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Michael G Rossmann

Publications and source records attributed to Michael G Rossmann.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

Conservation of the capsid structure in tailed dsDNA bacteriophages: the pseudoatomic structure of phi29.

Bacteriophage phi29 is one of the smallest and simplest known dsDNA phages, making it amenable to structural investigations. The three-dimensional structure of a fiberless, isometric variant has been determined to 7.9 A resolution by cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), allowing the identification of alpha helices and beta sheets. Their arrangement indicates that the folds of the phi29 and bacteriophage HK97 capsid proteins are similar except for an additional immunoglobulin-like domain of the phi29 protein. An atomic model that incorporates these two domains fits well into the cryo-EM density of the T = 3, fiberless isometric phi29 particle, and cryo-EM structures of fibered isometric and fiberless prolate prohead phi29 particles at resolutions of 8.7 A and 12.7 A, respectively. Thus, phi29 joins the growing number of phages that utilize the HK97 capsid structure, suggesting that this protein fold may be as prevalent in capsids of dsDNA phages as the jelly roll fold is in eukaryotic viruses.

Bacillus Phages↗
PubMed2005

Parvovirus B19 does not bind to membrane-associated globoside in vitro.

The glycosphingolipid globoside (globotetraosylceramide, Gb4Cer) has been proposed to be the cellular receptor of human parvovirus B19. Quantitative measurements of the binding of parvovirus B19 to Gb4Cer were performed to explore the molecular basis of the virus tropism. Solid-phase assays with fluorescence-labeled liposomes or 125iodine-labeled empty capsids were used to characterize the specificity of binding. In addition, surface plasmon resonance on lipid layers, as well as isothermal titration microcalorimetry, was utilized for real-time analysis of the virus-receptor interaction. These studies did not confirm binding of Gb4Cer to recombinant B19 VP2 capsids, suggesting that Gb4Cer does not function on its own as the cellular receptor of human parvovirus B19, but might be involved in a more complex recognition event. The biochemical results were further confirmed by cryo-electron microscopy image reconstructions at 10 A resolution, in which the structures of empty capsids were compared with empty capsids incubated with Gb4Cer.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Control of bacteriophage T4 tail lysozyme activity during the infection process.

Bacteriophage T4 has an efficient mechanism for injecting the host Escherichiacoli cell with genomic DNA. Its gene product 5 (gp5) has a needle-like structure attached to the end of a tube through which the DNA passes on its way out of the head and into the host. The gp5 needle punctures the outer cell membrane and then digests the peptidoglycan cell wall in the periplasmic space. gp5 is normally post-translationally cleaved between residues 351 and 352. The function of this process in controlling the lysozyme activity of gp5 has now been investigated. When gp5 is over-expressed in E.coli, two mutants (S351H and S351A) showed a reduction of cleavage products and five other mutants (S351L, S351K, S351Y, S351Q, and S351T) showed no cleavage. Furthermore, in a complementation assay at 20 degrees C, the mutants that had no cleavage of gp5 produced a reduced number of plaques compared to wild-type T4. The crystal structure of the non-cleavage phenotype mutant of gp5, S351L, complexed with gene product 27, showed that the 18 residues in the vicinity of the potential cleavage site (disordered in the wild-type structure) had visible electron density. The polypeptide around the potential cleavage site is exposed, thus allowing access for an E.coli protease. The lysozyme activity is inhibited in the wild-type structure by a loop from the adjacent gp5 monomer that binds into the substrate-binding site. The same inhibition is apparent in the mutant structure, showing that the lysozyme is inhibited before gp5 is cleaved and, presumably, the lysozyme is activated only after gp5 has penetrated the outer membrane.

Bacteriophage T4↗
PubMed2005

Combining X-ray crystallography and electron microscopy.

The combination of cryo-electron microscopy to study large biological assemblies at low resolution with crystallography to determine near atomic structures of assembly fragments is quickly expanding the horizon of structural biology. This technique can be used to advantage in the study of large structures that cannot be crystallized, to follow dynamic processes, and to "purify" samples by visual selection of particles. Factors affecting the quality of cryo-electron microscopy maps and limits of accuracy in fitting known structural fragments are discussed.

Cryoelectron Microscopy↗
PubMed2005

The crystal structure of coxsackievirus A21 and its interaction with ICAM-1.

CVA21 and polioviruses both belong to the Enterovirus genus in the family of Picornaviridae, whereas rhinoviruses form a distinct picornavirus genus. Nevertheless, CVA21 and the major group of human rhinoviruses recognize intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) as their cellular receptor, whereas polioviruses use poliovirus receptor. The crystal structure of CVA21 has been determined to 3.2 A resolution. Its structure has greater similarity to poliovirus structures than to other known picornavirus structures. Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) was used to determine an 8.0 A resolution structure of CVA21 complexed with an ICAM-1 variant, ICAM-1(Kilifi). The cryo-EM map was fitted with the crystal structures of ICAM-1 and CVA21. Significant differences in the structure of CVA21 with respect to the poliovirus structures account for the inability of ICAM-1 to bind polioviruses. The interface between CVA21 and ICAM-1 has shape and electrostatic complementarity with many residues being conserved among those CVAs that bind ICAM-1.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2005

A structural perspective of the flavivirus life cycle.

Dengue, Japanese encephalitis, West Nile and yellow fever belong to the Flavivirus genus, which is a member of the Flaviviridae family. They are human pathogens that cause large epidemics and tens of thousands of deaths annually in many parts of the world. The structural organization of these viruses and their associated structural proteins has provided insight into the molecular transitions that occur during the viral life cycle, such as assembly, budding, maturation and fusion. This review focuses mainly on structural studies of dengue virus.

Capsid Proteins↗
PubMed2004

Conformational switching by the scaffolding protein D directs the assembly of bacteriophage phiX174.

The three-dimensional structure of bacteriophage phiX174 external scaffolding protein D, prior to its interaction with other structural proteins, has been determined to 3.3 angstroms by X-ray crystallography. The crystals belong to space group P4(1)2(1)2 with a dimer in the asymmetric unit that closely resembles asymmetric dimers observed in the phiX174 procapsid structure. Furthermore, application of the crystallographic 4(1) symmetry operation to one of these dimers generates a tetramer similar to the tetramer in the icosahedral asymmetric unit of the procapsid. These data suggest that both dimers and tetramers of the D protein are true morphogenetic intermediates and can form independently of other proteins involved in procapsid morphogenesis. The crystal structure of the D scaffolding protein thus represents the state of the polypeptide prior to procapsid assembly. Hence, comparison with the procapsid structure provides a rare opportunity to follow the conformational switching events necessary for the construction of complex macromolecular assemblies.

Bacteriophage phi X 174↗
PubMed2004

Three-dimensional rearrangement of proteins in the tail of bacteriophage T4 on infection of its host.

The contractile tail of bacteriophage T4 undergoes major structural transitions when the virus attaches to the host cell surface. The baseplate at the distal end of the tail changes from a hexagonal to a star shape. This causes the sheath around the tail tube to contract and the tail tube to protrude from the baseplate and pierce the outer cell membrane and the cell wall before reaching the inner cell membrane for subsequent viral DNA injection. Analogously, the T4 tail can be contracted by treatment with 3 M urea. The structure of the T4 contracted tail, including the head-tail joining region, has been determined by cryo-electron microscopy to 17 A resolution. This 1200 A-long, 20 MDa structure has been interpreted in terms of multiple copies of its approximately 20 component proteins. A comparison with the metastable hexagonal baseplate of the mature virus shows that the baseplate proteins move as rigid bodies relative to each other during the structural change.

Bacteriophage T4↗
PubMed2004

The structure of human parvovirus B19.

Human parvovirus B19 is the only parvovirus known to be a human pathogen. The structure of recombinant B19-like particles has been determined to approximately 3.5-A resolution by x-ray crystallography and, to our knowledge, represents the first near-atomic structure of an Erythrovirus. The polypeptide fold of the major capsid protein VP2 is a "jelly roll" with a beta-barrel motif similar to that found in many icosahedral viruses. The large loops connecting the strands of the beta-barrel form surface features that differentiate B19 from other parvoviruses. Although B19 VP2 has only 26% sequence identity to VP3 of adeno-associated virus, 72% of the C(alpha) atoms can be aligned structurally with a rms deviation of 1.8 A. Both viruses require an integrin as a coreceptor, and conserved surface features suggest a common receptor-binding region.

Capsid Proteins↗
PubMed2004

The functional domains of bacteriophage t4 terminase.

The packaging of double-stranded genomic DNA into some viral and all bacteriophage capsids is driven by powerful molecular motors. In bacteriophage T4, the motor consists of the portal protein assembly composed of twelve copies of gene product 20 (gp20, 61 kDa) and an oligomeric terminase complex composed of gp16 (18 kDa) and gp17 (70 kDa). The packaging motor drives the 171-kbp T4 DNA into the capsid utilizing the free energy of ATP hydrolysis. Evidence suggests that gp17 is the key component of the motor; it exhibits ATPase, nuclease, and in vitro DNA-packaging activities. The N- and C-terminal halves of gp17 were expressed and purified to homogeneity and found to have ATPase and nuclease activities, respectively. The N-terminal domain exhibited 2-3-fold higher Kcat values for gp16-stimulated ATPase than the full-length gp17. Neither of the domains, individually or together, exhibited in vitro DNA-packaging activity, suggesting that communication between the domains is essential for DNA packaging. The domains, in particular the C-terminal domain or a mixture of both the N- and C-terminal domains, inhibited in vitro DNA packaging that is catalyzed by full-length gp17. In conjunction with genetic evidence, these data suggest that the domains compete with the full-length gp17 for binding sites on the portal protein. A model for the assembly of the T4 DNA-packaging machine is presented.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗
PubMed2004

The phiX174 protein J mediates DNA packaging and viral attachment to host cells.

Packaging of viral genomes into their respective capsids requires partial neutralization of the highly negatively charged RNA or DNA. Many viruses, including the Microviridae bacteriophages phiX174, G4, and alpha3, have solved this problem by coding for a highly positively charged nucleic acid-binding protein that is packaged along with the genome. The phiX174 DNA-binding protein, J, is 13 amino acid residues longer than the alpha3 and G4 J proteins by virtue of an additional nucleic acid-binding domain at the amino terminus. Chimeric phiX174 particles containing the smaller DNA-binding protein cannot be generated due to procapsid instability during DNA packaging. However, chimeric alpha3 and G4 phages, containing the phiX174 DNA-binding protein in place of the endogenous J protein, assemble and are infectious, but are less dense than the respective wild-type species. In addition, host cell attachment and native gel migration assays indicate surface variations of these viruses that are controlled by the nature of the J protein. The structure of alpha3 packaged with phiX174 J protein was determined to 3.5A resolution and compared with the previously determined structures of phiX174 and alpha3. The structures of the capsid and spike proteins in the chimeric particle remain unchanged within experimental error when compared to the wild-type alpha3 virion proteins. The amino-terminal region of the phiX174 J protein, which is missing from wild-type alpha3 virions, is mostly disordered in the alpha3 chimera. The differences observed between solution properties of wild-type phiX174, wild-type alpha3, and alpha3 chimera, including their ability to attach to host cells, correlates with the degree of order in the amino-terminal domain of the J protein. When ordered, this domain binds to the interior of the viral capsid and, thus, might control the flexibility of the capsid. In addition, the properties of the phiX174 J protein in the chimera and the results of mutational analyses suggest that an evolutionary correlation may exist between the size of the J protein and the stoichiometry of the DNA pilot protein H, required in the initial stages of infection. Hence, the function of the J protein is to facilitate DNA packaging, as well as to mediate surface properties such as cell attachment and infection.

Bacteriophages↗
PubMed2004

Molecular architecture of the prolate head of bacteriophage T4.

The head of bacteriophage T4 is a prolate icosahedron with one unique portal vertex to which the phage tail is attached. The three-dimensional structure of mature bacteriophage T4 head has been determined to 22-A resolution by using cryo-electron microscopy. The T4 capsid has a hexagonal surface lattice characterized by the triangulation numbers T(end) = 13 laevo for the icosahedral caps and T(mid) = 20 for the midsection. Hexamers of the major capsid protein gene product (gp)23* and pentamers of the vertex protein gp24*, as well as the outer surface proteins highly antigenic outer capsid protein (hoc) and small outer capsid protein (soc), are clearly evident in the reconstruction. The size and shape of the gp23* hexamers are similar to the major capsid protein organization of bacteriophage HK97. The binding sites and shape of the hoc and soc proteins have been established by analysis of the soc(-) and hoc(-)soc(-) T4 structures.

Bacteriophage T4↗
PubMed2004

The structure of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase from bovine viral diarrhea virus establishes the role of GTP in de novo initiation.

The bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) RNA-dependent RNA polymerase can initiate RNA replication by a de novo mechanism without a primer. The structure of BVDV polymerase, determined to 2.9-A resolution, contains a unique N-terminal domain, in addition to the fingers, palm, and thumb domains common to other polymerases. The structure of BVDV polymerase complexed with GTP, which is required for de novo (primer-independent) initiation, shows that GTP binds adjacent to the initiation NTP, suggesting that the GTP mimics a vestigial RNA product. Comparison of five monomers in two different crystal forms showed conformational changes in the fingertip region and in the thumb domain that may help to translocate the RNA template and product strands during elongation. The putative binding sites of previously reported BVDV inhibitors are also discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2004

Dimeric rous sarcoma virus capsid protein structure relevant to immature Gag assembly.

The structure of the N-terminal domain (NTD) of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) capsid protein (CA), with an upstream 25 amino acid residue extension corresponding to the C-terminal portion of the Gag p10 protein, has been determined by X-ray crystallography. Purified Gag proteins of retroviruses can assemble in vitro into virus-like particles closely resembling in vivo-assembled immature virus particles, but without a membrane. When the 25 amino acid residues upstream of CA are deleted, Gag assembles into tubular particles. The same phenotype is observed in vivo. Thus, these residues act as a "shape determinant" promoting spherical assembly, when they are present, or tubular assembly, when they are absent. We show that, unlike the NTD on its own, the extended NTD protein has no beta-hairpin loop at the N terminus of CA and that the molecule forms a dimer in which the amino-terminal extension forms the interface between monomers. Since dimerization of Gag has been inferred to be a critical step in assembly of spherical, immature Gag particles, the dimer interface may represent a structural feature that is essential in retrovirus assembly.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2004

The bacteriophage T4 DNA injection machine.

The tail of bacteriophage T4 consists of a contractile sheath surrounding a rigid tube and terminating in a multiprotein baseplate, to which the long and short tail fibers of the phage are attached. Upon binding of the fibers to their cell receptors, the baseplate undergoes a large conformational switch, which initiates sheath contraction and culminates in transfer of the phage DNA from the capsid into the host cell through the tail tube. The baseplate has a dome-shaped sixfold-symmetric structure, which is stabilized by a garland of six short tail fibers, running around the periphery of the dome. In the center of the dome, there is a membrane-puncturing device, containing three lysozyme domains, which disrupts the intermembrane peptidoglycan layer during infection.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2004

Conformational changes of the flavivirus E glycoprotein.

Dengue virus, a member of the Flaviviridae family, has a surface composed of 180 copies each of the envelope (E) glycoprotein and the membrane (M) protein. The crystal structure of an N-terminal fragment of E has been determined and compared with a previously described structure. The primary difference between these structures is a 10 degrees rotation about a hinge relating the fusion domain DII to domains DI and DIII. These two rigid body components were used for independent fitting of E into the cryo-electron microscopy maps of both immature and mature dengue viruses. The fitted E structures in these two particles showed a difference of 27 degrees between the two components. Comparison of the E structure in its postfusion state with that in the immature and mature virions shows a rotation approximately around the same hinge. Flexibility of E is apparently a functional requirement for assembly and infection of flaviviruses.

Amino Acid Sequence↗