Structural mechanism of WASP activation by the enterohaemorrhagic E. coli effector EspF(U)

During infection, enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) takes over the actin cytoskeleton of eukaryotic cells by injecting the EspF(U) protein into the host cytoplasm. EspF(U) controls actin by activating members of the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein (WASP) family. Here we show that EspF(U) binds to the autoinhibitory GTPase binding domain (GBD) in WASP proteins and displaces it from the activity-bearing VCA domain (for verprolin homology, central hydrophobic and acidic regions). This interaction potently activates WASP and neural (N)-WASP in vitro and induces localized actin assembly in cells. In the solution structure of the GBD-EspF(U) complex, EspF(U) forms an amphipathic helix that binds the GBD, mimicking interactions of the VCA domain in autoinhibited WASP. Thus, EspF(U) activates WASP by competing directly for the VCA binding site on the GBD. This mechanism is distinct from that used by the eukaryotic activators Cdc42 and SH2 domains, which globally destabilize the GBD fold to release the VCA. Such diversity of mechanism in WASP proteins is distinct from other multimodular systems, and may result from the intrinsically unstructured nature of the isolated GBD and VCA elements. The structural incompatibility of the GBD complexes with EspF(U) and Cdc42/SH2, plus high-affinity EspF(U) binding, enable EHEC to hijack the eukaryotic cytoskeletal machinery effectively.     

雷公藤红素缓解刀豆蛋白A诱导的小鼠急性肝损伤作用及其机制

将36只同一批次体重无明显差异的7周龄C57雄鼠随机分为6组,每组6只,即对照组,模型组,地塞米松(dexamethasone, DXM)组及雷公藤红素(celastrol, Cel)低、中、高剂量组(1.5、3、6 mg/kg),连续灌胃7 d后尾静脉注射20 mg/kg刀豆蛋白A(concanavalin A, ConA),地塞米松(0.5 mg/kg)于刀豆蛋白给药前1 h腹腔注射.注射8 h后处死小鼠,取其血清分别检测白介素-6(IL-6)、白介素-10(IL-10)、肿瘤坏死因子-α(tumor necrosis factor-α,TNF-α)和丙氨酸氨基转移酶(ALT)及天冬氨酸转移酶(AST)的含量.取小鼠肝脾称重计算脏器系数,苏木精-伊红(HE)染色观察肝组织病理改变,用实时定量PCR法(RT-qPCR法)检测肝组织中相关基因mRNA的表达水平,流式细胞术检测脾脏中巨噬细胞的极化方向,从而研究雷公藤红素对刀豆蛋白A诱导的小鼠急性肝损伤的保护作用及其机制.结果显示:相较于正常组,模型组小鼠的肝组织明显发生急性肝炎,其小叶结构紊乱,肝细胞结构破坏,汇管区炎症细胞浸润,雷公藤...