Crystal structure of NtcA in complex with 2-oxoglutarateCrystal structure of NtcA in complex with 2-oxoglutarate

Structural highlights

3la2 is a 2 chain structure with sequence from Nostoc sp. PCC 7120 = FACHB-418. Full crystallographic information is available from OCA. For a guided tour on the structure components use FirstGlance.
Method:X-ray diffraction, Resolution 2.6Å
Ligands:
Resources:FirstGlance, OCA, PDBe, RCSB, PDBsum, ProSAT

Function

NTCA_NOSS1 Required for full expression of proteins subject to ammonium repression. Transcriptional activator of genes subject to nitrogen control. Has affinity for the xisA upstream region. Binds to a 66 bp region containing three repeats of the consensus recognition sequence 5'-ACATT-3'.

Evolutionary Conservation

 

Check, as determined by ConSurfDB. You may read the explanation of the method and the full data available from ConSurf.

Publication Abstract from PubMed

2-oxogluatarate (2-OG), a metabolite of the highly conserved Krebs cycle, not only plays a critical role in metabolism, but also constitutes a signaling molecule in a variety of organisms ranging from bacteria to plants and animals. In cyanobacteria, the accumulation of 2-OG constitutes the signal of nitrogen starvation and NtcA, a global transcription factor, has been proposed as a putative receptor for 2-OG. Here we present three crystal structures of NtcA from the cyanobacterium Anabaena: the apoform, and two ligand-bound forms in complex with either 2-OG or its analogue 2,2-difluoropentanedioic acid. All structures assemble as homodimers, with each subunit composed of an N-terminal effector-binding domain and a C-terminal DNA-binding domain connected by a long helix (C-helix). The 2-OG binds to the effector-binding domain at a pocket similar to that used by cAMP in catabolite activator protein, but with a different pattern. Comparative structural analysis reveals a putative signal transmission route upon 2-OG binding. A tighter coiled-coil conformation of the two C-helices induced by 2-OG is crucial to maintain the proper distance between the two F-helices for DNA recognition. Whereas catabolite activator protein adopts a transition from off-to-on state upon cAMP binding, our structural analysis explains well why NtcA can bind to DNA even in its apoform, and how 2-OG just enhances the DNA-binding activity of NtcA. These findings provided the structural insights into the function of a global transcription factor regulated by 2-OG, a metabolite standing at a crossroad between carbon and nitrogen metabolisms.

Structural basis for the allosteric control of the global transcription factor NtcA by the nitrogen starvation signal 2-oxoglutarate.,Zhao MX, Jiang YL, He YX, Chen YF, Teng YB, Chen Y, Zhang CC, Zhou CZ Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jul 13;107(28):12487-92. Epub 2010 Jun 28. PMID:20616047[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

References

  1. Zhao MX, Jiang YL, He YX, Chen YF, Teng YB, Chen Y, Zhang CC, Zhou CZ. Structural basis for the allosteric control of the global transcription factor NtcA by the nitrogen starvation signal 2-oxoglutarate. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Jul 13;107(28):12487-92. Epub 2010 Jun 28. PMID:20616047 doi:10.1073/pnas.1001556107

3la2, resolution 2.60Å

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