Footprints of a trypanosomatid RNA world: pre-small subunit rRNA processing by spliced leader addition trans-splicing

The addition of a capped mini-exon [spliced leader (SL)] through trans-splicing is essential for the maturation of RNA polymerase (pol) II-transcribed polycistronic pre-mRNAs in all members of the Trypanosomatidae family. This process is an inter-molecular splicing reaction that follows the same basic rules of cis-splicing reactions. In this study, we demonstrated that mini-exons were added to precursor ribosomal RNA (pre-rRNA) are transcribed by RNA pol I, including the 5' external transcribed spacer (ETS) region. Additionally, we detected the SL-5' ETS molecule using three distinct methods and located the acceptor site between two known 5' ETS rRNA processing sites (A' and A1) in four different trypanosomatids. Moreover, we detected a polyadenylated 5' ETS upstream of the trans-splicing acceptor site, which also occurs in pre-mRNA trans-splicing. After treatment with an indirect trans-splicing inhibitor (sinefungin), we observed SL-5' ETS decay. However, treatment with 5-fluorouracil (a precursor of RNA synthesis that inhibits the degradation of pre-rRNA) led to the accumulation of SL-5' ETS, suggesting that the molecule may play a role in rRNA degradation. The detection of trans-splicing in these molecules may indicate broad RNA-joining properties, regardless of the polymerase used for transcription.FAPESPFAPESPCNPqCNP

Leishmania amazonensis Arginase Compartmentalization in the Glycosome Is Important for Parasite Infectivity

Abstract In Leishmania, de novo polyamine synthesis is initiated by the cleavage of L-arginine to urea and L-ornithine by the action of arginase (ARG, E.C. 3.5.3.1). Previous studies in L. major and L. mexicana showed that ARG is essential for in vitro growth in the absence of polyamines and needed for full infectivity in animal infections. The ARG protein is normally found within the parasite glycosome, and here we examined whether this localization is required for survival and infectivity. First, the localization of L. amazonensis ARG in the glycosome was confirmed in both the promastigote and amastigote stages. As in other species, arg 2 L. amazonensis required putrescine for growth and presented an attenuated infectivity. Restoration of a wild type ARG to the arg 2 mutant restored ARG expression, growth and infectivity. In contrast, restoration of a cytosoltargeted ARG lacking the glycosomal SKL targeting sequence (argDSKL) restored growth but failed to restore infectivity. Further study showed that the ARGDSKL protein was found in the cytosol as expected, but at very low levels. Our results indicate that the proper compartmentalization of L. amazonensis arginase in the glycosome is important for enzyme activity and optimal infectivity. Our conjecture is that parasite arginase participates in a complex equilibrium that defines the fate of L-arginine and that its proper subcellular location may be essential for this physiological orchestration

Leishmania amazonensis Arginase Compartmentalization in the Glycosome Is Important for Parasite Infectivity

In Leishmania, de novo polyamine synthesis is initiated by the cleavage of L-arginine to urea and L-ornithine by the action of arginase (ARG, E.C. 3.5.3.1). Previous studies in L. major and L. mexicana showed that ARG is essential for in vitro growth in the absence of polyamines and needed for full infectivity in animal infections. The ARG protein is normally found within the parasite glycosome, and here we examined whether this localization is required for survival and infectivity. First, the localization of L. amazonensis ARG in the glycosome was confirmed in both the promastigote and amastigote stages. As in other species, arg− L. amazonensis required putrescine for growth and presented an attenuated infectivity. Restoration of a wild type ARG to the arg− mutant restored ARG expression, growth and infectivity. In contrast, restoration of a cytosol-targeted ARG lacking the glycosomal SKL targeting sequence (argΔSKL) restored growth but failed to restore infectivity. Further study showed that the ARGΔSKL protein was found in the cytosol as expected, but at very low levels. Our results indicate that the proper compartmentalization of L. amazonensis arginase in the glycosome is important for enzyme activity and optimal infectivity. Our conjecture is that parasite arginase participates in a complex equilibrium that defines the fate of L-arginine and that its proper subcellular location may be essential for this physiological orchestration

The relationship between the cellular location of Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis arginase and its role during murine macrophage infection

Nos hospedeiros mamíferos, os parasitas do gênero Leishmania vivem nos macrófagos se evadindo de mecanismos microbicidas dessas células, tais como a produção de óxido nítrico (NO). A produção de NO pela enzima óxido nítrico sintase induzida (iNOS) nos macrófagos requer L-arginina como substrato, o mesmo aminoácido utilizado pela arginase para produzir ornitina e uréia. Logo, a arginase pode atuar na sobrevivência de Leishmania no hospedeiro competindo com a iNOS, reduzindo a produção de NO, além de seu papel na via de poliaminas, essencial para a replicação dessas células. Com isso, o objetivo desse estudo é elucidar o papel da arginase de L. (L.) amazonensis durante o ciclo de vida do parasita, particularmente, sua função no estabelecimento e na manutenção da infecção da célula hospedeira, e como esse papel seria exercido. Nesse sentido, obtivemos soros policlonais anti-arginase, a partir da arginase recombinante de L. (L.) amazonensis purificada, e esses soros foram utilizados na imunomarcação da enzima em preparações com formas promastigotas e macrófagos infectados com amastigotas de L. (L.) amazonensis. Assim, determinamos a compartimentalização da arginase nos glicossomos tanto na forma promastigota do parasita como na forma amastigota, durante a infecção. Além disso, obtivemos diversos mutantes com a expressão de arginase modificada quanto à quantidade e localização que nos permitiram avaliar a importância da compartimentalização dessa enzima nos glicossomos. Entre esses mutantes temos: superexpressores de arginase, com e sem sinal de endereçamento para glicossomo; parasitas com um alelo de arginase nocauteado e o outro substituído pelo cassete contendo o segmento ddFKBP-ARG, que teriam a expressão de arginase regulada pelo domínio ddFKB sendo nocautes funcionais de arginase; e finalmente, também obtivemos parasitas nocaute nulo de arginase. A análise desses mutantes permitiu conclusões importantes para o conhecimento da fisiologia do parasita e sua relação com o macrófago, revelando que o papel da arginase de Leishmania parece ser muito mais complexo do que o inicialmente postulado, participando na regulação de outras vias metabólicas do próprio parasita e da célula hospedeira. Paralelamente, também determinamos que o sistema ddFKBP é funcional em L. (L.) amazonensis, e assim pode ser utilizado no estudo funcional de outras proteínas importantes para esses parasitas.In the mammal host, Leishmania parasites live inside macrophages escaping from their microbicidal mechanisms, such as the nitric oxide (NO) production. The macrophage NO production by inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) requires L-arginine as substrate, the same amino acid required by arginase to generate ornithine and urea. So, arginase may play a dual role in Leishmania survival reducing the NO by competing with iNOS, and participating in the polyamines pathway, which is essential for the cells replication. Considering this, the aim of this study is to elucidate the role of L. (L.) amazonensis arginase during the parasite life cycle, mainly its function for the establishment and maintenance of the host cell infection, besides to elucidate the way that this enzyme plays its role. With this in mind, we obtained polyclonal anti-arginase sera using purified recombinant L. (L.) amazonensis arginase, these sera were used in immunolabelling assays of L. (L.) amazonensis promastigotes and macrophages infected with L. (L.) amazonensis amastigotes. These experiments determined that arginase is compartmentalized in the glycosomes of both promastigotes and amastigotes, during infection. Besides, we obtained several mutants with altered arginase expression, modified in terms of quantity and location, which permitted us to evaluate the importance of glycosome arginase compartmentalization. Among these mutants are: overexpressors of arginase, with and without glycosomal addressing signal; parasites with one arginase allele knocked out and the other one replaced by a sequence containing the ddFKBP-ARG fusion that would allow us to regulate arginase expression, working like a functional arginase knockout; and finally, we also obtained arginase null knockouts parasites. The mutants analyses lead us to important conclusions for the knowledge of the parasite physiology and its relationship with the host macrophage, revealing that the Leishmania arginase role appears to be more complex than previously thought, playing an important role in the regulation of other metabolic pathways, of the own parasite and of the host cell. In the other hand, we also determined that the ddFKBP system is functional in L. (L.) amazonensis, and then can be used for functional studies of other important parasite´s proteins

Biochemical characterization of serine transport in Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis

In addition to its role as a protein component in Leishmania, serine is also a precursor for the synthesis of both phosphatidylserine, which is a membrane molecule involved in parasite invasion and inactivation of macrophages, and sphingolipids, which are necessary for Leishmania to differentiate into its infective forms. We have characterized serine uptake in both promastigote and amastigote forms of Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis. In promastigotes, kinetic data show a single, saturable transport system, with a Km of 0.253 +/- 0.01 mM and a maximum velocity of 0.246 +/- 0.04 nmol/min per 107 cells. Serine transport increased linearly with temperature in the range from 20 degrees C to 45 degrees C, allowing the calculation of an activation energy of 7.09 kJ/mol. Alanine, cysteine, glycine, threonine, valine and ethanolamine competed with the substrate at a ten-fold excess concentration. Serine uptake was dependent on pH, with an optimum activity at pH 7.5. The characterization of the serine transport process in amastigotes revealed a transport system with a similar Km, energy of activation and pH response to that found in promastigotes, suggesting that the same transport system is active in both insect vector and mammalian host Leishmania stages. This could constitute an evolutionary mechanism that guarantees the provision of such an essential molecule during host change events, such as differentiation into amastigotes and macrophage invasion, as well as to ensure that the parasite maintains the infection in the mammalian host. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq

Biochemical and biophysical properties of a highly active recombinant arginase from Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis and subcellular localization of native enzyme

Arginase (L-arginine amidinohydrolase, E.C. 3.5.3.1) is a metalloenzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis Of L-arginine to L-ornithine and urea. In Leishmania spp., the biological role of the enzyme may be involved in modulating NO production upon macrophage infection. Previously, we cloned and characterized the arginase gene from Leishmania (Leishmania) amazonensis. In the present work, we successfully expressed the recombinant enzyme in E. coli and performed biochemical and biophysical characterization of both the native and recombinant enzymes. We obtained K-M and V-max. values of 23.9(+/- 0.96) mM and 192.3 mu mol/min mg protein (+/- 14.3), respectively, for the native enzyme. For the recombinant counterpart, K-M was 21.5(+/- 0.90) mM and V-max was 144.9(+/- 8.9) mu mol/min mg. Antibody against the recombinant protein confirmed a glycosomal cellular localization of the enzyme in promastigotes. Data from light scattering and small angle X-ray scattering showed that a trimeric state is the active form of the protein. We determined empirically that a manganese wash at room temperature is the best condition to purify active enzyme. The interaction of the recombinant protein with the immobilized nickel also allowed us to confirm the structural disposition of histidine at positions 3 and 324. The determined structural parameters provide substantial data to facilitate the search for selective inhibitors of parasitic sources of arginase, which could subsequently point to a candidate for leishmaniasis therapy. (c) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Axenic Leishmania amazonensis promastigotes sense both the external and internal arginine pool distinctly regulating the two transporter-coding genes.

Leishmania (L.) amazonensis uses arginine to synthesize polyamines to support its growth and survival. Here we describe the presence of two gene copies, arranged in tandem, that code for the arginine transporter. Both copies show similar Open Reading Frames (ORFs), which are 93% similar to the L. (L.) donovani AAP3 gene, but their 5' and 3' UTR's have distinct regions. According to quantitative RT-PCR, the 5.1 AAP3 mRNA amount was increased more than 3 times that of the 4.7 AAP3 mRNA along the promastigote growth curve. Nutrient deprivation for 4 hours and then supplemented or not with arginine (400 µM) resulted in similar 4.7 AAP3 mRNA copy-numbers compared to the starved and control parasites. Conversely, the 5.1 AAP3 mRNA copy-numbers increased in the starved parasites but not in ones supplemented with arginine (p<0.05). These results correlate with increases in amino acid uptake. Both Meta1 and arginase mRNAs remained constant with or without supplementation. The same starvation experiment was performed using a L. (L.) amazonensis null knockout for arginase (arg(-)) and two other mutants containing the arginase ORF with (arg(-)/ARG) or without the glycosomal addressing signal (arg(-)/argΔSKL). The arg(-) and the arg(-)/argΔSKL mutants did not show the same behavior as the wild-type (WT) parasite or the arg(-)/ARG mutant. This can be an indicative that the internal pool of arginine is also important for controlling transporter expression and function. By inhibiting mRNA transcription or/and mRNA maturation, we showed that the 5.1 AAP3 mRNA did not decay after 180 min, but the 4.7 AAP3 mRNA presented a half-life decay of 32.6 +/- 5.0 min. In conclusion, parasites can regulate amino acid uptake by increasing the amount of transporter-coding mRNA, possibly by regulating the mRNA half-life in an environment where the amino acid is not present or is in low amounts