The methanoreductosome: a high-molecular-weight enzyme complex in the methanogenic bacterium strain Gö1 that contains components of the methylreductase system.

The methanogenic bacterium strain G?1 harbors a high-molecular-weight enzyme complex containing methyl coenzyme M methylreductase as revealed by immunoelectron microscopy. This complex consists of a spherelike, hollow head piece, in the wall of which a number of copies of the methyl coenzyme M methylreductase are located. It is named Rc (c indicates collector). Intimately bound to it is a group of additional subunits of unknown composition referred to as Rm (m indicates mediator). Electron microscopy of negatively stained samples indicated that Rm contains a functional pore or channel which connects the internal volume of Rc with the outside. The RcRm complex is named Rs (s indicates spherelike). This complex was often found detached from the inside of the cytoplasmic membrane when membrane vesicles were investigated. However, Rs was also seen attached to a third component of the complex located in the membrane, the attachment being mediated by Rm. This membrane part of the complex is designated Rt (t indicates translocator). It consists of subunits with unknown composition. When Rs is attached to the membrane, the pore in Rm appears to be plugged by Rt. This indicates that the internal volume in Rc is in contact, via the pore in Rm, with Rt. The RcRmRt complex is referred to as methanoreductosome. Functional implications of the structural organization of the methylreductase system are discussed in view of methane formation and the creation of a transmembrane proton gradient used by the cell for ATP synthesis.     

Measurements at theπE3 single beam correlated to dosimetry and therapy-planning for the pion applicator at SIN

Summary Using ionization chambers, aluminium activation, TLD and scintillation counters 3-dimensional total dose-distributions, stardose-distributions and pion stop-distributions have been measured in a single pion beam for various momenta and momentum spreads.It is demonstrated how these data will be used as an input into the therapy-planning program. The techniques developed are suited to check dynamical treatment with 60 pion beams.     

A stereocontrolled, enantiomerically specific total synthesis of thienamycin

A versatile stereocontrolled total synthesis of thienamycin starting from L-aspartic acid is reported. Stereocontrol is achieved by potassium tri-sec-butylborohydride reduction of a thermodynamically formed 3 alpha-acetylazetidinone intermediate. The key [3.2.0] bicyclic ring system is prepared by a metal catalyzed carbene insertion reaction.     

Hyaluronic Acid Suppresses the Expression of Metalloproteinases in Osteoarthritic Cartilage Stimulated Simultaneously by Interleukin 1β and Mechanical Load

Purpose

In patients with osteoarthritis (OA), intraarticular injection of hyaluronic acid (HA) frequently results in reduced pain and improved function for prolonged periods of time, i.e. more than 6 months. However, the mechanisms underlying these effects are not fully understood. Our underlying hypothesis is that HA modifies the enzymatic breakdown of joint tissues.

Methods

To test this hypothesis, we examined osteochondral cylinders from 12 OA patients. In a bioreactor, these samples were stimulated by interleukin 1β (Il1ß) (2 ng/ml) plus mechanical load (2.0 Mpa at 0.5 Hz horizontal and 0.1 Hz vertical rotation), thus the experimental setup recapitulated both catabolic and anabolic clues of the OA joint.

Results

Upon addition of HA at either 1 or 3 mg/ml, we observed a significant suppression of expression of metalloproteinase (MMP)-13. A more detailed analysis based on the Kellgren and Lawrence (K&L) OA grade, showed a much greater degree of suppression of MMP-13 expression in grade IV as compared to grade II OA. In contrast to the observed MMP-13 suppression, treatment with HA resulted in a suppression of MMP-1 expression only at 1 mg/ml HA, while MMP-2 expression was not significantly affected by either HA concentration.

Conclusion

Together, these data suggest that under concurrent catabolic and anabolic stimulation, HA exhibits a pronounced suppressive effect on MMP-13. In the long-run these findings may benefit the development of treatment strategies aimed at blocking tissue degradation in OA patients.     

Pollinator attractiveness increases with distance from flowering orchids

Orchids are extraordinary among plants because many species are pollinated through sexual duplicity by producing flowers that mimic female insects to lure unsuspecting males. Previous work showed that sexual deception by the orchid Chiloglottis trapeziformis can have a negative impact on its wasp pollinator Neozeleboria cryptoides. We report that female wasps may be capable of mitigating the cost of the orchids' deception. Although male wasps quickly habituated to areas planted with unrewarding flower decoys, we found that the effectiveness of the chemical cue used by the wingless females to attract males increases with increasing distance from an orchid patch. The apparent specificity of the males' site-based avoidance strategy means that females emerging in areas occupied by flowering orchids could, potentially, leave the orchid colony by walking to increase their attractiveness.     

The RTP site shared by the HIV-1 Tat protein and the 11S regulator subunit alpha is crucial for their effects on proteasome function including antigen processing

Nuclease A (NucA) from Anabaena sp. is a non-specific endonuclease able to degrade single and double-stranded DNA and RNA. The endonucleolytic activity is inhibited by the nuclease A inhibitor (NuiA), which binds to NucA with 1:1 stoichiometry and picomolar affinity. In order to better understand the mechanism of inhibition, the solution structure of NuiA was determined by NMR methods. The fold of NuiA is an alpha-beta-alpha sandwich but standard database searches by DALI and TOP revealed no structural homologies. A visual inspection of alpha-beta-alpha folds in the CATH database revealed similarities to the PR-1-like fold (SCOP nomenclature). The similarities include the ordering of secondary structural elements, a single helix on one face of the alpha-beta-alpha sandwich, and three helices on the other face. However, a major difference is in the IV helix, which in the PR-1 fold is short and perpendicular to the I and III helices, but in NuiA is long and parallel to the I and III helices. Additionally, a strand insertion in the beta-sheet makes the NuiA beta-sheet completely antiparallel in organization. The fast time-scale motions of NuiA, characterized by enhanced flexibility of the extended loop between helices III and IV, also show similarities to P14a, which is a PR-1 fold. We propose that the purpose of the PR-1 fold is to form a stable scaffold to present this extended structure for biological interactions with other proteins. This hypothesis is supported by data that show that when NuiA is bound to NucA significant changes in chemical shift occur in the extended loop between helices III and IV.     

Rates of evolution of pyridoxal-5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes

The pyridoxal-5'-phosphate-dependent enzymes (B(6) enzymes), that operate in the metabolism of amino acids, are of multiple evolutionary origin. To estimate their rates of evolution, a total of 180 sequences of 21 B(6) enzymes from distantly related eukaryotic species were compared. The enzymes belong to all four evolutionarily independent families of B(6) enzymes with different folds, i.e., the large alpha family, the beta family, the d-alanine aminotransferase family, and the alanine racemase family. Their unit evolutionary periods, i.e., the time for a 1% sequence difference to accumulate between branches, ranged from 4.6 to 45.1 million years. Both, fastest changing serine pyruvate aminotransferase and most slowly changing glutamate decarboxylase are members of the alpha family. The evolutionary rates of the few enzymes belonging to the other three families were interspersed among those of the alpha family members. Enzymes that catalyze the same reaction, e.g., transamination or amino acid decarboxylation, with different substrates show widely varying rates. The absence of correlations of the rate of evolution with either protein fold or type of catalyzed reaction suggests that individual functional constraints have determined the differential rates of evolution of B(6) enzymes.     

Novel Carboxypeptidase A6 (CPA6) Mutations Identified in Patients with Juvenile Myoclonic and Generalized Epilepsy

Carboxypeptidase A6 (CPA6) is a peptidase that removes C-terminal hydrophobic amino acids from peptides and proteins. The CPA6 gene is expressed in the brains of humans and animals, with high levels of expression during development. It is translated with a prodomain (as proCPA6), which is removed before secretion. The active form of CPA6 binds tightly to the extracellular matrix (ECM) where it is thought to function in the processing of peptides and proteins. Mutations in the CPA6 gene have been identified in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy and febrile seizures. In the present study, we screened for CPA6 mutations in patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy and identified two novel missense mutations: Arg36His and Asn271Ser. Patients harboring these mutations also presented with generalized epilepsy. Neither of the novel mutations was found in a control population. Asn271 is highly conserved in CPA6 and other related metallocarboxypeptidases. Arg36 is present in the prodomain and is not highly conserved. To assess structural consequences of the amino acid substitutions, both mutants were modeled within the predicted structure of the enzyme. To examine the effects of these mutations on enzyme expression and activity, we expressed the mutated enzymes in human embryonic kidney 293T cells. These analyses revealed that Asn271Ser abolished enzymatic activity, while Arg36His led to a ~50% reduction in CPA6 levels in the ECM. Pulse-chase using radio-labeled amino acids was performed to follow secretion. Newly-synthesized CPA6 appeared in the ECM with peak levels between 2-8 hours. There was no major difference in time course between wild-type and mutant forms, although the amount of radiolabeled CPA6 in the ECM was lower for the mutants. Our experiments demonstrate that these mutations in CPA6 are deleterious and provide further evidence for the involvement of CPA6 mutations in the predisposition for several types of epilepsy.