How an obscure archaeal gene inspired the discovery of selenocysteine biosynthesis in humans

Su, Dan; Hohn, Michael J.; Palioura, Sotiria; Sherrer, R. Lynn; Yuan, Jing; Söll, Dieter; O’Donoghue, Patrick

doi:10.1002/iub.136

Cited by 21 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…When archaeal versions of these two enzymes were expressed in a selA mutant of E. coli, active selenoprotein formate dehydrogenase was produced, proving the involvement of these proteins in the two-step synthesis of Sec. A repeat of this experiment with the eukaryotic SepSecS yielded the same result, indicating a shared pathway for Sec formation in archaea and eukarya (Su et al, 2009;Yuan et al, 2006). Pyr has only been identified in the proteins of some Methanosarcinales and an extremely limited number of bacteria, such as the Gram-positive bacterium Desulfitobacterium hafniense (Rother & Krzycki, 2010;Srinivasan et al, 2002).…”

Section: Archaea As Model Organismssupporting

confidence: 52%

“…Among archaea, a restricted number of genera of methanogens are the only known members to incorporate Sec and Pyr residues into proteins, almost exclusively into enzymes involved in methanogenesis (Rother & Krzycki, 2010). Sec is present in proteins from all three domains of life, and while it was first observed in bacterial formate dehydrogenase, studies in archaea were crucial in elucidating the route of Sec formation in eukarya (Su et al, 2009). Of all the amino acids, Sec is unique in not having its own aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase.…”

Section: Archaea As Model Organismsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Major players on the microbial stage: why archaea are important

et al. 2011

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As microbiology undergoes a renaissance, fuelled in part by developments in new sequencing technologies, the massive diversity and abundance of microbes becomes yet more obvious. The Archaea have traditionally been perceived as a minor group of organisms forced to evolve into environmental niches not occupied by their more 'successful' and 'vigorous' counterparts, the bacteria. Here we outline some of the evidence gathered by an increasingly large and productive group of scientists that demonstrates not only that the Archaea contribute significantly to global nutrient cycling, but also that they compete successfully in 'mainstream' environments. Recent data suggest that the Archaea provide the major routes for ammonia oxidation in the environment. Archaea also have huge economic potential that to date has only been fully realized in the production of thermostable polymerases. Archaea have furnished us with key paradigms for understanding fundamentally conserved processes across all domains of life. In addition, they have provided numerous exemplars of novel biological mechanisms that provide us with a much broader view of the forms that life can take and the way in which micro-organisms can interact with other species. That this information has been garnered in a relatively short period of time, and appears to represent only a small proportion of what the Archaea have to offer, should provide further incentives to microbiologists to investigate the underlying biology of this fascinating domain. IntroductionWhen Carl Woese first proposed that the tree of life encompassed three distinct lineages, including a new prokaryotic one initially designated Archaebacteria (later Archaea), it would have been hard to imagine the broad spectrum of novel findings that study of these remarkable organisms would bring to light. Indeed, in their groundbreaking paper, in which Woese & Fox (1977) proposed the third Kingdom [later Domain (Woese et al., 1990)] of Archaebacteria, they were represented solely by the methanogens. These were quickly supplemented by the addition of extreme halophiles and thermoacidophiles Woese et al., 1978), but at that time one of the characteristics of archaebacteria was 'their occurrence only in unusual habitats'. By the 1980s, many new hyperthermophilic organisms that grew optimally above 80 u C, and often optimally above 100 uC, had been isolated and shown also to be archaea (Tu et al., 1982;Zillig et al., 1981). Later studies showed by molecular rather than culture methods that archaea are cosmopolitan, and in certain habitats, such as the oceans, are significant contributors to the biomass (DeLong & Pace, 2001;Olsen et al., 1986;Robertson et al., 2005). Over the years, archaea have gone from microbial extremophilic oddities to organisms of universal importance and have been used to elucidate fundamental biological questions. Studies of archaea have proven to be enormously fruitful: unique traits found nowhere else in nature have been revealed in archaea, and there are many instances of archaeal pro...

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Section: Archaea As Model Organismssupporting

confidence: 52%

Section: Archaea As Model Organismsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Major players on the microbial stage: why archaea are important

et al. 2011

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“…Sec is not attached directly to tRNA Sec , but is formed by the tRNA-dependent conversion of serine (reviewed in refs. [1][2][3][4]. In the first step tRNA Sec is misacylated by seryl-tRNA synthetase (SerRS).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The canonical pathway for selenocysteine insertion is dispensable in Trypanosomes

Aeby

Palioura²,

Pusnik

et al. 2009

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Genome analysis of the biosynthesis of cysteine and its incorporation into cysteinyl-tRNA have led to the discovery of two new pathways for the biosynthesis of this amino acid. These findings, in turn, have led to developments in our understanding of the biosynthesis of selenocysteine in humans [67]. This area presents a nice case study in the emerging use of genome analysis to identify new variants in biosynthetic pathways.…”

Section: Case Study: Genome Information As a Starting Point For Uncovmentioning

confidence: 99%

Amino Acid Biosynthesis

Parker

Pratt

2010

Amino Acids, Peptides and Proteins in Organic Chemistry

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The ribosomal synthesis of proteins utilizes a family of 20 a-amino acids that are universally coded by the translation machinery; in addition, two further a-amino acids, selenocysteine and pyrrolysine, are now believed to be incorporated into proteins via ribosomal synthesis in some organisms. More than 300 other amino acid residues have been identified in proteins, but most are of restricted distribution and produced via post-translational modification of the ubiquitous protein amino acids [1]. The ribosomally encoded a-amino acids described here ultimately derive from a-keto acids by a process corresponding to reductive amination. The most important biosynthetic distinction relates to whether appropriate carbon skeletons are pre-existing in basic metabolism or whether they have to be synthesized de novo and this division underpins the structure of this chapter.There are a small number of a-keto acids ubiquitously found in core metabolism, notably pyruvate (and a related 3-phosphoglycerate derivative from glycolysis), together with two components of the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA), oxaloacetate and a-ketoglutarate (a-KG). These building blocks ultimately provide the carbon skeletons for unbranched a-amino acids of three, four, and five carbons, respectively. a-Amino acids with shorter (glycine) or longer (lysine and pyrrolysine) straight chains are made by alternative pathways depending on the available raw materials. The strategic challenge for the biosynthesis of most straight-chain amino acids centers around two issues: how is the a-amino function introduced into the carbon skeleton and what functional group manipulations are required to generate the diversity of side-chain functionality required for the protein function?The core family of straight-chain amino acids does not provide all the functionality required for proteins. a-Amino acids with branched side-chains are used for two purposes; the primary need is related to protein structural issues. Proteins fold into well-defined three-dimensional shapes by virtue of their amphipathic nature: a significant fraction of the amino acid side-chains are of low polarity and the hydrophobic effect drives the formation of ordered structures in which these side-chains are buried away from water. In contrast to the straight-chain amino

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How an obscure archaeal gene inspired the discovery of selenocysteine biosynthesis in humans

Cited by 21 publications

References 55 publications

Major players on the microbial stage: why archaea are important

Major players on the microbial stage: why archaea are important

The canonical pathway for selenocysteine insertion is dispensable in Trypanosomes

Amino Acid Biosynthesis

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