Neuropilins lock secreted semaphorins onto plexins in a ternary signaling complex

Abstract

Co-receptors add complexity to cell-cell signaling systems. The secreted semaphorin 3s (Sema3s) require a co-receptor, neuropilin (Nrp), to signal through plexin As (PlxnAs) in functions ranging from axon guidance to bone homeostasis, but the co-receptor’s role is obscure. Here we present the low resolution crystal structure of a mouse semaphorin-plexin-Nrp complex alongside unliganded component structures. Dimeric semaphorin, two copies of plexin and two copies of Nrp are arranged as a dimer of heterotrimers. In each heterotrimer sub-complex semaphorin contacts plexin as in co-receptor independent signaling complexes. The Nrp1s cross-brace the assembly, bridging between sema domains of the Sema3A and PlxnA2 subunits from the two heterotrimers. Biophysical and cellular analyses confirm that this Nrp binding mode stabilizes a canonical, but weakened Sema3-PlxnA interaction, adding co-receptor control over the mechanism by which receptor dimerization and/or oligomerization triggers signaling.