title: Evaluation of physiological importance of metallothionein protein expressed by Tetrahymena cadmium metallothionein 1 (TMCd1) gene in Escherichia coli.
abstract: TMCd1 is a cadmium inducible metallothionein (MT) gene. In the present study the TMCd1 gene of a ciliate protozoan has been expressed in E. coli and the function of the expressed TMCd1 protein as a metal-binding protein has been evaluated. The growth of E. coli cells expressing the GST fused TMCd1 proteins in the presence of cadmium metal clearly demonstrated the role of TMCd1 as a metal-binding protein. The metal accumulation experiments showed that the bacterial cells expressing the functional TMCd1 protein accumulated 19-fold more cadmium in contrast to control cells that lacked the TMCd1 protein expression. The results clearly demonstrate a physiological role of full length TMCd1 protein of a ciliate, expressed in E. coli, in cadmium metal sequestration and detoxification.
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, University of the Punjab, Quaid-i-Azam Campus, Lahore 54590, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Aliya
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Suleman
authors.forename: Abdul Rauf
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Shakoori
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002104:Cadmium / Q000378:metabolism*; D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D017125:Genes, Protozoan; D008668:Metallothionein / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D013768:Tetrahymena / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D016054:DNA, Protozoan; D015800:Protozoan Proteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C004203:cadmium-binding protein; D002104:Cadmium; D008668:Metallothionein