Phosphorylation of iodopsin, chicken red-sensitive cone visual pigment

Ligand Binding Mechanisms in Human Cone Visual Pigments

Vertebrate vision starts with light absorption by visual pigments in rod and cone photoreceptor cells of the retina. Rhodopsin, in rod cells, responds to dim light, whereas three types of cone opsins (red, green, and blue) function under bright light and mediate color vision. Cone opsins regenerate with retinal much faster than rhodopsin, but the molecular mechanism of regeneration is still unclear. Recent advances in the area pinpoint transient intermediate opsin conformations, and a possible secondary retinal-binding site, as determinant factors for regeneration. In this Review, we compile previous and recent findings to discuss possible mechanisms of ligand entry in cone opsins, involving a secondary binding site, which may have relevant functional and evolutionary implications.

Different phosphorylation rates among vertebrate cone visual pigments with different spectral sensitivities

Cone photoreceptor subtypes having different spectral sensitivities exhibit different recovery kinetics in their photoresponses in some vertebrates. Phosphorylation by G protein-coupled receptor kinase (GRK) is essential for the rapid inactivation of light-activated visual pigment, which is the rate-limiting step of the cone photoresponse recovery in salamander. In this study we compared the rate of light-dependent phosphorylation by GRK7 of carp green- and blue-sensitive cone visual pigments. Blue pigment was phosphorylated significantly less effectively than green pigment, suggesting that the difference in the pigment phosphorylation rate is responsible for the difference in photoresponse kinetics among cone photoreceptor subtypes.

Cone visual pigments

Cone visual pigments are visual opsins that are present in vertebrate cone photoreceptor cells and act as photoreceptor molecules responsible for photopic vision. Like the rod visual pigment rhodopsin, which is responsible for scotopic vision, cone visual pigments contain the chromophore 11-cis-retinal, which undergoes cis-trans isomerization resulting in the induction of conformational changes of the protein moiety to form a G protein-activating state. There are multiple types of cone visual pigments with different absorption maxima, which are the molecular basis of color discrimination in animals. Cone visual pigments form a phylogenetic sister group with non-visual opsin groups such as pinopsin, VA opsin, parapinopsin and parietopsin groups. Cone visual pigments diverged into four groups with different absorption maxima, and the rhodopsin group diverged from one of the four groups of cone visual pigments. The photochemical behavior of cone visual pigments is similar to that of pinopsin but considerably different from those of other non-visual opsins. G protein activation efficiency of cone visual pigments is also comparable to that of pinopsin but higher than that of the other non-visual opsins. Recent measurements with sufficient time-resolution demonstrated that G protein activation efficiency of cone visual pigments is lower than that of rhodopsin, which is one of the molecular bases for the lower amplification of cones compared to rods. In this review, the uniqueness of cone visual pigments is shown by comparison of their molecular properties with those of non-visual opsins and rhodopsin. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Retinal Proteins - You can teach an old dog new tricks.

Knockdown of cone-specific kinase GRK7 in larval zebrafish leads to impaired cone response recovery and delayed dark adaptation

Phosphorylation of rhodopsin by rhodopsin kinase GRK1 is an important desensitization mechanism in scotopic vision. For cone vision GRK1 is not essential. However, cone opsin is phosphorylated following light stimulation. In cone-dominant animals as well as in humans, but not in rodents, GRK7, a cone-specific homolog of GRK1, has been identified in cone outer segments. To investigate the function of GRK7 in vivo, we cloned two orthologs of grk7 in zebrafish and knocked down gene expression of grk7a in zebrafish larvae by morpholino antisense nucleotides. Photoresponse recovery in Grk7a-deficient larvae was delayed in electroretinographic measurements, and temporal contrast sensitivity was reduced, particularly under bright-light conditions. These results show that function of a cone-specific kinase is essential for cone vision in the zebrafish retina and argue that pigment bleaching and spontaneous decay alone are not sufficient for light adaptation and rapid cone response inactivation.

Highly effective phosphorylation by G protein-coupled receptor kinase 7 of light-activated visual pigment in cones

Cone photoreceptors show briefer photoresponses than rod photoreceptors. Our previous study showed that visual pigment phosphorylation, a quenching mechanism of light-activated visual pigment, is much more rapid in cones than in rods. Here, we measured the early time course of this rapid phosphorylation with good time resolution and directly compared it with the photoresponse time course in cones. At the time of photoresponse recovery, almost two phosphates were incorporated into a bleached cone pigment molecule, which indicated that the visual pigment phosphorylation coincides with the photoresponse recovery. The rapid phosphorylation in cones is attributed to very high activity of visual pigment kinase [G protein-coupled receptor kinase (GRK) 7] in cones. Because of this high activity, cone pigment is readily phosphorylated at very high bleach levels, which probably explains why cone photoresponses recover quickly even after a very bright light and do not saturate under intense background light. The high GRK7 activity is brought about by high content of a highly potent enzyme. The expression level of GRK7 was 10 times higher than that of rod kinase (GRK1), and the specific activity of a single GRK7 molecule was approximately 10 times higher than that of GRK1. The specific activity of GRK7 is the highest among the GRKs so far known. Our result seems to explain the response characteristics of cone photoreceptors in many aspects, including the nonsaturation of the cone responses during daylight vision.

M opsin phosphorylation in intact mammalian retinas

The deactivation of visual pigments involved in phototransduction is critical for recovering sensitivity after exposure to light in rods and cones of the vertebrate retina. In rods, phosphorylation of rhodopsin by rhodopsin kinase (GRK1) and the subsequent binding of visual arrestin completely terminates phototransduction. Although signal termination in cones is predicted to occur via a similar mechanism as in rods, there may be differences due to the expression of related but distinct gene products. While rods only express GRK1, cones in some species express only GRK1 or GRK7 and others express both GRKs. In the mouse, cone opsin is phosphorylated by GRK1, but this has not been demonstrated in mammals that express GRK7 in cones. We compared cone opsin phosphorylation in intact retinas from the 13-lined ground squirrel (GS) and pig, cone- and rod-dominant mammals, respectively, which both express GRK7. M opsin phosphorylation increased during continuous exposure to light, then declined between 3 and 6 min. In contrast, rhodopsin phosphorylation continued to increase during this time period. In GS retina homogenates, anti-GS GRK7 antibody blocked M opsin phosphorylation by 73%. In pig retina homogenates, only 20% inhibition was observed, possibly due to phosphorylation by GRK1 released from rods during homogenization. Our results suggest that GRK7 phosphorylates M opsin in both of these mammals. Using an in vitro GTPgammaS binding assay, we also found that the ability of recombinant M opsin to activate G(t) was greatly reduced by phosphorylation. Therefore, phosphorylation may participate directly in the termination of phototransduction in cones by decreasing the activity of M opsin.

Conformational studies of a bombolitin III-derived peptide mimicking the four-helix bundle structural motif of proteins

Bombolitins are five structurally related heptadecapeptides originally isolated from the venom of a bumblebee. In aqueous solution, bombolitins at sufficiently high concentration form oligomeric aggregates with consequent conformational transition from a random coil to the alpha-helical structure. Previous studies suggested that oligomeric aggregates could mimic the four-helix bundle structural motif of proteins. In the present work, we synthesized the following peptide sequence formed by two bombolitin III sequences linked head-to-tail by the tetrapeptide bridge -Gly-Pro-Val-Asp-: I(1)-K(2)-I(3)-M(4)-D(5)-I(6)-L(7)-A(8)-K(9)-L(10)-G(11)-K(12)-V(13)-L(14)-A(15)-H(16)-V(17)-G(18)-P(19)-V(20)-D(21)-I(22)-K(23)-I(24)-M(25)-D(26)-I(27)-L(28)-A(29)-K(30)-L(31)-G(32)-K(33)-V(3)(4)-L(35)-A(36)-H(37)-V(38)-NH(2). The tetrapeptide GPVD connecting the two helical peptide sequences was chosen to facilitate the formation of the helix-loop-helix structural motif. The conformational properties of the peptide were studied by CD, NMR, and molecular dynamics calculations. The results indicate the presence of a helix-loop-helix conformation at 10(-)(5) M concentration. At higher concentrations, NOESY connectivities were detected which are compatible with the presence of dimers or higher aggregates of peptide molecules in the helix-loop-helix structure packed in an antiparallel fashion. Molecular dynamics simulation were run either with NOE distance restraints or without restraints in explicit solvent for extended time. The results of these simulations support the dimerization of the molecules in the helix-loop-helix structure with formation of the four-helix bundle motif.

GRK1-dependent phosphorylation of S and M opsins and their binding to cone arrestin during cone phototransduction in the mouse retina

The shutoff mechanisms of the rod visual transduction cascade involve G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) kinase 1 (GRK1) phosphorylation of light-activated rhodopsin (R*) followed by rod arrestin binding. Deactivation of the cone phototransduction cascade in the mammalian retina is delineated poorly. In this study we sought to explore the potential mechanisms underlying the quenching of the phototransduction cascade in cone photoreceptors by using mouse models lacking rods and/or GRK1. Using the "pure-cone" retinas of the neural retina leucine zipper (Nrl) knock-out (KO, -/-) mice (Mears et al., 2001), we have demonstrated the light-dependent, multi-site phosphorylation of both S and M cone opsins by in situ phosphorylation and isoelectric focusing. Immunoprecipitation with affinity-purified polyclonal antibodies against either mouse cone arrestin (mCAR) or mouse S and M cone opsins revealed specific binding of mCAR to light-activated, phosphorylated cone opsins. To elucidate the potential role of GRK1 in cone opsin phosphorylation, we created Nrl and Grk1 double knock-out (Nrl-/-Grk1-/-) mice by crossing the Nrl-/- mice with Grk1-/- mice (Chen et al., 1999). We found that, in the retina of these mice, the light-activated cone opsins were neither phosphorylated nor bound with mCAR. Our results demonstrate, for the first time in a mammalian species, that cone opsins are phosphorylated and that CAR binds to phosphorylated cone opsins after light activation.

Low amplification and fast visual pigment phosphorylation as mechanisms characterizing cone photoresponses

Vertebrate cone photoreceptors are known to show lower light sensitivity and briefer photoresponses than rod photoreceptors. To understand the molecular mechanisms characterizing cone photoresponses, we compared some of the reactions in the phototransduction cascade between rods and cones. For this purpose, rods and cones were obtained in quantities large enough to do biochemical studies. The cells were purified from the retina of carp (Cyprinus carpio) with a stepwise Percoll gradient. The purified rod fraction contained almost no other kinds of cells besides rods, and the purified cone fraction contained a mixture of red-, green-, and blue-sensitive cones in the ratio 3: approximately 1: approximately 1. We prepared membrane preparations from the rod and the cone fraction, and in these membranes, we measured activation efficiencies of the reactions in the phototransduction cascade. The results showed that the signal amplification is lower in the cone membranes, which accounts for the lower light sensitivity in cones. Furthermore, we measured the time courses of visual pigment phosphorylation. The result showed that the phosphorylation is much faster in the cone membranes, which also explains the lower light sensitivity and, in addition, the briefer photoresponse in cones.

Confronting complexity: the interlink of phototransduction and retinoid metabolism in the vertebrate retina

Absorption of light by rhodopsin or cone pigments in photoreceptors triggers photoisomerization of their universal chromophore, 11-cis-retinal, to all-trans-retinal. This photoreaction is the initial step in phototransduction that ultimately leads to the sensation of vision. Currently, a great deal of effort is directed toward elucidating mechanisms that return photoreceptors to the dark-adapted state, and processes that restore rhodopsin and counterbalance the bleaching of rhodopsin. Most notably, enzymatic isomerization of all-trans-retinal to 11-cis-retinal, called the visual cycle (or more properly the retinoid cycle), is required for regeneration of these visual pigments. Regeneration begins in rods and cones when all-trans-retinal is reduced to all-trans-retinol. The process continues in adjacent retinal pigment epithelial cells (RPE), where a complex set of reactions converts all-trans-retinol to 11-cis-retinal. Although remarkable progress has been made over the past decade in understanding the phototransduction cascade, our understanding of the retinoid cycle remains rudimentary. The aim of this review is to summarize recent developments in our current understanding of the retinoid cycle at the molecular level, and to examine the relevance of these reactions to phototransduction.

Vertebrate photoreceptors

The basis of the duplex theory of vision is examined in view of the dazzling array of data on visual pigment sequences and the pigments they form, on the microspectrophotometry measurements of single photoreceptor cells, on the kinds of photoreceptor cascade enzymes, and on the electrophysiological properties of photoreceptors. The implications of the existence of five distinct visual pigment families are explored, especially with regard to what pigments are in what types of photoreceptors, if there are different phototransduction enzymes associated with different types of photoreceptors, and if there are electrophysiological differences between different types of cones.

Purification and characterization of bovine cone arrestin (cArr)

To elucidate the quenching mechanism of phototransduction in vertebrate cone photoreceptors, a cDNA clone encoding cone specific arrestin (cArr) was isolated from a bovine retinal cDNA library using a human cArr cDNA probe. Affinity-purified anti-peptide antibody specific to cArr was prepared. Immunohistochemical staining displayed specific labeling of cArr in cone photoreceptors and immunoblotting identified a 46 kDa protein band. We purified cArr from bovine retinas by sequential column chromatography using DEAE-cellulose, gel filtration and mono Q columns. Binding studies revealed no binding of cArr to rhodopsin regardless of whether it was bleached and/or phosphorylated. cArr also failed to bind to heparin-Sepharose under conditions which rod arrestin (rArr) bound to the column. The present data suggest that cArr may play a role in the quenching of phototransduction in cone photoreceptors and that its activity therein is different to that of rArr.

The role of receptor kinases and arrestins in G protein-coupled receptor regulation

G protein-coupled receptors (GPRs) play a key role in controlling hormonal regulation of numerous second-messenger pathways. However, following agonist activation, most GPRs rapidly lose their ability to respond to hormone. For many GPRs, this process, commonly referred to as desensitization, appears to be primarily mediated by two protein families: G protein-coupled receptor kinases (GRKs) and arrestins. GRKs specifically bind to the agonist-occupied receptor, thereby promoting receptor phosphorylation, which in turn leads to arrestin binding. Arrestin binding precludes receptor/G protein interaction leading to functional desensitization. Many GPRs are then removed from the plasma membrane via clathrin-mediated endocytosis. Recent studies have implicated endocytosis in the resensitization of GPRs and have linked both GRKs and arrestins to this process. In this review, we discuss the role of GRKs and arrestins in regulating agonist-specific signaling and trafficking of GPRs.

Rhodopsin phosphorylation and its role in photoreceptor function

Light-stimulated phosphorylation of rhodopsin was first described 25 years ago. This paper reviews the progress that has been made towards (i) understanding the nature of the enzymes that phosphorylate and dephosphorylate rhodopsin (ii) identifying the sites of phosphorylation on rhodopsin and (iii) understanding the physiological importance of rhodopsin phosphorylation. Many important questions related to rhodopsin phosphorylation remain unanswered and new strategies and methods are needed to address issues such as the roles of Ca2+ and recoverin. We present one such method that uses mass spectrometry to quantitate rhodopsin phosphorylation in intact mouse retinas.

Two opposite effects of ATP on the apparent sensitivity of the cGMP-gated channel of the carp retinal cone

Effects of ATP on the activity of cGMP-gated channels from carp cone photoreceptors were studied. In 29% of the patches examined (N = 45), ATP (1 mM) enhanced a current evoked by cGMP (20 microM, up to about 100%), in 33%. ATP suppressed it by up to about 90%, and in the remaining 38%, ATP had no effect. ATP showed similar effects on a current evoked by 8-bromoguanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (2 microM, enhancing in 42% of the patches, suppressing in 25%, no effect in 33%, N = 12), suggesting that the effects were not through modulation of the phosphodiesterase. Both of the effects, enhancement and suppression, were produced by a change in apparent affinity for cGMP, since (1) the maximum current evoked by cGMP of the saturating concentration (> or = 1 mM) was not affected, and (2) the K1/2 value decreased by approximately 45% (N = 2) or increased by approximately 25% (N = 2). A lower pH (approximately 6) facilitated the enhancing effect. ATP-gamma-S (1 mM) showed a suppressing effect in 80% of the patches and no effect in 20% of the patches (N = 10). However, ATP-gamma-S did not show an enhancing effect. Thus, ATP had two opposite effects through different mechanisms on the apparent sensitivity of the channel to cGMP; increasing and decreasing.

Activation of transducin by a Xenopus short wavelength visual pigment

Phototransduction in cones differs significantly from that in rods in sensitivity, kinetics, and recovery following exposure to light. The contribution that the visual pigment makes in determining the cone response was investigated biochemically by expressing a Xenopus violet cone opsin (VCOP) cDNA in COS1 cells and assaying the light-dependent activation of transducin. Light-exposed VCOP stimulated [35S]guanosine 5'-(gamma-thio)triphosphate nucleotide exchange on bovine rod transducin in a time-dependent manner with a half-time for activation of 0.75 min, similar to that of bovine rhodopsin. In exhaustive binding assays, VCOP and rhodopsin activity showed similar concentration dependence with half-maximal activation occurring at 0.02 mol of pigment/mol of transducin. Although VCOP was able to activate as many as 12 transducins per photoisomerization, rhodopsin catalyzed significantly more. When assays were performed with lambda > 420 nm illumination, VCOP exhibited rapid regeneration and high affinity for the photoregenerated 11-cis-retinal. Recycling of the chromophore and reactivation of the pigment resulted in multiple activations of transducin, whereas a maximum of 1 transducin per VCOP was activated under brief illumination. The decay of the active species formed following photobleaching was complete in <5 min, approximately 10-fold faster than that of rhodopsin. In vitro, VCOP activated rod transducin with kinetics and affinity similar to those of rhodopsin, but the active conformation decayed more rapidly and the apoprotein regenerated more efficiently with VCOP than with rhodopsin. These properties of the violet pigment may account for much of the difference in response kinetics between rods and cones.

Threonine6-bradykinin: molecular dynamics simulations in a biphasic membrane mimetic

The natural peptide [Thr6]-bradykinin, Arg1-Pro2-Pro3-Gly4-Phe5-Thr6-Pro7-Phe8-Arg9, has been conformationally examined by molecular dynamics simulations using a two-phase box consisting of H2O and CCl4 to mimic the micellar environment utilized in the 1H-NMR studies. The different conformations generated from distance geometry calculations were refined with extensive molecular dynamics simulations. The resulting conformations provide additional structural insight into the differing biological activities of native bradykinin and [Thr6]-bradykinin, produced by the one conservative substitution Thr6 for Ser6. In addition, the simulations give some indication of the interaction of the peptide with the biphasic, hydrophilic/hydrophobic environment of the micelle. Such information is vital given the accumulating data indicating that the peptide first interacts with the membrane before the membrane-bound receptor. The structures of membrane-bound [Thr6]-bradykinin developed here provide experimental support for the interaction of residues 7 and 8 with the core of the membrane-bound receptor and the N-terminus and C-terminal arginine interacting with the extracellular portion of the receptor.

Threonine6-bradykinin: structural characterization in the presence of micelles by nuclear magnetic resonance and distance geometry

The conformation of the natural peptide [Thr6]-bradykinin, Arg1-Pro2-Pro3-Gly4-Phe5-Thr6-Pro7-Phe8-Arg9, is investigated by NMR spectroscopy and computer simulations in an aqueous solution of sodium dodecyl sulfate micelles. The structural analysis of the peptide is of particular interest since it displays a different biological profile from bradykinin despite the high sequence homology (only one conservative substitution: Ser6/Thr6) and the fact that both peptides bind and activate common receptors. The SDS micelles provide a model system for the membrane-interface environment the peptide experiences when interacting with the membrane-embedded receptor and allow for the conformational examination of the peptide using high-resolution NMR techniques. The NMR spectra show that the micellar system induces a secondary structure in the otherwise inherently flexible peptide (as observed in benign aqueous solution). The distance geometry calculations indicate a beta-turn of type I about residues 7-8 as the preferred conformation. The results of ensemble calculations reveal conformational changes occurring rapidly on the NMR time scale and allow for the identification of three different families of conformations that average to reproduce the NMR observables. The three families differ in the type of conformation adopted at the C-terminus: type I beta-turn, type II beta-turn and a third conformation, intermediate between the two beta-turns. The structural results support the hypothesis of the determining role of the C-terminal conformation for biological activity and can provide an explanation of the different activities observed for bradykinin and [Thr6]-bradykinin.

Molecular basis for tetrachromatic color vision

Determination of the primary structures of six kinds of vertebrate visual pigments enabled us to classify them into four groups of cone-type pigments. The phylogenetic tree demonstrated that an ancestor of vertebrate visual pigments evolved into four kinds of cone-type pigments, from one of which rhodopsins diverged. Tetrachromatic color vision of chicken is discussed on the basis of both the absorption spectra of purified cone pigments and the filtering effect of colored oil-droplets.

Alligator rhodopsin: sequence and biochemical properties

We sequenced selected peptides of alligator rhodopsin that accounted for about half of the total protein. These sequences were confirmed when the total primary structure of alligator rhodopsin was deduced from the cDNA sequence. Differences in the amino-terminal region, compared to that of bovine rhodopsin, account for failure of cross-reactivity of several anti-bovine rhodopsin monoclonal antibodies. Differences in the carboxyl-terminal region give rise to limited antibody cross-reactivity and may also account for a slightly reduced ability of alligator rhodopsin to be phosphorylated by bovine rhodopsin kinase. Alligator rhodopsin regenerates much faster than bovine rhodopsin. The pseudo-first-order rate constant for alligator rhodopsin regeneration is approximately 25 times that of bovine. Phylogenetic analysis of 17 rhodopsin sequences indicates that the alligator is more closely related to the chicken than to the other species examined.

Mechanism of rhodopsin phosphorylation

A key reaction in the inactivation of rhodopsin is its phosphorylation by rhodopsin kinase. In recent years, extensive studies related to rhodopsin kinase function and enzymatic properties were carried out. Rhodopsin kinase is a Ser/Thr protein kinase and a member of the G protein-coupled receptor kinases sub-family (GRKs) which consists of six recently identified members. Photolyzed rhodopsin is phosphorylated by rhodopsin kinase sequentially, with the first phosphate transferred preferentially to Ser-338, and subsequent phosphates transferred to Ser-343 and Thr-336. The binding of arrestin to the receptor, and reduction of the photolyzed chromophore all-trans-retinal to all-trans-retinol limits physiologically significant phosphorylation at no more than three sites (H. Ohguro, R.S. Johnson, L.H. Ericsson, K.A. Walsh and K. Palczewski, Biochemistry, 33 (1994) 1023). A similar phosphorylation reaction is implicated in most, if not all, G protein-coupled receptors during their desensitization.

Structure and photobleaching process of chicken iodopsin

Iodopsin, a dominant cone pigment in a chicken retina, has an absorption spectrum in longer wavelength region than rhodopsin. To account for this red-shift of iodopsin, we had proposed a structural model from retinal analogue experiments, in which iodopsin would have a relatively long distance between the protonated Schiff base nitrogen and the counterion. This was confirmed by a resonance Raman spectroscopy. The photochemical properties of iodopsin were studied and compared with those of rhodopsin, which revealed the following differences. The regeneration rate of iodopsin with 11-cis-retinal was 240 times faster than rhodopsin. Meta-iodopsin II, the signalling state of iodopsin, decayed about 100 times faster than meta-rhodopsin II. The Km value of meta-iodopsin II and rhodopsin kinase was lower than meta-rhodopsin II. These results are in consistent with rapid adaptation and low photosensitivity of cones relative to those of rods.

Difference in molecular properties between chicken green and rhodopsin as related to the functional difference between cone and rod photoreceptor cells

Using low-temperature spectroscopy, we have investigated the photobleaching process of chicken green, a green-sensitive cone visual pigment present in chicken retina, and compared it to that of rhodopsin, a rod visual pigment. Like rhodopsin, chicken green converts to all-trans-retinal and opsin through batho, lumi, and meta I, II, and III intermediates. However, all of the intermediates of chicken green except lumi, are less stable than the corresponding intermediates of rhodopsin. While early intermediates, batho and lumi are similar in absorption maxima between chicken green and rhodopsin, the meta intermediates of chicken green are about 20 nm blue shifted from those of rhodopsin. Low-temperature time-resolved spectroscopy was applied to estimate the thermodynamic properties of meta intermediates, and it indicated that the less stable properties of meta II and III intermediates of chicken green originate from the smaller activation enthalpies. The decay of the meta II intermediate of chicken green is greatly suppressed when a chicken green sample is irradiated at alkaline conditions while the net charge becomes similar to that of rhodopsin at neutral conditions. These results strongly suggest that the functional properties of chicken green that are different from those of rhodopsin are regulated by the dissociative amino acid residue(s).

Is chicken green-sensitive cone visual pigment a rhodopsin-like pigment? A comparative study of the molecular properties between chicken green and rhodopsin

Chicken green is a visual pigment present in chicken green-sensitive cones and has an amino acid sequence more similar than any other cone visual pigments to the rod visual pigments, rhodopsins. Here we have investigated the molecular properties of chicken green and compared them with those of rhodopsin to elucidate whether or not chicken green is a rhodopsin-like pigment. While chicken green has a molecular extinction coefficient and a photosensitivity very similar to those of rhodopsin, it displays faster regeneration from 11-cis-retinal and opsin and faster formation and decay of the physiologically active meta II intermediate than rhodopsin. These differences correlate with the physiological difference between cones and rods. Thus in spite of the similarity in amino acid sequence, chicken green displays molecular properties required for a cone visual pigment that are clearly different from those of rhodopsin.

Phosphorylation sites in bovine rhodopsin

Bovine rhodopsin has been phosphorylated in rod outer segments by ATP and endogenous rhodopsin kinase. Mono-, di-, and triphosphorylated rhodopsins have been prepared by chromatofocusing. Nearly all of the phosphate is found in peptide 330-348, formed by digestion of phosphorhodopsins with endoproteinase Asp-N. Sequence analysis of the phosphopeptides shows that monophosphorylated rhodopsin consists of a mixture containing rhodopsins phosphorylated at 338Ser and 343Ser. Diphosphorylated rhodopsin is phosphorylated at both 338Ser and 343Ser. When rhodopsin becomes triphosphorylated it does not become phosphorylated on 334Ser but appears to become phosphorylated on one or more of the four threonine residues: 335Thr, 336Thr, 340Thr, and 342Thr.

Iodopsin, a red-sensitive cone visual pigment in the chicken retina

The vertebrate retina contains two kinds of visual cells: rods, responsible for twilight (scotopic) vision (black and white discrimination); and cones, responsible for daylight (photopic) vision (color discrimination). Here we attempt to explain some of their functional differences and similarities in terms of their visual pigments. In the chicken retina there are four types of single cones and a double cone; each of the single cones has its own characteristic oil droplet (red, orange, blue, or colorless) and the double cone is composed of a set of principal and accessory members, the former of which has a green-colored oil droplet. Iodopsin, the chicken red-sensitive cone visual pigment, is located at outer segments of both the red single cones and the double cones, while the other single cones and the rod contain their own visual pigments with different absorption spectra. The diversity in absorption spectra among these visual pigments is caused by the difference in interaction between chromophore (11-cis retinal) and protein moiety (opsin). However, the chromophore-binding pocket in iodopsin is similar to that in rhodopsin. The difference in absorption maxima between both pigments could be explained by the difference in distances between the protonated Schiff-bases at the chromophore-binding site and their counter ions in iodopsin and rhodopsin. Furthermore, iodopsin has a unique chloride-binding site whose chloride ion serves for the red-shift of the absorption maximum of iodopsin. Visual pigment bleaches upon absorption of light through several intermediates and finally dissociates into all-trans retinal and opsin. That the sensitivity of cones is lower than rods cannot be explained by the relative photosensitivity of iodopsin to rhodopsin, but may be understood to some extent by the short lifetime of an enzymatically active intermediate (corresponding to metarhodopsin II) produced in the photobleaching process of iodopsin. The rapid formation and decay of the meta II-intermediate of iodopsin compared with metarhodopsin II are not contradictory to the rapid generation and recovery of cone receptor potential compared with rod receptor potential. The rapid recovery of the cone receptor potential may be due to a more effective shutoff mechanism of the visual excitation, including the phosphorylation of iodopsin. The rapid dark adaptation of cones compared with rods has been explained by the rapid regeneration of iodopsin from 11-cis retinal and opsin. One of the reasons for the rapid regeneration and susceptibility to chemicals of iodopsin compared with rhodopsin may be a unique structure near the chromophore-binding site of iodopsin.

G-protein-coupled receptor kinases

Rhodopsin kinase and the beta-adrenergic receptor kinase (beta ARK) catalyse the phosphorylation of the activated forms of the G-protein-coupled receptors, rhodopsin and the beta 2-adrenergic receptor (beta 2AR), respectively. The interaction between receptor and kinase is independent of second messengers and appears to involve a multipoint attachment of kinase and substrate with the specificity being restricted by both the primary amino acid sequence and conformation of the substrate. Kinetic, functional and sequence information reveals that rhodopsin kinase and beta ARK are closely related, suggesting they may be members of a family of G-protein-coupled receptor kinases.