title: A functional protein hybrid between the glucose transporter and the N-acetylglucosamine transporter of Escherichia coli.
abstract: The glucose and N-acetylglucosamine-specific transporters (IIGlc/IIIGlc and IIGlcNAc) of the bacterial phosphotransferase system mediate carbohydrate uptake across the cytoplasmic membrane concomitant with substrate phosphorylation. The two transporters have 40% amino acid sequence identity. Eight chimeric proteins between the two transporters were made by gene reconstruction. All hybrid proteins could be expressed, some inhibited cell growth, and one was active. The active hybrid transporter consists of the transmembrane domain (residues 1-386) of the IIGlc subunit and the two hydrophilic domains (residues 370-648) of IIGlcNAc. The N-terminal hydrophilic domain of IIGlcNAc contains the transiently phosphorylated cysteine-412. The hybrid protein is specific for glucose, which indicates that the sugar specificity determinant is in the transmembrane domain and that the cysteine from which the phosphoryl group is transferred to the substrate is not part of the binding site. The protein sequence (LKTPGRED) at which the successful fusion occurred has the characteristic properties of an interdomain oligopeptide linker (Argos, P., 1990, J. Mol. Biol. 211, 943-958).
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Biocenter, University of Basel, Switzerland.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Hummel
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nuoffer
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zanolari
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Erni
mesh_terms: D000117:Acetylglucosamine / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009004:Monosaccharide Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D010731:Phosphoenolpyruvate Sugar Phosphotransferase System / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D055503:Protein Multimerization; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D015183:Restriction Mapping; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014161:Transduction, Genetic
chemical_list: D009004:Monosaccharide Transport Proteins; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D010731:Phosphoenolpyruvate Sugar Phosphotransferase System; C081515:acetylglucosamine transporter; D005947:Glucose; D000117:Acetylglucosamine