Conformational change of glutathione-S-transferase by its co-expression with prion domain of yeast Ure2p

Ure2 protein from Saccharomyces cerevisisae has a changeable structure similar to that ofrnammalian prion protein. Its N-terminal is the prion domain (PrD) consisting of 65 amino acids which plays a critical role in yeast prion development. In this study, PrD gene was recombinated with glutathione-S-transferase(GST) gene, and a soluble GST-PrD(sGST-PrD) fusion protein was expressed in E. coli. sGST-PrD could spontaneously polymerize into amyloid fibrils in vitro, displaying typical β-sheet-type structure; it had increased resistance to proteinase K and exhibited amvloid-like optical properties. Moreover, the aggregated GST-PrD(aGST-PrD) could induce sGST-PrD to aggregate into fibrils. These results indicate that PrD could change the conformation of GST moiety in a recombinant protein with PrD to form a prion-like chimeric protein, which proves that PrD has the ability to mediate a prion-like conversion of other proteins fused with it.     

Inducible expression pattern of rice Bowman-Birk inhibitor gene<Emphasis Type="Italic">OsWIP1-2</Emphasis> and its protease inhibitory activity

The WIP1-2 gene was cloned from rice. It be-longs to the Bowman-Birk inhibitor gene family. Northernblot showed that expression of this gene was induced bywounding and jasmonic acid (JA). It indicates that the OsWIPI gene plays an important role in the rice defense sys-tem. The OsWIP1-2 was cloned into pET28a and expressed inE. coli. Its expressed product was purified in the form offusion protein and tested for the inhibitory activities againsttrypsin and chymotrypsin. It was found that the fusion pro-tein could inhibit chymotrypsin, but not trypsin. It was alsofound that the His tag at its C-terminal affected its inhibitoryactivity significantly. The fusion protein with a naturalC-terminal had the inhibitory activity, while no inhibitoryactivity was detected in the fusion protein with a (His)6-tag atits C-terminal. This implies that extra amino acid residues atthe C-terminal of OsWIP1-2 may interfere with its correctfolding. The inhibitory assay indicated that the members ofrice Bowman-Birk inhibitor gene family probably differenti-ated both in their structure and function.     

Mutagenesis of Ser24 of Cytochrome b559 α Subunit Affects PSII Acitivies in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

In order to study the functions of cytochrome b559 (Cyt b559) in photosystem two (PSII) activity, mutant S24F of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was constructed using site directed mutagenesis, in which Serine24 (Ser24) locating downstream of Histidine23 (His23) in α subunit of Cyt b559 was replaced by Phenylalanine (Phe). Physiological and biochemical analysis showed that mutant S24F could be grown photoautotrophically or photoheterotrophically. However, their growth rate was slower either on HSM or TAP medium than that of the control; Analysis of PSII activity revealed that its oxygen evolution was about 71% of wild type (WT); The Photochemical efficiency of PSII (Fv/Fm) of S24F was reduced 0.23 compared with WT; S24F was more sensitive to strong light irradiance than the wild type; Furthermore, SDS-PAGE and Western-blotting analysis indicated that the expression levels of α subunit of Cyt b559, LHCII and PsbO of S24F were a little less than those of the wild type. Overall, these data suggests that Ser24 plays a significant role in making Cyt b559 structure maintain PSII complex activity of oxygen evolution although it is not directly bound to heme group.     

2,3-Dihydroxybiphenyl dioxygenase gene was first discovered in Arthrobacter sp. strain PJ3

Bacterium strain PJ3,isolated from wastewater and identified as Arthrobacter sp. bacterium based on its 16S rDNA gene,could use carbazole as the sole carbon,nitrogen and energy source. The genomic library of strain PJ3 was constructed and a positive clone JM109(pUCW402) was screened out for the expression of dioxygenase by the ability to form yellow ring-fission product. A 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl dioxygenase(23DHBD) gene of 933 bp was found in the 3360 bp exogenous fragment of pUCW402 by GenSCAN software and BLAST analysis. The phylogenetic analysis showed that 23DHBD from strain PJ3 formed a deep branch separate from a cluster containing most known 23DHBD in GenBank. Southern hybridization confirmed for the first time that the 23DHBD gene was from the genomic DNA of Arthrobacter sp. PJ3. In order to test the gene function,recombinant bacterium BL21(pETW-8) was constructed to express 23DHBD. The expression level in BL21(pETW-8) was highest compared with the recombinant bacteria JM109(pUCW402) and strain PJ3. We observed that 23DHBD was not absolute specific. The enzyme activity was higher with 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl as a substrate than with catechol. The substrate specificity assay suggested that 23DHBD was essential for cleavage of bi-cyclic aromatic compounds during the course of aromatic compound biodegradation in Arthrobacter sp. strain PJ3.     

Hypoosmotic shock induces a stateⅠtransition of photosynthetic apparatus in Dunaliella salina

State transition has been considered as a short-term chromatic adaptation of photosynthetic apparatus in plants[1,2]. When photosystemⅡ(PSⅡ) is excited more than photosystem Ⅰ(PSⅠ) upon illumination, the inter-system electron carriers, such as plastoquinone (PQ) and cytochrome b6f complexes (Cyt b6f), are reduced, and a thylakoid membrane-bound protein kinase for light har-vesting chlorophyll-binding protein (LHCP) is activated, resulting in LHCP phosphorylation[3]. Upon phosphoryla-…     

Cloning and Expression of Recombinant Human Thymosin in Yeast Pichia pastoris

The gene of human thyrnosin alpha 1 (hT(1)was synthesised according to favorite eodons of Pichia pastoris by PCR. N-terminal 28 amino acid residues of 40S ribosomal protein (RP), S24Ethat is N-aeetylserine were replaced by hT( 1 for the constitution of hT(1-RP fusion gene in order to express acetyllated thyrnosin α1. And also, the Asn-Gly bond was designed to faeiliate isolation of the target protein. The fusion gene was cloned into the expression vector, pPIC/gK. The constructs were transformed into HIS4 mutant strain GS115 by eleetroporation. Both SDS-PAGE analysis and Western blot analysis indicated that the fusion protein was expressed successfully.     

Overexpression and export of Vibrio anguillarum metalloprotease in Escherichia coil

Vibrio anguillarum metalloprotease, an extracellular zinc metalloprotease involved in the virulence mechanism of Vibrio anguillarum, is synthesized from the empA gene as a 611-residue precursor and naturally secreted via Sec secretion pathway in Vibrio anguillarum. In this study, hetemlogous expression of the empA gene encoding metallopmtease and export of the recombinant metallopmtease in Escherichia coli were examined. The empA gene was subcloned into pBAD24 with arabinose promoter and sequenced. The sequence encoded a polypeptide （611 amino acids） consisting of four domains： a signal peptide, an Nterminal pmpoptide, a mature region and a C-terminal pmpoptide. The empA gene inserted in plasmid pBAD24 was overexpressed in TOP10 strain of E. coli after arabinose induction. The 36kDa polypeptide of the recombinant metallopmtease as the mature pmtease was further confirmed by SDS-PAGE and im- munoblotting. It was found that recombinant metallopmtease with the EmpA activity and antigenicity was exported into the poriplasm of Escherichia coli cells via Sec translocation pathway, whereas it was secreted into extracellular environments in V. anguillarum. The results imply that the expression, export and processing mechanism of the protein in E. coli are similar to those in V. anguillarum.     

Overexpression and export of Vibrio anguillarum metalloprotease in Escherichia coli

Vibrio anguillarum metalloprotease, an extracellular zinc metalloprotease involved in the virulence mechanism of Vibrio anguillarum, is synthesized from the empA gene as a 611-residue precursor and naturally secreted via Sec secretion pathway in Vibrio anguillarum. In this study, heterologous expression of the empA gene encoding metalloprotease and export of the recombinant metalloprotease in Escherichia coli were examined. The empA gene was subcloned into pBAD24 with arabinose promoter and sequenced. The sequence encoded a polypeptide (611 amino acids) consisting of four domains: a signal peptide, an N-terminal propeptide, a mature region and a C-terminal propeptide. The empA gene inserted in plasmid pBAD24 was overexpressed in TOP10 strain of E. coli after arabinose induction. The 36kDa polypeptide of the recombinant metalloprotease as the mature protease was further confirmed by SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting. It was found that recombinant metalloprotease with the EmpA activity and antigenicity was exported into the periplasm of Escherichia coli cells via Sec translocation pathway, whereas it was secreted into extracellular environments in V. anguillarum. The results imply that the expression, export and processing mechanism of the protein in E. coli are similar to those in V. anguillarum.     

Enhanced hydrosen production by insertional inactivation of adhE gene in Klebsiella oxytoca HP1

Ethanol is the main byproduct of anaerobic H2-producing fermentation in Klebsiella oxytoca HP1. Two moles of NAD（P）H are consumed to yield one mole of ethanol that may decrease bacterial hydrogen production. In this article the adhE gene that codes for acetaldehyde dehydrogenase was disrupted for the first time. A homologous recombination vector pTA-Str was constructed in which the adhE gene was disrupted by inserting an aminoglycoside-3＇-adenyltransferase （aadA） gene. As expected, the vector includes the insertion 5＇-adhE-aadA-adhE-3＇. The amplified DNA fragment 5＇-adhE-aadA-adhE-3＇ from pTA-Str was transformed into K. oxytoca HP1 and one recombinant was obtained. PCR analysis of the resulting genomic DNA indicated the appropriate deletion and insertion. Compared with the H2-production of wild type K. oxytoca HP1, the hydrogen yield of the mutant increased by 16.07% and ethanol concentration decreased by 77.47%, suggesting that inactivation of the adhE gene in K. oxytoca HP1 is a potential method for enhancing bacterial H2-production.     

ApcD is required for state transition but not involved in blue-light induced quenching in the cyanobacterium <Emphasis Type="Italic">Anabaena</Emphasis> sp. PCC7120

Pbycobilisomes （PBS） are able to transfer absorbed energy to photosystem Ⅰ and Ⅱ, and the distribution of light energy between two photosystems is regulated by state transitions. In this study we show that energy transfer from PBS to photosystem Ⅰ （PSI） requires ApcD. Cells were unable to perform state transitions in the absence of ApcD. The apcD mutant grows more slowly in light mainly absorbed by PBS, indicating that ApcD-dependent energy transfer to PSI is required for optimal growth under this condition. The apcD mutant showed normal blue-light induced quenching, suggesting that ApcD is not required for this process and state transitions are independent of blue-light induced quenching. Under nitrogen fixing condition, the growth rates of the wild type and the mutant were the same, indicating that energy transfer from PBS to PSI in heterocysts was not required for nitrogen fixation.     

Prokaryotic expression, localization and function of the infectious laryngotracheitis virus glycoprotein G

The infectious laryngotracheitis virus （ILTV） glycoprotein G （gG） gene of E3 and Zhonghai strains was cloned, sequenced and compared with the gG gene of other Type Ⅰ animal herpesviruses. To find the localization and the function of the gG in the infected cells, the 35 kD fusion protein （His-GG） was expressed by inserting the coding region of gG except for the signal peptide into pET30a （＋）. After purification of the His-GG fusion protein, the rats＇ antibody to the His-GG was prepared and purified by using the protein G Sepbarose. Results of laser scanning confocal microscopy （LSCM） detection showed that the ILTV gG was in the perinuclear region and membrane of chicken embryo liver （CEL） and kidney （CEK） cells, and that the gG accumulated more in the coalescent part than in the other parts of the adjacent CEL or CEK cells. The plaque size and the one-step growth curve tests suggested that the ILTV gG was required for viral growth by cell-to-cell direct infection in tissue-cultured CEL cells.     

Magnaporthe oryzae MTP1 gene encodes a type III transmembrane protein involved in conidiation and conidial germination

In this study the MTP1 gene, encoding a type III integral transmembrane protein, was isolated from the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. The Mtp 1 protein is 520 amino acids long and is comparable to the Ytp 1 protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with 46% sequence similarity. Prediction programs and MTP1-GFP （green fluorescent protein） fusion expression results indicate that Mtp 1 is a protein located at several membranes in the cytoplasm. The functions of the MTP1 gene in the growth and development of the fungus were studied using an MTP1 gene knockout mutant. The MTP1 gene was primarily expressed at the hyphal and conidial stages and is necessary for conidiation and conidial germination, but is not required for pathogenicity. The Amtpl mutant grew more efficiently than the wild type strain on non-fermentable carbon sources, implying that the MTP1 gene has a unique role in respiratory growth and carbon source use.     

Cloning, sequencing and expression of the coat protein gene of Cocksfoot mottle virus

The coat protein (CP) gene of Cocksfoot mottle virus (CfMV) was amplified by RT-PCR and inserted into expression vector pGEX-4T-1, and the resulting plasmid was designated as pGEXCfMV-JANCP. The fusion protein GST-CP was expressed in BL21 (DE3) pLysS after IPTG induction. The results of SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis showed that the CfMV-CP gene was efficiently expressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) pLysS through IPTG induction and the 56.0 kD protein was obtained.     

Cloning, sequencing and expression of the coat protein gene of Cocksfoot mottle virus

The coat protein (CP) gene of Cocksfoot mottle virus (CfMV) was amplified by RT-PCR and inserted into expression vector pGEX-4T-1, and the resulting plasmid was designated as pGEXCfMV-JANCP. The fusion protein GST-CP was expressed in BL21 (DE3) pLysS after IPTG induction. The results of SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis showed that the CfMV-CP gene was efficiently expressed in E.coli BL21 (DE3) pLysS through IPTG induction and the 56.0 kD protein was obtained.