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bioRxiv2017

Three classes of response elements for human PRC2 and MLL1/2-trithorax complexes

Polycomb group (PcG) and trithorax group (TrxG) proteins are essential for maintaining epigenetic memory in both embryonic stem cells and differentiated cells. To date, how they are localized to hundreds of specific target genes within a vertebrate genome had remained elusive. Here, by focusing on short cis-acting DNA elements of single functions, we discovered, for the first time, to our knowledge, three classes of response elements in human genome: PcG response elements (PREs), MLL1/2-TrxG response elements (TREs) and PcG/TrxG response elements (P/TREs). We further demonstrated that, in contrast to their proposed roles in recruiting PcG proteins to PREs, YY1 and CpG islands are specifically enriched in TREs and P/TREs, but not in PREs. The three classes of response elements as unraveled in this study open new doors for a deeper understanding of PcG and TrxG mechanisms in vertebrates.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Pre-mature senescence in the oldest leaves of low nitrate-grown Atxdh1 mutant uncovers a role for purine catabolism in plant nitrogen metabolism

The nitrogen rich ureides allantoin and allantoate, are known to play a role in nitrogen delivery in Leguminosae, in addition to their role as reactive oxygen species scavengers. However, their role as a nitrogen source in non-legume plants has not been shown. Xanthine dehydrogenase1 (AtXDH1) activity is a catalytic bottleneck step in purine catabolism. Atxdh1 mutant exhibited early leaf senescence, lower soluble protein and organic-N levels as compared to wild-type (WT) older leaves when grown with 1 mM nitrate, whereas under 5mM, mutant plants were comparable to WT. Similar nitrate-dependent senescence phenotypes were evident in the older leaves of allantoinase (Ataln) and allantoate amidohydrolase (Ataah) mutants, impaired in further downstream steps of purine catabolism. Importantly, under low nitrate conditions, xanthine was accumulated in older leaves of Atxdh1, whereas allantoin in both older and younger leaves of Ataln but not in WT leaves, indicating remobilization of xanthine degraded products from older to younger leaves. Supporting this notion, ureide transporters UPS1, UPS2 and UPS5 were enhanced in older leaves of 1 mM nitrate-fed WT as compared to 5 mM. Enhanced AtXDH, AtAAH and purine catabolic transcripts, were detected in WT grown in low nitrate, indicating regulation at protein and transcript levels. Higher nitrate reductase activity in Atxdh1 than WT leaves, indicates their need for nitrate assimilation products. It is further demonstrated that the absence of remobilized purine-degraded N from older leaves is the cause for senescence symptoms, a result of higher chloroplastic protein degradation in older leaves of nitrate starved Atxdh1 plants.\n\nSummaryThe absence of remobilized purine-degraded N from older to the young growing leaves is the cause for senescence symptoms, a result of higher chloroplastic protein degradation in older leaves of nitrate starved Atxdh1 plants.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Process proteomics of beer reveals a dynamic proteome with extensive modifications

Modern beer production is a complex industrial process. However, some of its biochemical details remain unclear. Using mass spectrometry proteomics, we have performed a global untargeted analysis of the proteins present across time during nano-scale beer production. Samples included sweet wort produced by a high temperature infusion mash, hopped wort, and bright beer. This analysis identified over 200 unique proteins from barley and yeast, emphasizing the complexity of the process and product. We then used data independent SWATH-MS to quantitatively compare the relative abundance of these proteins throughout the process. This identified large and significant changes in the proteome at each process step. These changes described enrichment of proteins by their biophysical properties, and identified the appearance of dominant yeast proteins during fermentation. Altered levels of malt modification also quantitatively changed the proteomes throughout the process. Detailed inspection of the proteomic data revealed that many proteins were modified by protease digestion, glycation, or oxidation during the processing steps. This work demonstrates the opportunities offered by modern mass spectrometry proteomics in understanding the ancient process of beer production.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Genetic dissection of cyclic pyranopterin monophosphate biosynthesis in plant mitochondria

Mitochondria play a key role in the biosynthesis of two metal cofactors, iron-sulfur (FeS) clusters and molybdenum cofactor (Moco). The two pathways intersect at several points, but a scarcity of mutants has hindered studies to better understand these links. We screened a collection of sirtinol-resistant Arabidopsis thaliana mutants for lines with decreased activities of cytosolic FeS enzymes and Moco enzymes. We identified a new mutant allele of ATM3, encoding the ATP-binding cassette Transporter of the Mitochondria 3 (systematic name ABCB25), confirming the previously reported role of ATM3 in both FeS cluster and Moco biosynthesis. We also identified a mutant allele in CNX2, Cofactor of Nitrate reductase and Xanthine dehydrogenase 2, encoding GTP 3',8-cyclase, the first step in Moco biosynthesis which is localized in the mitochondria. A single nucleotide polymorphism in cnx2-2 leads to substitution of Arg88 with Gln in the N-terminal FeS cluster-binding motif. cnx2-2 plants are small and chlorotic, with severely decreased Moco enzyme activities, but they performed better than a cnx2-1 knockout mutant, which could only survive with ammonia as nitrogen source. Measurement of cyclic pyranopterin monophosphate (cPMP) levels by LC-MS/MS showed that this Moco intermediate was below the limit of detection in both cnx2-1 and cnx2-2, and accumulated more than 10-fold in seedlings mutated in the downstream gene CNX5. Interestingly, atm3-1 mutants had less cPMP than wild type, correlating with previous reports of a similar decrease in nitrate reductase activity. Taken together, our data functionally characterise CNX2 and suggest that ATM3 is indirectly required for cPMP synthesis.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Mutations alter RNA-mediated conversion of human prions

Prion diseases are connected with self-replication and self-propagation of mis-folded proteins. The rate-limiting factor is the formation of the initial seed. We have recently studied early stages in the conversion between functional PrPC and the infectious scrapie PrPSC form, triggered by the binding of RNA. Here, we study how this process is modulated by the prion sequence. We focus on residues 129 and 178, which are connected to the hereditary neurodegenerative disease Fatal Familial Insomnia.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Importance of homo-dimerization of Fanconi-associated nuclease 1 in DNA flap cleavage

Fanconi-associated nuclease 1 (FAN1) removes interstrand DNA crosslinks (ICLs) through its DNA flap endonuclease and exonuclease activities. Crystal structures of human and bacterial FAN1 bound to a DNA flap have been solved. The Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacterial FAN1 and human FAN1 (hFAN1) missing a flexible loop are monomeric, while intact hFAN1 is homo-dimeric in structure. Importantly, the monomeric and dimeric forms of FAN1 exhibit very different DNA binding modes. Here, we interrogate the functional differences between monomeric and dimeric forms of FAN1 and provide an explanation for the discrepancy in oligomeric state between the two hFAN1 structures. Specifically, we show that the flexible loop in question is needed for hFAN1 dimerization. While monomeric and dimeric bacterial or human FAN1 proteins cleave a short 5 flap strand with similar efficiency, optimal cleavage of a long 5 flap strand is contingent upon protein dimerization. Our study therefore furnishes biochemical evidence for a role of hFAN1 homodimerization in biological processes that involve 5 DNA Flap cleavage.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Single-cell quantification of the concentration and dissociation constant of endogenous proteins

Kinetic simulation is a useful approach for the elucidation of complex cell-signaling systems. To perform the numerical simulations required for kinetic modeling, parameters such as the protein concentration and dissociation constant (Kd) are essential. However, only a limited number of parameters have been measured experimentally in living cells. Here, we describe a method for quantifying the concentration and Kd of endogenous proteins at the single-cell level with CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knock-in and fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (FCCS). First, the mEGFP gene was knocked-in at the end of the MAPK1 gene, which encoded ERK2, through homology-directed repair or microhomology-mediated end joining. Next, the HaloTag gene was further knocked-in at the end of the RSK2 gene. Protein concentrations of endogenous ERK2-mEGFP and RSK2-HaloTag were quantified in living cells by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), revealing substantial cellular heterogeneities. Interestingly, the levels of ERK2-mEGFP and RSK2-HaloTag were strongly positively correlated, suggesting a global mechanism underlying their expressions. In addition, FCCS measurement revealed temporal changes in the apparent Kd values of the binding between ERK2-mEGFP and RSK2-HaloTag in response to EGF stimulation. Our method provides a new approach for quantification of the endogenous protein concentration and dissociation constant in living cells.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

CRISPR-typing PCR (ctPCR), a new Cas9-based DNA detection method

This study develops a new method for detecting and typing target DNA based on Cas9 nuclease, which was named as ctPCR, representing Cas9/sgRNA- or CRISPR-typing PCR. The technique can detect and discriminate target DNA easily, rapidly, specifically, and sensitively. This technique detects target DNA in three steps: (1) amplifying target DNA with PCR by using a pair of universal primers (PCR1); (2) treating PCR1 products with a process referred to as CAT, representing Cas9 cutting, A tailing and T adaptor ligation; (3) amplifying the CAT-treated DNA with PCR by using a pair of general-specific primers (gs-primers) (PCR2). The technique was verified by detecting HPV16 and HPV18 L1 gene in 13 different high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) subtypes. The technique was also detected two high-risk HPVs (HPV16 and HPV18) in cervical carcinoma cells (HeLa and SiHa) by detecting the L1 and E6/E7 genes, respectively. In this method, PCR1 was performed to determine if the detected DNA sample contained the target DNA (such as virus infection), while PCR2 was performed to discriminate which genotypic target DNA was present in the detected DNA sample (such as virus subtypes). With these proof-of-concept experiments, this study provides a new CRISPR-based DNA detection and typing method.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Proteomic and biochemical comparison of the cellular interaction partners of human VPS33A and VPS33B

Multi-subunit tethering complexes control membrane fusion events in eukaryotic cells. CORVET and HOPS are two such multi-subunit tethering complexes, both containing the Sec1/Munc18 protein subunit VPS33A. Metazoans additionally possess VPS33B, which has considerable sequence similarity to VPS33A but does not integrate into CORVET or HOPS complexes and instead stably interacts with VIPAR. It has been recently suggested that VPS33B and VIPAR comprise two subunits of a novel multi-subunit tethering complex (named CHEVI), analogous in configuration to CORVET and HOPS. We utilised the BioID proximity biotinylation assay to compare and contrast the interactomes of VPS33A and VPS33B. Overall, few proteins were identified as associating with both VPS33A and VPS33B, suggesting these proteins have distinct sub-cellular localisations. Consistent with previous reports, we observed that VPS33A was co-localised with many components of class III phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3KC3) complexes: PIK3C3, PIK3R4, NRBF2, UVRAG and RUBICON. Although in this assay VPS33A clearly co-localised with several subunits of CORVET and HOPS, no proteins with the canonical CORVET/HOPS domain architecture were found to co-localise with VPS33B. Instead, we identified two novel VPS33B-interacting proteins, VPS53 and CCDC22. CCDC22 co-immunoprecipitated with VPS33B and VIPAR in over-expression conditions and interacts directly with the VPS33B-VIPAR complex in vitro. However, CCDC22 does not appear to co-fractionate with VPS33B and VIPAR in gel filtration of human cell lysates. We also observed that the protein complex in HEK293T cells which contained VPS33B and VIPAR was considerably smaller than CORVET/HOPS, suggesting that, unlike VPS33A, VPS33B does not assemble into a large stable multi-subunit tethering complex.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Directed evolution of CRISPR-Cas9 to increase its specificity

The use of CRISPR-Cas9 as a therapeutic reagent is hampered by its off-target effects. Although rationally designed S. pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) variants that display higher specificities than the wild-type SpCas9 protein are available, these attenuated Cas9 variants are often poorly efficient in human cells. Here, we have used a directed evolution approach in E. coli to obtain Sniper-Cas9, which shows high specificities without sacrificing on-target activities in human cells.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Active site alanine substitutions can convert deubiquitinating enzymes into avid ubiquitin-binding domains

A common strategy for studying the biological role of deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) in different pathways is to study the effects of replacing the wild type DUB with a catalytically inactive mutant in cells. We report here that a commonly studied DUB mutation, in which the catalytic cysteine is replaced with alanine, can dramatically increase the affinity of some DUBs for ubiquitin. Overexpression of these tight-binding mutants thus has the potential to sequester cellular pools of monoubiquitin and ubiquitin chains. As a result, cells expressing these mutants may display unpredictable dominant negative physiological effects that are not related to loss of DUB activity. The structure of the SAGA DUB module bound to free ubiquitin reveals the structural basis for the 30-fold higher affinity of Ubp8C146A for ubiquitin. We show that an alternative option, substituting the active site cysteine with arginine, can inactivate DUBs while also decreasing the affinity for ubiquitin.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Protein Interaction Screen on Peptide Matrix (PRISMA) reveals interaction footprints and the PTM-dependent interactome of intrinsically disordered C/EBPβ

CCAAT enhancer binding protein beta (C/EBP{beta}) is a pioneer transcription factor that specifies cell differentiation. C/EBP{beta} is intrinsically unstructured, a molecular feature common to many proteins involved in signal processing and epigenetics. The structure of C/EBP{beta} differs depending on alternative translation start site usage and multiple post-translational modifications (PTM). Mutation of distinct PTM sites in C/EBP{beta} alters designated protein interactions and cell differentiation, suggesting a C/EBP{beta} PTM indexing code determines epigenetic outcomes. Herein, we systematically explored the interactome of C/EBP{beta} using an array of spot-synthesised C/EBP{beta}-derived linear tiling peptides with and without PTM, combined with mass spectrometric proteomic analysis of protein interactions. We identified interaction footprints of ~1300 proteins in nuclear cell extracts, many with chromatin modifying, remodelling and RNA processing functions. The results suggest C/EBP{beta} acts as a multi-tasking molecular switchboard, integrating signal-dependent modifications and structural plasticity to orchestrate interactions with numerous protein complexes directing cell fate and function.\n\nHighlightsO_LIPeptide array based interaction proteomics map SLiM and PTM dependent C/EBP{beta} interactome\nC_LIO_LINovel links between C/EBP{beta}, RNA processing, transcription elongation, MLL, NuRD were revealed\nC_LIO_LIC/EBP{beta} structure organizes modular hub function for gene regulatory machinery\nC_LIO_LIPRISMA is suitable to resolve protein interactions and networks based on intrinsically disordered proteins\nC_LI

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Brain, immune system and selenium: a starting point for a new diagnostic marker for Alzheimer’s disease?

The clinical diagnosis of Alzheimers disease (AD) is based primarily on neuropsychological tests, which assess the involutive damage, and imaging techniques that evaluate morphologic changes in the brain. The currently available diagnostic tests do not show complete specificity and do not permit an accurate differentiation between AD and other forms of senile dementia. The correlation of these tests with laboratory investigations based on biochemical parameters could increase the certainty of the diagnosis. In recent years, several biochemical markers for the diagnosis of AD have been proposed, but in most cases they show a limited specificity and their application is invasive, because it generally requires the sampling of cerebrospinal fluid. Therefore, the use of a peripheral biochemical marker could represent a valuable complement for the diagnosis of this disease.\n\nSeveral studies have shown a relationship between the neurodegenerative disorders typical of the ageing process, the weakening of the immune system, alterations in the levels of selenium and of the antioxidant selenoenzymes in brain tissues and blood cells, particularly in neutrophil granulocytes. The levels of peripheral selenoenzymes may reveal a promising clinical parameter for helping in the assessment of the pathological condition in AD.\n\nHighlightsMsrBl is one of the 25 selenoenzymes expressed in the humans\n\nMsrBl is highly expressed in human circulating neutrophils\n\nThe diagnostic markers for Alzheimers disease are still insufficiently validated\n\nThe impairment of some selenoenzymes is associated with Alzheimers disease\n\nNeutrophil MsrBl can be a peripheral marker for the diagnosis of Alzheimers disease

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

“CapZyme-Seq” comprehensively defines promoter-sequence determinants for RNA 5’ capping with NAD+

Nucleoside-containing metabolites such as NAD+ can be incorporated as \"5' caps\" on RNA by serving as non-canonical initiating nucleotides (NCINs) for transcription initiation by RNA polymerase (RNAP). Here, we report \"CapZyme-Seq,\" a high-throughput-sequencing method that employs NCIN-decapping enzymes NudC and Rai1 to detect and quantify NCIN-capped RNA. By combining CapZyme-Seq with multiplexed transcriptomics, we determine efficiencies of NAD+ capping by Escherichia coli RNAP for ~16,000 promoter sequences. The results define preferred transcription start-site (TSS) positions for NAD+ capping and define a consensus promoter sequence for NAD+ capping: HRRASWW (TSS underlined). By applying CapZyme-Seq to E. coli total cellular RNA, we establish that sequence determinants for NCIN capping in vivo match the NAD+-capping consensus defined in vitro, and we identify and quantify NCIN-capped small RNAs. Our findings define the promoter-sequence determinants for NCIN capping with NAD+ and provide a general method for analysis of NCIN capping in vitro and in vivo.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2018

Methylation of E. coli Class I Release Factors Increases the Accuracy of Translation Termination in vitro

Ribosomal protein synthesis (translation) is a highly accurate process. Translation termination, in particular, must be accurate to prevent truncated proteins. How this accuracy is achieved is not fully understood in all its details. Using an E. coli in vitro system, I explore novel mechanisms that contribute to the high accuracy of translation termination. By comparing the Michaelis-Menten parameters of methylated and non-methylated release factors on cognate and non-cognate codons. Post-translational methylation of a strictly conserved GGQ motif in class I release factors increases the accuracy of termination by up to 5-fold. This happens by increasing both the maximum rate of peptide release (kcat) and Michaelis-Menten constant (KM). Further, I demonstrate here that a non-methylated release factor acts like an uncompetitive inhibitor of enzyme reactions. Overall, this study shows that the methylation of class I release factors is a novel mechanism contributing to highly accurate translation termination.\n\nAbbreviations

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2017

Self-assembling all-enzyme hydrogels for biocatalytic flow processes

We describe the construction of binary self-assembling all-enzyme hydrogels that are comprised entirely of two tetrameric globular enzymes, the stereoselective dehydrogenase LbADH and the cofactor-regenerating glucose 1-dehydrogenase GDH. The enzymes were genetically fused with a SpyTag or SpyCatcher domain, respectively, to generate two complementary homo-tetrameric building blocks that polymerise under physiological conditions into porous hydrogels. The biocatalytic gels were used for the highly stereoselective reduction of a prochiral diketone substrate where they showed the typical behaviour of the coupled kinetics of coenzyme regenerating reactions in the substrate channelling regime. They effectively sequestrate the NADPH cofactor even under continuous flow conditions. Owing to their sticky nature, the gels can be readily mounted in simple microfluidic reactors without the need for supportive membranes. The reactors revealed extraordinary high space-time yields with nearly quantitative conversion (>95%), excellent stereoselectivity (d.r. > 99:1), and total turnover numbers of the expensive cofactor NADP(H) that are amongst the highest values ever reported.\n\nO_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=135 SRC=\"FIGDIR/small/240325_ufig1.gif\" ALT=\"Figure 1\">\nView larger version (30K):\norg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@19a66b9org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1ce1a41org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1dac96org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@2db317_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2018

Biochemical analyses reveal amino acid residues critical for cell cycle-dependent phosphorylation of human Cdc14A phosphatase by cyclin-dependent kinase 1

Cdc14 enzymes compose a family of highly conserved phosphatases that are present in a wide range of organisms, including yeast and humans, and that preferentially reverse the phosphorylation of Cyclin-Dependent Kinase (Cdk) substrates. The budding yeast Cdc14 orthologue has essential functions in the control of late mitosis and cytokinesis. In mammals, however, the two Cdc14 homologues, Cdc14A and Cdc14B, do not play a prominent role in controlling late mitotic events, suggesting that some Cdc14 functions are not conserved across species. Moreover, in yeast, Cdc14 is regulated by changes in its subcellular location and by phosphorylation events. In contrast, little is known about the regulation of human Cdc14 phosphatases. Here, we have studied how the human Cdc14A orthologue is regulated during the cell cycle. We found that Cdc14A is phosphorylated on Ser411, Ser453 and Ser549 by Cdk1 early in mitosis and becomes dephosphorylated during late mitotic stages. Interestingly, in vivo and in vitro experiments revealed that, unlike in yeast, Cdk1-mediated phosphorylation of human Cdc14A did not control its catalytic activity but likely modulated its interaction with other proteins in early mitosis. These findings point to differences in Cdk1-mediated mechanisms of regulation between human and yeast Cdc14 orthologues.

biochemistry↗

bioRxiv2018

Comprehensive mapping of Cystic Fibrosis mutations to CFTR protein identifies mutation clusters and molecular docking predicts corrector binding site

BackgroundCystic Fibrosis (CF) is caused by mutations in the CFTR gene, of which over 2000 have been reported to date. Mutations have yet to be analyzed in aggregate to assess their distribution across the tertiary structure of the CFTR protein, an approach that could provide valuable insights into the structure-function relationship of CFTR. In addition, the binding site of Class I correctors (VX-809, VX-661, C18) is not well understood.\n\nMethodsExonic CFTR mutations and mutant allele frequencies described in three curated databases (ABCMdb, CFTR1 and CFTR2, comprising >130,000 data points) were mapped to two different structural models: a homology model of full-length CFTR protein in the open-channel state, and a cryo-electron microscopy core-structure of CFTR in the closed-channel state. Immunoblotting confirmed the approximate binding site of Class I correctors, and molecular docking generated binding poses for their complex with the cryo-electron microscopy structure.\n\nResultsResidue positions of six high-frequency mutant CFTR alleles were found to spatially co-localize in CFTR protein, and a significant cluster was identified at the NBD1:ICL4 interdomain interface. Further, Class I correctors VX-809, VX-661 and C18 were shown to act via a similar mechanism in vitro, and a putative multi-domain corrector binding site near residues F374-L375 was predicted in silico.\n\nConclusionsOur results confirm the significance of interdomain interfaces as susceptible to disruptive mutation, and identify a putative corrector binding site. The structural pharmacogenomics approach of mapping mutation databases to protein models shows promise for facilitating drug discovery and personalized medicine for monogenetic diseases.

biochemistry↗