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L Wyns

Publications and source records attributed to L Wyns.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1995

Structure of the crystalline complex of deoxycytidylyl-3',5'-guanosine (3',5'-dCpdG) cocrystallized with ribonuclease at 1.9 A resolution.

The X-ray structure of bovine ribonuclease A cocrystallized with the dinucleotide deoxycytidylyl-3',5'-guanosine has been determined at 1.9 A resolution and refined by restrained least squares to R = 0.218 for 7807 reflections. The structure established that the recently observed retrobound mode of attachment of substrate analogues cytidylyl-2',5'-guanosine and deoxycytidylyl-3',5'-guanosine found in soaked RNase A crystals is also present in the cocrystallized complex. Retrobinding is thus unlikely to be the result of restrictions imposed by the crystalline environment as the ligands soak into the lattice but rather a phenomenon specific to small nucleotides containing guanine.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1995

1H NMR study of the interaction of N,N',N"-triacetyl chitotriose with Ac-AMP2, a sugar binding antimicrobial protein isolated from Amaranthus caudatus.

The interaction between Ac-AMP2, a lectin-like small protein with antimicrobial and antifungal activity isolated from Amaranthus caudatus, and N,N',N"-triacetyl chitotriose was studied using 1H NMR spectroscopy. Changes in chemical shift and line width upon increasing concentration of N,N',N"-triacetyl chitotriose to Ac-AMP2 solutions at pH 6.9 and 2.4 were used to determine the interaction site and the association constant Ka. The most pronounced shifts occur mainly in the C-terminal half of the sequence. They involve the aromatic residues Phe18, Tyr20 and Tyr27 together with their surrounding residues, as well as the N-terminal Val-Gly-Glu segment. Several NOEs between Ac-AMP2 and the N,N',N"-triacetyl chitotriose resonances are reported.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Crystallographic structure of metal-free concanavalin A at 2.5 A resolution.

The three-dimensional structure of demetallized concanavalin A has been determined at 2.5 A resolution and refined to a crystallographic R-factor of 18%. The lectin activity of concanavalin A requires the binding of both a transition metal ion, generally Mn2+, and a Ca2+ ion in two neighboring sites in close proximity to the carbohydrate binding site. Large structural differences between the native and the metal-free lectin are observed in the metal-binding region and consequently for the residues involved in the specific binding of saccharides. The demetallization invokes a series of conformational changes in the protein backbone, apparently initiated mainly by the loss of the calcium ion. Most of the Mn2+ ligands retain their position, but the Ca2+ binding site is destroyed. The Ala207-Asp208 peptide bond, in the beta-strand neighboring the metal-binding sites, undergoes a cis to trans isomerization. The cis conformation for this bond is a highly conserved feature among the leguminous lectins and is critically maintained by the Ca2+ ion in metal-bound concanavalin A. A further and major change adjacent to the isomerized bond is an expansion of the loop containing the monosaccharide ligand residues Leu99 and Tyr100. The dispersion of the ligand residues for the monosaccharide binding site (Asn14, Agr228, Asp208, Leu99, and Tyr100) in metal-free concanavalin A abolishes the lectin's ability to bind saccharides. Since the quaternary structure of legume lectins is essential to their biological role, the tetramer formation was analyzed. In the crystal (pH 5), the metal-free concanavalin A dimers associate into a tetramer that is similar to the native one, but with a drastically reduced number of inter-dimer interactions. This explains the tetramer dissociation into dimers below pH values of 6.5.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

A comparative structural study on the steroids [1,2,5]oxadiazolo[3', 4':3,4]-5 alpha-pregn-16-en-20-one oxime (HS998), [1,2,5]oxadiazolo[3, 4':3,4]-5 beta-pregn-16-en-20-one (HS973) by NMR, molecular modeling, and X-ray investigations.

The molecular structure of the steroids [1,2,5]oxadiazolo[3', 4':3,4]-5 alpha-pregn-16-en-20-one oxime, [1,2,5]oxadiazolo[3',4':3, 4':3,4]-5 alpha-pregn-16-en-20-one and [1,2,5]oxadiazole]3',4':3,4]-5 beta-pregn-16-en-20-one has been determined. The proton-proton distances in the solid state from previous crystallographic studies are compared with the corresponding distances from novel and previous solution NMR as well as from novel in vacuo modeling studies.

Crystallization↗
PubMed1994

Differential association of linker histones H1 and H5 with telomeric nucleosomes in chicken erythrocytes.

Rat liver telomeric DNA is organised into nucleosomes characterised by a shorter and more homogeneous average nucleosomal repeat than bulk chromatin as shown by Makarov et al. (1). The latter authors were unable to detect the association of any linker histone with the telomeric DNA. We have confirmed these observations but show that in sharp contrast chicken erythrocyte telomeric DNA is organised into nucleosomes whose spacing length and heterogeneity are indistinguishable from those of bulk chromatin. We further show that chicken erythrocyte telomeric chromatin contains chromatosomes which are preferentially associated with histone H1 relative to histone H5. This contrasts with bulk chromatin where histone H5 is the more abundant species. This observation strongly suggests that telomeric DNA condensed into nucleosome core particles has a higher affinity for H1 than H5. We discuss the origin of the discrimination of the lysine rich histones in terms of DNA sequence preferences, telomere nucleosome preferences and particular constraints of the higher order chromatin structure of telomeres.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Conserved waters in legume lectin crystal structures. The importance of bound water for the sequence-structure relationship within the legume lectin family.

An analysis of the water structure in the crystals of different legume lectins has been carried out. Protein hydration is found to be mainly dependent on the detailed local surface characteristics of the protein and will adapt upon the limited conformational changes that are the resultant of crystal packing forces and point mutations. Yet a significant portion of the water positions determined by x-ray crystallography appears to be conserved in all independent crystal structures of a given protein. Some of these waters are specific to this one specific protein, while others are conserved in crystal structures of homologous proteins as well. For those conserved waters, a clear structural role is often evident. Seven water sites were found to be completely conserved in all legume lectin crystal structures, independent of their degree of sequence homology or carbohydrate specificity. Of these, four waters are ligands to the manganese and calcium ions, and one water is located in the saccharide binding site interacting with a conserved Asp and Asn residue. Of the remaining two conserved waters, one of them stabilizes a beta-hairpin, while the other interacts with a beta-bulge structure of the back sheet.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Homo- and heteronuclear two-dimensional NMR studies of the globular domain of histone H1: full assignment, tertiary structure, and comparison with the globular domain of histone H5.

The globular domain of chicken histone H1 (GH1) has been studied by 1H homonuclear and 1H-15N heteronuclear 2D NMR spectroscopy. After the full assignment of the proton and 15N resonances, the tertiary structure of GH1 was determined by an iterative procedure using distance geometry and restrained simulated annealing. The secondary structure elements of GH1, three helices (S5-A16, S24-A34, N42-K56) followed by a beta-hairpin (L59-L73), are folded in a manner very similar to the corresponding parts of the globular domain of chicken histone H5 (GH5) [Clore et al. (1987) EMBO J. 6, 1833-1842; Ramakrishnan et al. (1993) Nature 362, 219-223]. However, subtle differences are detected between the two structures and between the electrostatic potentials surrounding the molecules. The most important differences are located in the loop between the second and third helices, a region that could be responsible for the different affinity for DNA. The most positively charged regions are not found in exactly the same position in GH1 and GH5. Nevertheless, their location seems to agree with the model where nucleosome binding takes place through contact points located at one DNA terminus and close to the dyad axis of the nucleosome [Schwabe & Travers (1993) Curr. Biol. 3, 628-630].

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Crystallographic study of Glu58Ala RNase T1 x 2'-guanosine monophosphate at 1.9-A resolution.

Glu58 is known to participate in phosphodiester transesterification catalyzed by the enzyme RNase T1. For Glu58 RNase T1, an altered mechanism has been proposed in which His40 replaces Glu58 as the base catalyst [Steyaert, J., Hallenga, K., Wyns, L., & Stanssens, P. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 9064-9072]. Glu58Ala Rnase T1 has been cocrystallized with guanosine 2'-monophosphate (2'-GMP). The crystals are of space group P2(1), with one molecule per asymmetric unit (a = 32.44 A, b = 49.64 A, c = 26.09 A, beta = 99.17 degrees). The three-dimensional structure of the enzyme was determined to a nominal resolution of 1.9 A, yielding a crystallographic R factor of 0.178 for all X-ray data. Comparison of this structure with wild-type structures leads to the following conclusions. The minor changes apparent in the tertiary structure can be explained by either the mutation of Glu58 or by the change in the space group. In the active site, the extra space available through the mutation of Glu58 is occupied by the phosphate group (after a reorientation) and by a solvent molecule replacing a carboxylate oxygen of Glu58. This solvent molecule is a candidate for participation in the altered mechanism of this mutant enzyme. Following up on a study of conserved water sites in RNase T1 crystallized in space group P2(1)2(1)2(1) [Malin, R., Zielenkiewicz, P., & Saenger, W. (1991) J. Mol. Biol. 266, 4848-4852], we investigated the hydration structure for four different packing modes of RNase T1.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Alanine↗
PubMed1994

Crystal structure of RNase T1 with 3'-guanylic acid and guanosine.

A modified method for the synthesis and separation of endo and exo guanosine 2',3'-cyclophosphorothioate (cGPS) has been developed. The exo diastereoisomer has been co-crystallized with RNase T1. cGPS is known to be a RNase T1 inhibitor but is also a very slow substrate. It was hydrolyzed during the crystallization, leaving 3'-guanylic acid (3'-GMP) in the active site. As a guanosine was also found to be bound in a subsite, the enzyme contains the products of the reaction of guanylyl-3',5'-guanosine. The structure was refined to a resolution of 1.7 A and yielded a final R value of 14.5%. In contrast to previous 3'-GMP complexes of RNase T1, the ribose phosphate moiety of the inhibitor is in contact with all the active site residues. The phosphate forms hydrogen bonds with Asn36, Tyr38, Arg77, His92, and with Asn49 from a symmetry-related molecule. The ribose 2'-OH is hydrogen-bonded to both Glu58 and His40. The interactions in the active site of the present structure are compared to those found in the 2'-GMP complex of RNase T1.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1994

The structures of RNase A complexed with 3'-CMP and d(CpA): active site conformation and conserved water molecules.

The interactions of RNase A with cytidine 3'-monophosphate (3'-CMP) and deoxycytidyl-3',5'-deoxyadenosine (d(CpA)) were analyzed by X-ray crystallography. The 3'-CMP complex and the native structure were determined from trigonal crystals, and the d(CpA) complex from monoclinic crystals. The differences between the overall structures are concentrated in loop regions and are relatively small. The protein-inhibitor contacts are interpreted in terms of the catalytic mechanism. The general base His 12 interacts with the 2' oxygen, as does the electrostatic catalyst Lys 41. The general acid His 119 has 2 conformations (A and B) in the native structure and is found in, respectively, the A and the B conformation in the d(CpA) and the 3'-CMP complex. From the present structures and from a comparison with RNase T1, we propose that His 119 is active in the A conformation. The structure of the d(CpA) complex permits a detailed analysis of the downstream binding site, which includes His 119 and Asn 71. The comparison of the present RNase A structures with an inhibitor complex of RNase T1 shows that there are important similarities in the active sites of these 2 enzymes, despite the absence of any sequence homology. The water molecules were analyzed in order to identify conserved water sites. Seventeen water sites were found to be conserved in RNase A structures from 5 different space groups. It is proposed that 7 of those water molecules play a role in the binding of the N-terminal helix to the rest of the protein and in the stabilization of the active site.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1994

Investigation of the functional interplay between the primary site and the subsite of RNase T1: kinetic analysis of single and multiple mutants for modified substrates.

We report on the functional cooperativity of the primary site and the subsite of ribonuclease T1 (RNase T1; EC 3.1.27.3). The kinetic properties of the single Tyr-38-Phe and Asn-98-Ala mutants have been compared with those of the corresponding double mutant. The Tyr-38-Phe mutation has been used to probe enzyme-substrate interactions at the primary site; the Asn-98-Ala mutation monitors subsite interactions. In addition to the dinucleoside phosphate substrate GpC, we measured the kinetics for GpMe, a synthetic substrate in which the leaving nucleoside cytosine has been replaced by methanol. All data were combined in a triple mutant box to analyze the interplay between Tyr-38, Asn-98, and the leaving group. The free energy barriers to kcat, introduced by the single Tyr-38-Phe and Asn-98-Ala mutations are not additive in the corresponding double mutant. The energetic coupling between both mutations is independent of the binding of the leaving cytosine at the subsite. We conclude that the coupling of the Tyr-38-Phe and Asn-98-Ala mutations arises through distortion or reorientation of the 3'-guanylic acid moiety bound at the primary site. The experimental data indicate that the enzyme-substrate interactions beyond the scissile phosphodiester bond contribute to catalysis through the formation of new or improved contacts in going from ground state to transition state, which are functionally independent of primary site interactions.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1994

Structural analysis of two crystal forms of lentil lectin at 1.8 A resolution.

The structures of two crystal forms of lentil lectin are determined and refined at high resolution. Orthorhombic lentil lectin is refined at 1.80 A resolution to an R-factor of 0.184 and monoclinic lentil lectin at 1.75 A resolution to an R-factor of 0.175. These two structures are compared to each other and to the other available legume lectin structures. The monosaccharide binding pocket of each lectin monomer contains a tightly bound phosphate ion. This phosphate makes hydrogen bonding contacts with Asp-81 beta, Gly-99 beta, and Asn-125 beta, three residues that are highly conserved in most of the known legume lectin sequences and essential for monosaccharide recognition in all legume lectin crystal structures described thus far. A detailed analysis of the composition and properties of the hydrophobic contact network and hydrophobic nuclei in lentil lectin is presented. Contact map calculations reveal that dense clusters of nonpolar as well as polar side chains play a major role in secondary structure packing. This is illustrated by a large cluster of 24 mainly hydrophobic amino acids that is responsible for the majority of packing interactions between the two beta-sheets. Another series of four smaller and less hydrophobic clusters is found to mediate the packing of a number of loop structures upon the front sheet. A very dense, but not very conserved cluster is found to stabilize the transition metal binding site. The highly conserved and invariant nonpolar residues are distributed asymmetrically over the protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

The monosaccharide binding site of lentil lectin: an X-ray and molecular modelling study.

The X-ray crystal structure of lentil lectin in complex with alpha-D-glucopyranose has been determined by molecular replacement and refined to an R-value of 0.20 at 3.0 A resolution. The glucose interacts with the protein in a manner similar to that found in the mannose complexes of concanavalin A, pea lectin and isolectin I from Lathyrus ochrus. The complex is stabilized by a network of hydrogen bonds involving the carbohydrate oxygens O6, O4, O3 and O5. In addition, the alpha-D-glucopyranose residue makes van der Waals contacts with the protein, involving the phenyl ring of Phe123 beta. The overall structure of lentil lectin, at this resolution, does not differ significantly from the highly refined structures of the uncomplexed lectin. Molecular docking studies were performed with mannose and its 2-O and 3-O-m-nitro-benzyl derivatives to explain their high affinity binding. The interactions of the modelled mannose with lentil lectin agree well with those observed experimentally for the protein-carbohydrate complex. The highly flexible Me-2-O-(m-nitro-benzyl)-alpha-D-mannopyranoside and Me-3-O-(m-nitro-benzyl)-alpha-D-mannopyranoside become conformationally restricted upon binding to lentil lectin. For best orientations of the two substrates in the combining site, the loss of entropy is accompanied by the formation of a strong hydrogen bond between the nitro group and one amino acid, Gly97 beta and Asn125 beta, respectively, along with the establishment of van der Waals interactions between the benzyl group and the aromatic amino acids Tyr100 beta and Trp128 beta.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1993

The F plasmid CcdB protein induces efficient ATP-dependent DNA cleavage by gyrase.

DNA topoisomerases perform essential roles in DNA replication, gene transcription, and chromosome segregation. Recently, we identified a new type of topoisomerase II poison: the CcdB protein of plasmid F. When its action is not prevented by CcdA protein, the CcdB protein is a potent cytotoxin. In this paper, using purified CcdB, CcdA and gyrase, we show that CcdB protein efficiently traps gyrase in a cleavable complex. The CcdA protein not only prevents the gyrase poisoning activity of CcdB but also reverses its effect on gyrase. The mechanism by which the CcdB protein induces DNA strand breakage is closely related to the action of quinolone antibiotics. However, the ATP dependence of the CcdB cleavage process differentiates the CcdB mechanism from quinolone-dependent reactions because the quinolone antibiotics stimulate efficient DNA breakage, whether or not ATP is present. We previously showed that bacteria resistant to quinolone antibiotics are sensitive to CcdB and vice versa. Elucidation of the mechanism of action of CcdB protein may permit the design of drugs targeting gyrase so as to take advantage of this new poisoning mechanism.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1993

Structure of the crystalline complex of cytidylic acid (2'-CMP) with ribonuclease at 1.6 A resolution. Conservation of solvent sites in RNase-A high-resolution structures.

The X-ray structure of the inhibitor complex of bovine ribonuclease A with cytidylic acid (2'-CMP) has been determined at 1.6 A resolution and refined by restrained least squares to R = 0.17 for 11 945 reflections. Binding of the inhibitor molecule to the protein is confirmed to be in the productive mode associated with enzyme activity. A study of conserved solvent sites amongst high-resolution structures in the same crystal form reveals a stabilizing water cluster between the N and C termini.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1993

Homo- and heteronuclear two-dimensional NMR studies of the globular domain of histone H1: sequential assignment and secondary structure.

A recombinant 75 amino acid polypeptide corresponding to the globular domain of the chicken histone H1 (GH1) has been studied by 1H homonuclear and 1H-15N heteronuclear 2D NMR spectroscopy. Sequential assignment of the backbone and beta-proton resonances has enabled us to determine the secondary structure of GH1. It was found to consist of three helical regions (T7-S17, L25-Y37, E40-K56) and probably a beta-hairpin (L59-L73). This structure is similar to the structure of the globular domain of histone H5 (GH5) obtained both by NMR spectroscopy [Zarbock et al. (1986) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 83, 7628-7632; Clore et al. (1987) EMBO J. 6, 1833-1842] and by X-ray crystallography [Ramakrishnan et al. (1993) Nature 362, 219-223]. The beta-hairpin as suggested for GH1 is also present in the X-ray structure of GH5 but has not been reported for the NMR structure of GH5.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Crystal structure determination and refinement at 2.3-A resolution of the lentil lectin.

We report on the X-ray structure determination of the orthorhombic crystal form of lentil lectin by molecular replacement using the pea lectin coordinates as a starting model. The structure was refined at 2.3-A resolution with a combination of molecular dynamics refinement and classical restrained least-squares refinement. The final R value for all data Fo > 1 sigma (Fo) between 7.0- and 2.3-A resolution is 0.164%, and deviations from ideal bond distances are 0.014 A. The C-terminus of the beta-chain proved to be 23 amino acids longer than found in previous studies. This together with several inconsistencies between the previously determined amino acid sequence and the observed electron density forced a redetermination of the amino acid sequence of the protein. The overall structure is very similar to that of pea lectin and isolectin I of Lathyrus ochrus, the most prominent deviations being confined to loop regions and the regions of intermolecular contact. The largest difference between the pea and lentil lectin monomers is situated in the loop region of amino acids 73-79 of the beta chain. There are no significant differences between the two crystallographic independent lentil lectin monomers in the asymmetric unit. The model includes 104 well-defined water molecules, of which a significant number have a counterpart in the pea lectin structure. As for the other legume lectins, each lentil lectin monomer contains one calcium ion in a highly conserved environment. On the contrary, the manganese binding sites are distorted with respect to the pea lectin and concanavalin A structures. The Asp beta 121 side chain apparently does not ligate the Mn2+ ion. This difference is consistent in both lentil lectin monomers and agrees with earlier solution studies. Possible implications for oligosaccharide binding are discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗