the Fur protein or the metal, no interaction is seen. The presence of EDTA in the binding, loading or running buffers also abolished all activity demonstrating the importance of the metal in formation of the promoter-repressor complex. Based on a high degree of similarity between Mb-Fur and its homolog from Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) whose X-ray structure is known we developed a structural model for the former which suggested that only one of the several metal binding sites found in other Fur's would be functional. This is consistent with the single metal binding stoichiometry we observed. Since the purported metal binding site was one that has been described as "structural" rather than "functional" in PA and yet the monometallic Mb-Fur retains DNA Fur box binding ability it reopens the question of which site is which, or if different species have adapted the sites for different purposes.

Llama immunization with full-length VAR2CSA generates cross-reactive and inhibitory single-domain antibodies against the DBL1X domain.

VAR2CSA stands today as the leading vaccine candidate aiming to protect future pregnant women living in malaria endemic areas against the severe clinical outcomes of pregnancy associated malaria (PAM). The rational design of an efficient VAR2CSA-based vaccine relies on a profound understanding of the molecular interactions associated with P. falciparum infected erythrocyte sequestration in the placenta. Following immunization of a llama with the full-length VAR2CSA recombinant protein, we have expressed and characterized a panel of 19 nanobodies able to recognize the recombinant VAR2CSA as well as the surface of erythrocytes infected with parasites originating from different parts of the world. Domain mapping revealed that a large majority of nanobodies targeted DBL1X whereas a few of them were directed towards DBL4ε, DBL5ε and DBL6ε. One nanobody targeting the DBL1X was able to recognize the native VAR2CSA protein of the three parasite lines tested. Furthermore, four nanobodies targeting DBL1X reproducibly inhibited CSA adhesion of erythrocytes infected with the homologous NF54-CSA parasite strain, providing evidences that DBL1X domain is part or close to the CSA binding site. These nanobodies could serve as useful tools to identify conserved epitopes shared between different variants and to characterize the interactions between VAR2CSA and CSA.

Optimization of a multi-stage, multi-subunit malaria vaccine candidate for the production in Pichia pastoris by the identification and removal of protease cleavage sites.

We demonstrated the successful optimization of a recombinant multi-subunit malaria vaccine candidate protein for production in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris by the identification and subsequent removal of two protease cleavage sites. After observing protein degradation in the culture supernatant of a fed-batch fermentation, the predominant proteolytic fragment of the secreted recombinant protein was analyzed by mass spectrometry. The MS data indicated the cleavage of an amino acid sequence matching the yeast KEX2-protease consensus motif EKRE. The cleavage in this region was completely abolished by the deletion of the EKRE motif in a modified variant. This modified variant was produced, purified, and used for immunization of rabbits, inducing high antigen specific antibody titers (2 × 10(6) ). Total IgG from rabbit immune sera recognized different stages of Plasmodium falciparum parasites in immunofluorescence assays, indicating native folding of the vaccine candidate. However, the modified variant was still degraded, albeit into different fragments. Further analysis by mass spectrometry and N-terminal sequencing revealed a second cleavage site downstream of the motif PEVK. We therefore removed a 17-amino-acid stretch including the PEVK motif, resulting in the subsequent production of the full-length recombinant vaccine candidate protein without significant degradation, with a yield of 53 mg per liter culture volume. We clearly demonstrate that the proteolytic degradation of recombinant proteins by endogenous P. pastoris proteases can be prevented by the identification and removal of such cleavage sites. This strategy is particularly relevant for the production of recombinant subunit vaccines, where product yield and stability play a more important role than for the production of a stringently-defined native sequence which is necessary for most therapeutic molecules.

Revealing structural changes of prion protein during conversion from α-helical monomer to β-oligomers by means of ESR and nanochannel encapsulation.

Under nondenaturing neutral pH conditions, full-length mouse recombinant prion protein lacking the only disulfide bridge can spontaneously convert from an α-helical-dominant conformer (α-state) to a β-sheet-rich conformer (β-state), which then associates into β-oligomers, and the kinetics of this spontaneous conversion depends on the properties of the buffer used. The molecular details of this structural conversion have not been reported due to the difficulty of exploring big protein aggregates. We introduced spin probes into different structural segments (three helices and the loop between strand 1 and helix 1), and employed a combined approach of ESR spectroscopy and protein encapsulation in nanochannels to reveal local structural changes during the α-to-β transition. Nanochannels provide an environment in which prion protein molecules are isolated from each other, but the α-to-β transition can still occur. By measuring dipolar interactions between spin probes during the transition, we showed that helix 1 and helix 3 retained their helicity, while helix 2 unfolded to form an extended structure. Moreover, our pulsed ESR results allowed clear discrimination between the intra- and intermolecular distances between spin labeled residues in helix 2 in the β-oligomers, making it possible to demonstrate that the unfolded helix 2 segment lies at the association interface of the β-oligomers to form cross-β structure.

Detection of autoantibodies to multiple tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in the immunodiagnosis of breast cancer.

We aimed to evaluate the immunodiagnostic values of autoantibodies to a panel of six tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in the detection of patients with breast cancer. This study determines whether a panel of multiple TAAs would enhance antibody detection and be a useful approach in breast cancer detection and diagnosis. The panel of multiple TAAs was composed of six TAAs including Imp1, p16, Koc, survivin, cyclin B1, and c-myc full-length recombinant proteins. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect antibodies against these six TAAs in 49 sera from patients with breast cancer, 35 sera from patients with benign breast tumor, and 38 sera from normal individuals. Antibody frequency to any individual TAA in breast cancer was variable and ranged from 12.2 to 18.4%. With the successive addition of TAAs to a final total of six antigens, there was a stepwise increase of positive antibody reactions reaching a sensitivity of 67.3% and a specificity of 92.2% in breast cancer. Positive and negative likelihood ratios were 8.52 and 0.36, respectively, which showed that the clinical diagnostic value of a parallel assay of six TAAs was high. Positive and negative predictive values were, respectively, 91.7 and 68.6%, indicating that the parallel assay of six TAAs raised the diagnostic accuracy greatly. Agreement rate and kappa value were 78.1% and 0.57, respectively, which indicated that the observed value of this assay had a middle range of coincidence with the actual value. The data from this study further support our previous hypothesis that the detection of autoantibodies for diagnosis of a certain type of cancer can be enhanced by using a panel of several carefully selected TAAs as target antigens and a panel of multiple TAAs would be a useful approach in the detection and diagnosis of breast cancer.

Abstract 885: Using immunomic approach to enhance tumor-associated autoantibody detection in diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma

Abstract Many studies demonstrated that the immune system can recognize the antigenic changes in cancer cells, and further develop autoantibodies against these antigens which have been called tumor-associated antigens (TAAs). During transition from chronic liver disease to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), autoantibodies can appear which are not detected in the pre-malignant conditions. In order to explore the possibility and usefulness of using a mini-array of multiple TAAs as an approach in the diagnosis of HCC, a total of 14 TAAs, including IMP1, IMP2/p62, IMP3/Koc, p53, Survivin, p16, CAPERα, CIP2A/p90, RalA, NPM1, MDM2 and 14-3-3 ζ, c-Myc and CyclinB1, were selected for expression of full-length recombinant proteins. Antibodies against 14 TAAs in 30 sera from patients with chronic hepatitis, 30 sera from patients with liver cirrhosis and 76 sera from patients with HCC as well as sera from 16 HCC patients with serial bleeding samples were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Positive results were also confirmed by Western blotting. Antibody frequency to any individual TAA in HCC varied from 6.6% to 21.1%. With the successive addition of TAAs to the panel of TAAs, there was a stepwise increase of positive antibody reactions. According to the evaluation indexes for accuracy of screening test, the sensitivity and specificity in using a panel of 14 TAAs for immunodiagnosis of HCC was 69.7% and 83.0%, respectively. The interesting finding was that these anti-TAA autoantibodies could be detected at least one year before the diagnosis of HCC, suggesting that using a penal of 14 TAAs for enhancing autoantibody detection would be a valuable approach in the early diagnosis of HCC. The mini-array of 14 TAAs can identify 43.8% HCC patients who shows serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) negative. This study deals with the concept of “cancer immunomics” which allows a global analysis of the auto-antibodies against antigens in a neoplasm. It also determinates that malignant transition to HCC is associated with increased autoantibody responses to certain cellular proteins. In summary, the data from this study further support the hypothesis that a customized TAA array can constitute promising and powerful tool for enhancing the serological anti-TAA antibody detection of HCC, especially in patients with serum AFP negative. Citation Format: Liping Dai, Mei Liu, Qing Zhu, Xinxin Liu, Yurong Chai, Pengfei Ren, Kaijuan Wang, Chunhua Song, Peng Wang, Mingan Wang, Eng M. Tan, Jianying Zhang. Using immunomic approach to enhance tumor-associated autoantibody detection in diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 885. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-885

A full-length Plasmodium falciparum recombinant circumsporozoite protein expressed by Pseudomonas fluorescens platform as a malaria vaccine candidate.

The circumsporozoite protein (CSP) of Plasmodium falciparum is a major surface protein, which forms a dense coat on the sporozoite's surface. Preclinical research on CSP and clinical evaluation of a CSP fragment-based RTS, S/AS01 vaccine have demonstrated a modest degree of protection against P. falciparum, mediated in part by humoral immunity and in part by cell-mediated immunity. Given the partial protective efficacy of the RTS, S/AS01 vaccine in a recent Phase 3 trial, further improvement of CSP-based vaccines is crucial. In this report, we describe the preclinical development of a full-length, recombinant CSP (rCSP)-based vaccine candidate against P. falciparum malaria suitable for current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) production. Utilizing a novel high-throughput Pseudomonas fluorescens expression platform, we demonstrated greater efficacy of full-length rCSP as compared to N-terminally truncated versions, rapidly down-selected a promising lead vaccine candidate, and developed a high-yield purification process to express immunologically active, intact antigen for clinical trial material production. The rCSP, when formulated with various adjuvants, induced antigen-specific antibody responses as measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunofluorescence assay (IFA), as well as CD4+ T-cell responses as determined by ELISpot. The adjuvanted rCSP vaccine conferred protection in mice when challenged with transgenic P. berghei sporozoites containing the P. falciparum repeat region of CSP. Furthermore, heterologous prime/boost regimens with adjuvanted rCSP and an adenovirus type 35-vectored CSP (Ad35CS) showed modest improvements in eliciting CSP-specific T-cell responses and anti-malarial protection, depending on the order of vaccine delivery. Collectively, these data support the importance of further clinical development of adjuvanted rCSP, either as a stand-alone product or as one of the components in a heterologous prime/boost strategy, ultimately acting as an effective vaccine candidate for the mitigation of P. falciparum-induced malaria.

Biomimetic Production of Silk-Like Recombinant Squid Sucker Ring Teeth Proteins

The sucker ring teeth (SRT) of Humboldt squid exhibit mechanical properties that rival those of robust engineered synthetic polymers. Remarkably, these properties are achieved without a mineral phase or covalent cross-links. Instead, SRT are exclusively made of silk-like proteins called "suckerins", which assemble into nanoconfined β-sheet reinforced supramolecular networks. In this study, three streamlined strategies for full-length recombinant suckerin protein production and purification were developed. Recombinant suckerin exhibited high solubility and colloidal stability in aqueous-based solvents. In addition, the colloidal suspensions exhibited a concentration-dependent conformational switch, from random coil to β-sheet enriched structures. Our results demonstrate that recombinant suckerin can be produced in a facile manner in E. coli and processed from mild aqueous solutions into materials enriched in β-sheets. We suggest that recombinant suckerin-based materials offer potential for a range of biomedical and engineering applications.

A single molecule approach to mRNA transport by a class V myosin

mRNA localization ensures correct spatial and temporal control of protein synthesis in the cell. We show that an in vitro single molecule approach, using purified recombinant full-length proteins and synthesized mRNA, provides insight into the mechanism by which localizing mRNAs are carried to their destination. A messenger ribonucleoprotein (mRNP) complex was reconstituted from a budding yeast class V myosin motor complex (Myo4p–She3p), an mRNA-binding adaptor protein (She2p), and a localizing mRNA (ASH1). The motion of the mRNP was tracked with high spatial (∼10 nm) and temporal (70 ms) resolution. Using this “bottom-up” methodology, we show that mRNA triggers the assembly of a high affinity double-headed motor-mRNA complex that moves continuously for long distances on actin filaments at physiologic ionic strength. Without mRNA, the myosin is monomeric and unable to move continuously on actin. This finding reveals an elegant strategy to ensure that only cargo-bound motors are activated for transport. Increasing the number of localization elements (“zip codes”) in the mRNA enhanced both the frequency of motile events and their run length, features which likely enhance cellular localization. Future in vitro reconstitution of mRNPs with kinesin and dynein motors should similarly yield mechanistic insight into mRNA transport by microtubule-based motors.

Cytoplasmic SET induces tau hyperphosphorylation through a decrease of methylated phosphatase 2A.

BackgroundThe neuronal cytoplasmic localization of SET, an inhibitor of the phosphatase 2A (PP2A), results in tau hyperphosphorylation in the brains of Alzheimer patients through mechanisms that are still not well defined.ResultsWe used primary neurons and mouse brain slices to show that SET is translocated to the cytoplasm in a manner independent of both its cleavage and over-expression. The localization of SET in the cytoplasm, either by the translocation of endogenous SET or by internalization of the recombinant full-length SET protein, induced tau hyperphosphorylation. Cytoplasmic recombinant full-length SET in mouse brain slices induced a decrease of PP2A activity through a decrease of methylated PP2A levels. The levels of methylated PP2A were negatively correlated with tau hyperphosphorylation at Ser-202 but not with the abnormal phosphorylation of tau at Ser-422.ConclusionsThe presence of full-length SET in the neuronal cytoplasm is sufficient to impair PP2A methylation and activity, leading to tau hyperphosphorylation. In addition, our data suggest that tau hyperphosphorylation is regulated by different mechanisms at distinct sites. The translocation of SET to the neuronal cytoplasm, the low activity of PP2A, and tau hyperphosphorylation are associated in the brains of Alzheimer patients. Our data show a link between the translocation of SET in the cytoplasm and the decrease of methylated PP2A levels leading to a decrease of PP2A activity and tau hyperphosphorylation. This chain of events may contribute to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease.

Detection and molecular cloning of CYP74Q1 gene: Identification of Ranunculus acris leaf divinyl ether synthase

Enzymes of the CYP74 family, including the divinyl ether synthase (DES), play important roles in plant cell signalling and defence. The potent DES activities have been detected before in the leaves of the meadow buttercup (Ranunculus acris L.) and few other Ranunculaceae species. The nature of these DESs and their genes remained unrevealed. The PCR with degenerate primers enabled to detect the transcript of unknown P450 gene assigned as CYP74Q1. Besides, two more CYP74Q1 isoforms with minimal sequence variations have been found. The full length recombinant CYP74Q1 protein was expressed in Escherichia coli. The preferred substrates of this enzyme are the 13-hydroperoxides of α-linolenic and linoleic acids, which are converted to the divinyl ether oxylipins (ω5Z)-etherolenic acid, (9Z,11E)-12-[(1′Z,3′Z)-hexadienyloxy]-9,11-dodecadienoic acid, and (ω5Z)-etheroleic acid, (9Z,11E)-12-[(1′Z)-hexenyloxy]-9,11-dodecadienoic acid, respectively, as revealed by the data of mass spectrometry, NMR and UV spectroscopy. Thus, CYP74Q1 protein was identified as the R. acris DES (RaDES), a novel DES type and the opening member of new CYP74Q subfamily.