AbstractThe membrane-bound transcription factor Nrf1 (i.e., encoded by Nfe2l1) is activated by sensing glucose deprivation, cholesterol excess, proteasomal inhibition and oxidative stress, and then mediates distinct signaling responses in order to maintain cellular homeostasis. Here, we found that Nrf1 stability and transactivity are enhanced by USP19, a tail-anchored ubiquitin-specific protease in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Further experiments revealed that USP19 directly interacts with Nrf1 in proximity to the ER and acts as a deubiquitinating enzyme to remove ubiquitin moieties from this protein and hence circumvent potential proteasomal degradation. Such USP19-mediated effect takes place only after Nrf1 is retrotranslocated by p97 out of ER membranes. Conversely, knockout of USP19 causes significant decreases in Nrf1 abundance and its active isoform entering the nucleus, resulting in down-regulation of its target proteasomal subunits. This led to a modest reduction of USP19−/−-derived tumor growth in xenograft mice, when compared with wild-type controls. Altogether, these demonstrate that USP19 serves as a novel mechanistic modulator of Nrf1, but not Nrf2. In turn, our additional evidence has also unraveled that transcriptional expression of endogenous USP19 and its promoter-driven reporter genes is regulated by Nrf2, as well by Nrf1, at distinct layers within a complex hierarchical regulatory network.
Ubiquitin-Specific Protease 25 Functions in Endoplasmic Reticulum-Associated Degradation