Reduction of mitochondrial protein mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters by human glutathione reductase

The human mitochondrial outer membrane protein mitoNEET is a newly discovered target of the type 2 diabetes drug pioglitazone. Structurally, mitoNEET is a homodimer with each monomer containing an N-terminal transmembrane α helix tethered to the mitochondrial outer membrane and a C-terminal cytosolic domain hosting a redox-active [2Fe–2S] cluster. Genetic studies have shown that mitoNEET has a central role in regulating energy metabolism in mitochondria. However, the specific function of mitoNEET remains largely elusive. Here we find that the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters can be efficiently reduced by Escherichia coli thioredoxin reductase and glutathione reductase in an NADPH-dependent reaction. Purified human glutathione reductase has the same activity as E. coli thioredoxin reductase and glutathione reductase to reduce the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters. However, rat thioredoxin reductase, a human thioredoxin reductase homolog that contains selenocysteine in the catalytic center, has very little or no activity to reduce the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters. N-ethylmaleimide, a potent thiol modifier, completely inhibits human glutathione reductase from reducing the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters, indicating that the redox-active disulfide in the catalytic center of human glutathione reductase may be directly involved in reducing the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters. Additional studies reveal that the reduced mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters in mouse heart cell extracts can be reversibly oxidized by hydrogen peroxide without disruption of the clusters, suggesting that the mitoNEET [2Fe–2S] clusters may undergo redox transition to regulate energy metabolism in mitochondria in response to oxidative signals.     

A dimer of the FeS cluster biosynthesis protein IscA from cyanobacteria binds a [2Fe2S] cluster between two protomers and transfers it to [2Fe2S] and [4Fe4S] apo proteins.

Two proteins with similarity to IscA are encoded in the genome of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC 6803. One of them, the product of slr1417 which accounts for 0.025% of the total soluble protein of Synechocystis was over-expressed in E. coli and purified. The purified protein was found to be mainly dimeric and did not contain any cofactor. Incubation with iron ions, cysteine and Synechocystis IscS led to the formation of one [2Fe2S] cluster at an IscA dimer as demonstrated (by the binding of about one iron and one sulfide ion per IscA monomer) by UV/Vis, EPR and M?ssbauer spectroscopy. M?ssbauer spectroscopy further indicated that the FeS cluster was bound by four cysteine residues. Site-directed mutagenesis revealed that of the five cysteine residues only C110 and C112 were involved in cluster binding. It was therefore concluded that the [2Fe2S] cluster is located between the two protomers of the IscA dimer and ligated by C110 and C112 of both protomers. The cluster could be transferred to apo ferredoxin, a [2Fe2S] protein, with a half-time of 10 min. Surprisingly, incubation of cluster-containing IscA with apo adenosine 5'-phosphosulfate reductase led to a reactivation of the enzyme which requires the presence of a [4Fe4S] cluster. This demonstrates that it is possible to build [4Fe4S] clusters from [2Fe2S] units.     

Components involved in assembly and dislocation of iron-sulfur clusters on the scaffold protein Isu1p

The mitochondrial proteins Isu1p and Isu2p play an essential role in the maturation of cellular iron-sulfur (Fe/S) proteins in eukaryotes. By radiolabelling of yeast cells with 55Fe we demonstrate that Isu1p binds an oxygen-resistant non-chelatable Fe/S cluster providing in vivo evidence for a scaffolding function of Isu1p during Fe/S cluster assembly. Depletion of the cysteine desulfurase Nfs1p, the ferredoxin Yah1p or the yeast frataxin homologue Yfh1p by regulated gene expression causes a strong decrease in the de novo synthesis of Fe/S clusters on Isu1p. In contrast, depletion of the Hsp70 chaperone Ssq1p, its co-chaperone Jac1p or the glutaredoxin Grx5p markedly increased the amount of Fe/S clusters bound to Isu1p, even though these mitochondrial proteins are crucial for maturation of Fe/S proteins. Hence Ssq1p/Jac1p and Grx5p are required in a step after Fe/S cluster synthesis on Isu1p, for instance in dissociation of preassembled Fe/S clusters from Isu1p and/or their insertion into apoproteins. We propose a model that dissects Fe/S cluster biogenesis into two major steps and assigns its central components to one of these two steps.     

Physiological and transcriptional responses in the iron–sulphur cluster assembly pathway under abiotic stress in peach (Prunus persica L.) seedlings

As one of the most indispensable element in mineral nutrition of plants, iron (Fe) is closely related to fruits quality and yield. However, molecular mechanisms towards Fe metabolism in fruit trees is largely unclear. In higher plants, iron–sulphur (Fe–S) cluster assembly occurs in chloroplasts, mitochondria and cytosol involving dozens of genes. In this study, we identified 44 putative Fe–S cluster assembly genes in peach (Prunus persica cv. ‘Xiahui6’), and analyzed Fe–S cluster assembly gene expression profiles in response to abiotic stresses. Peach seedlings were more sensitive to iron deficiency, drought and salinity stress, evidenced in reduced photosynthetic performance and altered activity of nitrite reductase, succinate dehydrogenase and aconitase. In addition, Fe–S cluster assembly genes are differentially regulated by abiotic stresses. Iron depletion and drought stress are likely to affect Fe–S cluster assembly genes in leaves. Excess iron toxicity mainly induces Fe–S cluster assembly gene expression in roots, whereas salinity stress massively inhibits Fe–S cluster assembly gene expression in roots. Interestingly, we found that un-functional scaffolds are more prone to disappear during the long-term evolution in perennial woody plants. Our findings directly provide molecular basis for Fe metabolism in peach, and favorably reveal potential candidate genes for further functional determination.     

Dre2, a conserved eukaryotic Fe/S cluster protein, functions in cytosolic Fe/S protein biogenesis

In a forward genetic screen for interaction with mitochondrial iron carrier proteins in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a hypomorphic mutation of the essential DRE2 gene was found to confer lethality when combined with Δmrs3 and Δmrs4. The dre2 mutant or Dre2-depleted cells were deficient in cytosolic Fe/S cluster protein activities while maintaining mitochondrial Fe/S clusters. The Dre2 amino acid sequence was evolutionarily conserved, and cysteine motifs (CX₂CXC and twin CX₂C) in human and yeast proteins were perfectly aligned. The human Dre2 homolog (implicated in blocking apoptosis and called CIAPIN1 or anamorsin) was able to complement the nonviability of a Δdre2 deletion strain. The Dre2 protein with triple hemagglutinin tag was located in the cytoplasm and in the mitochondrial intermembrane space. Yeast Dre2 overexpressed and purified from bacteria was brown and exhibited signature absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance spectra, indicating the presence of both [2Fe-2S] and [4Fe-4S] clusters. Thus, Dre2 is an essential conserved Fe/S cluster protein implicated in extramitochondrial Fe/S cluster assembly, similar to other components of the so-called CIA (cytoplasmic Fe/S cluster assembly) pathway although partially localized to the mitochondrial intermembrane space.     

SufU Is an Essential Iron-Sulfur Cluster Scaffold Protein in Bacillus subtilis

Bacteria use three distinct systems for iron-sulfur (Fe/S) cluster biogenesis: the ISC, SUF, and NIF machineries. The ISC and SUF systems are widely distributed, and many bacteria possess both of them. In Escherichia coli, ISC is the major and constitutive system, whereas SUF is induced under iron starvation and/or oxidative stress. Genomic analysis of the Fe/S cluster biosynthesis genes in Bacillus subtilis suggests that this bacterium''s genome encodes only a SUF system consisting of a sufCDSUB gene cluster and a distant sufA gene. Mutant analysis of the putative Fe/S scaffold genes sufU and sufA revealed that sufU is essential for growth under minimal standard conditions, but not sufA. The drastic growth retardation of a conditional mutant depleted of SufU was coupled with a severe reduction of aconitase and succinate dehydrogenase activities in total-cell lysates, suggesting a crucial function of SufU in Fe/S protein biogenesis. Recombinant SufU was devoid of Fe/S clusters after aerobic purification. Upon in vitro reconstitution, SufU bound an Fe/S cluster with up to ∼1.5 Fe and S per monomer. The assembled Fe/S cluster could be transferred from SufU to the apo form of isopropylmalate isomerase Leu1, rapidly forming catalytically active [4Fe-4S]-containing holo-enzyme. In contrast to native SufU, its D43A variant carried a Fe/S cluster after aerobic purification, indicating that the cluster is stabilized by this mutation. Further, we show that apo-SufU is an activator of the cysteine desulfurase SufS by enhancing its activity about 40-fold in vitro. SufS-dependent formation of holo-SufU suggests that SufU functions as an Fe/S cluster scaffold protein tightly cooperating with the SufS cysteine desulfurase.Iron-sulfur (Fe/S) clusters are one of the most ubiquitous and versatile cofactors employed by nature for catalyzing a variety of redox reactions or for serving as redox sensors in a broad range of regulatory processes (10). Iron and sulfide are toxic for the cells in concentrations needed for spontaneous chemical Fe/S protein maturation. Hence, cells have developed complex biosynthesis machineries which are essential in vivo to assemble Fe/S proteins. Three phylogenetically distinct biosynthesis systems have been found in bacteria: ISC (iron-sulfur cluster), SUF (sulfur mobilization), and NIF (nitrogen fixation) (9, 11, 24). The ISC machinery is the most widely distributed bacterial Fe/S cluster biogenesis system and is also present in eukaryotes (31). In Escherichia coli a second system for Fe/S cluster assembly, SUF, is induced under conditions of iron limitation and/or oxidative stress, thus replacing the housekeeping ISC system for assembly of Fe/S proteins. In contrast, SUF was found as the exclusive Fe/S biogenesis system in mycobacteria (22) and Enterococcus faecalis (39) and hence may also serve as a constitutive system. Furthermore, SUF is present in plastids of green plants, resembling the situation found in their cyanobacterial ancestors (25, 53). The NIF system is responsible for the dedicated maturation of the complex Fe/S protein nitrogenase involved in nitrogen fixation, e.g., in Azotobacter vinelandii. Some NIF genes are associated with anaerobic or microaerobic growth in Helicobacter pylori and Entamoeba histolytica (24).Common principles for Fe/S protein assembly in each system have been defined (30). The de novo assembly of an Fe/S cluster occurs on scaffold proteins which transiently bind the Fe/S cluster before transfer to target apoproteins. Cysteine desulfurases such as IscS and SufS serve as sulfur donors, which acquire sulfur from free l-cysteine by pyridoxal-5′-phosphate-dependent desulfuration. The sulfur is transiently bound in the form of a persulfide to an active-site cysteine of the desulfurase and is subsequently transferred to the scaffold protein. Several SUF systems contain SufE, which specifically forms a complex with the cysteine desulfurase SufS (36, 42). SufE enhances SufS activity significantly and assists the sulfur transfer to scaffold proteins. In this case the persulfide is transiently bound to SufE and not to the desulfurase. Recent studies show that the E. coli cysteine desulfurase CsdA is able to complement the SUF system and interacts with SufE if SufS is inactivated (50). A general iron donor involved in Fe/S cluster assembly is not known yet; however, frataxin homologs in prokaryotes and eukaryotes are postulated to deliver iron to the scaffold protein IscU in the ISC system (5, 9, 31, 34).Several components have been suggested to act as scaffold proteins. U-type scaffold proteins such as bacterial NifU, IscU, and eukaryotic Isu1 preferentially bind [2Fe-2S] clusters. However, the assembly of [4Fe-4S] clusters was described to proceed by reductive coupling of two [2Fe-2S] clusters that bind successively to an IscU dimer (1). A-type scaffolds like bacterial SufA or IscA can bind [2Fe-2S] clusters in their monomeric state and were found to be involved in the maturation of [4Fe-4S] proteins such as aconitase (17, 32, 47). Overproduced IscA was also shown to bind mononuclear iron which could be used for Fe/S cluster assembly on IscU in vitro.The ISC system characteristically contains the molecular chaperone pair HscA and HscB that are involved in Fe/S cluster transfer from the IscU scaffold protein to the target proteins. The Hsp70-type HscA specifically binds to a highly conserved LPPVK motif located near the third strictly conserved cluster-binding cysteine in IscU. Specific IscU-HscA complex formation was found to be necessary and sufficient to stimulate the ATPase activity of HscA (12, 21, 48). The SUF system, in contrast, does not contain HscA and HscB chaperones in the suf gene cluster. Instead it comprises the SufBCD proteins. The SufC protein has intrinsic ATPase activity and forms a complex with SufB, a putative scaffold protein, and SufD (29). The precise molecular function of the ATP-hydrolyzing SufBCD complex is not yet clear.The best-characterized SUF system from E. coli contains the gene cluster sufABCDSE (5). However, many bacteria, in particular members of the phylum Firmicutes, contain a different suf gene cluster encoding sufCDSUB, which has been studied so far only by bioinformatic approaches (39, 46). While SufS and SufBCD in the two gene clusters appear to be similar proteins, SufE is lacking in most Firmicutes and also in the mycobacterial and Thermotoga maritima SUF machineries (22, 24). The additionally present SufU shares similarities with IscU of the ISC system (39). The protein contains all three conserved cysteine residues involved in Fe/S cluster association and yet characteristically lacks the LPPVK motif, consistent with the absence of HscA and HscB proteins in sufCDSUB species.In this study, we made use of the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis to initiate functional analysis of the sufCDSUB genes in Fe/S cluster biosynthesis by genetic and biochemical approaches. In particular, since no functional information is available for SufU, we tested its putative role as an Fe/S scaffold protein. SufU was found to be crucial for cell viability and for Fe/S-dependent enzyme activities in crude cell lysates. In vitro cluster reconstitution with recombinant SufU indicated that SufU binds a labile Fe/S cluster which can be transferred to apo-Leu1 in a fast and efficient way, fully activating its catalytic function as a [4Fe-4S] cluster-dependent isopropylmalate isomerase. The B. subtilis SufU was found to activate the desulfurase activity of purified B. subtilis SufS. Our results suggest that SufS and the SufU scaffold protein closely act together in the Fe/S cluster biogenesis in B. subtilis.