Oligomeric Characterization of GroESLx Chaperonin from Symbiotic X-Bacteric in Amoeba proteus

GroESLx proteins of symbiotic X-bacteria were overproduced in Escherichia coli and their structural characteristics were assayed after simple purification. The GroESx and GroELx were heat-stable at 8$0^{\circ}C$ and 5$0^{\circ}C$, respectively. After heat-treatment, GroESx was purified by DEAE Sephadex A-50 chromatography and GroELx was purified by step- and linear sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation. Molecular masses of GroESx and GroELx were 50-80 kDa and 800 kDa, respectively, as estimated by sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation. In chemical cross-linking analysis, subunits of GroESx were mostly cross-linked by incubation for 3 h in 0.4% glutaralde-hyde and GroESx was found to be composed of homo-heptamer subunits. Those of GroELx were cross-linked within 10 min in 0.3% glutaraldehyde and GroELx was in two stacks of homo-heptamer subunits. On the other hand, GroESx and GroELx proteins in a solution could not be cross-linked even after incubation for 3 h in 0.5% glutaraldehyde. GroELx was stable at 4-37$^{\circ}C$. In the presence of both GroESx and ATP, GroELx$_{14}$ was stable at 37$^{\circ}C$ but not at 4$^{\circ}C$ or 24$^{\circ}C$. Thus, we confirmed the oligomeric properties of GroESx$_{7}$ and GroELx$_{14}$ and their stability to heat and in the interaction with GroESx.x.