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* Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269;
Department of Biological Sciences and Markey Center for Structural Biology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907; and
QED Labs, San Jose, California 95128
Correspondence: Address reprint requests to Pamela A. Thuman-Commike, Tel.: 408-295-8347; Fax: 408-295-8348; E-mail: pam{at}qedlabs.com.
| ABSTRACT |
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| INTRODUCTION |
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In the Salmonella bacteriophage P22, 420 molecules of folded monomeric coat protein interact with 150300 molecules of scaffolding protein, a portal protein complex, and pilot proteins to form the procapsid (King et al., 1976
; King and Chiu, 1997
). DsDNA is actively packaged into the P22 procapsid by DNA packaging proteins accompanied by scaffolding protein exit through holes in the procapsid lattice (Bazinet and King, 1985
; King and Casjens, 1974
; King et al., 1973
). A structural transformation from the procapsid lattice to the mature virus also occurs during DNA packaging, increasing the average diameter of the capsid by 10% (Zhang et al., 2000
). Within the resulting mature phage, the DNA is tightly packed within the capsid to the density of liquid crystal (Cerritelli et al., 1997
; Lepault et al., 1987
), so the capsid must also be stable enough to counter the force of such a highly packed ionic material.
Distinct energies and forces are used in the assembly and maturation processes. Assembly of P22 procapsids proceeds through specific protein:protein interactions without the input of an additional energy source such as ATP. Interactions between coat proteins seem to be primarily hydrophobic (Teschke and King, 1993
) whereas coat protein-scaffolding protein interactions are ionic in nature (Parker and Prevelige, 1998
). In contrast, a precursor capsid will not undergo the structural transition to the mature viral capsid without some energy input (Galisteo and King, 1993
; Tuma et al., 1998
). In vivo, this energy is derived from the DNA packaging ATPases (Botstein et al., 1973
; King et al., 1978
). In vitro, physical forces such as the addition of heat or low concentrations of agents that destabilize protein structure, such as sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) or denaturants, will induce the expansion of precursor capsids to the mature viral lattice (Capen and Teschke, 2000
; Earnshaw et al., 1976
; Galisteo and King, 1993
). Since the capsids do not dissociate during expansion, the forces involved in expansion must not be greater than those involved in the protein:protein interactions that hold the capsid together or be compensated for by additional interactions such as capsid protein:DNA interactions. Indeed, expansion in P22 produces 90 kJ/mol of exothermic energy, only around 5% of the energy required for capsid denaturation (Galisteo and King, 1993
; Steven, 1993
).
In previous investigations of bacteriophage P22 morphogenesis, heat has been the most frequently used method to induce the structural transition from the procapsid to the expanded viral lattice in vitro. The presumption in these studies was that the heat-induced expanded structure was identical to the in vivo-expanded structure as judged by low-resolution negative-stain electron micrographs of both structures (Galisteo and King, 1993
). Here, we have determined the structure of heat-expanded and in vivo-expanded P22 capsids by electron cryomicroscopy and three-dimensional reconstruction to determine whether the in vivo and in vitro expansion processes follow the same mechanism and result in the same capsid structure. Although we find that the dimensions of both structures are identical, the heat-expanded capsids have released coat protein subunits from the penton positions in the lattice. Our results lead us to suggest a model whereby the DNA and pilot proteins may play an additional important role in stabilizing penton-hexon interactions, as both are missing from the in vitro-expanded capsids, especially during the lattice transformation in maturation.
| MATERIAL AND METHODS |
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Empty procapsid shells were prepared from procapsids by repeated treatment at 4°C with buffer containing PMSF and 0.5 M guanidine hydrochloride (GuHCl), which extracts scaffolding protein while leaving the empty capsid shells intact. After each incubation with GuHCl, the shells were pelleted as above and the pellets suspended in buffer. After the third extraction, the empty procapsid shells were stored in buffer at 4°C.
Heat-expanded capsids were obtained from procapsids or empty procapsid shells (1 mg/ml) that were incubated at 70°C for 15 min. This temperature and time were shown previously to cause >95% expansion of wild-type empty procapsid shells without loss of sample to aggregate (Capen and Teschke, 2000
). To confirm that expansion had occurred, the samples were run on 1.2% Seakem HGT agarose gels (Capen and Teschke, 2000
; Galisteo and King, 1993
).
Electron cryomicroscopy and image processing
Capsid samples were applied to 400-mesh copper grids prepared with holey carbon films, rapidly plunged into liquid ethane, and imaged while maintained at -180°C using an FEI (Hillsboro, OR) CM200-FEG transmission electron microscope outfitted with a Gatan (Pleasanton, CA) cold holder, TV, and 1k x 1k CCD camera. Images were recorded using low dose conditions (1012 e-/Å2) at an accelerating voltage of 200 kV and a nominal magnification of 38,000x. Electron micrographs were visually inspected for quality and particle distribution. Suitable micrographs were scanned using a Phodis/SCAI flatbed scanner (Z/I Imaging, Englewood, CO) with a step size of 7 µm, and then twofold averaged to an effective scan size of 3.68 Å per pixel.
Structure determination of capsids was performed similarly to previously determined bacteriophage P22 structures (Thuman-Commike et al., 1999
). The heat-expanded capsid three-dimensional structure was determined using 134 particles imaged at
1.7 µm underfocus and the in vivo-expanded empty phage head three-dimensional structure was determined using 105 particles imaged at
2.0 µm underfocus. All particles were visually inspected to ensure no procapsid particles were selected or processed with the expanded particles. The final resolution of each reconstruction was verified to be 24 Å using the Fourier ring correlation coefficient (Radermacher, 1988
; van Heel, 1987
) and the amplitude-weighted mean phase difference (Frank et al., 1981
). The difference maps were computed as the algebraic difference between all corresponding points in the reconstructions for which the density was at or above the contour threshold level (Marvik et al., 1995
).
| RESULTS |
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Electron cryomicroscopy and image processing
Image reconstruction was performed on both the in vitro- and in vivo-expanded capsids with each showing comparable results during all stages of data processing and in the resulting three-dimensional reconstructions. For simplicity, in the following we show the data associated with the heat-expanded capsid that was not treated with GuHCl before heat treatment. Fig. 2, A and B, show the resulting electron cryomicroscopy images. Notice that overall the heat-expanded capsid appears as a spherical thin-shelled empty capsid (Fig. 2 A) whereas the in vivo-expanded empty phage head appears as a larger polyhedral capsid (Fig. 2 B).
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45 Å thick and extend to an inner radius of 270 Å.
Quantitative comparison using difference maps confirms the capsids are very similar (Fig. 4, AD). The most significant differences, visible to beyond 3
above the mean in the difference maps, appear at the regions surrounding the penton positions on the outer surface of the heat-expanded capsid (Fig. 4 A) and on the inner surface of the in vivo-expanded empty head (Fig. 4 D). These differences result from the absence of the pentons in the heat-expanded capsid (Fig. 4 A, outlined region) and from the coat proteins located nearest to the penton hole, on the heat-expanded capsid, residing at a lower radius than those of the in vivo-expanded empty phage head (Fig. 4 D, outlined region). In addition, smaller, less significant differences, visible to only 2
above the mean in the difference maps, appear just beneath the inner surface of the in vivo-expanded empty phage head (data not shown). These differences are near the proposed regions of coat/scaffold interaction (Thuman-Commike et al., 1999
). No significant differences are observed on the outer in vivo-expanded empty head or inner heat-expanded capsid (Fig. 4, B and C).
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above the mean (Fig. 5 C), a small amount of density is observed at the penton, and at 0.75
above the mean (Fig. 5 D), a partial penton is observed.
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-levels as in the heat expanded capsid reconstruction. Since our three-dimensional reconstruction of the heat expanded capsid consists of
150 images, this means that one of the following is a possible configuration of the heat-expanded capsids in our reconstruction: 46 capsids have not lost any pentons, one penton within every three capsids has not been released, or two pentons in every six capsids have not been released, etc. Although we cannot predict the particular mixture of nonreleased pentons, these results demonstrate that the total number of nonreleased penton is small and not likely to be of significant consequence. | DISCUSSION |
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In vitro heat expansion affects penton-hexon interactions
The absence of pentons in heat-expanded capsids suggests a destabilization of the coat protein:coat protein interactions between neighboring penton and hexon subunits that results in the release of the pentons. Our observations do not indicate if this release takes place during or after expansion has occurred. To answer this question, we heated both in vivo-expanded capsids with and without DNA and imaged the resulting capsids using negative-stain electron microscopy (data not shown). The in vivo-expanded capsids with DNA do not appear to be affected by heat treatment, other than the possible loss of DNA by a few capsids. Because the preparation of in vivo-expanded capsids lacking DNA necessarily results in a small population of procapsids, heat treatment of this sample cannot be definitive. However, the majority of the imaged capsids did not have released pentons. These results suggest the pentons are released during heat expansion.
Perhaps release of the pentons during heat expansion is not surprising, since during procapsid maturation, the radial position of the penton moves outward 75 Å from 610 Å to 685 Å (Zhang et al., 2000
). In comparison, the average radial change incurred during expansion of the entire capsid is only 50 Å (Zhang et al., 2000
). The penton undergoes the largest radial change of the seven quasiequivalent coat protein subunits within the P22 icosahedral lattice, accounting for the overall polyhedral appearance of the in vivo-expanded empty phage head (Figs. 2 B and 3 B).
Our observations do not indicate if heat expansion follows the same pathway as in vivo expansion other than that the resulting structure is the same but for the loss of pentons. If expansion occurs via a different mechanism with heat treatment, as opposed to in vivo DNA packaging, then the release of pentons could simply be a result of excess energy. However, the large movement the pentons undergo during in vivo expansion, combined with the high degree of similarities in the remaining heat-expanded versus in vivo-expanded capsid lattices, leads us to favor a heat expansion mechanism that is similar to that of in vivo expansion. As additional support for our notion that heat expansion follows a similar pathway as in vivo expansion, the in vitro expansion of the bacteriophage HK97 has been thoroughly characterized (Lata et al., 2000
; Conway et al., 2001
). In this case, expansion of HK97 was induced by low pH rather than heat, but was shown to be similar to the in vivo pathway.
Assuming heat expansion follows a similar pathway to in vivo expansion, we propose that release of the penton during heat expansion is the result of failure to stop the outward movement of the penton that normally occurs during in vivo expansion. Fig. 6 shows the conformation of a penton subunit with respect to its neighboring hexon subunit in both the empty phage head and the procapsid (Thuman-Commike et al., 1999
). We denote the region of interaction between the hexon and penton subunits as the penton hinge. In the procapsid (Fig. 6 B), this hinge is partially closed forming a V shape, but in the in vivo-expanded empty phage head, this hinge is wide open and flat (Fig. 6 C). In the heat-expanded capsid, this hinge is broken and the penton subunit released (Fig. 6 D). We propose that capsid protein interactions at this hinge region become unstable during heat expansion and account for penton release (Fig. 6 E).
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In addition to the possible role of pilot proteins in stabilizing capsid structure, DNA is also likely to play a role. A previously proposed DNA insertion mechanism involves winding the DNA along the inner procapsid surface, filling the capsid from the outermost radius inward (Zhang et al., 2000
). As DNA fills the capsid during in vivo expansion, the hexon subunits undergo a conformational change resulting in outward movement of the hexon-penton interface (Prasad et al., 1993
; Zhang et al., 2000
). Based on our results, we propose that in vivo the interactions of the DNA with capsid proteins and pilot proteins could stabilize the penton hinge, preventing penton release. In the heat-expanded capsid, however, the interactions with capsid proteins and pilot proteins are disrupted, perhaps causing release of the pilot proteins. Thus, in our model the interaction between the penton and hexon at the hinge would be stressed from the extra outward movement, forcing the penton to be released either due to steric hindrance or instability at the hinge.
It is unlikely that DNA would be directly interacting with coat protein at the penton positions because of the sharp bends required of the DNA to make contact with the pentons, but DNA might come into contact with the penton hinge region next to the hexons. Although interactions between any capsid proteins and the DNA in P22 have not been directly observed (Zhang et al., 2000
), this may be due to the lack of icosahedral symmetry of the DNA within the capsid. Regardless, the close proximity of the DNA to the capsid shell and penton hinge, particularly during expansion, could serve to anchor the penton in place within the capsid, perhaps through interactions with the pilot proteins. Differential scanning calorimetry of P22 procapsids has shown that the expansion process is exothermic, producing an expanded capsid that is in a lower energy state than the procapsid (Galisteo and King, 1993
). This suggests that after expansion has been completed, the DNA and/or pilot proteins are no longer required for penton stability, accounting for the continued presence of the pentons even after the DNA has been released from the capsid.
Penton release: a recurring theme in dsDNA viruses
Morphogenesis is a recurring theme in the assembly of dsDNA viruses. Adenoviruses, herpeseviruses, and dsDNA isometric bacteriophages such as lambda, HK97, and P22 undergo a capsid maturation process involving the transformation of an initial precursor capsid to a mature virion (D'Halluin et al., 1978
; King and Chiu, 1997
; Rixon, 1993
; Casjens and Hendrix, 1988
). The various conformational changes that occur during this transformation, including scaffolding exit, capsid lattice rearrangement, and capsid enlargement, demonstrate that these viral proteins possess an innate malleability during their life cycle and that many such transformations are similar among diverse groups of viruses.
Here we observe another large-scale conformational changerelease of pentons during chemical or heat expansionbroadening this recurring theme of large-scale conformational changes. Penton release has been observed in other bacteriophage and mammalian viruses, in addition to P22 bacteriophage. In adenovirus (Prage et al., 1970
) and herpesvirus (Newcomb et al., 1993
), chemical treatments have been shown to release the pentons from their capsids. In these cases, interactions can be identified that play a role similar to what we propose above, whereby DNA and/or pilots interact with coat protein to prevent penton release. Specifically, for adenovirus, the interaction of hexon protein ß-barrels with the penton protein are proposed to have a role in penton protein release during cell entry (Stewart et al., 1993
). In the case of herpesvirus, it would seem likely that the triplex proteins, which are located between the pentons and hexons and are also released with herpesvirus pentons (Newcomb et al., 1993
), perform this stabilization function. In bacteriophage T4 (Muller-Salamin et al., 1977
) penton release also results from treatment with a denaturant. In the bacteriophage, penton release has no physiological role since DNA is transferred to the host cell through the portal complex. However, the fact that both mammalian viruses and bacteriophage show this loss of pentons indicates the universality of the instability of penton-hexon interactions.
The diverse conformational flexibility of the coat proteins within these various capsids contrasted with their similarities in morphogenesis is striking. The ability of the various capsids to release pentons suggests common interactions required for capsid stabilization beyond that previously observed.
| ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS |
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This work was supported by National Institutes of Health grant GM53567 to C.M.T. A.M. is supported by grants from the W. M. Keck Foundation and the National Institutes of Health. Support for the electron cryomicroscopy facilities was obtained from the National Science Foundation, the W. M. Keck Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the Markey Center for Structural Biology, and Purdue University.
Submitted on May 26, 2002; accepted for publication December 12, 2002.
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