scholarly journals The molecular mechanism of nuclear transport revealed by atomic-scale measurements

eLife ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loren E Hough ◽  
Kaushik Dutta ◽  
Samuel Sparks ◽  
Deniz B Temel ◽  
Alia Kamal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Resonance Spectroscopy ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Selective Filter ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Cellular Environment ◽  
Pore Complexes

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) form a selective filter that allows the rapid passage of transport factors (TFs) and their cargoes across the nuclear envelope, while blocking the passage of other macromolecules. Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) containing phenylalanyl-glycyl (FG)-rich repeats line the pore and interact with TFs. However, the reason that transport can be both fast and specific remains undetermined, through lack of atomic-scale information on the behavior of FGs and their interaction with TFs. We used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to address these issues. We show that FG repeats are highly dynamic IDPs, stabilized by the cellular environment. Fast transport of TFs is supported because the rapid motion of FG motifs allows them to exchange on and off TFs extremely quickly through transient interactions. Because TFs uniquely carry multiple pockets for FG repeats, only they can form the many frequent interactions needed for specific passage between FG repeats to cross the NPC.

scholarly journals The Effect of FG-Nup Phosphorylation on NPC Selectivity: A One-Bead-Per-Amino-Acid Molecular Dynamics Study

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ankur Mishra ◽  
Wouter Sipma ◽  
Liesbeth Veenhoff ◽  
Erik Van der Giessen ◽  
Patrick Onck
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Dynamics ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Protein Complexes ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Dynamics Simulations ◽  
Pore Complexes

Nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) are large protein complexes embedded in the nuclear envelope separating the cytoplasm from the nucleoplasm in eukaryotic cells. They function as selective gates for the transport of molecules in and out of the nucleus. The inner wall of the NPC is coated with intrinsically disordered proteins rich in phenylalanine-glycine repeats (FG-repeats), which are responsible for the intriguing selectivity of NPCs. The phosphorylation state of the FG-Nups is controlled by kinases and phosphatases. In the current study, we extended our one-bead-per-amino-acid (1BPA) model for intrinsically disordered proteins to account for phosphorylation. With this, we performed molecular dynamics simulations to probe the effect of phosphorylation on the Stokes radius of isolated FG-Nups, and on the structure and transport properties of the NPC. Our results indicate that phosphorylation causes a reduced attraction between the residues, leading to an extension of the FG-Nups and the formation of a significantly less dense FG-network inside the NPC. Furthermore, our simulations show that upon phosphorylation, the transport rate of inert molecules increases, while that of nuclear transport receptors decreases, which can be rationalized in terms of modified hydrophobic, electrostatic, and steric interactions. Altogether, our models provide a molecular framework to explain how extensive phosphorylation of FG-Nups decreases the selectivity of the NPC.

scholarly journals The molecular chaperone DNAJB6 provides surveillance of FG-Nups and is required for interphase nuclear pore complex biogenesis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. F. Elsiena Kuiper ◽  
Paola Gallardo ◽  
Tessa Bergsma ◽  
Muriel Mari ◽  
Maiara Kolbe Musskopf ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Chaperone ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Permeability Barrier ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complexes ◽  
Annulate Lamellae ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Pore Complexes

Biogenesis of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) includes the formation of the permeability barrier composed of phenylalanine-glycine-rich nucleoporins (FG-Nups) that regulate the selective passage/crossing of biomolecules. The FG-Nups are intrinsically disordered and prone to liquid-liquid phase separate and aggregate when isolated. It has remained largely unclear how FG-Nups are protected from making inappropriate interactions during NPC biogenesis. We found that DNAJB6, a molecular chaperone of the heat shock protein network, formed foci next to NPCs. The number of these foci decreases upon removal of proteins involved in the early steps of interphase NPC biogenesis. Reversely, when this process is stalled in the last steps, the number of DNAJB6-containing foci increases and they could be identified as herniations at the nuclear envelope (NE). Immunoelectron tomography showed that DNAJB6 localizes inside the lumen of the herniations arising at NPC biogenesis intermediates. Interestingly, loss of DNAJB6 results in annulate lamellae, which are structures containing partly assembled NPCs associated with disturbances in NPC biogenesis. We find that DNAJB6 binds to FG-Nups and can prevent the aggregation of the FG-region of several FG-Nups in cells and in vitro. Together, our data show that DNAJB6 provides quality control during NPC biogenesis and is the first molecular chaperone that is involved in the surveillance of native intrinsically disordered proteins, including FG-Nups.

scholarly journals Simple biophysics underpins collective conformations of the intrinsically disordered proteins of the Nuclear Pore Complex

eLife ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrei Vovk ◽  
Chad Gu ◽  
Michael G Opferman ◽  
Larisa E Kapinos ◽  
Roderick YH Lim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Organization ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Nucleocytoplasmic Transport ◽  
Transport Proteins ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Biophysical Model ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered

Nuclear Pore Complexes (NPCs) are key cellular transporter that control nucleocytoplasmic transport in eukaryotic cells, but its transport mechanism is still not understood. The centerpiece of NPC transport is the assembly of intrinsically disordered polypeptides, known as FG nucleoporins, lining its passageway. Their conformations and collective dynamics during transport are difficult to assess in vivo. In vitro investigations provide partially conflicting results, lending support to different models of transport, which invoke various conformational transitions of the FG nucleoporins induced by the cargo-carrying transport proteins. We show that the spatial organization of FG nucleoporin assemblies with the transport proteins can be understood within a first principles biophysical model with a minimal number of key physical variables, such as the average protein interaction strengths and spatial densities. These results address some of the outstanding controversies and suggest how molecularly divergent NPCs in different species can perform essentially the same function.

scholarly journals Structure and dynamics conspire in the evolution of affinity between intrinsically disordered proteins

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (10) ◽  
pp. eaau4130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Jemth ◽  
Elin Karlsson ◽  
Beat Vögeli ◽  
Brenda Guzovsky ◽  
Eva Andersson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Interaction ◽  
Protein Interactions ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Solvent Accessible Surface Area ◽  
Resonance Spectroscopy ◽  
Protein Protein Interactions ◽  
Structural Dynamic ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Structure And Dynamics

In every established species, protein-protein interactions have evolved such that they are fit for purpose. However, the molecular details of the evolution of new protein-protein interactions are poorly understood. We have used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to investigate the changes in structure and dynamics during the evolution of a protein-protein interaction involving the intrinsically disordered CREBBP (CREB-binding protein) interaction domain (CID) and nuclear coactivator binding domain (NCBD) from the transcriptional coregulators NCOA (nuclear receptor coactivator) and CREBBP/p300, respectively. The most ancient low-affinity “Cambrian-like” [540 to 600 million years (Ma) ago] CID/NCBD complex contained less secondary structure and was more dynamic than the complexes from an evolutionarily younger “Ordovician-Silurian” fish ancestor (ca. 440 Ma ago) and extant human. The most ancient Cambrian-like CID/NCBD complex lacked one helix and several interdomain interactions, resulting in a larger solvent-accessible surface area. Furthermore, the most ancient complex had a high degree of millisecond-to-microsecond dynamics distributed along the entire sequences of both CID and NCBD. These motions were reduced in the Ordovician-Silurian CID/NCBD complex and further redistributed in the extant human CID/NCBD complex. Isothermal calorimetry experiments show that complex formation is enthalpically favorable and that affinity is modulated by a largely unfavorable entropic contribution to binding. Our data demonstrate how changes in structure and motion conspire to shape affinity during the evolution of a protein-protein complex and provide direct evidence for the role of structural, dynamic, and frustrational plasticity in the evolution of interactions between intrinsically disordered proteins.

scholarly journals Dynamical Oligomerisation of Histidine Rich Intrinsically Disordered Proteins Is Regulated through Zinc-Histidine Interactions

Biomolecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 168 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carolina Cragnell ◽  
Lasse Staby ◽  
Samuel Lenton ◽  
Birthe Kragelund ◽  
Marie Skepö
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Divalent Cations ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Resonance Spectroscopy ◽  
Binding Motifs ◽  
Histatin 5 ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
X Ray Scattering

Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) can form functional oligomers and in some cases, insoluble disease related aggregates. It is therefore vital to understand processes and mechanisms that control pathway distribution. Divalent cations including Zn2+ can initiate IDP oligomerisation through the interaction with histidine residues but the mechanisms of doing so are far from understood. Here we apply a multi-disciplinary approach using small angle X-ray scattering, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, calorimetry and computations to show that that saliva protein Histatin 5 forms highly dynamic oligomers in the presence of Zn2+. The process is critically dependent upon interaction between Zn2+ ions and distinct histidine rich binding motifs which allows for thermodynamic switching between states. We propose a molecular mechanism of oligomerisation, which may be generally applicable to other histidine rich IDPs. Finally, as Histatin 5 is an important saliva component, we suggest that Zn2+ induced oligomerisation may be crucial for maintaining saliva homeostasis.

scholarly journals A Study of Intrinsically Disordered Proteins from Nuclear Pore Complex

2013 ◽  
Vol 104 (2) ◽  
pp. 55a-56a
Author(s):  
Jianhui Tian ◽  
Anton Zilman ◽  
Sandrasegaram Gnanakaran
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered

scholarly journals Single-molecule spectroscopy of unfolded proteins and chaperonin action

2014 ◽  
Vol 395 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 689-698 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hagen Hofmann
Keyword(s):  
Single Molecule ◽  
Molecular Chaperones ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Unfolded Proteins ◽  
Conformational Ensembles ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
Cellular Environment ◽  
Quantitative Understanding ◽  
Polypeptide Chains

Abstract In the past decade, single-molecule fluorescence techniques provided important insights into the structure and dynamics of proteins. In particular, our understanding of the heterogeneous conformational ensembles of unfolded and intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) improved substantially by a combination of FRET-based single-molecule techniques with concepts from polymer physics. A complete knowledge of the forces that act in unfolded polypeptide chains will not only be important to understand the initial steps of protein folding reactions, but it will also be crucial to rationalize the coupling between ligand-binding and folding of IDPs, and the interaction of denatured proteins with molecular chaperones in the crowded cellular environment. Here, I give a personalized review of some of the key findings from my own research that contributed to a more quantitative understanding of unfolded proteins and their interactions with molecular chaperones.

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