Biogenesis of tail-anchored proteins

2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (6) ◽  
pp. 1238-1242 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Borgese ◽  
S. Brambillasca ◽  
P. Soffientini ◽  
M. Yabal ◽  
M. Makarow

A group of integral membrane proteins, known as C-tail anchored, is defined by the presence of a cytosolic N-terminal domain that is anchored to the phospholipid bilayer by a single segment of hydrophobic amino acids close to the C-terminus. The mode of insertion into membranes of these proteins, many of which play key roles in fundamental intracellular processes, is obligatorily post-translational, is highly specific and may be subject to regulatory processes that modulate the protein's function. Recent work has demonstrated that tail-anchored proteins translocate their C-termini across the endoplasmic reticulum membrane by a mechanism different from that used for Sec61-dependent post-translational signal-peptide-driven translocation. Here we summarize recent results on the insertion of tail-anchored proteins and discuss possible mechanisms that could be involved.

2010 ◽  
Vol 430 (3) ◽  
pp. 497-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiguo Zhang ◽  
John D. Hayes

Nrf1 [NF-E2 (nuclear factor-erythroid 2)-related factor 1] is a CNC (cap'n'collar) bZIP (basic-region leucine zipper) transcription factor that is tethered to ER (endoplasmic reticulum) and nuclear envelope membranes through its N-terminal signal peptide (residues 1–30). Besides the signal peptide, amino acids 31–90 of Nrf1 also negatively regulate the CNC-bZIP factor. In the present study we have tested the hypothesis that amino acids 31–90 of Nrf1, and the overlapping NHB2 (N-terminal homology box 2; residues 82–106), inhibit Nrf1 because they control its topology within membranes. This region contains three amphipathic α-helical regions comprising amino acids 31–50 [called the SAS (signal peptide-associated sequence)], 55–82 [called the CRACs (cholesterol-recognition amino acid consensus sequences)] and 89–106 (part of NHB2). We present experimental data showing that the signal peptide of Nrf1 contains a TM1 (transmembrane 1) region (residues 7–24) that is orientated across the ER membrane in an Ncyt/Clum fashion with its N-terminus facing the cytoplasm and its C-terminus positioned in the lumen of the ER. Once Nrf1 is anchored to the ER membrane through TM1, the remaining portion of the N-terminal domain (NTD, residues 1–124) is transiently translocated into the ER lumen. Thereafter, Nrf1 adopts a topology in which the SAS is inserted into the membrane, the CRACs are probably repartitioned to the cytoplasmic side of the ER membrane, and NHB2 may serve as an anchor switch, either lying on the luminal surface of the ER or traversing the membrane with an Ncyt/Clum orientation. Thus Nrf1 can adopt several topologies within membranes that are determined by its NTD.


1998 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 2681-2697 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Moss ◽  
Andrew Helm ◽  
Yun Lu ◽  
Alvina Bragin ◽  
William R. Skach

Topogenic determinants that direct protein topology at the endoplasmic reticulum membrane usually function with high fidelity to establish a uniform topological orientation for any given polypeptide. Here we show, however, that through the coupling of sequential translocation events, native topogenic determinants are capable of generating two alternate transmembrane structures at the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. Using defined chimeric and epitope-tagged full-length proteins, we found that topogenic activities of two C-trans (type II) signal anchor sequences, encoded within the seventh and eighth transmembrane (TM) segments of human P-glycoprotein were directly coupled by an inefficient stop transfer (ST) sequence (TM7b) contained within the C-terminus half of TM7. Remarkably, these activities enabled TM7 to achieve both a single- and a double-spanning TM topology with nearly equal efficiency. In addition, ST and C-trans signal anchor activities encoded by TM8 were tightly linked to the weak ST activity, and hence topological fate, of TM7b. This interaction enabled TM8 to span the membrane in either a type I or a type II orientation. Pleiotropic structural features contributing to this unusual topogenic behavior included 1) a short, flexible peptide loop connecting TM7a and TM7b, 2) hydrophobic residues within TM7b, and 3) hydrophilic residues between TM7b and TM8.


2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 930-940 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuichiro Kida ◽  
Yudai Ishihara ◽  
Hidenobu Fujita ◽  
Yukiko Onishi ◽  
Masao Sakaguchi

Many membrane proteins are integrated into the endoplasmic reticulum membrane through the protein-conducting channel, the translocon. Transmembrane segments with insufficient hydrophobicity for membrane integration are frequently found in multispanning membrane proteins, and such marginally hydrophobic (mH) segments should be accommodated, at least transiently, at the membrane. Here we investigated how mH-segments stall at the membrane and their stability. Our findings show that mH-segments can be retained at the membrane without moving into the lipid phase and that such segments flank Sec61α, the core channel of the translocon, in the translational intermediate state. The mH-segments are gradually transferred from the Sec61 channel to the lipid environment in a hydrophobicity-dependent manner, and this lateral movement may be affected by the ribosome. In addition, stalling mH-segments allow for insertion of the following transmembrane segment, forming an Ncytosol/Clumen orientation, suggesting that mH-segments can move laterally to accommodate the next transmembrane segment. These findings suggest that mH-segments may be accommodated at the ER membrane with lateral fluctuation between the Sec61 channel and the lipid phase.


1991 ◽  
Vol 173 (10) ◽  
pp. 3231-3234 ◽  
Author(s):  
J P Sarsero ◽  
P J Wookey ◽  
P Gollnick ◽  
C Yanofsky ◽  
A J Pittard

1998 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 2231-2247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia D. Romano ◽  
Walter K. Schmidt ◽  
Susan Michaelis

Eukaryotic proteins containing a C-terminal CAAX motif undergo a series of posttranslational CAAX-processing events that include isoprenylation, C-terminal proteolytic cleavage, and carboxyl methylation. We demonstrated previously that the STE14gene product of Saccharomyces cerevisiae mediates the carboxyl methylation step of CAAX processing in yeast. In this study, we have investigated the subcellular localization of Ste14p, a predicted membrane-spanning protein, using a polyclonal antibody generated against the C terminus of Ste14p and an in vitro methyltransferase assay. We demonstrate by immunofluorescence and subcellular fractionation that Ste14p and its associated activity are localized to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane of yeast. In addition, other studies from our laboratory have shown that the CAAX proteases are also ER membrane proteins. Together these results indicate that the intracellular site of CAAX protein processing is the ER membrane, presumably on its cytosolic face. Interestingly, the insertion of a hemagglutinin epitope tag at the N terminus, at the C terminus, or at an internal site disrupts the ER localization of Ste14p and results in its mislocalization, apparently to the Golgi. We have also expressed the Ste14p homologue from Schizosaccharomyces pombe, mam4p, in S. cerevisiae and have shown that mam4p complements a Δste14 mutant. This finding, plus additional recent examples of cross-species complementation, indicates that the CAAX methyltransferase family consists of functional homologues.


2000 ◽  
Vol 182 (16) ◽  
pp. 4545-4556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael L. Howell ◽  
Eyad Alsabbagh ◽  
Ju-Fang Ma ◽  
Urs A. Ochsner ◽  
Martin G. Klotz ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT In this study, we have cloned the ankB gene, encoding an ankyrin-like protein in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. TheankB gene is composed of 549 bp encoding a protein of 183 amino acids that possesses four 33-amino-acid ankyrin repeats that are a hallmark of erythrocyte and brain ankyrins. The location ofankB is 57 bp downstream of katB, encoding a hydrogen peroxide-inducible catalase, KatB. Monomeric AnkB is a 19.4-kDa protein with a pI of 5.5 that possesses 22 primarily hydrophobic amino acids at residues 3 to 25, predicting an inner-membrane-spanning motif with the N terminus in the cytoplasm and the C terminus in the periplasm. Such an orientation in the cytoplasmic membrane and, ultimately, periplasmic space was confirmed using AnkB-BlaM and AnkB-PhoA protein fusions. Circular dichroism analysis of recombinant AnkB minus its signal peptide revealed a secondary structure that is ∼65% α-helical. RNase protection and KatB- and AnkB-LacZ translational fusion analyses indicated that katBand ankB are part of a small operon whose transcription is induced dramatically by H2O2, and controlled by the global transactivator OxyR. Interestingly, unlike the spherical nature of ankyrin-deficient erythrocytes, the cellular morphology of anankB mutant was identical to that of wild-type bacteria, yet the mutant produced more membrane vesicles. The mutant also exhibited a fourfold reduction in KatB activity and increased sensitivity to H2O2, phenotypes that could be complemented in trans by a plasmid constitutively expressing ankB. Our results suggest that AnkB may form an antioxidant scaffolding with KatB in the periplasm at the cytoplasmic membrane, thus providing a protective lattice work for optimal H2O2 detoxification.


1987 ◽  
Vol 104 (6) ◽  
pp. 1705-1714 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Finidori ◽  
L Rizzolo ◽  
A Gonzalez ◽  
G Kreibich ◽  
M Adesnik ◽  
...  

The co-translational insertion of polypeptides into endoplasmic reticulum membranes may be initiated by cleavable amino-terminal insertion signals, as well as by permanent insertion signals located at the amino-terminus or in the interior of a polypeptide. To determine whether the location of an insertion signal within a polypeptide affects its function, possibly by affecting its capacity to achieve a loop disposition during its insertion into the membrane, we have investigated the functional properties of relocated insertion signals within chimeric polypeptides. An artificial gene encoding a polypeptide (THA-HA), consisting of the luminal domain of the influenza hemagglutinin preceded by its amino-terminal signal sequence and linked at its carboxy-terminus to an intact prehemagglutinin polypeptide, was constructed and expressed in in vitro translation systems containing microsomal membranes. As expected, the amino-terminal signal initiated co-translational insertion of the hybrid polypeptide into the membranes. The second, identical, interiorized signal, however, was not recognized by the signal peptidase and was translocated across the membrane. The failure of the interiorized signal to be cleaved may be attributed to the fact that it enters the membrane as part of a translocating polypeptide and therefore cannot achieve the loop configuration that is thought to be adopted by signals that initiate insertion. The finding that the interiorized signal did not halt translocation of downstream sequences, even though it contains a hydrophobic region and must enter the membrane in the same configuration as natural stop-transfer signals, indicates that the HA insertion signal lacks essential elements of halt transfer signals that makes the latter effective membrane-anchoring domains. When the amino-terminal insertion signal of the THA-HA chimera was deleted, the interior signal was incapable of mediating insertion, probably because of steric hindrance by the folded preceding portions of the chimera. Several chimeras were constructed in which the interiorized signal was preceded by polypeptide segments of various lengths. A signal preceded by a segment of 111 amino acids was also incapable of initiating insertion, but insertion took place normally when the segment preceding the signal was only 11-amino acids long.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document