Proteomics analysis of carbon-starved Mycobacterium smegmatis: Induction of Dps-like protein

Gupta, Surbhi and Pandit, Shashi B and Srinivasan, Narayanaswamy and Chatterji, Dipankar (2002) Proteomics analysis of carbon-starved Mycobacterium smegmatis: Induction of Dps-like protein. In: Protein Engineering, 15 (6). pp. 503-511.

PDF pradeep_9.pdf Restricted to Registered users only Download (1MB) | Request a copy

Abstract

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a globally successful pathogen, infecting more than one third of total world's population. These bacteria have the remarkable ability to persist in the host for long periods of time unrecognized by the immune system and then to re-emerge later in life causing the disease. The physiology of such persistent or dormant bacilli is not very well characterized. Some evidence suggests that the dormant bacilli survive in a nutrient-deprived state that is similar to the stationary phase of the bacteria with respect to gene expression and physiology. Under this assumption we have studied the survival of Mycobacterium smegmatis in carbon starvation conditions as a model for mycobacterial persistence. M.smegmatis, being a fast-growing strain, serves as a good model to study starvation responses. Using the two-dimensional electrophoresis-based proteomics approach, we identified a protein which was found to be expressed preferentially under starvation conditions. This protein is homologous to a family of proteins called Dps (DNA binding Protein from Starved cells) that are known to protect DNA under various kinds of environmental stresses and its existence has, so far, not been reported in mycobacteria. Upon expression and purification of this protein, we observed that it has non-specific DNA-binding ability. Formation of a cage-like dodecamer structure is a characteristic feature of Dps. Using comparative modelling we were able to show that Dps from M.smegmatis could form a dodecamer structure similar to the crystal structure of Dps from Escherichia coli.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	Protein Engineering
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Additional Information:	Copyright of this article belongs to Oxford University Press
Keywords:	DNA protection;Dps;mycobacteria;starvation;two-dimensional electrophoresis
Department/Centre:	Division of Biological Sciences > Molecular Biophysics Unit
Date Deposited:	03 Jan 2008
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2010 04:41
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/12603

Actions (login required)

View Item