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Introduction of a disulfide bond leads to stabilization and crystallization of a ricin immunogen.

ABSTRACT: RTA1-33/44-198 is a catalytically inactive, single-domain derivative of the ricin toxin A-chain (RTA) engineered to serve as a stable protein scaffold for presentation of native immunogenic epitopes (Olson et al., Protein Eng Des Sel 2004;17:391-397). To improve the stability and solubility of RTA1-33/44-198 further, we have undertaken the design challenge of introducing a disulfide (SS) bond. Nine pairs of residues were selected for placement of the SS-bond based on molecular dynamics simulation studies of the modeled single-domain chain. Disulfide formation at either of two positions (R48C/T77C or V49C/E99C) involving a specific surface loop (44-55) increased the protein melting temperature by ~5°C compared with RTA1-33/44-198 and by ~13°C compared with RTA. Prolonged stability studies of the R48C/T77C variant (> 60 days at 37°C, pH 7.4) confirmed a > 40% reduction in self-aggregation compared with RTA1-33/44-198 lacking the SS-bond. The R48C/T77C variant retained affinity for anti-RTA antibodies capable of neutralizing ricin toxin, including a monoclonal that recognizes a human B-cell epitope. Introduction of either R48C/T77C or V49C/E99C promoted crystallization of RTA1-33/44-198, and the X-ray structures of the variants were solved to 2.3 A or 2.1 A resolution, respectively. The structures confirm formation of an intramolecular SS-bond, and reveal a single-domain fold that is significantly reduced in volume compared with RTA. Loop 44 to 55 is partly disordered as predicted by simulations, and is positioned to form self-self interactions between symmetry-related molecules. We discuss the importance of RTA loop 34 to 55 as a nucleus for unfolding and aggregation, and draw conclusions for ongoing structure-based minimalist design of RTA-based immunogens.

SUBMITTER: Compton JR

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3332088 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Introduction of a disulfide bond leads to stabilization and crystallization of a ricin immunogen.

Compton Jaimee R JR Legler Patricia M PM Clingan Benjamin V BV Olson Mark A MA Millard Charles B CB

Proteins 20110105 4

RTA1-33/44-198 is a catalytically inactive, single-domain derivative of the ricin toxin A-chain (RTA) engineered to serve as a stable protein scaffold for presentation of native immunogenic epitopes (Olson et al., Protein Eng Des Sel 2004;17:391-397). To improve the stability and solubility of RTA1-33/44-198 further, we have undertaken the design challenge of introducing a disulfide (SS) bond. Nine pairs of residues were selected for placement of the SS-bond based on molecular dynamics simulatio ...[more]

PMID: 21387408

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Project description:The protein secretory pathway must maintain homoeostasis while producing a wide assortment of proteins in different conditions. It is also used extensively to produce many useful proteins in biotechnology. As such, secretory pathway dysfunction can be highly detrimental to the cell, resulting in the molecular basis for many human diseases, and can drastically inhibit product titers in biochemical production. Because the secretory pathway is a highly-integrated, multi-organelle system, dysfunction can happen at many levels and dissecting the root cause can be challenging. To better understand some of these dysfunctions, we measured multiple systems-level states of the cell (physiology, transcriptome, metabolism) while secreting a small protein (insulin precursor) or a large protein (?-amylase). This was carried out in the presence and absence of HAC1, a key transcription factor in maintaining secretory homeostasis. Clear trends in cellular stress were apparent across multiple data resulting from our perturbations. In particular, processes involving (1) degradation of protein / recycling amino acids, (2) overall transcription/translation repression, and (3) oxidative stress. Apparent runaway oxidative radical production was explained by a thermodynamic model that we put forward for disulfide formation in the endoplasmic reticulum. This model predicts that balancing the relative rates of protein folding and disulfide bond formation are key to easing oxidative stress. These predictions have direct implications in how to engineer a broad range of recombinant proteins for secretion and provide potential hypotheses for the root causes of several secretory-associated diseases. Yeast strains were constructed that produce and secrete (a) IP or (b) ?-amylase and were compared to yeast strains containing (c) an empty vector in both wild-type and HAC1 deletion backgrounds. These strains are named WN (WT with empty vector), WI (WT secreting IP), WA (WT secreting ?-amylase), dN (?hac1 with empty vector), dI (?hac1 secreting IP), and dA (?hac1 secreting ?-amylase). Strains were characterized in batch fermentation and samples were taken in mid-exponential phase. Triplicate fermentations were carried out for each strain.

Project description:Maternal nicotine exposure has been associated with many adverse fetal and placental outcomes. Although underlying mechanisms remain elusive, recent studies have identified that augmented endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is linked to placental insufficiency. Moreover, ER function depends on proper disulfide bond formation--a partially oxygen-dependent process mediated by protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) and ER oxidoreductases. Given that nicotine compromised placental development in the rat, and placental insufficiency has been associated with poor disulfide bond formation and ER stress, we hypothesized that maternal nicotine exposure leads to both placental ER stress and impaired disulfide bond formation. To test this hypothesis, female Wistar rats received daily subcutaneous injections of either saline (vehicle) or nicotine bitartrate (1 mg/kg) for 14 days prior to mating and during pregnancy. Placentas were harvested on embryonic day 15 for analysis. Protein and mRNA expression of markers involved in ER stress (e.g., phosphorylated eIF2?, Grp78, Atf4, and CHOP), disulfide bond formation (e.g., PDI, QSOX1, VKORC1), hypoxia (Hif1?), and amino acid deprivation (GCN2) were quantified via Western blot and/or Real-time PCR. Maternal nicotine exposure led to increased expression of Grp78, phosphorylated eIF2?, Atf4, and CHOP (p<0.05) in the rat placenta, demonstrating the presence of augmented ER stress. Decreased expression of PDI and QSOX1 (p<0.05) reveal an impaired disulfide bond formation pathway, which may underlie nicotine-induced ER stress. Finally, elevated expression of Hif1? and GCN2 (p<0.05) indicate hypoxia and amino acid deprivation in nicotine-exposed placentas, respectively, which may also cause impaired disulfide bond formation and augmented ER stress. This study is the first to link maternal nicotine exposure with both placental ER stress and disulfide bond impairment in vivo, providing novel insight into the mechanisms underlying nicotine exposure during pregnancy on placental health.

Dataset Information

Introduction of a disulfide bond leads to stabilization and crystallization of a ricin immunogen.

Publications

Introduction of a disulfide bond leads to stabilization and crystallization of a ricin immunogen.

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