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Guanosine triphosphatases (GTPases) function as molecular switches in signal transduction pathways that enable cells to respond to extracellular stimuli. Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast protein two 1 protein (Ypt1p) is a monomeric small GTPase that is essential for endoplasmic reticulum-to-Golgi trafficking. By size-exclusion chromatography, SDS-PAGE, and native PAGE, followed by immunoblot analysis with an anti-Ypt1p antibody, we found that Ypt1p structurally changed from low-molecular-weight (LMW) forms to high-molecular-weight (HMW) complexes after heat shock. Based on our results, Ypt1p exhibited dual functions both as a GTPase and a molecular chaperone, and furthermore, heat shock induced a functional switch from that of a GTPase to a molecular chaperone driven by the structural change from LMW to HMW forms. Subsequently, we found, by using a galactose-inducible expression system, that conditional overexpression of YPT1 in yeast cells enhanced the thermotolerance of cells by increasing the survival rate at 55°C by ~60%, compared with the control cells expressing YPT1 in the wild-type level. Altogether, our results suggest that Ypt1p is involved in the cellular protection process under heat stress conditions. Also, these findings provide new insight into the in vivo roles of small GTP-binding proteins and have an impact on research and the investigation of human diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multiple isoforms of Arabidopsis thaliana h-type thioredoxins (AtTrx-hs) have distinct structural and functional specificities. AtTrx-h3 acts as both a disulfide reductase and as a molecular chaperone. We prepared five representative AtTrx-hs and compared their protein structures and disulfide reductase and molecular chaperone activities. AtTrx-h2 with an N-terminal extension exhibited distinct functional properties with respect to other AtTrx-hs. AtTrx-h2 formed low-molecular-mass structures and exhibited only disulfide reductase activity, whereas the other AtTrx-h isoforms formed high-molecular-mass complexes and displayed both disulfide reductase and molecular chaperone activities. The domains that determine the unique structural and functional properties of each AtTrx-hs protein were determined by constructing a domain-swap between the N- and C-terminal regions of AtTrx-h2 and AtTrx-h3 (designated AtTrx-h-2N3C and AtTrx-h-3N2C respectively), an N-terminal deletion mutant of AtTrx-h2 [AtTrx-h2-N(Δ19)] and site-directed mutagenesis of AtTrx-h3. AtTrx-h2-N(Δ19) and AtTrx-h-3N2C exhibited similar properties to those of AtTrx-h2, but AtTrx-h-2N3C behaved more like AtTrx-h3, suggesting that the structural and functional specificities of AtTrx-hs are determined by their C-terminal regions. Hydrophobicity profiling and molecular modelling revealed that Ala100 and Ala106 in AtTrx-h3 play critical roles in its structural and functional regulation. When these two residues in AtTrx-h3 were replaced with lysine, AtTrx-h3 functioned like AtTrx-h2. The chaperone function of AtTrx-hs conferred enhanced heat-shock-resistance on a thermosensitive trx1/2-null yeast mutant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large number of thioredoxins (Trxs), small redox proteins, have been identified from all living organisms. However, many of the physiological roles played by these proteins remain to be elucidated. We isolated a high Mr (HMW) form of h-type Trx from the heat-treated cytosolic extracts of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) suspension cells and designated it as AtTrx-h3. Using bacterially expressed recombinant AtTrx-h3, we find that it forms various protein structures ranging from low and oligomeric protein species to HMW complexes. And the AtTrx-h3 performs dual functions, acting as a disulfide reductase and as a molecular chaperone, which are closely associated with its molecular structures. The disulfide reductase function is observed predominantly in the low Mr forms, whereas the chaperone function predominates in the HMW complexes. The multimeric structures of AtTrx-h3 are regulated not only by heat shock but also by redox status. Two active cysteine residues in AtTrx-h3 are required for disulfide reductase activity, but not for chaperone function. AtTrx-h3 confers enhanced heat-shock tolerance in Arabidopsis, primarily through its chaperone function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We found that Arabidopsis AtTDX, a heat-stable and plant-specific thioredoxin (Trx)-like protein, exhibits multiple functions, acting as a disulfide reductase, foldase chaperone, and holdase chaperone. The activity of AtTDX, which contains 3 tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domains and a Trx motif, depends on its oligomeric status. The disulfide reductase and foldase chaperone functions predominate when AtTDX occurs in the low molecular weight (LMW) form, whereas the holdase chaperone function predominates in the high molecular weight (HMW) complexes. Because deletion of the TPR domains results in a significant enhancement of AtTDX disulfide reductase activity and complete loss of the holdase chaperone function, our data suggest that the TPR domains of AtTDX block the active site of Trx and play a critical role in promoting the holdase chaperone function. The oligomerization status of AtTDX is reversibly regulated by heat shock, which causes a transition from LMW to HMW complexes with concomitant functional switching from a disulfide reductase and foldase chaperone to a holdase chaperone. Overexpression of AtTDX in Arabidopsis conferred enhanced heat shock resistance to plants, primarily via its holdase chaperone activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]