Sung-eon Ryu

The master switch of cellular hypoxia responses, hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1), is hydroxylated by factor inhibiting HIF-1 (FIH-1) at a conserved asparagine residue under normoxia, which suppresses transcriptional activity of HIF-1 by abrogating its interaction with transcription coactivators. Here we report the crystal structure of human FIH-1 at 2.8-A resolution. The structural core of FIH-1 consists of a jellyroll-like beta-barrel containing the conserved ferrous-binding triad residues,

The bacterial thermoalkalophilic lipases optimally hydrolyze saturated fatty acids at elevated temperatures. They also have significant sequence homology with staphylococcal lipases, and both the thermoalkalophilic and staphylococcal lipases are grouped as the lipase family I.5. We report here the first crystal structure of the lipase family I.5, the structure of a thermoalkalophilic lipase from Bacillus stearothermophilus L1 (L1 lipase) determined at 2.0-A resolution. The structure is in a clos

Cellular redox control is often mediated by oxidation and reduction of cysteine residues in the redox-sensitive proteins, where thioredoxin and glutaredoxin (Grx) play as electron donors for the oxidized proteins. Despite the importance of protein-protein interactions between the electron donor and acceptor proteins, there has been no structural information for the interaction of thioredoxin or Grx with natural target proteins. Here, we present the crystal structure of a novel Haemophilus influe

The Escherichia coli transmembrane protein DsbD transfers electrons from the cytoplasm to the periplasm through a cascade of thiol-disulfide exchange reactions. In this process, the C-terminal periplasmic domain of DsbD (DsbDgamma) shuttles the reducing potential from the membrane domain (DsbDbeta) to the N-terminal periplasmic domain (DsbDalpha). The crystal structure of DsbDgamma determined at 1.9 A resolution reveals that the domain has a thioredoxin fold with an extended N-terminal stretch.

N-Sulfamoylphenylalanine and its derivatives having varied alkyl groups on the terminal amino group were designed rationally as transition state analogue inhibitors for carboxypeptidase A (CPA) and synthesized. In CPA inhibitory assays the parent compound having the (S)-configuration, i.e., (S)-1a, showed potent inhibitory activity with the K(i) value of 0.64 microM. Its enantiomer was shown to be much less potent (K(i) = 470 microM). Introduction of an alkyl group such as methyl or isopropyl gr

Thioredoxin-related protein 14 (TRP14) is involved in regulating tumor necrosis factor-α-induced signaling pathways in a different manner from human thioredoxin 1 (Trx1). Here, we report the crystal structure of human TRP14 determined at 1.8-Å resolutions. The structure reveals a typical thioredoxin fold with characteristic structural features that account for the substrate specificity of the protein. The surface of TRP14 in the vicinity of the active site includes an extended loop and an addit

Cdc25 phosphatases have been considered as attractive drug targets for anticancer therapy because of the correlation of their overexpression with a wide variety of cancers. We have been able to identify five novel Cdc25 phosphatase inhibitors with micromolar activity by means of a computer-aided drug design protocol involving the homology modeling of Cdc25A and the virtual screening with the automated AutoDock program implementing the effects of ligand solvation in the scoring function. Because

Eya proteins are transcription factors that play pivotal roles in organ formation during development by mediating interactions between Sine Oculis (SO) and Dachshund (DAC). Remarkably, the transcriptional activity of Eya proteins is regulated by a dephosphorylating activity within its Eya domain (ED). However, the molecular basis for the link between catalytic and transcriptional activities remains unclear. Here we report the first description of the crystal structure of the ED of human Eya2 (ED

Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) mediate a variety of cell signals regulating cell growth, differentiation, transcription, and metabolism. MAPKs are fully activated by dual phosphorylation on tyrosine and threonine in their activation loops. This process is thought to be counteracted by a family of proteins termed dual-specificity protein tyrosine phosphatases (DSPs). Inadequate production or action of MAPKs or DSPs has been associated with diverse human disorders, including cancer, dia