Structure of the Ets-1 pointed domain and mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphorylation site

The Pointed (PNT) domain and an adjacent mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase phosphorylation site are defined by sequence conservation among a subset of ets transcription factors and are implicated in two regulatory strategies, protein interactions and posttranslational modifications, respectively. By using NMR, we have determined the structure of a 110-residue fragment of murine Ets-1 that includes the PNT domain and MAP kinase site. The Ets-1 PNT domain forms a monomeric five-helix bundle. The architecture is distinct from that of any known DNA- or protein-binding module, including the helix-loop-helix fold proposed for the PNT domain of the ets protein TEL. The MAP kinase site is in a highly flexible region of both the unphosphorylated and phosphorylated forms of the Ets-1 fragment. Phosphorylation alters neither the structure nor monomeric state of the PNT domain. These results suggest that the Ets-1 PNT domain functions in heterotypic protein interactions and support the possibility that target recognition is coupled to structuring of the MAP kinase site.

DNA polymerase active site is highly mutable: Evolutionary consequences

DNA polymerases contain active sites that are structurally superimposable and highly conserved in sequence. To assess the significance of this preservation and to determine the mutational burden that active sites can tolerate, we randomly mutated a stretch of 13 amino acids within the polymerase catalytic site (motif A) of Thermus aquaticus DNA polymerase I. After selection, by using genetic complementation, we obtained a library of approximately 8,000 active mutant DNA polymerases, of which 350 were sequenced and analyzed. This is the largest collection of physiologically active polymerase mutants. We find that all residues of motif A, except one (Asp-610), are mutable while preserving wild-type activity. A wide variety of amino acid substitutions were obtained at sites that are evolutionarily maintained, and conservative substitutions predominate at regions that stabilize tertiary structures. Several mutants exhibit unique properties, including DNA polymerase activity higher than the wild-type enzyme or the ability to incorporate ribonucleotide analogs. Bacteria dependent on these mutated polymerases for survival are fit to replicate repetitively. The high mutability of the polymerase active site in vivo and the ability to evolve altered enzymes may be required for survival in environments that demand increased mutagenesis. The inherent substitutability of the polymerase active site must be addressed relative to the constancy of nucleotide sequence found in nature.

Identification of a second aryl phosphate-binding site in protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B: A paradigm for inhibitor design

The structure of the catalytically inactive mutant (C215S) of the human protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) has been solved to high resolution in two complexes. In the first, crystals were grown in the presence of bis-(para-phosphophenyl) methane (BPPM), a synthetic high-affinity low-molecular weight nonpeptidic substrate (Km = 16 μM), and the structure was refined to an R-factor of 18.2% at 1.9 Å resolution. In the second, crystals were grown in a saturating concentration of phosphotyrosine (pTyr), and the structure was refined to an R-factor of 18.1% at 1.85 Å. Difference Fourier maps showed that BPPM binds PTP1B in two mutually exclusive modes, one in which it occupies the canonical pTyr-binding site (the active site), and another in which a phosphophenyl moiety interacts with a set of residues not previously observed to bind aryl phosphates. The identification of a second pTyr molecule at the same site in the PTP1B/C215S–pTyr complex confirms that these residues constitute a low-affinity noncatalytic aryl phosphate-binding site. Identification of a second aryl phosphate binding site adjacent to the active site provides a paradigm for the design of tight-binding, highly specific PTP1B inhibitors that can span both the active site and the adjacent noncatalytic site. This design can be achieved by tethering together two small ligands that are individually targeted to the active site and the proximal noncatalytic site.