衣藻CrMinD基因的网上克隆及其进化分析

细菌细胞正常分裂时,在其中部形成介导细胞分裂的环状复合物结构。该环状复合物至少由10多种蛋白组成。其中,FtsZ蛋白最早在细胞中部组装成环状结构Z环,其他分裂相关蛋白再先后与Z环相结合,行使其分裂功能。Fts蛋白为原核细胞骨架蛋白,与真核生物的微管蛋白具有共同的进化祖先。在大肠杆菌细胞中共有三个潜在的细胞分裂位点,一在中部,另外两个分部在两极。正常情况下仅有中部的分裂位点得到应用。FtsZ环正确定位于细胞中部的潜在分裂位点与MinD蛋白密切相关。当minD基因突变时FtsZ蛋白则在细胞两极组装成Z环,最终导致细胞分裂异常,产生不含基因组的小细胞(Mincell)。       

γ-微管蛋白研究进展

概述了近年来对γ-微管蛋白复合体结构、分子机制以及功能的研究进展.γ-微管蛋白是真核生物体内一种重要的保守性功能蛋白,以γ-微管蛋白小复合体和γ-微管蛋白环式复合体两种形式存在.通过γ-微管蛋白复合体结合蛋白定位于微管组织中心,参与微管的晶核起始以及有丝分裂纺锤体的组装等细胞功能.     

千里光β-微管蛋白基因结构与功能的生物信息学分析

β-微管蛋白是影响细胞新陈代谢和行使功能的重要结构物质,研究β-微管蛋白基因的序列信息对揭示其蛋白结构与功能具有重要指导意义。从千里光全长cDNA文库中分离得到β-微管蛋白基因,并采用生物信息学软件进行序列分析。结果显示,该基因长度为1750 bp,编码的蛋白质长度为448个氨基酸,与柚子β-微管蛋白的同源性最高,达96%;其蛋白质分子量为50.01 kD,理论等电点为4.83。β-微管蛋白二级结构主要组成为无规则卷曲结构和α螺旋结构;结构域分析发现该蛋白具有两个保守结构域;三级结构预测为相对稳固的类球形结构;信号肽分析将该蛋白主要定位于细胞质、过氧化物酶体、线粒体基质等亚细胞器位置。将该基因序列上传至GenBank所获得的登录号为KF887495。本实验结果为千里光β-微管蛋白的作用机制揭示和应用研究提供了基础数据,也为植物β-微管蛋白基因的分子研究提供了理论依据及基础资料。     

原核细胞骨架蛋白的结构与功能

长期以来,人们认为细胞骨架仅为真核生物所特有的结构,但近年来的研究发现它也存在于细菌等原核生物中。目前已经在细菌中发现的FtsZ、MreB和CreS依次与真核细胞骨架蛋白中的微管蛋白、肌动蛋白丝及中间丝类似。FtsZ能在细胞分裂位点装配形成Z环结构,并通过该结构参与细胞分裂的调控;MreB能形成螺旋丝状结构,其主要功能有维持细胞形态、调控染色体分离等;CreS存在于新月柄杆菌中,它在细胞凹面的细胞膜下面形成弯曲丝状或螺旋丝状结构,该结构对维持新月柄杆菌细胞的形态具有重要作用。     

重组大肠杆菌表达水稻白叶枯病菌FtsZ蛋白

旨在通过现代分子生物学技术制备水稻白叶枯病菌FtsZ蛋白。以水稻白叶枯病菌总DNA为模板,采用巢式PCR方法扩增获得水稻白叶枯病菌fts Z基因,构建fts Z基因的表达载体p ET-22b-ftsZ,转化表达宿主E.coli BL21后,经PCR、Nde I/Xho I双酶切及测序鉴定、阳性克隆子经IPTG诱导表达,融合蛋白经镍柱纯化后,通过SDS-PAGE和Western blotting分析鉴定。结果显示,水稻白叶枯病菌ftsZ基因的重组表达载体构建成功,且阳性克隆子在IPTG的诱导下表达了Fts Z-6×His融合蛋白,并通过镍柱纯化获得了电泳纯的Fts Z-6×His融合蛋白。     

6s微管蛋白的提纯及其抗体的制备

一、前言细胞骨架中主要结构组分之一是微管系统。现已知与组成微管有关的蛋白质有两大类:微管蛋白和微管伴随蛋白(MAPs),前者中包括α-微管蛋白和β-微管蛋白,其二聚体称为6s微管蛋白,而后者则包括高分子微管伴随蛋白(HMW)和分子量较小的tau蛋白,近年来对这些蛋白质的性质、提纯和其抗体的制备等研究都有相当大的进展。方法学上利用免疫荧光和免疫酶标促进了对细胞的微管系统及细胞骨架整体的了解。我们曾对组成微管的蛋白做过一些工作。本文报道我们在以前工作的     

棉铃虫β-微管蛋白基因cDNA序列的克隆与序列分析

β-微管蛋白是构成细胞骨架的重要组成性蛋白,对昆虫的蜕皮、器官形成等生长发育阶段均能产生重要影响。本文以棉铃虫Helicoverpa armigera(Hübner)3日龄成虫为材料,利用RACE末端扩增技术克隆得到棉铃虫的β-微管蛋白基因的cDNA序列。序列分析表明:棉铃虫β-微管蛋白基因的cDNA序列包含1775个碱基,包括一个1347个碱基的开放阅读框,编码448个氨基酸组成的多肽。GenBank登录号:JF767013。同源性分析表明,棉铃虫的微管蛋白基因与本研究所比对其它昆虫的β-微管蛋白基因具有高度的同源性,达到90%左右。本研究克隆得到棉铃虫的β-微管蛋白基因的cDNA序列,对进一步深入研究该基因功能有重要意义。     

植物微管结合蛋白AtMAP65-1在拟南芥气孔保卫细胞中的定位(简报)

植物细胞微管骨架的不同排列方式对细胞的生长分化及形态建成具有重要意义,微管的这种动态组织行为不仅需要自身的组成蛋白-微管蛋白(tubulin),还要有微管辅助蛋白MAPs(Microtubule-associated proteins)的参与[1,2]。即MAPs是一类能够与微管骨架特异结合并调节其动态装配过程及其结构、进而影响微管功能的蛋白大分子。其中,MAP65是最先在烟草悬浮细胞BY-2中纯化出来的、分子量约为65KDa的一个微管结合蛋白家族。     

生物体内的γ-微管蛋白

γ-微管蛋白在真核生物体内以γ-微管蛋白环式复合体和γ-微管蛋白小复合体两种形式存在.γ-微管蛋白在真核生物体内的主要功能是参与微管晶核形成、有丝分裂纺锤体的形成以及细胞周期调控等.该文重点介绍植物体内的γ-微管蛋白所行使的功能.     

翻译后修饰及微管结合蛋白对微管动态结构与功能的调控

微管是处于高度动态变化中的细胞结构。微管的动态性对于微管在细胞内许多特定功能的发挥至关重要。细胞内存在许多微管结合蛋白,对于微管的动态性及微管相关的细胞活动起着重要的调节作用,而微管结合蛋白与微管的相互作用又受到微管蛋白的翻译后修饰的调控。该综述主要讨论微管蛋白的翻译后修饰和微管结合蛋白如何影响微管动态结构,进而调控以微管为基础的细胞活动。     

The prokaryotic cytoskeleton: a putative target for inhibitors and antibiotics?

In the recent decade, our view on the organization of the bacterial cell has been revolutionized by the identification of cytoskeletal elements. Most bacterial species have structural homologs of actin and tubulin that assemble into dynamic, filamentous structures at precisely defined sub-cellular locations. The essential cell division protein FtsZ forms a dynamic ring at mid-cell and is similar in its structure to tubulin. Proteins of the MreB family, which are structural homologs of actin, assemble into helical or straight filaments in the bacterial cytoplasm. As in eukaryotic cells, the bacterial cytoskeleton drives essential cellular processes such as cell division, cell wall growth, DNA movement, protein targeting, and alignment of organelles. Different high-throughput assays have been developed to search for inhibitors of components of the bacterial cytoskeleton. Cell-based assays for the detection of cell division inhibitors as well as FtsZ GTPase assays led to the identification of several compounds that inhibit the polymerization of FtsZ, by this blocking bacterial cell division. Such inhibitors might not only be valuable tools for basic research, but might also lead to novel therapeutic agents against pathogenic bacteria. For example, the polyphenol dichamanetin, the 2-alkoxycarbonylaminopyridine SRI-3072, and the benzophenanthridine alkaloid sanguinarine inhibit the GTPase activity of FtsZ and exhibit antimicrobial activity.     

The rapid onset of elasticity during the assembly of the bacterial cell-division protein FtsZ

FtsZ, a prokaryotic homolog of eukaryotic tubulin, is a major constituent of the bacterial Z-ring, which contracts the cell wall during cell division. Because the mechanical properties of FtsZ are unknown, its function in the maintenance and constriction of the Z-ring is not well understood. Here, quantitative rheometry shows that, at physiological concentrations, FtsZ filaments form, extremely rapidly, highly elastic networks within physiological time scales ( approximately minutes), much faster than other major dynamic cytoskeletal filaments, including microtubule, actin, and vimentin in eukaryotes. FtsZ networks display a relatively low viscosity and a high resilience against shear stresses, as well as an elasticity that depends weakly on concentration, G approximately C(0.57), a power-law dependence consistent with crosslinked flexible filaments. Calcium, whose intracellular concentration increases during bacterial division, further enhances the elasticity of FtsZ networks through filament bundling, an effect that occurs in the presence of GTP, not GDP. These studies suggest that FtsZ filaments have the toughness to provide strong mechanical support for the maintenance and circumferential constriction of the bacterial Z-ring.     

Tubulin-like protofilaments in Ca2+-induced FtsZ sheets

The 40 kDa protein FtsZ is a major septum-forming component of bacterial cell division. Early during cytokinesis at midcell, FtsZ forms a cytokinetic ring that constricts as septation progresses. FtsZ has a high propensity to polymerize in vitro into various structures, including sheets and filaments, in a GTP-dependent manner. Together with limited sequence homology, the occurrence of the tubulin signature motif in FtsZ and a similar three-dimensional structure, this leads to the conclusion that FtsZ is the bacterial tubulin homologue. We have polymerized FtsZ1 from Methanococcus jannaschii in the presence of millimolar concentrations of Ca2+ ions to produce two-dimensional crystals of plane group P2221. Most of the protein precipitates and forms filaments approximately 23.0 nm in diameter. A three-dimensional reconstruction of tilted micrographs of FtsZ sheets in negative stain between 0 and 60 degrees shows protofilaments of FtsZ running along the sheet axis. Pairs of parallel FtsZ protofilaments associate in an antiparallel fashion to form a two-dimensional sheet. The antiparallel arrangement is believed to generate flat sheets instead of the curved filaments seen in other FtsZ polymers. Together with the subunit spacing along the protofilament axis, a fitting of the FtsZ crystal structure into the reconstruction suggests a protofilamant structure very similar to that of tubulin protofilaments.     

Structural/functional homology between the bacterial and eukaryotic cytoskeletons

Structural proteins are now known to be as necessary for controlling cell division and cell shape in prokaryotes as they are in eukaryotes. Bacterial ParM and MreB not only have atomic structures that resemble eukaryotic actin and form similar filaments, but they are also equivalent in function: the assembly of ParM drives intracellular motility and MreB maintains the shape of the cell. FtsZ resembles tubulin in structure and in its dynamic assembly, and is similarly controlled by accessory proteins. Bacterial MinD and eukaryotic dynamin appear to have similar functions in membrane control. In dividing eukaryotic organelles of bacterial origin, bacterial and eukaryotic proteins work together.     

Human S100B protein interacts with the Escherichia coli division protein FtsZ in a calcium-sensitive manner

S100B is a small, dimeric EF-hand calcium-binding protein abundant in vertebrates. Upon calcium binding, S100B undergoes a conformational change allowing it to interact with a variety of target proteins, including the cytoskeletal proteins tubulin and glial fibrillary acidic protein. In both cases, S100B promotes the in vitro disassembly of these proteins in a calcium-sensitive manner. Despite this, there is little in vivo evidence for the interaction of proteins such as tubulin with S100B. To probe these interactions, we studied the expression of human S100B in Escherichia coli and its interaction with the prokaryotic ancestor of tubulin, FtsZ, the major protein involved in bacterial division. Expression of S100B protein in E. coli results in little change in FtsZ protein levels, causes a filamenting bacterial phenotype characteristic of FtsZ inhibition, and leads to missed rounds of cell division. Further, S100B localizes to positions similar to those of FtsZ in bacterial filaments: the small foci at the poles, the mid-cell positions, and between the nucleoids at regular intervals. Calcium-dependent physical interaction between S100B and FtsZ was demonstrated in vitro by affinity chromatography, and this interaction was severely inhibited by the competitor peptide TRTK-12. Together these results indicate that S100B interacts with the tubulin homologue FtsZ in vivo, modulating its activity in bacterial cell division. This approach will present an important step for the study of S100 protein interactions in vivo.     

A growing family: the expanding universe of the bacterial cytoskeleton

Cytoskeletal proteins are important mediators of cellular organization in both eukaryotes and bacteria. In the past, cytoskeletal studies have largely focused on three major cytoskeletal families, namely the eukaryotic actin, tubulin, and intermediate filament (IF) proteins and their bacterial homologs MreB, FtsZ, and crescentin. However, mounting evidence suggests that these proteins represent only the tip of the iceberg, as the cellular cytoskeletal network is far more complex. In bacteria, each of MreB, FtsZ, and crescentin represents only one member of large families of diverse homologs. There are also newly identified bacterial cytoskeletal proteins with no eukaryotic homologs, such as WACA proteins and bactofilins. Furthermore, there are universally conserved proteins, such as the metabolic enzyme CtpS, that assemble into filamentous structures that can be repurposed for structural cytoskeletal functions. Recent studies have also identified an increasing number of eukaryotic cytoskeletal proteins that are unrelated to actin, tubulin, and IFs, such that expanding our understanding of cytoskeletal proteins is advancing the understanding of the cell biology of all organisms. Here, we summarize the recent explosion in the identification of new members of the bacterial cytoskeleton and describe a hypothesis for the evolution of the cytoskeleton from self-assembling enzymes.     

Increasing complexity of the bacterial cytoskeleton

Bacteria contain cytoskeletal elements involved in major cellular processes including DNA segregation and cell morphogenesis and division. Distant bacterial homologues of tubulin (FtsZ) and actin (MreB and ParM) not only resemble their eukaryotic counterparts structurally but also show similar functional characteristics, assembling into filamentous structures in a nucleotide-dependent fashion. Recent advances in fluorescence microscopic imaging have revealed that FtsZ and MreB form highly dynamic helical structures that encircle the cells along the inside of the cell membrane. With the discovery of crescentin, a cell-shape-determining protein that resembles eukaryotic intermediate filament proteins, the third major cytoskeletal element has now been identified in bacteria as well.     

Structural insights into FtsZ protofilament formation

The prokaryotic tubulin homolog FtsZ polymerizes into a ring structure essential for bacterial cell division. We have used refolded FtsZ to crystallize a tubulin-like protofilament. The N- and C-terminal domains of two consecutive subunits in the filament assemble to form the GTPase site, with the C-terminal domain providing water-polarizing residues. A domain-swapped structure of FtsZ and biochemical data on purified N- and C-terminal domains show that they are independent. This leads to a model of how FtsZ and tubulin polymerization evolved by fusing two domains. In polymerized tubulin, the nucleotide-binding pocket is occluded, which leads to nucleotide exchange being the rate-limiting step and to dynamic instability. In our FtsZ filament structure the nucleotide is exchangeable, explaining why, in this filament, nucleotide hydrolysis is the rate-limiting step during FtsZ polymerization. Furthermore, crystal structures of FtsZ in different nucleotide states reveal notably few differences.     

Organization of FtsZ Filaments in the Bacterial Division Ring Measured from Polarized Fluorescence Microscopy

Cytokinesis in bacteria is accomplished by a ring-shaped cell-division complex (the Z-ring). The primary component of the Z-ring is FtsZ, a filamentous tubulin homolog that serves as a scaffold for the recruitment of other cell-division-related proteins. FtsZ forms filaments and bundles. In the cell, it has been suggested that FtsZ filaments form the arcs of the ring and are aligned in the cell-circumferential direction. Using polarized fluorescence microscopy in live Escherichia coli cells, we measure the structural organization of FtsZ filaments in the Z-ring. The data suggest a disordered organization: a substantial portion of FtsZ filaments are aligned in the cell-axis direction. FtsZ organization in the Z-ring also appears to depend on the bacterial species. Taken together, the unique arrangement of FtsZ suggests novel unexplored mechanisms in bacterial cell division.     

Organization of FtsZ Filaments in the Bacterial Division Ring Measured from Polarized Fluorescence Microscopy

Cytokinesis in bacteria is accomplished by a ring-shaped cell-division complex (the Z-ring). The primary component of the Z-ring is FtsZ, a filamentous tubulin homolog that serves as a scaffold for the recruitment of other cell-division-related proteins. FtsZ forms filaments and bundles. In the cell, it has been suggested that FtsZ filaments form the arcs of the ring and are aligned in the cell-circumferential direction. Using polarized fluorescence microscopy in live Escherichia coli cells, we measure the structural organization of FtsZ filaments in the Z-ring. The data suggest a disordered organization: a substantial portion of FtsZ filaments are aligned in the cell-axis direction. FtsZ organization in the Z-ring also appears to depend on the bacterial species. Taken together, the unique arrangement of FtsZ suggests novel unexplored mechanisms in bacterial cell division.