Growth of the cholera bacterium Vibrio cholerae in a biofilm community contributes to both its pathogenicity and survival in aquatic environmental niches. The major components of V. cholerae biofilms include Vibrio polysaccharide (VPS) and the extracellular matrix proteins RbmA, RbmC, and Bap1. To further elucidate the previously observed overlapping roles of Bap1 and RbmC in biofilm architecture and surface attachment, here we investigated the structural and functional properties of Bap1. Soluble expression of Bap1 was possible only after the removal of an internal 57-amino-acid-long hydrophobic insertion sequence. The crystal structure of Bap1 at 1.9 Å resolution revealed a two-domain assembly made up of an eight-bladed -propeller interrupted by a -prism domain. The structure also revealed metal-binding sites within canonical calcium blade motifs, which appear to have structural rather than functional roles. Contrary to results previously observed with RbmC, the Bap1 -prism domain did not exhibit affinity for complex N-glycans, suggesting an altered role of this domain in biofilmsurface adhesion. Native polyacrylamide gel shift analysis did suggest that Bap1 exhibits lectin activity with a preference for anionic or linear polysaccharides. Our results suggest a model for V. cholerae biofilms in which Bap1 and RbmC play dominant but differing adhesive roles in biofilms, allowing bacterial attachment to diverse environmental or host surfaces. This work was also supported by NIH Training Grant T32 GM008271 in molecular biophysics (to K. K.). The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest with the contents of this article. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. This article was selected as one of our Editors' Picks. This article contains Figs. S1-S5 and supporting Refs. 1-3. The atomic coordinates and structure factors (code 6MLT) have been deposited in the Protein Data Bank (http://wwpdb.org/).
Drosophila sechellia is a dietary specialist endemic to the Seychelles islands that has evolved to consume the fruit of Morinda citrifolia. When ripe, the fruit of M. citrifolia contains octanoic acid and hexanoic acid, two medium-chain fatty acid volatiles that deter and are toxic to generalist insects. Drosophila sechellia has evolved resistance to these volatiles allowing it to feed almost exclusively on this host plant. The genetic basis of octanoic acid resistance has been the focus of multiple recent studies, but the mechanisms that govern hexanoic acid resistance in D. sechellia remain unknown. To understand how D. sechellia has evolved to specialize on M. citrifolia fruit and avoid the toxic effects of hexanoic acid, we exposed adult D. sechellia, D. melanogaster and D. simulans to hexanoic acid and performed RNA sequencing comparing their transcriptional responses to identify D. sechellia specific responses. Our analysis identified many more genes responding transcriptionally to hexanoic acid in the susceptible generalist species than in the specialist D. sechellia. Interrogation of the sets of differentially expressed genes showed that generalists regulated the expression of many genes involved in metabolism and detoxification whereas the specialist primarily downregulated genes involved in the innate immunity. Using these data, we have identified interesting candidate genes that may be critically important in aspects of adaptation to their food source that contains high concentrations of HA. Understanding how gene expression evolves during dietary specialization is crucial for our understanding of how ecological communities are built and how evolution shapes trophic interactions.
Ni−Fe−S-dependent carbon monoxide dehydrogenases (CODHs) are enzymes that interconvert CO and CO 2 by using their catalytic Ni−Fe−S C-cluster and their Fe−S B-and Dclusters for electron transfer. CODHs are important in the microbiota of animals such as humans, ruminants, and termites because they can facilitate the use of CO and CO 2 as carbon sources and serve to maintain redox homeostasis. The bifunctional carbon monoxide dehydrogenase/acetyl-CoA synthase (CODH/ACS) is responsible for acetate production via the Wood−Ljungdahl pathway, where acetyl-CoA is assembled from two CO 2 -derived one-carbon units. A Ni−Fe− S A-cluster is key to this chemistry. Whereas acetogens use the A-and C-clusters of CODH/ACS to produce acetate from CO 2 , methanogens use A-and C-clusters of an acetyl-CoA decarbonylase/synthase complex (ACDS) to break down acetate en route to CO 2 and methane production. Here we review some of the recent advances in understanding the structure and mechanism of CODHs, CODH/ACSs, and ACDSs, their unusual metallocofactors, and their unique metabolic roles in the human gut and elsewhere.
Histone modification plays a major role in regulating gene transcription and ensuring the healthy development of an organism. Numerous studies have suggested that histones are dynamically modified during developmental events to control gene expression levels in a temporal and spatial manner. However, the study of histone acetylation dynamics using currently available techniques is hindered by the difficulty of simultaneously measuring acetylation of the numerous potential sites of modification present in histones. Here, we present a methodology that allows us to combine mass spectrometry-based histone analysis with Drosophila developmental genetics. Using this system, we characterized histone acetylation patterns during multiple developmental stages of the fly. Additionally, we utilized this analysis to characterize how treatments with pharmacological agents or environmental changes such as gamma-irradiation altered histone acetylation patterns. Strikingly, gamma-irradiation dramatically increased acetylation at H3K18, a site linked to DNA repair via non-homologous end joining. In mutant fly strains deficient in DNA repair proteins, however, this increase in H3K18 acetylation was lost. These results demonstrate the efficacy of our combined mass spectrometry system with a Drosophila model system, and provide interesting insight into the changes in histone acetylation during development, as well as the effects of both pharmacological and environmental agents on global histone acetylation.
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