FppA, a novel Pseudomonas aeruginosa prepilin peptidase involved in assembly of type IVb pili

Several subclasses of type IV pili have been described according to the characteristics of the structural prepilin subunit. Whereas molecular mechanisms of type IVa pilus assembly have been well documented for Pseudomonas aeruginosa and involve the PilD prepilin peptidase, no type IVb pili have been described in this microorganism. One subclass of type IVb prepilins has been identified as the Flp prepilin subfamily. Long and bundled Flp pili involved in tight adherence have been identified in Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, for which assembly was due to a dedicated machinery encoded by the tad-rcp locus. A similar flp-tad-rcp locus containing flp, tad, and rcp gene homologues was identified in the P. aeruginosa genome. The function of these genes has been investigated, which revealed their involvement in the formation of extracellular Flp appendages. We also identified a gene (designated by open reading frame PA4295) outside the flp-tad-rcp locus, that we named fppA, encoding a novel prepilin peptidase. This is the second enzyme of this kind found in P. aeruginosa; however, it appears to be truncated and is similar to the C-terminal domain of the previously characterized PilD peptidase. In this study, we show that FppA is responsible for the maturation of the Flp prepilin and belongs to the aspartic acid protease family. We also demonstrate that FppA is required for the assembly of cell surface appendages that we called Flp pili. Finally, we observed an Flp-dependent bacterial aggregation process on the epithelial cell surface and an increased biofilm phenotype linked to Flp pilus assembly.     

The 2.7 A crystal structure of the autoinhibited human c-Fms kinase domain

c-Fms, a member of the Platelet-derived Growth Factor (PDGF) receptor family of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs), is the receptor for macrophage colony stimulating factor (CSF-1) that regulates proliferation, differentiation and survival of cells of the mononuclear phagocyte lineage. Abnormal expression of c-fms proto-oncogene is associated with a significant number of human pathologies, including a variety of cancers and rheumatoid arthritis. Accordingly, c-Fms represents an attractive therapeutic target. To further understand the regulation of c-Fms, we determined the 2.7 A resolution crystal structure of the cytosolic domain of c-Fms that comprised the kinase domain and the juxtamembrane domain. The structure reveals the crucial inhibitory role of the juxtamembrane domain (JM) that binds to a hydrophobic site immediately adjacent to the ATP binding pocket. This interaction prevents the activation loop from adopting an active conformation thereby locking the c-Fms kinase into an autoinhibited state. As observed for other members of the PDGF receptor family, namely c-Kit and Flt3, three JM-derived tyrosine residues primarily drive the mechanism for autoinhibition in c-Fms, therefore defining a common autoinhibitory mechanism within this family. Moreover the structure provides an understanding of c-Fms inhibition by Gleevec as well as providing a platform for the development of more selective inhibitors that target the inactive conformation of c-Fms kinase.     

Dynamics of the formin for3p in actin cable assembly

BACKGROUND: Formins are a conserved family of actin nucleators responsible for the assembly of diverse actin structures such as cytokinetic rings and filopodia. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, the formin for3p is necessary for the formation of actin cables, which are bundles of short parallel actin filaments that regulate cell polarity. These filaments are largely organized with their barbed ends facing the cell tip, where for3p is thought to function in their assembly. RESULTS: Here, using a functional for3p-3GFP fusion expressed at endogenous levels, we find that for3p localizes to small dots that appear transiently at cell tips and then move away on actin cables at a rate of 0.3 microm/s. These movements were dependent on the continuous assembly of actin in cables, on the ability of for3p to bind actin within its FH2 domain, and on profilin and bud6p, two formin binding proteins that promote formin activity. Bud6p transiently colocalizes with for3p at the cell tip and stays behind at the cell tip when for3p detaches. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest a new model for actin cable assembly: a for3p particle is activated and promotes the assembly of a short actin filament at the cell tip for only seconds. For3p and the actin filament may then be released from the cell tip and carried passively into the cell interior by retrograde flow of actin filaments in the cable. These studies reveal a complex and dynamic cycle of formin regulation and actin cable assembly in vivo.     

Myosin Vb is required for trafficking of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator in Rab11a-specific apical recycling endosomes in polarized human airway epithelial cells

Cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR)-mediated Cl(-) secretion across fluid-transporting epithelia is regulated, in part, by modulating the number of CFTR Cl(-) channels in the plasma membrane by adjusting CFTR endocytosis and recycling. However, the mechanisms that regulate CFTR recycling in airway epithelial cells remain unknown, at least in part, because the recycling itineraries of CFTR in these cells are incompletely understood. In a previous study, we demonstrated that CFTR undergoes trafficking in Rab11a-specific apical recycling endosomes in human airway epithelial cells. Myosin Vb is a plus-end-directed, actin-based mechanoenzyme that facilitates protein trafficking in Rab11a-specific recycling vesicles in several cell model systems. There are no published studies examining the role of myosin Vb in airway epithelial cells. Thus, the goal of this study was to determine whether myosin Vb facilitates CFTR recycling in polarized human airway epithelial cells. Endogenous CFTR formed a complex with endogenous myosin Vb and Rab11a. Silencing myosin Vb by RNA-mediated interference decreased the expression of wild-type CFTR and DeltaF508-CFTR in the apical membrane and decreased CFTR-mediated Cl(-) secretion across polarized human airway epithelial cells. A recombinant tail domain fragment of myosin Vb attenuated the plasma membrane expression of CFTR by arresting CFTR recycling. The dominant-negative effect was dependent on the ability of the myosin Vb tail fragment to interact with Rab11a. Taken together, these data indicate that myosin Vb is required for CFTR recycling in Rab11a-specific apical recycling endosomes in polarized human airway epithelial cells.     

Solution structure of the region 51-160 of human KIN17 reveals an atypical winged helix domain

Human KIN17 is a 45-kDa eukaryotic DNA- and RNA-binding protein that plays an important role in nuclear metabolism and in particular in the general response to genotoxics. Its amino acids sequence contains a zinc finger motif (residues 28-50) within a 30-kDa N-terminal region conserved from yeast to human, and a 15-kDa C-terminal tandem of SH3-like subdomains (residues 268-393) only found in higher eukaryotes. Here we report the solution structure of the region 51-160 of human KIN17. We show that this fragment folds into a three-alpha-helix bundle packed against a three-stranded beta-sheet. It belongs to the winged helix (WH) family. Structural comparison with analogous WH domains reveals that KIN17 WH module presents an additional and highly conserved 3(10)-helix. Moreover, KIN17 WH helix H3 is not positively charged as in classical DNA-binding WH domains. Thus, human KIN17 region 51-160 might rather be involved in protein-protein interaction through its conserved surface centered on the 3(10)-helix.     

Identification of DNA motifs implicated in maintenance of bacterial core genomes by predictive modeling

Bacterial biodiversity at the species level, in terms of gene acquisition or loss, is so immense that it raises the question of how essential chromosomal regions are spared from uncontrolled rearrangements. Protection of the genome likely depends on specific DNA motifs that impose limits on the regions that undergo recombination. Although most such motifs remain unidentified, they are theoretically predictable based on their genomic distribution properties. We examined the distribution of the “crossover hotspot instigator,” or Chi, in Escherichia coli, and found that its exceptional distribution is restricted to the core genome common to three strains. We then formulated a set of criteria that were incorporated in a statistical model to search core genomes for motifs potentially involved in genome stability in other species. Our strategy led us to identify and biologically validate two distinct heptamers that possess Chi properties, one in Staphylococcus aureus, and the other in several streptococci. This strategy paves the way for wide-scale discovery of other important functional noncoding motifs that distinguish core genomes from the strain-variable regions.