The C1q-tumor necrosis factor 5 (C1QTNF5) protein plays a significant role in retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE) cellular adhesion. The C1QTNF5 gene is co-transcribed with the frizzled-related protein (MFRP) gene. A Ser-to-Arg mutation at site 163 (S163R) in C1QTNF5 is known to cause late-onset retinal macular degeneration (L-ORMD). Here we also found that C1QTNF5 monomers can multimerize into a bouquet-like octadecamer. We found that a novel intermolecular hydrogen-bond network of S163 that glues adjacent globular heads of C1QTNF5 together was weakened or abolished by the R163 pathogenic mutation. These findings could underlie the structural basis of this proteins adhesive function and relate to the pathogenesis of its S163R mutation. Additionally, the fact that C1QTNF5 immobilized to a resin selectively enriched detergent extracted membrane-bound MFRP, further confirmed their interaction, implying functions other than cellular adhesion for C1QTNF5.

Understanding the biosynthesis of cofactors is fundamental to the life sciences, yet to date a few important pathways remain unresolved. One example is the redox cofactor pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ), which is critical for C1 metabolism in many microorganisms, a disproportionate number of which are opportunistic human pathogens. While the initial and final steps of PQQ biosynthesis, involving PqqD/E and PqqC, have been elucidated, the precise nature and order of the remaining transformations in the pathway are unknown. Here we show evidence that the remaining essential biosynthetic enzyme PqqB is an iron-dependent hydroxylase catalyzing oxygen-insertion reactions that are proposed to produce the quinone moiety of the mature PQQ cofactor. The demonstrated reactions of PqqB are unprecedented within the metallo β-lactamase protein family and expand the catalytic repertoire of nonheme iron hydroxylases. These new findings also generate a nearly complete description of the PQQ biosynthetic pathway.

PqqB is an enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of pyrroloquinoline quinone and a distal member of the metallo-β-lactamase (MBL) superfamily. PqqB lacks two residues in the conserved signature motif HxHxDH that makes up the key metal-chelating elements that can bind up to two metal ions at the active site of MBLs and other members of its superfamily. Here, we report crystal structures of PqqB bound to Mn²⁺, Mg²⁺, Cu²⁺, and Zn²⁺. These structures demonstrate that PqqB can still bind metal ions at the canonical MBL active site. The fact that PqqB can adapt its side chains to chelate a wide spectrum of metal ions with different coordination features on a uniform main chain scaffold demonstrates its metal-binding plasticity. This plasticity may provide insights into the structural basis of promiscuous activities found in ensembles of metal complexes within this superfamily. Furthermore, PqqB belongs to a small subclass of MBLs that contain an additional CxCxxC motif that binds a structural Zn²⁺. Our data support a key role for this motif in dimerization.

Understanding the biosynthesis of cofactors is fundamental to the life sciences, yet to date a few important pathways remain unresolved. One example is the redox cofactor pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ), which is critical for C1 metabolism in many microorganisms, a disproportionate number of which are opportunistic human pathogens. While the initial and final steps of PQQ biosynthesis, involving PqqD/E and PqqC, have been elucidated, the precise nature and order of the remaining transformations in the pathway are unknown. Here we show evidence that the remaining essential biosynthetic enzyme PqqB is an iron-dependent hydroxylase catalyzing oxygen-insertion reactions that are proposed to produce the quinone moiety of the mature PQQ cofactor. The demonstrated reactions of PqqB are unprecedented within the metallo β-lactamase protein family and expand the catalytic repertoire of nonheme iron hydroxylases. These new findings also generate a nearly complete description of the PQQ biosynthetic pathway.