Characterization of the calmodulin-binding and of the catalytic domains of Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase.

The structural organization of the low molecular mass form (43 kDa) of Bordetella pertussis adenylate cyclase was dissected taking advantage of the known sequence of the bacterial cya gene (Glaser, P., Ladant, D., Sezer, O., Pichot, F., Ullmann, A., and Danchin, A. (1988) Mol. Microbiol. 2, 19-30) and its low content of Trp and Met residues. Cleavage of the 43-kDa protein and of its complementary tryptic fragments (T25 and T18 peptides) with N-chlorosuccinimide and cyanogen bromide followed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel analysis of digestion products allowed the following conclusions: (i) the catalytically active 43-kDa form of B. pertussis adenylate cyclase is within the first 400 residues of the protein encoded by the cya gene. T25 occupies the N-terminal domain of the protein (residues 1-235/237). Isolated T25 fragment exhibits a low but measurable enzymatic activity which indicates that it harbors the catalytic site; (ii) T18 which is the main calmodulin-binding domain, occupies the C-terminal segment of protein (residues 236/238-399) and is devoid of catalytic properties; (iii) the two complementary peptides T25 and T18 reassociated only in the presence of calmodulin, leading to significant recovery of the original activity. These results demonstrate that both fragments of the 43-kDa form of adenylate cyclase are essential for a high level of enzymatic activity.