Maternal eNOS deficiency determines a fatty liver phenotype of the offspring in a sex dependent manner

Maternal environmental factors can impact on the phenotype of the offspring via the induction of epigenetic adaptive mechanisms. The advanced fetal programming hypothesis proposes that maternal genetic variants may influence the offspring's phenotype indirectly via epigenetic modification, despite the absence of a primary genetic defect. To test this hypothesis, heterozygous female eNOS knockout mice and wild type mice were bred with male wild type mice. We then assessed the impact of maternal eNOS deficiency on the liver phenotype of wild type offspring. Birth weight of male wild type offspring born to female heterozygous eNOS knockout mice was reduced compared to offspring of wild type mice. Moreover, the offspring displayed a sex specific liver phenotype, with an increased liver weight, due to steatosis. This was accompanied by sex specific differences in expression and DNA methylation of distinct genes. Liver global DNA methylation was significantly enhanced in both male and female offspring. Also, hepatic parameters of carbohydrate metabolism were reduced in male and female offspring. In addition, male mice displayed reductions in various amino acids in the liver. Maternal genetic alterations, such as partial deletion of the eNOS gene, can affect liver metabolism of wild type offspring without transmission of the intrinsic defect. This occurs in a sex specific way, with more detrimental effects in females. This finding demonstrates that a maternal genetic defect can epigenetically alter the phenotype of the offspring, without inheritance of the defect itself. Importantly, these acquired epigenetic phenotypic changes can persist into adulthood.     

Hydrogen-induced structural changes at the nickel site of the regulatory [NiFe] hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha detected by X-ray absorption spectroscopy

For the first time, the nickel site of the hydrogen sensor of Ralstonia eutropha, the regulatory [NiFe] hydrogenase (RH), was investigated by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) at the nickel K-edge. The oxidation state and the atomic structure of the Ni site were investigated in the RH in the absence (air-oxidized, RH(ox)) and presence of hydrogen (RH(+H2)). Incubation with hydrogen is found to cause remarkable changes in the spectroscopic properties. The Ni-C EPR signal, indicative of Ni(III), is detectable only in the RH(+H2) state. XANES and EXAFS spectra indicate a coordination of the Ni in the RH(ox) and RH(+H2) that pronouncedly differs from the one in standard [NiFe] hydrogenases. Also, the changes induced by exposure to H(2) are unique. A drastic modification in the XANES spectra and an upshift of the K-edge energy from 8339.8 (RH(ox)) to 8341.1 eV (RH(+H2)) is observed. The EXAFS spectra indicate a change in the Ni coordination in the RH upon exposure to H(2). One likely interpretation of the data is the detachment of one sulfur ligand in RH(+H2) and the binding of additional (O,N) or H ligands. The following Ni oxidation states and coordinations are proposed: five-coordinated Ni(II)(O,N)(2)S(3) for RH(ox) and six-coordinated Ni((III))(O,N)(3)X(1)S(2) [X being either an (O,N) or H ligand] for RH(+H2). Implications of the structural features of the Ni site of the RH in relation to its function, hydrogen sensing, are discussed.     

Intermediates in assembly by photoactivation after thermally accelerated disassembly of the manganese complex of photosynthetic water oxidation

The Mn4Ca complex bound to photosystem II (PSII) is the active site of photosynthetic water oxidation. Its assembly involves binding and light-driven oxidation of manganese, a process denoted as photoactivation. The disassembly of the Mn complex is a thermally activated process involving distinct intermediates. Starting from intermediate states of the disassembly, which was initiated by a temperature jump to 47 degrees C, we photoactivated PSII membrane particles and monitored the activity recovery by O2 polarography and delayed chlorophyll fluorescence measurements. Oxidation state and structural features of the formed intermediates of the Mn complex were assayed by X-ray absorption spectroscopy at the Mn K-edge. The photoactivation time courses, which exhibit a lag phase characteristic of intermediate formation only when starting with the apo-PSII, suggest that within approximately 5 min of photoactivation of apo-PSII, a binuclear Mn complex is formed. It is proposed that a MnIII2(di-mu-oxo) complex is a key intermediate both in the disassembly and in the assembly reaction paths.     

A time-resolved iron-specific X-ray absorption experiment yields no evidence for an Fe2+ --> Fe3+ transition during QA- --> QB electron transfer in the photosynthetic reaction center

Previous time-resolved FTIR measurements suggested the involvement of an intermediary component in the electron transfer step Q(A)- --> Q(B) in the photosynthetic reaction center (RC) from Rhodobacter sphaeroides [Remy and Gerwert (2003) Nat. Struct. Biol. 10, 637]. By a kinetic X-ray absorption experiment at the Fe K-edge we investigated whether oxidation occurs at the ferric non-heme iron located between the two quinones. In isolated reaction centers with a high content of functional Q(B), at a time resolution of 30 micros and at room temperature, no evidence for transient oxidation of Fe was obtained. However, small X-ray transients occurred, in a similar micro- to millisecond time range as in the IR experiments, which may point to changes in the Fe ligand environment due to the charges on Q(A)- and Q(B)-. In addition, VIS measurements agree with the IR data and do not exclude an intermediate in the Q(A)- --> Q(B) transition.     

Bias from H2 cleavage to production and coordination changes at the Ni-Fe active site in the NAD+-reducing hydrogenase from Ralstonia eutropha

The soluble NAD+-reducing Ni-Fe hydrogenase (SH) from Ralstonia eutropha H16 is remarkable because it cleaves hydrogen in the presence of dioxygen at a unique Ni-Fe active site (Burgdorf et al. (2005) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 127, 576). By X-ray absorption (XAS), FTIR, and EPR spectroscopy, we monitored the structure and oxidation state of its metal centers during H2 turnover. In NADH-activated protein, a change occurred from the (CN)O2Ni(II)(mu-S)2Fe(II)(CN)3(CO) site dominant in the wild-type SH to a standard-like S2Ni(II)(mu-S)2Fe(II)(CN)2(CO) site as the prevailing species in a specific mutant protein, HoxH-H16L. The wild-type SH primarily was active in H2 cleavage. The nonstandard reaction mechanism does not involve stable EPR-detectable trivalent Ni oxidation states, namely, the Ni-A,B,C states as observed in standard hydrogenases. In the HoxH-mutant protein H16L, H2 oxidation was impaired, but H2 production occurred via a stable Ni-C state (Ni(III)-H(-)-Fe(II)), suggesting a reaction sequence similar to that of standard hydrogenases. It is proposed that reductive activation by NADH of both wild-type and H16L proteins causes the release of an oxygen species from Ni and is initiated by electron transfer from a [2Fe-2S] cluster in the HoxU subunit that at first becomes reduced by electrons from NADH. Electrons derived from H2 cleavage, on the other hand, are transferred to NAD+ via a different pathway involving a [4Fe-4S] cluster in HoxY, which is reducible only in wild-type SH but not in the H16L variant.     

Bromide does not bind to the Mn4Ca complex in its S1 state in Cl(-)-depleted and Br(-)-reconstituted oxygen-evolving photosystem II: evidence from X-ray absorption spectroscopy at the Br K-edge

Chloride is an important cofactor in photosynthetic water oxidation. It can be replaced by bromide with retention of the oxygen-evolving activity of photosystem II (PSII). Binding of bromide to the Mn(4)Ca complex of PSII in its dark-stable S(1) state was studied by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) at the Br K-edge in Cl(-)-depleted and Br(-)-substituted PSII membrane particles from spinach. The XAS spectra exclude the presence of metal ions in the first and second coordination spheres of Br(-). EXAFS analysis provided tentative evidence of at least one metal ion, which may be manganese or calcium, at a distance of approximately 5 A to Br(-). The native Cl(-) ion may bind at a similar distance. Accordingly, water oxidation may not require binding of a halide directly to the metal ions of the Mn complex in its S(1) state.     

The role of zinc in the methylation of the coenzyme M thiol group in methanol:coenzyme M methyltransferase from Methanosarcina barkeri.

Methanol:coenzyme M methyltransferase from methanogenic archaea is a cobalamin-dependent enzyme composed of three different subunits: MtaA, MtaB and MtaC. MtaA is a zinc protein that catalyzes the methylation of coenzyme M (HS-CoM) with methylcob(III)alamin. We report zinc XAFS (X-ray absorption fine structure) results indicating that, in the absence of coenzyme M, zinc is probably coordinated by a single sulfur ligand and three oxygen or nitrogen ligands. In the presence of coenzyme M, one (N/O)-ligand was replaced by sulfur, most likely due to ligation of the thiol group of coenzyme M. Mutations in His237 or Cys239, which are proposed to be involved in ligating zinc, resulted in an over 90% loss in enzyme activity and in distinct changes in the zinc ligands. In the His237-->Ala and Cys239-->Ala mutants, coenzyme M also seemed to bind efficiently by ligation to zinc indicating that some aspects of the zinc ligand environment are surprisingly uncritical for coenzyme M binding.     

Identification of a Bis-molybdopterin Intermediate in Molybdenum Cofactor Biosynthesis in Escherichia coli

The molybdenum cofactor is an important cofactor, and its biosynthesis is essential for many organisms, including humans. Its basic form comprises a single molybdopterin (MPT) unit, which binds a molybdenum ion bearing three oxygen ligands via a dithiolene function, thus forming Mo-MPT. In bacteria, this form is modified to form the bis-MPT guanine dinucleotide cofactor with two MPT units coordinated at one molybdenum atom, which additionally contains GMPs bound to the terminal phosphate group of the MPTs (bis-MGD). The MobA protein catalyzes the nucleotide addition to MPT, but the mechanism of the biosynthesis of the bis-MGD cofactor has remained enigmatic. We have established an in vitro system for studying bis-MGD assembly using purified compounds. Quantification of the MPT/molybdenum and molybdenum/phosphorus ratios, time-dependent assays for MPT and MGD detection, and determination of the numbers and lengths of Mo–S and Mo–O bonds by X-ray absorption spectroscopy enabled identification of a novel bis-Mo-MPT intermediate on MobA prior to nucleotide attachment. The addition of Mg-GTP to MobA loaded with bis-Mo-MPT resulted in formation and release of the final bis-MGD product. This cofactor was fully functional and reconstituted the catalytic activity of apo-TMAO reductase (TorA). We propose a reaction sequence for bis-MGD formation, which involves 1) the formation of bis-Mo-MPT, 2) the addition of two GMP units to form bis-MGD on MobA, and 3) the release and transfer of the mature cofactor to the target protein TorA, in a reaction that is supported by the specific chaperone TorD, resulting in an active molybdoenzyme.     

Hydrogen and oxygen trapping at the H-cluster of [FeFe]-hydrogenase revealed by site-selective spectroscopy and QM/MM calculations

[FeFe]-hydrogenases are superior hydrogen conversion catalysts. They bind a cofactor (H-cluster) comprising a four-iron and a diiron unit with three carbon monoxide (CO) and two cyanide (CN^?) ligands. Hydrogen (H₂) and oxygen (O₂) binding at the H-cluster was studied in the C169A variant of [FeFe]-hydrogenase HYDA1, in comparison to the active oxidized (Hox) and CO-inhibited (Hox-CO) species in wildtype enzyme. ⁵⁷Fe labeling of the diiron site was achieved by in vitro maturation with a synthetic cofactor analogue. Site-selective X-ray absorption, emission, and nuclear inelastic/forward scattering methods and infrared spectroscopy were combined with quantum chemical calculations to determine the molecular and electronic structure and vibrational dynamics of detected cofactor species. Hox reveals an apical vacancy at Fe_d in a [4Fe4S-2Fe]^3 ? complex with the net spin on Fe_d whereas Hox-CO shows an apical CN^? at Fe_d in a [4Fe4S-2Fe(CO)]^3 ? complex with net spin sharing among Fe_p and Fe_d (proximal or distal iron ions in [2Fe]). At ambient O₂ pressure, a novel H-cluster species (Hox-O₂) accumulated in C169A, assigned to a [4Fe4S-2Fe(O₂)]^3 ? complex with an apical superoxide (O₂^?) carrying the net spin bound at Fe_d. H₂ exposure populated the two-electron reduced Hhyd species in C169A, assigned as a [(H)4Fe4S-2Fe(H)]^3 ? complex with the net spin on the reduced cubane, an apical hydride at Fe_d, and a proton at a cysteine ligand. Hox-O₂ and Hhyd are stabilized by impaired O₂^– protonation or proton release after H₂ cleavage due to interruption of the proton path towards and out of the active site.