Biology subjects

Kawamoto, J.

Publications and source records attributed to Kawamoto, J..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

Rapid screening and identification of genes involved in bacterial extracellular membrane vesicle production using a curvature-sensing peptide

Bacteria secrete extracellular membrane vesicles (EMVs). Physiology and biotechnological applications of these lipid nanoparticles have been attracting significant attention. However, the molecular basis of EMV biogenesis has not yet been fully elucidated. In the previous research, an N-terminus-substituted FAAV peptide labeled with NBD (nFAAV5-NBD) was developed, which can sense a curvature of a lipid bilayer and selectively bind to EMVs in the presence of the cells. Herein, we applied nFAAV5-NBD to a screening of hyper- and hypo-vesiculation transposon mutants of a Gram-negative bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13, to identify the genes involved in EMV production. As a result, for 16 and six genes, we found that transposon insertion within or near the gene caused hyper- and hypo-vesiculation, respectively. Targeted gene-disrupted mutants of the identified genes demonstrated that the lack of putative dipeptidyl carboxypeptidase, glutamate synthase {beta}-subunit, LapG protease, metallohydrolase, RNA polymerase sigma-54 factor, inactive transglutaminase, PepSY domain-containing protein, and Rhs-family protein caused EMV overproduction. On the other hand, disruption of the genes encoding putative phosphoenolpyruvate synthase, D-hexose-6-phosphate epimerase, NAD-specific glutamate dehydrogenase, and sensory box histidine kinase/response regulator decreased EMV production. This study shows the utility of a novel screening method using a curvature-sensing peptide and fundamental information on the genes related to EMV production. IMPORTANCEConventional methods for isolation and quantification of EMVs are generally time-consuming. nFAAV5-NBD can detect EMVs in the culture without separating EMVs from cells. In situ detection of EMVs using this peptide facilitated screening of the genes related to EMV production. We succeeded in identifying a number of genes involved in the EMV production of S. vesiculosa HM13, and the strains obtained in this study would contribute to the elucidation of bacterial EMV formation mechanisms. Additionally, the hyper-vesiculating mutants obtained in this study would be useful in the application of this bacterium, such as in the production of useful substances as cargoes of EMVs and in the production of surface-engineered vesicles.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2023

Capsular polysaccharide-mediated protein loading onto extracellular membrane vesicles of a fish intestinal bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13

Bacterial extracellular membrane vesicles (EMVs) play various physiologically important roles mediated by cargo proteins. However, our understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying cargo loading onto EMVs is limited. In this study, we analyzed the mechanism of cargo protein loading onto EMVs from a fish intestinal Gram-negative bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13. This strain secretes EMVs carrying a major cargo protein, P49. Near the P49 gene, we found genes having homology to genes involved in protein secretion and surface polysaccharide-chain synthesis. Among them, the deletion of genes encoding homologs of a flippase involved in bacterial extracellular polysaccharide synthesis (HM3343), phosphoethanolamine transferase (HM3344), and glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase (HM3345) resulted in the loss of capsular polysaccharide (CPS) of EMVs. We conducted an in vitro P49 loading assay onto P49-free EMVs to examine whether P49 was loaded onto the EMVs via its interaction with the CPS of the EMVs. We found that purified P49 was loaded onto EMVs harboring CPS in vitro, whereas it was not loaded onto EMVs from the mutants lacking CPS production due to the loss of HM3343, HM3344, and HM3345. Transmission electron microscopy of EMVs loaded with P49 in vitro and in vivo showed spherical nanoparticles around the EMVs, whereas such particles were not observed for EMVs without loaded P49, implying that P49 constitutes those particles on the surface of EMVs. These results indicate that P49 is loaded onto EMVs via its interaction with the CPS of EMVs. IMPORTANCEElucidating the mechanisms of cargo loading onto bacterial extracellular membrane vesicles (EMVs) is important to understand their biogenesis and to develop their applications. Here, we show that the major cargo protein of EMVs from a fish intestinal Gram-negative bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13, is loaded onto EMVs through its interaction with capsular polysaccharide (CPS) of EMVs. Genes involved in CPS synthesis were also identified. To our knowledge, there have been no reports describing the cargo protein-loading mechanism in which CPS serves as the protein-binding scaffold for EMVs. Thus, this study represents a new mode of protein loading onto EMVs. The results deepen our understanding of cargo loading onto EMVs and would contribute to development of their applications.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2021

Group II truncated haemoglobin YjbI prevents reactive oxygen species-induced protein aggregation in Bacillus subtilis

Oxidative stress-mediated formation of protein hydroperoxides can induce irreversible fragmentation of the peptide backbone and accumulation of cross-linked protein aggregates, leading to cellular toxicity, dysfunction, and death. However, how bacteria protect themselves from damages caused by protein hydroperoxidisation is unknown. Here we show that YjbI, a group II truncated haemoglobin from Bacillus subtilis, prevents oxidative aggregation of cell-surface proteins by its biologically unprecedented protein hydroperoxide peroxidase-like activity, which removes hydroperoxide groups from oxidised proteins. Disruption of the yjbI gene in B. subtilis lowered biofilm water repellence and the mechanical stiffness of the cell surface, which associated with the cross-linked aggregation of the biofilm matrix protein TasA. YjbI was localised to the cell surface, and the sensitivity of planktonically grown cells to generators of reactive oxygen species was significantly increased upon yjbI disruption, suggesting that YjbI pleiotropically protects labile cell-surface proteins from oxidative damage. YjbI removed hydroperoxide residues from a model oxidised protein substrate, bovine serum albumin, and prevented its oxidative aggregation in vitro. These findings provide new insights into the role of truncated haemoglobin and the importance of hydroperoxide removal from proteins in the survival of aerobic bacteria.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2020

Identification of a Putative Sensor Protein Involved in Regulation of Vesicle Production by a Hypervesiculating Bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13

Bacteria secrete and utilize nanoparticles, called extracellular membrane vesicles (EMVs), for survival in their growing environments. Therefore, the amount and components of EMVs should be tuned in response to the environment. However, how bacteria regulate vesiculation in response to the extracellular environment remains largely unknown. In this study, we identified a putative sensor protein, HM1275, involved in the induction of vesicle production in a hypervesiculating Gram-negative bacterium, Shewanella vesiculosa HM13. This protein was predicted to possess typical sensing and signaling domains of sensor proteins, such as methyl-accepting chemotaxis proteins. Comparison of vesicle production between the hm1275-disrupted mutant and the parent strain revealed that HM1275 is involved in lysine-induced hypervesiculation. Moreover, HM1275 has sequence similarity to a biofilm dispersion protein, BdlA, of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1, and hm1275 disruption increased the amount of biofilm. Thus, this study showed that the induction of vesicle production and suppression of biofilm formation in response to lysine concentration are under the control of the same putative sensor protein.

microbiology↗