I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Melodie M.
Machovina
,
Sam J. B.
Mallinson
,
Brandon C.
Knott
,
Alexander W.
Meyers
,
Marc
Garcia-borràs
,
Lintao
Bu
,
Japheth E.
Gado
,
April
Oliver
,
Graham P.
Schmidt
,
Daniel J.
Hinchen
,
Michael F.
Crowley
,
Christopher W.
Johnson
,
Ellen L.
Neidle
,
Christina M.
Payne
,
Kendall N.
Houk
,
Gregg T.
Beckham
,
John E.
Mcgeehan
,
Jennifer L.
Dubois
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[17212]
Open Access
Abstract: Microbial conversion of aromatic compounds is an emerging and promising strategy for valorization of the plant biopolymer lignin. A critical and often rate-limiting reaction in aromatic catabolism is O-aryl-demethylation of the abundant aromatic methoxy groups in lignin to form diols, which enables subsequent oxidative aromatic ring-opening. Recently, a cytochrome P450 system, GcoAB, was discovered to demethylate guaiacol (2-methoxyphenol), which can be produced from coniferyl alcohol-derived lignin, to form catechol. However, native GcoAB has minimal ability to demethylate syringol (2,6-dimethoxyphenol), the analogous compound that can be produced from sinapyl alcohol-derived lignin. Despite the abundance of sinapyl alcohol-based lignin in plants, no pathway for syringol catabolism has been reported to date. Here we used structure-guided protein engineering to enable microbial syringol utilization with GcoAB. Specifically, a phenylalanine residue (GcoA-F169) interferes with the binding of syringol in the active site, and on mutation to smaller amino acids, efficient syringol O-demethylation is achieved. Crystallography indicates that syringol adopts a productive binding pose in the variant, which molecular dynamics simulations trace to the elimination of steric clash between the highly flexible side chain of GcoA-F169 and the additional methoxy group of syringol. Finally, we demonstrate in vivo syringol turnover in Pseudomonas putida KT2440 with the GcoA-F169A variant. Taken together, our findings highlight the significant potential and plasticity of cytochrome P450 aromatic O-demethylases in the biological conversion of lignin-derived aromatic compounds.
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Jun 2019
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B21-High Throughput SAXS
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[14891]
Abstract: Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) is one of three (E2, E3 and E4) human isoforms of an α-helical, 299-amino-acid protein. Homozygosity for the ε4 allele is the major genetic risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). ApoE2, ApoE3 and ApoE4 differ at amino acid positions 112 and 158, and these sequence variations may confer conformational differences that underlie their participation in the risk of developing AD. Here, we compared the shape, oligomerization state, conformation and stability of ApoE isoforms using a range of complementary biophysical methods including small-angle x-ray scattering, analytical ultracentrifugation, circular dichroism, x-ray fiber diffraction and transmission electron microscopy We provide an in-depth and definitive study demonstrating that all three proteins are similar in stability and conformation. However, we show that ApoE4 has a propensity to polymerize to form wavy filaments, which do not share the characteristics of cross-β amyloid fibrils. Moreover, we provide evidence for the inhibition of ApoE4 fibril formation by ApoE3. This study shows that recombinant ApoE isoforms show no significant differences at the structural or conformational level. However, self-assembly of the ApoE4 isoform may play a role in pathogenesis, and these results open opportunities for uncovering new triggers for AD onset.
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Apr 2019
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I03-Macromolecular Crystallography
I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Sam J. B.
Mallinson
,
Melodie M.
Machovina
,
Rodrigo L.
Silveira
,
Marc
Garcia-borràs
,
Nathan
Gallup
,
Christopher W.
Johnson
,
Mark D.
Allen
,
Munir S.
Skaf
,
Michael F.
Crowley
,
Ellen L.
Neidle
,
Kendall N.
Houk
,
Gregg T.
Beckham
,
Jennifer L.
Dubois
,
John E.
Mcgeehan
Open Access
Abstract: Microbial aromatic catabolism offers a promising approach to convert lignin, a vast source of renewable carbon, into useful products. Aryl-O-demethylation is an essential biochemical reaction to ultimately catabolize coniferyl and sinapyl lignin-derived aromatic compounds, and is often a key bottleneck for both native and engineered bioconversion pathways. Here, we report the comprehensive characterization of a promiscuous P450 aryl-O-demethylase, consisting of a cytochrome P450 protein from the family CYP255A (GcoA) and a three-domain reductase (GcoB) that together represent a new two-component P450 class. Though originally described as converting guaiacol to catechol, we show that this system efficiently demethylates both guaiacol and an unexpectedly wide variety of lignin-relevant monomers. Structural, biochemical, and computational studies of this novel two-component system elucidate the mechanism of its broad substrate specificity, presenting it as a new tool for a critical step in biological lignin conversion.
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Jun 2018
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I03-Macromolecular Crystallography
I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
I23-Long wavelength MX
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Harry P.
Austin
,
Mark D.
Allen
,
Bryon S.
Donohoe
,
Nicholas A.
Rorrer
,
Fiona L.
Kearns
,
Rodrigo L.
Silveira
,
Benjamin C.
Pollard
,
Graham
Dominick
,
Ramona
Duman
,
Kamel
El Omari
,
Vitaliy
Mykhaylyk
,
Armin
Wagner
,
William E.
Michener
,
Antonella
Amore
,
Munir S.
Skaf
,
Michael F.
Crowley
,
Alan W.
Thorne
,
Christopher W.
Johnson
,
H. Lee
Woodcock
,
John E.
Mcgeehan
,
Gregg T.
Beckham
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[17212]
Open Access
Abstract: Poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) is one of the most abundantly produced synthetic polymers and is accumulating in the environment at a staggering rate as discarded packaging and textiles. The properties that make PET so useful also endow it with an alarming resistance to biodegradation, likely lasting centuries in the environment. Our collective reliance on PET and other plastics means that this buildup will continue unless solutions are found. Recently, a newly discovered bacterium, Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6, was shown to exhibit the rare ability to grow on PET as a major carbon and energy source. Central to its PET biodegradation capability is a secreted PETase (PET-digesting enzyme). Here, we present a 0.92 Å resolution X-ray crystal structure of PETase, which reveals features common to both cutinases and lipases. PETase retains the ancestral α/β-hydrolase fold but exhibits a more open active-site cleft than homologous cutinases. By narrowing the binding cleft via mutation of two active-site residues to conserved amino acids in cutinases, we surprisingly observe improved PET degradation, suggesting that PETase is not fully optimized for crystalline PET degradation, despite presumably evolving in a PET-rich environment. Additionally, we show that PETase degrades another semiaromatic polyester, polyethylene-2,5-furandicarboxylate (PEF), which is an emerging, bioderived PET replacement with improved barrier properties. In contrast, PETase does not degrade aliphatic polyesters, suggesting that it is generally an aromatic polyesterase. These findings suggest that additional protein engineering to increase PETase performance is realistic and highlight the need for further developments of structure/activity relationships for biodegradation of synthetic polyesters.
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Apr 2018
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I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Simon M.
Cragg
,
Gregg T
Beckham
,
Neil C
Bruce
,
Timothy D. H.
Bugg
,
Daniel L.
Distel
,
Paul
Dupree
,
Amaia Green
Etxabe
,
Barry S.
Goodell
,
Jody
Jellison
,
John E.
Mcgeehan
,
Simon J
Mcqueen-mason
,
Kirk
Schnorr
,
Paul H.
Walton
,
Joy E. M.
Watts
,
Martin
Zimmer
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[12342]
Open Access
Abstract: Organisms use diverse mechanisms involving multiple complementary enzymes, particularly glycoside hydrolases (GHs), to deconstruct lignocellulose. Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) produced by bacteria and fungi facilitate deconstruction as does the Fenton chemistry of brown-rot fungi. Lignin depolymerisation is achieved by white-rot fungi and certain bacteria, using peroxidases and laccases. Meta-omics is now revealing the complexity of prokaryotic degradative activity in lignocellulose-rich environments. Protists from termite guts and some oomycetes produce multiple lignocellulolytic enzymes. Lignocellulose-consuming animals secrete some GHs, but most harbour a diverse enzyme-secreting gut microflora in a mutualism that is particularly complex in termites. Shipworms however, house GH-secreting and LPMO-secreting bacteria separate from the site of digestion and the isopod Limnoria relies on endogenous enzymes alone. The omics revolution is identifying many novel enzymes and paradigms for biomass deconstruction, but more emphasis on function is required, particularly for enzyme cocktails, in which LPMOs may play an important role.
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Dec 2015
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I02-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Open Access
Abstract: In a wide variety of bacterial restriction–modification systems, a regulatory ‘ effective transcription of its own gene and for transcription of the endonuclease recently turned our attention to a new class of controller proteins (exemplified by C.Csp231I) that have quite novel features, including a much larger DNA-binding site with an 18 bp (60 A ° ) spacer between the two palindromic DNAbinding
sequences and from the canonical GACT/AGTC. Using X-ray crystallography, the structure of the protein in complex with its 21 bp DNA-recognition sequence was solved to 1.8 A ° resolution,
and the molecular basis of sequence is the extended spacer between the dimer binding
sites, suggesting a novel interaction between the two C-protein dimers when bound to both recognition sites correctly spaced on the DNA. A U-bend model is proposed for this tetrameric
complex, based on the results of gel-mobility assays, hydrodynamic analysis and the observation of key contacts at the interface between dimers in the crystal.
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Feb 2015
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I02-Macromolecular Crystallography
I04-1-Macromolecular Crystallography (fixed wavelength)
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[8922]
Open Access
Abstract: Bacterial restriction-modification (RM) systems are comprised of two complementary enzymatic activities that prevent the establishment of foreign DNA in a bacterial cell: DNA methylation and DNA restriction. These two activities are tightly regulated to prevent over-methylation or auto-restriction. Many Type II RM systems employ a controller (C) protein as a transcriptional regulator for the endonuclease gene (and in some cases, the methyltransferase gene also). All high-resolution structures of C-protein/DNA-protein complexes solved to date relate to C.Esp1396I, from which the interactions of specific amino acid residues with DNA bases and/or the phosphate backbone could be observed. Here we present both structural and DNA binding data for a series of mutations to the key DNA binding residues of C.Esp1396I. Our results indicate that mutations to the backbone binding residues (Y37, S52) had a lesser affect on DNA binding affinity than mutations to those residues that bind directly to the bases (T36, R46), and the contributions of each side chain to the binding energies are compared. High-resolution X-ray crystal structures of the mutant and native proteins showed that the fold of the proteins was unaffected by the mutations, but also revealed variation in the flexible loop conformations associated with DNA sequence recognition. Since the tyrosine residue Y37 contributes to DNA bending in the native complex, we have solved the structure of the Y37F mutant protein/DNA complex by X-ray crystallography to allow us to directly compare the structure of the DNA in the mutant and native complexes.
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Jun 2014
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I02-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Open Access
Abstract: Structural analysis of DNAprotein complexes regulating the restrictionmodification system Esp1396I
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Sep 2013
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I02-Macromolecular Crystallography
I04-1-Macromolecular Crystallography (fixed wavelength)
I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Marcelo
Kern
,
John E.
Mcgeehan
,
Simon D.
Streeter
,
Richard N. A.
Martin
,
Katrin
Besser
,
Luisa
Elias
,
Will
Eborall
,
Graham P.
Malyon
,
Christina M.
Payne
,
Michael E.
Himmel
,
Kirk
Schnorr
,
Gregg T.
Beckham
,
Simon M.
Cragg
,
Neil C.
Bruce
,
Simon J.
Mcqueen-mason
Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[7131]
Abstract: Nature uses a diversity of glycoside hydrolase (GH) enzymes to convert polysaccharides to sugars. As lignocellulosic biomass deconstruction for biofuel production remains costly, natural GH diversity offers a starting point for developing industrial enzymes, and fungal GH family 7 (GH7) cellobiohydrolases, in particular, provide significant hydrolytic potential in industrial mixtures. Recently, GH7 enzymes have been found in other kingdoms of life besides fungi, including in animals and protists. Here, we describe the in vivo spatial expression distribution, properties, and structure of a unique endogenous GH7 cellulase from an animal, the marine wood borer Limnoria quadripunctata (LqCel7B). RT-quantitative PCR and Western blot studies show that LqCel7B is expressed in the hepatopancreas and secreted into the gut for wood degradation. We produced recombinant LqCel7B, with which we demonstrate that LqCel7B is a cellobiohydrolase and obtained four high-resolution crystal structures. Based on a crystallographic and computational comparison of LqCel7B to the well-characterized Hypocrea jecorina GH7 cellobiohydrolase, LqCel7B exhibits an extended substrate-binding motif at the tunnel entrance, which may aid in substrate acquisition and processivity. Interestingly, LqCel7B exhibits striking surface charges relative to fungal GH7 enzymes, which likely results from evolution in marine environments. We demonstrate that LqCel7B stability and activity remain unchanged, or increase at high salt concentration, and that the L. quadripunctata GH mixture generally contains cellulolytic enzymes with highly acidic surface charge compared with enzymes derived from terrestrial microbes. Overall, this study suggests that marine cellulases offer significant potential for utilization in high-solids industrial biomass conversion processes.
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Jun 2013
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I04-Macromolecular Crystallography
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Diamond Proposal Number(s):
[7131]
Open Access
Abstract: Controller (C) proteins regulate the expression of restriction–modification (RM) genes in a wide variety of RM systems. However, the RM system Esp1396I is of particular interest as the C protein regulates both the restriction endonuclease (R) gene and the methyltransferase (M) gene. The mechanism of this finely tuned genetic switch depends on differential binding affinities for the promoters controlling the R and M genes, which in turn depends on differential DNA sequence recognition and the ability to recognize dual symmetries. We report here the crystal structure of the C protein bound to the M promoter, and compare the binding affinities for each operator sequence by surface plasmon resonance. Comparison of the structure of the transcriptional repression complex at the M promoter with that of the transcriptional activation complex at the R promoter shows how subtle changes in protein–DNA interactions, underpinned by small conformational changes in the protein, can explain the molecular basis of differential regulation of gene expression.
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Aug 2012
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