Identification of archaea and some extremophilic bacteria using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry

Archaea and a number of groups of environmentally important bacteria, e.g., sulfate-reducing bacteria, anoxygenic phototrophs, and some thermophiles, are difficult to characterize using current methods developed for phenotypically differentiating heterotrophic bacteria. We have evaluated matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF-MS) as a rapid method for identifying different groups of extremophilic prokaryotes using a linear mass spectrometer (Micromass, UK). The instrument is designed to acquire mass-spectral patterns from prokaryotic cell-wall components between masses of 500 and 10,000 Da in a statistically robust manner and create a database that can be used for identification. We have tested 28 archaea (10 genera, 20 spp.) and 42 bacteria (25 genera, 37 spp.) and found that all species yield reproducible, unique mass-spectral profiles. As a whole, the profiles for the archaea had fewer peaks and showed less differentiation compared to the bacteria, perhaps reflecting fundamental differences in cell-wall structure. The halophilic archaea all had consistent patterns that showed little differentiation; however, the software was able to consistently distinguish Halobacterium salinarium, Halococcus dombrowski, and Haloarcula marismortui from one another, although it could not always correctly distinguish four strains of Hb. salinarium from one another. The method was able to reliably identify 10⁵ cells of either Albidovulum inexpectatum or Thermococcus litoralis and could detect as low as 10³ cells. We found that the matrix, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxy-cinnamic acid yielded better spectra for archaea than 5-chloro-2-mercapto-benzothiazole. Overall, the method was rapid, required a minimum of sample processing, and was capable of distinguishing and identifying a very diverse group of prokaryotes.Communicated by F. Robb     

Description of Thermococcus kodakaraensis sp. nov., a well studied hyperthermophilic archaeon previously reported as Pyrococcus sp. KOD1

A hyperthermophilic archaeal strain, KOD1, isolated from a solfatara on Kodakara Island, Japan, has previously been reported as Pyrococcus sp. KOD1. However, a detailed phylogenetic tree, made possible by the recent accumulation of 16S rRNA sequences of various species in the order Thermococcales, indicated that strain KOD1 is a member of the genus Thermococcus. We performed DNA-DNA hybridization tests against species that displayed high similarity in terms of 16S ribosomal DNA sequences, including Thermococcus peptonophilus and Thermococcus stetteri. Hybridization results and differences in growth characteristics and substrate utilization differentiated strain KOD1 from T. peptonophilus and T. stetteri at the species level. Our results indicate that strain KOD1 represents a new species of Thermococcus, which we designate as Thermococcus kodakaraensis KOD1 sp. nov.     

The chaperonin from the archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus promotes correct refolding and prevents thermal denaturation in vitro.

We have isolated a chaperonin from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus based on its ability to inhibit the spontaneous refolding at 50 degrees C of dimeric S. solfataricus malic enzyme. The chaperonin, a 920-kDa oligomer of 57-kDa subunits, displays a potassium-dependent ATPase activity with an optimum temperature at 80 degrees C. S. solfataricus chaperonin promotes correct refoldings of several guanidine hydrochloride-denatured enzymes from thermophilic and mesophilic sources. At a molar ratio of chaperonin oligomer to single polypeptide chain of 1:1, S. solfataricus chaperonin completely inhibits spontaneous refoldings and suppresses aggregation upon dilution of the denaturant; refoldings resume upon ATP hydrolysis, with yields of active molecules and rates of folding notably higher than in spontaneous processes. S. solfataricus chaperonin prevents the irreversible inactivations at 90 degrees C of several thermophilic enzymes by the binding of the denaturation intermediate; the time-courses of inactivations are unaffected and most activity is regained upon hydrolysis of ATP. S. solfataricus chaperonin completely prevents the formation of aggregates during thermal inactivation of chicken egg white lysozyme at 70 degrees C, without affecting the rate of activity loss; ATP hydrolysis results in the recovery of most lytic activity. Tryptophan fluorescence measurements provide evidence that S. solfataricus chaperonin undergoes a dramatic conformational rearrangement in the presence of ATP/Mg, and that the hydrolysis of ATP is not required for the conformational change. The ATP/Mg-induced conformation of the chaperonin is fully unable to bind the protein substrates, probably due to disappearance or modification of the substrate binding sites. This is the first archaeal chaperonin whose involvement in protein folding has been demonstrated.     

Gluconeogenesis from pyruvate in the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus: involvement of reactions of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway

The hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus was grown on pyruvate as carbon and energy source. The enzymes involved in gluconeogenesis were investigated. The following findings indicate that glucose-6-phosphate formation from pyruvate involves phosphoenolpyruvate synthetase, enzymes of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate phosphatase.Cell extracts of pyruvate-grown P.furiosus contained the following enzyme activities: phosphoenolpyruvate synthetase (0.025 U/mg, 50 °C), enolase (0.9 U/mg, 80 °C), phosphoglycerate mutase (0.13 U/mg, 55 °C), phosphoglycerate kinase (0.01 U/mg, 50 °C), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase reducing either NADP⁺ or NAD⁺ (NADP⁺: 0.019 U/mg, NAD⁺: 0.009 U/mg; 50 °C), triosephosphate isomerase (1.4 U/mg, 50 °C), fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase (0.0045 U/mg, 55 °C), fructose-1,6-bisphosphate phosphatase (0.026 U/mg, 75 °C), and glucose-6-phosphate isomerase (0.22 U/mg, 50 °C). Kinetic properties (V _max values and apparent K _m values) of the enzymes indicate that they operate in the direction of sugar synthesis. The specific enzyme activities of phosphoglycerate kinase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (NADP⁺-reducing) and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate phosphatase in pyruvate-grown P. furiosus were by a factor of 3, 10 and 4, respectively, higher as compared to maltose-grown cells suggesting that these enzymes are induced under conditions of gluconeogenesis. Furthermore, cell extracts contained ferredoxin: NADP⁺ oxidoreductase (0.023 U/mg, 60 °C); phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (0.018 U/mg, 50 °C) acts as an anaplerotic enzyme.Thus, in P. furiosus sugar formation from pyruvate involves reactions of the Embden-Meyerhof pathway, whereas sugar degradation to pyruvate proceeds via a modified non-phosphorylated Entner-Doudoroff pathway.     

Single-cell genomics shedding light on marine Thaumarchaeota diversification

Previous studies based on analysis of amoA, 16S ribosomal RNA or accA gene sequences have established that marine Thaumarchaeota fall into two phylogenetically distinct groups corresponding to shallow- and deep-water clades, but it is not clear how water depth interacts with other environmental factors, including light, temperature and location, to affect this pattern of diversification. Earlier studies focused on single-gene distributions were not able to link phylogenetic structure to other aspects of functional adaptation. Here, we analyzed the genome content of 46 uncultivated single Thaumarchaeota cells sampled from epi- and mesopelagic waters of subtropical, temperate and polar oceans. Phylogenomic analysis showed that populations diverged by depth, as expected, and that mesopelagic populations from different locations were well mixed. Functional analysis showed that some traits, including putative DNA photolyase and catalase genes that may be related to adaptive mechanisms to reduce light-induced damage, were found exclusively in members of the epipelagic clade. Our analysis of partial genomes has thus confirmed the depth differentiation of Thaumarchaeota populations observed previously, consistent with the distribution of putative mechanisms to reduce light-induced damage in shallow- and deep-water populations.     

An archaeal protein evolutionarily conserved in prokaryotes is a zinc-dependent metalloprotease

A putative protease gene (tldD) was previously identified from studying tolerance of letD encoding the CcdB toxin of a toxin–antidote system of the F plasmid in Escherichia coli. While this gene is evolutionarily conserved in archaea and bacteria, the proteolytic activity of encoded proteins remained to be demonstrated experimentally. Here we studied Sso0660, an archaeal TldD homologue encoded in Sulfolobus solfataricus by overexpression of the recombinant protein and characterization of the purified enzyme. We found that the enzyme is active in degrading azocasein and FITC–BSA substrates. Protease inhibitor studies showed that EDTA and o-phenanthroline, two well-known metalloprotease inhibitors, either abolished completely or strongly inhibited the enzyme activity, and flame spectrometric analysis showed that a zinc ion is a cofactor of the protease. Furthermore, the protein forms disulfide bond via the Cys⁴¹⁶ residue, yielding protein dimer that is the active form of the enzyme. These results establish for the first time that tidD genes encode zinc-containing proteases, classifying them as a family in the metalloprotease class.     

Archael phosphoproteins. Identification of a hexosephosphate mutase and the alpha-subunit of succinyl-CoA synthetase in the extreme acidothermophile Sulfolobus solfataricus.

When soluble extracts from the extreme acidophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus were incubated with [gamma-32P]ATP, several radiolabeled polypeptides were observed following SDS-PAGE. The most prominent of these migrated with apparent molecular masses of 14, 18, 35, 42, 46, 50, and 79 kDa. Phosphoamino acid analysis revealed that all of the proteins contained phosphoserine, with the exception of the 35-kDa one, whose protein-phosphate linkage proved labile to strong acid. The observed pattern of phosphorylation was influenced by the identity of the divalent metal ion cofactor used, Mg2+ versus Mn2+, and the choice of incubation temperature. The 35- and 50-kDa phosphoproteins were purified and their amino-terminal sequences determined. The former polypeptide's amino-terminal sequence closely matched a conserved portion of the alpha-subunit of succinyl-CoA synthetase, which forms an acid-labile phosphohistidyl enzyme intermediate during its catalytic cycle. This identification was confirmed by the ability of succinate or ADP to specifically remove the radiolabel. The 50-kDa polypeptide's sequence contained a heptapeptide motif, Phe/Pro-Gly-Thr-Asp/Ser-Gly-Val/Leu-Arg, found in a similar position in several hexosephosphate mutases. The catalytic mechanism of these mutases involves formation of a phosphoseryl enzyme intermediate. The identity of p50 as a hexosephosphate mutase was confirmed by (1) the ability of sugars and sugar phosphates to induce removal of the labeled phosphoryl group from the protein, and (2) the ability of [32P]glucose 6-phosphate to donate its phosphoryl group to the protein.     

An Archaeal Immune System Can Detect Multiple Protospacer Adjacent Motifs (PAMs) to Target Invader DNA

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (Cas) system provides adaptive and heritable immunity against foreign genetic elements in most archaea and many bacteria. Although this system is widespread and diverse with many subtypes, only a few species have been investigated to elucidate the precise mechanisms for the defense of viruses or plasmids. Approximately 90% of all sequenced archaea encode CRISPR/Cas systems, but their molecular details have so far only been examined in three archaeal species: Sulfolobus solfataricus, Sulfolobus islandicus, and Pyrococcus furiosus. Here, we analyzed the CRISPR/Cas system of Haloferax volcanii using a plasmid-based invader assay. Haloferax encodes a type I-B CRISPR/Cas system with eight Cas proteins and three CRISPR loci for which the identity of protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs) was unknown until now. We identified six different PAM sequences that are required upstream of the protospacer to permit target DNA recognition. This is only the second archaeon for which PAM sequences have been determined, and the first CRISPR group with such a high number of PAM sequences. Cells could survive the plasmid challenge if their CRISPR/Cas system was altered or defective, e.g. by deletion of the cas gene cassette. Experimental PAM data were supplemented with bioinformatics data on Haloferax and Haloquadratum.