Pliable natural biocide: Jaburetox is an intrinsically disordered insecticidal and fungicidal polypeptide derived from jack bean urease

Lopes, Fernanda Cortez; Dobrovolska, Olena; Real‐Guerra, Rafael; Broll, Valquiria; Zambelli, Barbara; Musiani, Francesco; Uversky, Vladimir N.; Carlini, Célia R.; Ciurli, Stefano

doi:10.1111/febs.13201

Cited by 29 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 110 publications

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“…The recombinant peptide Jbtx was expressed and purified as described by Lopes et al (2015) with minor modification. After the purification, Jbtx was extensively dialyzed against Tris buffer (500 mM Tris‐HCl, 100 mM MgCl 2 , 0.02% sodium azide), pH 7.5.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Jaburetox, a urease‐derived peptide: Effects on enzymatic pathways of the cockroach Nauphoeta cinerea

Perin

Noronha

Moyetta

et al. 2020

Arch Insect Biochem Physiol

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Jaburetox is a recombinant peptide derived from one of the Canavalia ensiformis urease isoforms. This peptide induces several toxic effects on insects of different orders, including interference on muscle contractility in cockroaches, modulation of UDP‐N‐acetylglucosamine pyrophosphorylase (UAP) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activities in the central nervous system of triatomines, as well as activation of the immune system in Rhodnius prolixus. When injected, the peptide is lethal for R. prolixus and Triatoma infestans. Here, we evaluated Jaburetox toxicity to Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches, exploring the effects on the central nervous system through the activities of UAP, NOS, acid phosphatases (ACP), and acetylcholinesterase (AChE). The results indicated that N. cinerea is not susceptible to the lethal effect of the peptide. Moreover, both in vivo and in vitro treatments with Jaburetox inhibited NOS activity, without modifying the protein levels. No alterations on ACP activity were observed. In addition, the enzyme activity of UAP only had its activity affected at 18 hr after injection. The peptide increased the AChE activity, suggesting a mechanism involved in overcoming the toxic effects. In conclusion, our findings indicate that Jaburetox affects the nitrinergic signaling as well as the AChE and UAP activities and establishes N. cinerea as a Jaburetox‐resistant model for future comparative studies.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Jaburetox, a urease‐derived peptide: Effects on enzymatic pathways of the cockroach Nauphoeta cinerea

Perin

Noronha

Moyetta

et al. 2020

Arch Insect Biochem Physiol

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“…The recombinant peptide Jaburetox (without a fused V5-antigen) was expressed and purified as described by Lopes et al [ 26 ] with modifications. Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) RIL harboring the plasmid pET23a-Jaburetox was cultured in 20 ml LB (Luria Bertani) Broth, with 100 μg/ml ampicillin and 40 μg/ml chloramphenicol.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Humoral and cellular immune responses induced by the urease-derived peptide Jaburetox in the model organism Rhodnius prolixus

et al. 2016

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BackgroundAlthough the entomotoxicity of plant ureases has been reported almost 20 years ago, their insecticidal mechanism of action is still not well understood. Jaburetox is a recombinant peptide derived from one of the isoforms of Canavalia ensiformis (Jack Bean) urease that presents biotechnological interest since it is toxic to insects of different orders. Previous studies of our group using the Chagas disease vector and model insect Rhodnius prolixus showed that the treatment with Jack Bean Urease (JBU) led to hemocyte aggregation and hemolymph darkening, among other effects. In this work, we employed cell biology and biochemical approaches to investigate whether Jaburetox would induce not only cellular but also humoral immune responses in this species.ResultsThe findings indicated that nanomolar doses of Jaburetox triggered cation-dependent, in vitro aggregation of hemocytes of fifth-instar nymphs and adults. The use of specific eicosanoid synthesis inhibitors revealed that the cellular immune response required cyclooxygenase products since indomethacin prevented the Jaburetox-dependent aggregation whereas baicalein and esculetin (inhibitors of the lipoxygenases pathway) did not. Cultured hemocytes incubated with Jaburetox for 24 h showed cytoskeleton disorganization, chromatin condensation and were positive for activated caspase 3, an apoptosis marker, although their phagocytic activity remained unchanged. Finally, in vivo treatments by injection of Jaburetox induced both a cellular response, as observed by hemocyte aggregation, and a humoral response, as seen by the increase of spontaneous phenoloxidase activity, a key enzyme involved in melanization and defense. On the other hand, the humoral response elicited by Jaburetox injections did not lead to an increment of antibacterial or lysozyme activities. Jaburetox injections also impaired the clearance of the pathogenic bacteria Staphylococcus aureus from the hemolymph leading to increased mortality, indicating a possible immunosuppression induced by treatment with the peptide.ConclusionsIn our experimental conditions and as part of its toxic action, Jaburetox activates some responses of the immune system of R. prolixus both in vivo and in vitro, although this induction does not protect the insects against posterior bacterial infections. Taken together, these findings contribute to the general knowledge of insect immunity and shed light on Jaburetox’s mechanism of action.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1710-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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“…A large hydrodynamic radius, together with light scattering, CD and NMR spectroscopic data, shows that Jaburetox is a monomeric disordered peptide with an -helix motif by its N-terminus and two turn-like structures in the central region and by the C-terminus of the peptide. It is suggested that the Jaburetox IDP might act as a membrane protein and/or as a scaffold protein, but evidence for this is still lacking, therefore a comprehensive view of its insecticidal activity remains elusive [136].…”

Section: Jaburetox An Intrinsically Disordered Insecticidal Polypeptidementioning

confidence: 99%

Structural disorder in plant proteins: where plasticity meets sessility

Covarrubias

Cuevas-Velazquez

Romero-Pérez

et al. 2017

Cell. Mol. Life Sci.

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Plants are sessile organisms. This intriguing nature provokes the question of how they survive despite the continual perturbations caused by their constantly changing environment. The large amount of knowledge accumulated to date demonstrates the fascinating dynamic and plastic mechanisms, which underpin the diverse strategies selected in plants in response to the fluctuating environment. This phenotypic plasticity requires an efficient integration of external cues to their growth and developmental programs that can only be achieved through the dynamic and interactive coordination of various signaling networks. Given the versatility of intrinsic structural disorder within proteins, this feature appears as one of the leading characters of such complex functional circuits, critical for plant adaptation and survival in their wild habitats. In this review, we present information of those intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) from plants for which their high level of predicted structural disorder has been correlated with a particular function, or where there is experimental evidence linking this structural feature with its protein function. Using examples of plant IDPs involved in the control of cell cycle, metabolism, hormonal signaling and regulation of gene expression, development and responses to stress, we demonstrate the critical importance of IDPs throughout the life of the plant.

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Pliable natural biocide: Jaburetox is an intrinsically disordered insecticidal and fungicidal polypeptide derived from jack bean urease

Cited by 29 publications

References 110 publications

Jaburetox, a urease‐derived peptide: Effects on enzymatic pathways of the cockroach Nauphoeta cinerea

Jaburetox, a urease‐derived peptide: Effects on enzymatic pathways of the cockroach Nauphoeta cinerea

Humoral and cellular immune responses induced by the urease-derived peptide Jaburetox in the model organism Rhodnius prolixus

Structural disorder in plant proteins: where plasticity meets sessility

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