Regulation of cargo recognition, commitment, and unloading drives cotranslational protein targeting

Unveiling Differential Responses of Granulocytes to Distinct Immunostimulants with Implications in Autoimmune Uveitis

The perception of circulating granulocytes as cells with a predetermined immune response mainly triggered by pathogens is evolving, recognizing their functional heterogeneity and adaptability, particularly within the neutrophil subset. The involvement of these cells in the pathophysiology of autoimmune uveitis has become increasingly clear, yet their exact role remains elusive. We used an equine model for autoimmune-mediated recurrent pan-uveitis to investigate early responses of granulocytes in different inflammatory environments. For this purpose, we performed differential proteomics on granulocytes from healthy and diseased horses stimulated with IL8, LPS, or PMA. Compared to healthy horses, granulocytes from the recurrent uveitis model significantly changed the cellular abundance of 384 proteins, with a considerable number of specific changes for each stimulant. To gain more insight into the functional impact of these stimulant-specific proteome changes in ERU pathogenesis, we used Ingenuity Pathway Analysis for pathway enrichment. This resulted in specific reaction patterns for each stimulant, with IL8 predominantly promoting Class I MHC-mediated antigen processing and presentation, LPS enhancing processes in phospholipid biosynthesis, and PMA, clearly inducing neutrophil degranulation. These findings shed light on the remarkably differentiated responses of neutrophils, offering valuable insights into their functional heterogeneity in a T-cell-driven disease. Raw data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD013648.

Bacterial GTPases as druggable targets to tackle antimicrobial resistance

Small molecules as antibacterial agents have contributed immensely to the growth of modern medicine over the last several decades. However, the emergence of drug resistance among bacterial pathogens has undermined the effectiveness of the existing antibiotics. Thus, there is an exigency to address the antibiotic crisis by developing new antibacterial agents and identifying novel drug targets in bacteria. In this review, we summarize the importance of guanosine triphosphate hydrolyzing proteins (GTPases) as key agents for bacterial survival. We also discuss representative examples of small molecules that target bacterial GTPases as novel antibacterial agents, and highlight areas that are ripe for exploration. Given their vital roles in cell viability, virulence, and antibiotic resistance, bacterial GTPases are highly attractive antibacterial targets that will likely play a vital role in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

Spatiotemporal kinetics of the SRP pathway in live E. coli cells

Mechanistic details of the signal recognition particle (SRP)-mediated insertion of membrane proteins have been described from decades of in vitro biochemical studies. However, the dynamics of the pathway inside the living cell remain obscure. By combining in vivo single-molecule tracking with numerical modeling and simulated microscopy, we have constructed a quantitative reaction-diffusion model of the SRP cycle. Our results suggest that the SRP-ribosome complex finds its target, the membrane-bound translocon, through a combination of three-dimensional (3D) and 2D diffusional search, together taking on average 750 ms. During this time, the nascent peptide is expected to be elongated only 12 or 13 amino acids, which explains why, in Escherichia coli, no translation arrest is needed to prevent incorrect folding of the polypeptide in the cytosol. We also found that a remarkably high proportion (75%) of SRP bindings to ribosomes occur in the cytosol, suggesting that the majority of target ribosomes bind SRP before reaching the membrane. In combination with the average SRP cycling time, 2.2 s, this result further shows that the SRP pathway is capable of targeting all substrate ribosomes to translocons.

Cotranslational Biogenesis of Membrane Proteins in Bacteria

Nascent polypeptides emerging from the ribosome during translation are rapidly scanned and processed by ribosome-associated protein biogenesis factors (RPBs). RPBs cleave the N-terminal formyl and methionine groups, assist cotranslational protein folding, and sort the proteins according to their cellular destination. Ribosomes translating inner-membrane proteins are recognized and targeted to the translocon with the help of the signal recognition particle, SRP, and SRP receptor, FtsY. The growing nascent peptide is then inserted into the phospholipid bilayer at the translocon, an inner-membrane protein complex consisting of SecY, SecE, and SecG. Folding of membrane proteins requires that transmembrane helices (TMs) attain their correct topology, the soluble domains are inserted at the correct (cytoplasmic or periplasmic) side of the membrane, and – for polytopic membrane proteins – the TMs find their interaction partner TMs in the phospholipid bilayer. This review describes the recent progress in understanding how growing nascent peptides are processed and how inner-membrane proteins are targeted to the translocon and find their correct orientation at the membrane, with the focus on biophysical approaches revealing the dynamics of the process. We describe how spontaneous fluctuations of the translocon allow diffusion of TMs into the phospholipid bilayer and argue that the ribosome orchestrates cotranslational targeting not only by providing the binding platform for the RPBs or the translocon, but also by helping the nascent chains to find their correct orientation in the membrane. Finally, we present the auxiliary role of YidC as a chaperone for inner-membrane proteins. We show how biophysical approaches provide new insights into the dynamics of membrane protein biogenesis and raise new questions as to how translation modulates protein folding.

The Dynamic SecYEG Translocon

The spatial and temporal coordination of protein transport is an essential cornerstone of the bacterial adaptation to different environmental conditions. By adjusting the protein composition of extra-cytosolic compartments, like the inner and outer membranes or the periplasmic space, protein transport mechanisms help shaping protein homeostasis in response to various metabolic cues. The universally conserved SecYEG translocon acts at the center of bacterial protein transport and mediates the translocation of newly synthesized proteins into and across the cytoplasmic membrane. The ability of the SecYEG translocon to transport an enormous variety of different substrates is in part determined by its ability to interact with multiple targeting factors, chaperones and accessory proteins. These interactions are crucial for the assisted passage of newly synthesized proteins from the cytosol into the different bacterial compartments. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge about SecYEG-mediated protein transport, primarily in the model organism Escherichia coli, and describe the dynamic interaction of the SecYEG translocon with its multiple partner proteins. We furthermore highlight how protein transport is regulated and explore recent developments in using the SecYEG translocon as an antimicrobial target.

Two Signal Recognition Particle Sequences Are Present in the Amino-Terminal Domain of the C-Tailed Protein SciP

During their synthesis, the C-tailed membrane proteins expose the membrane-spanning segment late from the ribosome and consequently can insert into the membrane only posttranslationally. However, the C-tailed type 6 secretion system (T6SS) component SciP uses the bacterial signal recognition particle (SRP) system for membrane targeting, which operates cotranslationally. Analysis of possible sequence regions in the amino-terminal part of the protein revealed two candidates that were then tested for whether they function as SRP signal peptides. Both sequences were tested positive as synthetic peptides for binding to SRP. In addition, purified ribosomes with stalled nascent chains exposing either sequence were capable of binding to SRP and SRP-FtsY complexes with high affinity. Together, the data suggest that both peptides can serve as an SRP signal sequence promoting an early membrane targeting of SciP during its synthesis. Like observed for multispanning membrane proteins, the two cytoplasmic SRP signal sequences of SciP may also facilitate a retargeting event, making the targeting more efficient.IMPORTANCE C-tail proteins are anchored in the inner membrane with a transmembrane segment at the C terminus in an N-in/C-out topology. Due to this topology, membrane insertion occurs only posttranslationally. Nevertheless, the C-tail-anchored protein SciP is targeted cotranslationally by SRP. We report here that two amino-terminal hydrophobic stretches in SciP are individually recognized by SRP and target the nascent protein to FtsY. The presence of two signal sequences may enable a retargeting mechanism, as already observed for multispanning membrane proteins, to make the posttranslational insertion of SciP by YidC more efficient.

Alcohol Use Disorders Are Associated With a Unique Impact on Airway Epithelial Cell Gene Expression

BACKGROUND

Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) and cigarette smoking both increase risk for the development of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), likely through adverse effects on proximal airway mucociliary clearance and pathogen recognition. Smoking-related alterations on airway gene expression are well described, but little is known about the impact of AUDs. We measured gene expression in human airway epithelial cells (AECs), hypothesizing that AUDs would be associated with novel differences in gene expression that could alter risk for CAP.

METHODS

Bronchoscopy with airway brushings was performed in participants with AUDs and controls to obtain AECs. An AUD Identification Test was used to define AUD. RNA was extracted from AECs, and mRNA expression data were collected on an Agilent micro-array. Differential expression analyses were performed on the filtered and normalized data with correction for multiple testing. Enrichment analyses were performed using clusterProfiler.

RESULTS

Expression data from 19 control and 18 AUD participants were evaluated. After adjustment for smoking, AUDs were associated with significant differential expression of 520 AEC genes, including genes for ribosomal proteins and genes involved in protein folding. Enrichment analyses indicated significant differential expression of 24 pathways in AUDs, including those implicated in protein targeting to membrane and viral gene expression. Smoking-associated AEC gene expression differences mirrored previous reports, but differed from those associated with AUDs.

CONCLUSIONS

AUDs have a distinct impact on AEC gene expression that may influence proximal airway function independent of smoking. Alcohol-associated alterations may influence risk for CAP through modifying key mechanisms important in protecting proximal airway integrity.

The molecular mechanism of cotranslational membrane protein recognition and targeting by SecA

Cotranslational protein targeting is a conserved process for membrane protein biogenesis. In Escherichia coli, the essential ATPase SecA was found to cotranslationally target a subset of nascent membrane proteins to the SecYEG translocase at the plasma membrane. The molecular mechanism of this pathway remains unclear. Here we use biochemical and cryoelectron microscopy analyses to show that the amino-terminal amphipathic helix of SecA and the ribosomal protein uL23 form a composite binding site for the transmembrane domain (TMD) on the nascent protein. This binding mode further enables recognition of charged residues flanking the nascent TMD and thus explains the specificity of SecA recognition. Finally, we show that membrane-embedded SecYEG promotes handover of the translating ribosome from SecA to the translocase via a concerted mechanism. Our work provides a molecular description of the SecA-mediated cotranslational targeting pathway and demonstrates an unprecedented role of the ribosome in shielding nascent TMDs.

Co-translational protein targeting in bacteria

About 30% of all bacterial proteins execute their function outside of the cytosol and have to be transported into or across the cytoplasmic membrane. Bacteria use multiple protein transport systems in parallel, but the majority of proteins engage two distinct targeting systems. One is the co-translational targeting by two universally conserved GTPases, the signal recognition particle (SRP) and its receptor FtsY, which deliver inner membrane proteins to either the SecYEG translocon or the YidC insertase for membrane insertion. The other targeting system depends on the ATPase SecA, which targets secretory proteins, i.e. periplasmic and outer membrane proteins, to SecYEG for their subsequent ATP-dependent translocation. While SRP selects its substrates already very early during their synthesis, the recognition of secretory proteins by SecA is believed to occur primarily after translation termination, i.e. post-translationally. In this review we highlight recent progress on how SRP recognizes its substrates at the ribosome and how the fidelity of the targeting reaction to SecYEG is maintained. We furthermore discuss similarities and differences in the SRP-dependent targeting to either SecYEG or YidC and summarize recent results that suggest that some membrane proteins are co-translationally targeted by SecA.

Structure, dynamics and interactions of large SRP variants

Co-translational protein targeting to membranes relies on the signal recognition particle (SRP) system consisting of a cytosolic ribonucleoprotein complex and its membrane-associated receptor. SRP recognizes N-terminal cleavable signals or signal anchor sequences, retards translation, and delivers ribosome-nascent chain complexes (RNCs) to vacant translocation channels in the target membrane. While our mechanistic understanding is well advanced for the small bacterial systems it lags behind for the large bacterial, archaeal and eukaryotic SRP variants including an Alu and an S domain. Here we describe recent advances on structural and functional insights in domain architecture, particle dynamics and interplay with RNCs and translocon and GTP-dependent regulation of co-translational protein targeting stimulated by SRP RNA.

Structural Basis of the Subcellular Topology Landscape of Escherichia coli

Cellular proteomes are distributed in multiple compartments: on DNA, ribosomes, on and inside membranes, or they become secreted. Structural properties that allow polypeptides to occupy subcellular niches, particularly to after crossing membranes, remain unclear. We compared intrinsic and extrinsic features in cytoplasmic and secreted polypeptides of the Escherichia coli K-12 proteome. Structural features between the cytoplasmome and secretome are sharply distinct, such that a signal peptide-agnostic machine learning tool distinguishes cytoplasmic from secreted proteins with 95.5% success. Cytoplasmic polypeptides are enriched in aliphatic, aromatic, charged and hydrophobic residues, unique folds and higher early folding propensities. Secretory polypeptides are enriched in polar/small amino acids, β folds, have higher backbone dynamics, higher disorder and contact order and are more often intrinsically disordered. These non-random distributions and experimental evidence imply that evolutionary pressure selected enhanced secretome flexibility, slow folding and looser structures, placing the secretome in a distinct protein class. These adaptations protect the secretome from premature folding during its cytoplasmic transit, optimize its lipid bilayer crossing and allowed it to acquire cell envelope specific chemistries. The latter may favor promiscuous multi-ligand binding, sensing of stress and cell envelope structure changes. In conclusion, enhanced flexibility, slow folding, looser structures and unique folds differentiate the secretome from the cytoplasmome. These findings have wide implications on the structural diversity and evolution of modern proteomes and the protein folding problem.

Inner Membrane Translocases and Insertases

The inner membrane of Gram-negative bacteria is a ~6 nm thick phospholipid bilayer. It forms a semi-permeable barrier between the cytoplasm and periplasm allowing only regulated export and import of ions, sugar polymers, DNA and proteins. Inner membrane proteins, embedded via hydrophobic transmembrane α-helices, play an essential role in this regulated trafficking: they mediate insertion into the membrane (insertases) or complete crossing of the membrane (translocases) or both. The Gram-negative inner membrane is equipped with a variety of different insertases and translocases. Many of them are specialized, taking care of the export of only a few protein substrates, while others have more general roles. Here, we focus on the three general export/insertion pathways, the secretory (Sec) pathway, YidC and the twin-arginine translocation (TAT) pathway, focusing closely on the Escherichia coli (E. coli) paradigm. We only briefly mention dedicated export pathways found in different Gram-negative bacteria. The Sec system deals with the majority of exported proteins and functions both as a translocase for secretory proteins and an insertase for membrane proteins. The insertase YidC assists the Sec system or operates independently on membrane protein clients. Sec and YidC, in common with most export pathways, require their protein clients to be in soluble non-folded states to fit through the translocation channels and grooves. The TAT pathway is an exception, as it translocates folded proteins, some loaded with prosthetic groups.

Cotranslational protein targeting to the membrane: Nascent-chain transfer in a quaternary complex formed at the translocon

Membrane proteins in bacteria are cotranslationally inserted into the plasma membrane through the SecYEG translocon. Ribosomes exposing the signal-anchor sequence (SAS) of a membrane protein are targeted to the translocon by the signal recognition particle (SRP) pathway. SRP scans translating ribosomes and forms high-affinity targeting complexes with those exposing a SAS. Recognition of the SAS activates SRP for binding to its receptor, FtsY, which, in turn, is primed for SRP binding by complex formation with SecYEG, resulting in a quaternary targeting complex. Here we examine the effect of SecYEG docking to ribosome-nascent-chain complexes (RNCs) on SRP binding and SAS transfer, using SecYEG embedded in phospholipid-containing nanodiscs and monitoring FRET between fluorescence-labeled constituents of the targeting complex. SecYEG–FtsY binding to RNC–SRP complexes lowers the affinity of SRP to both ribosome and FtsY, indicating a general weakening of the complex due to partial binding competition near the ribosomal peptide exit. The rearrangement of the quaternary targeting complex to the pre-transfer complex requires an at least partially exposed SAS. The presence of SecYEG-bound FtsY and the length of the nascent chain strongly influence nascent-chain transfer from SRP to the translocon and repositioning of SRP in the post-transfer complex.

Signal recognition particle binds to translating ribosomes before emergence of a signal anchor sequence

The bacterial signal recognition particle (SRP) is part of the machinery that targets ribosomes synthesizing membrane proteins to membrane-embedded translocons co-translationally. Recognition of nascent membrane proteins occurs by virtue of a hydrophobic signal-anchor sequence (SAS) contained in the nascent chain, usually at the N terminus. Here we use fluorescence-based stopped-flow to monitor SRP-ribosome interactions with actively translating ribosomes while an SRP substrate is synthesized and emerges from the peptide exit tunnel. The kinetic analysis reveals that, at cellular concentrations of ribosomes and SRP, SRP rapidly binds to translating ribosomes prior to the emergence of an SAS and forms an initial complex that rapidly rearranges to a more stable engaged complex. When the growing peptide reaches a length of ∼50 amino acids and the SAS is partially exposed, SRP undergoes another conformational change which further stabilizes the complex and initiates targeting of the translating ribosome to the translocon. These results provide a reconciled view on the timing of high-affinity targeting complex formation, while emphasizing the existence of preceding SRP recruitment steps under conditions of ongoing translation.

Structure of the quaternary complex between SRP, SR, and translocon bound to the translating ribosome

During co-translational protein targeting, the signal recognition particle (SRP) binds to the translating ribosome displaying the signal sequence to deliver it to the SRP receptor (SR) on the membrane, where the signal peptide is transferred to the translocon. Using electron cryo-microscopy, we have determined the structure of a quaternary complex of the translating Escherichia coli ribosome, the SRP–SR in the ‘activated' state and the translocon. Our structure, supported by biochemical experiments, reveals that the SRP RNA adopts a kinked and untwisted conformation to allow repositioning of the ‘activated' SRP–SR complex on the ribosome. In addition, we observe the translocon positioned through interactions with the SR in the vicinity of the ribosome exit tunnel where the signal sequence is extending beyond its hydrophobic binding groove of the SRP M domain towards the translocon. Our study provides new insights into the mechanism of signal sequence transfer from the SRP to the translocon.

Membrane proteins are inserted co-transnationally through the association between ribosome, the signal recognition particle and its receptor, and the membrane-bound translocon. Here the authors present a cryo-EM reconstruction of this quaternary complex in the activated state and propose a model for signal sequence transfer to the translocon.

The signal recognition particle contacts uL23 and scans substrate translation inside the ribosomal tunnel

The signal recognition particle (SRP) delivers ∼25% of all bacterial proteins to the membrane for cotranslational insertion. However, a comprehensive model on how the low-abundant SRP scans the vast number of translating ribosomes to identify the correct substrates is lacking. Here, we show that the C-terminal helix of the signal-sequence-binding domain of SRP penetrates into the ribosomal tunnel and contacts the intra-tunnel loop of ribosomal protein uL23. This allows SRP to obtain information about the translational status of the ribosome and possibly the character of the approaching nascent chain. Correct substrates reposition the C-terminal helix of SRP, which facilitates stable binding of the signal sequence by the M-domain of SRP. Thus, SRP already surveys translating ribosomes before the signal sequence is surface exposed. This early interaction probably enables the small number of SRP molecules to scan many ribosomes and to initiate efficient targeting of proper substrates.

Anionic Phospholipids and the Albino3 Translocase Activate Signal Recognition Particle-Receptor Interaction during Light-harvesting Chlorophyll a/b-binding Protein Targeting

The universally conserved signal recognition particle (SRP) co-translationally delivers newly synthesized membrane and secretory proteins to the target cellular membrane. The only exception is found in the chloroplast of green plants, where the chloroplast SRP (cpSRP) post-translationally targets light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b-binding proteins (LHCP) to the thylakoid membrane. The mechanism and regulation of this post-translational mode of targeting by cpSRP remain unclear. Using biochemical and biophysical methods, here we show that anionic phospholipids activate the cpSRP receptor cpFtsY to promote rapid and stable cpSRP54·cpFtsY complex assembly. Furthermore, the stromal domain of the Alb3 translocase binds with high affinity to and regulates GTP hydrolysis in the cpSRP54·cpFtsY complex, suggesting that cpFtsY is primarily responsible for initial recruitment of the targeting complex to Alb3. These results suggest a new model for the sequential recruitment, remodeling, and unloading of the targeting complex at membrane translocase sites in the post-translational cpSRP pathway.

ATPase and GTPase Tangos Drive Intracellular Protein Transport

The GTPase superfamily of proteins provides molecular switches to regulate numerous cellular processes. The 'GTPase switch' paradigm, in which external regulatory factors control the switch of a GTPase between 'on' and 'off' states, has been used to interpret the regulatory mechanism of many GTPases. However, recent work unveiled a class of nucleotide hydrolases that do not adhere to this classical paradigm. Instead, they use nucleotide-dependent dimerization cycles to regulate key cellular processes. In this review article, recent studies of dimeric GTPases and ATPases involved in intracellular protein targeting are summarized. It is suggested that these proteins can use the conformational plasticity at their dimer interface to generate multiple points of regulation, thereby providing the driving force and spatiotemporal coordination of complex cellular pathways.

Ribosome binding induces repositioning of the signal recognition particle receptor on the translocon

The cotranslational transfer of nascent membrane proteins to the SecYEG translocon is facilitated by a reorientation of the SecY-bound signal recognition particle (SRP) receptor, FtsY, which accompanies the formation of a quaternary targeting complex consisting of SecYEG, FtsY, SRP, and the ribosome.

Cotranslational protein targeting delivers proteins to the bacterial cytoplasmic membrane or to the eukaryotic endoplasmic reticulum membrane. The signal recognition particle (SRP) binds to signal sequences emerging from the ribosomal tunnel and targets the ribosome-nascent-chain complex (RNC) to the SRP receptor, termed FtsY in bacteria. FtsY interacts with the fifth cytosolic loop of SecY in the SecYEG translocon, but the functional role of the interaction is unclear. By using photo-cross-linking and fluorescence resonance energy transfer measurements, we show that FtsY–SecY complex formation is guanosine triphosphate independent but requires a phospholipid environment. Binding of an SRP–RNC complex exposing a hydrophobic transmembrane segment induces a rearrangement of the SecY–FtsY complex, which allows the subsequent contact between SecY and ribosomal protein uL23. These results suggest that direct RNC transfer to the translocon is guided by the interaction between SRP and translocon-bound FtsY in a quaternary targeting complex.

Structures of the E. coli translating ribosome with SRP and its receptor and with the translocon

Co-translational protein targeting to membranes is a universally conserved process. Central steps include cargo recognition by the signal recognition particle and handover to the Sec translocon. Here we present snapshots of key co-translational-targeting complexes solved by cryo-electron microscopy at near-atomic resolution, establishing the molecular contacts between the Escherichia coli translating ribosome, the signal recognition particle and the translocon. Our results reveal the conformational changes that regulate the latching of the signal sequence, the release of the heterodimeric domains of the signal recognition particle and its receptor, and the handover of the signal sequence to the translocon. We also observe that the signal recognition particle and the translocon insert-specific structural elements into the ribosomal tunnel to remodel it, possibly to sense nascent chains. Our work provides structural evidence for a conformational state of the signal recognition particle and its receptor primed for translocon binding to the ribosome-nascent chain complex.

Translational arrest by a prokaryotic signal recognition particle is mediated by RNA interactions

The signal recognition particle (SRP) recognizes signal sequences of nascent polypeptides and targets ribosome-nascent chain complexes to membrane translocation sites. In eukaryotes, translating ribosomes are slowed down by the Alu domain of SRP to allow efficient targeting. In prokaryotes, however, little is known about the structure and function of Alu domain-containing SRPs. Here, we report a complete molecular model of SRP from the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus subtilis, based on cryo-EM. The SRP comprises two subunits, 6S RNA and SRP54 or Ffh, and it facilitates elongation slowdown similarly to its eukaryotic counterpart. However, protein contacts with the small ribosomal subunit observed for the mammalian Alu domain are substituted in bacteria by RNA-RNA interactions of 6S RNA with the α-sarcin-ricin loop and helices H43 and H44 of 23S rRNA. Our findings provide a structural basis for cotranslational targeting and RNA-driven elongation arrest in prokaryotes.

Multiply labeling proteins for studies of folding and stability

Fluorescence spectroscopy is a powerful method for monitoring protein folding in real-time with high resolution and sensitivity, but requires the site-specific introduction of labels into the protein. The ability to genetically incorporate unnatural amino acids (Uaas) allows for the efficient synthesis of fluorescently labeled proteins with minimally perturbing fluorophores. Here, we describe recent uses of labeled proteins in dynamic structure determination experiments and advances in unnatural amino acid incorporation for dual site-specific fluorescent labeling. The advent of increasingly sophisticated bioorthogonal chemistry reactions and the diversity of Uaas available for incorporation will greatly enable protein folding and stability studies.

Structures of the scanning and engaged states of the mammalian SRP-ribosome complex

The universally conserved signal recognition particle (SRP) is essential for the biogenesis of most integral membrane proteins. SRP scans the nascent chains of translating ribosomes, preferentially engaging those with hydrophobic targeting signals, and delivers these ribosome-nascent chain complexes to the membrane. Here, we present structures of native mammalian SRP-ribosome complexes in the scanning and engaged states. These structures reveal the near-identical SRP architecture of these two states, show many of the SRP-ribosome interactions at atomic resolution, and suggest how the polypeptide-binding M domain selectively engages hydrophobic signals. The scanning M domain, pre-positioned at the ribosomal exit tunnel, is auto-inhibited by a C-terminal amphipathic helix occluding its hydrophobic binding groove. Upon engagement, the hydrophobic targeting signal displaces this amphipathic helix, which then acts as a protective lid over the signal. Biochemical experiments suggest how scanning and engagement are coordinated with translation elongation to minimize exposure of hydrophobic signals during membrane targeting.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.07975.001

Proteins are long chain-like molecules built from smaller building blocks, called amino acids, by a large molecular machine known as a ribosome. Although all proteins are assembled inside cells, some of them must be delivered to the outside or inserted into cell membranes. It is important to understand how this selective delivery system works because secreted proteins (i.e., those delivered outside) and membrane-embedded proteins are essential for cells to communicate with their surroundings. Proteins destined for secretion or membrane insertion contain characteristic stretches of amino acids that act as a targeting signal for delivery to the membrane. These targeting signals are recognized by the ‘signal recognition particle’ (or SRP for short), a large complex found in all living organisms. The SRP has the task of finding ribosomes that are assembling proteins with a targeting signal, and then taking them to the membrane. The protein being assembled can then either cross the membrane for secretion by the cell, or get embedded within the membrane.

So, how can the SRP scan the broad range of proteins that are made by the ribosome and engage with only those containing targeting signals? Voorhees and Hegde investigated this question by analyzing SRPs bound to ribosomes that were at different stages of building a membrane protein. The experiment was devised so that SRP would be in two different states: in the first state, the SRP was scanning for its targeting signal and, in the second, it was engaged with the targeting signal. Voorhees and Hegde took many thousands of pictures of these samples using a technique called cryo-electron microscopy, and reconstructed the three-dimensional structures of both states. This revealed fine details of how SRP positions itself immediately next to the part of the ribosome where newly formed protein chains emerge. From here, the SRP scans the protein until the targeting signal emerges and then it engages with the protein.

Engaging the targeting signal just as it emerges from the ribosome is probably important because targeting signals tend to aggregate if they are exposed to the contents of a cell. The new structures show how SRP cradles the targeting signal inside a binding groove and covers it with a protective lid to minimize its risk of aggregation. The next challenges are to figure out how SRP chooses which ribosomes to scan, and how it releases the targeting signal when it has delivered it to the membrane.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.07975.002

Regulation by a chaperone improves substrate selectivity during cotranslational protein targeting

The ribosome exit site is a crowded environment where numerous factors contact nascent polypeptides to influence their folding, localization, and quality control. Timely and accurate selection of nascent polypeptides into the correct pathway is essential for proper protein biogenesis. To understand how this is accomplished, we probe the mechanism by which nascent polypeptides are accurately sorted between the major cotranslational chaperone trigger factor (TF) and the essential cotranslational targeting machinery, signal recognition particle (SRP). We show that TF regulates SRP function at three distinct stages, including binding of the translating ribosome, membrane targeting via recruitment of the SRP receptor, and rejection of ribosome-bound nascent polypeptides beyond a critical length. Together, these mechanisms enhance the specificity of substrate selection into both pathways. Our results reveal a multilayered mechanism of molecular interplay at the ribosome exit site, and provide a conceptual framework to understand how proteins are selected among distinct biogenesis machineries in this crowded environment.

Ribosome-SRP-FtsY cotranslational targeting complex in the closed state

The signal recognition particle (SRP)-dependent pathway is essential for correct targeting of proteins to the membrane and subsequent insertion in the membrane or secretion. In Escherichia coli, the SRP and its receptor FtsY bind to ribosome-nascent chain complexes with signal sequences and undergo a series of distinct conformational changes, which ensures accurate timing and fidelity of protein targeting. Initial recruitment of the SRP receptor FtsY to the SRP-RNC complex results in GTP-independent binding of the SRP-FtsY GTPases at the SRP RNA tetraloop. In the presence of GTP, a closed state is adopted by the SRP-FtsY complex. The cryo-EM structure of the closed state reveals an ordered SRP RNA and SRP M domain with a signal sequence-bound. Van der Waals interactions between the finger loop and ribosomal protein L24 lead to a constricted signal sequence-binding pocket possibly preventing premature release of the signal sequence. Conserved M-domain residues contact ribosomal RNA helices 24 and 59. The SRP-FtsY GTPases are detached from the RNA tetraloop and flexible, thus liberating the ribosomal exit site for binding of the translocation machinery.

Real-time observation of signal recognition particle binding to actively translating ribosomes

The signal recognition particle (SRP) directs translating ribosome-nascent chain complexes (RNCs) that display a signal sequence to protein translocation channels in target membranes. All previous work on the initial step of the targeting reaction, when SRP binds to RNCs, used stalled and non-translating RNCs. This meant that an important dimension of the co-translational process remained unstudied. We apply single-molecule fluorescence measurements to observe directly and in real-time E. coli SRP binding to actively translating RNCs. We show at physiologically relevant SRP concentrations that SRP-RNC association and dissociation rates depend on nascent chain length and the exposure of a functional signal sequence outside the ribosome. Our results resolve a long-standing question: how can a limited, sub-stoichiometric pool of cellular SRP effectively distinguish RNCs displaying a signal sequence from those that are not? The answer is strikingly simple: as originally proposed, SRP only stably engages translating RNCs exposing a functional signal sequence.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.04418.001

Genes contain the instructions needed to make proteins from smaller building blocks called amino acids. These instructions are first transcribed to produce molecules of messenger RNA, which are then translated by a ribosome. This ‘molecular machine’ translates the instructions in the messenger RNA into the sequence of amino acids needed to make the protein.

For some proteins to carry out their role, they need to be delivered to the outside of the cell, or inserted into one of the cell's membranes. As they are being built, these proteins are identified by a so-called ‘signal recognition particle’, which is often called an SRP for short. The SRP attaches to the new protein when it is still joined to the ribosome, and pulls the protein-ribosome complex to an opening in the target membrane. The new protein chain then enters this opening and either passes through to the other side of the membrane, or ends up embedded within it.

To date, most studies that have investigated this process have involved scientists stalling the building of the new protein to see how SRP interacts with inactivated protein-ribosome complexes. Unfortunately, this means that some of the details of what happens during this process have likely been missed.

Now, Noriega et al. have addressed this problem by developing a method to watch, in real-time, a single active protein-ribosome complex interacting with individual SRPs. This was achieved by attaching fluorescent molecules to SRP and protein-ribosome complexes purified from the bacterium E. coli. The distance between the two fluorescent molecules was then tracked over time. This revealed that the SRP typically binds to the protein-ribosome complex after 40–55 amino acids have been built into the protein. At this point, a so-called ‘signal sequence’ of amino acids has emerged from the complex and can be recognized by the SRP.

Earlier studies had suggested that signal sequences might tell the SRP when to bind, but this had not been demonstrated in experiments using active protein-ribosome complexes. The strategy of using fluorescent molecules to follow single molecules undergoing this process in real-time could now be used by other scientists to re-examine and determine new properties of the protein-ribosome complex in action.

DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.04418.002

Allosteric response and substrate sensitivity in peptide binding of the signal recognition particle

We characterize the conformational dynamics and substrate selectivity of the signal recognition particle (SRP) using a thermodynamic free energy cycle approach and microsecond timescale molecular dynamics simulations. The SRP is a central component of the co-translational protein targeting machinery that binds to the N-terminal signal peptide (SP) of nascent proteins. We determined the shift in relative conformational stability of the SRP upon substrate binding to quantify allosteric coupling between SRP domains. In particular, for dipeptidyl aminopeptidase, an SP that is recognized by the SRP for co-translational targeting, it is found that substrate binding induces substantial changes in the SRP toward configurations associated with targeting of the nascent protein, and it is found that the changes are modestly enhanced by a mutation that increases the hydrophobicity of the SP. However, for alkaline phosphatase, an SP that is recognized for post-translational targeting, substrate binding induces the reverse change in the SRP conformational distribution away from targeting configurations. Microsecond timescale trajectories reveal the intrinsic flexibility of the SRP conformational landscape and provide insight into recent single molecule studies by illustrating that 10-nm lengthscale changes between FRET pairs occur via the rigid-body movement of SRP domains connected by the flexible linker region. In combination, these results provide direct evidence for the hypothesis that substrate-controlled conformational switching in the SRP provides a mechanism for discriminating between different SPs and for connecting substrate binding to downstream steps in the protein targeting pathway.

Signal recognition particle-ribosome binding is sensitive to nascent chain length

The signal recognition particle (SRP) directs ribosome-nascent chain complexes (RNCs) displaying signal sequences to protein translocation channels in the plasma membrane of prokaryotes and endoplasmic reticulum of eukaryotes. It was initially proposed that SRP binds the signal sequence when it emerges from an RNC and that successful binding becomes impaired as translation extends the nascent chain, moving the signal sequence away from SRP on the ribosomal surface. Later studies drew this simple model into question, proposing that SRP binding is unaffected by nascent chain length. Here, we reinvestigate this issue using two novel and independent fluorescence resonance energy transfer assays. We show that the arrival and dissociation rates of SRP binding to RNCs vary according to nascent chain length, resulting in the highest affinity shortly after a functional signal sequence emerges from the ribosome. Moreover, we show that SRP binds RNCs in multiple and interconverting conformations, and that conversely, RNCs exist in two conformations distinguished by SRP interaction kinetics.