Kinetic characterization of myosin head fragments with long-lived myosin.ATP states

We have separately expressed the Dictyosteliumdiscoideum myosin II nonhydrolyzer point mutations E459V and E476K [Ruppel, K. M., and Spudich, J. A. (1996) Mol. Biol. Cell 7, 1123-1136] in the soluble myosin head fragment M761-1R [Anson et al. (1996) EMBO J. 15, 6069-6074] and performed transient kinetic analyses to characterize the ATPase cycles of the mutant proteins. While the mutations cause some changes in mantATP [2'(3')-O-(N-methylanthraniloyl)-ATP] and mantADP binding, the most dramatic effect is on the hydrolysis step of the ATPase cycle, which is reduced by 4 (E476K) and 6 (E459V) orders of magnitude. Thus, both mutant myosin constructs do in fact catalyze ATP hydrolysis but have very long-lived myosin.ATP states. The E459V mutation allowed for a direct measurement of the ATP off rate constant from myosin, which was found to be 2 x 10(-)5 s-1. Actin accelerated ATP release from this E459V construct by at least 100-fold. Additionally, we found that the affinity of the E476K construct for actin is significantly weaker than for the wild-type construct, while the E459V mutant interacts with actin normally. Their functional properties and the fact that they can be produced and purified in large amounts make the E476K and E459V constructs ideal tools to elucidate key structural features of the myosin ATPase cycle. These constructs should allow us to address important questions, including how binding of ATP to myosin heads results in a >3 order of magnitude reduction in actin affinity.     

Interaction of F-actin with synthetic peptides spanning the loop region of human cardiac beta-myosin heavy chain containing Arg403

The atomic model of the F-actin-myosin subfragment 1 complex (acto-S-1) from skeletal muscle suggests that the transition of the complex from a weakly to a strongly binding state, generating mechanical force during the contractile cycle, may involve the attachment of the upper 50-kDa subdomain of myosin subfragment 1 (S-1) to the interface between subdomains 1 and 3 of actin. For the human cardiac myosin, this putative interaction would take place at the ordered loop including Arg403 of the beta-heavy chain sequence, a residue whose mutation into Gln is known to elicit a severe hypertrophic cardiomyopathy caused by a decrease of the rate of the actomyosin ATPase activity. Moreover, in several nonmuscle myosins the replacement of a Glu residue within the homolog loop by Ser or Thr also results in the reduction of the actomyosin ATPase rate that is alleviated by phosphorylation. As an approach to the characterization of the unknown interaction properties of F-actin with this particular S-1 loop region, we have synthesized four 17-residue peptides corresponding to the sequence Gly398-Gly414 of the human beta-cardiac myosin. Three peptides included Arg403 (GG17) or Gln403 (GG17Q) or Ser409 (GG17S) and the fourth peptide (GG17sc) was a scrambled version of the normal GG17 sequence. Using fluorescence polarization, cosedimentation analyses and photocross-linking, we show that the three former peptides, but not the scrambled sequence, directly associate in solution to F-actin, at a nearly physiological ionic strength, with almost identical affinities (Kd approximately 40 microM). The binding strength of the F-actin-GG17 peptide complex was increased fivefold (Kd = 8 microM) in the presence of subsaturating concentrations of added skeletal S-1 relative to actin, without apparent competition between the peptide and S-1. Each of the three actin-binding peptides inhibited the steady-state actin-activated MgATPase of skeletal S-1 by specifically decreasing about twofold the Vmax of the reaction without changing the actin affinity for the S-1-ATP intermediate. Cosedimentation assays indicated the binding of about 0.65 mol peptide/mol actin under conditions inducing 70% inhibition. Collectively, the data point to a specific and stoichiometric interaction of the peptides with F-actin that uncouples its binding to S-1 from ATP hydrolysis, probably by interfering with the proper attachment of the S-1 loop segment to the interdomain connection of actin.     

Dictyostelium myosin 25-50K loop substitutions specifically affect ADP release rates

While most of the sequence of myosin's motor domain is highly conserved among various organisms and tissue types, the junctions between the 25 and 50 kDa domains and the 50 and 20 kDa domains are strikingly divergent. The 50-20K loop is positioned to interact with actin, while the 25-50K loop is situated nearer the ATP binding site [Rayment, I., et al. (1993) Science 261, 50-58]. Chimeric studies of the 50-20K loop [Uyeda, T. Q.-P., et al. (1994) Nature 368, 567-569; Rovner, A. S., et al. (1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270 (51), 30260-30263] have shown that this loop affects actin activation of ATPase activity. Given the function of myosin as a molecular motor, it was proposed that the 25-50K loop might specifically alter ADP release [Spudich, J. A. (1994) Nature 374, 515-518]. Here we study the role of this loop by engineering chimeras containing the Dictyostelium myosin heavy chain with loops from two enzymatically diverse myosins, rabbit skeletal and Acanthamoeba. The chimeric myosins complement the myosin null phenotype in vivo, bind nucleotide normally, interact normally with actin, and display wild-type levels of actin-activated ATPase activity. However, the rate of ADP release from the myosins, normally the slowest step involved in motility, was changed in a manner that reflects the activity of the donor myosin. In summary, studies of Dictyostelium myosin heavy chain chimeras have shown that the 50-20K sequence specifically affects the actin-activated ATPase activity [Uyeda, T. Q.-P., et al. (1994)] while the 25-50K sequence helps determine the rate of ADP release.     

Characterization of the catalytic site of the ADP-ribosyltransferase Clostridium botulinum C2 toxin by site-directed mutagenesis

The actin ADP-ribosylating Clostridium botulinum C2 toxin is a binary toxin composed of the binding component C2II and the enzyme component C2I. C2I ADP-ribosylates G-actin at arginine 177, resulting in the depolymerization of the actin cytoskeleton. Here, we studied the structure-function relationship of C2I by site-directed mutagenesis. Exchange of Glu389 to glutamine caused the complete loss of ADP-ribosyltransferase and NAD-glycohydrolase activities of C2I. In contrast, exchange of Glu387 to glutamine blocked ADP-ribosyltransferase but not NAD-glycohydrolase activity. Whereas photoaffinity labeling of the double mutant E387Q/E389Q C2I with [carbonyl-14C]NAD was blocked, labeling of the single C2I mutants was reduced (E389Q) or not changed (E387Q). Exchange of the STS motif (amino acid residues 348-350) of C2I caused a decrease in transferase activity by more than 99 (S348A) and 90% (T349V), or did not affect activity (S350A). Exchange of Arg299 and Arg300 to lysine reduced transferase activity to <0.1 and approximately 35% of wild-type activity. The data indicate that the amino acid residues Glu389, Glu387, Ser348, and Arg299, which are conserved in various prokaryotic and eukaryotic arginine-modifying ADP-ribosyltransferases, are essential for ADP-ribosyltransferase activity of the enzyme component of C. botulinum C2 toxin.     

Effect of metal cations on the conformation of myosin subfragment-1-ADP-phosphate analog complexes: a near-UV circular dichroism study

The interaction of myosin with actin, coupled with hydrolysis of ATP, is the molecular basis of muscle contraction. The head segment of myosin, called S1, contains the distinct binding sites for ATP and actin and is responsible for the ATPase activity. The myosin-catalyzed ATP hydrolysis consists of several intermediate steps and each step is accompanied by conformational changes in the S1 segment. The rate-limiting step of the ATP hydrolysis is the dissociation of the S1 x ADP x Pi complex which is accelerated by actin. The substitution of Pi with phosphate analogs (PA), such as vanadate, beryllium fluoride (BeFx) or aluminum fluoride (AlF4-), yields stable complexes which mimic the intermediates of the ATP hydrolysis. In this work, tertiary structure changes in S1 in the vicinity of aromatic residues was studied by comparing near-UV circular dichroism (CD) spectra from S1-nucleotide-phosphate analog complexes in the presence of Mg2+ and other cations. A significant difference between the MgATP and MgADP spectra indicated notable tertiary structural changes accompanying the M**ADP x Pi --> M*ADP transition. The spectra of the S1 x MgADP x BeFx and S1 x MgADP x AlF4- complexes resemble to those obtained upon addition of MgATPgammaS and MgATP to S1, and correspond to the M* x ATP and M** x ADP x Pi intermediates, respectively. We have found recently that the presence of divalent metal cations (Me2+) is essential for the formation of stable S1 x MeADP x PA complexes. Moreover, the nature of the metal cations strongly influences the stability of these complexes [Peyser, Y. M., et al. (1996) Biochemistry 35, 4409-4416]. In the present work we studied the effect of Mg2+, Mn2+, Ca2+, Ni2+, Co2+, and Fe2+ on the near-UV CD spectrum of the ATP, ADP, ADP x BeFx, and ADP x AlF4- containing S complexes. The CD spectra obtained with ADP, ATP ADP x BeFx and ADP x AlF4- were essentially identical in the presence of Co2+ and rather similar in the case of Ca2+, while they were partially different in other cases. An interesting correlation was found between actin activation and ATP versus ADP difference spectra in the presence of various metal ions. The distribution of the fractional concentration of the intermediates of ATP hydrolysis was estimated in the presence of each cation from the CD spectra with phosphate analogs. In the presence of Mg2+ the predominant intermediate is the M** x ADP x Pi state, which is in accordance with the kinetic studies. On the other hand with non-native cations the predominant intermediate is the M* x ADP state and the release of ADP is the rate limiting step in the myosin-catalyzed ATP hydrolysis. According to the results, the near-UV CD spectrum originating from aromatic residues in S1 not only can distinguish identifiable states in the ATP hydrolysis cycle but can also pinpoint to changes in the tertiary structure caused by complex formation with nucleotide or nucleotide analog and various divalent metal cations. These findings, that are correlative with actin activation, and thus with the power stroke, suggest new strategies for perturbing S1 structure in the continuous efforts directed toward the elucidation of the mechanism of muscle contraction.     

Mutational analysis of the switch II loop of Dictyostelium myosin II

A loop comprising residues 454-459 of Dictyostelium myosin II is structurally and functionally equivalent to the switch II loop of the G-protein family. The consensus sequence of the "switch II loop" of the myosin family is DIXGFE. In order to determine the functions of each of the conserved residues, alanine scanning mutagenesis was carried out on the Dictyostelium myosin II heavy chain gene. Examination of in vivo and in vitro motor functions of the mutant myosins revealed that the I455A and S456A mutants retained those functions, whereas the D454A, G457A, F458A and E459A mutants lost them. Biochemical analysis of the latter myosins showed that the G457A and E459A mutants lost the basal ATPase activity by blocking of the isomerization and hydrolysis steps of the ATPase cycle, respectively. The F458A mutant, however, lost the actin-activated ATPase activity without loss of the basal ATPase activity. These results are discussed in terms of the crystal structure of the Dictyostelium myosin motor domain.     

Lysine 129 of CD38 (ADP-ribosyl cyclase/cyclic ADP-ribose hydrolase) participates in the binding of ATP to inhibit the cyclic ADP-ribose hydrolase

CD38 catalyzes not only the formation of cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) from NAD+ but also the hydrolysis of cADPR to ADP-ribose (ADPR), and ATP inhibits the hydrolysis (Takasawa, S., Tohgo, A., Noguchi, N., Koguma, T., Nata, K., Sugimoto, T., Yonekura, H., and Okamoto, H. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 26052-26054). In the present study, using purified recombinant CD38, we showed that the cADPR hydrolase activity of CD38 was inhibited by ATP in a competitive manner with cADPR. To identify the binding site for ATP and/or cADPR, we labeled the purified CD38 with FSBA. Sequence analysis of the lysylendopeptidase-digested fragment of the labeled CD38 indicated that the FSBA-labeled residue was Lys-129. We introduced site-directed mutations to change the Lys-129 of CD38 to Ala and to Arg. Neither mutant was labeled with FSBA nor catalyzed the hydrolysis of cADPR to ADPR. Furthermore, the mutants did not bind cADPR, whereas they still used NAD+ as a substrate to form cADPR and ADPR. These results indicate that Lys-129 of CD38 participates in cADPR binding and that ATP competes with cADPR for the binding site, resulting in the inhibition of the cADPR hydrolase activity of CD38.     

Characterization of mutant myosins of Dictyostelium discoideum equivalent to human familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy mutants. Molecular force level of mutant myosins may have a prognostic implication

Recent studies have revealed that familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC) is caused by missence mutations in myosin heavy chain or other sarcomeric proteins. To investigate the functional impact of FHC mutations in myosin heavy chain, mutants of Dictyostelium discoideum myosin II equivalent to human FHC mutations were generated by site-directed mutagenesis, and their motor function was characterized at the molecular level. These mutants, i.e., R397Q, F506C, G575R, A699R, K703Q, and K703W are respectively equivalent to R403Q, F513C, G584R, G716R, R719Q, and R719W FHC mutants. We measured the force generated by these myosin mutants as well as the sliding velocity and the actin-activated ATPase activity. These measurements showed that the A699R, K703Q, and K703W myosins exhibited unexpectedly weak affinity with actin and the lowest level of force, though their ATPase activity remained rather high. F506C mutant which has been reported to have benign prognosis exhibited the least impairment of the motile and enzymatic activities. The motor functions of R397Q and G575R myosins were classified as intermediate. These results suggest that the force level of mutant myosin molecule may be one of the key factors for pathogenesis which affect the prognosis of human FHC.     

Nucleotide and actin binding properties of the isolated motor domain from Dictyostelium discoideum myosin

Nucleotide and actin binding properties of the truncated myosin head (S1dC) from Dictyostelium myosin II were studied in solution using rabbit skeletal myosin subfragment 1 as a reference material. S1dC and subfragment 1 had similar affinities for ADP analogues, epsilon ADP and TNP-ADP. The complexes of epsilon ADP and BeFx or AIF4- were less stable with S1dC than with subfragment 1. Stern-Volmer constants for acrylamide quenching of S1dC complexes with epsilon ADP, epsilon ADP.AIF4- and epsilon ADP.BeFx were 2.6, 2.9 and 2.2 M-1, respectively. The corresponding values for subfragment 1 were 2.6, 1.5 and 1.1 M-1. The environment of the nucleotide binding site was probed by using a hydrophobic fluorescent probe, PPBA. PPBA was a competitive inhibitor of S1dC Ca(2+)-ATPase (Ki = 1.6 microM). The binding of nucleotides to subfragment 1 enhanced PPBA fluorescence and caused blue shifts in the wavelength of its maximum emission in the order: ATP approximately ADP.AIF4- approximately ADP.BeFx > ATP gamma S > ADP > PPi. In the case of S1dC, the effects of different nucleotides were smaller and indistinguishable from each other. S1dC bound actin tighter than S1 (Kd = 7 nM and 60 nM, respectively). The actin activated MgATPase activity of S1dC varied between preparations, and the Vmax and K(m) values ranged between 3 and 7 s-1 and 60 and 190 microM, respectively. S1dC showed lower structural stability than S1 as revealed by their thermal inactivations at 35 degrees C. These results show that the nucleotide and actin binding of S1dC and subfragment 1 are similar but there are some differences in nucleotide and phosphate analogue-induced changes and the communication between the nucleotide and actin binding sites in these proteins.     

The role of residue 238 of TEM-1 beta-lactamase in the hydrolysis of extended-spectrum antibiotics

beta-Lactamases inactivate beta-lactam antibiotics by catalyzing the hydrolysis of the amide bond in the beta-lactam ring. The plasmid-encoded class A TEM-1 beta-lactamase is a commonly encountered beta-lactamase. It is able to inactivate penicillins and cephalosporins but not extended-spectrum antibiotics. However, TEM-1-derived natural variants containing the G238S amino acid substitution display increased hydrolysis of extended-spectrum antibiotics. Two models have been proposed to explain the role of the G238S substitution in hydrolysis of extended-spectrum antibiotics. The first proposes a direct hydrogen bond of the Ser238 side chain to the oxime group of extended-spectrum antibiotics. The second proposes that steric conflict with surrounding residues, due to increased side chain volume, leads to a more accessible active site pocket. To assess the validity of each model, TEM-1 mutants with amino acids substitutions of Ala, Ser, Cys, Thr, Asn, and Val have been constructed. Kinetic analysis of these enzymes with penicillins and cephalosporins suggests that a hydrogen bond is necessary but not sufficient to achieve the hydrolytic activity of the G238S enzyme for the extended-spectrum antibiotics cefotaxime and ceftazidime. In addition, it appears that the new hydrogen bond interaction is to a site on the enzyme rather than directly to the extended-spectrum antibiotic. The data indicate that, for the G238S substitution, a combination of an optimal side chain volume and hydrogen bonding potential results in the most versatile and advantageous antibiotic hydrolytic spectrum for bacterial resistance to extended-spectrum antibiotics.     

Function of the NH2-terminal domain of the regulatory light chain on the regulation of smooth muscle myosin

The role of the NH2-terminal domain of the 20,000-dalton light chain on the regulatory function of smooth muscle myosin was studied by exchanging it in myosin with various mutant forms. The 10 S to 6 S conformational transition as well as the thick filament formation were significantly influenced by the deletion or substitution of the amino acid residues at the NH2-terminal side of the phosphorylation site (Ser19). Whereas the deletion of Ser1-Thr10 did not significantly affect these functions, further deletion of Lys11-Arg16 completely abolished the formation of 10 S conformation and induced thick filament formation. Among the residues in this region, Arg13 and Arg16 were most important for these functions since substitution of these residues by Glu or Ala significantly altered these functions. Similar substitutions of Lys11 and Lys12 also stabilized the 6 S conformation and thick filament formation but less effectively. While the 6 S conformation was stabilized, the deletion of NH2-terminal residues did not activate the actin-activated ATPase activity. This suggests that stabilization of the 6 S conformation is not directly coupled with activation of actomyosin ATPase activity but rather a more defined conformational change around the phosphorylation site is necessary for activation. Such a change also influences the 6 S to 10 S conformation and, therefore, the filament formation. To support this notion, substitution of Lys11 and Lys12 by Glu-Glu inhibited the phosphorylation-induced activation of actomyosin ATPase activity.     

Functional transitions in myosin: formation of a critical salt-bridge and transmission of effect to the sensitive tryptophan

For analyzing the mechanism of energy transduction in the "motor" protein, myosin, it is opportune both to model the structural change in the hydrolytic transition, ATP (myosin-bound) + H2O --> ADP.Pi (myosin-bound) and to check the plausibility of the model by appropriate site-directed mutations in the functional system. Here, we made a series of mutations to investigate the role of the salt-bridge between Glu-470 and Arg-247 (of chicken smooth muscle myosin) that has been inferred from crystallography to be a central feature of the transition [Fisher, A. J., Smith, C. A., Thoden, J. B. , Smith, R., Sutoh, K., Holden, H. M., & Rayment, I. (1995) Biochemistry 34, 8960-8972]. Our results suggest that whether in the normal, or in the inverted, direction an intact salt-bridge is necessary for ATP hydrolysis, but when the salt-bridge is in the inverted direction it does not support actin activation. Normally, fluorescence changes result from adding nucleotides to myosin; these signals are reported by Trp-512 (of chicken smooth muscle myosin). Our results also suggest that structural impairments in the 470-247 region interfere with the transmission of these signals to the responsive Trp.     

Caldesmon-actin-tropomyosin contains two types of binding sites for myosin S1

Caldesmon inhibits the activation of myosin ATPase activity by actin-tropomyosin. Caldesmon also inhibits the binding of myosin to actin. There is disagreement as to the degree to which competitive displacement of myosin subfragment binding to actin is responsible for the inhibition of ATPase activity. We have examined the possibility that one or more molecules of S1 may bind to actin-tropomyosin-caldesmon without having the normal actin activation of ATPase activity. The effect of caldesmon on the binding and ATPase activity of S1 was measured at several initial levels of saturation of S1 to determine if a fraction of the bound S1 was resistant to displacement by caldesmon. In the case of both unmodified S1 and rhoPDM-modified S1, most, but not all, of the S1 was displaced by caldesmon. The results are consistent with a single molecule of S1 binding with low affinity for each seven actin monomers that are fully saturated with caldesmon and tropomyosin. This single S1 is not necessarily bound directly to actin but may be attached to the NH2-terminal region of caldesmon.     

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter for maltose/maltodextrins of Salmonella typhimurium. Characterization of the ATPase activity associated with the purified MalK subunit

The ATPase activity associated with the purified MalK subunit of the maltose transport complex of Salmonella typhimurium, a bacterial ATP-Binding Cassette (ABC) transporter (Walter, C., H?ner zu Bentrup, K., and Schneider, E. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 8863-8869), was characterized in detail. The analysis of the kinetics of ATP hydrolysis yielded a Km value of 70 +/- 4 microM and a Vmax of 1.3 +/- 0.3 mumol/min/mg of protein. Both GTP and CTP also served as substrates. While MalK exhibited nearly the same affinity for GTP as for ATP, the Michaelis constant for CTP as a substrate was much higher. ATP hydrolysis was strongly dependent on the presence of Mg2+ ions. Mn2+ at low concentrations, but neither Ca2+ nor Zn2+ partially substituted for Mg2+. The ATPase activity was optimal at slightly alkaline pH and was stimulated in the presence of both glycerol (7.5%) and dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO) (5%). ADP and the non-cleavable substrate analog ATP gamma S (adenosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate)) were identified as competitive inhibitors. The MalK-ATPase was resistant to specific inhibitors of F-, P-, and V-type ATPases, such as dicyclohexylcarbodiimide, azide, vanadate, or bafilomycin A1. In contrast, micromolar concentrations of the sulfhydryl reagent N-ethylmaleimide strongly inhibited the enzymatic activity. This inhibition was blocked in the presence of ATP. These results suggest that the intrinsic ATPase activity of purified MalK can be clearly distinguished from other ATP-hydrolyzing enzymes, e.g. ion-translocating ATPases.     

Identification of a residue involved in transition-state stabilization in the ATPase reaction of DNA gyrase

Examination of the X-ray crystal structure of the 43 kDa N-terminal domain of the DNA gyrase B protein (GyrB) shows that the majority of the interactions with bound ATP are made with subdomain 1 (residues 2-220). However, two residues from subdomain 2, Gln335 and Lys337, interact with the gamma-phosphate of ATP. The proposed roles for these residues include nucleotide binding, transition-state stabilization, and triggering protein conformational changes. We have used site-directed mutagenesis to convert Gln335 to Asn and Ala and Lys337 to Gln and Ala in the N-terminal domain of GyrB. Two of the resultant mutant proteins, GyrB43(Q335A) and GyrB43(K337Q), were shown to be correctly folded, and their interactions with ATP have been analyzed in detail. The Q335A protein is apparently unchanged with regard to nucleotide binding and hydrolysis, whereas the K337Q protein shows a modest decrease in nucleotide binding and a drastic reduction in ATPase activity. This is manifested by a approximately 10(3)-fold decrease in kcat. When the two mutations were moved into full-length GyrB, the Q335A mutation again showed little or no effect on activity, whereas the K337Q mutation had undetectable supercoiling and ATPase activities. We conclude that Gln335 is dispensable for ATP binding and hydrolysis by the gyrase B protein, whereas Lys337 has a critical role in the ATPase reaction and is likely to be a key residue in transition-state stabilization.     

Cleavage at site A, Glu-642 to Ser-643, of the gizzard myosin heavy chain decreases affinity for actin

The actin-activated ATPase activities of subfragment 1 (S1) produced from gizzard myosin by papain or Staphylococcus aureus protease are different. The activity of the latter is lower, in spite of the presence of intact 20,000-dalton light chains. To study this difference, the S. aureus protease S1 was subjected to further proteolysis by papain. This second stage of proteolysis markedly increased actin-activated ATPase, due to a decrease in K(actin) with no change in Vm and increased the affinity of S1 for actin in the presence of ATP. Treatment with papain caused degradation of the 20-kDa light chain, a decrease in the 26-kDa C-terminal domain of S1 and the 68-kDa fragment containing the N-terminal and central domains, and in the appearance and progressive increase of a 94-kDa fragment. The increase in actin-activated ATPase activity was due to the production of the 94-kDa fragment but not due to light chain degradation. Analyses of N-terminal sequences following papain digestion showed that the 94-kDa fragment was formed from a combination of the 68- and 26-kDa fragments. The bond formed probably involved the N-terminal residue of the 26-kDa fragment (Ser-643) and a side chain carboxyl (Glu-642) or amine (Glu-636). From the sequence data site A was identified as Glu-642-Ser-643. These results confirm the importance of site A in actin-binding of gizzard myosin. It is suggested that the sequence Ser-643 and Val-659, as well as the 3 lysine residues, are important for actin binding.     

Effect of mutating the regulatory phosphoserine and conserved threonine on the activity of the expressed catalytic domain of Acanthamoeba myosin I heavy chain kinase

Phosphorylation of Ser-627 is both necessary and sufficient for full activity of the expressed 35-kDa catalytic domain of myosin I heavy chain kinase (MIHCK). Ser-627 lies in the variable loop between highly conserved residues DFG and APE at a position at which a phosphorylated Ser/Thr also occurs in many other Ser/Thr protein kinases. The variable loop of MIHCK contains two other hydroxyamino acids: Thr-631, which is conserved in almost all Ser/Thr kinases, and Thr-632, which is not conserved. We determined the effects on the kinase activity of the expressed catalytic domain of mutating Ser-627, Thr-631, and Thr-632 individually to Ala, Asp, and Glu. The S627A mutant was substantially less active than wild type (wt), with a lower kcat and higher Km for both peptide substrate and ATP, but was more active than unphosphorylated wt. The S627D and S627E mutants were also less active than phosphorylated wt, i.e., acidic amino acids cannot substitute for phospho-Ser-627. The activity of the T631A mutant was as low as that of the S627A mutant, whereas the T632A mutant was as active as phosphorylated wt, indicating that highly conserved Thr-631, although not phosphorylated, is essential for catalytic activity. Asp and Glu substitutions for Thr-631 and Thr-632 were inhibitory to various degrees. Molecular modeling indicated that Thr-631 can hydrogen bond with conserved residue Asp-591 in the catalytic loop and that similar interactions are possible for other kinases whose activities also are regulated by phosphorylation in the variable loop. Thus, this conserved Thr residue may be essential for the activities of other Ser/Thr protein kinases as well as for the activity of MIHCK.     

Swing of the lever arm of a myosin motor at the isomerization and phosphate-release steps

In muscle, the myosin head ('crossbridge') performs the 'working stroke', in which ATP is hydrolysed to generate the sliding of actin and myosin filaments. The myosin head consists of a globular motor domain and a long lever-arm domain. The 'lever-arm hypothesis' predicts that during the working stroke, the lever-arm domain tilts against the motor domain, which is bound to actin in a fixed orientation. To detect this working stroke in operation, we constructed fusion proteins by connecting Aequorea victoria green fluorescent protein and blue fluorescent protein to the amino and carboxyl termini of the motor domain of myosin II of Dictyostelium discoideum, a soil amoeba, and measured the fluorescence resonance energy transfer between the two fluorescent proteins. We show here that the carboxy-terminal fluorophore swings at the isomerization step of the ATP hydrolysis cycle, and then swings back at the subsequent step in which inorganic phosphate is released, thereby mimicking the swing of the lever arm. The swing at the phosphate-release step may correspond to the working stroke, and the swing at the isomerization step to the recovery stroke.     

ATPase activity of myosin in hair bundles of the bullfrog's sacculus

Mechanoelectrical transduction by a hair cell displays adaptation, which is thought to occur as myosin-based molecular motors within the mechanically sensitive hair bundle adjust the tension transmitted to transduction channels. To assess the enzymatic capabilities of the myosin isozymes in hair bundles, we examined the actin-dependent ATPase activity of bundles isolated from the bullfrog's sacculus. Separation of 32P-labeled inorganic phosphate from unreacted [gamma-32P]ATP by thin-layer chromatography enabled us to measure the liberation of as little as 0.1 fmol phosphate. To distinguish the Mg(2+)-ATPase activity of myosin isozymes from that of other hair-bundle enzymes, we inhibited the interaction of hair-bundle myosin with actin and determined the reduction in ATPase activity. N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) decreased neither physiologically measured adaptation nor the nucleotide-hydrolytic activity of a 120-kDa protein thought to be myosin 1 beta. The NEM-insensitive, actin-activated ATPase activity of myosin increased from 1.0 fmol x s-1 in 1 mM EGTA to 2.3 fmol x s-1 in 10 microM Ca2+. This activity was largely inhibited by calmidazolium, but was unaffected by the addition of exogenous calmodulin. These results, which indicate that hair bundles contain enzymatically active, Ca(2+)-sensitive myosin molecules, are consistent with the role of Ca2+ in adaptation and with the hypothesis that myosin forms the hair cell's adaptation motor.     

The hydroxyl of threonine 13 of the bovine 70-kDa heat shock cognate protein is essential for transducing the ATP-induced conformational change

The mechanism by which ATP binding transduces a conformational change in 70-kDa heat shock proteins that results in release of bound peptides remains obscure. Wei and Hendershot demonstrated that mutating Thr37 of hamster BiP to glycine impeded the ATP-induced conformational change, as monitored by proteolysis [(1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270, 26670-26676]. We have mutated the equivalent resitude of the bovine heat shock cognate protein (Hsc70), Thr13, to serine, valine, and glycine. Solution small-angle X-ray scattering experiments on a 60-kDa fragment of Hsc70 show that ATP binding induces a conformational change in the T13S mutant but not the T13V or T13G mutants. The kinetics of ATP-induced tryptophan fluorescence intensity changes in the 60-kDa proteins is biphasic for the T13S mutant but monophasic for T13V or T13G, consistent with a conformational change following initial ATP binding in the T13S mutant but not the other two. Crystallographic structures of the ATPase fragments of the T13S and T13G mutants at 1.7 A resolution show that the mutations do not disrupt the ATP binding site and that the serine hydroxyl mimics the threonine hydroxyl in the wild-type structure. We conclude that the hydroxyl of Thr13 is essential for coupling ATP binding to a conformational change in Hsc70. Molecular modeling suggests this may result from the threonine hydroxyl hydrogen-bonding to a gamma-phosphate oxygen of ATP, thereby inducing a structural shift within the ATPase domain that couples to its interactions with the peptide binding domain.