耐热碱性磷酸酶(FD-TAP)的结构模型研究

 以大肠杆菌碱性磷酸酶 (BAP)为主要结构模板 ,用计算机同源结构模拟方法构建了耐热碱性磷酸酶 (FD TAP)的三维结构 ,对它们的结构特征进行了分析比较 ,并用Profile 3D和Ramachand ran图等方法分析了结构的合理性 .在此基础上 ,又构建了FD TAP 3个突变体的结构 ,用CHARMM能量计算法研究了FD TAP及其 3个突变体的能量与酶蛋白热稳定性之间的关系 ,得到了与实验完全一致的结果 .结果说明 ,如果氨基酸残基置换使蛋白质分子的总能量降低 ,疏水性增高和柔韧性减小 ,往往使蛋白质的耐热性增加     

枯草杆菌色氨酰tRNA合成酶的同源模建

色氨酰tRNA合成酶（TrpRS）在蛋白质合成系统中具有非常重要的地位。通过蛋白质同源模建得到了枯草杆菌（Bacillus subtilis）色氨酰tRNA合成酶的三维结构。研究表明合成酶的二级结构含有16个α螺旋和5个β折叠,唯一的色氨酸Trp^92位于两个亚基的界面上。模建结果对配基结合位点和活性位点以及可能与tRNA^Trp结合的方式也给出了预测。     

通过分析来自Pyrococcus abyssi的腈水解酶中带电基团位置变化探讨蛋白耐热机制

蛋白含带电侧链基团的氨基酸的位置对蛋白质的热稳定性有很大的影响,目前,往往采用蛋白质结构模型"静态"分析这一影响。本文以1株耐热的腈水解酶作为研究对象,构建并异源表达了该酶,对其酶学性质进行初步分析。利用Discovery Studio对该酶进行同源建模,得到空间结构。将此空间结构利用Gromacs软件在不同温度下进行分子动力学(MD)模拟,使用Macrodox软件计算蛋白质所有带电氨基酸残基的包埋率与溶剂可接触性面积(SA),发现在不同温度下,部分氨基酸带电基团的SA值会发生显著变化。说明通过静态分析并不一定能够得到非常准确的结果,而应进行动态分析。     

脯氨酸转运相关基因的研究进展

作为植物中普遍存在的一种逆境适应机制, 脯氨酸积累一直被认为是其合成和降解调控的结果。然而越来越多的研究表明, 脯氨酸转运也可能在其积累过程中起重要作用。在植物中, 有多个氨基酸转运蛋白家族, 如氨基酸通透酶家族(AAPs)、赖氨酸组氨酸转运蛋白家族(LHTs)和脯氨酸转运蛋白家族(ProTs)参与脯氨酸在各个器官间的运输。该文对参与脯氨酸运输的基因家族成员的表达模式、生理功能及表达调控进行了综述, 以期为脯氨酸运输与积累在植物抗逆方面的研究提供参考。     

氨基酸组成对蛋白质耐热性的影响

为了研究一级结构对蛋白质耐热性的影响,利用软件DNAMAN对16个家族32种蛋白质序列进行了氨基酸含量分析,并统计分析了氨基酸组成对蛋白质耐热性的影响。通过比较同一家族的高低温蛋白质序列及16个家族中所有高温和低温蛋白质序列中氨基酸含量的变化可以推断(从低温到高温)：Ser、Cys．含量降低显著,Arg、Ile、Pro含量升高显著。由此可知高温蛋白质倾向于含有疏水性氨基酸而避免亲水性氨基酸。     

氨基酸环状衍生物的合成及抑菌活性

近年来,氨基酸及其衍生物在医药和农业上已显示有广阔的应用前景。现就近十余年来,国外文献报道的具有抗病原微生物活性的氨基酸环状衍生物作一简要概述。     

Partial sequence of hemoglobin from cobra (Naja naja naja)

Hemoglobin from the cobra snake, Naja naja naja, was isolated and its chains separated on a CM-cellulose column. The separation profile revealed an and two chains having the molar proportions of []₂,[ ₁]₁,[ ₂]₁. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the intact chains and of the CNBr peptides were carried out. The ₂ chain was found to be heterogeneous comprising a minor component amounting to 11%. This later showed changes at two positions 9 and 14 in the first 30 residues sequenced.     

Sequence similarities between chicken intestinal 110-kDa ATPase and myosin I-like enzymes

We report the partial amino acid sequence of chicken intestinal microvillar 110-kDa protein that, as a complex with calmodulin, has previously been shown to exhibit myosin-like ATPase and actin-binding activities. The sequence shows a high degree of similarity to the sequence of a novel vertebrate myosin I-like heavy chain encoded by a cDNA isolated from bovine intestine. This confirms that the bovine and chicken proteins are the first examples of Acanthamoeba myosin I-like proteins from higher eukaryotes. Comparison of available structural and functional data leads us to postulate that the myosin I family of proteins result from the fusion of a conserved myosin headlike motor domain, with variable COOH-terminal domains responsible for binding to specific intracellular structures.     

利用脯氨酸效应提高短乳杆菌谷氨酸脱羧酶的热稳定性

以磷酸吡哆醛为辅酶的谷氨酸脱羧酶(Glutamate decarboxylase,GAD),能专一、不可逆地催化L-谷氨酸脱去α-羧基生成γ-氨基丁酸。为了提高GAD热稳定性为目标,本研究通过与嗜热古细菌Thermococcus kodakarensis中GAD氨基酸序列的比对及引入脯氨酸策略,最终在短乳杆菌Lactobacillus brevis CGMCC No.1306的GAD突变体中筛选得到热稳定性提高的突变酶G364P。结果显示,突变酶G364P在55℃的半衰期以及半失活温度分别比野生酶提高19.4 min和5.3℃,并且突变酶G364P的催化效率与野生酶相比没有明显变化。此外,利用分子动力学模拟来验证突变对蛋白质热稳定性的影响,突变酶G364P的均方根偏差(Rootmeansquare deviation,RMSD)以及含G364的loop区域均方根涨落(Root mean square fluctuation,RMSF)均比野生酶低,引入脯氨酸增加了364位氨基酸与相邻氨基酸的疏水相互作用。文中通过引入脯氨酸成功提高了L. brevis中GAD的热稳定性,同时也为其他酶热稳定性的理性设计提供了方法学指导。     

各地区人类嗜T细胞病毒Ⅰ型的聚类分析

已有相关文献表明人类嗜T细胞病毒Ⅰ型(Human T-lymphotropic virus 1,记为HTLV-Ⅰ)的分布具有区域性,本文旨在提出不同的分析区域性的方法。首先从GenBank中选取来自亚洲、南美洲、非洲的共20条核苷酸序列,用分子生物学软件Vector NTI Suite分析各地区序列样本内部的同源性,然后以各序列的氨基酸含量为对象,定义一个全新的公式进行同源性分析,将该结果与其他研究者采用实验的方法的分析结果比较。结果发现不同的分析方法所得的结论均是一致的。这表明:HTLV-Ⅰ病毒的分布有明显的区域性,文章采用的研究方法对其他流行病学的研究是同样可行的。     

MoFvAb: Modeling the Fv region of antibodies

Knowledge of the 3-dimensional structure of the antigen-binding region of antibodies enables numerous useful applications regarding the design and development of antibody-based drugs. We present a knowledge-based antibody structure prediction methodology that incorporates concepts that have arisen from an applied antibody engineering environment. The protocol exploits the rich and continuously growing supply of experimentally derived antibody structures available to predict CDR loop conformations and the packing of heavy and light chain quickly and without user intervention. The homology models are refined by a novel antibody-specific approach to adapt and rearrange sidechains based on their chemical environment. The method achieves very competitive all-atom root mean square deviation values in the order of 1.5 Å on different evaluation datasets consisting of both known and previously unpublished antibody crystal structures.     

Bridging the gap: A set of selective 1H-15N-correlations to link sequential neighbors of prolines

Triple-resonance experiments are standard in the assignment of protein spectra. Conventional assignment strategies use ¹H-¹⁵N-correlations as a starting point and therefore have problems when proline appears in the amino acid sequence, which lacks a signal in these correlations. Here we present a set of amino acid selective pulse sequences which provide the information to link the amino acid on either side of proline residues and thus complete the sequential assignment. The experiments yield amino acid type selective ¹H-¹⁵N-correlations which contain signals from the amino protons of the residues either preceding or following proline in the amino acid sequence. These protons are correlated with their own nitrogen or with that of the proline. The new experiments are recorded as two-dimensional experiments and their performance is demonstrated by application to a 115-residue protein domain.     

Identification and characterization of GABA, proline and quaternary ammonium compound transporters from Arabidopsis thaliana

Arabidopsis thaliana grows efficiently on GABA as the sole nitrogen source, thereby providing evidence for the existence of GABA transporters in plants. Heterologous complementation of a GABA uptake-deficient yeast mutant identified two previously known plant amino acid transporters, AAP3 and ProT2, as GABA transporters with Michaelis constants of 12.9±1.7 and 1.7±0.3 mM at pH 4, respectively. The simultaneous transport of [1-¹⁴C]GABA and [2,3-³H]proline by ProT2 as a function of pH, provided evidence that the zwitterionic state of GABA is an important parameter in substrate recognition. ProT2-mediated [1-¹⁴C]GABA transport was inhibited by proline and quaternary ammonium compounds.     

Analysis of thermal adaptation in the HSL enzyme family

The recently solved three-dimensional (3D) structures of two thermostable members of the carboxylesterase/lipase HSL family, namely the Alicyclobacillus (formerly Bacillus) acidocaldarius and Archaeoglobus fulgidus carboxylesterases (EST2 and AFEST, respectively) were compared with that of the mesophilic homologous counterpart Brefeldine A esterase from Bacillus subtilis. Since the 3D homology models of other members of the HSL family were also available, we performed a structural alignment with all these sequences. The resulting alignment was used to assess the amino acid “traffic rule” in the HSL family. Quite surprisingly, the data were in very good agreement with those recently reported from two independent groups and based on the comparison of a huge number of homologous sequences from the genus Bacillus, Methanococcus and Deinococcus/Thermus. Taken as a whole, the data point to the statistical meaning of defined amino acid conversions going from psychrophilic to hyperthermophilic sequences. We identified and mapped several such changes onto the EST2 structure and observed that such mutations were localized mostly in loops regions or α-helices and were mostly excluded from the active site. A site-directed mutagenesis of two of the identified residues confirmed they were involved in thermal stability.