The Staphylococcus aureus plasmid pI258 cadCA operon encodes a P-type ATPase, CadA, that confers resistance to the heavy metals Cd(II), Zn(II), and Pb(II). Expression of this heavy-metal efflux pump is regulated by CadC, a homodimeric repressor that dissociates from the cad operator/promoter upon binding of Cd(II), Pb(II), or Zn(II). CadC is a member of the ArsR/SmtB family of metalloregulatory proteins. Here we report the X-ray crystal structure of CadC at 1.9 Å resolution. The dimensions of the protein dimer are approximately 30 Å by 40 Å by 70 Å. Each monomer contains six ␣-helices and a three-stranded ␤-sheet. Helices 4 and 5 form a classic helix-turn-helix motif that is the putative DNA binding region. The ␣1 helix of one monomer crosses the dimer to approach the ␣4 helix of the other monomer, consistent with the previous proposal that these two regulatory metal binding sites for the inducer cadmium or lead are each formed by Cys-7 and Cys-11 from the N terminus of one monomer and Cys-58 and Cys-60 of the other monomer. Two nonregulatory metal binding sites containing zinc are formed between the two antiparallel ␣6 helices at the dimerization interface. This is the first reported three-dimensional structure of a member of the ArsR/SmtB family with regulatory metal binding sites at the DNA binding domain and the first structure of a transcription repressor that responds to the heavy metals Cd(II) and Pb(II).

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Iron-sulfur (Fe-S) cluster containing proteins are utilized in almost every biochemical pathway. The unique redox and coordination chemistry associated with the cofactor allows these proteins to participate in a diverse set of reactions, including electron transfer, enzyme catalysis, DNA synthesis and signaling within several pathways. Due to the high reactivity of the metal, it is not surprising that biological Fe-S cluster assembly is tightly regulated within cells. In yeast, the major assembly pathway for Fe-S clusters is the mitochondrial ISC pathway. Yeast Fe-S cluster assembly is accomplished using the scaffold protein (Isu1) as the molecular foundation, with assistance from the cysteine desulfurase (Nfs1) to provide sulfur, the accessory protein (Isd11) to regulate Nfs1 activity, the yeast frataxin homologue (Yfh1) to regulate Nfs1 activity and participate in Isu1 Fe loading possibly as a chaperone, and the ferredoxin (Yah1) to provide reducing equivalents for assembly. In this report, we utilize calorimetric and spectroscopic methods to provide molecular insight into how wt-Isu1 from S. cerevisiae becomes loaded with iron. Isothermal Titration Calorimetry (ITC) and an iron competition binding assay were developed to characterize the energetics of protein Fe(II) binding. Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) was used to identify thermodynamic characteristics of the protein in the apo state or under iron loaded conditions. Finally, X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy (XAS) was used to characterize the electronic and structural properties of Fe(II) bound to Isu1. Current data are compared to our previous characterization of the D37A Isu1 mutant, and these suggest that when Isu1 binds Fe(II) in a manner not perturbed by the D37A substitution, and that metal binding occurs at a site distinct from the cysteine rich active site in the protein.

Both sites bind either Cd(II) or Zn(II). However, Site 1 has higher affinity for Cd(II) over Zn(II), and Site 2 prefers Zn(II) over Cd(II). Site 2 is not required for either derepression or dimerization. The crystal structure of the wild type with bound Zn(II) and of a mutant lacking Site 2 was compared with the SmtB structure with and without bound Zn(II). We propose that an arginine residue allows for Zn(II) regulation in SmtB and, conversely, a glycine results in a lack of regulation by Zn(II) in CadC. We propose that a glycine residue was ancestral whether the repressor binds Zn(II) at a Site 2 like CadC or has no Site 2 like the paralogous ArsR and implies that acquisition of regulatory ability in SmtB was a more recent evolutionary event.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, and development of disease-modifying treatment is still an unmet medical need. Considering the implication of free iron(II) in PD, we report here the design and characterization of a novel hybrid iron chelator, (-)-12 (D-607) as a multitarget-directed ligand against PD. Binding and functional assays at dopamine D/D receptors indicate potent agonist activity of (-)-12. The molecule displayed an efficient preferential iron(II) chelation properties along with potent in vivo activity in a reserpinized PD animal model. The compound also rescued PC12 cells from toxicity induced by iron delivered intracellularly in a dose-dependent manner. However, Fe selective dopamine agonist 1 and a well-known antiparkinsonian drug pramipexole produced little to no neuroprotection effect under the same experimental condition. These observations strongly suggest that (-)-12 should be a promising multifunctional lead molecule for a viable symptomatic and disease modifying therapy of PD.