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For de novo design of protein-protein interactions (PPIs), information on the shape and chemical complementarity of their interfaces is generally required. Recent advances in computational PPI design have allowed for de novo design of protein complexes, and several successful examples have been reported. In addition, a simple and easy-to-use approach has also been reported that arranges leucines on a solvent-accessible region of an α-helix and places charged residues around the leucine patch to induce interactions between the two helical peptides. For this study, we adopted this approach to de novo design a new PPI between the helical bundle proteins sulerythrin and LARFH. A non-polar patch was created on an α-helix of LARFH around which arginine residues were introduced to retain its solubility. The strongest interaction found was for the LARFH variant cysLARFH-IV-3L3R and the sulerythrin mutant 6L6D (KD=0.16 μM). This artificial protein complex is maintained by hydrophobic and ionic interactions formed by the inter-molecular helical bundle structure. Therefore, by the simple and easy-to-use approach to create de novo interfaces on the α-helices, we successfully generated an artificial PPI. We also created a second LARFH variant with the non-polar patch surrounded by positively charged residues at each end. Upon mixing this LARFH variant with 6L6D, mesh-like fibrous nanostructures were observed by atomic force microscopy. Our method may, therefore, also be applicable to the de novo design of protein nanostructures., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

High-resolution crystal structures of Pyrococcus furiosus rubrerythrin (PfRbr) in the resting (all-ferrous) state and at time points following exposure of the crystals to hydrogen peroxide are reported. This approach was possible because of the relativity slow turnover of PfRbr at room temperature. To this end, we were able to perform time-dependent peroxide treatment of the fully reduced enzyme, under strictly anaerobic conditions, in the crystalline state. In this work we demonstrate, for the first time, that turnover of a thermophilic rubrerythrin results in approximately 2-Å movement of one iron atom in the diiron site from a histidine to a carboxylate ligand. These results confirm that, despite the domain-swapped architecture, the hyperthermophilic rubrerythrins also utilize the classic combination of iron sites together with redox-dependent iron toggling to selectively reduce hydrogen peroxide over dioxygen. In addition, we have identified previously unobserved intermediates in the reaction cycle and observed structural changes that may explain the enzyme precipitation observed for the all-iron form of PfRbr upon oxidation to the all-ferric state.

A novel multidomain metalloprotein from Campylobacter jejuni was overexpressed in Escherichia coli, purified, and extensively characterized. This protein is isolated as a homotetramer of 24-kDa monomers. According to the amino acid sequence, each monomer was predicted to contain three structural domains: an N-terminal desulforedoxin-like domain, followed by a four-helix bundle domain harboring a non-sulfur μ-oxo diiron center, and a rubredoxin-like domain at the C-terminus. The three predicted iron sites were shown to be present and were studied by a combination of UV-vis, EPR, and resonance Raman spectroscopies, which allowed the determination of the electronic and redox properties of each site. The protein contains two FeCys(4) centers with reduction potentials of +240 mV (desulforedoxin-like center) and +185 mV (rubredoxin-like center). These centers are in the high-spin configuration in the as-isolated ferric form. The protein further accommodates a μ-oxo-bridged diiron site with reduction potentials of +270 and +235 mV for the two sequential redox transitions. The protein is rapidly reoxidized by hydrogen peroxide and has a significant NADH-linked hydrogen peroxide reductase activity of 1.8 μmol H(2)O(2) min(-1) mg(-1). Owing to its building blocks and its homology to the rubrerythrin family, the protein is named desulforubrerythrin. It represents a novel example of the large diversity of the organization of domains exhibited by this enzyme family.

Based on the crystal structures, three possible sequence determinants have been suggested as the cause of a 285 mV increase in reduction potential of the rubredoxin domain of rubrerythrin over rubredoxin by modulating the polar environment around the redox site. Here, electrostatic calculations of crystal structures of rubredoxin and rubrerythrin and molecular dynamics simulations of rubredoxin wild-type and mutants are used to elucidate the contributions to the increased reduction potential. Asn(160) and His(179) in rubrerythrin versus valines in rubredoxins are predicted to be the major contributors, as the polar side chains contribute significantly to the electrostatic potential in the redox site region. The mutant simulations show both side chains rotating on a nanosecond timescale between two conformations with different electrostatic contributions. Reduction also causes a change in the reduction energy that is consistent with a linear response due to the interesting mechanism of shifting the relative populations of the two conformations. In addition to this, a simulation of a triple mutant indicates the side-chain rotations are approximately anticorrelated so whereas one is in the high potential conformation, the other is in the low potential conformation. However, Ala(176) in rubrerythrin versus a leucine in rubredoxin is not predicted to be a large contributor, because the solvent accessibility increases only slightly in mutant simulations and because it is buried in the interface of the rubrerythrin homodimer., (Copyright 2010 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

An unusual non-haem diiron protein, reverse rubrerythrin (revRbr), is known to be massively upregulated in response to oxidative stress in the strictly anaerobic bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum. In the present study both in vivo and in vitro results demonstrate an H2O2 and O2 detoxification pathway in C. acetobutylicum involving revRbr, rubredoxin (Rd) and NADH : rubredoxin oxidoreductase (NROR). RevRbr exhibited both NADH peroxidase (NADH : H2O2 oxidoreductase) and NADH oxidase (NADH : O2 oxidoreductase) activities in in vitro assays using NROR as the electron-transfer intermediary from NADH to revRbr. Rd increased the NADH consumption rate by serving as an intermediary electron-transfer shuttle between NROR and revRbr. While H2O2 was found to be the preferred substrate for revRbr, its relative oxidase activity was found to be significantly higher than that reported for other Rbrs. A revRbr-overexpressing strain of C. acetobutylicum showed significantly increased tolerance to H2O2 and O2 exposure. RevRbr thus appears to protect C. acetobutylicum against oxidative stress by functioning as the terminal component of an NADH peroxidase and NADH oxidase.