RESUMEN
The color of firefly bioluminescence is determined by the structure of luciferase. Firefly luciferase genes have been isolated from more than 30 species, producing light ranging in color from green to orange-yellow. Here, we reconstructed seven ancestral firefly luciferase genes, characterized the enzymatic properties of the recombinant proteins, and determined the crystal structures of the gene from ancestral Lampyridae. Results showed that the synthetic luciferase for the last common firefly ancestor exhibited green light caused by a spatial constraint on the luciferin molecule in enzyme, while fatty acyl-CoA synthetic activity, an original function of firefly luciferase, was diminished in exchange. All known firefly species are bioluminescent in the larvae, with a common ancestor arising approximately 100 million years ago. Combined, our findings propose that, within the mid-Cretaceous forest, the common ancestor of fireflies evolved green light luciferase via trade-off of the original function, which was likely aposematic warning display against nocturnal predation.
RESUMEN
We previously identified a gene encoding a CAP (adenylyl cyclase-associated protein) homologue from the edible Basidiomycete Lentinus edodes. To further discover the cellular functions of the CAP protein, we searched for CAP-interacting proteins using a yeast two-hybrid system. Among the candidates thus obtained, many clones encoded the C-terminal half of an L. edodes 14-3-3 homologue (designated cip3). Southern blot analysis indicated that L. edodes contains only one 14-3-3 gene. Overexpression of the L. edodes 14-3-3 protein in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe rad24 null cells complemented the loss of endogenous 14-3-3 protein functions in cell morphology and UV sensitivity, suggesting functional conservation of 14-3-3 proteins between L. edodes and S. pombe. The interaction between L. edodes CAP and 14-3-3 protein was restricted to the N-terminal domain of CAP and was confirmed by in vitro co-precipitation. Results from both the two-hybrid system and in vivo co-precipitation experiments showed the conservation of this interaction in S. pombe. The observation that a 14-3-3 protein interacts with the N-terminal portion of CAP but not with full-length CAP in L. edodes and S. pombe suggests that the C-terminal region of CAP may have a negative effect on the interaction between CAP and 14-3-3 proteins, and 14-3-3 proteins may play a role in regulation of CAP function.