The structures of a naturally empty cowpea mosaic virus particle and its genome-containing counterpart by cryo-electron microscopy

Cowpea mosaic virus (CPMV) is a picorna-like plant virus. As well as an intrinsic interest in CPMV as a plant pathogen, CPMV is of major interest in biotechnology applications such as nanotechnology. Here, we report high resolution cryo electron microscopy (cryo-EM) maps of wild type CPMV containing RNA-2, and of naturally-formed empty CPMV capsids. The resolution of these structures is sufficient to visualise large amino acids. We have refined an atomic model for each map and identified an essential amino acid involved in genome encapsidation. This work has furthered our knowledge of Picornavirales genome encapsidation and will assist further work in the development of CPMV as a biotechnological tool

Atomic Structure of Type VI Contractile Sheath from Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Pseudomonas aeruginosa has three type VI secretion systems (T6SSs), H1-, H2-, and H3-T6SS, each belonging to a distinct group. The two T6SS components, TssB/VipA and TssC/VipB, assemble to form tubules that conserve structural/functional homology with tail sheaths of contractile bacteriophages and pyocins. Here, we used cryoelectron microscopy to solve the structure of the H1-T6SS P. aeruginosa TssB1C1 sheath at 3.3 Å resolution. Our structure allowed us to resolve some features of the T6SS sheath that were not resolved in the Vibrio cholerae VipAB and Francisella tularensis IglAB structures. Comparison with sheath structures from other contractile machines, including T4 phage and R-type pyocins, provides a better understanding of how these systems have conserved similar functions/mechanisms despite evolution. We used the P. aeruginosa R2 pyocin as a structural template to build an atomic model of the TssB1C1 sheath in its extended conformation, allowing us to propose a coiled-spring-like mechanism for T6SS sheath contraction

Mechanisms of assembly and genome packaging in an RNA virus revealed by high-resolution cryo-EM

Cowpea mosaic virus is a plant-infecting member of the Picornavirales and is of major interest in the development of biotechnology applications. Despite the availability of >100 crystal structures of Picornavirales capsids, relatively little is known about the mechanisms of capsid assembly and genome encapsidation. Here we have determined cryo-electron microscopy reconstructions for the wild-type virus and an empty virus-like particle, to 3.4 Å and 3.0 Å resolution, respectively, and built de novo atomic models of their capsids. These new structures reveal the C-terminal region of the small coat protein subunit, which is essential for virus assembly and which was missing from previously determined crystal structures, as well as residues that bind to the viral genome. These observations allow us to develop a new model for genome encapsidation and capsid assembly

Structure-based classification of tauopathies

The ordered assembly of tau protein into filaments characterizes several neurodegenerative diseases, which are called tauopathies. It was previously reported that, by cryo-electron microscopy, the structures of tau filaments from Alzheimer’s disease, Pick’s disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy and corticobasal degeneration are distinct. Here we show that the structures of tau filaments from progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) define a new three-layered fold. Moreover, the structures of tau filaments from globular glial tauopathy are similar to those from PSP. The tau filament fold of argyrophilic grain disease (AGD) differs, instead resembling the four-layered fold of corticobasal degeneration. The AGD fold is also observed in ageing-related tau astrogliopathy. Tau protofilament structures from inherited cases of mutations at positions +3 or +16 in intron 10 of MAPT (the microtubule-associated protein tau gene) are also identical to those from AGD, suggesting that relative overproduction of four-repeat tau can give rise to the AGD fold. Finally, the structures of tau filaments from cases of familial British dementia and familial Danish dementia are the same as those from cases of Alzheimer’s disease and primary age-related tauopathy. These findings suggest a hierarchical classification of tauopathies on the basis of their filament folds, which complements clinical diagnosis and neuropathology and also allows the identification of new entities—as we show for a case diagnosed as PSP, but with filament structures that are intermediate between those of globular glial tauopathy and PSP

The cryo-EM structure of the bacterial flagellum cap complex suggests a molecular mechanism for filament elongation

The bacterial flagellum is a remarkable molecular motor, whose primary function in bacteria is to facilitate motility through the rotation of a filament protruding from the bacterial cell. A cap complex, consisting of an oligomer of the protein FliD, is localized at the tip of the flagellum, and is essential for filament assembly, as well as adherence to surfaces in some bacteria. However, the structure of the intact cap complex, and the molecular basis for its interaction with the filament, remains elusive. Here we report the cryo-EM structure of the Campylobacter jejuni cap complex, which reveals that FliD is pentameric, with the N-terminal region of the protomer forming an extensive set of contacts across several subunits, that contribute to FliD oligomerization. We also demonstrate that the native C. jejuni flagellum filament is 11-stranded, contrary to a previously published cryo-EM structure, and propose a molecular model for the filament-cap interaction

Self-assembly of highly symmetrical, ultrasmall inorganic cages directed by surfactant micelles

Nanometre-sized objects with highly symmetrical, cage-like polyhedral shapes, often with icosahedral symmetry, have recently been assembled from DNA(1-3), RNA(4) or proteins(5,6) for applications in biology and medicine. These achievements relied on advances in the development of programmable self-assembling biological materials(7-10), and on rapidly developing techniques for generating three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions from cryo-electron microscopy images of single particles, which provide high-resolution structural characterization of biological complexes(11-13). Such single-particle 3D reconstruction approaches have not yet been successfully applied to the identification of synthetic inorganic nanomaterials with highly symmetrical cage-like shapes. Here, however, using a combination of cryo-electron microscopy and single-particle 3D reconstruction, we suggest the existence of isolated ultrasmall (less than 10 nm) silica cages ('silicages') with dodecahedral structure. We propose that such highly symmetrical, self-assembled cages form through the arrangement of primary silica clusters in aqueous solutions on the surface of oppositely charged surfactant micelles. This discovery paves the way for nanoscale cages made from silica and other inorganic materials to be used as building blocks for a wide range of advanced functional-materials applications

Marker-free image registration of electron tomography tilt-series

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Tilt series are commonly used in electron tomography as a means of collecting three-dimensional information from two-dimensional projections. A common problem encountered is the projection alignment prior to 3D reconstruction. Current alignment techniques usually employ gold particles or image derived markers to correctly align the images. When these markers are not present, correlation between adjacent views is used to align them. However, sequential pairwise correlation is prone to bias and the resulting alignment is not always optimal.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this paper we introduce an algorithm to find regions of the tilt series which can be tracked within a subseries of the tilt series. These regions act as landmarks allowing the determination of the alignment parameters. We show our results with synthetic data as well as experimental cryo electron tomography.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our algorithm is able to correctly align a single-tilt tomographic series without the help of fiducial markers thanks to the detection of thousands of small image patches that can be tracked over a short number of images in the series.</p

Structure of mammalian respiratory complex I.

Complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase), one of the largest membrane-bound enzymes in the cell, powers ATP synthesis in mammalian mitochondria by using the reducing potential of NADH to drive protons across the inner mitochondrial membrane. Mammalian complex I (ref. 1) contains 45 subunits, comprising 14 core subunits that house the catalytic machinery (and are conserved from bacteria to humans) and a mammalian-specific cohort of 31 supernumerary subunits. Knowledge of the structures and functions of the supernumerary subunits is fragmentary. Here we describe a 4.2-Å resolution single-particle electron cryomicroscopy structure of complex I from Bos taurus. We have located and modelled all 45 subunits, including the 31 supernumerary subunits, to provide the entire structure of the mammalian complex. Computational sorting of the particles identified different structural classes, related by subtle domain movements, which reveal conformationally dynamic regions and match biochemical descriptions of the 'active-to-de-active' enzyme transition that occurs during hypoxia. Our structures therefore provide a foundation for understanding complex I assembly and the effects of mutations that cause clinically relevant complex I dysfunctions, give insights into the structural and functional roles of the supernumerary subunits and reveal new information on the mechanism and regulation of catalysis

A method for detergent-free isolation of membrane proteins in their local lipid environment.

Despite the great importance of membrane proteins, structural and functional studies of these proteins present major challenges. A significant hurdle is the extraction of the functional protein from its natural lipid membrane. Traditionally achieved with detergents, purification procedures can be costly and time consuming. A critical flaw with detergent approaches is the removal of the protein from the native lipid environment required to maintain functionally stable protein. This protocol describes the preparation of styrene maleic acid (SMA) co-polymer to extract membrane proteins from prokaryotic and eukaryotic expression systems. Successful isolation of membrane proteins into SMA lipid particles (SMALPs) allows the proteins to remain with native lipid, surrounded by SMA. We detail procedures for obtaining 25 g of SMA (4 d); explain the preparation of protein-containing SMALPs using membranes isolated from Escherichia coli (2 d) and control protein-free SMALPS using E. coli polar lipid extract (1-2 h); investigate SMALP protein purity by SDS-PAGE analysis and estimate protein concentration (4 h); and detail biophysical methods such as circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and sedimentation velocity analytical ultracentrifugation (svAUC) to undertake initial structural studies to characterize SMALPs (∼2 d). Together, these methods provide a practical tool kit for those wanting to use SMALPs to study membrane proteins