Molecular Characterization of a Newly Identified Subfamily Member of Penaeidin from two Penaeid Shrimps, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fenneropenaeus indicus</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Metapenaeus monoceros</Emphasis>

Penaeidins are a major group of antimicrobial peptides found in penaeid shrimps. This study reports a new isoform of penaeidin from the hemocytes of Indian white shrimp, Fenneropenaeus indicus (Fi-PEN, JX657680), and the pink shrimp, Metapenaeus monoceros (Mm-PEN, KF275674). Mm-PEN is also the first antimicrobial peptide to be identified from M. monoceros. The complete coding sequences of the newly identified Fi-PEN and Mm-PEN consisted of an ORF of 338 bp encoding 71 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 5.66 kDa and a pI of 9.38. The penaeidins had its characteristic signal peptide region (19 amino acids), which was followed by a mature peptide with a proline-rich domain (24 amino acids) at the N-terminal region and a cysteine-rich domain (28 amino acids) at the C-terminal region, designating it to penaeidin-3 subgroup. Structural analysis revealed an alpha-helix in its secondary structure and an extended structure at the proline-rich domain. The newly identified penaeidin isoform showed maximum similarity of 63 % to a penaeidin-3 isoform of P. monodon, which further proves it to be a new isoform. Phylogenetic analysis showed that it possessed similar evolutionary status like other penaeidins, which has subsequently diverged at different phases of evolution. The wide distribution of penaeidins in penaeid shrimps indicates the importance of these AMPs in the innate immunity.     

脊尾白虾血蓝蛋白大亚基基因的克隆及表达分析

应用RACE技术克隆脊尾白虾血蓝蛋白大亚基基因, 并通过攻毒实验揭示脊尾白虾血蓝蛋白基因的先天免疫防御作用, 为脊尾白虾(Exopalaemon carinicauda)的免疫防治研究提供依据和思路。研究成功克隆了脊尾白虾血蓝蛋白大亚基基因全长cDNA序列, 该大亚基cDNA全长 2192 bp, 开放式阅读框长 2034 bp, 5′非编码区长 21 bp, 3′非编码区长 137 bp, 将该基因命名为 EcHcL。EcHcL编码 667 个氨基酸, 前 21 个氨基酸组成信号肽, 推测成熟肽的分子量为 78.5 kD。Blast比对结果显示, 由脊尾白虾血蓝蛋白EcHcL序列推导的氨基酸序列与日本沼虾、凡纳滨对虾血蓝蛋白氨基酸序列的同源性分别达到 87%、73%, 其M结构域氨基酸序列与斑节对虾、日本对虾等物种同源性性高达 90% 左右, 由此推断该cDNA序列属于血蓝蛋白家族。组织表达分析结果显示, EcHcL基因在脊尾白虾鳃、卵巢、肝胰腺、心脏、肠、肌肉、胃、腹神经节、眼柄、血细胞中均有表达, 肝胰腺中相对表达量最高。Real-time PCR分析发现EcHcL基因在金黄色葡萄球菌、副溶血弧菌和对虾白斑综合征病毒(WSSV)感染后脊尾白虾肝胰腺和血细胞中的表达量显著增加, 并具有不同的时空表达模式, 推测脊尾白虾EcHcL基因在免疫防御中具有重要作用。     

Solution structure of synthetic penaeidin-4 with structural and functional comparisons with penaeidin-3

Antimicrobial peptide structure has direct implications for the complexity of functions and mechanisms of action. The penaeidin antimicrobial peptide family from shrimp is divided into multiple class designations based on primary structure. The penaeidin classes are not only characterized by variability in primary sequence but also by variation in target specificity and effectiveness. Whereas class 4 exhibits low isoform diversity within species and is highly conserved between species, the primary sequence of penaeidin class 3 is less conserved between species and exhibits considerable isoform diversity within species. All penaeidins, regardless of class or species, are composed of two dramatically different domains: an unconstrained proline-rich domain and a disulfide bond-stabilized cysteine-rich domain. The proline-rich domain varies in length and is generally less conserved, whereas the spacing and specific residue content of the cysteine-rich domain is more conserved. The structure of the synthetic penaeidin class 4 (PEN4-1) from Litopenaeus setiferus was analyzed using several approaches, including chemical mapping of disulfide bonds, circular dichroism analysis of secondary structural characteristics, and complete characterization of the solution structure of the peptide by proton NMR. L. setiferus PEN4-1 was then compared with the previously characterized structure of penaeidin class 3 from Litopenaeus vannamei. Moreover, the specificity of these antimicrobial peptides was examined through direct comparison of activity against a panel of microbes. The penaeidin classes differ in microbial target specificity, which correlates to variability in specific domain sequence. However, the tertiary structure of the cysteine-rich domain and indeed the overall structure of penaeidins are conserved across classes.     

Cloning and characterization of the tiger shrimp lysozyme

Lysozymes are key proteins to invertebrates in the innate immune responses against bacterial infections. A lysozyme gene isolated from tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon, was cloned, sequenced and characterized. The cDNA consists of a signal peptide of 18 amino acids and a mature peptide of 140 amino acids. The lysozyme is presumed to be a chicken-type lysozyme for it possesses two catalytic sites and eight cysteine residues which are highly conserved across species of chicken-type lysozymes. The lysozyme cDNAs of Penaeus semisulcatus, Litopenaeus vannamei, Macrobrachium nipponense and Macrobrachium rosenbergii were also cloned. High similarities existed among shrimp and prawn lysozymes but phylogenetic relationship of shrimps and prawns based on lysozyme molecules did not quite consistent with traditional taxonomic classification. High mRNA expression was detected in hepatopancreas, haemocytes and gill of tiger shrimp. Recombinant lysozyme exhibited potent lytic activities against fish pathogens providing evidence of the involvement of lysozyme in shrimp immunity.     

凡纳对虾对虾素基因的克隆与抗菌性质分析

目的:抗菌肽分子在无脊椎动物的先天免疫系统中,发挥着重要的抗菌作用;为了不断完善无脊椎动物先天免疫系统的抗菌机制,作者以凡纳对虾的对虾素基因作为研究对象,进行分子生物学方面研究。方法:以凡纳对虾的对虾素基因———penaeidin 4抗菌肽基因(Lva-pen 4)作为研究对象,主要进行了基因克隆、氨基酸序列比对、系统进化关系分析以及分子结构初步预测等研究内容。结果:Lva-pen 4的cDNA序列全长624bp,开放阅读框包括204bp,演绎67个氨基酸残基;在Lva-pen 4分子一级结构的氨基酸序列中,存在一个对虾素结构域,其中包括8个保守存在的半胱氨酸残基和6个脯氨酸残基。结论:根据分子结构的分析结果,推测Lva-pen 4是一个重要的免疫反应相关基因,在先天免疫系统中发挥着重要作用。     

High level expression, purification, and characterization of the shrimp antimicrobial peptide, Ch-penaeidin, in Pichia pastoris

Penaeidins, members of a new family of antimicrobial peptides constitutively produced and stored in the haemocytes of penaeid shrimp, display antimicrobial activity against bacteria, and fungi. Here, a DNA sequence encoding the mature Ch-penaeidin peptide was cloned into the pPIC9K vector and transformed into Pichia pastoris. The transformed cells were screened for multi-copy plasmids using increasing concentrations of G418. Positive colonies carrying chromosomal integrations of the Chp gene were identified by phenotype and PCR. When transformed cells were induced with methanol, SDS-PAGE and Western blotting revealed the production of a approximately 6100 Da recombinant CHP (rCHP) expression product. Large scale expression revealed that rCHP was produced at 108 mg/L under optimal conditions in the highest Chp-producing P. pastoris clone. The antimicrobial activities of rCHP were studied by liquid phase analysis, which revealed that rCHP exhibited activities against some Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, but had a relatively low activity against some fungi. Purification of rCHP by cation exchange chromatography and subsequent automated amino acid sequencing revealed the presence of four additional amino acids (YVEF) at the N-terminus that belonged to the cleaved fusion signal peptide; these residues may account for the observed decrease in antifungal activity. Together, these observations indicate that rCHP is an effective antimicrobial peptide that can be successfully produced at high levels in the yeast, and therefore may be a potential antimicrobial candidate for practical use.