Search results for "Cell membrane"
showing 10 items of 635 documents
A cellular metalloproteinase activates Vibrio cholerae pro-cytolysin.
2004
Many strains of Vibrio cholerae produce a cytolysin (VCC) that forms oligomeric transmembrane pores in animal cells. The molecule is secreted as a procytolysin (pro-VCC) of 79 kDa that must be cleaved at the N terminus to generate the active 65-kDa toxin. Processing can occur in solution, and previous studies have described the action of mature VCC thus generated. However, little is known about the properties of pro-VCC itself. In this study, it is shown that pro-VCC exist as a monomer in solution and binds as a monomer to eukaryotic cells. Bound pro-VCC can then be activated either by exogenous, extracellular, or by endogenous, cell-bound proteases. In both cases, cleavage generates the 65…
Detection of proteolytic (C 3-cleaving) activity on mouse mastocytoma (P815) cells and other mouse cell lines by formation of cell contact with C 3-c…
1979
Mouse mastocytoma cells (P 815) formed rosettes with normal mouse spleen lymphocytes which had been coated with uncleaved human C 3; this interaction was clearly dependent on the amount of C 3. Lymphocytes treated with C 3 b or buffer alone were ineffective. Formation of cell contact could be inhibited by the presence of protease inhibitors such as diisopropyl fluorophosphate, phenyl methyl sulfonyl fluoride and tosyllysyl chloromethyl ketone. Seve n out of 13 different cell lines behaved like P 815 cells. The results strongly suggested that a proteolytic activity on mouse tumor cells led to a cooperation with uncleaved C 3 on a carrier cell to connect these two cells. We interpreted these …
Metalloprotease meprin β is activated by transmembrane serine protease matriptase-2 at the cell surface thereby enhancing APP shedding.
2014
Increased expression of metalloprotease meprin β is associated with fibrotic syndromes and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Hence, regulation of meprin activity might be a suitable strategy for the treatment of these conditions. Meprin β is a type 1 transmembrane protein, but can be released from the cell surface by ectodomain shedding. The protease is expressed as an inactive zymogen and requires proteolytic maturation by tryptic serine proteases. In the present study, we demonstrate, for the first time, the differences in the activation of soluble and membrane bound meprin β and suggest transmembrane serine protease 6 [TMPRSS6 or matriptase-2 (MT2)] as a new potent activator, cleaving off the pr…
Folding energetics and oligomerization of polytopic α-helical transmembrane proteins
2014
While interactions of single-span transmembrane helices have been studied to a significant extent in the past years, the folding of polytopic α-helical transmembrane proteins as well as their oligomerization, are far less analyzed and understood. The goal of the few thus far performed thermodynamic studies, in which unfolding of polytopic TM proteins was described, was to achieve a mild, potentially reversible unfolding process, to finally derive thermodynamic parameters for the reverse folding pathway. In the first part of this review, we summarize the studies analyzing the thermodynamic stability and folding pathways of polytopic transmembrane proteins. Based on these studies, we deduce s…
Missense mutations of dual oxidase 2 (DUOX2) implicated in congenital hypothyroidism have impaired trafficking in cells reconstituted with DUOX2 matu…
2007
Abstract Dual oxidase 2 (DUOX2), a reduced NAD phosphate:O2 oxidoreductase flavoprotein, is a component of the thyrocyte H2O2 generator required for hormone synthesis at the apical plasma membrane. We recently identified a specific DUOX2 maturation factor (DUOXA2) that is necessary and sufficient for expression of functional DUOX2 in mammalian cell lines. We have now used a DUOXA2 reconstituted system to provide the first characterization of natural DUOX2 missense variants (Q36H, R376W, D506N) at the molecular level, analyzing their impact on H2O2 generation, trafficking, stability, folding, and DUOXA2 interaction. The Q36H and R376W mutations completely prevent routing of DUOX2 to the cell…
Dithiothreitol Treatment of Madin-Darby Canine Kidney Cells Reversibly Blocks Export from the Endoplasmic Reticulum but Does Not Affect Vectorial Tar…
1995
Addition of dithiothreitol (DTT) to the culture medium of Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells blocks transport of newly synthesized gp80 (clusterin, apolipoprotein J), a soluble marker protein for apical exocytosis in this epithelial cell line. In cells treated with DTT during pulse labeling, gp80 is retained in the endoplasmic reticulum. After removal of the reducing agent, gp80 is posttranslationally oxidized and secreted at the apical surface of MDCK cell monolayers. This demonstrates that when folded and oxidized posttranslationally, gp80 can acquire a conformation that exhibits sorting signals for vectorial targeting. In the continuous presence of DTT, the transepithelial electrical…
Polar/Ionizable Residues in Transmembrane Segments: Effects on Helix-Helix Packing
2012
The vast majority of membrane proteins are anchored to biological membranes through hydrophobic alpha-helices. Sequence analysis of high-resolution membrane protein structures show that ionizable amino acid residues are present in transmembrane (TM) helices, often with a functional and/or structural role. Here, using as scaffold the hydrophobic TM domain of the model membrane protein glycophorin A (GpA), we address the consequences of replacing specific residues by ionizable amino acids on TM helix insertion and packing, both in detergent micelles and in biological membranes. Our findings demonstrate that ionizable residues are stably inserted in hydrophobic environments, and tolerated in t…
Clustering induces a lateral redistribution of α2β1 integrin from membrane rafts to caveolae and subsequent protein kinase C-dependent internalization
2004
Integrin alpha 2 beta 1 mediates the binding of several epithelial and mesenchymal cell types to collagen. The composition of the surrounding plasma membrane, especially caveolin-1- and cholesterol-containing membrane structures called caveolae, may be important to integrin signaling. On cell surface alpha 2 beta 1 integrin was located in the raft like membrane domain, rich in GPI-anchored proteins, rather than in caveolae. However, when antibodies were used to generate clusters of alpha 2 beta 1 integrin, they started to move laterally on cell surface along actin filaments. During the lateral movement small clusters fused together. Finally alpha 2 beta 1 integrin was found inside caveolae …
A Membrane-Bound Vertebrate Globin
2011
The family of vertebrate globins includes hemoglobin, myoglobin, and other O(2)-binding proteins of yet unclear functions. Among these, globin X is restricted to fish and amphibians. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) globin X is expressed at low levels in neurons of the central nervous system and appears to be associated with the sensory system. The protein harbors a unique N-terminal extension with putative N-myristoylation and S-palmitoylation sites, suggesting membrane-association. Intracellular localization and transport of globin X was studied in 3T3 cells employing green fluorescence protein fusion constructs. Both myristoylation and palmitoylation sites are required for correct targeting and m…
Mutational analyses of YqjA, a Tvp38/DedA protein of E. coli
2015
AbstractMembrane proteins of the DedA/Tvp38 protein family are involved in membrane integrity and virulence of pathogenic organisms. However, the structure and exact function of any member of this large protein family are still unclear. In the present study we analyzed the functional and structural properties of a DedA homolog. Purified YqjA variants from Escherichia coli are detectable in different oligomeric states and specific homo-interaction of YqjA monomers in the membrane were confirmed by formation of a disulfide bond in the C-terminal transmembrane helix. Moreover, alanine scanning mutagenesis exhibited different interaction sites crucial for YqjA activity vs. dimer formation.