The term B-factor, sometimes called the Debye–Waller factor, temperature factor, or atomic displacement parameter, is used in protein crystallography to describe the attenuation of X-ray or neutron scattering caused by thermal motion. This review begins with analyses of early protein studies which suggested that B-factors, available from the Protein Data Bank, can be used to identify the flexibility of atoms, side chains, or even whole regions. This requires a technique for obtaining normalized B-factors. Since then the exploitation of B-factors has been extensively elaborated and applied in a variety of studies with quite different goals, all having in common the identification and interpretation of rigidity, flexibility, and/or internal motion which are crucial in enzymes and in proteins in general. Importantly, this review includes a discussion of limitations and possible pitfalls when using B-factors. A second research area, which likewise exploits B-factors, is also reviewed, namely, the development ...

Utility of B-Factors in Protein Science: Interpreting Rigidity, Flexibility, and Internal Motion and Engineering Thermostability.

Genotype to phenotype, the molecular and physiological dimensions of resistance in arthropods.

Unculturable bacterial communities provide a rich source of biocatalysts, but their experimental discovery by functional metagenomics is difficult, because the odds are stacked against the experimentor. Here we demonstrate functional screening of a million-membered metagenomic library in microfluidic picolitre droplet compartments. Using bait substrates, new hydrolases for sulfate monoesters and phosphotriesters were identified, mostly based on promiscuous activities presumed not to be under selection pressure. Spanning three protein superfamilies, these break new ground in sequence space: promiscuity now connects enzymes with only distantly related sequences. Most hits could not have been predicted by sequence analysis, because the desired activities have never been ascribed to similar sequences, showing how this approach complements bioinformatic harvesting of metagenomic sequencing data. Functional screening of a library of unprecedented size with excellent assay sensitivity has been instrumental in identifying rare genes constituting catalytically versatile hubs in sequence space as potential starting points for the acquisition of new functions.

/pdf/ultrahigh-throughput-discovery-of-promiscuous-enzymes-by-kxd4s9xzal.pdf

Ultrahigh-throughput discovery of promiscuous enzymes by picodroplet functional metagenomics.

The insect fat body is analogous to vertebrate adipose tissue and liver. In this review, the new and exciting advancements made in fat body biology in the last decade are summarized. Controlled by ...

Fat Body Biology in the Last Decade.

Physical and molecular bases of protein thermal stability and cold adaptation

Insect carboxylesterases from the αEsterase gene cluster, such as αE7 (also known as E3) from the Australian sheep blowfly Lucilia cuprina (LcαE7), play an important physiological role in lipid metabolism and are implicated in the detoxification of organophosphate (OP) insecticides. Despite the importance of OPs to agriculture and the spread of insect-borne diseases, the molecular basis for the ability of α-carboxylesterases to confer OP resistance to insects is poorly understood. In this work, we used laboratory evolution to increase the thermal stability of LcαE7, allowing its overexpression in Escherichia coli and structure determination. The crystal structure reveals a canonical α/β-hydrolase fold that is very similar to the primary target of OPs (acetylcholinesterase) and a unique N-terminal α-helix that serves as a membrane anchor. Soaking of LcαE7 crystals in OPs led to the capture of a crystallographic snapshot of LcαE7 in its phosphorylated state, which allowed comparison with acetylcholinesterase and rationalization of its ability to protect insects against the effects of OPs. Finally, inspection of the active site of LcαE7 reveals an asymmetric and hydrophobic substrate binding cavity that is well-suited to fatty acid methyl esters, which are hydrolyzed by the enzyme with specificity constants (∼106 M−1 s−1) indicative of a natural substrate.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/110/25/10177.full.pdf

Structure and function of an insect α-carboxylesterase (αEsterase7) associated with insecticide resistance

Evolution of Protein Quaternary Structure in Response to Selective Pressure for Increased Thermostability.

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Structure and function of an insect α-carboxylesterase (αEsterase7) associated with insecticide resistance

Evolution of Protein Quaternary Structure in Response to Selective Pressure for Increased Thermostability.