Bacillus subtilis YhcR, a high-molecular-weight, nonspecific endonuclease with a unique domain structure.
In a continuing effort to identify ribonucleases that may be involved in mRNA decay in Bacillus subtilis, fractionation of a protein extract from a triple-mutant strain that was missing three previously characterized 3'-to-5' exoribonucleases (polynucleotide phosphorylase [PNPase], RNase R, and YhaM) was undertaken. These experiments revealed the presence of a high-molecular-weight nuclease encoded by the yhcR gene that was active in the presence of Ca(2+) and Mn(2+). YhcR is a sugar-nonspecific nuclease that cleaves endonucleolytically to yield nucleotide 3'-monophosphate products, similar to the well-characterized micrococcal nuclease of Staphylococcus aureus. YhcR appears to be located principally in the cell wall and is likely to be a substrate for a B. subtilis sortase. Zymogram analysis suggests that YhcR is the major Ca(2+)-activated nuclease of B. subtilis. In addition to having a unique overall domain structure, YhcR contains a hitherto unknown structural domain that we have named "NYD," for "new YhcR domain."
Department of Pharmacology and Biological Chemistry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine of New York University, New York, NY 10029, USA.
Irina A
IA
Oussenko
Roberto
R
Sanchez
David H
DH
Bechhofer
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019881:Aminoacyltransferases / Q000378:metabolism; D001412:Bacillus subtilis / Q000201:enzymology*; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D002118:Calcium / Q000494:pharmacology; D002473:Cell Wall / Q000201:enzymology; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D003067:Coenzymes / Q000494:pharmacology; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; D015226:Dinucleoside Phosphates / Q000378:metabolism; D004720:Endonucleases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D008345:Manganese / Q000494:pharmacology; D008836:Micrococcal Nuclease / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011117:Polyribonucleotide Nucleotidyltransferase / Q000235:genetics; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D012260:Ribonucleases / Q000378:metabolism; D016415:Sequence Alignment
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003067:Coenzymes; D015226:Dinucleoside Phosphates; D008345:Manganese; D019881:Aminoacyltransferases; C120542:sortase A; D011117:Polyribonucleotide Nucleotidyltransferase; D004720:Endonucleases; D012260:Ribonucleases; C489660:YhcR protein, Bacillus subtilis; D008836:Micrococcal Nuclease; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; D002118:Calcium