L23 protein functions as a chaperone docking site on the ribosome

During translation, the first encounter of nascent polypeptides is with the ribosome-associated chaperones that assist the folding process--a principle that seems to be conserved in evolution. In Escherichia coli, the ribosome-bound Trigger Factor chaperones the folding of cytosolic proteins by interacting with nascent polypeptides. Here we identify a ribosome-binding motif in the amino-terminal domain of Trigger Factor. We also show the formation of crosslinked products between Trigger Factor and two adjacent ribosomal proteins, L23 and L29, which are located at the exit of the peptide tunnel in the ribosome. L23 is essential for the growth of E. coli and the association of Trigger Factor with the ribosome, whereas L29 is dispensable in both processes. Mutation of an exposed glutamate in L23 prevents Trigger Factor from interacting with ribosomes and nascent chains, and causes protein aggregation and conditional lethality in cells that lack the protein repair function of the DnaK chaperone. Purified L23 also interacts specifically with Trigger Factor in vitro. We conclude that essential L23 provides a chaperone docking site on ribosomes that directly links protein biosynthesis with chaperone-assisted protein folding.     

A peptide deformylase-ribosome complex reveals mechanism of nascent chain processing

Messenger-RNA-directed protein synthesis is accomplished by the ribosome. In eubacteria, this complex process is initiated by a specialized transfer RNA charged with formylmethionine (tRNA(fMet)). The amino-terminal formylated methionine of all bacterial nascent polypeptides blocks the reactive amino group to prevent unfavourable side-reactions and to enhance the efficiency of translation initiation. The first enzymatic factor that processes nascent chains is peptide deformylase (PDF); it removes this formyl group as polypeptides emerge from the ribosomal tunnel and before the newly synthesized proteins can adopt their native fold, which may bury the N terminus. Next, the N-terminal methionine is excised by methionine aminopeptidase. Bacterial PDFs are metalloproteases sharing a conserved N-terminal catalytic domain. All Gram-negative bacteria, including Escherichia coli, possess class-1 PDFs characterized by a carboxy-terminal alpha-helical extension. Studies focusing on PDF as a target for antibacterial drugs have not revealed the mechanism of its co-translational mode of action despite indications in early work that it co-purifies with ribosomes. Here we provide biochemical evidence that E. coli PDF interacts directly with the ribosome via its C-terminal extension. Crystallographic analysis of the complex between the ribosome-interacting helix of PDF and the ribosome at 3.7 A resolution reveals that the enzyme orients its active site towards the ribosomal tunnel exit for efficient co-translational processing of emerging nascent chains. Furthermore, we have found that the interaction of PDF with the ribosome enhances cell viability. These results provide the structural basis for understanding the coupling between protein synthesis and enzymatic processing of nascent chains, and offer insights into the interplay of PDF with the ribosome-associated chaperone trigger factor.     

Trigger factor and DnaK cooperate in folding of newly synthesized proteins.

The role of molecular chaperones in assisting the folding of newly synthesized proteins in the cytosol is poorly understood. In Escherichia coli, GroEL assists folding of only a minority of proteins and the Hsp70 homologue DnaK is not essential for protein folding or cell viability at intermediate growth temperatures. The major protein associated with nascent polypeptides is ribosome-bound trigger factor, which displays chaperone and prolyl isomerase activities in vitro. Here we show that delta tig::kan mutants lacking trigger factor have no defects in growth or protein folding. However, combined delta tig::kan and delta dnaK mutations cause synthetic lethality. Depletion of DnaK in the delta tig::kan mutant results in massive aggregation of cytosolic proteins. In delta tig::kan cells, an increased amount of newly synthesized proteins associated transiently with DnaK. These findings show in vivo activity for a ribosome-associated chaperone, trigger factor, in general protein folding, and functional cooperation of this protein with a cytosolic Hsp70. Trigger factor and DnaK cooperate to promote proper folding of a variety of E. coli proteins, but neither is essential for folding and viability at intermediate growth temperatures.     

Real-time observation of trigger factor function on translating ribosomes

The contribution of co-translational chaperone functions to protein folding is poorly understood. Ribosome-associated trigger factor (TF) is the first molecular chaperone encountered by nascent polypeptides in bacteria. Here we show, using fluorescence spectroscopy to monitor TF function and structural rearrangements in real time, that TF interacts with ribosomes and translating polypeptides in a dynamic reaction cycle. Ribosome binding stabilizes TF in an open, activated conformation. Activated TF departs from the ribosome after a mean residence time of approximately 10 s, but may remain associated with the elongating nascent chain for up to 35 s, allowing entry of a new TF molecule at the ribosome docking site. The duration of nascent-chain interaction correlates with the occurrence of hydrophobic motifs in translating polypeptides, reflecting a high aggregation propensity. These findings can explain how TF prevents misfolding events during translation and may provide a paradigm for the regulation of nucleotide-independent chaperones.     

Structure of the signal recognition particle interacting with the elongation-arrested ribosome

Cotranslational translocation of proteins across or into membranes is a vital process in all kingdoms of life. It requires that the translating ribosome be targeted to the membrane by the signal recognition particle (SRP), an evolutionarily conserved ribonucleoprotein particle. SRP recognizes signal sequences of nascent protein chains emerging from the ribosome. Subsequent binding of SRP leads to a pause in peptide elongation and to the ribosome docking to the membrane-bound SRP receptor. Here we present the structure of a targeting complex consisting of mammalian SRP bound to an active 80S ribosome carrying a signal sequence. This structure, solved to 12 A by cryo-electron microscopy, enables us to generate a molecular model of SRP in its functional conformation. The model shows how the S domain of SRP contacts the large ribosomal subunit at the nascent chain exit site to bind the signal sequence, and that the Alu domain reaches into the elongation-factor-binding site of the ribosome, explaining its elongation arrest activity.     

Location of exit channel for nascent protein in 80S ribosome

Ribosomes crystallize on endoplasmic reticulum membranes in oocytes of the southern Italian lizard, Lacerta sicula, during winter. Electron crystallographic studies of the crystals have been made to elucidate the arrangement of the ribosomal subunits on the membrane surface. We have now obtained more extensive and better ordered crystals of the same habit, grown from chick embryo ribosomes, and report here on their native structure preserved by rapid freezing of the crystals in thin aqueous films. The three-dimensional map reveals new details of the protein and ribosomal RNA distribution within the ribosome. Most striking is a region of low density within the large subunit which extends from the subunit interface towards an area on the membrane-facing surface identified by others as the exit site of the nascent protein. This region of low density appears to delineate the path taken by the growing polypeptide through the ribosome to the external surface.     

Following the signal sequence from ribosomal tunnel exit to signal recognition particle

Membrane and secretory proteins can be co-translationally inserted into or translocated across the membrane. This process is dependent on signal sequence recognition on the ribosome by the signal recognition particle (SRP), which results in targeting of the ribosome-nascent-chain complex to the protein-conducting channel at the membrane. Here we present an ensemble of structures at subnanometre resolution, revealing the signal sequence both at the ribosomal tunnel exit and in the bacterial and eukaryotic ribosome-SRP complexes. Molecular details of signal sequence interaction in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic complexes were obtained by fitting high-resolution molecular models. The signal sequence is presented at the ribosomal tunnel exit in an exposed position ready for accommodation in the hydrophobic groove of the rearranged SRP54 M domain. Upon ribosome binding, the SRP54 NG domain also undergoes a conformational rearrangement, priming it for the subsequent docking reaction with the NG domain of the SRP receptor. These findings provide the structural basis for improving our understanding of the early steps of co-translational protein sorting.     

Principles of Quantitative Estimation of the Chaperone-Like Activity

IntroductionThe folding of most newly synthesized proteins inthe cell requires the interaction of a variety ofprotein cofactors known as molecular chaperones.These molecules recognize and bind to nascentpolypeptide chains and partially foldedintermediates of proteins,preventing theiraggregation and misfolding[1 7] .　 There are several classes of chaperones definedusing molecular size,cellular compartment andfunction. Thelargestchaperonefamilies are Hsp90(heat shock protein of molecular mass …     

Rapid degradation of a large fraction of newly synthesized proteins by proteasomes

MHC class I molecules function to present peptides eight to ten residues long to the immune system. These peptides originate primarily from a cytosolic pool of proteins through the actions of proteasomes, and are transported into the endoplasmic reticulum, where they assemble with nascent class I molecules. Most peptides are generated from proteins that are apparently metabolically stable. To explain this, we previously proposed that peptides arise from proteasomal degradation of defective ribosomal products (DRiPs). DRiPs are polypeptides that never attain native structure owing to errors in translation or post-translational processes necessary for proper protein folding. Here we show, first, that DRiPs constitute upwards of 30% of newly synthesized proteins as determined in a variety of cell types; second, that at least some DRiPs represent ubiquitinated proteins; and last, that ubiquitinated DRiPs are formed from human immunodeficiency virus Gag polyprotein, a long-lived viral protein that serves as a source of antigenic peptides.     

高速列车行驶速度对隧道壁面气动压力影响的数值模拟

壁面气动压力长期循环作用是高速铁路隧道衬砌掉块的重要诱因，为研究高速列车行驶速度对壁面气动压力基本特征的影响规律，采用三维数值仿真模拟对隧道典型位置(入口段、洞身段以及出口段)壁面气动压力进行研究。结果表明:列车车头经过使得监测横断面气动压力差异性增强，表现出显著的三维特征。隧道入口段气动压力三维特征主要受压缩空气所占体积大小以及与隧道入口之间距离的影响，气动压力三维特征随着进入隧道入口距离的增加而减弱，并逐渐向一维特征转变。列车车头驶入隧道入口后，车尾驶出隧道出口前，洞身段不同测点位置的气动压力正峰值主要受车头进入隧道入口诱发压缩波的影响，纵轴中断面测点气动压力负峰值与峰峰值大于洞口段。车尾驶出隧道出口后，出口段测点气动压力负峰值大于入口段，正峰值小于入口段。隧道出口段气动压力三维特征与入口段相似，但列车行驶速度以及测点与隧道出口之间距离对气动压力三维特征的影响机制更为复杂。     

Maintenance of an unfolded polypeptide by a cognate chaperone in bacterial type III secretion.

Many bacterial pathogens use a type III protein secretion system to deliver virulence effector proteins directly into the host cell cytosol, where they modulate cellular processes. A requirement for the effective translocation of several such effector proteins is the binding of specific cytosolic chaperones, which typically interact with discrete domains in the virulence factors. We report here the crystal structure at 1.9 A resolution of the chaperone-binding domain of the Salmonella effector protein SptP with its cognate chaperone SicP. The structure reveals that this domain is maintained in an extended, unfolded conformation that is wound around three successive chaperone molecules. Short segments from two different SptP molecules are juxtaposed by the chaperones, where they dimerize across a hydrophobic interface. These results imply that the chaperones associated with the type III secretion system maintain their substrates in a secretion-competent state that is capable of engaging the secretion machinery to travel through the type III apparatus in an unfolded or partially folded manner.     

Visualization of release factor 3 on the ribosome during termination of protein synthesis

Termination of protein synthesis by the ribosome requires two release factor (RF) classes. The class II RF3 is a GTPase that removes class I RFs (RF1 or RF2) from the ribosome after release of the nascent polypeptide. RF3 in the GDP state binds to the ribosomal class I RF complex, followed by an exchange of GDP for GTP and release of the class I RF. As GTP hydrolysis triggers release of RF3 (ref. 4), we trapped RF3 on Escherichia coli ribosomes using a nonhydrolysable GTP analogue. Here we show by cryo-electron microscopy that the complex can adopt two different conformational states. In 'state 1', RF3 is pre-bound to the ribosome, whereas in 'state 2' RF3 contacts the ribosome GTPase centre. The transfer RNA molecule translocates from the peptidyl site in state 1 to the exit site in state 2. This translocation is associated with a large conformational rearrangement of the ribosome. Because state 1 seems able to accommodate simultaneously both RF3 and RF2, whose position is known from previous studies, we can infer the release mechanism of class I RFs.     

Modeling the intracellular dynamics for Vif-APO mediated HIV-1 virus infection

The viral infectivity factor (Vif) was found to be essential for controlling HIV-1 virus infectivity. It targets cellular antiviral proteins in APOBEC family (APO) to trigger its fast degradation and inhibits APO packaging into nascent virion. In the present study, we propose a mathematical model to quantitatively study the intracellular dynamics of these typical virus-host interactions. Four sets of published experimental data were compared with simulation results to justify the model. Systematic parameter sensitivity and perturbation analysis showed that parameters related to APO are crucial to the infectivity of newly synthesized HIV-1 virus. Interestingly, we discovered that the synthesis rate of the viral structure protein Gag and the required number per nascent virion are optimized to achieve high virion production with minimal level of packaged APO, and large portion of model parameters are beneficial to virus only within a relatively small range. Furthermore, minor variations in several parameters related to viral protein Tat, the activator of viral RNA synthesis, were found to induce switch-like behaviors on both incorporated Vif and APO. These findings may provide new insights for understanding the high mutation rate of HIV-1 virus and its latency, as well as help identify key targets for therapeutic design.     

Protein targeting and degradation are coupled for elimination of mislocalized proteins

A substantial proportion of the genome encodes membrane proteins that are delivered to the endoplasmic reticulum by dedicated targeting pathways. Membrane proteins that fail targeting must be rapidly degraded to avoid aggregation and disruption of cytosolic protein homeostasis. The mechanisms of mislocalized protein (MLP) degradation are unknown. Here we reconstitute MLP degradation in vitro to identify factors involved in this pathway. We find that nascent membrane proteins tethered to ribosomes are not substrates for ubiquitination unless they are released into the cytosol. Their inappropriate release results in capture by the Bag6 complex, a recently identified ribosome-associating chaperone. Bag6-complex-mediated capture depends on the presence of unprocessed or non-inserted hydrophobic domains that distinguish MLPs from potential cytosolic proteins. A subset of these Bag6 complex 'clients' are transferred to TRC40 for insertion into the membrane, whereas the remainder are rapidly ubiquitinated. Depletion of the Bag6 complex selectively impairs the efficient ubiquitination of MLPs. Thus, by its presence on ribosomes that are synthesizing nascent membrane proteins, the Bag6 complex links targeting and ubiquitination pathways. We propose that such coupling allows the fast tracking of MLPs for degradation without futile engagement of the cytosolic folding machinery.     

分子伴侣的研究进展

文章综述了分子伴侣特别是HSP70分子伴侣系统的结构、功能、作用机理及应用方面的研究进展。分子伴侣能结合和稳定另一种蛋白质的不稳定构象，促进新生多肽链的正确折叠，因而在辅助蛋白质复性以及免疫保护等方面有很重要的作用。HSP70分子伴侣能够帮助细胞内新生蛋白的折叠和跨膜运输、蛋白质多聚体结构的装配和解装配，并能在胁迫下维持蛋白质的特殊构象，防止未折叠的蛋白质变性和使聚集的蛋白质溶解复性。     

Structure of the E. coli protein-conducting channel bound to a translating ribosome

Secreted and membrane proteins are translocated across or into cell membranes through a protein-conducting channel (PCC). Here we present a cryo-electron microscopy reconstruction of the Escherichia coli PCC, SecYEG, complexed with the ribosome and a nascent chain containing a signal anchor. This reconstruction shows a messenger RNA, three transfer RNAs, the nascent chain, and detailed features of both a translocating PCC and a second, non-translocating PCC bound to mRNA hairpins. The translocating PCC forms connections with ribosomal RNA hairpins on two sides and ribosomal proteins at the back, leaving a frontal opening. Normal mode-based flexible fitting of the archaeal SecYEbeta structure into the PCC electron microscopy densities favours a front-to-front arrangement of two SecYEG complexes in the PCC, and supports channel formation by the opening of two linked SecY halves during polypeptide translocation. On the basis of our observation in the translocating PCC of two segregated pores with different degrees of access to bulk lipid, we propose a model for co-translational protein translocation.     

高速铁路隧道斜切式洞门研究

高速列车通过隧道时会在隧道内引起瞬变压力、在隧道出口形成微气压波.微气压波会对隧道出口的周边环境和周围建筑物造成危害,采用帽檐斜切式洞门可大大消减微气压波的影响.本文对斜切式洞门的结构型式、结构设计及斜切式洞门对微气压波的消减效果等进行了研究,可供类似工程参考.     

The topological configuration and conformational analysis of mRNA in translation

The theoretical model construction of mRNA hairpin structure and single-stranded structure as well as the simulation studies on RNA structure determined by the X-ray crystal diffraction and nuclear magnetic resonance revealed that in translation, after mRNA being unfolded into single-stranded structure, its topological configuration was closely correlative with the original hairpin structure. The conformational features of single-stranded mRNA appeared as helical regions alternating with curly regions to different extents, which might exert the influence on the folding of nascent polypeptide by various regulating effects including different translational rates.     

极端气象条件下季冻区超长铁路隧道温度场分布规律

季冻区隧道温度场的分布及演变规律研究是提升隧道服役性能,保障通车效率的基础性工作。气象参数的代表性是决定隧道温度场分布规律的重要因素。以新宾隧道工程为例,在分析工程区近41年气象数据的基础上,通过三维足尺数值模拟分析了极端气象条件下隧道温度场分布规律。研究表明：新宾地区最冷月份以12-15方位风为主,其持续时间基本服从对数正态分布;不同气象组合条件下隧道温度场存在显著差异,新宾隧道抗冻设防重点在入口端;风向使得隧道出入口附近南北两侧温度存在较大差异,随进深增加温差逐渐减小直到消失;隧道出入口附近围岩负温区域随通风时间逐渐扩大且分布渐趋不均匀,隧道入口负温区长度和深度均随通风时间非线性增大,增大速率渐趋减缓。