Suhail Ahmad

Recombinantly expressed isoenzymic aminopeptidases from Helicoverpa armigera (American cotton bollworm) midgut display differential interaction with closely related Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal proteins

Several investigators have independently identified membrane-associated aminopeptidases in the midgut of insect larvae as the initial interacting ligand to the insecticidal crystal proteins of Bacillus thuringiensis. Though several isoenzymes of aminopeptidases have been identified from the midgut of an insect and their corresponding cDNA cloned, only one of the isoform has been expressed heterologously and studied for its binding to Cry toxins. Here we report the cloning and expression of two aminopeptidases N from Helicoverpa armigera (American cotton bollworm) (HaAPNs). The full-length cDNA of H. armigera APN1 (haapn1) is 3205 bp in size and encodes a 1000-amino-acid protein, while H. armigera APN2 (haapn2) is 3116 bp in size and corresponds to a 1012-amino-acid protein. Structurally these proteins show sequence similarity to other insect aminopeptidases and possess characteristic aminopeptidase motifs. Both the genes have been expressed in Trichoplusia ni (cabbage looper) cells using a baculovirus expression vector. The expressed aminopeptidases are membrane-associated, catalytically active and glycosylated. Ligand-blot analysis of both these aminopeptidases with bioactive Cry1Aa, Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac proteins displayed differential interaction. All the three toxins bound to HaAPN1, whereas only Cry1Ac interacted with HaAPN2. This is the first report demonstrating differential Cry-toxin-binding abilities of two different aminopeptidases from a susceptible insect.

A protein-based phylogenetic tree for Gram-positive bacteria derived from hrcA, a unique heat-shock regulatory gene

The dnaK operon from Bacillus subtilis and other Gram-positive bacteria with low G + C DNA content contains additional heat-shock genes, including hrcA. The hrcA gene encodes a transcription factor that negatively regulates heat-shock genes and is uniformly present in all Gram-positive bacteria studied to date. An hrcA homologue is also present in Synechocystis species, Leptospira interrogans, Chlamydia trachomatis, Caulobacter crescentus and Methanococcus jannaschii, organisms that diverged early on from the common ancestor of all Gram-positive bacteria and Proteobacteria, according to 16S rRNA phylogeny. A partial, protein-based phylogenetic tree, derived using amino acid sequence homology of hrcA proteins from Gram-positive bacteria, is presented here, and the results are compared with the phylogenetic trees generated from 16S rRNA, dnaK and dnaJ sequences. The location of the hrcA gene and the genome organization of the dnaK operon support the division of all Gram-positive bacteria into three major groups: one group contains high-G + C Gram-positive bacteria, and two others contain low-G + C Gram-positive bacteria. Among the Gram-positive bacteria with low G + C DNA content, the results indicate that there is a close phylogenetic relationship between Bacillus species and Clostridium species on the one hand and between Lactococcus lactis and Streptococcus mutans on the other. Streptomyces and Mycobacterium species also exhibited a close relationship. A hierarchical arrangement of Gram-positive bacteria based on HrcA sequences is proposed as an additional refinement of the phylogenetic relationships within this important bacterial group.

Phage display of Bacillus thuringiensis CryIA(a) insecticidal toxin

The display of proteins or peptides on the surface of filamentous phages or phagemids has been shown to be a very powerful technology for the rescue of specific binders from large combinatorial libraries, as well as to select derivatives of known proteins with altered binding properties. The Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) crystal proteins are a large family of insecticidal toxins which bind to receptors found on the brush border of larval midgut cells, different crystal toxins having different larval specificities. Here we describe the display of different CryIA(a) toxin regions on the surface of phagemids using the display vector pHEN1, the purpose being the identification of toxin sequences suitable for mutagenesis and selection using phage display. We show that CryIA(a) domain II, in which the receptor binding activity is located, is efficiently displayed as well as being secreted as soluble protein into the periplasm of bacterial cell. This forms the basis of a simple means for the modification of toxin specificity and the selection of toxin proteins with novel or expanded host ranges.

Phylogenetic analysis of Gram-positive bacteria based on grpE, encoded by the dnaK operon

The dnaK operon in gram-positive bacteria includes grpE, dnaJ and, in some members, hrcA as well. Both DnaK and DnaJ have been utilized for constructing phylogenetic relationships among various organisms. Multiple copies exist for dnaK and dnaJ genes in some bacterial genera, as opposed to a single gene copy for grpE and for hrcA, according to the currently available data. Here, we present a partial protein-based phylogenetic tree for gram-positive bacteria, derived by using the amino acid sequence identity of GrpE; the results are compared with the phylogenetic trees generated from 5S rRNA, 16S rRNA, dnaK and dnaJ sequences. Our results indicate three main groupings: two are within low-G+C DNA gram-positive bacteria comprising Bacillus species and Staphylococcus aureus on the one hand and Streptococcus species/Lactococcus lactis/Enterococcus faecalis/Lactobacillus sakei on the other hand; the Mycobacterium species and Streptomyces coelicolor, belonging to the high-G+C DNA gram-positive bacteria, form the third cluster. This hierarchical arrangement is in close agreement with that obtained with 16S rRNA and DnaK sequences but not DnaJ-based phylogeny.

Point mutation of a conserved arginine (104) to lysine introduces hypersensitivity to inhibition by glyphosate in the 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase of Bacillus subtilis

The role of a conserved arginine (R104) in the putative phosphoenol pyruvate binding region of 5‐enolpyruvyl shikimate‐3‐phosphate synthase of Bacillus subtilis has been investigated. Employing site directed mutagenesis arginine was substituted by lysine or glutamine. Native and mutant proteins were expressed and purified to near homogeneity. Estimation of Michaelis and inhibitor constants of the native and mutant proteins exhibited altered substrate—inhibitor binding mode and constants. Mutation R104K hypersensitized the enzyme reaction to inhibition by glyphosate. The role of R104 in discriminating between glyphosate and phosphoenol pyruvate is discussed.

Utility of a Bifunctional Tryptophan Pathway Enzyme for the Classification of the Herbicola-Agglomerans Complex of Bacteria

Bifunctional proteins are the result of relatively infrequent genetic events that are faithfully conserved. They are reliable markers that define phylogenetic clusters. The bifunctional protein anthranilate synthase: anthranilate 5-phosphoribosylpyrophosphate phosphoribosyltransferase (AS:PRT) separates two enteric clusters. Previously published data show that this bifunctional protein is present in the lineage shared by Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Citrobacter freundii, Klebsiella pneumniae, Enterobacter aerogenes, and Enterobacter cloacae, but is absent in Erwinia carotovora, Serratia marcescens, Proteus vulgaris, Morganella morganii, and Hafnia alvei. It has been postulated that aerogenic and anaerogenic strains of Enterobacter agglomerans belong to different groups, which corrspond to the clusters mentioned above, respectively. In confirmation of this, we found that Enterobacter agglomerans ATCC 29915 (aerogenic) possesses bifunctional AS:PRT, whereas Enterobacter agglomerans ATCC 27155T (T = type strain) (anaerogenic) lacks AS:PRT. We also found that Erwinia herbicola 33243T lacks AS:PRT. Beji et al. (Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol. 38:77-88) recently showed that the type strains of Enterobacter agglomerans (ATCC 27155) and Erwinia herbicola (ATCC 33243) belong to the same genomic species. We suggest that Enterobacter agglomerans (= Erwinia herbicola) should be excluded from the genus Enterobacter. We further suggest that strains currently designated Enterobacter agglomerans can be grouped with Erwinia herbicola or with the enteric cluster containing Enterobacter depending upon whether bifunctional AS:PRT is absent or present, respectively.

Increased toxicity of modified mosquitocidal binary toxins of Bacillus sphaericus expressed in Escherichia coli

Abstract The binary mosquitocidal genes of 51-kDa and 42-kDa proteins isolated from Bacillus sphaericus 1593 have been expressed at moderate levels in Escherichia coli employing the pQE expression system. The expressed proteins are readily visible in Coomassie-blue-stained protein gels. The recombinant E. coli cells expressing toxic proteins were toxic towards Culex larvae. During the assembly of crystals in B. sphaericus, the 42-kDa toxin is first cleaved at the N-terminal end by a specific B. sphaericus protease. To express the toxins in E. coli the B.sphaericus specific protease-recognition site was deleted at the N-terminal end of the 42-kDa toxin, thereby mimicking the structure of the toxin as present in the crystal. This modification resulted in a twofold increase in the toxicity of the E. coli cells expressing the modified 42-kDa toxin as a constituent of the binary toxin. Our results demonstrate the utility of this modification for heterologous expression of the binary toxin genes from B. sphaericus.

Evidence for the shikimate‐3‐phosphate interacting site in the N‐terminal domain of 5‐enolpyruvyl shikimate‐3‐phosphate synthase of Bacillus subtilis

The role of basic amino acid residues that are highly conserved in the N‐terminal domain of 5‐enolpyruvyl shikimate‐3‐phosphate synthase (EPSPs) in the binding of the substrate, shikimate‐3‐phosphate, has been assessed. Lys 19 and Arg 24 in the Bacillus subtilis EPSPs were substituted by glutamic acid and aspartic acid residues respectively by site‐directed mutagenesis. Native and the mutant proteins were expressed using a two‐vector system and the expressed proteins were purified to near homogeniety. The replacement of either Lys 19 or Arg 24 with a negatively charged residue nearly completely abolished the enzyme activity. The kinetic characterization of the purified wild type and the mutant proteins revealed that the substitution of positively charged residues in the N‐terminal domain (K19 and R24) results in reduced affinity for shikimate‐3‐phosphate (S3P). The results suggest the involvement of these residues in the binding of S3P during enzyme catalysis.