苹果酸酶基因转化酿酒酵母的研究进展

微生物降酸是现代葡萄酒酿造工艺中重要环节之一。利用现代生物技术将粟酒裂殖酵母中的苹果酸酶基因和苹果酸通透酶基因共同转化到酿酒酵母中,构建苹果酸-酒精酵母,使之既能进行酒精发酵,又能分解苹果酸。主要对近些年粟酒裂殖酵母苹果酸酶性质、基因结构及其转化酿酒酵母的研究做了回顾与总结,并指出了有待于解决的问题。     

Identification and Characterization of a cDNA and the Structural Gene Encoding the Mouse Epithelial Membrane Protein-1

The PMP22/EMP/MP20 gene family includes four closely related proteins, peripheral myelin protein-22 (PMP22), epithelial membrane protein-1 (EMP-1), epithelial membrane protein-2 (EMP-2), and epithelial membrane protein-3 (EMP-3), which share amino acid identities ranging from 33 to 43%. In addition, the lens-specific membrane protein MP20 represents a more distant relative. Functionally, this family of proteins is likely to play important roles in the control of cell proliferation, cell differentiation, and cell death. In particular, mutations affecting thePMP22gene are responsible for various hereditary peripheral neuropathies in humans and mice. We report the isolation and characterization of a mouse EMP-1 cDNA and the correspondingemp-1gene. Mouse EMP-1 displays 93% amino acid identity to rat EMP-1 and 39% identity to mouse PMP22. The cDNA-predicted EMP-1 protein contains four putative membrane-associated domains and can beN-linked glycosylatedin vitro.EMP-1 is encoded by a single-copy gene with the positions of introns exactly conserved betweenemp-1andPMP22,corroborating the hypothesis that both genes belong to the same family. Computer-predicted structural domains of EMP-1 are partially mirrored by the exon/intron structure ofemp-1.Most interestingly, exon 4, which covers the potential second transmembrane domain, a small intracellular loop, and half of the third transmembrane domain, encodes the most highly conserved regions between the EMP-1 and PMP22 proteins and is also remarkably conserved in the MP20 gene, indicating some shared functional significance for this module in the PMP22/EMP/MP20 family.     

Purification and Properties of an Esterase from the Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Identification of the Encoding Gene

We purified an intracellular esterase that can function as an S-formylglutathione hydrolase from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Its molecular mass was 40 kDa, as determined by gel filtration and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The isoelectric point was 5.0 by isoelectric focusing. The enzyme activity was optimal at 50°C and pH 7.0. The corresponding gene, YJLO68C, was identified by its N-terminal amino acid sequence and is not essential for cell viability. Null mutants have reduced esterase activities and grow slowly in the presence of formaldehyde. This enzyme may be involved in the detoxification of formaldehyde, which can be metabolized to S-formylglutathione by S. cerevisiae.     

Identification and Functional Characterization of a Novel Mitochondrial Carrier for Citrate and Oxoglutarate in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Mitochondrial carriers are a family of transport proteins that shuttle metabolites, nucleotides, and coenzymes across the mitochondrial membrane. The function of only a few of the 35 Saccharomyces cerevisiae mitochondrial carriers still remains to be uncovered. In this study, we have functionally defined and characterized the S. cerevisiae mitochondrial carrier Yhm2p. The YHM2 gene was overexpressed in S. cerevisiae, and its product was purified and reconstituted into liposomes. Its transport properties, kinetic parameters, and targeting to mitochondria show that Yhm2p is a mitochondrial transporter for citrate and oxoglutarate. Reconstituted Yhm2p also transported oxaloacetate, succinate, and fumarate to a lesser extent, but virtually not malate and isocitrate. Yhm2p catalyzed only a counter-exchange transport that was saturable and inhibited by sulfhydryl-blocking reagents but not by 1,2,3-benzenetricarboxylate (a powerful inhibitor of the citrate/malate carrier). The physiological role of Yhm2p is to increase the NADPH reducing power in the cytosol (required for biosynthetic and antioxidant reactions) and probably to act as a key component of the citrate-oxoglutarate NADPH redox shuttle between mitochondria and cytosol. This protein function is based on observations documenting a decrease in the NADPH/NADP⁺ and GSH/GSSG ratios in the cytosol of ΔYHM2 cells as well as an increase in the NADPH/NADP⁺ ratio in their mitochondria compared with wild-type cells. Our proposal is also supported by the growth defect displayed by the ΔYHM2 strain and more so by the ΔYHM2ΔZWF1 strain upon H₂O₂ exposure, implying that Yhm2p has an antioxidant function.     

Influence of Gene Duplication and X-Inactivation on Mouse Mitochondrial Malic Enzyme Activity and Electrophoretic Patterns

We have investigated, with and without the influence of X-inactivation, the relationship between autosomal gene-dosage and gene-product in a mammalian system, the mouse. The gene was mitochondrial malic enzyme (Mod-2), shown to lie on Chromosome 7 between the albino (c) and shaker-1 (sh-1) loci, and the enzyme was its product, mitochondrial malic enzyme (MOD-2). Gene duplication, with and without the influence of X-inactivation, was achieved using a translocation that involves the insertion of a portion of Chr 7, including Mod-2 , into the X, T(X;7)1Ct. A 1:1 relationship for Mod-2 dosage and MOD-2 activity was found in heart mitochondria. Evidence of X-inactivation of Mod-2 was noted in heart and kidney preparations from females carrying a Mod-2 duplication (one copy of Mod-2 in the X and two copies of Mod-2 on Chr 7). We conclude that the expression of an autosomal locus attached to X-chromatin depends upon whether the translocation is in a balanced or unbalanced state.     

Partial Purification and Characterization of Nuclear Exopolyphosphatase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae Strain with Inactivated PPX1 Gene Encoding a Major Yeast Exopolyphosphatase

Inactivation of PPX1 encoding the major cytosolic exopolyphosphatase PPX1 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae did not alter exopolyphosphatase activity of the isolated nuclei compared with that in the parent strain. The nuclear exopolyphosphatase of the S. cerevisiae strain deficient in the PPX1 gene was purified 10-fold. According to gel filtration on Superose 6, this enzyme has a molecular mass of approximately 200 kD, and it hydrolyzes polyphosphates with an average chain length of 15 and 208 phosphate residues to the same extent. Its activity is much lower with tripolyphosphate. In the presence of 2.5 mM Mg2+, Km values are 133 and 25 microM in the hydrolysis of polyphosphates with chain lengths of 15 and 208 phosphate residues, respectively. The enzyme activity is stimulated by 2.5 mM Mg2+ and 0.1 mM Co2+ 15- and 31-fold, respectively. RNA does not alter the nuclear exopolyphosphatase activity, while polylysine increases it 2-fold.     

Cloning and Sequencing of the Gene Encoding the Soluble Fumarate Reductase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

A gene of the soluble fumarate reductase (FRDS) that binds FADnon-covalently was cloned by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)using degenerate oligonucleotides designed from partial aminoacid sequences of highly purified enzyme. The nucleotide sequenceof a 0.99-kb amplified product was found to be nearly identicalto a partial sequence of an open reading frame (ORF) previouslyreported (EMBL database accession number S-30830). Accordingto the sequence in the EMBL database, we cloned 1.7-kb fragmentcontaining entire sequence of this ORF by PCR and found thatthis fragment contained a perfect match to the 0.99-kb sequenceamplified with the degenerate primers. From these results, weconcluded that this ORF is the FRDS gene. The amino acid sequencesof the regions involved in the non-covalent binding of FAD andthe active site, which are conserved among the flavoproteinsubunits of membrane-bound fumarate reductase and succinatedehydrogenase, were found in FRDS. However, unlike the membrane-boundenzymes, FRDS did not contain the histidine residue that covalentlybinds the isoalloxazine ring of FAD at or near the correspondingposition. FRDS showed high homology to the product of S. cerevisiaeOSM1 gene which was reported to be required for growth in hypertonicmedia.     

红冬孢酵母苹果酸酶基因RKME1的克隆与表达

苹果酸酶(malic enzyme,ME)普遍存在于各种生物体中,在二价阳离子(Mg~(2+)或者Mn~(2+))的存在下,它可以催化L-苹果酸进行氧化脱羧反应,产生丙酮酸、CO_2和NADPH。前期分析结果预测红冬孢酵母YM25235菌株具有2个苹果酸酶同功酶基因RKME1和RKME2,而且RKME1基因在15℃低温条件下mRNA转录水平显著提高。为了验证RKME1的结构与功能,以红冬孢酵母YM25235 cDNA为模板,PCR扩增得到大小为1 623 bp的开放阅读框,共编码540个氨基酸。序列分析结果显示该序列含有苹果酸酶保守的4个结构域(Ⅰ~Ⅳ),同源建模结果显示该序列的三级结构和蛔虫中的苹果酸酶晶体结构有较高相似性且高度保守。进一步将RKME1插入到载体pET32a(+)中构建重组表达质粒pET32a-RKME1,然后导入大肠杆菌BL21中进行表达。经IPTG诱导,获得了相对分子质量约为70 kD的蛋白质条带。将该蛋白质进行镍柱亲和层析纯化后,酶活分析的结果表明,重组表达的RKME1蛋白可催化苹果酸脱氢生成丙酮酸,同时生成NADPH,酶活为160 U/mg以上。上述结果表明,RKME1是一个新的苹果酸酶基因,这为深入研究苹果酸酶与红冬孢酵母低温条件下生长适应性之间的关系奠定了基础。     

Disruption of the CAR1 Gene Encoding Arginase Enhances Freeze Tolerance of the Commercial Baker's Yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The effect of intracellular charged amino acids on freeze tolerance in doughs was determined by constructing homozygous diploid arginase-deficient mutants of commercial baker's yeast. An arginase mutant accumulated higher levels of arginine and/or glutamate and showed increased leavening ability during the frozen-dough baking process, suggesting that disruption of the CAR1 gene enhances freeze tolerance.     

Characterization of the Function of the NIN1 Gene Product of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The nin1-1 mutant has been isolated as a temperature-sensitive mutant whose nucleus arrested at G2 phase and eventually disintegrated upon temperature upshift. In this study, a genetic event occurring in the nin1-1 mutant was found to be a frameshift mutation, resulting in a truncated protein smaller than the wild-type Nin1 protein. We found new phenotypes associated with the nin1-1 mutation: (i) rates of mitotic recombination and chromosome/plasmid loss in the nin1-1 strain were higher than those in the wild-type strain, and (ii) the mutant was more sensitive to uv irradiation than the wild-type strain. We found dotted structures in the cytoplasm of the wild-type cells by indirect immunofluorescence microscopy using the anti-Nin1 antibody. Similar results were obtained when we analyzed the localization of Nin1-β-galactosidase fusion protein formed in the cells expressing the NIN-lacZ fusion gene, which is active as NIN1, with anti-β-galactosidase antibody. The subcellular fractionation method revealed that Nin1 protein was not localized in a particular fraction of the cell lysate.     

Structural and functional analysis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Mob1

The Mob proteins function as activator subunits for the Dbf2/Dbf20 family of protein kinases. Human and Xenopus Mob1 protein structures corresponding to the most conserved C-terminal core, but lacking the variable N-terminal region, have been reported and provide a framework for understanding the mechanism of Dbf2/Dbf20 regulation. Here, we report the 2.0 A X-ray crystal structure of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Mob1 containing both the conserved C-terminal core and the variable N-terminal region. Within the N-terminal region, three novel structural elements are observed; namely, an alpha-helix denoted H0, a strand-like element denoted S0 and a short beta strand denoted S-1. Helix H0 associates in an intermolecular manner with a second Mob1 molecule to form a Mob1 homodimer. Strand S0 binds to the core domain in an intramolecular manner across a putative Dbf2 binding site mapped by Mob1 temperature-sensitive alleles and NMR binding experiments. In vivo functional analysis demonstrates that Mob1 mutants that target helix H0 or its reciprocal binding site are biologically compromised. The N-terminal region of Mob1 thus contains structural elements that are functionally important.