Crystal Structure Analysis of the Polysialic Acid Specific O-Acetyltransferase NeuO

The major virulence factor of the neuroinvasive pathogen Escherichia coli K1 is the K1 capsule composed of α2,8-linked polysialic acid (polySia). K1 strains harboring the CUS-3 prophage modify their capsular polysaccharide by phase-variable O-acetlyation, a step that is associated with increased virulence. Here we present the crystal structure of the prophage-encoded polysialate O-acetyltransferase NeuO. The homotrimeric enzyme belongs to the left-handed β-helix (LβH) family of acyltransferases and is characterized by an unusual funnel-shaped outline. Comparison with other members of the LβH family allowed the identification of active site residues and proposal of a catalytic mechanism and highlighted structural characteristics of polySia specific O-acetyltransferases. As a unique feature of NeuO, the enzymatic activity linearly increases with the length of the N-terminal poly-ψ-domain which is composed of a variable number of tandem copies of an RLKTQDS heptad. Since the poly-ψ-domain was not resolved in the crystal structure it is assumed to be unfolded in the apo-enyzme

Polysialic acid modification of the synaptic cell adhesion molecule SynCAM 1 in human embryonic stem cell-derived oligodendrocyte precursor cells

Oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) are the progenitors of myelinating oligodendrocytes in brain development and repair. Successful myelination depends on the control of adhesiveness during OPC migration and axon contact formation. The decoration of cell surface proteins with the glycan polysialic acid (polySia) is a key regulatory element of OPC interactions during development and under pathological conditions. By far the major protein carrier of polySia is the neural cell adhesion molecule NCAM, but recently, polysialylation of the synaptic cell adhesion molecule SynCAM 1 has been detected in the developing mouse brain. In mice, polySia-SynCAM 1 is associated with cells expressing NG2, a marker of a heterogeneous precursor cell population, which is the primary source for oligodendrocytes in development and myelin repair but can also give rise to astrocytes and possibly neurons. It is not yet clear if polySia-SynCAM 1 is expressed by OPCs and its occurrence in humans is elusive. By generating uniform human embryonic stem cell-derived OPC cultures, we demonstrate that polySia is present on human OPCs but down-regulated during differentiation into myelin basic protein-positive oligodendrocytes. PolySia on NCAM resides on the isoforms NCAM-180 and NCAM-140, and SynCAM 1 is identified as a novel polySia acceptor in human OPCs

Intrabodies against the Polysialyltransferases ST8SiaII and ST8SiaIV inhibit Polysialylation of NCAM in rhabdomyosarcoma tumor cells.

Polysialic acid (polySia) is a carbohydrate modification of the neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM), which is implicated in neural differentiation and plays an important role in tumor development and metastasis. Polysialylation of NCAM is mediated by two Golgi-resident polysialyltransferases (polyST) ST8SiaII and ST8SiaIV. Intracellular antibodies (intrabodies; IB) expressed inside the ER and retaining proteins passing the ER such as cell surface receptors or secretory proteins provide an efficient means of protein knockdown. To inhibit the function of ST8SiaII and ST8SiaIV specific ER IBs were generated starting from two corresponding hybridoma clones. Both IBs αST8SiaII-IB and αST8SiaIV-IB were constructed in the scFv format and their functions characterized in vitro and in vivo

Možnosti využití technického automobilu TA-4 v podmínkách HZS okresu Sokolov

Import 20/04/2006Prezenční výpůjčkaVŠB - Technická univerzita Ostrava. Fakulta hornicko-geologická. Institut bezpečnostního inženýrství (547

Additional file 4: of Intrabodies against the Polysialyltransferases ST8SiaII and ST8SiaIV inhibit Polysialylation of NCAM in rhabdomyosarcoma tumor cells

Luminescence picture after injection of tumor cells expressing anti-ST8SiaII-IB and anti-ST8SiaIV-IB in mice (week 4). Luminescence was determined at week 4 using in vivo imaging system. On the ride side are seen the luminescence signals (p/Sec/cm2/sr). (TIF 286 kb

Proteolytic Release of the Intramolecular Chaperone Domain Confers Processivity to Endosialidase F*S⃞

Endosialidases (endoNs), as identified so far, are tailspike proteins of bacteriophages that specifically bind and degrade the α2,8-linked polysialic acid (polySia) capsules of their hosts. The crystal structure solved for the catalytic domain of endoN from coliphage K1F (endoNF) revealed a functional trimer. Folding of the catalytic trimer is mediated by an intramolecular C-terminal chaperone domain. Release of the chaperone from the folded protein confers kinetic stability to endoNF. In mutant c(S), the replacement of serine 911 by alanine prevents proteolysis and generates an enzyme that varies in activity from wild type. Using soluble polySia as substrate a 3-times higher activity was detected while evaluation with immobilized polySia revealed a 190-fold reduced activity. Importantly, activity of c(S) did not differ from wild type with tetrameric sialic acid, the minimal endoNF substrate. Furthermore, we show that the presence of the chaperone domain in c(S) destabilizes binding to polySia in a similar way as did selective disruption of a polySia binding site in the stalk domain. The improved catalytic efficiency toward soluble polySia observed in these mutants can be explained by higher dissociation and association probabilities, whereas inversely, an impaired processivity was found. The fact that endoNF is a processive enzyme introduces a new molecular basis to explain capsule degradation by bacteriophages, which until now has been regarded as a result of cooperative interaction of tailspike proteins. Moreover, knowing that release of the chaperone domain confers kinetic stability and processivity, conservation of the proteolytic process can be explained by its importance in phage evolution

Structural and mechanistic basis of capsule O-acetylation in Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A

$O$-Acetylation of the capsular polysaccharide (CPS) of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup A (NmA) is critical for the induction of functional immune responses, making this modification mandatory for CPS-based anti-NmA vaccines. Using comprehensive NMR studies, we demonstrate that $O$-acetylation stabilizes the labile anomeric phosphodiester-linkages of the NmA-CPS and occurs in position C3 and C4 of the $N$-acetylmannosamine units due to enzymatic transfer and non-enzymatic ester migration, respectively. To shed light on the enzymatic transfer mechanism, we solved the crystal structure of the capsule $O$-acetyltransferase CsaC in its apo and acceptor-bound form and of the CsaC-H228A mutant as trapped acetyl-enzyme adduct in complex with CoA. Together with the results of a comprehensive mutagenesis study, the reported structures explain the strict regioselectivity of CsaC and provide insight into the catalytic mechanism, which relies on an unexpected Gln-extension of a classical Ser-His-Asp triad, embedded in an $α$/$β$-hydrolase fold

9-O-Acetylation of sialic acids is catalysed by CASD1 via a covalent acetyl-enzyme intermediate

Sialic acids, terminal sugars of glycoproteins and glycolipids, play important roles in development, cellular recognition processes and host-pathogen interactions. A common modification of sialic acids is 9-O-acetylation, which has been implicated in sialoglycan recognition, ganglioside biology, and the survival and drug resistance of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia cells. Despite many functional implications, the molecular basis of 9-O-acetylation has remained elusive thus far. Following cellular approaches, including selective gene knockout by CRISPR/Cas genome editing, we here show that CASD1-a previously identified human candidate gene-is essential for sialic acid 9-O-acetylation. In vitro assays with the purified N-terminal luminal domain of CASD1 demonstrate transfer of acetyl groups from acetyl-coenzyme A to CMP-activated sialic acid and formation of a covalent acetyl-enzyme intermediate. Our study provides direct evidence that CASD1 is a sialate O-acetyltransferase and serves as key enzyme in the biosynthesis of 9-O-acetylated sialoglycans