Primary Hyperoxaluria Type I (PH1) is a severe rare disorder of metabolism due to inherited mutations on liver peroxisomal alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), a pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP)-dependent enzyme whose deficiency causes the deposition of calcium oxalate crystals in the kidneys and urinary tract. PH1 is an extremely heterogeneous disease and there are more than 150 disease-causing mutations currently known, most of which are missense mutations. Moreover, the molecular mechanisms by which missense mutations lead to AGT deficiency span from structural, functional to subcellular localization defects. Gly161 is a highly conserved residue whose mutation to Arg, Cys or Ser is associated with PH1. Here we investigated the molecular bases of the AGT deficit caused by Gly161 mutations with expression studies in a mammalian cellular system paired with biochemical analyses on the purified recombinant proteins. Our results show that the mutations of Gly161 (i) strongly reduce the expression levels and the intracellular half-life of AGT, and (ii) make the protein in the apo-form prone to an electrostatically-driven aggregation in the cell cytosol. The coenzyme PLP, by shifting the equilibrium from the apo- to the holo-form, is able to reduce the aggregation propensity of the variants, thus partly decreasing the effect of the mutations. Altogether, these results shed light on the mechanistic details underlying the pathogenicity of Gly161 variants, thus expanding our knowledge of the enzymatic phenotypes leading to AGT deficiency.

Many human diseases are caused by genetic mutations that decrease protein stability. Such mutations may not specifically affect an active site, but can alter protein folding, abundance, or localization. Here we describe a high-throughput cell-based stability assay, IDESA (intra-DHFR enzyme stability assay), where stability is coupled to cell proliferation in the model yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The assay requires no prior knowledge of a protein's structure or activity, allowing the assessment of stability of proteins that have unknown or difficult to characterize activities, and we demonstrate use with a range of disease-relevant targets, including human alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), superoxide dismutase (SOD-1), DJ-1, p53, and SMN1. The assay can be carried out on hundreds of disease alleles in parallel or used to identify stabilizing small molecules (pharmacological chaperones) for unstable alleles. As demonstration of the general utility of this assay, we analyze stability of disease alleles of AGT, deficiency of which results in the kidney stone disease, primary hyperoxaluria type I, identifying mutations that specifically affect the protein-active site chemistry.

No abstract

Primary Hyperoxaluria Type 1 (PH1) is a rare autosomal recessive kidney stone disease caused by deficiency of the peroxisomal enzyme alanine: glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), which is involved in glyoxylate detoxification. Over 75 different missense mutations in AGT have been found associated with PH1. While some of the mutations have been found to affect enzyme activity, stability, and/or localization, approximately half of these mutations are completely uncharacterized. In this study, we sought to systematically characterize AGT missense mutations associated with PH1. To facilitate analysis, we used two high-throughput yeast-based assays: one that assesses AGT specific activity, and one that assesses protein stability. Approximately 30% of PH1-associated missense mutations are found in conjunction with a minor allele polymorphic variant, which can interact to elicit complex effects on protein stability and trafficking. To better understand this allele interaction, we functionally characterized each of 34 mutants on both the major (wild-type) and minor allele backgrounds, identifying mutations that synergize with the minor allele. We classify these mutants into four distinct categories depending on activity/stability results in the different alleles. Twelve mutants were found to display reduced activity in combination with the minor allele, compared with the major allele background. When mapped on the AGT dimer structure, these mutants reveal localized regions of the protein that appear particularly sensitive to interactions with the minor allele variant. While the majority of the deleterious effects on activity in the minor allele can be attributed to synergistic interaction affecting protein stability, we identify one mutation, E274D, that appears to specifically affect activity when in combination with the minor allele.

Primary Hyperoxaluria type I (PH1) is a rare disease due to the deficit of peroxisomal alanine:glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), a homodimeric pyridoxal-5′-phosphate (PLP) enzyme present in humans as major (Ma) and minor (Mi) allele. PH1-causing mutations are mostly missense identified in both homozygous and compound heterozygous patients. Until now, the pathogenesis of PH1 has been only studied by approaches mimicking homozygous patients, whereas the molecular aspects of the genotype-enzymatic-clinical phenotype relationship in compound heterozygous patients are completely unknown. Here, for the first time, we elucidate the enzymatic phenotype linked to the S81L mutation on AGT-Ma, relative to a PLP-binding residue, and how it changes when the most common mutation G170R on AGT-Mi, known to cause AGT mistargeting without affecting the enzyme functionality, is present in the second allele. By using a bicistronic eukaryotic expression vector, we demonstrate that (i) S81L-Ma is mainly in its apo-form and has a significant peroxisomal localization and (ii) S81L and G170R monomers interact giving rise to the G170R-Mi/S81L-Ma holo-form, which is imported into peroxisomes and exhibits an enhanced functionality with respect to the parental enzymes. These data, integrated with the biochemical features of the heterodimer and the homodimeric counterparts in their purified recombinant form, (i) highlight the molecular basis of the pathogenicity of S81L-Ma and (ii) provide evidence for a positive interallelic complementation between the S81L and G170R monomers. Our study represents a valid approach to investigate the molecular pathogenesis of PH1 in compound heterozygous patients.