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Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) are challenging structural biology targets, as numerous barriers exist to determining their high-resolution structures and specific biological functions. Previous results have highlighted the utility of collision-induced unfolding (CIU) to relatively rapidly assess noncoding (nc)RNA higher-order structure (HOS) information. Yet, there remain many gaps in our understanding of how these data can be related to the structures adopted by RNAs in solution as current correlations are largely qualitative. In this study, we describe significant advancements in RNA CIU. Previous RNA CIU reports reveal minimal-to-no RNA unfolding events (or features) upon being subjected to standard CIU conditions. Here, we increase the RNA CIU information through supercharging and quantitatively evaluate the improved RNA CIU data obtained to solution-phase unfolding data collected across a range of Mg2+ concentrations. Finally, we apply our supercharged CIU experiment to mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episode (MELAS)-associated mt-tRNA leucine (Leu, UUR) (mt-tRNALeu(UUR)) species. Our data demonstrate strong quantitative correlations between gas-phase and solution-phase RNA unfolding events as a function of Mg2+ and MELAS-associated mutations. Taken together, these results indicate strong, solution-relevant relationships for CIU data collected for these RNAs. We conclude our work by discussing future work targeting RNA CIU annotation, broader biophysical characterization of disease-associated RNAs using CIU, and CIU-enabled transcriptomic analysis. 

Abstract Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) is a pivotal flavoprotein connecting the folate and methionine methyl cycles, catalyzing the conversion of methylenetetrahydrofolate to methyltetrahydrofolate. Human MTHFR (hMTHFR) undergoes elaborate allosteric regulation involving protein phosphorylation andS-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet)-dependent inhibition, though other factors such as subunit orientation and FAD status remain understudied due to the lack of a functional structural model. Here, we report crystal structures ofChaetomium thermophilumMTHFR (cMTHFR) in both active (R) and inhibited (T) states. We reveal FAD occlusion by Tyr361 in the T-state, which prevents substrate interaction. Remarkably, the inhibited form ofcMTHFR accommodates two AdoMet molecules per subunit. In addition, we conducted a detailed investigation of the phosphorylation sites inhMTHFR, three of which were previously unidentified. Based on the structural framework provided by ourcMTHFR model, we propose a possible mechanism to explain the allosteric structural transition of MTHFR, including the impact of phosphorylation on AdoMet-dependent inhibition. 

Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) remain challenging targets for structural biology, creating barriers to understanding their vast functions in cellular biology and fully realizing their applications in biotechnology. The inherent dynamism of RNAs creates numerous obstacles in capturing their biologically relevant higher-order structures (HOSs), and as a result, many RNA functions remain unknown. In this study, we describe the development of native ion mobility–mass spectrometry and collision-induced unfolding (CIU) for the structural characterization of a variety of RNAs. We evaluate the ability of these techniques to preserve native structural features in the gas phase across a wide range of functional RNAs. Finally, we apply these tools to study the elusive mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes-associated A3243G mutation. Our data demonstrate that our experimentally determined conditions preserve some solution-state memory of RNAs via the correlated complexity of CIU fingerprints and RNA HOS, the observation of predicted stability shifts in the control RNA samples, and the retention of predicted magnesium binding events in gas-phase RNA ions. Significant differences in collision cross section and stability are observed as a function of the A3243G mutation across a subset of the mitochondrial tRNA maturation pathway. We conclude by discussing the potential application of CIU for the development of RNA-based biotherapeutics and, more broadly, transcriptomic characterization. 

Abstract Cobalamin-dependent methionine synthase (MS) is a key enzyme in methionine and folate one-carbon metabolism. MS is a large multi-domain protein capable of binding and activating three substrates: homocysteine, folate, andS-adenosylmethionine for methylation. Achieving three chemically distinct methylations necessitates significant domain rearrangements to facilitate substrate access to the cobalamin cofactor at the right time. The distinct conformations required for each reaction have eluded structural characterization as its inherently dynamic nature renders structural studies difficult. Here, we use a thermophilic MS homolog (tMS) as a functional MS model. Its exceptional stability enabled characterization of MS in the absence of cobalamin, marking the only studies of a cobalamin-binding protein in its apoenzyme state. More importantly, we report the high-resolution full-length MS structure, ending a multi-decade quest. We also capture cobalamin loadingin crystallo, providing structural insights into holoenzyme formation. Our work paves the way for unraveling how MS orchestrates large-scale domain rearrangements crucial for achieving challenging chemistries. 

Cobalamin is a complex organometallic cofactor that is processed and targeted via a network of chaperones to its dependent enzymes. AdoCbl (5′-deoxyadenosylcobalamin) is synthesized from cob(II)alamin in a reductive adenosylation reaction catalyzed by adenosyltransferase (ATR), which also serves as an escort, delivering AdoCbl to methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (MCM). The mechanism by which ATR signals that its cofactor cargo is ready (AdoCbl) or not [cob(II)alamin] for transfer to MCM, is not known. In this study, we have obtained crystallographic snapshots that reveal ligand-induced ordering of the N terminus ofMycobacterium tuberculosisATR, which organizes a dynamic cobalamin binding site and exerts exquisite control over coordination geometry, reactivity, and solvent accessibility. Cob(II)alamin binds with its dimethylbenzimidazole tail splayed into a side pocket and its corrin ring buried. The cosubstrate, ATP, enforces a four-coordinate cob(II)alamin geometry, facilitating the unfavorable reduction to cob(I)alamin. The binding mode for AdoCbl is notably different from that of cob(II)alamin, with the dimethylbenzimidazole tail tucked under the corrin ring, displacing the N terminus of ATR, which is disordered. In this solvent-exposed conformation, AdoCbl undergoes facile transfer to MCM. The importance of the tail in cofactor handover from ATR to MCM is revealed by the failure of 5′-deoxyadenosylcobinamide, lacking the tail, to transfer. In the absence of MCM, ATR induces a sacrificial cobalt–carbon bond homolysis reaction in an unusual reversal of the heterolytic chemistry that was deployed to make the same bond. The data support an important role for the dimethylbenzimidazole tail in moving the cobalamin cofactor between active sites.