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Adjustments, extinction, and remains of selenocysteine incorporation machinery in the nematode lineage.

ABSTRACT: Selenocysteine (Sec) is encoded by an UGA codon with the help of a SECIS element present in selenoprotein mRNAs. SECIS-binding protein (SBP2/SCBP-2) mediates Sec insertion, but the roles of its domains and the impact of its deficiency on Sec insertion are not fully understood. We used Caenorhabditis elegans to examine SBP2 function since it possesses a single selenoprotein, thioredoxin reductase-1 (TRXR-1). All SBP2 described so far have an RNA-binding domain (RBD) and a Sec-incorporation domain (SID). Surprisingly, C. elegans SBP2 lacks SID and consists only of an RBD. An sbp2 deletion mutant strain ablated Sec incorporation demonstrating SBP2 essentiality for Sec incorporation. Further in silico analyses of nematode genomes revealed conservation of SBP2 lacking SID and maintenance of Sec incorporation linked to TRXR-1. Remarkably, parasitic plant nematodes lost the ability to incorporate Sec, but retained SecP43, a gene associated with Sec incorporation. Interestingly, both selenophosphate synthetase (SPS) genes are absent in plant parasitic nematodes, while only Cys-containing SPS2 is present in Sec-incorporating nematodes. Our results indicate that C. elegans and the nematode lineage provide key insights into Sec incorporation and the evolution of Sec utilization trait, selenoproteomes, selenoproteins, and Sec residues. Finally, our study provides evidence of noncanonical translation initiation in C. elegans, not previously known for this well-established animal model.

SUBMITTER: Otero L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4114682 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Adjustments, extinction, and remains of selenocysteine incorporation machinery in the nematode lineage.

Otero Lucía L Romanelli-Cedrez Laura L Turanov Anton A AA Gladyshev Vadim N VN Miranda-Vizuete Antonio A Salinas Gustavo G

RNA (New York, N.Y.) 20140509 7

Selenocysteine (Sec) is encoded by an UGA codon with the help of a SECIS element present in selenoprotein mRNAs. SECIS-binding protein (SBP2/SCBP-2) mediates Sec insertion, but the roles of its domains and the impact of its deficiency on Sec insertion are not fully understood. We used Caenorhabditis elegans to examine SBP2 function since it possesses a single selenoprotein, thioredoxin reductase-1 (TRXR-1). All SBP2 described so far have an RNA-binding domain (RBD) and a Sec-incorporation domain ...[more]

PMID: 24817701

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Project description:The formate dehydrogenases (Fdh) Fdh-O, Fdh-N, and Fdh-H, are the only proteins in Escherichia coli that incorporate selenocysteine at a specific position by decoding a UGA codon. However, an excess of selenium can lead to toxicity through misincorporation of selenocysteine into proteins. To determine whether selenocysteine substitutes for cysteine, we grew Escherichia coli in the presence of excess sodium selenite. The respiratory Fdh-N and Fdh-O enzymes, along with nitrate reductase (Nar) were co-purified from wild type strain MC4100 after anaerobic growth with nitrate and either 2 µM or 100 µM selenite. Mass spectrometric analysis of the catalytic subunits of both Fdhs identified the UGA-specified selenocysteine residue and revealed incorporation of additional, 'non-specific' selenocysteinyl residues, which always replaced particular cysteinyl residues. Although variable, their incorporation was not random and was independent of the selenite concentration used. Notably, these cysteines are likely to be non-essential for catalysis and they do not coordinate the iron-sulfur cluster. The remaining cysteinyl residues that could be identified were never substituted by selenocysteine. Selenomethionine was never observed in our analyses. Non-random substitution of particular cysteinyl residues was also noted in the electron-transferring subunit of both Fdhs as well as in the subunits of the Nar enzyme. Nar isolated from an E. coli selC mutant also showed a similar selenocysteine incorporation pattern to the wild-type indicating that non-specific selenocysteine incorporation was independent of the specific selenocysteine pathway. Thus, selenide replaces sulfide in the biosynthesis of cysteine and misacylated selenocysteyl-tRNA(Cys) decodes either UGU or UGC codons, which usually specify cysteine. Nevertheless, not every UGU or UGC codon was decoded as selenocysteine. Together, our results suggest that a degree of misincorporation of selenocysteine into enzymes through replacement of particular, non-essential cysteines, is tolerated and this might act as a buffering system to cope with excessive intracellular selenium.

Dataset Information

Adjustments, extinction, and remains of selenocysteine incorporation machinery in the nematode lineage.

Publications

Adjustments, extinction, and remains of selenocysteine incorporation machinery in the nematode lineage.

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