Cold-active DnaK of an Antarctic psychrotroph Shewanella sp. Ac10 supporting the growth of dnaK-null mutant of Escherichia coli at cold temperatures

Shewanella sp. Ac10 is a psychrotrophic bacterium isolated from the Antarctica that actively grows at such low temperatures as 0°C. Immunoblot analyses showed that a heat-shock protein DnaK is inducibly formed by the bacterium at 24°C, which is much lower than the temperatures causing heat shock in mesophiles such as Escherichia coli. We found that the Shewanella DnaK (SheDnaK) shows much higher ATPase activity at low temperatures than the DnaK of E. coli (EcoDnaK): a characteristic of a cold-active enzyme. The recombinant SheDnaK gene supported neither the growth of a dnaK-null mutant of E. coli at 43°C nor phage propagation at an even lower temperature, 30°C. However, the recombinant SheDnaK gene enabled the E. coli mutant to grow at 15°C. This is the first report of a DnaK supporting the growth of a dnaK-null mutant at low temperatures.     

Wobble modification deficiency in mutant tRNAs in patients with mitochondrial diseases

Point mutations in mitochondrial (mt) tRNA genes are associated with a variety of human mitochondrial diseases. We have shown previously that mt tRNA(Leu(UUR)) with a MELAS A3243G mutation and mt tRNA(Lys) with a MERRF A8344G mutation derived from HeLa background cybrid cells are deficient in normal taurine-containing modifications [taum(5)(s(2))U; 5-taurinomethyl-(2-thio)uridine] at the anticodon wobble position in both cases. The wobble modification deficiency results in defective translation. We report here wobble modification deficiencies of mutant mt tRNAs from cybrid cells with different nuclear backgrounds, as well as from patient tissues. These findings demonstrate the generality of the wobble modification deficiency in mutant tRNAs in MELAS and MERRF.     

Developmental switch in axon guidance modes of hippocampal mossy fibers in vitro

Hippocampal mossy fibers (MFs), axons of dentate granule cells, run through a narrow strip, called the stratum lucidum, and make synaptic contacts with CA3 pyramidal cells. This stereotyped pathfinding is assumed to require a tightly controlled guidance system, but the responsible mechanisms have not been proven directly. To clarify the cellular basis for the MF pathfinding, microslices of the dentate gyrus (DG) and Ammon's horn (AH) were topographically arranged in an organotypic explant coculture system. When collagen gels were interposed between DG and AH slices prepared from postnatal day 6 (P6) rats, the MFs passed across this intervening gap and reached CA3 stratum lucidum. Even when the recipient AH was chemically pre-fixed with paraformaldehyde, the axons were still capable of accessing their normal target area only if the DG and AH slices were directly juxtaposed without a collagen bridge. The data imply that diffusible and contact cues are both involved in MF guidance. To determine how these different cues contribute to MF pathfinding during development, a P6 DG slice was apposed simultaneously to two AH slices prepared from P0 and P13 rats. MFs projected normally to both the host slices, whereas they rarely invaded P0 AH when the two hosts were fixed. Early in development, therefore, the MFs are guided mainly by a chemoattractant gradient, and thereafter, they can find their trajectories by a contact factor, probably via fasciculation with pre-established MFs. The present study proposes a dynamic paradigm in CNS axon pathfinding, that is, developmental changes in axon guidance cues.     

Cold-active esterase from Psychrobacter sp. Ant300: gene cloning, characterization, and the effects of Gly-->Pro substitution near the active site on its catalytic activity and stability

The gene encoding an esterase (PsyEst) of Psychrobacter sp. Ant300, a psychrophilic bacterium isolated from Antarctic soil, was cloned, sequenced, and expressed in Escherichia coli. PsyEst, which is a member of hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) group of the lipase/esterase family, is a cold-active, themolabile enzyme with high catalytic activity at low temperatures (5-25 degrees C), low activation energy (e.g., 4.6 kcal/mol for hydrolysis of p-nitrophenyl butyrate), and a t(1/2) value of 16 min for thermal inactivation during incubation at 40 degrees C and pH 7.9. A three-dimensional structural model of PsyEst predicted that Gly(244) was located in the loop near the active site of PsyEst and that substitution of this amino-acid residue by proline should potentially rigidify the active-site environment of the enzyme. Thus, we introduced the Gly(244)-->Pro substitution into the enzyme. Stability studies showed that the t(1/2) value for thermal inactivation of the mutant during incubation at 40 degrees C and pH 7.9 was 11.6 h, which was significantly greater than that of the wild-type enzyme. The k(cat)/K(m) value of the mutant was lower for all substrates examined than the value of the wild type. Moreover, this amino-acid substitution caused a shift of the acyl-chain length specificity of the enzyme toward higher preference for short-chain fatty acid esters. All of these observations could be explained in terms of a decrease in active-site flexibility brought about by the mutation and were consistent with the hypothesis that cold activity and thermolability arise from local flexibility around the active site of the enzyme.     

Identification of two novel clusters of ultrahigh-sulfur keratin-associated protein genes on human chromosome 11

We analyzed two novel clusters of keratin-associated protein (KAP) genes on human chromosome 11 (11p15.5 and 11q13.5) in which we identified two known human KRTAP5 genes, KerA (=KRN1) and KerB, and nine novel KRTAP5 family genes. RT-PCR analysis of these KAP genes showed preferential expression in human hair root, suggesting these gene products are required for hair formation. Based on the deduced amino acid sequences, all these KAP proteins were classified into an ultrahigh-sulfur (UHS) type KAP with high cysteine content (> 30 mol%). These KAPs also showed high glycine and serine contents (average 24.30 and 21.13 mol%, respectively), distinguishing from other UHS/HS KAP families located on human chromosomes 17 and 21. Dot-matrix analysis revealed a significant similarity between these two KAP gene clusters. We postulated a mechanism by which these two KAP gene clusters are generated via genomic duplication of a primordial gene cluster followed by genetic modification during evolution.     

Distinct genomic sequence of the CNR/Pcdhalpha genes in chicken

CNR/Pcdhalpha family proteins have been first identified as a receptor family that corporate with Fyn, a family of the Src family of tyrosine kinase, and known as synaptic cadherins. Here we report the complete genomic sequence and organization of the chicken (Gallus gallus) CNR/Pcdhalpha The total length of chicken CNR/Pcdhalpha is 177kb. The chicken CNR/Pcdhalpha cluster encodes 12 variable and 3 constant exons. The genomic organizations of the chicken, rat, mouse, and human CNR/Pcdhalpha are basically orthologous. The constant-region exons (CP1, CP2, and CP3) are highly conserved between chicken and mammals, with percent identities of 90.9%, 90.7%, and 91.8% at the amino-acid level for chicken versus rat, mouse, and human, respectively. In contrast, the percent identities of the variable-region exons between chicken and mammals were lower: 51.8%, 51.3%, and 52.7%, on average, for chicken versus rat, mouse, and human, respectively, at the amino-acid level. Moreover, the chicken variable-region exons (from v1 to v12) are highly conserved paralogously (91.4%: nucleic acid, 92.4%: amino acid) in comparison with those of mammals. The CG content of each variable exon in the chicken (v1 to v12) is 74% on average and the CpG dinucleotide frequency in each variable-region exon is twice that of mammals. Due to the high CG content, chicken variable exons (from v1 to v12) encode 3 to 4 frame-shifted open reading frames, which span 1.5-3.0kb, in both the sense and anti-sense orientations.     

Enzymatic synthesis of L-pipecolic acid by Delta1-piperideine-2-carboxylate reductase from Pseudomonas putida

L-Pipecolic acid is a chiral pharmaceutical intermediate. An enzymatic system for the synthesis of L-pipecolic acid from L-lysine by commercial L-lysine alpha-oxidase from Trichoderma viride and an extract of recombinant Escherichia coli cells coexpressing Delta1-piperideine-2-carboxylate reductase from Pseudomonas putida and glucose dehydrogenase from Bacillus subtilis is described. A laboratory-scale process provided 27 g/l of L-pipecolic acid in 99.7% e.e.     

Stereoselective reduction of carbonyl compounds using the cell-free extract of the earthworm, Lumbricus rubellus, as a novel source of biocatalyst

We found the reducing activity toward carbonyl compounds in the cell-free extract of the earthworm, Lumbricus rubellus. The earthworm extract had a reducing activity for keto esters in the presence of NADH or NADPH as a coenzyme. The earthworm extract reduced ethyl 3-methyl-2-oxobutanoate to the corresponding alcohol with a high enantiomeric excess (91%, R-form) at 50 degrees C in the presence of NADH. In particular, ethyl 2-oxoheptanoate was exclusively reduced to the corresponding (R)-hydroxyl ester with a high enantiomeric excess (>99%).     

Cytokinin and auxin inhibit abscisic acid-induced stomatal closure by enhancing ethylene production in Arabidopsis

Cytokinins and auxins are major phytohormones involved in various aspects of plant growth and development. These phytohormones are also known to antagonize the effects of abscisic acid (ABA) on stomatal movement, and to affect ethylene biosynthesis. As ethylene has an antagonistic effect on ABA-induced stomatal closure, the possibility that the antagonistic effects of these phytohormones on ABA were mediated through ethylene biosynthesis was investigated. Both the cytokinin, 6-benzyladenine (BA), and the auxin, 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA), antagonized ABA-induced stomatal closure in a manner similar to that following application of the ethylene precursor, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC). However, these effects were negated when ethylene signalling, perception, or biosynthesis were blocked. As stomatal aperture is regulated by changes in guard cell volume, ABA application was found to reduce the volume of the guard cell protoplasts (GCP). It was found that BA, NAA, or ACC application compensated perfectly for the reduction in GCP volume by ABA application in WT plants. The above observations suggest that cytokinins and auxins inhibit ABA-induced stomatal closure through the modulation of ethylene biosynthesis, and that ethylene inhibits the ABA-induced reduction of osmotic pressure in the guard cells.