Cloning and Structure Determination of Cdna for Cutinase, an Enzyme
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Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA Vol. 81, pp. 3939-3943, July 1984 Biochemistry Cloning and structure determination of cDNA for cutinase, an enzyme involved in fungal penetration of plants (cDNA cloning/nucleotide sequencing/amino acid sequencing/fungal cutinase) C. L. SOLIDAY, W. H. FLURKEY, T. W. OKITA, AND P. E. KOLATTUKUDY* Institute of Biological Chemistry and Biochemistry/Biophysics Program, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6340 Communicated by Harold J. Evans, February 27, 1984 ABSTRACT The primary structure of cutinase, an extra- cloning of cutinase cDNA and the complete nucleotide se- cellular fungal enzyme involved in the penetration of plants by quence of the coding region. The amino acid sequence pre- pathogenic fungi, has been determined from the nucleotide se- dicted from the nucleotide sequence was verified by amino quence of cloned cDNA. Clones containing cDNA made from acid sequence determination of a significant portion of the poly(A)+ RNA isolated from fungal cultures induced to syn- enzyme. thesize cutinase were screened for their ability to hybridize with the [32P]cDNA for mRNA unique to the induced culture. The 75 cDNA clones thus identified were screened for the cu- MATERIALS AND METHODS tinase genetic code by hybrid-selected translation and exami- Construction of a Fusarium solani pisi cDNA Library. nation of products with anti-cutinase IgG. This method yielded Poly(A)+ RNA from Fusarium solani f. .sp. pisi, T8 strain, 15 clones containing cDNA for cutinase, and Southern blots was isolated as described (7). Single- (8) and double- (9) showed that the size of the cDNA inserts ranged from 279 to stranded cDNA was synthesized and the hairpin loops were 950 nucleotides. Blot analysis showed that cutinase mRNA cleaved with nuclease S1 and the termini were repaired to contained 1050 nucleotides, indicating that the clone contain- blunt ends with the large fragment of DNA polymerase I. A ing 950 nucleotides represented nearly the entire mRNA. This size fraction of duplex DNA >500 base pairs (bp) in length near-full-length cDNA and the restriction fragments subcloned was obtained by preparative electrophoresisfin a 1% agarose from it were sequenced by a combination of the Maxam-Gil- gel. Homopolymer tracts of dC were added to the 3' ends of bert and the phage M13-dideoxy techniques. cDNAs from two this cDNA with calf-thymus terminal transferase (10). The other clones, containing the bulk of the coding region for cu- oligo(dC)-tailed cDNA and oligo(dG)-tailed pBR322 plasmid tinase, were also completely sequenced, and the results con- were annealed (11), and this modified plasmid was used to firmed the sequence obtained with the first clone. A peptide transform Escherichia coli K-12 RR1. Colonies that con- isolated from a trypsin digest of cutinase was sequenced and tained pBR322 plasmid with cDNA inserts were selected by the amino acid sequence as well as the initiation and termina- their tetracycline resistance and ampicillin sensitivity. The tion codons were used to identify the coding region of the enzymes and plasmids used in this cloning procedure were cDNA. The primary structure of the enzyme so far determined purchased from New England Nuclear. by amino acid sequencing (=40% of the total) agreed com- Isolation of Plasmid DNA. Plasmid DNA, extracted from pletely with the nucleotide sequencing results. Thus, the com- selected clones by using either a Triton X-100 (12) or an alka- plete primary structure of the mature enzyme and that of the line lysis procedure (13), was purified by CsCl/ethidium bro- signal peptide region were ascertained. mide density gradient centrifugation. Translation of Hybrid-Selected mRNA. From the total Cutinase, a glycoprotein excreted by phytopathogenic fungi, poly(A)+ RNA isolated from induced fungal cultures, specif- catalyzes the hydrolysis of cutin, the structural polyester of ic mRNA was purified by hybridization to cloned DNA that the plant cuticle (1, 2). Cutinase was shown to be present at had been denatured and immobilized on nitrocellulose filters the site of fungal penetration of the host plant cuticle and (14). The translation products of the hybridized mRNA gen- specific inhibition of cutinase was shown to protect plants erated in a wheat germ translation system (15) with [35S]me- against fungal penetration and consequently infection (1, 2). thionine as the label were examined (7). The active site of cutinase is composed of a catalytic triad Colony Hybridizations. Colony hybridization was per- involving serine, histidine, and a carboxyl group (3). The en- formed with [32P]cDNA probes (16, 17). Two cDNA probes zyme contains one disulfide bridge, which is essential for the were generated from poly(A)+ RNA isolated from induced activity of the enzyme (2). Recently the amino acid sequence and noninduced fungal cultures with reverse transcriptase of the active-serine-containing tryptic peptide of cutinase and [a-32P]dATP (17). Hybridization probes were also made was determined (4). An understanding of the structure and from cDNA inserts isolated from cutinase clones that re- mechanism of action of cutinase could help in the develop- sponded positively to the hybrid-selected translation tests in- ment of effective inhibitors for use as antipenetrants to pro- dicated above. Plasmid isolated from a cutinase cDNA clone tect plants against fungal attack. was treated with Pst I restriction endonuclease and the di- Recent evidence suggested that the infecting capacity of gest was subjected to electrophoresis in 1% low-melting certain pathogenic fungi can be determined by the ability of agarose. The agarose containing the DNA insert was cut the pathogen to produce cutinase (5, 6). Thus the regulation from the gel and melted in 2 vol of 0.01 M Tris HCl, pH 7.5, of expression of cutinase gene could be highly relevant to containing 0.001 M EDTA at 650C, and the agarose was re- pathogenesis. To investigate these molecular aspects of moved from the solution by phenol extraction. After the ad- host-pathogen interaction, labeled cDNA probes for cutin- dition of NaCl to 0.2 M and 2 vol of ethanol, the DNA was ase would be highly beneficial. In this paper we report the precipitated by cooling the solution to -70°C for 15 min. A 32P-labeled probe with a specific activity in excess of 108 The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" Abbreviation: bp, base pair(s). in accordance with 18 U.S.C. §1734 solely to indicate this fact. *To whom reprint requests should be addressed. 3939 Downloaded by guest on September 27, 2021 3940 Biochemistry: Soliday et al. Proc. NatL Acad Sci. USA 81 (1984) dpm/4g was prepared by subjecting 1 tug of the DNA insert to produce, cutinase by the addition of low quantities of to a nick-translation reaction with 60 tkCi (1 Ci = 37 GBq) of chemically prepared cutin hydrolysate. Under such condi- [a-32P]dATP (800 Ci/mmol, New England Nuclear) as de- tions cutinase is the major (>70%) extracellular protein (30). scribed (18). Therefore, the poly(A)+ RNA from such induced cultures, Blot Hybridization Analysis of Inserted DNA and of Fungal already enriched in cutinase-specific mRNA, could be readi- RNA. Plasmid was isolated from cutinase cDNA clones by a ly used to generate cutinase cDNA by reverse transcribing rapid miniscreen procedure described for determination of the total poly(A)+ RNA. This inducibility was also useful in the size of the inserted DNA (13). Restriction enzyme di- the initial selection of possible cutinase cDNA clones in the gests of the plasmid preparations were subjected to electro- total cDNA library. Replica nitrocellulose filters containing phoresis through 1% agarose gels, transferred to nitrocellu- lysed colonies of the fungal cDNA library were hybridized lose filters by the method of Southern (19), and hybridized with labeled cDNA probes transcribed from poly(A)+ RNA with a 32P-labeled probe (17). The hybridized filter was sub- isolated from either cultures induced to produce cutinase or jected to autoradiography and the sizes of the labeled DNA control cultures. From 600 colonies selected as containing inserts were determined by their mobilities as compared to recombinant DNA, 75 colonies showed hybridization with those of DNA standards. the probe generated only from induced cultures. Screening The size of cutinase mRNA was determined by subjecting for clones containing cutinase DNA sequences in these 75 3.5 gg of poly(A)+ RNA isolated from induced fungal cul- colonies was done by hybrid-selected translation. The colo- tfres to electrophoresis through a 1.5% agarose gel.contain- nies were pooled into nine groups, and the plasmid DNA ing 2.2 M formaldehyde (20). The formaldehyde-denatured isolated from five of these groups hybridized with fungal RNA was transferred from the gel to nitrocellulose filters mRNA that upon cell-free translation generated protein that (21) and hybridized with a 32P-labeled' probe. The location of cross-reacted with anti-cutinase IgG. Electrophoresis of the the hybridized mRNA was determined by autoradiography immunoprecipitated translation product in a NaDodSO4/ and the size of the cutinase mRNA was determined by com- polyacrylamide gel revealed a single band with a molecular parison of its mobility to that of known DNA fragments gen- weight of 24,200 compared to the 21,600 molecular weight of erated by Alu I and Hae III digestion of pBR322. the mature cutinase. Evaluation of the group of colonies that Subcloning of DNA Fragments from Restriction Endonucle- displayed the most efficient hybrid-selected translation ase Digests of Isolated Cloned Inserts. Taq I, Hpa II, and Sau- showed two individual colonies that contained cutinase 3A digests were selected for subcloning in cohesive Acc I, DNA sequences inserted in their plasmids.