Use of Differential Scanning Fluorimetry to Identify Nuclear Receptor Ligands.

Identification of small molecules that interact specifically with the ligand-binding domains (LBDs) of nuclear receptors (NRs) can be accomplished using a variety of methodologies. Here, we describe the use of differential scanning fluorimetry to identify these ligands, a technique that requires no modification or derivatization of either the protein or the ligand, and uses an instrument that is becoming increasingly affordable and common in modern molecular biology laboratories, the quantitative, or real-time, PCR machine. Upon being introduced to specific ligands, nuclear receptors undergo structural and dynamic changes that tend to increase molecular stability, which can be measured by the resistance of the protein to heat denaturation. Differential scanning fluorimetry (DSF) uses a dielectric sensitive fluorescent dye to measure the thermal denaturation, or "melting" point (Tm) of a protein under different conditions, in this case in the absence and presence of a candidate ligand. Using DSF, multiple candidates can be screened at once, in numbers corresponding to plate size of the instrument used (e.g., 96- or 384-well), allowing significant throughput if a modest library of compounds needs to be tested.

A trio of human molecular genetics PCR assays.

This laboratory exercise demonstrates three different analytical forms of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) that allow students to genotype themselves at four different loci. Here, we present protocols to allow students to a) genotype a non-coding polymorphic Variable Number of Tandem Repeat (VNTR) locus on human chromosome 5 using conventional PCR, b) perform PCR - Restriction Fragment Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis to genotype a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) of the TAS2R38 gene on human chromosome 7 and c) perform duplex Allele Specific Primer-PCR (ASP-PCR) to genotype SNPs of two enzyme-encoding genes in a single biochemical pathway on human chromosomes 4 and 12. All PCR reactions have been optimized to use a single easily purified sample of the students' own DNA and run under a single thermal cycler program using inexpensive reagents to produce robust and clearly interpretable results on a single agarose gel. As presented here, the lab occupies two lab periods of 2 h, 40 min each: DNA purification followed by PCR reactions set-up on Day 1 and enzyme digestion of the PCR-RFLP and agarose gel analysis on Day 2.

Purification and analysis of colorful hypothetical open reading frames: An inexpensive gateway laboratory.

This laboratory exercise is an inquiry-based investigation developed around the core experiment where students, working alone or in groups, each purify and analyze their own prescreened colored proteins using immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC). Here, we present reagents and protocols that allow 12 different proteins to be purified in parallel without specialized equipment and within a 2.5- to 3-hour undergraduate teaching laboratory. The visual feedback of purifying a colored biomolecule provides real-time emphasis of the power and simplicity of recombinant DNA technology and IMAC. As presented here in its simplest form, this laboratory occupies two laboratory periods: purification followed by SDS-PAGE analysis. As such, it can be easily inserted into the existing curriculum of a Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Biotechnology, or even Genetics course to illustrate core concepts of central dogma and protein purification. Furthermore, the proteins in hand at the end of this 2-week module can also be used for follow-up experiments tailored to the needs, timeframe, and facilities available.

Nuclear receptors homo sapiens Rev-erbbeta and Drosophila melanogaster E75 are thiolate-ligated heme proteins which undergo redox-mediated ligand switching and bind CO and NO.

Nuclear receptors E75, which regulates development in Drosophila melanogaster, and Rev-erbbeta, which regulates circadian rhythm in humans, bind heme within their ligand binding domains (LBD). The heme-bound ligand binding domains of E75 and Rev-erbbeta were studied using electronic absorption, MCD, resonance Raman, and EPR spectroscopies. Both proteins undergo redox-dependent ligand switching and CO- and NO-induced ligand displacement. In the Fe(III) oxidation state, the nuclear receptor hemes are low spin and 6-coordinate with cysteine(thiolate) as one of the two axial heme ligands. The sixth ligand is a neutral donor, presumably histidine. When the heme is reduced to the Fe(II) oxidation state, the cysteine(thiolate) is replaced by a different neutral donor ligand, whose identity is not known. CO binds to the Fe(II) heme in both E75(LBD) and Rev-erbbeta(LBD) opposite a sixth neutral ligand, plausibly the same histidine that served as the sixth ligand in the Fe(III) state. NO binds to the heme of both proteins; however, the NO-heme is 5-coordinate in E75 and 6-coordinate in Rev-erbbeta. These nuclear receptors exhibit coordination characteristics that are similar to other known redox and gas sensors, suggesting that E75 and Rev-erbbeta may function in heme-, redox-, or gas-regulated control of cellular function.

The Drosophila orphan nuclear receptor DHR38 mediates an atypical ecdysteroid signaling pathway.

Ecdysteroid pulses trigger the major developmental transitions during the Drosophila life cycle. These hormonal responses are thought to be mediated by the ecdysteroid receptor (EcR) and its heterodimeric partner Ultraspiracle (USP). We provide evidence for a second ecdysteroid signaling pathway mediated by DHR38, the Drosophila ortholog of the mammalian NGFI-B subfamily of orphan nuclear receptors. DHR38 also heterodimerizes with USP, and this complex responds to a distinct class of ecdysteroids in a manner that is independent of EcR. This response is unusual in that it does not involve direct binding of ecdysteroids to either DHR38 or USP. X-ray crystallographic analysis of DHR38 reveals the absence of both a classic ligand binding pocket and coactivator binding site, features that seem to be common to all NGFI-B subfamily members. Taken together, these data reveal the existence of a separate structural class of nuclear receptors that is conserved from fly to humans.