Bailey-Elkin, B. A. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2022

The unique ORF8 protein from SARS-CoV-2 binds to human dendritic cells and induces a hyper-inflammatory cytokine storm

The novel coronavirus pandemic, whose first outbreak was reported in December 2019 in Wuhan, China (COVID-19), is caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Tissue damage caused by the virus leads to a strong immune response and activation of antigen-presenting cells, which can elicit acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) characterized by the rapid onset of widespread inflammation, the so-called cytokine storm. In many viral infections the recruitment of monocytes into the lung and their differentiation to dendritic cells (DCs) are seen as a response to the viral infection. DCs are critical players in the development of the acute lung inflammation that causes ARDS. Here we focus on the interaction of the ORF8 protein, a specific SARS-CoV-2 open reading frame protein, with dendritic cells (DCs). We show that ORF8 binds to dendritic cells, causes a pre-maturation of differentiating DCs, and induces the secretion of multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines by these cells. In addition, we identified dendritic cell-specific intercellular adhesion molecule-3-grabbing non-integrin (DC-SIGN) as a possible interaction partner of ORF8 on dendritic cells. Blockade of ORF8 signaling leads to reduced production of IL-1{beta}, IL-6, IL-12p70, TNF-, MCP-1 (CCL2), and IL-10 by dendritic cells. Analysis of patient sera with high anti-ORF8 antibody titers showed that there was nearly no neutralization of the ORF8 protein and its function. Therefore, a neutralizing antibody that has the capacity of blocking the cytokine and chemokine response mediated by ORF8 protein might be an essential and novel additional step in the therapy of severe SARS-CoV-2 cases.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2019

Characterization of Sorbitol Dehydrogenase SmoS from Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021

Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021 is a Gram-negative alphaproteobacterium with a robust capacity for carbohydrate metabolism. The enzymes that facilitate these reactions assist in the survival of the bacterium across a range of environmental niches, and they may also be suitable for use in industrial processes. SmoS is a dehydrogenase that catalyzes the oxidation of the commonly occurring sugar alcohols sorbitol and galactitol into fructose and tagatose respectively using NAD+ as a cofactor. The main objective of this study is to evaluate SmoS using biochemical techniques. The nucleotide sequence was codon optimized for heterologous expression in E. coli BL21 (DE3) GOLD cells, the protein was subsequently overexpressed and purified. Size exclusion chromatography and X-ray diffraction experiments suggest that SmoS is a tetrameric peptide. SmoS was crystallized to 2.1 [A] in the absence of substrate and 2.0 [A] in complex with sorbitol. SmoS was characterized kinetically and shown to have a preference for sorbitol despite a higher affinity for galactitol. Computational ligand docking experiments suggest that galactitol oxidation proceeds slowly because tagatose binds the protein in a more energetically favorable complex than fructose, and is retained in the active site for a longer time frame following oxidation which reduces the rate of the reaction. These results supplement the inventory of biomolecules with the potential for industrial applications and enhance our understanding of metabolism in the model organism S. meliloti.

biochemistry↗