Structural basis for the inhibitory efficacy of efavirenz (DMP-266), MSC194 and PNU142721 towards the HIV-1 RT K103N mutant.

The K103N substitution is a frequently observed HIV-1 RT mutation in patients who do not respond to combination-therapy. The drugs Efavirenz, MSC194 and PNU142721 belong to the recent generation of NNRTIs characterized by an improved resistance profile to the most common single point mutations within HIV-1 RT, including the K103N mutation. In the present study we present structural observations from Efavirenz in complex with wild-type protein and the K103N mutant and PNU142721 and MSC194 in complex with the K103N mutant. The structures unanimously indicate that the K103N substitution induces only minor positional adjustments of the three inhibitors and the residues lining the binding pocket. Thus, compared to the corresponding wild-type structures, these inhibitors bind to the mutant in a conservative mode rather than through major rearrangements. The structures implicate that the reduced inhibitory efficacy should be attributed to the changes in the chemical environment in the vicinity of the substituted N103 residue. This is supported by changes in hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions to the inhibitors between wild-type and K103N mutant complexes. These potent inhibitors accommodate to the K103N mutation by forming new interactions to the N103 side chain. Our results are consistent with the proposal by Hsiou et al. [Hsiou, Y., Ding, J., Das, K., Clark, A.D. Jr, Boyer, P.L., Lewi, P., Janssen, P.A., Kleim, J.P., Rosner, M., Hughes, S.H. & Arnold, E. (2001) J. Mol. Biol. 309, 437-445] that inhibitors with good activity against the K103N mutant would be expected to have favorable interactions with the mutant asparagines side chain, thereby compensating for resistance caused by stabilization of the mutant enzyme due to a hydrogen-bond network involving the N103 and Y188 side chains.     

Cytological investigations of the interspecific hybrids of Nicotiana tabacum L. x N. glauca Grah

Interspecific amphihaploid and amphidiploid hybrids between Nicotiana glauca Grah. (2n = 24) and N. tabacum L. (2n = 48) cultivars BY 103 and K 326 were analysed. F1 amphihaploids (2n = 36) were viable and completely self- and cross-sterile, and mostly univalents were present during meiosis (with pairing range from 0 to 5). In some meiocytes, meiotic irregularities were observed, such as sporadic chromatin bridges and formation of restitution nuclei. The resultant F1 hybrids were easily converted to amphidiploids (2n = 72) via colchicine treatment of seedlings. The number of univalents and the frequency of PMCs containing unpaired chromosomes indicated that amphidiploids N. tabacum cv. BY 103 or K 326 x N. glauca represented quite a high pairing category. However, they were male sterile because pollen mother cells were arrested at the tetrad stage. The termination of development of PMCs, and consequently male sterility, are very rare in this kind of tobacco hybrids.     

Identification of the mechanism responsible for the increased fibrin specificity of TNK-tissue plasminogen activator relative to tissue plasminogen activator

TNK-tissue plasminogen activator (TNK-t-PA), a bioengineered variant of tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA), has a longer half-life than t-PA because the glycosylation site at amino acid 117 (N117Q, abbreviated N) has been shifted to amino acid 103 (T103N, abbreviated T) and is resistant to inactivation by plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 because of a tetra-alanine substitution in the protease domain (K296A/H297A/R298A/R299A, abbreviated K). TNK-t-PA is more fibrin-specific than t-PA for reasons that are poorly understood. Previously, we demonstrated that the fibrin specificity of t-PA is compromised because t-PA binds to (DD)E, the major degradation product of cross-linked fibrin, with an affinity similar to that for fibrin. To investigate the enhanced fibrin specificity of TNK-t-PA, we compared the kinetics of plasminogen activation for t-PA, TNK-, T-, K-, TK-, and NK-t-PA in the presence of fibrin, (DD)E or fibrinogen. Although the activators have similar catalytic efficiencies in the presence of fibrin, the catalytic efficiency of TNK-t-PA is 15-fold lower than that for t-PA in the presence of (DD)E or fibrinogen. The T and K mutations combine to produce this reduction via distinct mechanisms because T-containing variants have a higher K(M), whereas K-containing variants have a lower k(cat) than t-PA. These results are supported by data indicating that T-containing variants bind (DD)E and fibrinogen with lower affinities than t-PA, whereas the K and N mutations have no effect on binding. Reduced efficiency of plasminogen activation in the presence of (DD)E and fibrinogen but equivalent efficiency in the presence of fibrin explain why TNK-t-PA is more fibrin-specific than t-PA.     

Mutations of aspartate 103 in the Hm2 receptor and alterations in receptor binding properties of muscarinic agonists

Aspartate 103 (D103) in the third transmembrane domain of the Hm2 receptor was mutated to glutamate (D103E), asparagine (D103N), or alanine (D103A). As measured by [3H]-NMS, no significant binding was observed in D103A, while a 2-fold decrease in ligand affinity was seen in D103E and a 32-fold decrease in affinity was found in the D103N mutant. Examination of reference agonists showed greater loss of affinity in D103N than in D103E with the rank order of change being: L-607,207>carbachol>arecoline>pilocarpine>oxotremorine>McN-A-343. Of the novel 1-azabicyclo[2.2.1]-heptan-3-one oxime agonists examined, arylacetylene oximes showed little alteration in binding in either the D103E or D103N mutants, while the geometric isomers of several bicyclic aryl-ene-yne oximes showed significant changes in affinity, especially in the D103N mutant. Thus, overall size of the agonist and/or spatial orientation of the molecule within the binding pocket contribute to changes measured in binding.