Lipid-induced Pore Formation of the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Aa Insecticidal Toxin

After activation, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) insecticidal toxin forms pores in larval midgut epithelial cell membranes, leading to host death. Although the crystal structure of the soluble form of Cry1Aa has been determined, the conformation of the pores and the mechanism of toxin interaction with and insertion into membranes are still not clear. Here we show that Cry1Aa spontaneously inserts into lipid mono- and bilayer membranes of appropriate compositions. Fourier Transform InfraRed spectroscopy (FTIR) indicates that insertion is accompanied by conformational changes characterized mainly by an unfolding of the β-sheet domains. Moreover, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) imaging strongly suggests that the pores are composed of four subunits surrounding a 1.5 nm diameter central depression. Received: 14 July 2000/Revised: 28 December 2000     

Alanine Scanning Analyses of the Three Major Loops in Domain II of Bacillus thuringiensis Mosquitocidal Toxin Cry4Aa

Cry4Aa produced by Bacillus thuringiensis is a dipteran-specific toxin and is of great interest for developing a bioinsecticide to control mosquitoes. Therefore, it is very important to characterize the functional motif of Cry4Aa that is responsible for its mosquitocidal activity. In this study, to characterize a potential receptor binding site, namely, loops 1, 2, and 3 in domain II, we constructed a series of Cry4Aa mutants in which a residue in these three loops was replaced with alanine. A bioassay using Culex pipiens larvae revealed that replacement of some residues affected the mosquitocidal activity of Cry4Aa, but the effect was limited. This finding was partially inconsistent with previous results which suggested that replacement of the Cry4Aa loop 2 results in a significant loss of mosquitocidal activity. Therefore, we constructed additional mutants in which multiple (five or six) residues in loop 2 were replaced with alanine. Although the replacement of multiple residues also resulted in some decrease in mosquitocidal activity, the mutants still showed relatively high activity. Since the insecticidal spectrum of Cry4Aa is specific, Cry4Aa must have a specific receptor on the surface of the target tissue, and loss of binding to the receptor should result in a complete loss of mosquitocidal activity. Our results suggested that, unlike the receptor binding site of the well-characterized molecule Cry1, the receptor binding site of Cry4Aa is different from loops 1, 2, and 3 or that there are multiple binding sites that work cooperatively for receptor binding.Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis has received considerable attention for mosquito control because of its specific and potent toxicity (15). B. thuringiensis subsp. israelensis-based microbial insecticides have been widely used as active components for integrated management of mosquitoes (11, 13, 33, 34). B. thuringiensis subsp. israelensis produces at least four major crystal toxins (Cry toxins), namely, Cry4Aa, Cry4Ba, Cry11Aa, and Cyt1Aa (5). Cry4Aa exhibits specific toxicity against Anopheles, Aedes, and Culex mosquito larvae (15, 27). The 130-kDa Cry4Aa protoxin is released from the protein crystal upon ingestion by susceptible mosquito larvae and is activated by gut proteases into two protease-resistant fragments with molecular masses of 20 and 45 kDa through intramolecular cleavage of a 60-kDa intermediate (39). The three-dimensional structure of Cry4Aa has been determined by X-ray crystallography at a resolution of 2.8 Å (6). The structure of Cry4Aa is similar to the structures of previously characterized Cry toxins (24, 26, 31) that are composed of three domains (domains I, II, and III). In general, domain I, which is located in the N-terminal region, is composed of seven amphipathic α-helices and is thought to participate in membrane insertion. Domain II, which consists of three antiparallel β-sheets, is a putative receptor binding domain (Fig. ​(Fig.1).1). In particular, the loops in domain II that are exposed on the surface of the toxin molecule vary significantly in length and amino acid sequence among Cry toxins (31) and are thought to be receptor binding sites. Domain III in the C-terminal region contains two antiparallel β-sheets that form a β-sandwich fold with a jellyroll topology (31). Domain III is assumed to be involved in structural integrity, membrane protein recognition, or both (23, 24, 30).Open in a separate windowFIG. 1.Three-dimensional structure of Cry4Aa domain II. The structure was generated with PyMOL software (8) using the Cry4Aa PDB code (6). The amino acid sequences and corresponding regions of loops 1, 2, and 3 are indicated by blue, red, and yellow, respectively. The amino acid sequences of β-strands adjacent to the loops are underlined.The insecticidal mechanism of Cry toxin involves multiple steps, including ingestion by susceptible insects, solubilization in the alkaline midgut juice, activation by trypsin-like midgut proteases, binding to specific receptors on midgut epithelial cells, and then insertion into the plasma membrane followed by the formation of cation-selective channels or pores (26, 31, 34, 41). According to the colloid-osmotic lysis model, these channels or pores allow ions and water to pass into the cells, resulting in destruction of the membrane potential, cell swelling, cell lysis, and eventual death of the host (20, 21). Thus, the mechanism seems to be very complicated and is affected by multiple factors. The binding of the toxin to the specific receptor is considered a vital step for specific insecticidal activity (35). In fact, modification of the receptor molecules has been reported for insects resistant to certain Cry toxins (12, 22, 36).In a search for the functional structures of Cry4Aa, we previously constructed various loop replacement mutants with mutations in the three major loops in domain II and showed that the replacement of loop 2 resulted in a significant loss of mosquitocidal activity. Replacement of loops 1 and 3 of Cry4Aa also affected mosquitocidal activity, but it did not eliminate it (17). In this study, to further characterize the loops, we constructed Cry4Aa mutants in which individual amino acids in the loops were replaced with alanine and analyzed the mutants to determine their mosquitocidal activity against Culex pipiens larvae. We also analyzed the structural integrity of the Cry4Aa mutant proteins subjected to proteolytic digestion and their binding affinity to brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) prepared from C. pipiens larvae.     

Dual Insecticidal Activity of Spodoptera-Toxic Bacillus thuringiensis Strain Transformed with Lepidopteran-Specific Cry Toxin

The E. coli-B. thuringiensis shuttle vector for expression of cry1Ac, pHT1K-1Ac plasmid was introduced into acrystalliferous B. thuringiensis Cry⁻B and Spodoptera toxic STB-3 strain. The presence of a recombinant plasmid in transformants after electroporation was confirmed by PCR. The 1K-1Ac/Cry⁻B(Cry⁻B transformant) and 1K-1Ac/STB-3 (STB-3 transformant) produced bipyramidal-shaped parasporal inclusion that was 130 kDa in size as like B. thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki HD-73. In P. xylostella bioassay, these transformants showed significantly high toxicity than the wild-type recipients and further, in case of B. thuringiensis STB-3 transformant still had original Spodoptera toxicity. These results suggested that the pHT1K could be successfully applied for generating individual B. thuringiensis strains that produce various combinations of insecticidal proteins to expand their host spectrum and enhance insecticidal activity.     

Mutations in Domain I Interhelical Loops Affect the Rate of Pore Formation by the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Aa Toxin in Insect Midgut Brush Border Membrane Vesicles

Pore formation in the apical membrane of the midgut epithelial cells of susceptible insects constitutes a key step in the mode of action of Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal toxins. In order to study the mechanism of toxin insertion into the membrane, at least one residue in each of the pore-forming-domain (domain I) interhelical loops of Cry1Aa was replaced individually by cysteine, an amino acid which is normally absent from the activated Cry1Aa toxin, using site-directed mutagenesis. The toxicity of most mutants to Manduca sexta neonate larvae was comparable to that of Cry1Aa. The ability of each of the activated mutant toxins to permeabilize M. sexta midgut brush border membrane vesicles was examined with an osmotic swelling assay. Following a 1-h preincubation, all mutants except the V150C mutant were able to form pores at pH 7.5, although the W182C mutant had a weaker activity than the other toxins. Increasing the pH to 10.5, a procedure which introduces a negative charge on the thiol group of the cysteine residues, caused a significant reduction in the pore-forming abilities of most mutants without affecting those of Cry1Aa or the I88C, T122C, Y153C, or S252C mutant. The rate of pore formation was significantly lower for the F50C, Q151C, Y153C, W182C, and S252C mutants than for Cry1Aa at pH 7.5. At the higher pH, all mutants formed pores significantly more slowly than Cry1Aa, except the I88C mutant, which formed pores significantly faster, and the T122C mutant. These results indicate that domain I interhelical loop residues play an important role in the conformational changes leading to toxin insertion and pore formation.Once ingested by susceptible insect larvae, the insecticidal crystal proteins of Bacillus thuringiensis are solubilized and converted to their toxic form by midgut proteases. The activated toxins bind to specific receptors on the surface of the luminal membrane of midgut columnar cells, insert into the membrane, and form pores that abolish transmembrane ionic gradients and osmotic balance, leading to the disruption of the epithelium and death of the insect (47, 51). Members of the B. thuringiensis Cry toxin family for which the atomic structure has been reported share a similar three-domain organization in which domain I is composed of a bundle of six amphipathic α-helices surrounding a hydrophobic helix (α5), and domains II and III are formed mostly of β-sheets (7, 8, 18, 26, 37, 38, 43). While domains II and III are thought to be involved in receptor binding and toxin specificity (47), domain I is believed to play a major role in membrane insertion and pore formation (51). Toxin fragments corresponding to domain I of Cry1Ac (62), Cry3Aa (53), and Cry3Ba (61) or to the first five α-helices of Cry4B (48) have been shown to form pores in model membranes. Pore formation in artificial membranes has also been demonstrated with synthetic peptides corresponding to α5 of Cry1Ac (13) and Cry3Aa (19, 21) and to the α4-loop-α5 segment of Cry3Aa (23). Spectroscopic studies have also revealed that while synthetic peptides corresponding to α4 and α5 can coassemble within a lipid bilayer, those corresponding to α2, α3, α6, and α7 adopt a membrane surface orientation (20, 22). In agreement with these findings, α4 was shown to line the lumen of the pores (42). On the other hand, convincing evidence supporting previous suggestions that most of the toxin molecule may become imbedded in the membrane (3, 39, 60) has recently been reported (44, 45).Thus, several models have been proposed for the mechanism of toxin insertion and pore formation (4, 9, 28, 32, 39, 44, 52, 56). Although these models differ in the identities of the toxin segments that are suggested to insert into the membrane, they all imply that the toxin undergoes conformational changes following binding to the membrane surface. Even though such changes imply rotations about the polypeptide backbone in domain I interhelical loops, little attention has been devoted so far to the role of domain I loop residues in pore formation.In the present study, amino acid residues strategically located within each of these loops in Cry1Aa were replaced by a cysteine using site-directed mutagenesis. The resulting mutant toxins were assayed with Manduca sexta midgut brush border membrane vesicles using a light-scattering technique. Mutations mapping within several of these loops altered the functional properties of Cry1Aa, suggesting the involvement of most domain I α-helices in the pore-forming process.     

Cry9Ca1 Toxin, a Bacillus thuringiensis Insecticidal Crystal Protein with High Activity against the Spruce Budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana)

The Cry9Ca1 toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis was significantly more toxic to spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) than the Cry1Ab6, Cry1Ba1, Cry1Ca2, Cry1Da1, Cry1Ea1, and Cry1Fa2 toxins. It displayed high activity against silkworm (Bombyx mori) but was not toxic to black army cutworm (Actebia fennica) or gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar). The Cry9Ca1 is the most effective spruce budworm toxin known to date and may offer promise for control and resistance management of that species.     

Differential Effects of pH on the Pore-Forming Properties of Bacillus thuringiensis Insecticidal Crystal Toxins

The effect of pH on the pore-forming ability of two Bacillus thuringiensis toxins, Cry1Ac and Cry1C, was examined with midgut brush border membrane vesicles isolated from the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, and a light-scattering assay. In the presence of Cry1Ac, membrane permeability remained high over the entire pH range tested (6.5 to 10.5) for KCl and tetramethylammonium chloride, but was much lower at pH 6.5 than at higher pHs for potassium gluconate, sucrose, and raffinose. On the other hand, the Cry1C-induced permeability to all substrates tested was much higher at pH 6.5, 7.5, and 8.5 than at pH 9.5 and 10.5. These results indicate that the pores formed by Cry1Ac are significantly smaller at pH 6.5 than under alkaline conditions, whereas the pore-forming ability of Cry1C decreases sharply above pH 8.5. The reduced activity of Cry1C at high pH correlates well with the fact that its toxicity for M. sexta is considerably weaker than that of Cry1Aa, Cry1Ab, and Cry1Ac. However, Cry1E, despite having a toxicity comparable to that of Cry1C, formed channels as efficiently as the Cry1A toxins at pH 10.5. These results strongly suggest that although pH can influence toxin activity, additional factors also modulate toxin potency in the insect midgut.     

苏云金芽胞杆菌杀虫晶体蛋白Cry1Ba结构域Ⅱ中Loops结构与功能关系研究

为了明确杀虫晶体蛋白中各个Loop的结构与功能的关系,以及Loop突变对Cry1Ba蛋白杀虫活性的影响,首先通过三维结构模拟以及同源序列分析的方法,找到Cry1Ba蛋白三个结构域及三个Loop相对应的氨基酸片段:然后通过重叠引物PCR将编码Cry1Ba蛋白结构域Ⅱ中的三个Loop进行了相应的突变,共获得了5个突变体M1(Loop1:340WSNTR344-缺失(Cry1A))、M2(Loop2:402Y-G)、M3(Loop2:400GIYLEP405-PSAV(Cry3A)),M4(400GIYLEPIH407-ILGS(Cry1A)),M5(Loop3:472LQSRV476-AGAVYTL(Cry1A)).将这些突变体在大肠杆菌BL21中进行了诱导表达,提取蛋白,分别对小菜蛾进行了生物活性测定.生测结果表明,Loop1的缺失突变M1的毒力,与Cry1Ba(LC50 0.96μg/mL)相比,显著降低,LC50为35.51 μg/mL;在Loop2的突变中,单个氨基酸的突变M2(Y/G)的毒力略有下降(LC50为1.31 μg/mL);而另两种突变(M3和M4)时小菜蛾的毒力明显下降,LC50值分别为11.56 μg/mL、34.81 μg/mL;Loop3的突变M5对小菜蛾的毒力略有提高(LC50 0.81 μg/mL),但差异不显著.对Cry1Ba蛋白突变前后结构与功能之间关系的分析结果表明,Loop区突变对Cry1Ba蛋白的结构和功能影响非常显著;Loop1和Loop2在决定Cry1Ba对小菜蛾的毒性方面起着重要作用.     

Analysis of Mutations in the Pore-Forming Region Essential for Insecticidal Activity of a Bacillus thuringiensis δ-Endotoxin

The Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal delta-endotoxins have a three-domain structure, with the seven amphipathic helices which comprise domain I being essential for toxicity. To better define the function of these helices in membrane insertion and toxicity, either site-directed or random mutagenesis of two regions was performed. Thirty-nucleotide segments in the B. thuringiensis cry1Ac1 gene, encoding parts of helix alpha4 and the loop connecting helices alpha4 and alpha5, were randomly mutagenized. This hydrophobic region of the toxin probably inserts into the membrane as a hairpin. Site-directed mutations were also created in specific surface residues of helix alpha3 in order to increase its hydrophobicity. Among 12 random mutations in helix alpha4, 5 resulted in the total loss of toxicity for Manduca sexta and Heliothis virescens, another caused a significant increase in toxicity, and one resulted in decreased toxicity. None of the nontoxic mutants was altered in toxin stability, binding of toxin to a membrane protein, or the ability of the toxin to aggregate in the membrane. Mutations in the loop connecting helices alpha4 and alpha5 did not affect toxicity, nor did mutations in alpha3, which should have enhanced the hydrophobic properties of this helix. In contrast to mutations in helix alpha5, those in helix alpha4 which inactivated the toxin did not affect its capacity to oligomerize in the membrane. Despite the formation of oligomers, there was no ion flow as measured by light scattering. Helix alpha5 is important for oligomerization and perhaps has other functions, whereas helix alpha4 must have a more direct role in establishing the properties of the channel.     

Expression and Crystallization of an N-Terminally Activated Form of the Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ca Toxin

When the active form of the Bacillus thuringiensis delta-endotoxin Cry1Ca was expressed in E. coli severe growth retardation was observed. The absence of a short peptide from the N-terminus of the protoxin was responsible for this effect. The introduction of a mutation at an amino acid previously reported as being involved in the initial stages of pore formation within the natural insect target partially abolished the growth retardation effect. We suggest that removal of the N-terminal peptide is a necessary step in toxin activation, the presence of this peptide preventing proper interaction of the toxin with the target membrane. Expression of the truncated toxin in Bacillus thuringiensis also prevented the formation of Cry1Ca crystals. Received: 7 March 2001 / Accepted: 12 April 2001     

Mutagenic Analysis of a Conserved Region of Domain III in the Cry1Ac Toxin of Bacillus thuringiensis

We used site-directed mutagenesis to probe the function of four alternating arginines located at amino acid positions 525, 527, 529, and 531 in a highly conserved region of domain III in the Cry1Ac toxin of Bacillus thuringiensis. We created 10 mutants: eight single mutants, with each arginine replaced by either glycine (G) or aspartic acid (D), and two double mutants (R525G/R527G and R529G/R531G). In lawn assays of the 10 mutants with a cultured Choristoneura fumiferana insect cell line (Cf1), replacement of a single arginine by either glycine or aspartic acid at position 525 or 529 decreased toxicity 4- to 12-fold relative to native Cry1Ac toxin, whereas replacement at position 527 or 531 decreased toxicity only 3-fold. The reduction in toxicity seen with double mutants was 8-fold for R525G/R527G and 25-fold for R529G/R531G. Five of the mutants (R525G, R525D, R527G, R529D, and R525G/R527G) were tested in bioassays with Plutella xylostella larvae and ion channel formation in planar lipid bilayers. In the bioassays, R525D, R529D, and R525G/R527G showed reduced toxicity. In planar lipid bilayers, the conductance and the selectivity of the mutants were similar to those of native Cry1Ac. Toxins with alteration at position 527 or 529 tended to remain in their subconducting states rather than the maximally conducting state. Our results suggest that the primary role of this conserved region is to maintain both the structural integrity of the native toxin and the full functionality of the formed membrane pore.     

苏云金芽孢杆菌Cry1Aa和Cry1Ca结构域交换对晶体形态和杀虫活性影响

通过体外重组的方法,实现了苏云金芽孢杆菌杀虫晶体蛋白Cry1Aa和Cry1Ca的功能性结构域Ⅰ、Ⅱ和Ⅲ的互换,得到了6株苏云金杆菌重组菌株BT-ACC,BT-AAC,BT-ACA,BT-CAA,BT-CCA和BT-CAC。SDS-PAGE和Westernblot分析表明,重组菌株BT-CAA和BT-CCA能表达产生135kDa左右的杂交晶体蛋白Cry1CAA和Cry1CCA,但其蛋白表达量较野生型Cry1Aa和Cry1Ca低。用牛胰蛋白酶对杂交晶体蛋白Cry1CAA、Cry1CCA及野生型Cry1Aa和Cry1Ca进行消化,证明所有晶体蛋白都能产生65kDa的活性毒素。电镜观察发现,野生菌株BT-Cry1Aa和BT-Cry1Ca形成典型的菱形晶体,而重组菌株BT-CCA和BT-CAA则形成球形或颗粒状杂交晶体。纯化晶体的生物测定显示,杂交晶体蛋白Cry1CAA和Cry1CCA对甜菜夜蛾的毒力比野生型晶体蛋白降低3~5倍,对棉铃虫的毒力比野生型晶体蛋白降低了190~260倍。研究结果表明,苏云金杆菌晶体蛋白不同结构域的相互作用会影响杂交晶体蛋白的表达、晶体形态和杀虫活性。     

Identification of Residues in Domain III of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ac Toxin That Affect Binding and Toxicity

Alanine substitution mutations in the Cry1Ac domain III region, from amino acid residues 503 to 525, were constructed to study the functional role of domain III in the toxicity and receptor binding of the protein to Lymantria dispar, Manduca sexta, and Heliothis virescens. Five sets of alanine block mutants were generated at the residues ⁵⁰³SS⁵⁰⁴, ⁵⁰⁶NNI⁵⁰⁸, ⁵⁰⁹QNR⁵¹¹, ⁵²²ST⁵²³, and ⁵²⁴ST⁵²⁵. Single alanine substitutions were made at the residues ⁵⁰⁹Q, ⁵¹⁰N, ⁵¹¹R, and ⁵¹³Y. All mutant proteins produced stable toxic fragments as judged by trypsin digestion, midgut enzyme digestion, and circular dichroism spectrum analysis. The mutations, ⁵⁰³SS⁵⁰⁴-AA, ⁵⁰⁶NNI⁵⁰⁸-AAA, ⁵²²ST⁵²³-AA, ⁵²⁴ST⁵²⁵-AA, and ⁵¹⁰N-A affected neither the protein’s toxicity nor its binding to brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) prepared from these insects. Toward L. dispar and M. sexta, the ⁵⁰⁹QNR⁵¹¹-AAA, ⁵⁰⁹Q-A, ⁵¹¹R-A, and ⁵¹³Y-A mutant toxins showed 4- to 10-fold reductions in binding affinities to BBMV, with 2- to 3-fold reductions in toxicity. Toward H. virescens, the ⁵⁰⁹QNR⁵¹¹-AAA, ⁵⁰⁹Q-A, ⁵¹¹R-A, and ⁵¹³Y-mutant toxins showed 8- to 22-fold reductions in binding affinities, but only ⁵⁰⁹QNR⁵¹¹-AAA and ⁵¹¹R-A mutant toxins reduced toxicity by approximately three to four times. In the present study, greater loss in binding affinity relative to toxicity has been observed. These data suggest that the residues ⁵⁰⁹Q, ⁵¹¹R, and ⁵¹³Y in domain III might be only involved in initial binding to the receptor and that the initial binding step becomes rate limiting only when it is reduced more than fivefold.     

营养因子对苏云金芽胞杆菌4.0718 产杀虫蛋白Cry1和Cry2的影响

为了提高杀虫蛋白Cry1和Cry2产量,首先采用Plackett-Burman设计筛选出发酵培养基中影响苏云金芽胞杆菌4.0718表达毒蛋白Cry1的显著性因子为黄豆饼粉和MnSO4·H2O,Cry2的产量在该配方中无显著性影响因子.然后利用最速上升实验逼近Cry1最大产出区域,找到后续试验中心点.最后通过响应面优化得到黄豆饼粉和MnSO4·H2O的最佳浓度为11.5 g/L和0.02 g/L,使Cry1和Cry2产量分别达到0.32 mg/mL和0.11 mg/mL,比原优选配方产量提高了两倍多.该优化配方发酵液对棉铃虫的半致死浓度(LC50)为1.09 μL/mL,杀虫活性比原优化配方显著提高.     

A Spodoptera exigua Cadherin Serves as a Putative Receptor for Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Ca Toxin and Shows Differential Enhancement of Cry1Ca and Cry1Ac Toxicity

Crystal toxin Cry1Ca from Bacillus thuringiensis has an insecticidal spectrum encompassing lepidopteran insects that are tolerant to current commercially used B. thuringiensis crops (Bt crops) expressing Cry1A toxins and may be useful as a potential bioinsecticide. The mode of action of Cry1A is fairly well understood. However, whether Cry1Ca interacts with the same receptor proteins as Cry1A remains unproven. In the present paper, we first cloned a cadherin-like gene, SeCad1b, from Spodoptera exigua (relatively susceptible to Cry1Ca). SeCad1b was highly expressed in the larval gut but scarcely detected in fat body, Malpighian tubules, and remaining carcass. Second, we bacterially expressed truncated cadherin rSeCad1bp and its interspecific homologue rHaBtRp from Helicoverpa armigera (more sensitive to Cry1Ac) containing the putative toxin-binding regions. Competitive binding assays showed that both Cry1Ca and Cry1Ac could bind to rSeCad1bp and rHaBtRp, and they did not compete with each other. Third, Cry1Ca ingestion killed larvae and decreased the weight of surviving larvae. Dietary introduction of SeCad1b double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) reduced approximately 80% of the target mRNA and partially alleviated the negative effect of Cry1Ca on larval survival and growth. Lastly, rSeCad1bp and rHaBtRp differentially enhanced the negative effects of Cry1Ca and Cry1Ac on the larval mortalities and growth of S. exigua and H. armigera. Thus, we provide the first lines of evidence to suggest that SeCad1b from S. exigua is a functional receptor of Cry1Ca.     

Inheritance of Resistance to the Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin Cry1C in the Diamondback Moth

Laboratory selection increased resistance to the Bacillus thuringiensis toxin Cry1C in a strain of diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella). The selected strain was derived from a field population that had evolved high levels of resistance to Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. kurstaki and moderate resistance to Cry1C. Relative to the responses of a susceptible strain of diamondback moth, the resistance to Cry1C of the selected strain increased to 62-fold after six generations of selection. The realized heritability of resistance was 0.10. Analysis of F(inf1) hybrid progeny from reciprocal crosses between the selected strain and a susceptible strain showed that resistance to Cry1C was autosomally inherited. The dominance of resistance to Cry1C depended on the concentration; inheritance was increasingly dominant as the concentration decreased. Responses of progeny from single-pair families showed that resistance to Cry1C and resistance to Cry1Ab were inherited independently, which enhances opportunities for managing resistance. However, compared with projections based on previously reported recessive inheritance of resistance to Cry1A toxins, the potentially dominant inheritance of resistance to Cry1C observed here could accelerate evolution of resistance.     

Influence of Mutagenesis of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry1Aa Toxin on Larvicidal Activity

Domain III of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry δ-endotoxins are considered to be related to the stability of the structure and avoidance of overdigestion by proteases. In this study, some residues of potential chymotrypsin and trypsin sites in Domain III of B. thuringiensis Cry1Aa were replaced individually with alanine by site-directed mutagenesis, in order to investigate their functional roles. Except F574A, all mutants F536A, R543A, F550A, F565A, R566A, F570A, F576A, F583A, and F590A were highly expressed the 130 kD protoxins at levels comparable to the wild-type tested by SDS-PAGE. In bioassays, F536A, R566A, and F590A increased toxicity against Spodoptera exigua Hüner larve by 20, 40, and 40%, respectively, as compared to the wild-type. F536A and F565A showed an increase of 6 and 10% in toxicity against Heliothis armigera Hubner than the wild-type. Toxicities of some mutants were altered greatly, and the same mutants were shown to have different toxicities against those two insects. Structural analyses showed that mutants R543A, F574A, F576A-affecting insecticidal activity might be relational to structural stability of toxin or decreased affinity for receptor binding. These results indicated that those residues were involved in the larvicidal activity of the Cry1Aa toxin.     

Role of Tryptophan Residues in Toxicity of Cry1Ab Toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis produces insecticidal proteins (Cry protoxins) during the sporulation phase as parasporal crystals. During intoxication, the Cry protoxins must change from insoluble crystals into membrane-inserted toxins which form ionic pores. The structural changes of Cry toxins during oligomerization and insertion into the membrane are still unknown. The Cry1Ab toxin has nine tryptophan residues; seven are located in domain I, the pore-forming domain, and two are located in domain II, which is involved in receptor recognition. Eight Trp residues are highly conserved within the whole family of three-domain Cry proteins, suggesting an essential role for these residues in the structural folding and function of the toxin. In this work, we analyzed the role of Trp residues in the structure and function of Cry1Ab toxin. We replaced the Trp residues with phenylalanine or cysteine using site-directed mutagenesis. Our results show that W65 and W316 are important for insecticidal activity of the toxin since their replacement by Phe reduced the toxicity against Manduca sexta. The presence of hydrophobic residue is important at positions 117, 219, 226, and 455 since replacement by Cys affected either the crystal formation or the insecticidal activity of the toxin in contrast to replacement by Phe in these positions. Additionally, some mutants in positions 219, 316, and 455 were also affected in binding to brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV). This is the first report that studies the role of Trp residues in the activity of Cry toxins.     

Effects of the Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin Cry1Ab on Membrane Currents of Isolated Cells of the Ruminal Epithelium

A previous study has shown that Cry1Ab, a lepidopteran-specific toxin derived from Bacillus thuringiensis, does not affect the vitality of cultured cells of the ruminal epithelium of the sheep. While this may be due to lack of specific receptors for toxin action, other mechanisms of resistance should also be considered. In order to directly assess the pore-forming potential of Cry1Ab, we studied the interaction of this toxin with isolated, perfused cells of the ruminal epithelium using the whole-cell and single-channel configurations of the patch-clamp technique. At concentrations found in vivo in the rumen of cows (<10 ng/ml) and at a temperature of 37°C, no significant effects of Cry1Ab could be observed. At 100 ng/ml, exposure of ruminal cells to Cry1Ab induced a significant rise in outward current in 16 of 34 cells, with a fourfold increase in the conductance for potassium. The cell membrane remained selective for potassium over sodium (p[K]/p[Na] = 1.8 ± 0.3), with a considerable additional chloride conductance. In outside-out patches, exposure to high Cry1Ab concentrations induced channel-like events that reached levels of over 500 pS. We conclude that the unchanged vitality of intact ruminal epithelial cells exposed to Cry1Ab in vitro at high concentrations may be related to other factors besides the proposed absence of a specific receptor for the membrane insertion of this toxin.     

Structural and Biophysical Characterization of Bacillus thuringiensis Insecticidal Proteins Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1

Bacillus thuringiensis strains are well known for the production of insecticidal proteins upon sporulation and these proteins are deposited in parasporal crystalline inclusions. The majority of these insect-specific toxins exhibit three domains in the mature toxin sequence. However, other Cry toxins are structurally and evolutionarily unrelated to this three-domain family and little is known of their three dimensional structures, limiting our understanding of their mechanisms of action and our ability to engineer the proteins to enhance their function. Among the non-three domain Cry toxins, the Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 proteins from B. thuringiensis strain PS149B1 are required to act together to produce toxicity to the western corn rootworm (WCR) Diabrotica virgifera virgifera Le Conte via a pore forming mechanism of action. Cry34Ab1 is a protein of ∼14 kDa with features of the aegerolysin family (Pfam06355) of proteins that have known membrane disrupting activity, while Cry35Ab1 is a ∼44 kDa member of the toxin_10 family (Pfam05431) that includes other insecticidal proteins such as the binary toxin BinA/BinB. The Cry34Ab1/Cry35Ab1 proteins represent an important seed trait technology having been developed as insect resistance traits in commercialized corn hybrids for control of WCR. The structures of Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 have been elucidated to 2.15 Å and 1.80 Å resolution, respectively. The solution structures of the toxins were further studied by small angle X-ray scattering and native electrospray ion mobility mass spectrometry. We present here the first published structure from the aegerolysin protein domain family and the structural comparisons of Cry34Ab1 and Cry35Ab1 with other pore forming toxins.