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Title: Mycobacterium tuberculosis acyl carrier protein synthase adopts two different pH-dependent structural conformations

Journal Article · · Acta Crystallographica. Section D: Biological Crystallography
; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-3474 (United States)
  2. University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT (United Kingdom)

Bacterial acyl carrier protein synthase plays an essential role in the synthesis of fatty acids, nonribosomal peptides and polyketides. In Mycobacterium tuberculosis, AcpS or group I phosphopentatheine transferase exhibits two different structural conformations depending upon the pH. The crystal structures of acyl carrier protein synthase (AcpS) from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and Corynebacterium ammoniagenes determined at pH 5.3 and pH 6.5, respectively, are reported. Comparison of the Mtb apo-AcpS structure with the recently reported structure of the Mtb AcpS–ADP complex revealed that AcpS adopts two different conformations: the orthorhombic and trigonal space-group structures show structural differences in the α2 helix and in the conformation of the α3–α4 connecting loop, which is in a closed conformation. The apo-AcpS structure shows electron density for the entire model and was obtained at lower pH values (4.4–6.0). In contrast, at a higher pH value (6.5) AcpS undergoes significant conformational changes, resulting in disordered regions that show no electron density in the AcpS model. The solved structures also reveal that C. ammoniagenes AcpS undergoes structural rearrangement in two regions, similar to the recently reported Mtb AcpS–ADP complex structure. In vitro reconstitution experiments show that AcpS has a higher post-translational modification activity between pH 4.4 and 6.0 than at pH values above 6.5, where the activity drops owing to the change in conformation. The results show that apo-AcpS and AcpS–ADP adopt different conformations depending upon the pH conditions of the crystallization solution.

OSTI ID:
22351254
Journal Information:
Acta Crystallographica. Section D: Biological Crystallography, Vol. 67, Issue Pt 7; Other Information: PMCID: PMC3270384; PMID: 21697604; PUBLISHER-ID: ea5141; OAI: oai:pubmedcentral.nih.gov:3270384; Copyright (c) International Union of Crystallography 2011; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0907-4449
Country of Publication:
Denmark
Language:
English