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Nordyke CT, Ahmed YM, Puterbaugh RZ, Bowman GR, Varga K. Intrinsically Disordered Bacterial Polar Organizing Protein Z, PopZ, Interacts with Protein Binding Partners Through an N-terminal Molecular Recognition Feature. J Mol Biol 2020; 432:6092-6107. [PMID: 33058876 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.09.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The polar organizing protein Z (PopZ) is necessary for the formation of three-dimensional microdomains at the cell poles in Caulobacter crescentus, where it functions as a hub protein that recruits multiple regulatory proteins from the cytoplasm. Although a large portion of the protein is predicted to be natively unstructured, in reconstituted systems PopZ can self-assemble into a macromolecular scaffold that directly binds to at least ten different proteins. Here we report the solution NMR structure of PopZΔ134-177, a truncated form of PopZ that does not self-assemble but retains the ability to interact with heterologous proteins. We show that the unbound form of PopZΔ134-177 is unstructured in solution, with the exception of a small amphipathic α-helix in residues M10-I17, which is included within a highly conserved region near the N-terminal. In applying NMR techniques to map the interactions between PopZΔ134-177 and one of its binding partners, RcdA, we find evidence that the α-helix and adjoining amino acids extending to position E23 serve as the core of the binding motif. Consistent with this, a point mutation at position I17 severely compromises binding. Our results show that a partially structured Molecular Recognition Feature (MoRF) within an intrinsically disordered domain of PopZ contributes to the assembly of polar microdomains, revealing a structural basis for complex network assembly in Alphaproteobacteria that is analogous to those formed by intrinsically disordered hub proteins in other kingdoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher T Nordyke
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, United States
| | - Yasin M Ahmed
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, United States
| | - Ryan Z Puterbaugh
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, United States
| | - Grant R Bowman
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, United States.
| | - Krisztina Varga
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, United States.
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Gupta R, Liu Y, Wang H, Nordyke CT, Puterbaugh RZ, Cui W, Varga K, Chu F, Ke H, Vashisth H, Cote RH. Structural Analysis of the Regulatory GAF Domains of cGMP Phosphodiesterase Elucidates the Allosteric Communication Pathway. J Mol Biol 2020; 432:5765-5783. [PMID: 32898583 PMCID: PMC7572642 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2020.08.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 08/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Regulation of photoreceptor phosphodiesterase (PDE6) activity is responsible for the speed, sensitivity, and recovery of the photoresponse during visual signaling in vertebrate photoreceptor cells. It is hypothesized that physiological differences in the light responsiveness of rods and cones may result in part from differences in the structure and regulation of the distinct isoforms of rod and cone PDE6. Although rod and cone PDE6 catalytic subunits share a similar domain organization consisting of tandem GAF domains (GAFa and GAFb) and a catalytic domain, cone PDE6 is a homodimer whereas rod PDE6 consists of two homologous catalytic subunits. Here we provide the x-ray crystal structure of cone GAFab regulatory domain solved at 3.3 Å resolution, in conjunction with chemical cross-linking and mass spectrometric analysis of conformational changes to GAFab induced upon binding of cGMP and the PDE6 inhibitory γ-subunit (Pγ). Ligand-induced changes in cross-linked residues implicate multiple conformational changes in the GAFa and GAFb domains in forming an allosteric communication network. Molecular dynamics simulations of cone GAFab revealed differences in conformational dynamics of the two subunits forming the homodimer and allosteric perturbations on cGMP binding. Cross-linking of Pγ to GAFab in conjunction with solution NMR spectroscopy of isotopically labeled Pγ identified the central polycationic region of Pγ interacting with the GAFb domain. These results provide a mechanistic basis for developing allosteric activators of PDE6 with therapeutic implications for halting the progression of several retinal degenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richa Gupta
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Yong Liu
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, 33 Academic Way, Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Huanchen Wang
- Signal Transduction Laboratory, NIEHS/NIH, 111 T.W. Alexander Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
| | - Christopher T Nordyke
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Ryan Z Puterbaugh
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Wenjun Cui
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Krisztina Varga
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Feixia Chu
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Hengming Ke
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics and Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Harish Vashisth
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of New Hampshire, 33 Academic Way, Durham, NH 03824, USA
| | - Rick H Cote
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, 46 College Rd., Durham, NH 03824, USA.
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