同系物标记结合凝胶电泳和质谱技术用于蛋白质N端肽鉴定及相对定量

通过酸酐同系物标记蛋白质的N-末端,经过凝胶电泳分离,使用基质辅助激光解析电离飞行时间质谱仪进行鉴定,建立了一种基于化学标记和质谱技术的、用于蛋白质的N-末端鉴定和相对定量新方法。标记后的蛋白质的N端肽以相差14 Da的成对峰形式在质谱中出现,而非N-末端肽则是以单峰呈现,从而实现了末端肽的特异性识别;通过端肽的信号强度对3种标记蛋白质的不同比例的混合溶液实现了相对定量分析。     

孔石莼质体蓝素的柱色谱纯化及其N-端氨基酸序列的分析测定

通过DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow阴离子交换柱和Sephadex G-75凝胶过滤柱分离纯化得到了孔石莼(Ulva pertusa)的质体蓝素。其步骤为:将孔石莼样品以0.02 mol/L磷酸盐缓冲液(pH 7.2)进行匀浆,然后离心去除沉淀,将上清液用硫酸铵分级盐析获得饱和度为40%~80%的盐析蛋白;通过DEAE-Sepharose 柱色谱,在含有0~1.0 mol/L NaCl 的0.01 mol/L磷酸盐缓冲液线性梯度洗脱下,盐析蛋白有3个主要的洗脱峰,然后在Sephadex G-75凝胶过滤色谱柱中进一步纯化。十二烷基硫酸钠-聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳（SDS-PAGE）显示,该蛋白质被纯化为单一条带。根据蛋白质电泳迁移率,纯化蛋白质的相对分子质量约为10000。该蛋白质不含糖。纯化的蛋白质经电转移至聚偏二氟乙烯（PVDF）膜后,以Edman降解法进行N-端氨基酸序列测定,前20个氨基酸残基序列为AAIVKLGPDDGSLAFVPSKI。通过对相关蛋白质数据库的检索,发现该序列与3种已报道的海藻的质体蓝素具有较高的序列同源性,其同源性分别为85%,85%和90%。据此,认为孔石莼的质体蓝素已获得纯化,其N-端20个氨基酸残基与已报道的海藻质体蓝素的氨基酸残基有较大的同源性,也存在着一定的变异。     

Computational simulation of ligand docking to L-type pyruvate kinase subunit

Computational blind docking approach was used for mapping of possible binding sites in L-type pyruvate kinase subunit for peptides, RRASVA and the phosphorylated derivative RRAS(P_i)VA, which model the phosphorylatable N-terminal regulatory domain of the enzyme. In parallel, the same docking analysis was done for both substrates of this enzyme, phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) and adenosine diphosphate (ADP), and for docking of fructose 1,6-bisphosphate (FBP), which is the allosteric activator of the enzyme. The binding properties of the entire surface of the protein were scanned and several possible binding sites were identified in domains A and C of the protein, while domain B revealed no docking sites for peptides or for substrates or the allosteric regulator. It was found that the docking sites of different ligands were partially overlapping, pointing to the possibility that some regulatory effects, observed in the case of L-type pyruvate kinase, may be caused by the competition of different ligands for the same binding sites.     

Immobilisation of lactate dehydrogenase on poly(aniline)-poly(acrylate) and poly(aniline)-poly(vinyl sulphonate) films for use in a lactate biosensor

The immobilisation of enzymes on an electrode surface, in such a manner that they retain both substrate specificity and high levels of catalytic activity, is of great importance in bioelectrochemistry. This includes areas such as the development of enzyme-catalysed fuel cell electrodes, biosensors and other biotechnological applications. We have investigated the catalytic activity of hexahistidine tagged variants of lactate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.27) from the thermophile Bacillus stearothermophilus both in solution and when immobilised on poly(aniline)-poly(acrylate) (PANi-PAA) or poly(aniline)-poly(vinyl sulphonate) (PANi-PVS) composite films. Both the C- and N-terminally tagged enzymes are readily immobilised on the modified electrode and catalyse the conversion of lactate and NAD⁺ to pyruvate and NADH. The NADH that is generated can be readily oxidised at the PANi-modified electrode surface.In solution, the activity of the C-tagged enzyme (LDH-CHis) was some 30% less that of the wild-type under comparable conditions, whereas the N-tagged enzyme was found to possess essentially the same activity as the wild-type. However, when the enzymes were immobilised on PANi-PAA and PANi-PVS the C-tagged enzyme films showed a higher NADH-dependent current than the wild-type LDH whilst the N-tagged enzyme had the highest of the three. In addition, the C-tagged enzyme film appeared more stable than the wild-type LDH-PANi film. A novel immobilisation chemistry of the enzyme is proposed to account for these observations.     

One‐Pot N2C/C2C/N2N Ligation To Trap Weak Protein–Protein Interactions

Weak transient protein–protein interactions (PPIs) play an essential role in cellular dynamics. However, it is challenging to obtain weak protein complexes owing to their short lifetime. Herein we present a general and facile method for trapping weak PPIs in an unbiased manner using proximity‐induced ligations. To expand the chemical ligation spectrum, we developed novel N2N (N‐terminus to N‐terminus) and C2C (C‐terminus to C‐terminus) ligation approaches. By using N2C (N‐terminus to C‐terminus), N2N, and C2C ligations in one pot, the interacting proteins were linked. The weak Ypt1:GDI interaction drove C2C ligation with t_1/2 of 4.8 min and near quantitative conversion. The Ypt1‐GDI conjugate revealed that binding of Ypt1 G‐domain causes opening of the lipid‐binding site of GDI, which can accommodate one prenyl group, giving insights into Rab membrane recycling. Moreover, we used this strategy to trap the KRas homodimer, which plays an important role in Ras signaling.     

Specific N-terminal ACTH-radioimmunoassay after plasma extraction

Conclusions The ACTH-antiserum used here has a high N-terminal specificity, which allows a measurement of biologically active ACTH after plasma extraction for investigations of the function of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in various diseases. This assay is not suitable in our hand to measure paraneoplastic production of biologically inactive peptides of the ACTH-LPH family in plasma from patients with carcinomas but without clinical signs of ectopic ACTH-production. To answer this special question other specific radioimmunoassays (e.g. CLIP, LPH) must be performed.Supported by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Sonderforschungsbereich 51)     

Rutin induces endoplasmic reticulum stress-associated apoptosis in human triple-negative breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231 cells – In vitro and in silico docking studies

Rutin is a bioactive compound that possesses anti-tumor activities through triggering apoptosis. Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is insensitive to targeted anti-tumoral drugs, and drug resistance in TNBC poses a challenge for a successful cure. The accumulation of misfolded proteins in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) results in cellular stress that initiates a specialized response designated as the unfolded protein response. This study aimed to find potential ER stress targets in triple-negative breast cancer. The viability of cells was evaluated using an MTT assay. Cell migration and proliferation were done by wound scratch and colony formation assay. Cell cycle detection, measurement of ER stress, mitochondrial membrane potential disruption, and cell death identification was performed using flow cytometry. The interaction of rutin with ER stress proteins is predicted using in silico docking. The pattern of gene expression was determined by qRT-PCR. The elevated rate of cell viability, cell cycle arrest, ER stress, MMP, and apoptotic induction was observed in combination treatment. Rutin exhibited the highest glide score with ASK1 and JNK. The results of qRT-PCR showed that rutin induced apoptosis through upregulation of ASK1 and JNK. The present study provides strong evidence supporting an important role of the ER stress response in mediating rutin-induced apoptosis in triple-negative breast cancer.     

A facile strategy to prevent trifluoroacetylation of N-terminal proline peptides

Unwanted trifluoroacetylation occurred at the N-terminus of prolinyl peptides during detachment from the solid phase. This was observed when the N-α-Fmoc protecting group had been removed prior to the final TFA treatment. Subtly changing the SPPS protocol and incorporating Boc- in place of the Fmoc-protected proline as the N-terminal building block efficiently suppressed this side reaction.