Dataset Information

Functional analysis of Leishmania cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase.

ABSTRACT: The single gene encoding cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase (CFAS) is present in Leishmania infantum, L. mexicana and L. braziliensis but absent from L. major, a causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. In L. infantum, usually causative agent of visceral leishmaniasis, the CFAS gene is transcribed in both insect (extracellular) and host (intracellular) stages of the parasite life cycle. Tagged CFAS protein is stably detected in intracellular L. infantum but only during the early log phase of extracellular growth, when it shows partial localisation to the endoplasmic reticulum. Lipid analyses of L. infantum wild type, CFAS null and complemented parasites detect a low abundance CFAS-dependent C19? fatty acid, characteristic of a cyclopropanated species, in wild type and add-back cells. Sub-cellular fractionation studies locate the C19? fatty acid to both ER and plasma membrane-enriched fractions. This fatty acid is not detectable in wild type L. major, although expression of the L. infantum CFAS gene in L. major generates cyclopropanated fatty acids, indicating that the substrate for this modification is present in L. major, despite the absence of the modifying enzyme. Loss of the L. infantum CFAS gene does not affect extracellular parasite growth, phagocytosis or early survival in macrophages. However, while endocytosis is also unaffected in the extracellular CFAS nulls, membrane transporter activity is defective and the null parasites are more resistant to oxidative stress. Following infection in vivo, L. infantum CFAS nulls exhibit lower parasite burdens in both the liver and spleen of susceptible hosts but it has not been possible to complement this phenotype, suggesting that loss of C19? fatty acid may lead to irreversible changes in cell physiology that cannot be rescued by re-expression. Aberrant cyclopropanation in L. major decreases parasite virulence but does not influence parasite tissue tropism.

SUBMITTER: Oyola SO

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3519623 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Functional analysis of Leishmania cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase.

Oyola Samuel O SO Evans Krystal J KJ Smith Terry K TK Smith Barbara A BA Hilley James D JD Mottram Jeremy C JC Kaye Paul M PM Smith Deborah F DF

PloS one 20121210 12

The single gene encoding cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase (CFAS) is present in Leishmania infantum, L. mexicana and L. braziliensis but absent from L. major, a causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. In L. infantum, usually causative agent of visceral leishmaniasis, the CFAS gene is transcribed in both insect (extracellular) and host (intracellular) stages of the parasite life cycle. Tagged CFAS protein is stably detected in intracellular L. infantum but only during the early log phase of ...[more]

PMID: 23251490

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Cyclopropane fatty acids (CPA) have been found in certain gymnosperms, Malvales, Litchi and other Sapindales. The presence of their unique strained ring structures confers physical and chemical properties characteristic of unsaturated fatty acids with the oxidative stability displayed by saturated fatty acids making them of considerable industrial interest. While cyclopropenoid fatty acids (CPE) are well-known inhibitors of fatty acid desaturation in animals, CPE can also inhibit the stearoyl-CoA desaturase and interfere with the maturation and reproduction of some insect species suggesting that in addition to their traditional role as storage lipids, CPE can contribute to the protection of plants from herbivory. RESULTS:Three genes encoding cyclopropane synthase homologues GhCPS1, GhCPS2 and GhCPS3 were identified in cotton. Determination of gene transcript abundance revealed differences among the expression of GhCPS1, 2 and 3 showing high, intermediate and low levels, respectively, of transcripts in roots and stems; whereas GhCPS1 and 2 are both expressed at low levels in seeds. Analyses of fatty acid composition in different tissues indicate that the expression patterns of GhCPS1 and 2 correlate with cyclic fatty acid (CFA) distribution. Deletion of the N-terminal oxidase domain lowered GhCPS's ability to produce cyclopropane fatty acid by approximately 70%. GhCPS1 and 2, but not 3 resulted in the production of cyclopropane fatty acids upon heterologous expression in yeast, tobacco BY2 cell and Arabidopsis seed. CONCLUSIONS:In cotton GhCPS1 and 2 gene expression correlates with the total CFA content in roots, stems and seeds. That GhCPS1 and 2 are expressed at a similar level in seed suggests both of them can be considered potential targets for gene silencing to reduce undesirable seed CPE accumulation. Because GhCPS1 is more active in yeast than the published Sterculia CPS and shows similar activity when expressed in model plant systems, it represents a strong candidate gene for CFA accumulation via heterologous expression in production plants.

Project description:Saturated mid-chain branched fatty acids (SMCBFAs) are widely used in the petrochemical industry for their high oxidative stability and low melting temperature. Dihydrosterculic acid (DHSA) is a cyclopropane fatty acid (CPA) that can be converted to SMCBFA via hydrogenation, and therefore oils rich in DHSA are a potential feedstock for SMCBFA. Recent attempts to produce DHSA in seed oil by recombinant expression of cyclopropane fatty acid synthases (CPFASes) resulted in decreased oil content and poor germination or low DHSA accumulation. Here we explored the potential for plant vegetative tissue to produce DHSA by transiently expressing CPFAS enzymes in leaf. When CPFASes from plant and bacterial origin were transiently expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana leaf, it accumulated up to 1 and 3.7% DHSA in total fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), respectively, which increased up to 4.8 and 11.8%, respectively, when the N. benthamiana endogenous oleoyl desaturase was silenced using RNA interference (RNAi). Bacterial CPFAS expression produced a novel fatty acid with a cyclopropane ring and two carbon-carbon double bonds, which was not seen with plant CPFAS expression. We also observed a small but significant additive effect on DHSA accumulation when both plant and bacterial CPFASes were co-expressed, possibly due to activity upon different oleoyl substrates within the plant cell. Lipidomics analyses found that CPFAS expression increased triacylglycerol (TAG) accumulation relative to controls and that DHSA was distributed across a range of lipid species, including diacylglycerol and galactolipids. DHSA and the novel CPA were present in phosphatidylethanolamine when bacterial CPFAS was expressed in leaf. Finally, when plant diacylglycerol acyltransferase was coexpressed with the CPFASes DHSA accumulated up to 15% in TAG. This study shows that leaves can readily produce and accumulate DHSA in leaf oil. Our findings are discussed in line with current knowledge in leaf oil production for a possible route to DHSA production in vegetative tissue.

Project description:Cyclopropane fatty acids (CFAs) are synthetized by the addition of a methylene group from S-adenosyl-l-methionine across the carbon-carbon double bonds of unsaturated fatty acid chains of membrane phospholipids. This fatty acid cyclopropanation, catalyzed by the CFA synthase (CfaS) enzyme, occurs in many bacteria, including the human pathogen Helicobacter pylori Although the cyclopropane modification was reported to play a key role in the adaptation in response to environmental stress, its role in H. pylori remains unknown. In this study, we showed that H. pylori HP0416 encodes a functional CfaS. The enzyme was demonstrated to be required for acid resistance, antibiotic resistance, intracellular survival and mouse gastric colonization, and cell membrane integrity. Moreover, the tool compound dioctylamine, which acts as a substrate mimic, directly inhibits the CfaS function of H. pylori, resulting into sensitivity to acid stress, increased antibiotic susceptibility, and attenuated abilities to avoid macrophage killing and to colonize mouse stomachs. These results validate CfaS as a promising antibiotic target and provide new potentials for this recognized target in future anti-H. pylori drug discovery efforts.IMPORTANCE The increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant Helicobacter pylori strains has created an urgent need for alternative therapeutic regimens that complement the current antibiotic treatment strategies for H. pylori eradication; however, this is greatly hampered due to a lack of "druggable" targets. Although the CFAs are present in H. pylori cytoplasmic membranes at high levels, their physiological role has not been established. In this report, deletion of the CFA synthase CfaS was shown to attenuate acid and drug resistance, immune escape, and gastric colonization of H. pylori These findings were validated by inhibition of the CfaS activity with the tool compound dioctylamine. These studies identify this enzyme as an attractive target for further drug discovery efforts against H. pylori.

Dataset Information

Functional analysis of Leishmania cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase.

Publications

Functional analysis of Leishmania cyclopropane fatty acid synthetase.

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