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  1. Rahman RN, Muhd Noor ND, Ibrahim NA, Salleh AB, Basri M
    J Microbiol Biotechnol, 2012 Jan;22(1):34-45.
    PMID: 22297217
    A thermophilic Bacillus stearothermophilus F1 produces an extremely thermostable serine protease. The F1 protease sequence was used to predict its three-dimensional (3D) structure to provide better insights into the relationship between the protein structure and biological function and to identify opportunities for protein engineering. The final model was evaluated to ensure its accuracy using three independent methods: Procheck, Verify3D, and Errat. The predicted 3D structure of F1 protease was compared with the crystal structure of serine proteases from mesophilic bacteria and archaea, and led to the identification of features that were related to protein stabilization. Higher thermostability correlated with an increased number of residues that were involved in ion pairs or networks of ion pairs. Therefore, the mutants W200R and D58S were designed using site-directed mutagenesis to investigate F1 protease stability. The effects of addition and disruption of ion pair networks on the activity and various stabilities of mutant F1 proteases were compared with those of the wild-type F1 protease.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/metabolism; Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  2. Damis SIR, Murad AMA, Diba Abu Bakar F, Rashid SA, Jaafar NR, Illias RM
    Enzyme Microb Technol, 2019 Dec;131:109383.
    PMID: 31615675 DOI: 10.1016/j.enzmictec.2019.109383
    Enzyme hydrolysis faces a bottleneck due to the recalcitrance of the lignocellulose biomass. The protein engineering of GH11 xylanase from Aspergillus fumigatus RT-1 was performed near the active site and at the N-terminal region to improve its catalytic efficiency towards pretreated kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) hydrolysis. Five mutants were constructed by combined approaches of error-prone PCR, site-saturation and site-directed mutagenesis. The double mutant c168 t/Q192H showed the most effective hydrolysis reaction with a 13.9-fold increase in catalytic efficiency, followed by mutants Y7L and c168 t/Q192 H/Y7L with a 1.6-fold increase, respectively. The enhanced catalytic efficiency evoked an increase in sugar yield of up to 28% from pretreated kenaf. In addition, mutant c168 t/Q192 H/Y7L improved the thermostability at higher temperature and acid stability. This finding shows that mutations at distances less than 15 Å from the active site and at putative secondary binding sites affect xylanase catalytic efficiency towards insoluble substrates hydrolysis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/metabolism
  3. Ali PS, John J, Selvaraj M, Kek TL, Salleh MZ
    Microbiol. Immunol., 2015 May;59(5):299-304.
    PMID: 25753649 DOI: 10.1111/1348-0421.12253
    Nodamura virus (NoV) B2, a suppressor of RNA interference, binds double stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) and small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) corresponding to Dicer substrates and products. Here, we report that the amino terminal domain of NoV B2 (NoV B2 79) specifically binds siRNAs but not dsRNAs. NoV B2 79 oligomerizes on binding to 27 nucleotide siRNA. Mutation of the residues phenylalanine49 and alanine60 to cysteine and methionine, respectively enhances the RNA binding affinity of NoV B2 79. Circular dichroism spectra demonstrated that the wild type and mutant NoV B2 79 have similar secondary structure conformations.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/metabolism
  4. Jonet MA, Mahadi NM, Murad AM, Rabu A, Bakar FD, Rahim RA, et al.
    PMID: 22456489 DOI: 10.1159/000336524
    A heterologous signal peptide (SP) from Bacillus sp. G1 was optimized for secretion of recombinant cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) to the periplasmic and, eventually, extracellular space of Escherichia coli. Eight mutant SPs were constructed using site-directed mutagenesis to improve the secretion of recombinant CGTase. M5 is a mutated SP in which replacement of an isoleucine residue in the h-region to glycine created a helix-breaking or G-turn motif with decreased hydrophobicity. The mutant SP resulted in 110 and 94% increases in periplasmic and extracellular recombinant CGTase, respectively, compared to the wild-type SP at a similar level of cell lysis. The formation of intracellular inclusion bodies was also reduced, as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamyde gel electrophoresis, when this mutated SP was used. The addition of as low as 0.08% glycine at the beginning of cell growth improved cell viability of the E. coli host. Secretory production of other proteins, such as mannosidase, also showed similar improvement, as demonstrated by CGTase production, suggesting that the combination of an optimized SP and a suitable chemical additive leads to significant improvements of extracellular recombinant protein production and cell viability. These findings will be valuable for the extracellular production of recombinant proteins in E. coli.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/secretion
  5. Ismail NF, Hamdan S, Mahadi NM, Murad AM, Rabu A, Bakar FD, et al.
    Biotechnol Lett, 2011 May;33(5):999-1005.
    PMID: 21234789 DOI: 10.1007/s10529-011-0517-8
    L-Asparaginase II signal peptide was used for the secretion of recombinant cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) into the periplasmic space of E. coli. Despite its predominant localisation in the periplasm, CGTase activity was also detected in the extracellular medium, followed by cell lysis. Five mutant signal peptides were constructed to improve the periplasmic levels of CGTase. N1R3 is a mutated signal peptide with the number of positively charged amino acid residues in the n-region increased to a net charge of +5. This mutant peptide produced a 1.7-fold enhancement of CGTase activity in the periplasm and significantly decreased cell lysis to 7.8% of the wild-type level. The formation of intracellular inclusion bodies was also reduced when this mutated signal peptide was used as judged by SDS-PAGE. Therefore, these results provide evidence of a cost-effective means of expression of recombinant proteins in E. coli.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/metabolism
  6. Manas NH, Bakar FD, Illias RM
    J Mol Graph Model, 2016 06;67:1-13.
    PMID: 27155296 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2016.04.004
    Maltogenic amylase (MAG1) from Bacillus lehensis G1 displayed the highest hydrolysis activity on β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) to produce maltose as a main product and exhibited high transglycosylation activity on malto-oligosaccharides with polymerization degree of three and above. These substrate and product specificities of MAG1 were elucidated from structural point of view in this study. A three-dimensional structure of MAG1 was constructed using homology modeling. Docking of β-CD and malto-oligosaccharides was then performed in the MAG1 active site. An aromatic platform in the active site was identified which is responsible in substrate recognition especially in determining the enzyme's preference toward β-CD. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulation showed MAG1 structure is most stable when docked with β-CD and least stable when docked with maltose. The docking analysis and MD simulation showed that the main subsites for substrate stabilization in the active site are -2, -1, +1 and +2. A bulky residue, Trp359 at the +2 subsite was identified to cause steric interference to the bound linear malto-oligosaccharides thus prevented it to occupy subsite +3, which can only be reached by a highly bent glucose molecule such as β-CD. The resulted modes of binding from docking simulation show a good correlation with the experimentally determined hydrolysis pattern. The subsite structure generated from this study led to a possible mode of action that revealed how maltose was mainly produced during hydrolysis. Furthermore, maltose only occupies subsite +1 and +2, therefore could not be hydrolyzed or transglycosylated by the enzyme. This important knowledge has paved the way for a novel structure-based molecular design for modulation of its catalytic activities.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/metabolism; Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  7. Teo SC, Liew KJ, Shamsir MS, Chong CS, Bruce NC, Chan KG, et al.
    Int J Mol Sci, 2019 May 09;20(9).
    PMID: 31075847 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20092284
    A halo-thermophilic bacterium, Roseithermus sacchariphilus strain RA (previously known as Rhodothermaceae bacterium RA), was isolated from a hot spring in Langkawi, Malaysia. A complete genome analysis showed that the bacterium harbors 57 glycoside hydrolases (GHs), including a multi-domain xylanase (XynRA2). The full-length XynRA2 of 813 amino acids comprises a family 4_9 carbohydrate-binding module (CBM4_9), a family 10 glycoside hydrolase catalytic domain (GH10), and a C-terminal domain (CTD) for type IX secretion system (T9SS). This study aims to describe the biochemical properties of XynRA2 and the effects of CBM truncation on this xylanase. XynRA2 and its CBM-truncated variant (XynRA2ΔCBM) was expressed, purified, and characterized. The purified XynRA2 and XynRA2ΔCBM had an identical optimum temperature at 70 °C, but different optimum pHs of 8.5 and 6.0 respectively. Furthermore, XynRA2 retained 94% and 71% of activity at 4.0 M and 5.0 M NaCl respectively, whereas XynRA2ΔCBM showed a lower activity (79% and 54%). XynRA2 exhibited a turnover rate (kcat) of 24.8 s-1, but this was reduced by 40% for XynRA2ΔCBM. Both the xylanases hydrolyzed beechwood xylan predominantly into xylobiose, and oat-spelt xylan into a mixture of xylo-oligosaccharides (XOs). Collectively, this work suggested CBM4_9 of XynRA2 has a role in enzyme performance.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/metabolism*; Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  8. Mohd Fadzli Ahmad, Hasdianty Abdullah
    MyJurnal
    The 3D structure of the insecticidal protein Cry1Ba4 produced by B. thuringiensis subsp.
    Entomocidus HD-9 was determined using homology modelling. From the model built, we have
    been able to identify the possible sites for structure modification by site-directed mutagenesis.
    The mutation was introduced at the conserved region of -helix 7 by substituting the
    hydrophobic motif that comprises alanine 216, leucine 217 and phenylalanine 218 with arginine.
    Wild and mutant Cry1Ba4 genes were cloned into pET200/D-TOPO and expressed in the
    expression host. The result suggests that mutant Cry1Ba4 protein was less toxic to the larvae
    Plutella xylostella compared to the wild-type. In conclusion, alteration in the structure of
    Domain I had left an impact on the toxicity of Cry1Ba4 against P. xylostella.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins
  9. Veno J, Rahman RNZRA, Masomian M, Ali MSM, Kamarudin NHA
    Molecules, 2019 Aug 30;24(17).
    PMID: 31480403 DOI: 10.3390/molecules24173169
    Thermostability remains one of the most desirable traits in many lipases. Numerous studies have revealed promising strategies to improve thermostability and random mutagenesis often leads to unexpected yet interesting findings in engineering stability. Previously, the thermostability of C-terminal truncated cold-adapted lipase from Staphylococcus epidermidis AT2 (rT-M386) was markedly enhanced by directed evolution. The newly evolved mutant, G210C, demonstrated an optimal temperature shift from 25 to 45 °C and stability up to 50 °C. Interestingly, a cysteine residue was randomly introduced on the loop connecting the two lids and accounted for the only cysteine found in the lipase. We further investigated the structural and mechanistic insights that could possibly cause the significant temperature shift. Both rT-M386 and G210C were modeled and simulated at 25 °C and 50 °C. The results clearly portrayed the effect of cysteine substitution primarily on the lid stability. Comparative molecular dynamics simulation analysis revealed that G210C exhibited greater stability than the wild-type at high temperature simulation. The compactness of the G210C lipase structure increased at 50 °C and resulted in enhanced rigidity hence stability. This observation is supported by the improved and stronger non-covalent interactions formed in the protein structure. Our findings suggest that the introduction of a single cysteine residue at the lid region of cold-adapted lipase may result in unexpected increased in thermostability, thus this approach could serve as one of the thermostabilization strategies in engineering lipase stability.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/metabolism
  10. Fu JYL, Chua CL, Vythilingam I, Sulaiman WYW, Wong HV, Chan YF, et al.
    J Gen Virol, 2019 11;100(11):1541-1553.
    PMID: 31613205 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001338
    Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) has caused large-scale epidemics of fever, rash and arthritis since 2004. This unprecedented re-emergence has been associated with mutations in genes encoding structural envelope proteins, providing increased fitness in the secondary vector Aedes albopictus. In the 2008-2013 CHIKV outbreaks across Southeast Asia, an R82S mutation in non-structural protein 4 (nsP4) emerged early in Malaysia or Singapore and quickly became predominant. To determine whether this nsP4-R82S mutation provides a selective advantage in host cells, which may have contributed to the epidemic, the fitness of infectious clone-derived CHIKV with wild-type nsP4-82R and mutant nsP4-82S were compared in Ae. albopictus and human cell lines. Viral infectivity, dissemination and transmission in Ae. albopictus were not affected by the mutation when the two variants were tested separately. In competition, the nsP4-82R variant showed an advantage over nsP4-82S in dissemination to the salivary glands, but only in late infection (10 days). In human rhabdomyosarcoma (RD) and embryonic kidney (HEK-293T) cell lines coinfected at a 1 : 1 ratio, wild-type nsP4-82R virus was rapidly outcompeted by nsP4-82S virus as early as one passage (3 days). In conclusion, the nsP4-R82S mutation provides a greater selective advantage in human cells than in Ae. albopictus, which may explain its apparent natural selection during CHIKV spread in Southeast Asia. This is an unusual example of a naturally occurring mutation in a non-structural protein, which may have facilitated epidemic transmission of CHIKV.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics
  11. Pang SC, Chiang LP, Tan CH, Vythilingam I, Lam-Phua SG, Ng LC
    Trop Biomed, 2015 Mar;32(1):140-50.
    PMID: 25801264 MyJurnal
    There has been a worldwide surge in the number and severity of dengue in the past decades. In Singapore, relentless vector control efforts have been put in to control the disease since the 1960's. Space spraying, fogging, chemical treatment and source reduction are some commonly used methodologies for controlling its vectors, particularly Aedes aegypti. Here, as we explored the use of a commercially available delthamethrin-treated net as an alternative strategy and the efficacy of the treated net was found to be limited. Through bioassays and molecular studies, the failure of the treated net to render high mortality rate was found to be associated with the knockdown resistance (kdr) mutation. This is the first report of kdr- mutations in Singapore's Ae. aegypti. At least one point mutation, either homozygous or heterozygous, at amino acid residue V1016G of DIIS6 or F1269C of DIIIS6 was detected in 93% of field strains of Ae. aegypti. Various permutations of wild type and mutant amino acids of the four alleles were found to result in varying degree of survival rate among local field Ae. aegypti when exposed to the deltamethrin treated net. Together with the association of higher survival rate with the presence of both V1016G and F1269C, the data suggest the role of these mutations in the resistance to the deltamethrin. The high prevalence of these mutations were confirmed in a country wide survey where 70% and 72% of the 201 Ae. aegypti analysed possessed the mutations at residues 1016 and 1269 respectively. The highest mutated frequency combination was found to be heterozygous alleles (VG/FC) at both residues 1016 and 1269 (37.8%), followed by homozygous mutation at allele 1269 (24.4%) and homozygous mutation at allele 1016 (22.9%). The kdr- type of resistance among the vector is likely to undermine the effectiveness of pyrethroids treated materials against these mosquitoes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics
  12. Chan M, Cheong TG, Kurunathan S, Chandrika M, Ledon T, Fando R, et al.
    Microb Pathog, 2010 Nov;49(5):211-6.
    PMID: 20558271 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2010.06.001
    Cholera caused by the O139 serogroup still remains a public health concern in certain regions of the world and the existing O1 vaccines do not cross-protect cholera caused by this serogroup. An aminolevulinic acid (ALA) auxotroph vaccine candidate against the O139 serogroup, designated as VCUSM2, was recently developed. It was found to be immunogenic in animal model studies but showed mild reactogenic effects due to the presence of two intact copies of Vibrio cholerae toxin (CTX) genetic element. In the present study we have modified the ctx operon by systematic allelic replacement methodology to produce a mutant strain, designated as VCUSM14. This strain has two copies of chromosomally integrated and mutated ctxA gene, encoding immunogenic but not toxic cholera toxin A subunit (CT-A). The amino acids arginine and glutamic acid at position 7th and 112th, respectively, in CT-A of VCUSM14 were substituted with lysine (R7K) and glutamine (E112Q), respectively. Two copies of the ace and zot genes present in the ctx operon were also deleted. Cholera toxin-ELISA using GM1 ganglioside showed that the both wild type CT and mutated CT were recognized by anti-CT polyclonal antibodies. VCUSM14 produced comparatively less amount of antigenic cholera toxin when compared to the VCUSM2 and Bengal wild type strain. VCUSM14 did not elicit fluid accumulation when inoculated into rabbit ileal loops at doses of 10(6) and 10(8) CFU. The colonization efficiency of VCUSM14 was one log lower than the parent strain, VCUSM2, which can be attributed to the ALA auxotrophy and less invasive properties of VCUSM14. VCUSM14, thus a non-reactogenic auxotrophic vaccine candidate against infection by O139 V. cholerae.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/immunology
  13. Nurul AA, Norazmi MN
    Parasitol Res, 2011 Apr;108(4):887-97.
    PMID: 21057812 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-010-2130-5
    Vaccine development against the blood-stage malaria parasite is aimed at reducing the pathology of the disease. We constructed a recombinant Mycobacterium bovis bacille Calmette Guerin (rBCG) expressing the 19 kDa C-terminus of Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-1 (MSP-1(19)) to evaluate its protective ability against merozoite invasion of red blood cells in vitro. A mutated version of MSP-1(19), previously shown to induce the production of inhibitory but not blocking antibodies, was cloned into a suitable shuttle plasmid and transformed into BCG Japan (designated rBCG016). A native version of the molecule was also cloned into BCG (rBCG026). Recombinant BCG expressing the mutated version of MSP-1(19) (rBCG016) elicited enhanced specific immune response against the epitope in BALB/c mice as compared to rBCG expressing the native version of the epitope (rBCG026). Sera from rBCG016-immunized mice contained significant levels of specific IgG, especially of the IgG2a subclass, against MSP-1(19) as determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The sera was reactive with fixed P. falciparum merozoites as demonstrated by indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and inhibited merozoite invasion of erythrocytes in vitro. Furthermore, lymphocytes from rBCG016-immunized mice demonstrated higher proliferative response against the MSP-1(19) antigen as compared to those of rBCG026- and BCG-immunized animals. rBCG expressing the mutated version of MSP-1(19) of P. falciparum induced enhanced humoral and cellular responses against the parasites paving the way for the rational use of rBCG as a blood-stage malaria vaccine candidate.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/immunology
  14. Khoruddin NA, Noorizhab MN, Teh LK, Mohd Yusof FZ, Salleh MZ
    Sci Rep, 2021 Aug 09;11(1):16158.
    PMID: 34373545 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95618-y
    Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are the most common genetic variations for various complex human diseases, including cancers. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified numerous SNPs that increase cancer risks, such as breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and leukemia. These SNPs were cataloged for scientific use. However, GWAS are often conducted on certain populations in which the Orang Asli and Malays were not included. Therefore, we have developed a bioinformatic pipeline to mine the whole-genome sequence databases of the Orang Asli and Malays to determine the presence of pathogenic SNPs that might increase the risks of cancers among them. Five different in silico tools, SIFT, PROVEAN, Poly-Phen-2, Condel, and PANTHER, were used to predict and assess the functional impacts of the SNPs. Out of the 80 cancer-related nsSNPs from the GWAS dataset, 52 nsSNPs were found among the Orang Asli and Malays. They were further analyzed using the bioinformatic pipeline to identify the pathogenic variants. Three nsSNPs; rs1126809 (TYR), rs10936600 (LRRC34), and rs757978 (FARP2), were found as the most damaging cancer pathogenic variants. These mutations alter the protein interface and change the allosteric sites of the respective proteins. As TYR, LRRC34, and FARP2 genes play important roles in numerous cellular processes such as cell proliferation, differentiation, growth, and cell survival; therefore, any impairment on the protein function could be involved in the development of cancer. rs1126809, rs10936600, and rs757978 are the important pathogenic variants that increase the risks of cancers among the Orang Asli and Malays. The roles and impacts of these variants in cancers will require further investigations using in vitro cancer models.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/genetics; Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  15. Saleh MA, Solayman M, Paul S, Saha M, Khalil MI, Gan SH
    Biomed Res Int, 2016;2016:9142190.
    PMID: 27294143 DOI: 10.1155/2016/9142190
    Despite the reported association of adiponectin receptor 1 (ADIPOR1) gene mutations with vulnerability to several human metabolic diseases, there is lack of computational analysis on the functional and structural impacts of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the human ADIPOR1 at protein level. Therefore, sequence- and structure-based computational tools were employed in this study to functionally and structurally characterize the coding nsSNPs of ADIPOR1 gene listed in the dbSNP database. Our in silico analysis by SIFT, nsSNPAnalyzer, PolyPhen-2, Fathmm, I-Mutant 2.0, SNPs&GO, PhD-SNP, PANTHER, and SNPeffect tools identified the nsSNPs with distorting functional impacts, namely, rs765425383 (A348G), rs752071352 (H341Y), rs759555652 (R324L), rs200326086 (L224F), and rs766267373 (L143P) from 74 nsSNPs of ADIPOR1 gene. Finally the aforementioned five deleterious nsSNPs were introduced using Swiss-PDB Viewer package within the X-ray crystal structure of ADIPOR1 protein, and changes in free energy for these mutations were computed. Although increased free energy was observed for all the mutants, the nsSNP H341Y caused the highest energy increase amongst all. RMSD and TM scores predicted that mutants were structurally similar to wild type protein. Our analyses suggested that the aforementioned variants especially H341Y could directly or indirectly destabilize the amino acid interactions and hydrogen bonding networks of ADIPOR1.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  16. Nyon MP, Rice DW, Berrisford JM, Hounslow AM, Moir AJ, Huang H, et al.
    J Mol Biol, 2009 Jan 9;385(1):226-35.
    PMID: 18983850 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2008.10.050
    Cutinase belongs to a group of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of esters and triglycerides. Structural studies on the enzyme from Fusarium solani have revealed the presence of a classic catalytic triad that has been implicated in the enzyme's mechanism. We have solved the crystal structure of Glomerella cingulata cutinase in the absence and in the presence of the inhibitors E600 (diethyl p-nitrophenyl phosphate) and PETFP (3-phenethylthio-1,1,1-trifluoropropan-2-one) to resolutions between 2.6 and 1.9 A. Analysis of these structures reveals that the catalytic triad (Ser136, Asp191, and His204) adopts an unusual configuration with the putative essential histidine His204 swung out of the active site into a position where it is unable to participate in catalysis, with the imidazole ring 11 A away from its expected position. Solution-state NMR experiments are consistent with the disrupted configuration of the triad observed crystallographically. H204N, a site-directed mutant, was shown to be catalytically inactive, confirming the importance of this residue in the enzyme mechanism. These findings suggest that, during its catalytic cycle, cutinase undergoes a significant conformational rearrangement converting the loop bearing the histidine from an inactive conformation, in which the histidine of the triad is solvent exposed, to an active conformation, in which the triad assumes a classic configuration.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins/chemistry
  17. Tey HJ, Ng CH
    PeerJ, 2019;7:e7667.
    PMID: 31592138 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.7667
    Background: From genome wide association studies on Alzheimer's disease (AD), it has been shown that many single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of genes of different pathways affect the disease risk. One of the pathways is endocytosis, and variants in these genes may affect their functions in amyloid precursor protein (APP) trafficking, amyloid-beta (Aβ) production as well as its clearance in the brain. This study uses computational methods to predict the effect of novel SNPs, including untranslated region (UTR) variants, splice site variants, synonymous SNPs (sSNPs) and non-synonymous SNPs (nsSNPs) in three endocytosis genes associated with AD, namely PICALM, SYNJ1 and SH3KBP1.

    Materials and Methods: All the variants' information was retrieved from the Ensembl genome database, and then different variation prediction analyses were performed. UTRScan was used to predict UTR variants while MaxEntScan was used to predict splice site variants. Meta-analysis by PredictSNP2 was used to predict sSNPs. Parallel prediction analyses by five different software packages including SIFT, PolyPhen-2, Mutation Assessor, I-Mutant2.0 and SNPs&GO were used to predict the effects of nsSNPs. The level of evolutionary conservation of deleterious nsSNPs was further analyzed using ConSurf server. Mutant protein structures of deleterious nsSNPs were modelled and refined using SPARKS-X and ModRefiner for structural comparison.

    Results: A total of 56 deleterious variants were identified in this study, including 12 UTR variants, 18 splice site variants, eight sSNPs and 18 nsSNPs. Among these 56 deleterious variants, seven variants were also identified in the Alzheimer's Disease Sequencing Project (ADSP), Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) and Mount Sinai Brain Bank (MSBB) studies.

    Discussion: The 56 deleterious variants were predicted to affect the regulation of gene expression, or have functional impacts on these three endocytosis genes and their gene products. The deleterious variants in these genes are expected to affect their cellular function in endocytosis and may be implicated in the pathogenesis of AD as well. The biological consequences of these deleterious variants and their potential impacts on the disease risks could be further validated experimentally and may be useful for gene-disease association study.

    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins
  18. Yap WY, Tan KJSX, Hwang JS
    Toxicon, 2019 Dec;170:10-20.
    PMID: 31513812 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2019.09.007
    Hydra actinoporin-like toxin 1 (HALT-1) was previously shown to cause cytolysis and haemolysis in a number of human cells and has similar functional properties to the actinoporins equinatoxin and sticholysin. In addition to HALT-1, five other HALTs (HALTs 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7) were also isolated from Hydra magnipapillata and expressed as recombinant proteins in this study. We demonstrated that recombinant HALTs have cytolytic activity on HeLa cells but each exhibited a different range of toxicity. All six recombinant HALTs bound to sulfatide, while rHALT-1 and rHALT-3 bound to two additional sphingolipids, lysophosphatidic acid and sphingosine-1-phosphate as indicated by the protein-lipid overlay assay. When either tryptophan133 or tyrosine129 of HALT-1 was mutated, the mutant protein lost binding to sulfatide, lysophosphatidic acid and sphingosine-1-phosphate. As further verification of HALTs' binding to sulfatide, we performed ELISA for each HALT. To determine the cell-type specific gene expression of seven HALTs in Hydra, we searched for individual HALT expression in the single-cell RNA-seq data set of Single Cell Portal. The results showed that HALT-1, 4 and 7 were expressed in differentiating stenoteles. HALT-1 and HALT-6 were expressed in the female germline during oogenesis. HALT-2 was strongly expressed in the gland and mucous cells in the endoderm. Information on HALT-3 and HALT-5 could not be found in the single-cell data set. Our findings show that subfunctionalisation of gene expression following duplication enabled HALTs to become specialized in various cell types of the interstitial cell lineage.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins
  19. Shehu D, Alias Z
    FEBS Open Bio, 2019 03;9(3):408-419.
    PMID: 30868049 DOI: 10.1002/2211-5463.12405
    A glutathione S-transferase (GST) with a potential dehalogenation function against various organochlorine substrates was identified from a polychlorobiphenyl (PCB)-degrading organism, Acidovorax sp. KKS102. A homolog of the gene BphK (biphenyl upper pathway K), named BphK-KKS, was cloned, purified and biochemically characterized. Bioinformatic analysis indicated several conserved amino acids that participated in the catalytic activity of the enzyme, and site-directed mutagenesis of these conserved amino acids revealed their importance in the enzyme's catalytic activity. The wild-type and mutant (C10F, K107T and A180P) recombinant proteins displayed wider substrate specificity. The wild-type recombinant GST reacted towards 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene (CDNB), ethacrynic acid, hydrogen peroxide and cumene hydroperoxide. The mutated recombinant proteins, however, showed significant variation in specific activities towards the substrates. A combination of a molecular docking study and a chloride ion detection assay showed potential interaction with and a dechlorination function against 2-, 3- and 4-chlorobenzoates (metabolites generated during PCB biodegradation) in addition to some organochlorine pesticides (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, endosulfan and permethrin). It was demonstrated that the behavior of the dechlorinating activities varied among the wild-type and mutant recombinant proteins. Kinetic studies (using CDNB and glutathione) showed that the kinetic parameters Km, Vmax, Kcat and Km/Kcat were all affected by the mutations. While C10F and A180P mutants displayed an increase in GST activity and the dechlorination function of the enzyme, the K107T mutant displayed variable results, suggesting a functional role of Lys107 in determining substrate specificity of the enzyme. These results demonstrated that the enzyme should be valuable in the bioremediation of metabolites generated during PCB biodegradation.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins
  20. Ong, Chin-Eng, Yan, Pan, Tiong, Kai-Hung, Yiap, Beow-Chin, Tan, Eng-Lai, Pook, Peter, et al.
    MyJurnal
    Pharmacogenomics (or pharmacogenetics), the study of the effects of genetic differences on a person’s response to drugs, can help in optimizing drug efficacy and minimizing adverse drug reactions. Interperson difference in drug metabolism is one of the important consequences of such genetic variation. This variation is determined in part by mutations in cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYPs). IMU is part of a major collaborative research project in the area of phamacogenetics and drug metabolism. Working together with USM and UiTM, our group has, since 2000, generated useful population database on genetic polymorphism of various CYP isoforms. We have successfully genotyped three major ethnic groups, Malay, Indian and Chinese for their allelic frequency of important isoforms. These include CYP2D6, CYP2C9, CYP2C8 and CYP2A6. Data generated so far collectively have contributed to our effort in mapping and constructing genomic database for Malaysian population.
    Since early 2002, our research has been focusing on developing in vitro methods in studying the functional consequences of genetic polymorphism of CYP enzymes. Using site-directed mutagenesis, CYP mutants, carrying nucleotide changes as reported in known alleles in human populations, were generated and expressed in E. coli system, and the expressed recombinant proteins were characterized using enzyme assays to determine the functional consequences of mutations. We have established a series of HPLC (high performance liquid chromatography)-based and fluorescence-based assays to investigate CYP activities. Assays that have been developed include tolbutamide methylhydroxylase, paclitaxel 6α-hydroxylase, dextromethorphan O-demethylation, testosterone 6β-hydroxylation and coumarin 7-hydroxylase assays. These assays serve as activity markers allowing comparison of catalytic activities of mutant proteins generated. Another focus of our work is to use the developed assays as a screening tool to investigate drug-herb interactions. This was achieved by co-incubation of herbal extracts and active constituents with the probe substrates in the assays followed by characterization of the kinetic behaviors of the enzymes involved using various pharmacokinetic parameters such as Km, Vmax, IC50 and Ki. This work is currently carried out with collaboration from the Institute for Medical Research (IMR) and is supported by MOSTI’s eScienceFund under RM9. It is envisaged that this screening work will give us insights on the potential of the commonly used herbs to cause pharmacokinetic interactions with other drug substrates, and allow us to elucidate the mechanisms involved in the interactions.
    Matched MeSH terms: Mutant Proteins
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