Structure and conformational states of the bovine mitochondrial ATP synthase by cryo-EM

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the chemical energy currency of biology, is synthesized in eukaryotic cells primarily by the mitochondrial ATP synthase. ATP synthases operate by a rotary catalytic mechanism where proton translocation through the membrane-inserted FO region is coupled to ATP synthesis in the catalytic F1 region via rotation of a central rotor subcomplex. We report here single particle electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM) analysis of the bovine mitochondrial ATP synthase. Combining cryo-EM data with bioinformatic analysis allowed us to determine the fold of the a subunit, suggesting a proton translocation path through the FO region that involves both the a and b subunits. 3D classification of images revealed seven distinct states of the enzyme that show different modes of bending and twisting in the intact ATP synthase. Rotational fluctuations of the c8-ring within the FO region support a Brownian ratchet mechanism for proton-translocation-driven rotation in ATP synthases.

Pathway of binding of the intrinsically disordered mitochondrial inhibitor protein to F1-ATPase

The hydrolysis of ATP by the ATP synthase in mitochondria is inhibited by a protein called IF1. Bovine IF1 has 84 amino acids, and its N-terminal inhibitory region is intrinsically disordered. In a known structure of bovine F1-ATPase inhibited with residues 1-60 of IF1, the inhibitory region from residues 1-50 is mainly α-helical and buried deeply at the α(DP)β(DP)-catalytic interface, where it forms extensive interactions with five of the nine subunits of F1-ATPase but mainly with the β(DP)-subunit. As described here, on the basis of two structures of inhibited complexes formed in the presence of large molar excesses of residues 1-60 of IF1 and of a version of IF1 with the mutation K39A, it appears that the intrinsically disordered inhibitory region interacts first with the αEβE-catalytic interface, the most open of the three catalytic interfaces, where the available interactions with the enzyme allow it to form an α-helix from residues 31-49. Then, in response to the hydrolysis of an ATP molecule and the associated partial closure of the interface to the αTPβTP state, the extent of the folded α-helical region of IF1 increases to residues 23-50 as more interactions with the enzyme become possible. Finally, in response to the hydrolysis of a second ATP molecule and a concomitant 120° rotation of the γ-subunit, the interface closes further to the α(DP)β(DP)-state, allowing more interactions to form between the enzyme and IF1. The structure of IF1 now extends to its maximally folded state found in the previously observed inhibited complex.

The affinity purification and characterization of ATP synthase complexes from mitochondria

The mitochondrial F₁-ATPase inhibitor protein, IF₁, inhibits the hydrolytic, but not the synthetic activity of the F-ATP synthase, and requires the hydrolysis of ATP to form the inhibited complex. In this complex, the α-helical inhibitory region of the bound IF₁ occupies a deep cleft in one of the three catalytic interfaces of the enzyme. Its N-terminal region penetrates into the central aqueous cavity of the enzyme and interacts with the γ-subunit in the enzyme's rotor. The intricacy of forming this complex and the binding mode of the inhibitor endow IF₁ with high specificity. This property has been exploited in the development of a highly selective affinity procedure for purifying the intact F-ATP synthase complex from mitochondria in a single chromatographic step by using inhibitor proteins with a C-terminal affinity tag. The inhibited complex was recovered with residues 1-60 of bovine IF₁ with a C-terminal green fluorescent protein followed by a His-tag, and the active enzyme with the same inhibitor with a C-terminal glutathione-S-transferase domain. The wide applicability of the procedure has been demonstrated by purifying the enzyme complex from bovine, ovine, porcine and yeast mitochondria. The subunit compositions of these complexes have been characterized. The catalytic properties of the bovine enzyme have been studied in detail. Its hydrolytic activity is sensitive to inhibition by oligomycin, and the enzyme is capable of synthesizing ATP in vesicles in which the proton-motive force is generated from light by bacteriorhodopsin. The coupled enzyme has been compared by limited trypsinolysis with uncoupled enzyme prepared by affinity chromatography. In the uncoupled enzyme, subunits of the enzyme's stator are degraded more rapidly than in the coupled enzyme, indicating that uncoupling involves significant structural changes in the stator region.

The structure of F₁-ATPase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae inhibited by its regulatory protein IF₁

The structure of F₁-ATPase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae inhibited by the yeast IF₁ has been determined at 2.5 Å resolution. The inhibitory region of IF₁ from residues 1 to 36 is entrapped between the C-terminal domains of the α(DP)- and β(DP)-subunits in one of the three catalytic interfaces of the enzyme. Although the structure of the inhibited complex is similar to that of the bovine-inhibited complex, there are significant differences between the structures of the inhibitors and their detailed interactions with F₁-ATPase. However, the most significant difference is in the nucleotide occupancy of the catalytic β(E)-subunits. The nucleotide binding site in β(E)-subunit in the yeast complex contains an ADP molecule without an accompanying magnesium ion, whereas it is unoccupied in the bovine complex. Thus, the structure provides further evidence of sequential product release, with the phosphate and the magnesium ion released before the ADP molecule.

Binding of the inhibitor protein IF(1) to bovine F(1)-ATPase

In the structure of bovine F(1)-ATPase inhibited with residues 1-60 of the bovine inhibitor protein IF(1), the α-helical inhibitor interacts with five of the nine subunits of F(1)-ATPase. In order to understand the contributions of individual amino acid residues to this complex binding mode, N-terminal deletions and point mutations have been introduced, and the binding properties of each mutant inhibitor protein have been examined. The N-terminal region of IF(1) destabilizes the interaction of the inhibitor with F(1)-ATPase and may assist in removing the inhibitor from its binding site when F(1)F(o)-ATPase is making ATP. Binding energy is provided by hydrophobic interactions between residues in the long α-helix of IF(1) and the C-terminal domains of the β(DP)-subunit and β(TP)-subunit and a salt bridge between residue E30 in the inhibitor and residue R408 in the C-terminal domain of the β(DP)-subunit. Several conserved charged amino acids in the long α-helix of IF(1) are also required for establishing inhibitory activity, but in the final inhibited state, they are not in contact with F(1)-ATPase and occupy aqueous cavities in F(1)-ATPase. They probably participate in the pathway from the initial interaction of the inhibitor and the enzyme to the final inhibited complex observed in the structure, in which two molecules of ATP are hydrolysed and the rotor of the enzyme turns through two 120° steps. These findings contribute to the fundamental understanding of how the inhibitor functions and to the design of new inhibitors for the systematic analysis of the catalytic cycle of the enzyme.