Substrate recognition characteristics of human holocarboxylase synthetase for biotin ligation

Holocarboxylase synthetase (HCS) is an essential enzyme that catalyzes the incorporation of biotin into apo carboxylase and the biotinylation of the four biotin-dependent carboxylases in the human cell. Deficiency of HCS results in decreased activity of these carboxylases and affects various metabolic processes. Despite the importance of this enzyme, the recognition mechanism of the biotinoyl domain by human HCS (hHCS) has remained unclear. We have developed a method to express hHCS in the baculovirus system and used it to purify catalytically active, full-length hHCS. NMR experiments on the biotinoyl domains from acetyl-CoA carboxylase indicate that when hHCS is added, it recognizes the MKM motif in human and in Escherichia coli with a preference to the human biotinoyl domain. In addition, hHCS can biotinylate the biotinoyl domains from human and E. coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase at similar rates compared to the E. coli biotin protein ligase, BirA, which reacts very slowly with the human biotinoyl domain. We propose that the hHCS has greater substrate acceptability, while the BirA has higher substrate specificity. These results provide insights into substrate recognition by hHCS, which can be distinguished from BirA in this respect.     

Comparison of the backbone dynamics of the apo- and holo-carboxy-terminal domain of the biotin carboxyl carrier subunit of Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase

The biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) is a subunit of acetyl-CoA carboxylase, a biotin-dependent enzyme that catalyzes the first committed step of fatty acid biosynthesis. In its functional cycle, this protein engages in heterologous protein-protein interactions with three distinct partners, depending on its state of post-translational modification. Apo-BCCP interacts specifically with the biotin holoenzyme synthetase, BirA, which results in the post-translational attachment of biotin to a single lysine residue on BCCP. Holo-BCCP then interacts with the biotin carboxylase subunit of acetyl-CoA carboxylase, which leads to the addition of the carboxylate group of bicarbonate to biotin. Finally, the carboxy-biotinylated form of BCCP interacts with transcarboxylase in the transfer of the carboxylate to acetyl-CoA to form malonyl-CoA. The determinants of protein-protein interaction specificity in this system are unknown. The NMR solution structure of the unbiotinylated form of an 87 residue C-terminal domain fragment (residue 70-156) of BCCP (holoBCCP87) and the crystal structure of the biotinylated form of a C-terminal fragment (residue 77-156) of BCCP from Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase have previously been determined. Comparative analysis of these structures provided evidence for small, localized conformational changes in the biotin-binding region upon biotinylation of the protein. These structural changes may be important for regulating specific protein-protein interactions. Since the dynamic properties of proteins are correlated with local structural environments, we have determined the relaxation parameters of the backbone 15N nuclear spins of holoBCCP87, and compared these with the data obtained for the apo protein. The results indicate that upon biotinylation, the inherent mobility of the biotin-binding region and the protruding thumb, with which the biotin group interacts in the holo protein, are significantly reduced.     

Human acetyl-CoA carboxylase 2 expressed in silkworm Bombyx mori exhibits posttranslational biotinylation and phosphorylation

Biotin-dependent human acetyl-CoA carboxylases (ACCs) are integral in homeostatic lipid metabolism. By securing posttranslational biotinylation, ACCs perform coordinated catalytic functions allosterically regulated by phosphorylation/dephosphorylation and citrate. The production of authentic recombinant ACCs is heeded to provide a reliable tool for molecular studies and drug discovery. Here, we examined whether the human ACC2 (hACC2), an isoform of ACC produced using the silkworm BmNPV bacmid system, is equipped with proper posttranslational modifications to carry out catalytic functions as the silkworm harbors an inherent posttranslational modification machinery. Purified hACC2 possessed genuine biotinylation capacity probed by biotin-specific streptavidin and biotin antibodies. In addition, phosphorylated hACC2 displayed limited catalytic activity whereas dephosphorylated hACC2 revealed an enhanced enzymatic activity. Moreover, hACC2 polymerization, analyzed by native page gel analysis and atomic force microscopy imaging, was allosterically regulated by citrate and the phosphorylation/dephosphorylation modulated citrate-induced hACC2 polymerization process. Thus, the silkworm BmNPV bacmid system provides a reliable eukaryotic protein production platform for structural and functional analysis and therapeutic drug discovery applications implementing suitable posttranslational biotinylation and phosphorylation.     

The biotinyl domain of Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Evidence that the "thumb" structure id essential and that the domain functions as a dimer

Biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) is the small biotinylated subunit of Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), the enzyme that catalyzes the first committed step of fatty acid synthesis. Similar proteins are found in other bacteria and in chloroplasts. E. coli BCCP is a member of a large family of protein domains modified by covalent attachment of biotin to a specific lysine residue. However, the BCCP biotinyl domain differs from many of these proteins in that an eight-amino acid residue insertion is present upstream of the biotinylated lysine. X-ray crystallographic and multidimensional NMR studies show that these residues constitute a structure that has the appearance of an extended thumb that protrudes from the otherwise highly symmetrical domain structure. I report that expression of two mutant BCCPs lacking the thumb residues fails to restore growth and fatty acid synthesis to a temperature-sensitive E. coli strain that lacks BCCP when grown at nonpermissive temperature. Alignment of BCCPs from various organisms shows that only two of the eight thumb residues are strictly conserved, and amino acid substitution of either residue results in proteins giving only weak growth of the temperature-sensitive E. coli strain. Therefore, the thumb structure is essential for the function of BCCP in the ACC reaction and provides a useful motif for distinguishing the biotinylated proteins of multisubunit ACCs from those of enzymes catalyzing other biotin-dependent reactions. An unexpected result was that expression of a mutant BCCP in which the biotinylated lysine residue was substituted with cysteine was able to partially restore growth and fatty acid synthesis to the temperature-sensitive E. coli strain. This complementation was shown to be specific to BCCPs having native structure (excepting the biotinylated lysine) and is interpreted in terms of dimerization of the BCCP biotinyl domain during the ACC reaction.     

A minimal peptide substrate in biotin holoenzyme synthetase-catalyzed biotinylation

The Escherichia coli biotin holoenzyme synthetase, BirA, catalyzes transfer of biotin to the epsilon amino group of a specific lysine residue of the biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) subunit of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. Sequences of naturally biotinylated substrates are highly conserved across evolutionary boundaries, and cross-species biotinylation has been demonstrated in several systems. To define the minimal substrate requirements in BirA-catalyzed biotinylation, we have measured the kinetics of modification of a 23-residue peptide previously identified by combinatorial methods. Although the sequence of the peptide bears little resemblance to the biotinylated sequence in BCCP, it is enzymatically biotinylated in vivo. Rates of biotin transfer to the 23-residue peptide are similar to those determined for BCCP. To further elucidate the sequence requirements for biotinylation, transient kinetic measurements were performed on a series of amino- and carboxy-terminal truncations of the 23-mer. The results, determined by stopped-flow fluorescence, allowed identification of a 14-residue peptide as the minimum required sequence. Additional support was obtained using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometric analysis of peptides that had been incubated with an excess of biotinyl-5'-adenylate intermediate and catalytic amounts of BirA. Results of these measurements indicate that while kinetically inactive truncations showed no significant shift in molecular mass to the values expected for biotinylated species, kinetically active truncations exhibited 100% biotinylation. The specificity constant (k(cat)/Km) governing BirA-catalyzed biotinylation of the 14-mer minimal substrate is similar to that determined for the natural substrate, BCCP. We conclude that the 14-mer peptide efficiently mimics the biotin acceptor function of the much larger protein domain normally recognized by BirA.     

The C-terminal domain of biotin protein ligase from E. coli is required for catalytic activity

Biotin protein ligase of Escherichia coli, the BirA protein, catalyses the covalent attachment of the biotin prosthetic group to a specific lysine of the biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) subunit of acetyl-CoA carboxylase. BirA also functions to repress the biotin biosynthetic operon and synthesizes its own corepressor, biotinyl-5'-AMP, the catalytic intermediate in the biotinylation reaction. We have previously identified two charge substitution mutants in BCCP, E119K, and E147K that are poorly biotinylated by BirA. Here we used site-directed mutagenesis to investigate residues in BirA that may interact with E119 or E147 in BCCP. None of the complementary charge substitution mutations at selected residues in BirA restored activity to wild-type levels when assayed with our BCCP mutant substrates. However, a BirA variant, in which K277 of the C-terminal domain was substituted with Glu, had significantly higher activity with E119K BCCP than did wild-type BirA. No function has been identified previously for the BirA C-terminal domain, which is distinct from the central domain thought to contain the ATP binding site and is known to contain the biotin binding site. Kinetic analysis of several purified mutant enzymes indicated that a single amino acid substitution within the C-terminal domain (R317E) and located some distance from the presumptive ATP binding site resulted in a 25-fold decrease in the affinity for ATP. Our data indicate that the C-terminal domain of BirA is essential for the catalytic activity of the enzyme and contributes to the interaction with ATP and the protein substrate, the BCCP biotin domain.     

Stabilization of the biotinoyl domain of Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase by interactions between the attached biotin and the protruding "thumb" structure

We previously reported (Chapman-Smith, A., Forbes, B. E., Wallace, J. C., and Cronan, J. E., Jr. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272, 26017-26022) that the biotinylated (holo) species of the biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) biotinoyl domain is much more resistant to chemical modification and proteolysis than the unbiotinylated (apo) form. We hypothesized that the increased stability was due to a conformational change engendered by interaction of the domain with biotin protein ligase, the enzyme that attaches the biotin moiety. We now report that a BCCP-87 species to which the biotin moiety was attached by chemical acylation rather than by biotin protein ligase showed the characteristically greater stability of the holo biotinoyl domain. This result demonstrates that our hypothesis was incorrect; the attached biotin is solely responsible for the increased stability. The bacterial and chloroplast multisubunit acetyl-CoA carboxylases are unusual in that the highly symmetrical and conserved structure of the biotinoyl domain of the BCCP subunit is disrupted by a structured loop called the "thumb" that protrudes from body of the domain. Prior structural work showed that the thumb interacts with uriedo ring of the attached biotin moiety. We have tested whether the thumb-biotin interactions are responsible for the greater holo form stability by examination of two BCCP-87 species that lack the thumb. These BCCP species were produced in both the apo and holo forms, and their sensitivities to trypsin digestion were compared. The holo forms of these proteins were found to be only marginally more stable than their apo forms and much more sensitive to trypsin digestion than the wild type holo-BCCP-87. Therefore, removal of the thumb has an effect similar to lack of biotinylation, indicating that thumb-biotin interactions are responsible for most (but not all) of the increased stability of the holo biotinoyl domain. In the course of these experiments we demonstrated that treatment of Escherichia coli with the peptide deformylase inhibitor, actinonin, results in the expected (but previously unreported) accumulation of an N-formylated protein species.     

Diversity in functional organization of class I and class II biotin protein ligase

The cell envelope of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) is composed of a variety of lipids including mycolic acids, sulpholipids, lipoarabinomannans, etc., which impart rigidity crucial for its survival and pathogenesis. Acyl CoA carboxylase (ACC) provides malonyl-CoA and methylmalonyl-CoA, committed precursors for fatty acid and essential for mycolic acid synthesis respectively. Biotin Protein Ligase (BPL/BirA) activates apo-biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) by biotinylating it to an active holo-BCCP. A minimal peptide (Schatz), an efficient substrate for Escherichia coli BirA, failed to serve as substrate for M. tuberculosis Biotin Protein Ligase (MtBPL). MtBPL specifically biotinylates homologous BCCP domain, MtBCCP(87), but not EcBCCP(87). This is a unique feature of MtBPL as EcBirA lacks such a stringent substrate specificity. This feature is also reflected in the lack of self/promiscuous biotinylation by MtBPL. The N-terminus/HTH domain of EcBirA has the self-biotinable lysine residue that is inhibited in the presence of Schatz peptide, a peptide designed to act as a universal acceptor for EcBirA. This suggests that when biotin is limiting, EcBirA preferentially catalyzes, biotinylation of BCCP over self-biotinylation. R118G mutant of EcBirA showed enhanced self and promiscuous biotinylation but its homologue, R69A MtBPL did not exhibit these properties. The catalytic domain of MtBPL was characterized further by limited proteolysis. Holo-MtBPL is protected from proteolysis by biotinyl-5' AMP, an intermediate of MtBPL catalyzed reaction. In contrast, apo-MtBPL is completely digested by trypsin within 20 min of co-incubation. Substrate selectivity and inability to promote self biotinylation are exquisite features of MtBPL and are a consequence of the unique molecular mechanism of an enzyme adapted for the high turnover of fatty acid biosynthesis.     

The cyclic keto-enol insecticide spirotetramat inhibits insect and spider mite acetyl-CoA carboxylases by interfering with the carboxyltransferase partial reaction

Acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) catalyzes the committed and rate-limiting step in fatty acid biosynthesis. The two partial reactions, carboxylation of biotin followed by carboxyl transfer to the acceptor acetyl-CoA, are performed by two separate domains in animal ACCs.The cyclic keto-enol insecticides and acaricides have been proposed to inhibit insect ACCs. In this communication, we show that the enol derivative of the cylic keto-enol insecticide spirotetramat inhibited ACCs partially purified from the insect species Myzus persicae and Spodoptera frugiperda, as well as the spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) ACC which was expressed in insect cells using a recombinant baculovirus. Steady-state kinetic analysis revealed competitive inhibition with respect to the carboxyl acceptor, acetyl-CoA, indicating that spirotetramat-enol bound to the carboxyltransferase domain of ACC. Interestingly, inhibition with respect to the biotin carboxylase substrate ATP was uncompetitive.Amino acid residues in the carboxyltransferase domains of plant ACCs are important for binding of established herbicidal inhibitors. Mutating the spider mite ACC at the homologous positions, for example L1736 to either isoleucine or alanine, and A1739 to either valine or serine, did not affect the inhibition of the spider mite ACC by spirotetramat-enol. These results indicated different binding modes of the keto-enols and the herbicidal chemical families.     

Selectivity in post-translational biotin addition to five human carboxylases

Human holocarboxylase synthetase (HCS) catalyzes linkage of the vitamin biotin to the biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) domain of five biotin-dependent carboxylases. In the two-step reaction, the activated intermediate, bio-5'-AMP, is first synthesized from biotin and ATP, followed by covalent linkage of the biotin moiety to a specific lysine residue of each carboxylase BCCP domain. Selectivity in HCS-catalyzed biotinylation to the carboxylases was investigated in single turnover stopped flow and quench flow measurements of biotin transfer to the minimal biotin acceptor BCCP fragments of the carboxylases. The results demonstrate that biotinylation of the BCCP fragments of the mitochondrial carboxylases propionyl-CoA carboxylase, pyruvate carboxylase, and methylcrotonoyl-CoA carboxylase is fast and limited by the bimolecular association rate of the enzyme with substrate. By contrast, biotinylation of the acetyl-CoA carboxylase 1 and 2 (ACC1 and ACC2) fragments, both of which are accessible to HCS in the cytoplasm, is slow and displays a hyperbolic dependence on substrate concentration. The correlation between HCS accessibility to biotin acceptor substrates and the kinetics of biotinylation suggests that mitochondrial carboxylase sequences evolved to produce fast association rates with HCS in order to ensure biotinylation prior to mitochondrial import. In addition, the results are consistent with a role for HCS specificity in dictating biotin distribution among carboxylases.     

A plasmid expression system for quantitative in vivo biotinylation of thioredoxin fusion proteins in Escherichia coli.

The high affinity binding interaction of biotin to avidin or streptavidin has been used widely in biochemistry and molecular biology, often in sensitive protein detection or protein capture applications. However, in vitro chemical techniques for protein biotinylation are not always successful, with some common problems being a lack of reaction specificity, inactivation of amino acid residues critical for protein function and low levels of biotin incorporation. This report describes an improved expression system for the highly specific and quantitative in vivo biotinylation of fusion proteins. A short 'biotinylation peptide', described previously by Schatz, is linked to the N-terminus of Escherichia coli thioredoxin (TrxA) to form a new protein, called BIOTRX. The 'biotinylation peptide' serves as an in vivo substrate mimic for E. coli biotin holoenzyme synthetase (BirA), an enzyme which usually performs highly selective biotinylation of E.coli biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP). A plasmid expression vector carrying the BIOTRX and birA genes arranged as a bacterial operon can be used to obtain high level production of soluble BIOTRX and BirA proteins and, under appropriate culture conditions, BIOTRX protein produced by this system is completely biotinylated. Fusions of BIOTRX to other proteins or peptides, whether these polypeptides are linked to the C-terminus or inserted into the BIOTRX active site loop, are also quantitatively biotinylated. Both types of BIOTRX fusion can be captured efficiently on avidin/streptavidin media for purification purposes or to facilitate interaction assays. We illustrate the utility of the system by measurements of antibody and soluble receptor protein binding to BIOTRX fusions immobilized on streptavidin-conjugated BIAcore chips.     

Structure,function and selective inhibition of bacterial acetyl-coa carboxylase

Acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) catalyses the first committed step in fatty acid biosynthesis: a metabolic pathway required for several important biological processes including the synthesis and maintenance of cellular membranes. ACC employs a covalently attached biotin moiety to bind a carboxyl anion and then transfer it to acetyl-CoA, yielding malonyl-CoA. These activities occur at two different subsites: the biotin carboxylase (BC) and carboxyltransferase (CT). Structural biology, together with small molecule inhibitor studies, has provided new insights into the molecular mechanisms that govern ACC catalysis, specifically the BC and CT subunits. Here, we review these recent findings and highlight key differences between the bacterial and eukaryotic isozymes with a view to establish those features that provide an opportunity for selective inhibition. Especially important are examples of highly selective small molecule inhibitors capable of differentiating between ACCs from different phyla. The implications for early stage antibiotic discovery projects, stemming from these studies, are discussed.     

Structure and selectivity in post-translational modification: attaching the biotinyl-lysine and lipoyl-lysine swinging arms in multifunctional enzymes.

The post-translational attachment of biotin and lipoic acid to specific lysine residues displayed in protruding beta-turns in homologous biotinyl and lipoyl domains of their parent enzymes is catalysed by two different ligases. We have expressed in Escherichia coli a sub-gene encoding the biotinyl domain of E.coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase, and by a series of mutations converted the protein from the target for biotinylation to one for lipoylation, in vivo and in vitro. The biotinylating enzyme, biotinyl protein ligase (BPL), and the lipoylating enzyme, LplA, exhibited major differences in the recognition process. LplA accepted the highly conserved MKM motif that houses the target lysine residue in the biotinyl domain beta-turn, but was responsive to structural cues in the flanking beta-strands. BPL was much less sensitive to changes in these beta-strands, but could not biotinylate a lysine residue placed in the DKA motif characteristic of the lipoyl domain beta-turn. The presence of a further protruding thumb between the beta2 and beta3 strands in the wild-type biotinyl domain, which has no counterpart in the lipoyl domain, is sufficient to prevent aberrant lipoylation in E.coli. The structural basis of this discrimination contrasts with other forms of post-translational modification, where the sequence motif surrounding the target residue can be the principal determinant.     

Ligand specificity of group I biotin protein ligase of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Background

Fatty acids are indispensable constituents of mycolic acids that impart toughness & permeability barrier to the cell envelope of M. tuberculosis. Biotin is an essential co-factor for acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) the enzyme involved in the synthesis of malonyl-CoA, a committed precursor, needed for fatty acid synthesis. Biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) provides the co-factor for catalytic activity of ACC.

Methodology/Principal Findings

BPL/BirA (Biotin Protein Ligase), and its substrate, biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mt) were cloned and expressed in E. coli BL21. In contrast to EcBirA and PhBPL, the ∼29.5 kDa MtBPL exists as a monomer in native, biotin and bio-5′AMP liganded forms. This was confirmed by molecular weight profiling by gel filtration on Superdex S-200 and Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS). Computational docking of biotin and bio-5′AMP to MtBPL show that adenylation alters the contact residues for biotin. MtBPL forms 11 H-bonds with biotin, relative to 35 with bio-5′AMP. Docking simulations also suggest that bio-5′AMP hydrogen bonds to the conserved ‘GRGRRG’ sequence but not biotin. The enzyme catalyzed transfer of biotin to BCCP was confirmed by incorporation of radioactive biotin and by Avidin blot. The K_m for BCCP was ∼5.2 µM and ∼420 nM for biotin. MtBPL has low affinity (K_b = 1.06×10⁻⁶ M) for biotin relative to EcBirA but their K_m are almost comparable suggesting that while the major function of MtBPL is biotinylation of BCCP, tight binding of biotin/bio-5′AMP by EcBirA is channeled for its repressor activity.

Conclusions/Significance

These studies thus open up avenues for understanding the unique features of MtBPL and the role it plays in biotin utilization in M. tuberculosis.     

A high-throughput screening assay for the carboxyltransferase subunit of acetyl-CoA carboxylase

One consequence of the dramatic rise of antibiotic-resistant pathogenic bacteria is the need for new targets for antibiotics. Because membrane lipid biogenesis is essential for bacterial growth, enzymes of the fatty acid biosynthetic pathway offer attractive possibilities for the development of new antibiotics. Acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase (ACC) catalyzes the first committed and regulated step in fatty acid biosynthesis in bacteria and thus is a prime target for development of antibiotics. ACC is a multifunctional enzyme composed of three separate proteins. The biotin carboxylase component catalyzes the ATP-dependent carboxylation of biotin. The biotin carboxyl carrier protein features a biotin molecule covalently attached at Lys122 of the Escherichia coli enzyme. The carboxyltransferase subunit catalyzes the transfer of a carboxyl group from biotin to acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) to form malonyl-CoA. The objective of this study was to develop an assay for high-throughput screening for inhibitors of the carboxyltransferase subunit. The carboxyltransferase reaction was assayed in the reverse direction in which malonyl-CoA reacts with biocytin (an analog of the biotin carboxyl carrier protein) to form acetyl-CoA and carboxybiotin. The production of acetyl-CoA was coupled to citrate synthase, which produced citrate and coenzyme A. The amount of coenzyme A formed was detected using 5,5'-dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (Ellman's reagent). The assay has been developed for use in both 96- and 384-well microplate formats and was validated using a known bisubstrate analog inhibitor of carboxyltransferase. The spectrophotometric readout in the visible absorbance range used in this assay does not generate the number of false negatives associated with frequently used NAD/NADH assay systems that rely on detection of NADH using UV absorbance.     

The biotin carboxylase-biotin carboxyl carrier protein complex of Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase

Escherichia coli acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) is composed of four different protein molecules. These proteins form a large but very unstable complex. Hints of a sub-complex between the biotin carboxylase (BC) and biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) subunits have been reported in the literature, but the complex was not isolated and thus the protein stoichiometry could not be determined. We report isolation of the BC.BCCP complex. By use of affinity chromatography using two different affinity tags it was shown that the complex consists of a two BCCP molecules per BC molecule. The molar ratio in the complex is the same as the ratio of the subunit proteins synthesized in vivo. We conclude that the complex consists of a dimer of BC plus four BCCP molecules instead of the 2BC.2BCCP complex previously assumed. This subunit ratio allows two conflicting models of the ACC mechanism to be rectified. We also report that the N-terminal 30 or so residues of BCCP are responsible for the interaction of BCCP with BC and that the BC.BCCP complex is a substrate for biotinylation in vitro.     

粘红酵母乙酰辅酶A羧化酶（ACC）基因的克隆及CT功能域基因的原核表达

利用简并PCR结合染色体步移法首次克隆获得粘红酵母乙酰辅酶A羧化酶（ACC）基因的全长序列信息。序列分析表明,该基因包含2个内含子,分别位于42～147 bp和315～677 bp处,编码区域总长为6 801bp,推导的氨基酸序列进行二级结构分析具备乙酰辅酶A羧化酶典型的3个功能域：生物素羧化酶（BC）、生物素羧基载体蛋白（BCCP）和羧基转移酶（CT）。克隆该基因的CT功能域基因,连接到原核表达载体pET-28a上,在Escherichia coli BL21（DE3）中成功表达,利用Ni-NTA树脂柱纯化获得CT的可溶性重组蛋白,浓度为1.8mg/mL,为研究ACC的功能和针对CT作用的除草剂机理研究提供了有价值的材料。     

Genes for two subunits of acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase of Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120: biotin carboxylase and biotin carboxyl carrier protein.

Genes for two subunits of acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase, biotin carboxylase and biotin carboxyl carrier protein, have been cloned from Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120. The two proteins are 181 and 447 amino acids long and show 40 and 57% identity to the corresponding Escherichia coli proteins, respectively. The sequence of the biotinylation site in Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120 is MetLysLeu, not the MetLysMet found in other sequences of biotin-dependent carboxylases. The amino acid sequence of biotin carboxylase is also very similar (32 to 47% identity) to the sequence of the biotin carboxylase domain of other biotin-dependent carboxylases. Genes for these two subunits of acetyl-coenzyme A carboxylase are not linked in Anabaena sp. strain PCC 7120, contrary to the situation in E. coli, in which they are in one operon.