cDNA cloning, functional expression and cellular localization of rat liver mitochondrial electron-transfer flavoprotein-ubiquinone oxidoreductase protein

A 64 kD protein was enriched from rat liver mito-chondria during the purification of choline dehydro-genase (CHDH)[1]. Homologous comparison and func-tional experiments demonstrated that the protein was electron-transfer flavoprotein-ubiquinone oxidoreduc-tase protein (ETF-QO). The N-terminal sequence determination of rat liver ETF-QO protein purified by various methods did not provide unequivocal result. However, when the protein was digested with V8 protease, peptide fragments could b…     

cDNA cloning,functional expression and cellular localization of rat liver mitochondrial electron-transfer flavoprotein-ubiquinone oxidoreductase protein

A membrane-bound protein was purified from rat liver mitochondria. After being digested with V8 protease, two peptides containing identical 14 amino acid residue sequences were obtained. Using the 14 amino acid peptide derived DNA sequence as gene specific primer, the cDNA of correspondent gene 5′-terminal and 3′-terminal were obtained by RACE technique. The full-length cDNAthat encoded a protein of 616 amino acids was thus cloned, which included the above mentioned peptide sequence. The full length cDNA was highly homologous to that of human ETF-QO, indicating that it may be the cDNA of rat ETF-QO. ETF-QO is an iron sulfur protein located in mitochondria inner membrane containing two kinds of redox center: FAD and [4Fe-4S] center. After comparing the sequence from the cDNA of the 616 amino acids protein with that of the mature protein of rat liver mitochondria, it was found that the N terminal 32 amino acid residues did not exist in the mature protein, indicating that the cDNA was that of ETF-QOp. When the cDNA was expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae with inducible vectors, the protein product was enriched in mitochondrial fraction and exhibited electron transfer activity (NBT reductase activity) of ETF-QO. Results demonstrated that the 32 amino acid peptide was a mitochondrial targeting peptide, and both FAD and iron-sulfur cluster were inserted properly into the expressed ETF-QO. ETF-QO had a high level expression in rat heart, liver and kidney. The fusion protein of GFP-ETF-QO co-localized with mitochondria in COS-7 cells.     

The Carboxyl-terminal Tail of Noxa Protein Regulates the Stability of Noxa and Mcl-1

The BH3-only protein Noxa is a critical mediator of apoptosis and functions primarily by sequestering/inactivating the antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family protein Mcl-1. Although Noxa is a highly labile protein, recent studies suggested that it is degraded by the proteasome in a ubiquitylation-independent manner. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism of Noxa degradation and its ability to regulate the stability of Mcl-1. We found that the ubiquitylation-independent degradation of Noxa does not require a physical association with Mcl-1. A short stretch of amino acid residues in the C-terminal tail was found to mediate the proteasome-dependent degradation of Noxa. Ectopic placement of this degron was able to render other proteins unstable. Surprisingly, mutation of this sequence not only attenuated the rapid degradation of Noxa, but also stabilized endogenous Mcl-1 through the BH3-mediated direct interaction. Together, these results suggest that the C-terminal tail of Noxa regulates the stability of both Noxa and Mcl-1.     

Mitochondrial targeting signal of rat liver monoamine oxidase B is located at its carboxy terminus.

Monoamine oxidase B, a typical intrinsic protein of the outer mitochondrial membrane, has an uncleavable targeting signal and is inserted into the membrane without proteolytic maturation. To investigate the region responsible for targeting the enzyme to the outer mitochondrial membrane, various mutated proteins were expressed in cultured mammalian cells, and the distributions of the expressed proteins were analyzed by immunofluorescence microscopy and subcellular fractionation. Deletion of the carboxy-terminal 28 amino acids of monoamine oxidase B abolished the transfer of the enzyme to mitochondria, while the deletion of the amino-terminal 55 amino acids had no effect on the transfer to mitochondria. The existence of the targeting signal at the carboxy-terminal portion of the enzyme was confirmed by using hybrid proteins in which the amino- or carboxy-terminal portion of the enzyme was fused to the hydrophilic portion of cytochrome b5. The fused protein with the carboxy-terminal 29 amino acid residues of monoamine oxidase B was localized in mitochondria, whereas that with 10 amino acids remained in the cytoplasm. These results indicate that the targeting signal of monoamine oxidase B is present within its carboxy-terminal 29 amino acid residues.     

棉铃虫HaKettin1基因的全长cDNA克隆、序列分析和表达谱

【目的】为了克隆棉铃虫Helicoverpa armigera编码肌肉蛋白Kettin基因的全长cDNA序列以及鉴定该基因在棉铃虫发育周期内的表达模式。【方法】利用兼并引物,通过分段RT-PCR和5′-和3′-RACE的方法克隆全长cDNA序列。利用半定量RT-PCR进行表达谱分析。【结果】编码棉铃虫Kettin蛋白的基因HaKettin1全长cDNA序列为13 805 bp,包含一个13 365 bp的开放阅读框,编码4 454个氨基酸,蛋白分子量约为504.3 kD。组织表达结果显示HaKettin1基因在棉铃虫的整个生育周期都有表达,幼虫期的表达尤为显著。【结论】HaKettin1与家蚕的Kettin蛋白具有90％的同源性,表明鳞翅目昆虫的Kettin蛋白之间具有很高的保守性。表达谱结果显示HaKettin1基因在棉铃虫的整个发育过程中都发挥重要作用。     

Evidence for 26 distinct acyl-coenzyme A synthetase genes in the human genome

Acyl-coenzyme A synthetases (ACSs) catalyze the fundamental, initial reaction in fatty acid metabolism. "Activation" of fatty acids by thioesterification to CoA allows their participation in both anabolic and catabolic pathways. The availability of the sequenced human genome has facilitated the investigation of the number of ACS genes present. Using two conserved amino acid sequence motifs to probe human DNA databases, 26 ACS family genes/proteins were identified. ACS activity in either humans or rodents was demonstrated previously for 20 proteins, but 6 remain candidate ACSs. For two candidates, cDNA was cloned, protein was expressed in COS-1 cells, and ACS activity was detected. Amino acid sequence similarities were used to assign enzymes into subfamilies, and subfamily assignments were consistent with acyl chain length preference. Four of the 26 proteins did not fit into a subfamily, and bootstrap analysis of phylograms was consistent with evolutionary divergence. Three additional conserved amino acid sequence motifs were identified that likely have functional or structural roles. The existence of many ACSs suggests that each plays a unique role, directing the acyl-CoA product to a specific metabolic fate. Knowing the full complement of ACS genes in the human genome will facilitate future studies to characterize their specific biological functions.     

Signal sequence of preproglycinin affects production of the expressed protein in Escherichia coli

The effect of the signal peptide portion on the bacterial production of preproglycinin, a precursor of soybean storage protein, was examined. Nucleotide sequences corresponding to the signal peptide and the mature N-terminal region were deleted stepwise from the cDNA encoding the glycinin A1aB1b subunit precursor, and the deleted cDNAs were placed under the control of trc promoter in an expression vector pKK233-2. When the amounts of the protein products in Escherichia coli from each expression plasmid were determined, no accumulation of preproglycinin was observed from the plasmids with the full length or the five amino acids of the signal sequence. However, significant accumulation of the preproglycinin homologue proteins was noted from the plasmids retaining less than three amino acids of the signal sequence depending on the extent of deletion. N-terminal amino acid sequences of the products coincided with those predicted from the deleted cDNAs. The preproglycinin homologue proteins expressed from the mutant plasmids assembled into trimers of about 8S.     

Caspase cleavage of Mcl-1 impairs its anti-apoptotic activity and proteasomal degradation in non-small lung cancer cells

Global cleavage of cellular proteins by activated caspases is a hallmark of apoptosis, which causes biochemical collapse of the cell. Recent studies suggest that, rather than completely destroying a protein, caspase cleavage can confer novel characteristics or functions. In this respect, the post-caspase role of Bcl-2 family proteins remains uncharacterized. Here, we showed that Mcl-1, a pro-survival member of the Bcl-2 family, was cleaved by caspase-3 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cells undergoing chemotherapeutic agent-triggered apoptosis. Caspase cleavage partially impaired the anti-apoptotic activity of Mcl-1 by reducing its mitochondrial localization and impeding its association with the permeability transition pore-forming protein Bak. However, the stability of cleaved Mcl-1 was markedly enhanced because it was more refractory to ubiquitination-dependent proteasomal degradation, thereby improving cell viability to a greater extent than full-length Mcl-1 when transiently expressed in NSCLC cells. These findings shed new light on the role of Mcl-1 in apoptosis and suggest potential novel targets for optimizing the tumoricidal capacity of chemotherapy.     

Tankyrase 1 interacts with Mcl-1 proteins and inhibits their regulation of apoptosis

Mcl-1L (myeloid cell leukemia-1 long) is an antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family protein discovered as an early induction gene during leukemia cell differentiation. Previously, we identified Mcl-1S (short) as a short splicing variant of the Mcl-1 gene with proapoptotic activity. To identify Mcl-1-interacting proteins, we performed yeast two-hybrid screening and found cDNAs encoding tankyrase 1. This protein possesses poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase activity and presumably facilitates the turnover of substrates following ADP-ribosylation. In yeast and mammalian cells, tankyrase 1 interacts with both Mcl-1L and Mcl-1S, but does not bind to other Bcl-2 family proteins tested. Analysis of truncated tankyrase 1 mutants indicated that the first 10 ankyrin repeats are involved in interaction with Mcl-1. In the N terminus of Mcl-1, a stretch of 25 amino acids is sufficient for binding to tankyrase 1. Overexpression of tankyrase 1 antagonizes both Mcl-1L-mediated cell survival and Mcl-1S-induced cell death. Furthermore, coexpression of tankyrase 1 with Mcl-1L or Mcl-1S decreased the levels of Mcl-1 proteins. Although tankyrase 1 down-regulates Mcl-1 protein expression, no ADP-ribosylation of Mcl-1 was detected. In contrast, overexpression of Mcl-1 proteins suppressed the ADP-ribosylation of the telomeric repeat binding factor 1, another tankyrase 1-interacting protein. Thus, interaction of Mcl-1L and Mcl-1S with tankyrase 1 could serve as a unique mechanism to decrease the expression of these Bcl-2 family proteins, thereby leading to the modulation of the apoptosis pathway.     

The adenine nucleotide translocator of higher plants is synthesized as a large precursor that is processed upon import into mitochondria.

Two maize genes and cDNAs encoding the mitochondrial adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT), a nuclear-encoded inner mitochondrial membrane carrier protein, have previously been isolated in this laboratory. Sequence analysis revealed the existence of much longer open reading frames than the corresponding fungal and mammalian ANT genes. Potato ANT cDNAs have subsequently been isolated and sequenced and alignment of the deduced plant amino acid sequences with the equivalent fungal and mammalian polypeptides indicated that the plant proteins contain N-terminal extensions. When the plant cDNA clones are expressed in vitro they direct the synthesis of precursor proteins that are specifically processed at the N-terminus upon import into isolated mitochondria. N-terminal amino acid sequence data obtained from the native proteins purified from both maize and potato mitochondria has allowed identification of the putative processing sites. Further import analysis has shown that two distinct regions of the maize precursor protein contain targeting information, the 97 amino acids at the N-terminus and the 267 C-terminal amino acids. This is the first report that provides experimental evidence that the adenine nucleotide translocator of higher plants is synthesized as a large precursor protein that is specifically cleaved upon import into mitochondria. Import of ANT into higher plant mitochondria therefore appears to be different to the corresponding process in fungal and mammalian systems where targeting of ANT to mitochondria is mediated by internal signals and there is no N-terminal processing.     

人细小病毒B19 VP1u多克隆抗体的制备及其保守区外N端氨基酸对sPLA2活性影响的初步研究

【目的】制备人细小病毒B19-VP1u的多克隆抗体,探究VP1u多克隆抗体及其保守区外N端氨基酸对病毒磷脂酶A2活性的影响。【方法】首先通过分子克隆方法构建相应原核表达载体;利用原核表达系统纯化含MBP标签的VP1u全长及N端系列截短突变融合蛋白;接着免疫新西兰大白兔制备全长VP1u蛋白的多克隆抗体;最后利用磷脂酶A2活性检测试剂盒检测了纯化蛋白的磷脂酶A2活性。【结果】Western blot及免疫荧光实验证实制备的多克隆抗体具有较高的特异性;磷脂酶A2活性检测发现全长VP1u-MBP融合蛋白具有一定的活性,该活性可以被VP1u的抗体抑制;N端保守区外截短系列蛋白的酶活检测发现,N端截掉12个氨基酸时酶活降低53%,截掉67个氨基酸时酶活性几乎完全丧失。【结论】首次发现VP1u保守区外N端氨基酸,尤其是第12个氨基酸前的区域以及第22-67个氨基酸之间的区域,对sPLA2活性的保持具有重要意义,推测该区域可能对维持正常的蛋白构象起重要的作用;而其特异性多克隆抗体的制备也为进一步研究B19病毒VP1u在病毒复制周期的作用奠定基础。     

玉米蚜体内参与传毒的共生菌groEL基因的克隆和原核表达

以玉米蚜杨凌生物型为材料,设计特异性引物采用PCR的方法在国内首先克隆了一种玉米蚜体内参与传毒的共生菌groEL基因,序列测定结果表明：玉米蚜杨凌生物型共生菌groEL奏长为1647bp,编码548个氨基酸,登录Genebank,序列号为AF387863。构建了该基因的原核表达载体,用pBV221表达出63KDa的非融合目的蛋白,用pET-3a表达出69KDa的融合蛋白,二者均有较高的表达量。     

一个可能与T细胞发育相关的新的C2H2型锌指蛋白基因的克隆(英)

一些在组织和细胞分化中起重要作用的蛋白质包含锌指结构域.为了克隆分离和研究与造血细胞分化和发育成熟相关的蛋白基因,利用编码C2H2型锌指蛋白结构域中部分保守氨基酸序列设计简并引物,以骨髓cDNA为模板,进行PCR扩增,得到若干新的锌指蛋白基因EST.用其中一条为探针筛选人骨髓cDNA文库,获得了一个新的锌指蛋白基因全长cDNA,GenBank收录号为AF246126,长3 888 bp,包括一个完整阅读框,编码686个氨基酸,包括17个典型的和2个非典型的C2H2模体,命名为HZF2. RNA印迹、人多组织mRNA斑点杂交分析结果显示, 其在T淋巴细胞发育和定居的器官组织胸腺、淋巴结中有较高表达,在脾脏、胎肝有中度表达,在B淋巴细胞发育的骨髓中表达很低,在外周血几个淋巴细胞系中仅有极微量的表达,提示HZF2可能对于T淋巴细胞发育和增殖有重要功能.该基因也在脑组织的若干部位、胎盘及肾上腺有较高表达,在多种其他组织细胞有微量表达,说明其可能对维持这些组织细胞的生理功能也起一定作用.将编码HZF2读框的DNA顺序克隆到pEGFP-N1载体中,转染3T3细胞,证明表达的HZF2-GFP融合蛋白定位于细胞核,这与根据HZF2蛋白结构推测其可能作为DNA结合蛋白行使调节基因转录的功能是一致的.     

水稻矮缩病毒第一号组份基因和编码蛋白的序列分析

水稻矮缩病毒（RiceDwarfVirus,简称RDV）是我国南方水稻病毒病的重要病原,属植物呼肠孤病毒。从中国福建分离物中克隆了基因组第一号片段（S1）的全长cDNA并对其进行全序列分析,结果表明RDV福建分离物S1克隆片段全长4422bp,含有一个长4332bp的开放阅读框架,编码一个由1444个氨基酸组成的多肽（P1）,分子量为164kD．根据基因序列,对推测的P1氨基酸序列分析表明,序列中含有依赖于RNA的RNA聚合酶（RNA-dependentpolymerase-RDRP）保守序列：motifＩ（DXXXXD）、motifⅡ（SGXXXTXXXN）和motifⅢ（GDD）,除此之外,在模式Ⅲ后还存在一个很保守的区域EXXKXY。由此说明RDVS1编码的蛋白P1可能是病毒的一种RDRP。将RDV福建分离物引核苷酸和编码蛋白氨基酸序列与日本流行株系相比,同源性分别为95％和97％。RDV福建分离物S1序列已被DenBank接受,号码为U73201。