High resolution crystal structure of PedB: a structural basis for the classification of pediocin-like immunity proteins.
BMC STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY 2007;
7:35. [PMID:
17537233 PMCID:
PMC1904221 DOI:
10.1186/1472-6807-7-35]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2006] [Accepted: 05/30/2007] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Pediocin-like bacteriocins, ribosomally-synthesized antimicrobial peptides, are generally coexpressed with cognate immunity proteins in order to protect the bacteriocin-producer from its own bacteriocin. As a step for understanding the mode of action of immunity proteins, we determined the crystal structure of PedB, a pediocin-like immunity protein conferring immunity to pediocin PP-1.
RESULTS
The 1.6 A crystal structure of PedB reveals that PedB consists of an antiparallel four-helix bundle with a flexible C-terminal end. PedB shows structural similarity to an immunity protein against enterocin A (EntA-im) but some disparity to an immunity protein against carnobacteriocin B2 (ImB2) in both the C-terminal conformation and the local structure constructed by alpha3, alpha4, and their connecting loop. Structure-inspired mutational studies reveal that deletion of the last seven residues of the C-terminus of PedB almost abolished its immunity activity.
CONCLUSION
The fact that PedB, EntA-im, and ImB2 share a four-helix bundle structure strongly suggests the structural conservation of this motif in the pediocin-like immunity proteins. The significant difference in the core structure and the C-terminal conformation provides a structural basis for the classification of pediocin-like immunity proteins. Our mutational study using C-terminal-shortened PedBs and the investigation of primary sequence of the C-terminal region, propose that several polar or charged residues in the extreme C-terminus of PedB which is crucial for the immunity are involved in the specific recognition of pediocin PP-1.
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