1
|
Ozu M, Galizia L, Alvear-Arias JJ, Fernández M, Caviglia A, Zimmermann R, Guastaferri F, Espinoza-Muñoz N, Sutka M, Sigaut L, Pietrasanta LI, González C, Amodeo G, Garate JA. Mechanosensitive aquaporins. Biophys Rev 2023; 15:497-513. [PMID: 37681084 PMCID: PMC10480384 DOI: 10.1007/s12551-023-01098-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 07/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Cellular systems must deal with mechanical forces to satisfy their physiological functions. In this context, proteins with mechanosensitive properties play a crucial role in sensing and responding to environmental changes. The discovery of aquaporins (AQPs) marked a significant breakthrough in the study of water transport. Their transport capacity and regulation features make them key players in cellular processes. To date, few AQPs have been reported to be mechanosensitive. Like mechanosensitive ion channels, AQPs respond to tension changes in the same range. However, unlike ion channels, the aquaporin's transport rate decreases as tension increases, and the molecular features of the mechanism are unknown. Nevertheless, some clues from mechanosensitive ion channels shed light on the AQP-membrane interaction. The GxxxG motif may play a critical role in the water permeation process associated with structural features in AQPs. Consequently, a possible gating mechanism triggered by membrane tension changes would involve a conformational change in the cytoplasmic extreme of the single file region of the water pathway, where glycine and histidine residues from loop B play a key role. In view of their transport capacity and their involvement in relevant processes related to mechanical forces, mechanosensitive AQPs are a fundamental piece of the puzzle for understanding cellular responses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo Ozu
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Luciano Galizia
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Juan José Alvear-Arias
- Interdisciplinary Center of Neurosciences of Valparaiso, University of Valparaiso, CINV, 2360102 Valparaíso, Chile
- Millennium Nucleus in NanoBioPhysics, Santiago, Chile
| | - Miguel Fernández
- Interdisciplinary Center of Neurosciences of Valparaiso, University of Valparaiso, CINV, 2360102 Valparaíso, Chile
- Millennium Nucleus in NanoBioPhysics, Santiago, Chile
| | - Agustín Caviglia
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Rosario Zimmermann
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Florencia Guastaferri
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Present Address: Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Rosario (IBR-CONICET-UNR), Rosario, Argentina
| | - Nicolás Espinoza-Muñoz
- Interdisciplinary Center of Neurosciences of Valparaiso, University of Valparaiso, CINV, 2360102 Valparaíso, Chile
- Millennium Nucleus in NanoBioPhysics, Santiago, Chile
| | - Moira Sutka
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Lorena Sigaut
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Física, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires (IFIBA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Lía Isabel Pietrasanta
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Física, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires (IFIBA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Carlos González
- Millennium Nucleus in NanoBioPhysics, Santiago, Chile
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136 USA
- Present Address: Molecular Bioscience Department, University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712 USA
| | - Gabriela Amodeo
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - José Antonio Garate
- Interdisciplinary Center of Neurosciences of Valparaiso, University of Valparaiso, CINV, 2360102 Valparaíso, Chile
- Millennium Nucleus in NanoBioPhysics, Santiago, Chile
- Facultad de Ingeniería, Arquitectura y Diseño, Universidad San Sebastián, Bellavista, Santiago, Chile
- Centro Científico y Tecnológico de Excelencia Ciencia y Vida, Universidad San Sebastián, 7750000 Santiago, Chile
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Aquaporin Gating: A New Twist to Unravel Permeation through Water Channels. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232012317. [PMID: 36293170 PMCID: PMC9604103 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232012317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2022] [Revised: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Aquaporins (AQPs) are small transmembrane tetrameric proteins that facilitate water, solute and gas exchange. Their presence has been extensively reported in the biological membranes of almost all living organisms. Although their discovery is much more recent than ion transport systems, different biophysical approaches have contributed to confirm that permeation through each monomer is consistent with closed and open states, introducing the term gating mechanism into the field. The study of AQPs in their native membrane or overexpressed in heterologous systems have experimentally demonstrated that water membrane permeability can be reversibly modified in response to specific modulators. For some regulation mechanisms, such as pH changes, evidence for gating is also supported by high-resolution structures of the water channel in different configurations as well as molecular dynamics simulation. Both experimental and simulation approaches sustain that the rearrangement of conserved residues contributes to occlude the cavity of the channel restricting water permeation. Interestingly, specific charged and conserved residues are present in the environment of the pore and, thus, the tetrameric structure can be subjected to alter the positions of these charges to sustain gating. Thus, is it possible to explore whether the displacement of these charges (gating current) leads to conformational changes? To our knowledge, this question has not yet been addressed at all. In this review, we intend to analyze the suitability of this proposal for the first time.
Collapse
|
3
|
Codjoe JM, Miller K, Haswell ES. Plant cell mechanobiology: Greater than the sum of its parts. THE PLANT CELL 2022; 34:129-145. [PMID: 34524447 PMCID: PMC8773992 DOI: 10.1093/plcell/koab230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
The ability to sense and respond to physical forces is critical for the proper function of cells, tissues, and organisms across the evolutionary tree. Plants sense gravity, osmotic conditions, pathogen invasion, wind, and the presence of barriers in the soil, and dynamically integrate internal and external stimuli during every stage of growth and development. While the field of plant mechanobiology is growing, much is still poorly understood-including the interplay between mechanical and biochemical information at the single-cell level. In this review, we provide an overview of the mechanical properties of three main components of the plant cell and the mechanoperceptive pathways that link them, with an emphasis on areas of complexity and interaction. We discuss the concept of mechanical homeostasis, or "mechanostasis," and examine the ways in which cellular structures and pathways serve to maintain it. We argue that viewing mechanics and mechanotransduction as emergent properties of the plant cell can be a useful conceptual framework for synthesizing current knowledge and driving future research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jennette M Codjoe
- Department of Biology and Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, Missouri, 63130, USA
| | - Kari Miller
- Department of Biology and Center for Engineering Mechanobiology, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, Missouri, 63130, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
4
|
Piegari E, Villarruel C, Ponce Dawson S. Changes in Ca 2+ Removal Can Mask the Effects of Geometry During IP 3R Mediated Ca 2+ Signals. Front Physiol 2019; 10:964. [PMID: 31417423 PMCID: PMC6684793 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Accepted: 07/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Calcium (Ca2+) signals are ubiquitous. Most intracellular Ca2+ signals involve the release of Ca2+ from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) through Inositol 1,4,5-Trisphosphate Receptors (IP3Rs). The non-uniform spatial organization of IP3Rs and the fact that their individual openings are coupled via cytosolic Ca2+ are key factors for the variety of spatio-temporal distributions of the cytosolic [Ca2+] and the versatility of the signals. In this paper we combine experiments performed in untreated and in progesterone-treated Xenopus laevis oocytes and mathematical models to investigate how the interplay between geometry (the IP3R spatial distribution) and dynamics (the processes that characterize the release, transport, and removal of cytosolic Ca2+) affects the resulting signals. Signal propagation looks more continuous and spatially uniform in treated (mature) than in untreated (immature) oocytes. This could be due to the different underlying IP3R spatial distribution that has been observed in both cell types. The models, however, show that the rate of cytosolic Ca2+ removal, which is also different in both cell types, plays a key role affecting the coupling between Ca2+ release sites in such a way that the effect of the underlying IP3R spatial distribution can be modified.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Estefanía Piegari
- Departamento de Física FCEN-UBA and IFIBA (CONICET), Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Cecilia Villarruel
- Departamento de Física FCEN-UBA and IFIBA (CONICET), Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Silvina Ponce Dawson
- Departamento de Física FCEN-UBA and IFIBA (CONICET), Ciudad Universitaria, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Ozu M, Galizia L, Acuña C, Amodeo G. Aquaporins: More Than Functional Monomers in a Tetrameric Arrangement. Cells 2018; 7:E209. [PMID: 30423856 PMCID: PMC6262540 DOI: 10.3390/cells7110209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2018] [Revised: 10/27/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Aquaporins (AQPs) function as tetrameric structures in which each monomer has its own permeable pathway. The combination of structural biology, molecular dynamics simulations, and experimental approaches has contributed to improve our knowledge of how protein conformational changes can challenge its transport capacity, rapidly altering the membrane permeability. This review is focused on evidence that highlights the functional relationship between the monomers and the tetramer. In this sense, we address AQP permeation capacity as well as regulatory mechanisms that affect the monomer, the tetramer, or tetramers combined in complex structures. We therefore explore: (i) water permeation and recent evidence on ion permeation, including the permeation pathway controversy-each monomer versus the central pore of the tetramer-and (ii) regulatory mechanisms that cannot be attributed to independent monomers. In particular, we discuss channel gating and AQPs that sense membrane tension. For the latter we propose a possible mechanism that includes the monomer (slight changes of pore shape, the number of possible H-bonds between water molecules and pore-lining residues) and the tetramer (interactions among monomers and a positive cooperative effect).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo Ozu
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina.
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires C1428EGA CABA, Argentina.
| | - Luciano Galizia
- Instituto de investigaciones Médicas A. Lanari, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1427ARO, Argentina.
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Laboratorio de Canales Iónicos, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1427ARO, Argentina.
| | - Cynthia Acuña
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina.
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires C1428EGA CABA, Argentina.
| | - Gabriela Amodeo
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1428EGA, Argentina.
- Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental y Aplicada (IBBEA), Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires C1428EGA CABA, Argentina.
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Sutka M, Amodeo G, Ozu M. Plant and animal aquaporins crosstalk: what can be revealed from distinct perspectives. Biophys Rev 2017; 9:545-562. [PMID: 28871493 DOI: 10.1007/s12551-017-0313-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2017] [Accepted: 08/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Aquaporins (AQPs) can be revisited from a distinct and complementary perspective: the outcome from analyzing them from both plant and animal studies. (1) The approach in the study. Diversity found in both kingdoms contrasts with the limited number of crystal structures determined within each group. While the structure of almost half of mammal AQPs was resolved, only a few were resolved in plants. Strikingly, the animal structures resolved are mainly derived from the AQP2-lineage, due to their important roles in water homeostasis regulation in humans. The difference could be attributed to the approach: relevance in animal research is emphasized on pathology and in consequence drug screening that can lead to potential inhibitors, enhancers and/or regulators. By contrast, studies on plants have been mainly focused on the physiological role that AQPs play in growth, development and stress tolerance. (2) The transport capacity. Besides the well-described AQPs with high water transport capacity, large amount of evidence confirms that certain plant AQPs can carry a large list of small solutes. So far, animal AQP list is more restricted. In both kingdoms, there is a great amount of evidence on gas transport, although there is still an unsolved controversy around gas translocation as well as the role of the central pore of the tetramer. (3) More roles than expected. We found it remarkable that the view of AQPs as specific channels has evolved first toward simple transporters to molecules that can experience conformational changes triggered by biochemical and/or mechanical signals, turning them also into signaling components and/or behave as osmosensor molecules.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Moira Sutka
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires e Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Gabriela Amodeo
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires e Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Marcelo Ozu
- Departamento de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires e Instituto de Biodiversidad y Biología Experimental, Universidad de Buenos Aires y Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| |
Collapse
|