The Villin/Gelsolin/Fragmin Superfamily Proteins in Plants

The villin/gelsolin/fragmin superfamily is a conserved Ca^2＋-dependent family of actin-regulating proteins that is widely present both in mammalian and non-mammalian organisms. They have traditionally been characterized by the same core of three or six tandem gelsolin subdomains. The study in vertebrates and lower eukaryotic cells has revealed that the villin/gelsolin/fragmin superfamily of proteins has versatile functions including severing, capping, nucleating or bundling actin filaments. In plants, encouraging progress has been made in this field of research in recent years. This review will summarize the identified plant homologs of villin/gelsolin/fragmin superfamily, thus providing a basis for reflection on their biochemical activities and functions in plants.     

Supervillin (p205): A Novel Membrane-associated, F-Actin–binding Protein in the Villin/Gelsolin Superfamily

Actin-binding membrane proteins are involved in both adhesive interactions and motile processes. We report here the purification and initial characterization of p205, a 205-kD protein from bovine neutrophil plasma membranes that binds to the sides of actin filaments in blot overlays. p205 is a tightly bound peripheral membrane protein that cosediments with endogenous actin in sucrose gradients and immunoprecipitates. Amino acid sequences were obtained from SDS-PAGE–purified p205 and used to generate antipeptide antibodies, immunolocalization data, and cDNA sequence information. The intracellular localization of p205 in MDBK cells is a function of cell density and adherence state. In subconfluent cells, p205 is found in punctate spots along the plasma membrane and in the cytoplasm and nucleus; in adherent cells, p205 concentrates with E-cadherin at sites of lateral cell–cell contact. Upon EGTA-mediated cell dissociation, p205 is internalized with E-cadherin and F-actin as a component of adherens junctions “rings.” At later times, p205 is observed in cytoplasmic punctae. The high abundance of p205 in neutrophils and suspension-grown HeLa cells, which lack adherens junctions, further suggests that this protein may play multiple roles during cell growth, adhesion, and motility. Molecular cloning of p205 cDNA reveals a bipartite structure. The COOH terminus exhibits a striking similarity to villin and gelsolin, particularly in regions known to bind F-actin. The NH₂ terminus is novel, but contains four potential nuclear targeting signals. Because p205 is now the largest known member of the villin/gelsolin superfamily, we propose the name, “supervillin.” We suggest that supervillin may be involved in actin filament assembly at adherens junctions and that it may play additional roles in other cellular compartments.     

SERPINA3K Plays Antioxidant Roles in Cultured Pterygial Epithelial Cells through Regulating ROS System

We recently demonstrated that SERPINA3K, a serine proteinase inhibitor, has antioxidant activity in the cornea. Here we investigated the antioxidant effects of SERPINA3K on the pterygial, which is partially caused by oxidative stress in pathogenesis. The head part of primary pterygial tissue was dissected and then cultured in keratinocyte serum-free defined medium (KSFM). The cultured pterygial epithelial cells (PECs) were treated with SERPINA3K. The cell proliferation and migration of PECs were measured and analyzed. Western blot and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay were performed. It showed that SERPINA3K significantly suppressed the cell proliferation of PECs in a concentration-dependent manner, compared with cultured human conjunctival epithelial cells. SERPINA3K also inhibited the cell migration of PECs. Towards its underlying mechanism, SERPINA3K had antioxidant activities on the PECs by significantly inhibiting NADPH oxidase 4 (NOX4), which is an important enzyme of ROS generation, and by elevating the levels of key antioxidant factors of ROS: such as NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (quinone 1) (NQO1), NF-E2–related factor-2 (NRF2) and superoxide dismutases (SOD2). Meanwhile, SERPINA3K down-regulated the key effectors of Wnt signaling pathway: β-catenin, nonphospho-β-catenin, and low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 6 (LRP6). We provided novel evidence that SERPINA3K had inhibitory effects on pterygium and SERPINA3K played antioxidant role via regulating the ROS system and antioxidants.     

Helix Straightening as an Activation Mechanism in the Gelsolin Superfamily of Actin Regulatory Proteins

Villin and gelsolin consist of six homologous domains of the gelsolin/cofilin fold (V1–V6 and G1–G6, respectively). Villin differs from gelsolin in possessing at its C terminus an unrelated seventh domain, the villin headpiece. Here, we present the crystal structure of villin domain V6 in an environment in which intact villin would be inactive, in the absence of bound Ca²⁺ or phosphorylation. The structure of V6 more closely resembles that of the activated form of G6, which contains one bound Ca²⁺, rather than that of the calcium ion-free form of G6 within intact inactive gelsolin. Strikingly apparent is that the long helix in V6 is straight, as found in the activated form of G6, as opposed to the kinked version in inactive gelsolin. Molecular dynamics calculations suggest that the preferable conformation for this helix in the isolated G6 domain is also straight in the absence of Ca²⁺ and other gelsolin domains. However, the G6 helix bends in intact calcium ion-free gelsolin to allow interaction with G2 and G4. We suggest that a similar situation exists in villin. Within the intact protein, a bent V6 helix, when triggered by Ca²⁺, straightens and helps push apart adjacent domains to expose actin-binding sites within the protein. The sixth domain in this superfamily of proteins serves as a keystone that locks together a compact ensemble of domains in an inactive state. Perturbing the keystone initiates reorganization of the structure to reveal previously buried actin-binding sites.Actin is crucial to such processes as cell movement, cell division, and apoptosis, which are regulated by numerous actin-binding proteins, including gelsolin, Arp2/3, and profilin (for review, see Ref. 1). Gelsolin, the most potent actin filament-severing protein known, can bind to, sever, cap, and nucleate actin filaments in a calcium-, pH-, ATP-, and phospholipid-dependent manner (for review, see Ref. 2). Villin, found in microvilli of absorptive epithelium, is a second member of the gelsolin family of actin-binding proteins. In addition to standard gelsolin-type activities, villin is able to bundle actin filaments and is subject to regulation by tyrosine phosphorylation as well as by Ca²⁺ and phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (for review, see Ref. 3). Many comparisons have been made between gelsolin and villin. The two share 50% amino acid sequence identity and show similar proteolytic cleavage patterns (4). Both contain six similarly folded domains, but villin possesses a seventh domain at its C terminus, the headpiece (HP)² domain, which folds into a compact structure that introduces a second F-actin-binding site into the protein. Recent studies indicate that villin uses the HP F-actin-binding sites to achieve bundling (5). In an environment devoid of free Ca²⁺, gelsolin and villin assume inactive conformations. After binding Ca²⁺, both undergo conformational rearrangements that expose their binding sites for F-actin. In villin, this includes revealing the HP actin-binding site through a “hinge mechanism” (6).Biochemical and structural studies have revealed eight Ca²⁺-binding sites of two types in gelsolin (for review, see Ref. 7). Each of the six domains contains a complete and evolutionarily conserved site, termed type 2, whereas G1 and G4 provide partial Ca²⁺ coordination at interfaces with actin through sites termed type 1. Sequential mutagenesis of these sites in villin has identified six functional Ca²⁺-binding sites (8): two major sites, one each of type 1 and type 2, in V1, plus four type 2 sites in V2–V6. The type 1 site in V1 regulates F-actin-capping and F-actin-severing activities, whereas the lower affinity type 2 site in V1 only affects severing (9). The other four sites are involved in stabilizing villin conformation, but they do not directly influence actin-severing activity. NMR studies of a fragment of villin that consists of V6 and the HP domain have implicated V6 residues Asn⁶⁴⁷, Asp⁶⁴⁸, and Glu⁶⁷⁰ in binding Ca²⁺ (10). These experiments also revealed the first 80 residues of V6 to undergo significant conformational change as a result of Ca²⁺ binding.Nanomolar to micromolar concentrations of free Ca²⁺ govern the actin-binding activities of gelsolin. In contrast, micromolar and millimolar concentrations of calcium ions are required for villin to exhibit capping and severing, respectively. However, after tyrosine phosphorylation, villin can sever actin filaments even at nanomolar Ca²⁺ concentrations (11). Furthermore, although the actin-severing ability of the N-terminal half of villin is calcium-dependent, that by the N-terminal half of gelsolin is not. In contrast, the binding of G-actin of the C-terminal half of both villin and gelsolin requires Ca²⁺. Creation of hybrid proteins demonstrated that the domains of villin and gelsolin are not interchangeable (12).Abundant x-ray crystallographic structural information exists for gelsolin, including the calcium ion-free (Ca²⁺-free), inactive structure of the intact protein (13), the activated N- and C-terminal halves, each in a bimolecular complex with actin (7, 14), and the activated C-terminal half on its own (15, 16). Structural data for intact villin are unavailable and are limited to fragment V1 (17), solved using NMR methods, and the HP domain, solved by NMR and x-ray crystallography (18, 19). NMR experiments also indicate that HP is connected to V6 by a 40-residue disordered linker. As a result, HP has been proposed to bind actin independently of the remainder of the protein (10).In this report, we present the structure of Ca²⁺-free, isolated villin V6, which exhibits a typical gelsolin domain fold. The long helix in V6 in this structure is straight, unlike the corresponding helix in G6 of intact Ca²⁺-free gelsolin, which is bent, and only straightens on calcium activation of the intact protein. Hence, V6 appears to be in an active conformation in the absence of Ca²⁺. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate that the preferred state of the long helix is also straight for isolated G6 in the absence of Ca²⁺. Furthermore, they suggest a bistable mechanism of helix conformational change regulated by the presence of the remaining domains, by calcium ions, and by other interactants. We therefore propose a mechanism for the gelsolin family proteins whereby Ca²⁺ triggers the straightening of the domain 6 helix in the native conformation of the inactive proteins to propagate more widespread conformational changes.     

Gelsolin Plays a Role in the Actin Polymerization Complex of Hair Cell Stereocilia

A complex of proteins scaffolded by the PDZ protein, whirlin, reside at the stereocilia tip and are critical for stereocilia development and elongation. We have shown that in outer hair cells (OHCs) whirlin is part of a larger complex involving the MAGUK protein, p55, and protein 4.1R. Whirlin interacts with p55 which is expressed exclusively in outer hair cells (OHC) in both the long stereocilia that make up the stereocilia bundle proper as well as surrounding shorter microvilli that will eventually regress. In erythrocytes, p55 forms a tripartite complex with protein 4.1R and glycophorin C promoting the assembly of actin filaments and the interaction of whirlin with p55 indicates that it plays a similar role in OHC stereocilia. However, the components directly involved in actin filament regulation in stereocilia are unknown. We have investigated additional components of the whirlin interactome by identifying interacting partners to p55. We show that the actin capping and severing protein, gelsolin, is a part of the whirlin complex. Gelsolin is detected in OHC where it localizes to the tips of the shorter rows but not to the longest row of stereocilia and the pattern of localisation at the apical hair cell surface is strikingly similar to p55. Like p55, gelsolin is ablated in the whirler and shaker2 mutants. Moreover, in a gelsolin mutant, stereocilia in the apex of the cochlea become long and straggly indicating defects in the regulation of stereocilia elongation. The identification of gelsolin provides for the first time a link between the whirlin scaffolding protein complex involved in stereocilia elongation and a known actin regulatory molecule.     

The DCX Superfamily 1: Common and Divergent Roles for Members of the Mouse DCX Superfamily

The doublecortin-like (DCX) domains serve as protein-interaction platforms. DCXtandem domains appear in the product of the X-linked doublecortin (DCX) gene, inretinitis pigmentosa –1 (RP1), as well as in other gene products. Mutations in the humanDCX gene are associated with abnormal neuronal migration, epilepsy, and mentalretardation; mutations in RP1 are associated with a form of inherited blindness, whileDCDC2 has been associated with dyslectic reading disabilities. Motivated by the possibleimportance of this gene family, a thorough analysis to detect all family members in themouse was conducted. The DCX-repeat gene superfamily is composed of elevenparalogs, and we cloned the DCX domains from nine different genes. Our studyquestioned which functions attributed to the DCX domain, are conserved among thedifferent members. Our results suggest that the proteins with the DCX-domain haveconserved and unique roles in microtubule regulation and signal transduction. All thetested proteins stimulated microtubule assembly in vitro. Proteins with tandem repeatsstabilized the microtubule cytoskeleton in transfected cells, while those with singlerepeats localized to actin-rich subcellular structures, or the nucleus. All tested proteins interacted with components of the JNK/MAP-kinase pathway, while only a subsetinteracted with Neurabin 2, and a non-overlapping group demonstrated actin association.The sub-specialization of some members due to confined intracellular localization, andprotein interactions may explain the success of this superfamily.     

14-3-3蛋白对植物发育的调控作用

14-3-3蛋白是高度保守并在真核生物中普遍存在的一类调节蛋白。不同的14-3-3蛋白同工型具有不同的细胞特异性, 并通过识别特异的磷酸化序列与靶蛋白相互作用, 被称为蛋白质与蛋白质相互作用的桥梁蛋白。在植物生长发育过程中, 14-3-3蛋白通过与其它蛋白的相互作用参与多种植物激素信号转导、各种代谢调控、物质运输和光信号应答等调控过程。该文主要对近年来有关14-3-3蛋白在植物生长发育中的调控作用, 特别是14-3-3蛋白参与调控植物激素信号转导等方面的研究进展进行综述。     

The Actin-Binding Proteins Eps8 and Gelsolin Have Complementary Roles in Regulating the Growth and Stability of Mechanosensory Hair Bundles of Mammalian Cochlear Outer Hair Cells

Sound transduction depends upon mechanosensitive channels localized on the hair-like bundles that project from the apical surface of cochlear hair cells. Hair bundles show a stair-case structure composed of rows of stereocilia, and each stereocilium contains a core of tightly-packed and uniformly-polarized actin filaments. The growth and maintenance of the stereociliary actin core are dynamically regulated. Recently, it was shown that the actin-binding protein gelsolin is expressed in the stereocilia of outer hair cells (OHCs) and in its absence they become long and straggly. Gelsolin is part of a whirlin scaffolding protein complex at the stereocilia tip, which has been shown to interact with other actin regulatory molecules such as Eps8. Here we investigated the physiological effects associated with the absence of gelsolin and its possible overlapping role with Eps8. We found that, in contrast to Eps8, gelsolin does not affect mechanoelectrical transduction during immature stages of development. Moreover, OHCs from gelsolin knockout mice were able to mature into fully functional sensory receptors as judged by the normal resting membrane potential and basolateral membrane currents. Mechanoelectrical transducer current in gelsolin-Eps8 double knockout mice showed a profile similar to that observed in the single mutants for Eps8. We propose that gelsolin has a non-overlapping role with Eps8. While Eps8 is mainly involved in the initial growth of stereocilia in both inner hair cells (IHCs) and OHCs, gelsolin is required for the maintenance of mature hair bundles of low-frequency OHCs after the onset of hearing.     

神经系统富亮氨酸重复超家族成员LRRN3 C端结构域蛋白的原核表达和纯化

神经系统富亮氨酸重复超家族成员LRRN3是一种重要的膜蛋白,与神经系统发生发育和损伤后修复密切相关．运用多聚酶链式反应（PCR）方法,获得长555bp的DNA序列,扩增产物克隆至pET21质粒中,构建Mal和His融合表达质粒,在大肠杆菌中诱导表达融合蛋白,经Ni^＋-NTA agarose亲和层析纯化获得融合蛋白,并以Western blotting鉴定,为进一步研究LRRN3基因的结构和功能奠定了基础．     

Identification and Fine Mapping of a Major QTL,TT1-2, That Plays Significant Roles in Regulating Heat Tolerance in Rice

Plant Molecular Biology Reporter - Global warming threatens many aspects of human life, including a reduction in crop yields, and breeding heat-tolerant crops is a fundamental way to help address...     

The Arabidopsis BLAP75/Rmi1 Homologue Plays Crucial Roles in Meiotic Double-Strand Break Repair

In human cells and in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, BLAP75/Rmi1 acts together with BLM/Sgs1 and TopoIIIα/Top3 to maintain genome stability by limiting crossover (CO) formation in favour of NCO events, probably through the dissolution of double Holliday junction intermediates (dHJ). So far, very limited data is available on the involvement of these complexes in meiotic DNA repair. In this paper, we present the first meiotic study of a member of the BLAP75 family through characterisation of the Arabidopsis thaliana homologue. In A. thaliana blap75 mutants, meiotic recombination is initiated, and recombination progresses until the formation of bivalent-like structures, even in the absence of ZMM proteins. However, chromosome fragmentation can be detected as soon as metaphase I and is drastic at anaphase I, while no second meiotic division is observed. Using genetic and imunolocalisation studies, we showed that these defects reflect a role of A. thaliana BLAP75 in meiotic double-strand break (DSB) repair—that it acts after the invasion step mediated by RAD51 and associated proteins and that it is necessary to repair meiotic DSBs onto sister chromatids as well as onto the homologous chromosome. In conclusion, our results show for the first time that BLAP75/Rmi1 is a key protein of the meiotic homologous recombination machinery. In A. thaliana, we found that this protein is dispensable for homologous chromosome recognition and synapsis but necessary for the repair of meiotic DSBs. Furthermore, in the absence of BLAP75, bivalent formation can happen even in the absence of ZMM proteins, showing that in blap75 mutants, recombination intermediates exist that are stable enough to form bivalent structures, even when ZMM are absent.     

Growth-Inhibitory Functions of a Mutated Gelsolin (His321) in NIH/3T3 Mouse Fibroblasts

We have previously established a murine flat revertant cell line R1 from an activated H-ras transformant EJ-NIH/3T3 by subjecting it to ethyl methanesulfonate. From the R1 cells, we cloned a mutated gelsolin gene His321 and have shown the inhibitory activity of His321 against EJ-NIH/3T3 tumors. Our present experiments were conducted to find out whether the His321 gene has any effects on untransformed NIH/3T3 fibroblasts. Rhodamine-phalloidin staining revealed that two NIH/3T3 clones expressing His321 (NIH/λ2S-3 and NIH/λ2S-6) form organized actin stress fibers as two clones transfected with the vector alone (NIH/neo-3 and NIH/neo-5). We also found that in a liquid medium, NIH/λ2S-3 and NIH/λ2S-6 grew more slowly than NIH/neo-3 and NIH/neo-5 and that the doubling times of the former were about 10 h slower than those of the latter. To investigate the effects of His321 on the signal transduction pathway necessary for cell growth, we stimulated the cell lines by prostaglandin E1 (PGE1), a platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), or the epidermal growth factor (EGF). Although stimulation by PGE1 increased intercellular cyclic AMP in R1 cells, it did not do so in NIH/λ2S-3 and NIH/λ2S-6 cells. On the other hand, stimulation by PDGF or EGF induced far less DNA synthesis in NIH/λ2S-3 and NIH/λ2S-6 than in NIH/neo-3 and NIH/neo5. These results suggest that through the effects on the signal transduction pathway of PDGF and/or EGF His321-mutated gelsolin inhibits the growth of NIH/3T3.     

A Glutathione-independent Glyoxalase of the DJ-1 Superfamily Plays an Important Role in Managing Metabolically Generated Methylglyoxal in Candida albicans

Methylglyoxal is a cytotoxic reactive carbonyl compound produced by central metabolism. Dedicated glyoxalases convert methylglyoxal to d-lactate using multiple catalytic strategies. In this study, the DJ-1 superfamily member ORF 19.251/GLX3 from Candida albicans is shown to possess glyoxalase activity, making this the first demonstrated glutathione-independent glyoxalase in fungi. The crystal structure of Glx3p indicates that the protein is a monomer containing the catalytic triad Cys¹³⁶-His¹³⁷-Glu¹⁶⁸. Purified Glx3p has an in vitro methylglyoxalase activity (K_m = 5.5 mm and k_cat = 7.8 s⁻¹) that is significantly greater than that of more distantly related members of the DJ-1 superfamily. A close Glx3p homolog from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (YDR533C/Hsp31) also has glyoxalase activity, suggesting that fungal members of the Hsp31 clade of the DJ-1 superfamily are all probable glutathione-independent glyoxalases. A homozygous glx3 null mutant in C. albicans strain SC5314 displays greater sensitivity to millimolar levels of exogenous methylglyoxal, elevated levels of intracellular methylglyoxal, and carbon source-dependent growth defects, especially when grown on glycerol. These phenotypic defects are complemented by restoration of the wild-type GLX3 locus. The growth defect of Glx3-deficient cells in glycerol is also partially complemented by added inorganic phosphate, which is not observed for wild-type or glucose-grown cells. Therefore, C. albicans Glx3 and its fungal homologs are physiologically relevant glutathione-independent glyoxalases that are not redundant with the previously characterized glutathione-dependent GLO1/GLO2 system. In addition to its role in detoxifying glyoxals, Glx3 and its close homologs may have other important roles in stress response.     

Evolutionary History of the Photolyase/Cryptochrome Superfamily in Eukaryotes

Background

Photolyases and cryptochromes are evolutionarily related flavoproteins, which however perform distinct physiological functions. Photolyases (PHR) are evolutionarily ancient enzymes. They are activated by light and repair DNA damage caused by UV radiation. Although cryptochromes share structural similarity with DNA photolyases, they lack DNA repair activity. Cryptochrome (CRY) is one of the key elements of the circadian system in animals. In plants, CRY acts as a blue light receptor to entrain circadian rhythms, and mediates a variety of light responses, such as the regulation of flowering and seedling growth.

Results

We performed a comprehensive evolutionary analysis of the CRY/PHR superfamily. The superfamily consists of 7 major subfamilies: CPD class I and CPD class II photolyases, (6–4) photolyases, CRY-DASH, plant PHR2, plant CRY and animal CRY. Although the whole superfamily evolved primarily under strong purifying selection (average ω = 0.0168), some subfamilies did experience strong episodic positive selection during their evolution. Photolyases were lost in higher animals that suggests natural selection apparently became weaker in the late stage of evolutionary history. The evolutionary time estimates suggested that plant and animal CRYs evolved in the Neoproterozoic Era (~1000–541 Mya), which might be a result of adaptation to the major climate and global light regime changes occurred in that period of the Earth’s geological history.