Klaas E.A. Max

Common mode of DNA binding to cold shock domains Crystal structure of hexathymidine bound to the domain-swapped form of a major cold shock protein from Bacillus caldolyticus

Bacterial cold shock proteins (CSPs) regulate cellular adaptation to cold stress. Functions ascribed to CSP include roles as RNA chaperones and in transcription antitermination. We present the crystal structure of the Bacillus caldolyticus CSP (Bc‐Csp) in complex with hexathymidine (dT6) at a resolution of 1.29 Å. Bound to dT6, crystalline Bc‐Csp forms a domain‐swapped dimer in which β strands 1–3 associate with strands 4 and 5 from the other subunit to form a closed β barrel and vice versa. The globular units of dimeric Bc‐Csp closely resemble the well‐known structure of monomeric CSP. Structural reorganization from the monomer to the domain‐swapped dimer involves a strictly localized change in the peptide bond linking Glu36 and Gly37 of Bc‐Csp. Similar structural reorganizations have not been found in any other CSP or oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide‐binding fold structures. Each dT6 ligand is bound to one globular unit of Bc‐Csp via an amphipathic protein surface. Individual binding subsites interact with the DNA bases through stacking and hydrogen bonding. The sugar–phosphate backbone remains solvent exposed. Based on crystallographic and biochemical studies of deoxyoligonucleotide binding to CSP, we suggest a common mode of binding of single‐stranded heptanucleotide motifs to proteins containing cold shock domains, including the eukaryotic Y‐box factors.

The Coxsackievirus-Adenovirus Receptor Reveals Complex Homophilic and Heterophilic Interactions on Neural Cells

The coxsackievirus–adenovirus receptor (CAR) is a member of the Ig superfamily strongly expressed in the developing nervous system. Our histological investigations during development reveal an initial uniform distribution of CAR on all neural cells with a concentration on membranes that face the margins of the nervous system (e.g., the basal laminae and the ventricular side). At more advanced stages, CAR becomes downregulated and restricted to specific regions including areas rich in axonal and dendritic surfaces. To study the function of CAR on neural cells, we used the fiber knob of the adenovirus, extracellular CAR domains, blocking antibodies to CAR, as well as CAR-deficient neural cells. Blocking antibodies were found to inhibit neurite extension in retina organ and retinal explant cultures, whereas the application of the recombinant fiber knob of the adenovirus subtype Ad2 or extracellular CAR domains promoted neurite extension and adhesion to extracellular matrices. We observed a promiscuous interaction of CAR with extracellular matrix glycoproteins, which was deduced from analytical ultracentrifugation experiments, affinity chromatography, and adhesion assays. The membrane proximal Ig domain of CAR, termed D2, was found to bind to a fibronectin fragment, including the heparin-binding domain 2, which promotes neurite extension of wild type, but not of CAR-deficient neural cells. In contrast to heterophilic interactions, homophilic association of CAR involves both Ig domains, as was revealed by ultracentrifugation, chemical cross-linking, and adhesion studies. The results of these functional and binding studies are correlated to a U-shaped homodimer of the complete extracellular domains of CAR detected by x-ray crystallography.

Recognition of T-rich single-stranded DNA by the cold shock protein Bs-CspB in solution

Cold shock proteins (CSP) belong to the family of single-stranded nucleic acid binding proteins with OB-fold. CSP are believed to function as ‘RNA chaperones’ and during anti-termination. We determined the solution structure of Bs-CspB bound to the single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) fragment heptathymidine (dT7) by NMR spectroscopy. Bs-CspB reveals an almost invariant conformation when bound to dT7 with only minor reorientations in loop β1–β2 and β3–β4 and of few aromatic side chains involved in base stacking. Binding studies of protein variants and mutated ssDNA demonstrated that Bs-CspB associates with ssDNA at almost diffusion controlled rates and low sequence specificity consistent with its biological function. A variation of the ssDNA affinity is accomplished solely by changes of the dissociation rate. 15N NMR relaxation and H/D exchange experiments revealed that binding of dT7 increases the stability of Bs-CspB and reduces the sub-nanosecond dynamics of the entire protein and especially of loop β3–β4.

Sequence specificity of single-stranded DNA-binding proteins: a novel DNA microarray approach

We have developed a novel DNA microarray-based approach for identification of the sequence-specificity of single-stranded nucleic-acid-binding proteins (SNABPs). For verification, we have shown that the major cold shock protein (CspB) from Bacillus subtilis binds with high affinity to pyrimidine-rich sequences, with a binding preference for the consensus sequence, 5′-GTCTTTG/T-3′. The sequence was modelled onto the known structure of CspB and a cytosine-binding pocket was identified, which explains the strong preference for a cytosine base at position 3. This microarray method offers a rapid high-throughput approach for determining the specificity and strength of ss DNA–protein interactions. Further screening of this newly emerging family of transcription factors will help provide an insight into their cellular function.

Single-stranded DNA bound to bacterial cold-shock proteins: Preliminary crystallographic and Raman analysis

The cold-shock response has been described for several bacterial species. It is characterized by distinct changes in intracellular protein patterns whereby a set of cold-shock-inducible proteins become abundant. The major cold-shock proteins of Bacillus subtilis (Bs-CspB) and Bacillus caldolyticus (Bc-Csp) are small oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding (OB) fold proteins that have been described as binding single-stranded nucleic acids. Bs-CspB (Mr = 7365) and Bc-Csp (Mr = 7333) were crystallized in the presence of the deoxyhexanucleotide (dT)6. Crystals of (dT)6 with Bs-CspB grew in the orthorhombic space group C222(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 49.0, b = 53.2, c = 77.0 A. Crystals with Bc-Csp grew in the primitive orthorhombic space group P2(1)2(1)2, with unit-cell parameters a = 74.3, b = 64.9, c = 31.2 A. These crystals diffract to maximal resolutions of 1.78 and 1.29 A, respectively. The presence of protein and DNA in the crystals was demonstrated by Raman spectroscopy.