Identification of the penicillin-binding active site of penicillin-binding protein 2 of Escherichia coli

We determined the active site of penicillin-binding protein (PBP) 2 of Escherichia coli. A water-soluble form of PBP 2, which was constructed by site-directed mutagenesis, was purified by affinity chromatography, labeled with dansyl-penicillin, and then digested with a combination of proteases. The amino acid composition of the labeled chymotryptic peptide purified by HPLC was identical with that of the amino acid sequence, Ala-Thr-Gln-Gly-Val-Tyr-Pro-Pro-Ala-Ser330-Thr-Val-Lys-Pro (residues 321-334) of PBP 2, which was deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the pbpA gene encoding PBP 2. This amino acid sequence was verified by sequencing the labeled tryptic peptide containing the labeled chymotryptic peptide region. A mutant PBP 2 (thiol-PBP 2), constructed by site-directed mutagenesis to replace Ser330 with Cys, lacked the penicillin-binding activity. These findings provided evidence that Ser330 near the middle of the primary structure of PBP 2 is the penicillin-binding active-site residue, as predicted previously on the basis of the sequence homology. Around this active site, the sequence Ser-Xaa-Xaa-Lys was observed, which is conserved in the active-site regions of all E. coli PBPs so far studied, class A and class C beta-lactamases, and D-Ala carboxypeptidases. The COOH-terminal amino acid of PBP 2 was identified as His633.     

Activity of penicillin-binding protein 3 from Escherichia coli.

The activity of penicillin-binding protein 3 of Escherichia coli has been studied both in vivo and in ether-permeabilized cells. The peptidoglycan transpeptidase activity of penicillin-binding protein 3 appears to use either nascent or exogenously added UDP-N-acetylmuramyl tripeptide-derived substrates as acceptors. By means of a defilamentation system which elicited the activity of penicillin-binding protein 3 in vivo, the structure of peptidoglycan made by this enzyme has been elucidated. This peptidoglycan, very probably of septal location, contained increased amounts of cross-linked peptidoglycan as well as a higher ratio of tripeptide-containing cross-linked subunits.     

Lipid modification of Escherichia coli penicillin-binding protein 3.

The primary structure of penicillin-binding protein 3 (PBP 3), an essential enzyme for cell division in Escherichia coli, was deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the ftsI gene (M. Nakamura, I. N. Maruyama, M. Soma, J. Kato, H. Suzuki, and Y. Hirota, Mol. Gen. Genet. 191:1-9, 1983). An amino acid sequence of Leu-26-Leu-Cys-Gly-Cys-30 was found near the amino terminus of the deduced sequence, showing a rather striking homology to the Leu-Leu-Ala-Gly-Cys consensus sequence for the modification and processing of precursors of the E. coli murein lipoprotein and other bacterial lipoproteins. As expected from this finding, PBP 3 was found to be modified with glycerol and fatty acids, although the lipid modification occurred only in a small fraction, accounting for less than 15% of the total PBP 3 molecules.     

Determination of the cleavage site involved in C-terminal processing of penicillin-binding protein 3 of Escherichia coli.

Chromatographic peptide mapping of lysyl endopeptidase digests of penicillin-binding protein 3 (PBP 3) of Escherichia coli revealed peptides that differed in retention time between the precursor and mature forms. The peptides were purified from a processing-defective (prc) mutant and a wild-type (prc+) strain. These peptides were identified as the C-terminal region of the precursor form and mature PBP 3 by amino acid sequencing. Each of the C-terminal peptides was cleaved into two fragments by trypsin digestion. By sequencing the resultant carboxyl-side fragment derived from the mature form, it was concluded that the C-terminal residue of mature PBP 3 was Val-577, and thus the Val-577-Ile-578 bond is the cleavage site for processing. This conclusion was consistent with the amino acid compositions of the relevant peptides, which suggested that the peptide from the cleavage site to the end of the deduced sequence (Ile-578-Ser-588) was present in the precursor but absent in the mature form. One lysyl peptide bond resisted both lysyl endopeptidase and trypsin and remained uncleaved in the peptide analyzed above.     

Purification and sequencing of the active site tryptic peptide from penicillin-binding protein 1b of Escherichia coli

This paper reports the sequence of the active site peptide of penicillin-binding protein 1b from Escherichia coli. Purified penicillin-binding protein 1b was labeled with [14C]penicillin G, digested with trypsin, and partially purified by gel filtration. Upon further purification by high-pressure liquid chromatography, two radioactive peaks were observed, and the major peak, representing over 75% of the applied radioactivity, was submitted to amino acid analysis and sequencing. The sequence Ser-Ile-Gly-Ser-Leu-Ala-Lys was obtained. The active site nucleophile was identified by digesting the purified peptide with aminopeptidase M and separating the radioactive products on high-pressure liquid chromatography. Amino acid analysis confirmed that the serine residue in the middle of the sequence was covalently bonded to the [14C]penicilloyl moiety. A comparison of this sequence to active site sequences of other penicillin-binding proteins and beta-lactamases is presented.     

Membrane topology of penicillin-binding protein 3 of Escherichia coli

The beta-lactamase fusion vector, pJBS633, has been used to analyse the organization of penicillin-binding protein 3 (PBP3) in the cytoplasmic membrane of Escherichia coli. The fusion junctions in 84 in-frame fusions of the coding region of mature TEM beta-lactamase to random positions within the PBP3 gene were determined. Fusions of beta-lactamase to 61 different positions in PBP3 were obtained. Fusions to positions within the first 31 residues of PBP3 resulted in enzymatically active fusion proteins which could not protect single cells of E. coli from killing by ampicillin, indicating that the beta-lactamase moieties of these fusion proteins were not translocated to the periplasm. However, all fusions that contained greater than or equal to 36 residues of PBP3 provided single cells of E. coli with substantial levels of resistance to ampicillin, indicating that the beta-lactamase moieties of these fusion proteins were translocated to the periplasm. PBP3 therefore appeared to have a simple membrane topology with residues 36 to the carboxy-terminus exposed on the periplasmic side of the cytoplasmic membrane. This topology was confirmed by showing that PBP3 was protected from proteolytic digestion at the cytoplasmic side of the inner membrane but was completely digested by proteolytic attack from the periplasmic side. PBP3 was only inserted in the cytoplasmic membrane at its amino terminus since replacement of its putative lipoprotein signal peptide with a normal signal peptide resulted in a water-soluble, periplasmic form of the enzyme. The periplasmic form of PBP3 retained its penicillin-binding activity and appeared to be truly water-soluble since it fractionated, in the absence of detergents, with the expected molecular weight on Sephadex G-100 and was not retarded by hydrophobic interaction chromatography on Phenyl-Superose.     

Identification and cloning of the gene encoding penicillin-binding protein 7 of Escherichia coli.

Penicillin-binding protein (PBP) 7 of Escherichia coli is a poorly characterized member of the family of enzymes that synthesize and modify the bacterial cell wall. The approximate chromosomal position of the gene encoding this protein was determined by measuring the expression of PBPs during lytic infection of E. coli by each of the 476 miniset members of the Kohara lambda phage genomic library. Phages lambda 363 and lambda 364, encompassing the region from 47.7 to 48 min of the chromosome, overproduced PBP 7. One open reading frame, yohB, was present on both these phages and directed the expression of PBPs 7 and 8. The predicted amino acid sequence of PBP 7 contains the consensus motifs associated with other PBPs and has a potential site near the carboxyl terminus where proteolysis by the OmpT protein could occur, creating an appropriately sized PBP 8. The PBP 7 gene (renamed pbpG) was interrupted by insertion of a kanamycin resistance gene cassette and was moved to the chromosome of E. coli. No obvious growth defects were observed, suggesting that PBP 7 is not essential for growth under normal laboratory conditions.     

A new beta-lactam-binding protein derived from penicillin-binding protein 3 of Escherichia coli.

In this paper we describe a new beta-lactam-binding protein from the cell envelope of Escherichia coli. It can be detected in cells grown at either 37 or 42 degrees C in medium containing glucose but not in cells grown at 30 degrees C. This novel component has an apparent molecular size that is 2.0 kilodaltons larger than that of penicillin-binding protein 3 and is derived from the latter through a divalent-cation-mediated process probably catalyzed by components located in the periplasmic space. The significance of this protein with regard to regulation of the amount of functional penicillin-binding protein 3 in the cell is discussed.     

Purification of penicillin-binding protein 2 of Escherichia coli.

A protein with a molecular weight of 60,000 (60K) constitutes approximately 20% of the envelope protein of Azotobacter vinelandii. This protein was removed from cells and purified from other proteins by a simple washing procedure that had no effect on cell viability. Anti-60K antiserum blocked azotophage A-22 adsorption and agglutinated both vegetative cells and cysts; ferritin-conjugated antibodies used in indirect labeling studies bound uniformly to the periphery of vegetative cells. We conclude that 60K is present on the outer surface of vegetative cells and cysts. The protein is similar to the surface protein alpha of Acinetobacter ssp. in molecular weight, reassociation characteristics, and high ratio of acidic to basic amino acids. We propose that 60K forms a layer external to the outer membrane of A. vinelandii.     

Identification of catalytically important residues in the active site of Escherichia coli transaldolase.

The roles of invariant residues at the active site of transaldolase B from Escherichia coli have been probed by site-directed mutagenesis. The mutant enzymes D17A, N35A, E96A, T156A, and S176A were purified from a talB-deficient host and analyzed with respect to their 3D structure and kinetic behavior. X-ray analysis showed that side chain replacement did not induce unanticipated structural changes in the mutant enzymes. Three mutations, N35A, E96A, and T156A resulted mainly in an effect on apparent kcat, with little changes in apparent Km values for the substrates. Residues N35 and T156 are involved in the positioning of a catalytic water molecule at the active site and the side chain of E96 participates in concert with this water molecule in proton transfer during catalysis. Substitution of Ser176 by alanine resulted in a mutant enzyme with 2.5% residual activity. The apparent Km value for the donor substrate, fructose 6-phosphate, was increased nearly fivefold while the apparent Km value for the acceptor substrate, erythrose 4-phosphate remained unchanged, consistent with a function for S176 in the binding of the C1 hydroxyl group of the donor substrate. The mutant D17A showed a 300-fold decrease in kcat, and a fivefold increase in the apparent Km value for the acceptor substrate erythrose 4-phosphate, suggesting a role of this residue in carbon-carbon bond cleavage and stabilization of the carbanion/enamine intermediate.     

Deletion of the penicillin-binding protein 5 gene of Escherichia coli.

A strain of Escherichia coli that has a deletion of the entire dacA gene has been constructed. The complete lack of penicillin-binding protein 5 in this strain establishes that the activity of this protein is not essential for the growth of E. coli.     

Site-directed mutagenesis of dicarboxylic acid residues of the penicillin-binding module of the Escherichia coli penicillin-binding protein 3

Abstract The glutamic acid E396, aspartic acid D409 and glutamic acid E411 residues of the Escherichia coli penicillin-binding protein 3 were each converted into an alanine residue. As deduced from penicillin-binding and complementation experiments, none of these dicarboxylic acid residues is involved in the mechanism of acylation by penicillin and none of them is essential for the in vivo functioning of the PBP. The mutation E396, however, causes an increased thermolability of the protein.     

Synthesis of penicillin-binding protein 6 by stationary-phase Escherichia coli.

The level of penicillin-binding protein 6, a D-alanine carboxypeptidase I, was found to be 2- to 10-fold higher in stationary-phase cells than in exponentially growing cells of Escherichia coli. This increase appeared to be due to de novo synthesis rather than to an unmasking of preexisting material. There was no comparable change in the amount of any of the other six penicillin-binding proteins.     

Genetic analyses of processing involving C-terminal cleavage in penicillin-binding protein 3 of Escherichia coli.

The processing of Escherichia coli penicillin-binding protein 3 (PBP 3) was investigated by gene manipulation for producing hybrid and truncated PBP 3 molecules. The hybrid PBP 3 was processed when the N-terminal 40 residues of PBP 3 were replaced by the murein lipoprotein signal peptide which lacked the cysteine residue for processing and followed by seven extra linker residues. In contrast, the PBP 3 molecules truncated at Thr-560 (28-residue deletion) or at Thr-497 (91-residue deletion) were not processed, and those truncated at Phe-576 (12-residue deletion) were processed at a greatly reduced rate. The results indicate that the C-terminal part, rather than the N-terminal part, is involved in the processing. This was supported by the result that the purified mature PBP 3 retained the complete N-terminal sequence with Met for translation initiation. The cleavage at the C-terminal region was shown by the loss of [35S]cysteine label when the cysteine-free hybrid PBP 3 joined to a cysteine-rich extra peptide tail was processed into the mature form. Confirmative assays for processing of PBP 3 were aided by a newly found prc mutant, defective in the processing involving the C-terminal region. A plasmid that directs PBP 3 truncated at Thr-560 complemented a thermosensitive PBP 3 mutation, but the truncated product was unstable in vivo. This suggests the importance of C-terminal hydrophobic regions that terminate at Leu-558 to PBP 3 functioning and the requirement of further-distal peptides for the stability of PBP 3.     

Identification of the essential histidine residue at the active site of Escherichia coli dehydroquinase.

The shikimate pathway enzyme 3-dehydroquinase is very susceptible to inactivation by the group-specific reagent diethyl pyrocarbonate (DEP). Inactivation follows pseudo first-order kinetics and exhibits a second-order rate constant of 148.5 M-1 min-1. An equilibrium mixture of substrate and product substantially protects against inactivation by DEP, suggesting that residues within the active site are being modified. Complete inactivation of the enzyme correlates with the modification of 6 histidine residues/subunit as determined by difference spectroscopy at 240 nm. Enzymic activity can be restored by hydroxylamine treatment, which is also consistent with the modification occurring at histidine residues. Using the kinetic method of Tsou (Tsou, C.-L. (1962) Sci. Sin. 11, 1535-1558), it was shown that modification of a single histidine residue leads to inactivation. Ligand protection experiments also indicated that 1 histidine residue was protected from DEP modification. pH studies show that the pKa for this inactivation is 6.18, which is identical to the single pKa determined from the pH/log Vmax profile for the enzyme. A single active site peptide was identified by differential peptide mapping in the presence and absence of ligand. This peptide was found to comprise residues 141-158; of the 2 histidines in this peptide (His-143 and His-146), only one, His-143, is conserved among all type I dehydroquinases. We propose that His-143 is the active site histidine responsible for DEP-mediated inactivation of dehydroquinase and is a good candidate for the general base that has been postulated to participate in the mechanism of this enzyme.     

Identification of a cysteine residue at the active site of Escherichia coli isocitrate lyase.

Escherichia coli isocitrate lyase was inactivated by iodacetate in a pseudo-first-order process. Complete inactivation was associated with the incorporation of only one carboxymethyl group per enzyme subunit. The substrate and products of the enzyme protected against inactivation, suggesting that the reactive group may be located at the active site. Isolation and sequencing of a carboxymethylated peptide showed that the modified residue was a cysteine, in the sequence Cys-Gly-His-Met-Gly-Gly-Lys. The reactivity of isocitrate lyase to iodoacetate declined with pH, following a titration curve for a group of pKa 7.1. The Km of the enzyme for isocritrate declined over the same pH range.     

Cloning and overexpression of Bacillus cereus penicillin-binding protein 3 gene in Escherichia coli

The pbp3 gene encoding PBP3 of Bacillus cereus was cloned and sequenced. For this purpose, PBP3 was first purified from B. cereus ts-4, and N-terminal amino acid sequences of the peptides obtained from the protease digests of the protein were analyzed. The B. cereus ts-4 pbp3 gene consisted of an open reading frame of 1,986 bp encoding 662 amino acid residues with a calculated molecular mass of 73,044 Da. The active site-motifs SXXK, SXN, and KTG are present at the positions 393, 452, and 590, respectively, in the deduced amino acid sequence. The pbp3 structural gene was ligated into the pET17 x b expression vector and pET-pbp3 was constructed. A protein was produced by the cells of E. coli carrying pET-pbp3. The produced protein migrated at about 75 kDa in SDS-polyacrylamide gel and strongly reacted with biotinylated ampicillin.     

Catalytic mechanism of penicillin-binding protein 5 of Escherichia coli

Penicillin-binding proteins (PBPs) and beta-lactamases are members of large families of bacterial enzymes. These enzymes undergo acylation at a serine residue with their respective substrates as the first step in their catalytic events. Penicillin-binding protein 5 (PBP 5) of Escherichia coli is known to perform a dd-carboxypeptidase reaction on the bacterial peptidoglycan, the major constituent of the cell wall. The roles of the active site residues Lys47 and Lys213 in the catalytic machinery of PBP 5 have been explored. By a sequence of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification, we individually introduced gamma-thialysine at each of these positions. The pH dependence of kcat/Km and of kcat for the wild-type PBP 5 and for the two gamma-thialysine mutant variants at positions 47 and 213 were evaluated. The pH optimum for the enzyme was at 9.5-10.5. The ascending limb to the pH optimum is due to Lys47; hence, this residue exists in the free-base form for catalysis. The descending limb from the pH optimum is contributed to by both Lys213 and a water molecule coordinated to Lys47. These results have been interpreted as Lys47 playing a key role in proton-transfer events in the course of catalysis during both the acylation and deacylation events. However, the findings for Lys213 argue for a protonated state at the pH optimum. Lys213 serves as an electrostatic anchor for the substrate.     

Identification of active site residues of Escherichia coli fumarate reductase by site-directed mutagenesis.

Menaquinol-fumarate oxidoreductase of Escherichia coli is a four-subunit membrane-bound complex that catalyzes the final step in anaerobic respiration when fumarate is the terminal electron acceptor. The enzyme is structurally and catalytically similar to succinate dehydrogenase (succinate-ubiquinone oxidoreductase) from both procaryotes and eucaryotes. Both enzymes have been proposed to contain an essential cysteine residue at the active site based on studies with thiol-specific reagents. Chemical modification studies have also suggested roles for essential histidine and arginine residues in catalysis by succinate dehydrogenase. In the present study, a combination of site-directed mutagenesis and chemical modification techniques have been used to investigate the role(s) of the conserved histidine 232, cysteine 247, and arginine 248 residues of the flavorprotein subunit (FrdA) in active site function. A role for His-232 and Arg-248 of FrdA is shown by loss of both fumarate reductase and succino-oxidase activities following site-directed substitution of these particular amino acids. Evidence is also presented that suggests a second arginine residue may form part of the active site. Potential catalytic and substrate-binding roles for arginine are discussed. The effects of removing histidine-232 of FrdA are consistent with its proposed role as a general acid-base catalyst. The fact that succinate oxidation but not fumarate reduction was completely lost, however, might suggest that alternate proton donors substitute for His-232. The data confirm that cysteine 247 of FrdA is responsible for the N-ethylmaleimide sensitivity shown by fumarate reductase but is not required for catalytic activity or the tight-binding of oxalacetate, as previously thought.     

An amino acid substitution in penicillin-binding protein 3 creates pointed polar caps in Escherichia coli.

The pbpB gene product penicillin-binding protein 3 (PBP3) of Escherichia coli is one of the major targets of beta-lactam antibiotics. At the permissive temperature, the temperature-sensitive pbpBr1 mutant, which was obtained after selection for increased resistance to cephalexin, shows a dramatic change in shape which has never been observed before; the polar caps are pointed. We show that the substitution of amino acid Asn-361 by Ser, previously shown to be responsible for increased cephalexin resistance and for temperature sensitivity, causes the pointed polar caps. However, comparison of the morphological and physiological characteristics of the pbpBr1 mutant with those of other pbpB mutants suggests that the formation of pointed polar caps is not correlated with temperature sensitivity or cephalexin resistance. Partial inactivation of PBP3 by subinhibitory concentrations of cephalexin, furazlocillin, and piperacillin resulted in the formation of slightly pointed polar caps, suggesting that the shape of the polar caps is correlated with PBP3 activity. The large change in the shape of the polar caps was accompanied by a small change in the kinetics of peptidoglycan synthesis and in the local rate of surface synthesis activity along the cell envelope.