Mobile barrier mechanisms for Na+-coupled symport in an MFS sugar transporter

  1. Parameswaran Hariharan
  2. Yuqi Shi
  3. Satoshi Katsube
  4. Katleen Willibal
  5. Nathan D Burrows
  6. Patrick Mitchell
  7. Amirhossein Bakhtiiari
  8. Samantha Stanfield
  9. Els Pardon
  10. H Ronald Kaback
  11. Ruibin Liang
  12. Jan Steyaert
  13. Rosa Viner
  14. Lan Guan  Is a corresponding author
  1. Department of Cell Physiology and Molecular Biophysics, Center for Membrane Protein Research, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, School of Medicine, United States
  2. Thermo Fisher Scientific, United States
  3. VIB-VUB Center for Structural Biology, VIB, Pleinlaan 2, Belgium
  4. Structural Biology Brussels, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, Belgium
  5. Division of CryoEM and Bioimaging, Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Light Source, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, United States
  6. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Texas Tech University, United States
  7. Department of Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
8 figures, 5 tables and 1 additional file

Figures

Figure 1 with 3 supplements
Functional characterizations of the hybrid Nb725_4.

(a) In vivo two-hybrid interaction assay. Two compatible plasmids encoding T25:MelBSt and Nb:T18 were transformed into E. coli DH5α cyaA cells and plated on the maltose-containing MacConkey agar …

Figure 1—source data 1

Original photographs that were taken from in vivo two-hybrid interaction assay and used to prepare Figure 1a.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-data1-v1.pdf
Figure 1—source data 2

Original photographs that were taken from sugar fermentation assay results and used to prepare Figure 1b.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-data2-v1.pdf
Figure 1—source data 3

Western blot to detect MelBSt expression when co-expressing with Nb725 or Nb725_4 (unlabelled).

Membranes were prepared from E. coli DW2 cells that were transformed with two compatible plasmids derived from pACYC and pCS19 encoding MelBSt and Nb725_4 or Nb725, respectively, and used for the [3H]melibiose active transport assay. After protein concentration determination, 50 μg of total membrane proteins of each sample was analyzed by SDS-15%PAGE and western blot using anti-His tag antibody (HisProbe-HRP Conjugate) as described in the Materials and methods. The western blot result was imaged by the ChemiDoc MP Imaging System (Bio-Rad). MelBSt protein expression presented as the inset in Figure 1c. The bands migrating near 25 kDa are non-specific and also presented in the membranes with no MelB nor Nb.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-data3-v1.jpg
Figure 1—source data 4

Western blot to detect MelBSt expression when co-expressing with Nb725 or Nb725_4 (labelled).

Membranes were prepared from E. coli DW2 cells that were transformed with two compatible plasmids derived from pACYC and pCS19 encoding MelBSt and Nb725_4 or Nb725, respectively, and used for the [3H]melibiose active transport assay. After protein concentration determination, 50 μg of total membrane proteins of each sample was analyzed by SDS-15%PAGE and western blot using anti-His tag antibody (HisProbe-HRP Conjugate) as described in the Materials and methods. The western blot result was imaged by the ChemiDoc MP Imaging System (Bio-Rad). MelBSt protein expression presented as the inset in Figure 1c is highlighted by the box. The bands migrating near 25 kDa are non-specific and also presented in the membranes with no MelB nor Nb.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-data4-v1.pdf
Figure 1—figure supplement 1
Hybrid Nb725_4 generated by complementarity-determining region (CDR) grafting.

(a) All CDR regions are indicated by boxes. The sequences of TC-Nb4 and MelBSt Nb725 are colored in black and red, respectively. The sequence of hybrid Nb725_4 is colored in black and red from the …

Figure 1—figure supplement 1—source data 1

Western blot shown in Figure 1—figure supplement 1e (unlabelled).

Fractions collected from gel chromatography were analyzed by SDS-15% PAGE and stained by silver nitrate.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-figsupp1-data1-v1.jpg
Figure 1—figure supplement 1—source data 2

Western blot shown in Figure 1—figure supplement 1e (labelled).

Fractions collected from gel chromatography were analyzed by SDS-15% PAGE and stained by silver nitrate.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig1-figsupp1-data2-v1.pdf
Figure 1—figure supplement 2
Ligand effects on the nanobodies (Nbs) binding.

All isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) binding measurements at 25°C and curve fitting are described in ‘Materials and methods’. The purified Nb725_4, Nb725, MelBSt, and EIIAGlc protein samples …

Figure 1—figure supplement 3
Nanobody (Nb) effects on substrate/ligand binding.

All isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) binding measurements at 25°C and curve fitting are described in ‘Materials and methods’. The binding measurements of melibiose, α-NPG, and EIIAGlc were …

Figure 2 with 8 supplements
CryoEM single-particle analysis (cryoEM-SPA).

The samplecoum containing the wild-type MelBSt in lipids nanodiscs, the MelBSt-specific Nb725_4, NabFab, and anti-Fab Nb at 1.5 mg/mL in 20 mM Tris–HCl, pH 7.5, and 150 mM NaCl was prepared as …

Figure 2—figure supplement 1
CryoEM data process.

The strategy for the reconstruction and refinement is outlined.

Figure 2—figure supplement 2
Initial 3D reconstruction.

Data were processed in CryoSPARC program.

Figure 2—figure supplement 3
Refinement and map improvement.

A total number of 296,925 polished particles from both non-tilted and 30° tilted data acquisition were used to reconstruct a 3.37 Å volume using Local Refinement.

Figure 2—figure supplement 4
Golden standard Fourier shell correlation (GSFSC) resolution and 3dFSC.

The resolution of map and particle orientation distribution was assessed by cryoSPARC proteins using default setting parameters.

Figure 2—figure supplement 5
Evaluation of map and models.

(a) The local resolution. The map half_A and half_B files produced by the cryoSPARC Local Refinement program were used to calculate the Local Resolution Map by Phenix and displayed by UCSF ChimeraX …

Figure 2—figure supplement 6
NabFab comparison.

(a, b) NorM complexed with anti-NorM Nb17_4/NabFab/anti-NabFab Nb (PDB ID 7PHP) was superimposed with MelBSt complexed with Nb725-4 and NabFab based on the H chains of NabFab in the two structures. …

Figure 2—figure supplement 7
Interactions of Nb725m_4 and MelBSt.

(a) Nb725_4 bound to the N-terminal domain of MelBSt. The contact between Nb CDR-1 and CDR-2 and MelBSt loop4-5, and loop6-7 contributed to the major interactions. (b) The surface electro potential …

Figure 2—figure supplement 8
Complex of MelBSt with Nb725 and EIIAGlc.

Samples containing MelBSt (black curve), MelBSt with Nb725 (red curve), or with Nb725 and EIIAGlc (blue curve), were prepared and analyzed by gel filtration chromatography in a combination of the …

Figure 2—figure supplement 8—source data 1

Western blot shown in Figure 2—figure supplement 8 (unlabelled).

Fractions collected from gel chromatography were analyzed by SDS-15% PAGE and stained by silver nitrate.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig2-figsupp8-data1-v1.jpg
Figure 2—figure supplement 8—source data 2

Western blot shown in Figure 2—figure supplement 8 (labelled).

Fractions collected from gel chromatography were analyzed by SDS-15% PAGE and stained by silver nitrate.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig2-figsupp8-data2-v1.pdf
Figure 3 with 4 supplements
Na+- and sugar-binding pockets of MelBSt.

(a) Location of the Na+ binding site. The inward-facing cryoEM structure of the WT MelBSt is displayed in cylindrical helices with the cytoplasmic side on the top. One bound Na+ ion within the …

Figure 3—figure supplement 1
MD simulations of the Na+ binding at both inward- and outward-facing states.

The equilibrated structures of Na+-binding site for the inward- and outward-facing MelBSt in the absence of melibiose. Distances between Na+ and nearby residues' coordinating atoms are labeled in …

Figure 3—figure supplement 2
Galactose-binding pocket in the outward-facing crystal structure (PDB ID 7L17).

All polar interactions between the bound α-NPG and D59C MelBSt are indicated by dashed lines (Å) and the pocket is shown in surface representation in blue. The Na+-binding residues are highlighted …

Figure 3—figure supplement 3
The alignment of the sugar-bound outward-facing structure (7L17, green) with the Na+ -bound inward-facing structure (blue) was carried out in Pymol or Coot programs.

The rmsd values reported from Pymol program were either based on default settings with outlier rejection or using all atoms after removing unmatched residues. (a) Superposition of both structures. (b

Figure 3—figure supplement 4
Membrane topology.

(a) The sugar-bound outward-facing structure (PDB ID 7L17). (b) The Na+-bound inward-facing structure. The full-length MelBSt is illustrated by transmembrane topology based on both structures. The …

Barriers and sugar-binding pocket.

Outward-facing (PDB ID 7L17; left column) and inward-facing (right column) structures were used to prepare the figures. (a, d) Side view with cytoplasmic side on top. The inner and outer barriers …

MelBSt dynamics probed by hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS).

(a) MelBSt peptide sequence coverage. The peptides of the deuterated MelBSt were determined based on the MelBSt peptide database that was generated by nonspecific digestions of non-deuterated MelBSt

Figure 5—source data 1

Output results of HDExaminer software analysis for Figures 5 and 6.

https://cdn.elifesciences.org/articles/92462/elife-92462-fig5-data1-v1.csv
Figure 6 with 3 supplements
Peptide mapping of hydrogen/deuterium exchange (HDX) results.

HDX results are presented in Figure 5. Any peptide of ΔD with p≤0.05 and ΔD ≥ |0.3184| were treated as significant. The peptides with statistically significant differences at the 3000 s time point …

Figure 6—figure supplement 1
Uptake time course for positions 2–263.

The deuterium uptake time course of peptides covering positions 2–263 is plotted as a percentage of deuterium uptake relative to the theoretic maximum number (D%) in the absence (black square) or …

Figure 6—figure supplement 2
Uptake time course for positions 261–475.

The deuterium uptake time course of peptides covering positions 261–475 is plotted as a percentage of deuterium uptake relative to the theoretic maximum number (D%) in the absence (black square) or …

Figure 6—figure supplement 3
Hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (HDX-MS).

Histograms of deuterium uptake time courses. The deuterium uptake time courses of the groups I and II presented in Figure 7 are replotted in the histogram. Error bar, SEM; test number, 3.

Dynamic regions of MelBSt.

The peptides that exhibited faster hydrogen/deuterium exchange (HDX) rates (>5% at 30 s) were mapped on both the α-NPG-bound outward-facing structure (7L17) in panel (a) and the inward-facing cryoEM …

Stepped-binding model for the Na+/melibiose symport catalyzed by MelB.

Eight states are postulated including transient intermediates. In this reversal reaction, the cation binds prior to the sugar and releases after sugar release. Melibiose active transport or inflex …

Tables

Table 1
Nanobodies (Nbs) binding.
TitrantTitrate conditionKd(µM)Number of testsFold of affinity changep-Value*
Nb725_4MelBSt/Na+3.64 ± 0.627
MelBSt/Na+/melibiose11.81 ± 0.726-3.24<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/α-
NPG
14.63 ± 1.272-4.02<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/EIIAGlc2.14 ± 0.112+1.70>0.05
NabFab52.53 ± 13.032
Nb725MelBSt/Na+1.58 ± 0.426
MelBSt/Na+/melibiose8.88 ± 1.245-5.62<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/α-NPG12.58 ± 0.602-7.96<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/EIIAGlc1.18 ± 0.122+1.34>0.05
NabFab36.021
Anti-Fab NbNabFab112.90 ± 16.332
  1. *

    Unpaired t-test.

  2. Mean ± SEM.

  3. nM.

Table 2
Nanobody (Nb) effects on MelBSt binding to sugar, Na+, and EIIAGlc.
TitrantTitrate conditionKd(µM)Number of testsFold of affinity changep-Value*Reference
MelibioseMelBSt/Na+1430 ± 30.05/
MelBSt/Na+/Nb725_4/3
MelBSt/Na+/Nb725/3
MelBSt/Na+/EIIAGlc/3Hariharan et al., 2015
α-NPGMelBSt/Na+16.46 ± 0.215/
MelBSt/Na+/Nb725_4531.55 ± 19.252-32.29<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/Nb725353.55 ± 37.252-21.48<0.01
MelBSt/Na+/EIIAGlc76.13 ± 4.522-4.63<0.01Hariharan et al., 2015
Na+MelBSt261.77 ± 49.154/
MelBSt/Nb725_4345.04 ± 9.922-1.32>0.05
MelBSt/Nb725182.50 ± 11.302+1.43>0.05
MelBSt/EIIAGlc253.50 ± 11.002+1.03>0.05Katsube et al., 2023
EIIAGlcMelBSt/Na+3.76 ± 0.295/
MelBSt/Na+/Nb725_44.32 ± 0.644-1.15>0.05
MelBSt/Na+/Nb7251.94 ± 0.104+1.94<0.01
  1. *

    Unpaired t-test.

  2. Mean ± SEM.

  3. Not detectable.

Table 3
CryoEM data collection and structure determination statistics.
MelBSt/Nb725m/NabFab
EMDBEMD-41062
PDB8T60
Non-tilted collectionTilted collection
Data collection
MicroscopeKrios-TEMBETAKrios-TEMBETA
Voltage (kV)300300
Number of movies14,0948716
Electron dose (e-2)50.0050.00
Defocus range (μm)−0.8 to –1.8−0.8 to –1.8
Pixel size (Å)0.860.86
Plate tilt angel (°)/30
Data processing
Initial number of particles7,632,7272,887,147
Combined final number of particles203,876
Symmetry imposedC1
Map resolution* (Å)3.29
B factor101.4
Model refinement
Chains5
Non-hydrogen atoms7503
Protein residues978
Mean B-factor
Protein97.35
Na+ ion88.64
RMS deviations
Bond lengths (Å)0.003
Bond angles (°)0.509
MolProbity score1.82
Clash score4.09
Poor rotamers (%)1.98
Ramachandran plot
Favored (%)93.48
Allowed (%)6.52
Outliers (%)0.00
Model resolution (Å)3.2/3.3/3.5
  1. *

    Resolution determined by Fourier shell coefficient threshold of 0.143 for corrected masked map.

  2. Resolution determined between the model and the resolved map by Fourier shell coefficient threshold of 0/0.143/0.5.

Table 4
HDX reaction and labeling details.
Samples measuredWT MelBStWT MelBSt complexed with Nb725m
HX reaction buffer25 mM Tris-HCl, pD 7.5, 150 mM NaCl, 10% Glycerol, and 0.01% DDM
Reaction temperature (°C)20
HX time course (s)0, 30, 300, 3000
Number of peptides153
Sequence coverage by labeling86%
Mean peptide length9.3
Average redundancy2.9
Replicates (technical)3
|ΔD| (Da)0.3071
Back exchange rateNot appliable
Key resources table
Reagent type (species) or resourceDesignationSource or referenceIdentifiersAdditional information
Strain, strain background
melB (Salmonella typhimurium)
S. typhimurium strain LT2/SGSC1412/ATCCPMID:1495487STM4299Used for melB cloning
Strain, strain background (Escherichia coli)DW2PMID:3047112melA+ ΔmelB ΔlacZYMelB expression and transport analysis
Strain, strain background (E. coli)XL1 BlueAgilent TechnologiesrecA1 endA1 gyrA96 thi-1 hsdR17 supE44 relA1 lac [F′ proAB lacIqZΔM15 Tn10 (Tetr)]Plasmid amplification
Strain, strain background (E. coli)ArcticExpress (DE3)Agilent TechnologiesF ompT hsdS(rB mB ) dcm+ Tetr gal λ(DE3) endA Hte [cpn10 cpn60 Gentr]Protein expression
Strain, strain background (E. coli)DH5α cyaA-PMID:37380079ΔcyaATwo-hybrid assay
Strain, strain background (E. coli)BL21(DE3) T7 expressNew England BiolabsfhuA2 lacZ::T7 gene1 [lon] ompT gal sulA11 R(mcr-73::miniTn10--TetS)2 [dcm] R(zgb-210::Tn10--TetS) endA1 Δ(mcrC-mrr)114::IS10Protein expression
Strain, strain background (E. coli)BL21(DE3) C43PMID:8757792F ompT hsdSB (rB- mB-) gal dcm (DE3)Protein expression
Strain, strain background (E. coli)BL21(DE3) pRILAgilent TechnologiesF ompT hsdS(rB mB ) dcm+ Tetr gal endA Hte [argU ileY leuW], CamrProtein expression
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19PMID:10319814pQE60 derivative inserted with gene lacIq; amprCloning/expressing vector
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/FXPMID:25627011Expression vector derived from pCS19 with two SapI sites and ccdB gene for FX cloning; ampr
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pACYCPMID:2190220Expression vector; no ccdB gene: camr
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pACYC/FXPMID:25627011Expression vector derived from pACYC; with ccdB gene, camr
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pACYC/MelBStPMID:25627011Expression plasmid for MelBSt derived from pACYC/FX; no ccdB gene, camr
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/X:T18/FXPMID:37380079FX cloning vector; two SapI sites and ccdB gene for FX cloning; amprTwo-hybrid assay vector; expressing a target protein ‘X’ with a C-terminal T18 fusion
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/T18PMID:37380079Expression plasmid from pCS19/X:T18/FX for expressing T18 fragment only; no ccdB gene.Two-hybrid assay plasmid; control vector
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pACYC/T25PMID:37380079Expression plasmid from pACYC/T25:X/FX for expressing T25 fragment; no ccdB gene, camrTwo-hybrid assay plasmid; control vector
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pACYC/T25:MelBStPMID:37380079Expression plasmid derived from pACYC/T25:X/FX; no ccdB gene, camrTwo-hybrid assay plasmid; expressing T25:MelBSt hybrid
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/Nb725:T18PMID:37380079Expression plasmid hybrid derived from pCS19/X:T18/FX; no ccdB gene, amprTwo-hybrid assay plasmid; expressing Nb725:T18 hybrid
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/Nb725_4:T18This studyExpression plasmid derived from pCS19/X:T18/FX; no ccdB gene, amprTwo-hybrid assay plasmid; expressing Nb725_4:T18 hybrid
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pK95ΔAH/MelBSt/CHis10PMC3057838Constitutive expression plasmidMelBSt protein expression
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/Nb725PMID:37380079Expression plasmid for Nb725 derived from pCS19/FX; no ccdB gene, amprNb725 protein expression
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pCS19/Nb725_4This studyExpression plasmid for Nb725_4 derived from pCS19/FX; no ccdB gene, amprNb725_4 protein expression
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pET26b(+)Novagen
(EMD Millipore)
Periplasmic expression plasmid with a N-terminal pelB signal sequence; KanrFor expression Nb725_4 and anti-Fab Nb
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pET26/Nb725_4This studyPeriplasmic expression plasmid derived from pET26b(+); KanrNb725_4 protein production
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pET26/Anti-Fab NbThis studyAnti-Fab Nb periplasmic expression plasmid; KanrAnti-Fab Nb protein expression
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
p7XC3H/Nb725PMID:37380079Cytoplasmic expression plasmid; KanrNb725 protein production
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
p7XNH3/EIIAGlcPMID:25296751Cytoplasmic expression plasmid; KanrEIIAGlc protein production
Recombinant DNA reagent
(plasmid)
pR2.2/NabFabPMID:34782475Periplasmic expression of NabFab; AmprNabFab protein production
Recombinant DNA reagent (plasmid)pMSP1E3D1Addgene/20066Expressing SP1E3D1; KanrMSP1E3D1 production
Recombinant DNA reagent (plasmid)pRK792Addgene/8830Expressing TEV protease; AmprTEV protease production
Sequence-based reagent
(primers)
MelB_Nb725_4_T18This studyFwd: 5′- ATATATGCTCTTCTAGTCAACGTCAATTGGTAG -3′
Rev: 5′- TATATAGCTCTTCATGCGCTGCTCACGGTCAC -3′
FX cloning primers to contrast pCS19/Nb725_4:T18; addition of a C-terminal ‘A’ of Nb725_4 enabling the C-terminal T18 in-frame fusion
Sequence-based reagent
(primer)
MelB_Nb725_4This studyFwd: 5′-ATATATGCTCTTCTAGTATGCAACGTCAATTGGTAG-3′
Rev: 5′-TATATAGCTCTTCATGCTTAGTGGTGATGATGGTGGTGGCT GCTCACGGTCAC-3′
FX cloning primers to construct pCS19:Nb725_4-CTH
with a C-terminal 6x His-tag
Sequence-based reagent
(primer)
Nb-PelB-NdeIThis studyFwd: 5′-TTTAAGAAGGAGATATACATATG-3′Insert NdeI restriction site for Nb725_4 and anti-Fab Nb construction
Sequence-based reagent
(primer)
Nb-STRP-XhoIThis studyRev: 5′-TTTGTTCTAGACTCGAGTTATTTCTC-3′Add XhoI restriction site for Nb725_4 and anti-Fab Nb construction
Chemical compound, drug[3H]MelibiosePerkinElmer(5.32 Ci/mmol)Transport assay
S
Chemical compound, drugUDMAnatraceCat# D300HAMelBSt purification
Chemical compound, drugDDMAnatraceCat# D310MelBSt purification
Chemical compound, drugMelibioseAcros OrganicsCat# 125375000Fermentation and
Binding assay
Chemical compound, drugα-NPGAcros OrganicsCat# 33733500Binding assay
Chemical compound, drugE. coli lipidsAvanti Polar Lipids, IncExtract Polar, 100600Nanodiscs
Software, algorithmCryoSPARCCryoSPARC2-4.01CryoEM data processing
Software, algorithmUSF ChimeraXUSF ChimeraX1.6Mask preparation
Software, algorithmPhenixPhenix1.20-4459Map sharpen and model refinement
Software, algorithmCootCoot0.9Model building
Software, algorithmPymolPymol2.5Model visualization
Software, algorithmQscoreQscoreQ score calculation
Software, algorithmNanoAnalyzeTA Instruments3.7.5Data fitting
Software, algorithmHDExaminerTrajan Scientific and Medical3.3HDX data analysis
Software, algorithmBioPharma FinderThermo5.1HDX data analysis and peptide mapping

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