A modular set of lacZ fusion vectors for studying gene expression in Caenorhabditis elegans

We describe a series of plasmid vectors which contain modular features particularly useful for studying gene expression in eukaryotic systems. The vectors contain the Escherichia coli beta-galactosidase (beta Gal)-encoding region (the lacZ gene) flanked by unique polylinker segments on the 5' and 3' ends, and several combinations of a variety of modules: a selectable marker (an amber suppressor tRNA), a translational initiation region, a synthetic intron segment, the early polyadenylation signal from SV40, and 3' regions from two nematode genes. A segment encoding the nuclear localization peptide from the SV40 T antigen is incorporated into many of the constructs, leading to beta Gal accumulation in nuclei, which can facilitate identification of producing cells in complex tissues. To make functional beta Gal fusions to secreted proteins, we constructed plasmids with an alternate module encoding a synthetic transmembrane domain upstream from lacZ. This domain is designed to stop transfer of secreted proteins across the membrane during secretion, allowing the beta Gal domain of the fusion polypeptide to remain in the cytoplasm and thus function in enzymatic assays. We have used the vectors to analyze expression of several genes in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, and have demonstrated in these studies that lacZ can be expressed in a wide variety of different tissues and cell types. These vectors should be useful in studying gene expression both in C. elegans and in other experimental systems.     

Secreted protein prediction system combining CJ-SPHMM,TMHMM, and PSORT

To increase the coverage of secreted protein prediction, we describe a combination strategy. Instead of using a single method, we combine Hidden Markov Model (HMM)-based methods CJ-SPHMM and TMHMM with PSORT in secreted protein prediction. CJ-SPHMM is an HMM-based signal peptide prediction method, while TMHMM is an HMM-based transmembrane (TM) protein prediction algorithm. With CJ-SPHMM and TMHMM, proteins with predicted signal peptide and without predicted TM regions are taken as putative secreted proteins. This HMM-based approach predicts secreted protein with Ac (Accuracy) at 0.82 and Cc (Correlation coefficient) at 0.75, which are similar to PSORT with Ac at 0.82 and Cc at 0.76. When we further complement the HMM-based method, i.e., CJ-SPHMM + TMHMM with PSORT in secreted protein prediction, the Ac value is increased to 0.86 and the Cc value is increased to 0.81. Taking this combination strategy to search putative secreted proteins from the International Protein Index (IPI) maintained at the European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI), we constructed a putative human secretome with 5235 proteins. The prediction system described here can also be applied to predicting secreted proteins from other vertebrate proteomes. Availability: The CJ-SPHMM and predicted secreted proteins are available at: ftp://ftp.cbi.pku.edu.cn/pub/secreted-protein/     

秀丽小杆线虫分泌蛋白组的计算机分析

结合计算机技术和生物信息学的方法,采用组合的信号肽分析软件SignalP v3.0、TargetP v1.01、Big-PI Predictor和TMHMM v2.0,预测了秀丽小杆线虫（Caenorthaditis elegans ws123）的全基因组19855个ORF编码蛋白的信号肽,同时系统分析了信号肽的特征。结果表明,在19855个秀丽小杆线虫的蛋白中,有1990条为带有信号肽的分泌型蛋白,其中,1936条为典型的分泌型信号肽（即信号肽酶Ⅰ型信号肽）,53条为信号肽酶Ⅱ型信号肽,1条为信号肽酶Ⅳ型信号肽;在Ⅰ型信号肽中,有41条为RR-motif亚组型信号肽。在1990条信号肽中,有742条没有典型的N-区,其余1248条包含典型的3个区。比较了秀丽小杆线虫与原核生物分泌蛋白信号肽中20种氨基酸残基在信号肽酶切位点的使用情况,表明：在Ⅰ型信号肽酶切位点,其信号肽中使用的氨基酸总体趋势与原核生物基本相似,但秀丽小杆线虫选用的氨基酸种类更多,变化更大;在Ⅱ型信号肽酶切位点,秀丽小杆线虫脂蛋白信号肽中使用的氨基酸的种类与原核生物有很大的不同。通过与真核单细胞生物比较,作为真核多细胞生物的秀丽小杆线虫,其分泌蛋白信号肽所占比例更高、种类更多,可知线虫信号肽的组成具有很高的多态性,表明该物种的分泌蛋白具有多种功能。此外,分析结果显示,脂蛋白信号肽在结构上比分泌型信号肽更为保守。在秀丽小杆线虫分泌蛋白中出现了少数氨基酸组成完全一致的信号肽,采用BLAST 2 SEQUENECES对具有相同信号肽的分泌蛋白进行了序列比对,结果表明具有相同信号肽的分泌蛋白同源性非常高,它们的存在是生物进化过程中基因倍加（duplication）及环境选择的结果,信号肽特征的详细描述必将对这些蛋白功能的研究提供重要的帮助。      

Proteomic and computational analysis of secreted proteins with type I signal peptides from the Antarctic archaeon Methanococcoides burtonii

LC-MS/MS was used to identify secreted proteins in the Antarctic archaeon Methanococcoides burtonii. Seven proteins possessing a classical class 1 signal peptide were identified in the supernatant from cultures grown at 4 and 23 degrees C. The proteins included a putative S-layer cell surface protein, cell surface protein involved with cell adhesion, and trypsin-like serine protease. Protease activity was detected in the secreted fraction, and the signal peptide cleavage site of the protease was confirmed using Edman sequencing. The expression profile of putative cell surface proteins suggests a requirement for cell interactions during growth at low temperature. Sequences of the secreted proteins were used to compile a dataset containing a further 32 predicted secreted proteins from the Methanosarcinaceae. Many of these proteins were also S-layer cell surface proteins with a variety of predicted roles, particularly in cell-cell interaction. Computational analysis of signal peptides revealed a preference for lysine in the n-region, leucine in the h-region, and a eucaryal-type cleavage site, highlighting the mosaic nature of signal peptides in Archaea. This is the first study to experimentally characterize secreted proteins from a cold-adapted archaeon and provides new insight and a functional dataset for studying secretion in Archaea.     

Cadherin superfamily proteins in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster

The ability to form selective cell-cell adhesions is an essential property of metazoan cells. Members of the cadherin superfamily are important regulators of this process in both vertebrates and invertebrates. With the advent of genome sequencing projects, determination of the full repertoire of cadherins available to an organism is possible and here we present the identification and analysis of the cadherin repertoires in the genomes of Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila melanogaster. Hidden Markov models of cadherin domains were matched to the protein sequences obtained from the translation of the predicted gene sequences. Matches were made to 21 C. elegans and 18 D. melanogaster sequences. Experimental and theoretical work on C. elegans sequences, and data from ESTs, show that three pairs of genes, and two triplets, should be merged to form five single genes. It also produced sequence changes at one or both of the 5' and 3' termini of half the sequences. In D. melanogaster it is probable that two of the cadherin genes should also be merged together and that three cadherin genes should be merged with other neighbouring genes.Of the 15 cadherin proteins found in C. elegans, 13 have the features of cell surface proteins, signal sequences and transmembrane helices; the other two have only signal sequences. Of the 17 in D. melanogaster, 11 at present have both features and another five have transmembrane helices. The evidence currently available suggests about one-third of the cadherins in the two organisms can be grouped into subfamilies in which all, or parts of, the molecules are conserved. Each organism also has a approximately 980 residue protein (CDH-11 and CG11059) with two cadherin domains and whose sequences match well over their entire length two proteins from human brain. Two proteins in C. elegans, HMR-1A and HMR-1B, and three in D. melanogaster, CadN, Shg and CG7527, have cytoplasmic domains homologous to those of the classical cadherin genes of chordates but their extracellular regions have different domain structures. Other common subclasses include the seven-helix membrane cadherins, Fat-like protocadherins and the Ret-like cadherins. At present, the remaining cadherins have no obvious similarities in their extracellular domain architecture or homologies to their cytoplasmic domains and may, therefore, represent species-specific or phylum-specific molecules.     

Computational comparative study of tuberculosis proteomes using a model learned from signal peptide structures

Secretome analysis is important in pathogen studies. A fundamental and convenient way to identify secreted proteins is to first predict signal peptides, which are essential for protein secretion. However, signal peptides are highly complex functional sequences that are easily confused with transmembrane domains. Such confusion would obviously affect the discovery of secreted proteins. Transmembrane proteins are important drug targets, but very few transmembrane protein structures have been determined experimentally; hence, prediction of the structures is essential. In the field of structure prediction, researchers do not make assumptions about organisms, so there is a need for a general signal peptide predictor.To improve signal peptide prediction without prior knowledge of the associated organisms, we present a machine-learning method, called SVMSignal, which uses biochemical properties as features, as well as features acquired from a novel encoding, to capture biochemical profile patterns for learning the structures of signal peptides directly.We tested SVMSignal and five popular methods on two benchmark datasets from the SPdb and UniProt/Swiss-Prot databases, respectively. Although SVMSignal was trained on an old dataset, it performed well, and the results demonstrate that learning the structures of signal peptides directly is a promising approach. We also utilized SVMSignal to analyze proteomes in the entire HAMAP microbial database. Finally, we conducted a comparative study of secretome analysis on seven tuberculosis-related strains selected from the HAMAP database. We identified ten potential secreted proteins, two of which are drug resistant and four are potential transmembrane proteins.SVMSignal is publicly available at http://bio-cluster.iis.sinica.edu.tw/SVMSignal. It provides user-friendly interfaces and visualizations, and the prediction results are available for download.     

Receptor-like properties of the 26 kDa transmembrane form of TNF

Most members of the TNF family of proteins exist as transmembrane proteins with relatively long intracellular domains, and a number of them are involved in the ill-defined phenomenon of "reverse signaling". We have identified a putative nuclear localization signal in the cytoplasmic domain of TNF which proved to be functional in two assays. Western analysis identified an approximately 10 kDa peptide corresponding to the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of TNF after the proteolytic liberation of the 17 kDa, soluble form of TNF. This 10 kDa peptide was enriched in internal membranes and nuclear fractions of disrupted cells. Immune electron-microscopic studies proved its localization in transport vesicles and the nucleus. The nuclear transport of the intracellular segment of TNF resembles the signaling process through the Notch-type of receptors. Indeed, the presence of the 10 kDa peptide seems to influence the expression of another inflammatory cytokine, interleukin-1 beta. These findings suggest that the transmembrane form of TNF has receptor-like properties and its interaction with the receptors initiates a bidirectional signaling.     

MemO: a consensus approach to the annotation of a protein's membrane organization

Membrane organization describes the relationship of proteins to the membrane, that is, whether the protein crosses the membrane or is integral to the membrane and its orientation with respect to the membrane. Membrane organization is determined primarily by the presence of two features which target proteins to the secretory pathway: the endoplasmic reticulum signal peptide and the ?-helical transmembrane domain. In order to generate membrane organization annotation of high quality, confidence and throughput, the Membrane Organization (MemO) pipeline was developed, incorporating consensus feature prediction modules with integration and annotation rules derived from biological observations. The pipeline classifies proteins into six categories based on the presence or absence of predicted features: Soluble, intracellular proteins; Soluble, secreted proteins; Type I membrane proteins; Type II membrane proteins; Multi-span membrane proteins and Glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchored membrane proteins. The MemO pipeline represents an integrated strategy for the application of state-of-the-art bioinformatics tools to the annotation of protein membrane organization, a property which adds biological context to the large quantities of protein sequence information available.     

Bacterial proteins with cleaved or uncleaved signal peptides of the general secretory pathway

Correct protein compartmentalization is a key step for molecular function and cell viability, and this is especially true for membrane and externalized proteins of bacteria. Recent proteomic reports of Bacillus subtilis have shown that many proteins with Sec-like signal peptides and absence of a transmembrane helix domain are still observed in membrane-enriched fractions, but further evidence about signal peptide cleavage or soluble protein contamination is still needed. Here we report a proteomic screening of identified peptides in culture filtrate, membrane fraction and whole cell lysate of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We were able to detect peptide sequencing evidence that shows that the predicted signal peptide was kept uncleaved for several types of proteins such as mammalian cell entry (Mce) proteins and PE or PE-PGRS proteins. Label-free quantitation of all proteins identified in each fraction showed that the majority of these proteins with uncleaved signal peptides are, indeed, enriched in the Triton X-114 lipid phase. Some of these proteins are likely to be located in the inner membrane while others may be outer membrane proteins.     

Secretory protein enrichment and analysis: an optimized approach applied on cancer cell lines using 2D LC-MS/MS

Reliable methods for profiling secretory proteins are highly desirable for the identification of biomarkers of disease progression. Secreted proteins are often masked by high amounts of protein supplements in the culture medium. We have developed an efficient method for the enrichment and analysis of the secretome of different cancer cell lines, free of essential contaminants. The method is based on the optimization of cell incubation conditions in protein-free medium. Secreted proteins are concentrated and fractionated using a reversed-phase tC2 Sorbent, followed by peptide mass fingerprinting for protein identification. An average of 88 proteins were identified in each cancer cell line, of which more than 76% are known to be secreted, possess a signal peptide or a transmembrane domain. Given the importance of secreted proteins as a source for early detection and diagnosis of disease, this approach may help to discover novel candidate biomarkers with potential clinical significance.     

Reversible transition between α-helix and β-sheet conformation of a transmembrane domain

Despite the important functions of protein transmembrane domains, their structure and dynamics are often scarcely known. The SNARE proteins VAMP/synaptobrevin and syntaxin 1 are implicated in membrane fusion. Using different spectroscopic approaches we observed a marked sensitivity of their transmembrane domain structure in regard to the lipid/peptide ratio. In the dilute condition, peptides corresponding to the complete transmembrane domain fold into an α-helix inserted at ∼ 35° to the normal of the membranes, an observation in line with molecular simulations. Upon an increase in the peptide/lipid ratio, the peptides readily exhibited transition to β-sheet structure. Moreover, the insertion angle of these β-sheets increased to 54° and was accompanied by a derangement of lipid acyl chains. For both proteins the transition from α-helix to β-sheet was reversible under certain conditions by increasing the peptide/lipid ratio. This phenomenon was observed in different model systems including multibilayers and small unilamellar vesicles. In addition, differences in peptide structure and transitions were observed when using distinct lipids (DMPC, DPPC or DOPC) thus indicating parameters influencing transmembrane domain structure and conversion from helices to sheets. The putative functional consequences of this unprecedented dynamic behavior of a transmembrane domain are discussed.     

Analysis of homologous gene clusters in Caenorhabditis elegans reveals striking regional cluster domains

An algorithm for detecting local clusters of homologous genes was applied to the genome of Caenorhabditis elegans. Clusters of two or more homologous genes are abundant, totaling 1391 clusters containing 4607 genes, over one-fifth of all genes in C. elegans. Cluster genes are distributed unevenly in the genome, with the large majority located on autosomal chromosome arms, regions characterized by higher genetic recombination and more repeat sequences than autosomal centers and the X chromosome. Cluster genes are transcribed at much lower levels than average and very few have gross phenotypes as assayed by RNAi-mediated reduction of function. The molecular identity of cluster genes is unusual, with a preponderance of nematode-specific gene families that encode putative secreted and transmembrane proteins, and enrichment for genes implicated in xenobiotic detoxification and innate immunity. Gene clustering in Drosophila melanogaster is also substantial and the molecular identity of clustered genes follows a similar pattern. I hypothesize that autosomal chromosome arms in C. elegans undergo frequent local gene duplication and that these duplications support gene diversification and rapid evolution in response to environmental challenges. Although specific gene clusters have been documented in C. elegans, their abundance, genomic distribution, and unusual molecular identities were previously unrecognized.     

The amyotrophic lateral sclerosis 8 protein VAPB is cleaved, secreted, and acts as a ligand for Eph receptors

VAP proteins (human VAPB/ALS8, Drosophila VAP33, and C. elegans VPR-1) are homologous proteins with an amino-terminal major sperm protein (MSP) domain and a transmembrane domain. The MSP domain is named for its similarity to the C. elegans MSP protein, a sperm-derived hormone that binds to the Eph receptor and induces oocyte maturation. A point mutation (P56S) in the MSP domain of human VAPB is associated with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), but the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis are poorly understood. Here we show that the MSP domains of VAP proteins are cleaved and secreted ligands for Eph receptors. The P58S mutation in VAP33 leads to a failure to secrete the MSP domain as well as ubiquitination, accumulation of inclusions in the endoplasmic reticulum, and an unfolded protein response. We propose that VAP MSP domains are secreted and act as diffusible hormones for Eph receptors. This work provides insight into mechanisms that may impact the pathogenesis of ALS.     

Cellular import of synthetic peptide using a cell-permeable sequence in plant protoplasts

In this paper, we describe a rapid method to incorporate biologically active synthetic peptide in plant protoplasts. The peptides used contain a hydrophobic membrane permeable sequence as a carrier for the import through the plasma membrane. The membrane permeable sequence corresponds to the h-region, the more hydrophobic domain found in the signal peptide of secreted proteins. To evaluate the feasibility of the method, we synthesized a cell-permeable peptide with an h-region of a plant signal peptide plus residues 410–419 of the human c-myc oncogene product. Detection was performed via fluorescence analysis using specific monoclonal anti-c-myc primary antibody and FITC-conjugated secondary antibody. No saturation of import was observed, suggesting that the mechanisms involved do not require energy. The half-life time of the internalized peptide was estimated and results indicate that peptide concentration into protoplasts was constant for 8 h following incorporation. This method is complementary to microinjection or to the use of membrane permeabilizing reagents to study in vivo protein–protein or DNA–protein interactions. Finally, this method was used to analyse a putative interaction between the conserved cytoplasmic tail of a transmembrane receptor (HaELP, Helianthus annuus EGF receptor like protein) and the cytoskeleton. No interaction was found between these components.     

Activation of the PDGF β Receptor by a Persistent Artificial Signal Peptide

Most eukaryotic transmembrane and secreted proteins contain N-terminal signal peptides that mediate insertion of the nascent translation products into the membrane of the endoplasmic reticulum. After membrane insertion, signal peptides typically are cleaved from the mature protein and degraded. Here, we tested whether a small hydrophobic protein selected for growth promoting activity in mammalian cells retained transforming activity while also acting as a signal peptide. We replaced the signal peptide of the PDGF β receptor (PDGFβR) with a previously described 29-residue artificial transmembrane protein named 9C3 that can activate the PDGFβR in trans. We showed that a modified version of 9C3 at the N-terminus of the PDGFβR can function as a signal peptide, as assessed by its ability to support high level expression, glycosylation, and cell surface localization of the PDGFβR. The 9C3 signal peptide retains its ability to interact with the transmembrane domain of the PDGFβR and cause receptor activation and cell proliferation. Cleavage of the 9C3 signal peptide from the mature receptor is not required for these activities. However, signal peptide cleavage does occur in some molecules, and the cleaved signal peptide can persist in cells and activate a co-expressed PDGFβR in trans. Our finding that a hydrophobic sequence can display signal peptide and transforming activity suggest that some naturally occurring signal peptides may also display additional biological activities by interacting with the transmembrane domains of target proteins.     

Characterization of the arabidopsis formin-like protein AFH1 and its interacting protein

A partial cDNA encoding an Arabidopsis thaliana FH (Formin Homology) protein (AFH1) was used as a probe to clone a full length AFH1 cDNA. The deduced protein encoded by the cDNA contains a FH1 domain rich in proline residues and a C-terminal FH2 domain which is highly conserved amongst FH proteins. In contrast to FH proteins of other organisms, the predicted AFH1 protein also contains a putative signal peptide and a transmembrane domain suggesting its association with membrane. Cell fractionation by differential centrifugation demonstrated the presence of AFH1 in the Triton X-100 insoluble microsomal fraction. An Arabidopsis cDNA library was screened to identify proteins that interact with the C-terminal region of AFH1 using yeast two-hybrid assays, and one of the isolated cDNAs encoded a novel protein, FIP2. Experiments using recombinant proteins expressed in E. coli demonstrated that FIP2 interacted directly with AFH1. The amino acid sequence of FIP2 has partial homology to bacterial putative membrane proteins and animal A-type K+ ATPases. AFH1 may form a membrane anchored complex with FIP2, which might be involved in the organization of the actin cytoskeleton.     

The C-terminal C1 cassette of the N -methyl-D-aspartate receptor 1 subunit contains a bi-partite nuclear localization sequence

The N -methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) is a multimeric transmembrane protein composed of at least two subunits. One subunit, NR1, is derived from a single gene and can be subdivided into three regions: the N-terminal extracellular domain, the transmembrane regions, and the C-terminal intracellular domain. The N-terminal domain is responsible for Mg2+ metal ion binding and channel activity, while the transmembrane domains are important for ion channel formation. The intracellular C-terminal domain is involved in regulating receptor activity and subcellular localization. Our recent experiments indicated that the intracellular C-terminal domain, when expressed independently, localizes almost exclusively in the nucleus. An examination of the amino acid sequence reveals the presence of a putative nuclear localization sequence (NLS) in the C1 cassette of the NR1 intracellular C-terminus. Using an expression vector designed to test whether a putative NLS sequence is a valid, functional NLS, we have demonstrated that a bi-partite NLS does in fact exist within the NR1-1 C-terminus. Computer algorithms identified a putative helix-loop-helix motif that spanned the C0C1 cassettes of the C-terminus. These data suggest that the NR1 subunit may represent another member of a family of transmembrane proteins that undergo intramembrane proteolysis, releasing a cytosolic peptide that is actively translocated to the nucleus leading to alterations in gene regulation.