title: Elusive Structural, Functional, and Immunological Features of Act d 5, the Green Kiwifruit Kiwellin.
abstract: Kiwellin (Act d 5) is an allergenic protein contained in kiwifruit pulp in high amounts. The aim of this study was to investigate the three-dimensional structure of the natural molecule from green kiwifruit and its possible function. Kiwellin was crystallized, and its structure, including post-translational modifications, was elucidated. The molecular weight and structural features, in solution, were analyzed by gel filtration and circular dichroism, respectively. Although structurally similar to expansin, kiwellin lacks expansin activity and carbohydrate binding. A specific algorithm was applied to investigate any possible IgE reactivity correlation between kiwellin and a panel of 102 allergens, including expansins and other carbohydrate-binding allergens. The available data suggest a strong dependence of the kiwellin structure on the environmental/experimental conditions. This dependence therefore poses challenges in detecting the correlations between structural, functional, and immunological features of this protein.
authors.affiliation: †Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, United States.
authors.forename: Lesa R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Offermann
authors.affiliation: §Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources, CNR, Via Pietro Castellino 111, I-80131 Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: Ivana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Giangrieco
authors.affiliation: †Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, United States.
authors.forename: Makenzie L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Perdue
authors.affiliation: #Center for Molecular Allergology, IDI-IRCCS, Rome, Italy.|ΔAssociated Centers for Molecular Allergology, Rome and Latium, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zuzzi
authors.affiliation: #Center for Molecular Allergology, IDI-IRCCS, Rome, Italy.|ΔAssociated Centers for Molecular Allergology, Rome and Latium, Italy.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Santoro
authors.affiliation: §Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources, CNR, Via Pietro Castellino 111, I-80131 Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tamburrini
authors.affiliation: ⊥Department of Biology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, United States.
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Cosgrove
authors.affiliation: #Center for Molecular Allergology, IDI-IRCCS, Rome, Italy.|ΔAssociated Centers for Molecular Allergology, Rome and Latium, Italy.
authors.forename: Adriano
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mari
authors.affiliation: §Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources, CNR, Via Pietro Castellino 111, I-80131 Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria Antonietta
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ciardiello
authors.affiliation: †Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina 29208, United States.
authors.forename: Maksymilian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chruszcz
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D052179:Antigens, Plant / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D002942:Circular Dichroism; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000276:immunology; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015394:Molecular Structure; D008970:Molecular Weight; D010940:Plant Proteins; D012996:Solutions
chemical_list: D052179:Antigens, Plant; D010940:Plant Proteins; D012996:Solutions; C095825:expansin protein, plant; C507612:kiwellin protein, Actinidia chinensis; D007073:Immunoglobulin E
keywords: allergen; kiwellin; kiwifruit; protein crystallization