Potential Effector Proteins Research Articles

Rho GTPases and their effector proteins

Rho GTPases are molecular switches that regulate many essential cellular processes, including actin dynamics, gene transcription, cell-cycle progression and cell adhesion. About 30 potential effector proteins have been identified that interact with members of the Rho family, but it is still unclear which of these are responsible for the diverse biological effects of Rho GTPases. This review will discuss how Rho GTPases physically interact with, and regulate the activity of, multiple effector proteins and how specific effector proteins contribute to cellular responses. To date most progress has been made in the cytoskeleton field, and several biochemical links have now been established between GTPases and the assembly of filamentous actin. The main focus of this review will be Rho, Rac and Cdc42, the three best characterized mammalian Rho GTPases, though the genetic analysis of Rho GTPases in lower eukaryotes is making increasingly important contributions to this field.

Functional analysis of the fibrinogen-related scabrous gene from Drosophila melanogaster identifies potential effector and stimulatory protein domains.

The scabrous (sca) gene encodes a secreted dimeric glycoprotein with putative coiled-coil domains N-terminally and a C-terminal region related to the blood clot protein fibrinogen. Homozygous sca mutants have extra bristle organs and rough eyes. We describe a GAL4-based expression system for testing rescue of the sca mutant phenotype by altered SCA proteins and for misexpression. We find that deletion of the fibrinogen-related domain (FReD) greatly decreases SCA function, confirming the importance of this conserved region. SCA function could not be restored by FReDs from human fibrinogen chain genes. However, proteins lacking any FReD still showed some function in both rescue and misexpression experiments, suggesting that putative effector-binding regions lie outside this domain. Consistent with this, proteins expressing only the FReD had no rescuing activity but were recessive negative; i.e., they enhanced the phenotype of sca mutations but had no phenotype in the presence of a wild-type sca allele. This suggests that the FReD contributes to SCA function by binding to other components of the bristle determination pathway, increasing the activity of the linked N-terminal region.

Analysis of RhoA-binding Proteins Reveals an Interaction Domain Conserved in Heterotrimeric G Protein β Subunits and the Yeast Response Regulator Protein Skn7

To identify potential RhoA effector proteins, we conducted a two-hybrid screen for cDNAs encoding proteins that interact with a Gal4-RhoA.V14 fusion protein. In addition to the RhoA effector ROCK-I we identified cDNAs encoding Kinectin, mDia2 (a p140 mDia-related protein), and the guanine nucleotide exchange factor, mNET1. ROCK-I, Kinectin, and mDia2 can bind the wild type forms of both RhoA and Cdc42 in a GTP-dependent manner in vitro. Comparison of the ROCK-I and Kinectin sequences revealed a short region of sequence homology that is both required for interaction in the two-hybrid assay and sufficient for weak interaction in vitro. Sequences related to the ROCK-I/Kinectin sequence homology are present in heterotrimeric G protein beta subunits and in the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Skn7 protein. We show that beta2 and Skn7 can interact with mammalian RhoA and Cdc42 and yeast Rho1, both in vivo and in vitro. Functional assays in yeast suggest that the Skn7 ROCK-I/Kinectin homology region is required for its function in vivo.

Specific Binding of Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-Bisphosphate to Calcium-dependent Activator Protein for Secretion (CAPS), a Potential Phosphoinositide Effector Protein for Regulated Exocytosis

The calcium-dependent activator protein for secretion (CAPS) is a novel neural/endocrine-specific cytosolic and peripheral membrane protein required for the Ca2+-regulated exocytosis of secretory vesicles. CAPS acts at a stage in exocytosis that follows ATP-dependent priming, which involves the essential synthesis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P2). In the present studies, CAPS is shown to bind liposomes that contain acidic phospholipids and binding was markedly enhanced by inclusion of PtdIns(4,5)P2 but not other phosphoinositides in the absence of Ca2+. PtdIns(4,5)P2, but not other phosphoinositides including PtdIns(3, 4)P2 and PtdIns(3,4,5)P3, altered the susceptibility of CAPS to proteolysis by trypsin and proteinase K, suggesting that phosphoinositide binding promoted a conformational change. Photoaffinity labeling studies with a photoactivatable benzoylcinnimidyl acyl chain derivative of PtdIns(4,5)P2 confirmed the phosphoinositide-binding properties of CAPS and suggested a hydrophobic aspect of the interaction. CAPS, as one of very few characterized proteins with a binding specificity for 4-, 5-phosphorylated inositides over 3-phosphorylated inositides, may function in regulated exocytosis as an effector of PtdIns(4,5)P2.

An Effector-like Function of Ras GTPase-activating Protein Predominates in Cardiac Muscle Cells

In contrast to familiar role for Ras in proliferation, we and others previously suggested that Ras also mediates hypertrophy, the increase in cell mass characteristic of post-natal ventricular muscle. We showed that activated (G12R) and dominant-negative (S17N) Ha-Ras regulate "constitutive" and growth factor-responsive genes equivalently, in both cardiac myocytes and non-cardiac, Mv1Lu cells. Here, we attempt to delineate pathways by which Ras exerts this global effect. The E63K mutation, which impairs binding of guanine nucleotide releasing factor to Ras, alleviated suppression by S17N, consistent with sequestration of exchange factors as the mechanism for inhibition. To compare potential Ras effector proteins, we first engineered G12R/D38N, to abolish binding of Raf and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase and established that this site was indispensable for augmenting gene expression. To distinguish between inhibition of Ras by Ras GTPase-activating protein (GAP) versus a potential effector function of GAP, we tested the effector domain substitution P34R: this mutation, which abolishes GAP binding, enhanced Ras-dependent transcription in Mv1Lu cells, yet interfered with Ras-dependent expression in ventricular myocytes. To examine the dichotomous role of Ras-GAP predicted from these P34R results, we transfected both cell types with full-length GAP, the C-terminal catalytic domain (cGAP), or N-terminal Src homology domains (nGAP). In Mv1Lu cells, cGAP markedly inhibited both reporter genes, whereas GAP and nGAP had little effect. Antithetically, in ventricular myocytes, GAP and nGAP activated gene expression, whereas cGAP was ineffective. Thus, Ras activates gene expression through differing effectors contingent on cell type, and an effector-like function of GAP predominates in ventricular muscle.

APP-BP1, a Novel Protein That Binds to the Carboxyl-terminal Region of the Amyloid Precursor Protein

beta-Amyloid protein precursors (APPs, 695-770 amino acids) are the source of the 39-43 amino acid beta-amyloid (A beta) peptides that comprise diffuse and fibrillar deposits in the cerebral cortex and vasculature of Alzheimer's disease brains. A beta is thought to play a role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease, and, hence, considerable effort has been invested in defining the means by which A beta is generated from the APPs. Knowledge of the normal function of the APPs is sure to provide insights into the genesis and pathological persistence of A beta in Alzheimer's disease. APP is a cell surface protein with a large extracellular amino-terminal domain, a single transmembrane segment, and a short cytoplasmic tail. Its location and structural features characteristic of a receptor for signal transduction led us to search for potential effector proteins capable of binding and interacting with its cytoplasmic domain. Here, we report the cloning of a cDNA encoding one such protein. This ubiquitously expressed 59-kDa APP-binding protein, called APP-BP1, is 61% similar to a protein encoded by the Arabidopsis AXR1 gene, required for normal response to the hormone auxin, and is a relative of the ubiquitin activating enzyme E1.

A Conserved Binding Motif Defines Numerous Candidate Target Proteins for Both Cdc42 and Rac GTPases

Rho, Rac, and Cdc42 are small GTPases that regulate the formation of a variety of actin structures and the assembly of associated integrin complexes, but little is known about the target proteins that mediate their effects. Here we have used a motif-based search method to identify putative effector proteins for Rac and Cdc42. A search of the GenBankTM data base for similarity with the minimum Cdc42/Rac interactive binding (CRIB) region of a potential effector protein p65PAK has identified over 25 proteins containing a similar motif from a range of different species. These candidate Cdc42/Rac-binding proteins include family members of the mixed lineage kinases (MLK), a novel tyrosine kinase from Drosophila melanogaster (DPR2), a human protein MSE55, and several novel yeast and Caenorhabditis elegans proteins. Two murine p65PAK isoforms and a candidate protein from C. elegans, F09F7.5, interact strongly with the GTP form of both Cdc42 and Rac, but not Rho in a filter binding assay. Three additional candidate proteins, DPR2, MSE55, and MLK3 showed binding to the GTP form of Cdc42 and weaker binding with Rac, and again no interaction with Rho. These results indicate that proteins containing the CRIB motif bind to Cdc42 and/or Rac in a GTP-dependent manner, and they may, therefore, participate in downstream signaling.

A family of proteins that stabilize the Ran/TC4 GTPase in its GTP-bound conformation

Ran/TC4, referred to here as Ran1, is a 25-kilodalton nuclear GTP-binding protein with an acidic C terminus that lacks any consensus prenylation sites. Here, we use a nitrocellulose overlay assay to identify potential effector proteins that bind specifically and with high affinity to the GTP-bound form of Ran1. GTP-Ran1 is shown to bind a variety of proteins, present in many eukaryotic tissues and cell extracts. A 28-kDa protein is cytosolic, whereas others, consisting of proteins of 86-300 kDa, are primarily localized in the nucleus. Binding is highly specific and is not detected by other small GTPases, such as c-Ha-Ras or Rab3A. Both deletion of the C-terminal-DEDDDL acidic sequence or alteration of the N terminus of Ran1 inhibits binding. However, these altered forms of Ran1 maintain the capacity to bind guanyl nucleotides and interact with the nucleotide exchange factor. The Ran1-binding proteins potently inhibit release of GTP from Ran1. These proteins can therefore maintain Ran1 in the "on" state and are potential down-stream effectors for Ran1-dependent cellular processes.