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R R Klein

Publications and source records attributed to R R Klein.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Comprehensive molecular cytogenetic analysis of sorghum genome architecture: distribution of euchromatin, heterochromatin, genes and recombination in comparison to rice.

Cytogenetic maps of sorghum chromosomes 3-7, 9, and 10 were constructed on the basis of the fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) of approximately 18-30 BAC probes mapped across each of these chromosomes. Distal regions of euchromatin and pericentromeric regions of heterochromatin were delimited for all 10 sorghum chromosomes and their DNA content quantified. Euchromatic DNA spans approximately 50% of the sorghum genome, ranging from approximately 60% of chromosome 1 (SBI-01) to approximately 33% of chromosome 7 (SBI-07). This portion of the sorghum genome is predicted to encode approximately 70% of the sorghum genes ( approximately 1 gene model/12.3 kbp), assuming that rice and sorghum encode a similar number of genes. Heterochromatin spans approximately 411 Mbp of the sorghum genome, a region characterized by a approximately 34-fold lower rate of recombination and approximately 3-fold lower gene density compared to euchromatic DNA. The sorghum and rice genomes exhibit a high degree of macrocolinearity; however, the sorghum genome is approximately 2-fold larger than the rice genome. The distal euchromatic regions of sorghum chromosomes 3-7 and 10 are approximately 1.8-fold larger overall and exhibit an approximately 1.5-fold lower average rate of recombination than the colinear regions of the homeologous rice chromosomes. By contrast, the pericentromeric heterochromatic regions of these chromosomes are on average approximately 3.6-fold larger in sorghum and recombination is suppressed approximately 15-fold compared to the colinear regions of rice chromosomes.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2005

Fertility restorer locus Rf1 [corrected] of sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) encodes a pentatricopeptide repeat protein not present in the colinear region of rice chromosome 12.

With an aim to clone the sorghum fertility restorer gene Rf1, a high-resolution genetic and physical map of the locus was constructed. The Rf1 locus was resolved to a 32-kb region spanning four open reading frames: a plasma membrane Ca(2+)-ATPase, a cyclin D-1, an unknown protein, and a pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR13) gene family member. An approximately 19-kb region spanning the cyclin D-1 and unknown protein genes was completely conserved between sterile and fertile plants as was the sequence spanning the coding region of the Ca(2+)-ATPase. In contrast, 19 sequence polymorphisms were located in an approximately 7-kb region spanning PPR13, and all markers cosegregated with the fertility restoration phenotype. PPR13 was predicted to encode a mitochondrial-targeted protein containing a single exon with 14 PPR repeats, and the protein is classified as an E-type PPR subfamily member. To permit sequence-based comparison of the sorghum and rice genomes in the Rf1 region, 0.53 Mb of sorghum chromosome 8 was sequenced and compared to the colinear region of rice chromosome 12. Genome comparison revealed a mosaic pattern of colinearity with an approximately 275-kb gene-poor region with little gene conservation and an adjacent, approximately 245-kb gene-rice region that is more highly conserved between rice and sorghum. Despite being located in a region of high gene conservation, sorghum PPR13 was not located in a colinear position on rice chromosome 12. The present results suggest that sorghum PPR13 represents a potential candidate for the sorghum Rf1 gene, and its presence in the sorghum genome indicates a single gene transposition event subsequent to the divergence of rice and sorghum ancestors.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2002

A molecular cytogenetic map of sorghum chromosome 1. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis with mapped bacterial artificial chromosomes.

We used structural genomic resources for Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench to target and develop multiple molecular cytogenetic probes that would provide extensive coverage for a specific chromosome of sorghum. Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clones containing molecular markers mapped across sorghum linkage group A were labeled as probes for fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Signals from single-, dual-, and multiprobe BAC-FISH to spreads of mitotic chromosomes and pachytene bivalents were associated with the largest sorghum chromosome, which bears the nucleolus organizing region (NOR). The order of individual BAC-FISH loci along the chromosome was fully concordant to that of marker loci along the linkage map. In addition, the order of several tightly linked molecular markers was clarified by FISH analysis. The FISH results indicate that markers from the linkage map positions 0.0-81.8 cM reside in the short arm of chromosome 1 whereas markers from 81.8-242.9 cM are located in the long arm of chromosome 1. The centromere and NOR were located in a large heterochromatic region that spans approximately 60% of chromosome 1. In contrast, this region represents only 0.7% of the total genetic map distance of this chromosome. Variation in recombination frequency among euchromatic chromosomal regions also was apparent. The integrated data underscore the value of cytological data, because minor errors and uncertainties in linkage maps can involve huge physical regions. The successful development of multiprobe FISH cocktails suggests that it is feasible to develop chromosome-specific "paints" from genomic resources rather than flow sorting or microdissection and that when applied to pachytene chromatin, such cocktails provide an especially powerful framework for mapping. Such a molecular cytogenetic infrastructure would be inherently cross-linked with other genomic tools and thereby establish a cytogenomics system with extensive utility in development and application of genomic resources, cloning, transgene localization, development of plant "chromonomics," germplasm introgression, and marker-assisted breeding. In combination with previously reported work, the results indicate that a sorghum cytogenomics system would be partially applicable to other gramineous genera.

Chromosome Mapping↗
PubMed2001

Mapping genes on an integrated sorghum genetic and physical map using cDNA selection technology.

Sorghum is an important target of plant genomics. This cereal has unusual tolerance to adverse environments, a small genome (750 Mbp) relative to most other grasses, a diverse germplasm, and utility for comparative genomics with rice, maize and other grasses. In this study, a modified cDNA selection protocol was developed to aid the discovery and mapping of genes across an integrated genetic and physical map of the sorghum genome. BAC DNA from the sorghum genome map was isolated and covalently bound in arrayed tubes for efficient liquid handling. Amplifiable cDNA sequence tags were isolated by hybridization to individual sorghum BACs, cloned and sequenced. Analysis of a fully sequenced sorghum BAC indicated that about 80% of known or predicted genes were detected in the sequence tags, including multiple tags from different regions of individual genes. Data from cDNA selection using the fully sequenced BAC indicate that the occurrence of mislocated cDNA tags is very low. Analysis of 35 BACs (5.25 Mb) from sorghum linkage group B revealed (and therefore mapped) two sorghum genes and 58 sorghum ESTs. Additionally, 31 cDNA tags that had significant homologies to genes from other species were also isolated. The modified cDNA selection procedure described here will be useful for genome-wide gene discovery and EST mapping in sorghum, and for comparative genomics of sorghum, rice, maize and other grasses.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed2000

A high-throughput AFLP-based method for constructing integrated genetic and physical maps: progress toward a sorghum genome map.

Sorghum is an important target for plant genomic mapping because of its adaptation to harsh environments, diverse germplasm collection, and value for comparing the genomes of grass species such as corn and rice. The construction of an integrated genetic and physical map of the sorghum genome (750 Mbp) is a primary goal of our sorghum genome project. To help accomplish this task, we have developed a new high-throughput PCR-based method for building BAC contigs and locating BAC clones on the sorghum genetic map. This task involved pooling 24,576 sorghum BAC clones ( approximately 4x genome equivalents) in six different matrices to create 184 pools of BAC DNA. DNA fragments from each pool were amplified using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) technology, resolved on a LI-COR dual-dye DNA sequencing system, and analyzed using Bionumerics software. On average, each set of AFLP primers amplified 28 single-copy DNA markers that were useful for identifying overlapping BAC clones. Data from 32 different AFLP primer combinations identified approximately 2400 BACs and ordered approximately 700 BAC contigs. Analysis of a sorghum RIL mapping population using the same primer pairs located approximately 200 of the BAC contigs on the sorghum genetic map. Restriction endonuclease fingerprinting of the entire collection of sorghum BAC clones was applied to test and extend the contigs constructed using this PCR-based methodology. Analysis of the fingerprint data allowed for the identification of 3366 contigs each containing an average of 5 BACs. BACs in approximately 65% of the contigs aligned by AFLP analysis had sufficient overlap to be confirmed by DNA fingerprint analysis. In addition, 30% of the overlapping BACs aligned by AFLP analysis provided information for merging contigs and singletons that could not be joined using fingerprint data alone. Thus, the combination of fingerprinting and AFLP-based contig assembly and mapping provides a reliable, high-throughput method for building an integrated genetic and physical map of the sorghum genome.

Chromosomes, Bacterial↗
PubMed1997

Analysis of expression of an alternative La (SS-B) cDNA and localization of the encoded N- and C-terminal peptides.

A deletion of an (A)-residue was detected in a cDNA encoding for the nuclear autoantigen La/SS-B. The cDNA was recently isolated from a cDNA library made from peripheral blood lymphocytes of a patient with primary Sjögren's Syndrome. The region, where the deletion occurred, represents a hot spot region in the La gene(s). It leads to a frame shift mutation and a premature stop codon eleven amino acids downstream of the deletion site within one of the protease sensitive regions of the La protein. In spite of the frame shift mutation expression of full length La protein occurred efficiently in E. coli. Full length La protein was also made in SF9 cells infected with recombinant baculoviruses, although the efficiency of full length protein production was less. Two major peptides with molecular weights of 29 kDa and 25 kDa were made. The size of these peptides was similar to the known proteolytic degradation products of La protein. The N-terminal 29 kDa fragment containing the RNP consensus sequence located in the cytoplasm. The 25 kDa C-terminal fragment containing the nuclear location signal entered in the nucleus and associated with nuclear speckles. In conclusion, the ability to (i) enter, (ii) remain in the nucleus and (iii) assemble with nuclear speckles resides in the C-terminal domain of La protein and does not depend on the N-terminal RNP-consensus motif.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Altered acyl chain length specificity of Rhizopus delemar lipase through mutagenesis and molecular modeling.

The acyl binding site of Rhizopus delemar prolipase and mature lipase was altered through site-directed mutagenesis to improve lipase specificity for short- or medium-chain length fatty acids. Computer-generated structural models of R. delemar lipase were used in mutant protein design and in the interpretation of the catalytic properties of the resulting recombinant enzymes. Molecular dynamics simulations of the double mutant, val209trp + phe112trp, predicted that the introduction of trp112 and trp209 in the acyl binding groove would sterically hinder the docking of fatty acids longer than butyric acid. Assayed against a mixture of triacylglycerol substrates, the val209trp + phe112trp mature lipase mutant showed an 80-fold increase in the hydrolysis of tributyrin relative to the hydrolysis of tricaprylin while no triolein hydrolysis was detected. By comparison, the val94Trp mutant, predicted to pose steric or geometric constraints for docking fatty acids longer than caprylic acid in the acyl binding groove, resulted in a modest 1.4-fold increase in tricaprylin hydrolysis relative to the hydrolysis of tributyrin. Molecular models of the double mutant phe95asp + phe214arg indicated the creation of a salt bridge between asp95 and arg214 across the distal end of the acyl binding groove. When challenged with a mixture of triacylglycerols, the phe95asp + phe214arg substitutions resulted in an enzyme with 3-fold enhanced relative activity for tricaprylin compared to triolein, suggesting that structural determinants for medium-chain length specificity may reside in the distal end of the acyl binding groove. Attempts to introduce a salt bridge within 8 A of the active site by the double mutation leu146lys + ser115asp destroyed catalytic activity entirely. Similarly, the substitution of polar Gln at the rim of the acyl binding groove for phe112 largely eliminated catalytic activity of the lipase.

Caprylates↗
PubMed1996

Coordination of protein and mRNA abundances of stromal enzymes and mRNA abundances of the Clp protease subunits during senescence of Phaseolus vulgaris (L.) leaves.

Our objective was to determine the coordination of transcript and/or protein abundances of stromal enzymes during leaf senescence. First trifolioliate leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris L. plants were sampled beginning at the time of full leaf expansion; at this same time, half of the plants were switched to a nutrient solution lacking N. Total RNA and soluble protein abundances decreased after full leaf expansion whereas chlorophyll abundance remained constant; N stress enhanced the decline in these traits. Abundances of ribulose-1,5-bisposphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco; EC 4.1.1.39), Rubisco activase and phosphoribulokinase (Ru5P kinase; EC 2.7.1.19) decreased after full leaf expansion in a coordinated manner for both treatments. In contrast, adenosine diphosphate glucose (ADPGlc) pyrophosphorylase (EC 2.7.7.27) abundance was relatively constant during natural senescence but did decline similar to the other enzymes under N stress. Northern analyses indicated that transcript abundances for all enzymes declined markedly on a fresh-weight basis just after full leaf expansion. This rapid decline was particularly strong for the Rubisco small subunit (rbcS) transcript. The decline was enhanced by N stress for rbcS and Rubisco activase (rca), but not for Ru5P kinase (prk) and ADPGlc pyrophosphorylase (agp). Transcripts of the Clp protease subunits clpC and clpP declined in abundance just after full leaf expansion, similar to the other mRNA species. When Northern blots were analyzed using equal RNA loads, rbcS transcripts still declined markedly just after full leaf expansion whereas rca and clpC transcripts increased over time. The results indicated that senescence was initiated near the time of full leaf expansion, was accelerated by N stress, and was characterized by large decline in transcripts of stromal enzymes. The decreased mRNA abundances were in general associated with steadily declining stromal protein abundances, with ADPGlc pyrophosphorylase being the notable exception. Transcript analyses for the Clp subunits supported a recent report (Shanklin et al., 1995, Plant Cell 7: 1713-1722) indicating that the Clp protease subunits were constitutive throughout development and suggested that ClpC and ClpP do not function as a senescence-specific proteolytic system in Phaseolus.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗
PubMed1995

Characterization of the substrate specificity of sucrose-phosphate synthase protein kinase.

Sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS; EC 2.4.1.14) is regulated by reversible protein phosphorylation. When the enzyme is phosphorylated it is inactivated and can be reactivated by removal of phosphate. The major regulatory phosphorylation site is known to be Ser158 in the spinach-leaf enzyme, and two protein kinase activities have been resolved chromatographically which phosphorylate SPS at this site in vitro. In this report, we use a set of synthetic peptide substrate analogs based on the phosphorylation site sequence, and a set of Escherichia coli-expressed 26-kDa fragments of spinach SPS which contain the site, to identify the recognition elements that target the two protein kinases to Ser158. The major recognition element consists of basic residues at P-3 and P-6 relative to the phosphorylated serine. Comparison of the spinach enzyme amino-acid sequence with two other plant species show conservation of these amino acids and implies that these signals are also conserved. We also present evidence that glucose-6-phosphate is not only an allosteric activator of SPS but also an inhibitor of SPS-protein kinase per se, thereby allowing it to act at both levels of SPS regulation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Cloning and developmental expression of pea ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase large subunit N-methyltransferase.

Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) large subunit (LS) N-methyltransferase (protein methylase III, Rubisco LSMT, EC 2.1.1.43) catalyzes methylation of the epsilon-amino group of Lys-14 in the LS of Rubisco. With limited internal amino acid sequence information obtained from HPLC-purified peptic polypeptides from Rubisco LSMT, a full-length cDNA clone was isolated utilizing polymerase chain reaction-based technology and conventional bacteriophage library screening. The 1802 bp cDNA of Rubisco LSMT encodes a 489 amino acid polypeptide with a predicted molecular mass of ca. 55 kDa. A derived N-terminal amino acid sequence with features common to chloroplast transit peptides was identified. The deduced sequence of Rubisco LSMT did not exhibit regions of significant homology with other protein methyltransferases. Southern blot analysis of pea genomic DNA indicated a low gene copy number of Rubisco LSMT in pea. Northern analysis revealed a single mRNA species of about 1.8 kb encoding for Rubisco LSMT which was predominately located in leaf tissue. Illumination of etiolated pea seedlings showed that the accumulation of Rubisco LSMT mRNA is light-dependent. Maximum accumulation of Rubisco LSMT transcripts occurred during the initial phase of light-induced leaf development which preceded the maximum accumulation of rbcS and rbcL mRNA. Transcript levels of Rubisco LSMT in mature light-grown tissue were similar to transcript levels in etiolated tissues indicating that the light-dependent accumulation of Rubisco LSMT mRNA is transient. This is the first reported DNA and amino acid sequence for a protein methylase III enzyme.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Photoaffinity labeling of the ATP binding domain of Rubisco activase and a separate domain involved in the activation of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase.

Photoaffinity labeling of Rubisco activase with 2- and 8-N3ATP was used to identify the adenine binding domain for ATP. Rubisco activase hydrolyzed both of these analogs of ATP and used their hydrolysis to support a low rate of Rubisco activation. When irradiated with ultraviolet light, these and other azido-substituted adenine nucleotides covalently modified Rubisco activase at two distinct binding sites. Competition binding experiments with ATP and ADP showed that one of the sites was the ATP binding domain. The other site was not a nucleotide binding domain per se but would bind adenine nucleotides if an azido moiety was present on the base. Tryptophan and other indoles prevented azidoadenine nucleotides from labeling this domain but afforded little protection to the ATP binding domain. The ability to selectively protect each of the two binding sites made it possible to localize the adenine binding domain for ATP to the region of Rubisco activase from N68-D74 and the other binding domain to a region near the N-terminus from Q10 to D14. Modification of the region from Q10 to D14 by photoaffinity labeling prevented Rubisco activase from promoting activation of Rubisco without affecting ATP hydrolysis. These data suggest that a specific region of Rubisco activase near the N-terminus may be a site of interaction with Rubisco. Binding of azidoadenine nucleotides in this region appears to be fortuitous and may involve base-stacking with the species-invariant Trp at position 16 and hydrogen bonding of the azido moiety.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1994

Mutational analysis of the tobacco vein mottling virus genome.

We have used a cDNA clone of the potyvirus, tobacco vein mottling virus, to construct 19 mutants bearing 12-nt insertions in the viral genome. These mutants display a variety of phenotypes in inoculated tobacco plants or protoplasts. All mutants with insertions in P3, CI, 6K, NIa, or NIb failed to produce detectable amounts of progeny viral RNA in protoplasts or plants which suggests that they all may be directly involved in replication. Mutants (one in P1 and one in HCpro) presumably affected in polyprotein processing also did not replicate in plants or protoplasts. Seven mutants, with insertions in the 5' noncoding region, P1, HCpro, or CP regions of the genome, were able to infect protoplasts. Three of the 7 mutants (1 in the 5' noncoding region and 2 in HCpro) were able to infect protoplasts but not plants. The remaining 4 mutants replicated in protoplasts and were able to cause systemic infection in plants. The mutation in the CP had no effect on virus accumulation or symptom development in inoculated plants, whereas the other 3 (1 in P1 and 2 in HCpro) induced cyclical patterns of symptom expression. These symptoms ranged from very mild to wild-type-like as new leaves emerged and, as the plants continued to grow, this pattern was repeated. These results support the assignment of roles in replication to five coding regions in the genome and demonstrate that sequence alterations in many parts of other regions of the viral genome may have pronounced effects on replication and the expression of disease symptoms.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Site-directed mutagenesis of a reactive lysyl residue (Lys-247) of Rubisco activase.

Chemical modification of tobacco leaf ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) activase with water-soluble N-hydroxysuccinimide esters identified Lys-247 as a particularly reactive residue necessary for maximal catalytic activity [M.E. Salvucci (1993) Plant Physiol. 103, 501-508]. To further explore the role of Lys-247 in catalysis, this species-invariant residue of Rubisco activase was changed to Arg, Cys, and Gln by mutagenesis of a cDNA clone of the mature form of the tobacco enzyme. Analysis of the purified recombinant proteins showed that all three point mutations reduced the rate of ATP hydrolysis to 2 to 3% of the wild-type enzyme and completely abolished the ability of Rubisco activase to promote activation of decarbamylated Rubisco. Replacement of Lys-247 with Arg, Cys, or Gln had a comparatively minor effect on ATP binding, but eliminated the increase in ATPase-specific activity that normally occurs with increasing concentrations of Rubisco activase protein. In mixing experiments, the K247R mutant enzyme inhibited Rubisco activation by wild-type Rubisco activase, indicating that interactions between Rubisco and Rubisco activase were disrupted by even the most conservative of the substitutions. Chemical elaboration of the K247C mutant by treatment with 2-bromoethylamine converted 39% of the thiols at position 247 to the aminoethyl derivative, but failed to improve the catalytic performance of the mutant enzyme. Our results indicate that the requirement for a lysyl residue at position 247 of Rubisco activase is very stringent, consistent with its proposed role in coordinating precise interactions with gamma-phosphate of ATP.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗
PubMed1993

Identification of the major regulatory phosphorylation site in sucrose-phosphate synthase.

Sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS; EC 2.4.1.14) is regulated in part by reversible protein phosphorylation. When dephospho-SPS is partially purified from illuminated spinach leaves and incubated with [gamma-32P]ATP the enzyme is phosphorylated by a copurifying protein kinase. In this report, 32P-phosphopeptides from tryptic digests of in vitro phosphorylated SPS were purified by metal-ion affinity chromatography and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Three distinct 32P-phosphopeptides were resolved. Edman sequencing of the major phosphopeptide (which contained > 80% of the total 32P) identified the amino acid sequence as Ile-Ser-Ser(P)-Val-Glu-Met-Met-Asp-Asn-Trp-Ala-Asn-Thr-Phe-Lys. This sequence corresponds to residues 156 to 170 of the deduced amino acid sequence of spinach SPS [Klein, R. R., Crafts-Brandner, S. J., and Salvucci, M. E. (1993) Planta 190, 498-510, and Sonnewald, U., Quick, W. P., MacRae, E., Krause, K.-P., and Stitt, M. (1993) Planta 189, 174-181]. Identification of the phosphoseryl residue was accomplished by manual Edman sequencing. The two other phosphopeptides, which each contained less than 10% of the total 32P, were not sequenced. An Escherichia coli expressed, 26-kDa fragment of SPS which contains the major phosphorylation site was a substrate for the protein kinase which copurifies with SPS. Two-dimensional peptide mapping analysis of this fragment showed the major phosphopeptide was present but not the other site(s), suggesting that other peptides are derived from a site other than Ser158. These results provide additional indirect evidence for the presence of multiple phosphorylation sites in SPS.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Cloning and developmental expression of the sucrose-phosphate-synthase gene from spinach.

A 561-base-pair (bp) polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR) product of sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) was amplified using degenerate oligonucleotide primers corresponding to tryptic peptides of SPS (EC 2.4.1.14) from spinach (Spinacia oleracea L). Crucial to the primer specificity and the synthesis of the 561-bp product was the use of primer pools in which the number of degenerate primer species was limited. A full-length cDNA was subsequently obtained by screening a cDNA bacteriophage library with the 561-bp product of SPS and 5' PCR-RACE (Rapid Amplification of cDNA Ends). The 3530-bp cDNA of SPS encoded for a 1056-amino-acid polypeptide of predicted molecular mass of 117 kDa. The deduced amino-acid sequence of spinach SPS showed regions of strong homology with SPS from maize (A.C. Worrell et al., 1991, Plant Cell 3, 1121-1130); amino-acid identity was 54% over the entire protein. Western and Northern analyses of root, petiole and spinach leaf tissue showed that SPS was expressed in an organ-specific manner, being predominantly localized in the leaf. The accumulation of SPS protein and mRNA during leaf development coincided with the early rapid phase of leaf expansion and the apparent transition of the leaf from sink to source status. Levels of SPS mRNA and protein were reduced during the acclimation of leaves to low-irradiance conditions. Transfer of low-irradiance-adapted leaves to higher-irradiance conditions resulted in a gradual increase in SPS protein and mRNA. Diurnal changes in irradiance did not alter SPS protein or transcript levels, indicating that short-term regulation of SPS primarily involves a modulation of enzyme activity.

Actins↗
PubMed1993

Identification of the uridine-binding domain of sucrose-phosphate synthase. Expression of a region of the protein that photoaffinity labels with 5-azidouridine diphosphate-glucose.

The uridine diphosphate-glucose (UDP-Glc) binding domain of sucrose-phosphate synthase (SPS) was identified by overexpressing part of the gene from spinach (Spinacia oleracea). Degenerate oligonucleotide primers corresponding to two tryptic peptides common to both the full-length 120-kD SPS subunit and an 82-kD form that photoaffinity labeled with 5-azidouridine diphosphate-glucose (5-N3UDP-Glc) were used in a polymerase chain reaction to isolate a partial cDNA clone. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequence of spinach SPS with the sequences of potato sucrose synthase showed that the partial cDNA included one region that was highly conserved between the proteins. Expression of the partial cDNA clone of SPS in Escherichia coli produced a 26-kD fusion protein that photoaffinity labeled with 5-N3UDP-Glc. Photoaffinity labeling of the 26-kD fusion protein was specific, indicating that this portion of the SPS protein harbors the UDP-Glc-binding domain. Isolation of a modified peptide from the photolabeled protein provided tentative identification of amino acid residues that make up the uridine-binding domain of SPS.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Photoaffinity Labeling of Mature and Precursor Forms of the Small Subunit of Ribulose-1,5-Bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase after Expression in Escherichia coli.

The small subunit (SSU) of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) possesses a binding site that can be photoaffinity labeled with [(32)P]8-azidoadenosine 5' triphosphate (N(3)ATP). In the present study, photoaffinity labeling was used to compare the nucleotide analog binding properties of SSU in the Rubisco holoenzyme complex (holoE SSU) with the properties of isolated SSU and the precursor form (pSSU) that contains a transit peptide. To facilitate these studies, the complete coding regions of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) SSU and pSSU were cloned into pET expression vectors and the polypeptides were synthesized in Escherichia coli. Protein import studies showed that cloned pSSU polypeptides were imported into intact chloroplasts, where they were processed to the mature form and assembled into the Rubisco holoenzyme. Cloned SSU and pSSU isolated from E. coli were photoaffinity labeled with N(3)ATP. The apparent K(d) value for SSU and pSSU, 18 micromolar N(3)ATP, was identical to the value determined for holoE SSU. However, differences in photolabeling between cloned SSU or pSSU and holoE SSU were apparent in the level of protection afforded by ATP and UTP, in the response of photolabeling to free Mg(2+), and in the higher photolabeling efficiency that characterized the cloned SSU. Treatment of the Rubisco holoenzyme with a concentration of urea sufficient to disassociate the subunits markedly increased photoincorporation into SSU, indicating that intersubunit associations within the holoenzyme complex may be the major factor influencing photolabeling efficiency of SSU. Thus, differences in SSU conformation between the isolated and assembled states affect photolabeling efficiency and other nucleotide analog binding properties of the SSU, but not the apparent affinity for N(3)ATP.

Journal Article↗