Binding and calcium-induced aggregation of laminin onto lipid bilayers

Direct binding of laminin in the form of its complex with nidogen to planar lipid bilayers was demonstrated with total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy. Binding occurred equally well to zwitterionic (phosphatidylcholine) and negatively charged (phosphatidylglycerol) lipids and was enhanced by sulfatides but only at nonphysiological molar ratios higher than 30 mol %. Strong interactions with lipid bilayers were also observed for bovine serum albumin. This explains a strong inhibition of laminin binding by this protein. However, binding of laminin to sulfatide-rich bilayers was not completely inhibited. Observable by the microscopic technique was the formation of laminin clusters on the surface of the bilayer which occurred concomitantly with binding. Both processes were strongly enhanced by the presence of calcium. These results show that calcium-induced laminin self-assembly is enhanced at lipid surfaces.     

Three different actin filament assemblies occur in every hair cell: each contains a specific actin crosslinking protein

The apex of hair cells of the chicken auditory organ contains three different kinds of assemblies of actin filaments in close spatial proximity. These are (a) paracrystals of actin filaments with identical polarity in stereocilia, (b) a dense gellike meshwork of actin filaments forming the cuticular plate, and (c) a bundle of parallel actin filaments with mixed polarities that constitute the circumferential filament belt attached to the cytoplasmic aspect of the zonula adhaerens (ZA). Each different supramolecular assembly of actin filaments contains a specific actin filament cross-linking protein which is unique to that particular assembly. Thus fimbrin appears to be responsible for paracrystallin packing of actin filaments in stereocillia; an isoform of spectrin resides in the cuticular plate where it forms the whisker-like crossbridges, and alpha actinin is the actin crosslinking protein of the circumferential ZA bundle. Tropomyosin, which stabilizes actin filaments, is present in all the actin filament assemblies except for the stereocilia. Another striking finding was that myosin appears to be absent from the ZA ring and cuticular plate of hair cells although present in the ZA ring of supporting cells. The abundance of myosin in the ZA ring of the surrounding supporting cells means that it may be important in forming a supporting tensile cellular framework in which the hair cells are inserted.     

Assembly and disulfide rearrangement of recombinant surfactant protein A in vitro

The surfactant-associated protein, protein A, produced by transgenic Chinese hamster ovary cells exhibits a heterogeneous population of structures. Electron microscopy reveals lollipop-shaped monomers consisting of a collagenous triple helix and a globular domain as well as oligomers in which two, three or more protomers are connected by their collagenous stalks. Each protomer consists of three alpha-chains (36 kDa) but under non-reducing conditions few free alpha-chains are observed by SDS/PAGE. Instead gamma-components (three chains), gamma 2 (six chains) and higher components are observed which are derived from intra- and inter-protomer disulfide cross-linking. Complete reduction at low temperature dissociates the oligomers, but preserves the intact structure of monomers as demonstrated by electron microscopy and trypsin digestion. Circular dichroism revealed an unfolding of the collagen triple helices of fully reduced protein A at 26 degrees C and of the unreduced protein A around 41.5 degrees C. Reoxidation of the fully reduced protein A re-established mainly the disulfide bonds within the triple helix but not between monomers. Very few higher assembly forms were reformed even at high protein A concentrations. Cellular in vivo systems must possess an efficient assembly mechanism which cannot be simulated by an in vitro system.     

In vitro assembly of gap junctions.

Gap junction structures were assembled in vitro from octyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside-solubilized components of lens fiber cell membranes. Individual pore structures (connexons), short double-membrane structures, and other amorphous material were evident in the solubilized mixture. Following the removal of the detergent by dialysis, these connexons associated to form single- and double-layered, two-dimensional hexagonal arrays (unit cell size a = b = 8.5 nm). The formation of larger arrays was dependent on the lipid-to-protein ratio and the presence of Mg2+ ions. Crystallographic analysis of electron micrographs revealed that lens junctional connexons consisted of six subunits surrounding a stain-filled channel. Upon further detergent treatment, in vitro assembled gap junctions were insoluble and formed three-dimensional stacks while other components were solubilized. SDS-PAGE and mass data from scanning transmission electron microscopy strongly suggest that a 38-kDa polypeptide, which is a processed form of the lens specific gap junction protein MP70, is a major component of the arrays. The in vitro assembly of gap junctions opens new avenues for the structural analysis of gap junctions and for the study of the intermolecular interactions of connexons during junctional assembly.     

Murein-metabolizing enzymes from Escherichia coli: existence of a second lytic transglycosylase.

In addition to the soluble lytic transglycosylase, a murein-metabolizing enzyme with a molecular mass of 70 kDa (Slt70), Escherichia coli possesses a second lytic transglycosylase, which has been described as a membrane-bound lytic transglycosylase (Mlt; 35 kDa; EC 3.2.1.-). The mlt gene, which supposedly encodes Mlt, was cloned, and the complete nucleotide sequence was determined. The open reading frame, identified on a 1.7-kb SalI-PstI fragment, codes for a protein of 323 amino acids (M(r) = 37,410). Two transmembrane helices and one membrane-associated helix were predicted in the N-terminal half of the protein. Lysine and arginine residues represent up to 15% of the amino acids, resulting in a calculated isoelectric point of 10.0. The deduced primary structure did not show significant sequence similarity to Slt70 from E. coli. High-level expression of the presumed mlt gene was not paralleled by an increase in murein hydrolase activity. To clarify the identity of the second transglycosylase, we purified an enzyme with the specificity of a transglycosylase from an E. coli slt deletion strain. The completely soluble transglycosylase, with a molecular mass of approximately 35 kDa, was designated Slt35. Its determined 26 N-terminal amino acids showed similarity to a segment in the middle of the Slt70 primary structure. Polyclonal anti-Mlt antibodies, which had been used for the isolation of the mlt gene, were found to cross-react with Mlt as well as with Slt35, suggesting that the previously described Mlt preparation was contaminated with Slt35. We conclude that the second transglycosylase of E. coli is not a membrane-bound protein but rather is a soluble protein.